Amazing really that yesterday morning a green-winged teal turned up on Xerox lagoon, amazing because last year a green-winged teal turned up on the 14th November not more than ten meters from the exact spot! It of course seems logical to suspect that it may be the same bird but then never assume birds do anything we would assume! The bird stayed all day but we couldn't find it first thing this morning but then as its just acquiring its distinctive downward side stripe it only has to turn slightly away from you and its easily missed, so well worth a good scan through the teal to see if its hidden among them.
As per last year this bird was always a sleepy little quaker (he's on the left)
Some fantastic birding over the weekend too and an early arrival of winter in the form of snow! Trust me to get stuck out there while shepherding the cattle as the mini storm hit making me shelter in with the cattle against the electric pylon legs. Mind you it was fantastic to see the fieldfares battling against the storm (picture below)
This short-horn steer looks a bit miserable - maybe its because I'd nicked his best sheltering spot
The weather certainly forced some notable movements up river with yet another guillemot (the third record this year), two gannets and the first three gooseander of this winter on Saturday.
After Fridays hen harrier extravaganza it was well worth sitting in the nithering cold of Saturday (apparently the coldest October day locally since 2008) to watch the roost, I was certainly not disappointed with 14 marsh harriers and two hen harriers coming into roost late on. The hen harriers can be the very last birds to arrive so you really do need to wrap up warm and wait till the last.
Hen harrier from Friday
In fact the harrier roost has really provided some great birding recently with also short-eared owl, barn owl and merlin yesterday alongside the 15 Marsh harriers.
Duck numbers have gone down a little probably due to again our lowering water levels but still a nice selection of teal, gadwall, wigeon, shoveler about and a few water rails around the edges of the lagoons (some of which had ice on yesterday!), it seems that the lone whooper has moved on now but still a steady flow of small herds passing over with six on Saturday and a couple more since. Pink-footed geese are still regular and often fly over the reserve, but it was nice to see up to 1000 birds feeding out on the arable on Friday mostly feeding on Maize stubble.
Pinkies
And in the oil seed rape
Wigeon seem to be so late gaining their full plumage this year
With water levels still low due to continued drought conditions and low tides there is some consolation that there are few waders using the lagoons with up to 46 ruff and 17 black-tailed godwits, 13 dunlin, 23 redshank and then a few lapwing, curlew and snipe. Amazing though that with this cold weather many of the lapwing just cleared out of the area overnight on Thursday along with many of the golden plover although still about 800 of the later are out on the estuary.
Ruff coming in to roost at Singleton on Saturday - Interesting to note that of the 46 or so birds that came in only about 2 looked like females in size.
Dunlin are now in their winter plumage - these were at Ousefleet
With this northerly airflow there has certainly been some notable passage of birds fleeing the cold from the north and east, loads of fieldfares and Scandinavian blackbirds went through over the weekend with parties of hungry starlings, it was great to see our little Horseshoe meadow full of both these species avidly feeding and re-fueling their depleted fat reserves - off course meadows can when managed in different ways benefit lots of different wildlife.
Fieldfare feasting on the berries along the reserve hedge
Migrant blackbird - some lovely colour tones
Mixed thrushes and starlings on Horseshoe meadow - Traditionally managed meadows can be rich in both soil and plant invertebrates which make for good feeding opportunities
This morning it was the turn of the redwings with parties of 50+ tumbling out of the dreak grey sky along with a few song thrushes, chaffinches and the odd brambling while there were one or two goldcrests about. Around the bird feeders there has at times been a lovely mix of finches and sparrows feeding. I really love this time of year as there is a real expectancy in the air when so many birds are around.
Redwings from this morning
How many species can you identify from the bird table?
A pair of tree sparrow by one of the car park nestboxes - all fluffed up with the cold
A few other notable records include a nice male bullfinch this morning, a few rock/water pipits west, a few bearded tits but it seems like the irruptions are now subdued and then regular stonechat pairs dotted around the reserve.
Male stonechat, Ousefleet
But pride and place must go to our lovely little female kingfisher who just seems to get better and better in front of reception, these shots were from Saturday, you can really see every wonderful multi-coloured detail.
And I'll finish on a final photo from Bempton at the weekend of one of the lovely barred warblers that was (and still is alongside arctic redpoll!) present (we'd been seawatching at Filey when they turned up), in terms of rarities its amazing what great value we all get from the fantastic RSPB network of Yorkshire reserves! Just think of the good birds that have been on offer across Old Moor, Fairburn, St Aidens, Bempton and Blacktoft over the course of the year, I've certainly got some great memories of some great birds from all the sites.