Wednesday 31 December 2014

last post for 2014

So this morning was the last chance to see if we could add to our species list for the year. Willow and I hit the patch at 9am ,my mouth infection was still horrible and still made me feel crap .
The early frost was thawing and the wind was picking up with the milder temps that were forecast arriving on time.
Winter Thrush were plentiful around the patch with 118 plus Redwing and 40 plus Fieldfare feeding on the thawing pasture land . Blackbirds were still around in numbers with 19 plus seen today on the hedges and in the fields . Just 2 Mistle Thrush were seen today and there were fewer Song Thrush than of late.
On the pastures there were 16 plus Meadow Pipits with 5 Pied Wagtails  feeding on the top fields ,along side these two were a nice number of Skylarks with 16 plus about this morning.
The Starling numbers on the patch still rise with up to 400 plus seen today. A really nice bonus for this morning were a small party of 3 Lapwing which fed on one of the top stubble fields .They were probably forced onto the pasture by the fact the river meadows had frozen over night .We usually see more as the winter changes to Spring with birds pausing briefly on there way north, if we lucky there are sometimes some Golden Plover as well .
In the hedges were a  Jay, and 3 very smart looking Bullfinch ,the male looking superb in the morning sun light . I could only muster a single Stock Dove today ,the rest seem to have disappeared.
The final birds of note for the walk were a small party of 6 Greylag Geese which headed towards the river.
On the raptor front were 2 Buzzard and a hunting male Kestrel.
So we end on 87 species for the year, 2 up from last year .Its only a small patch of nothing and that's why its great to see what passes through on its journey from or to who knows where . There have been plenty of high lights this year of course the Osprey in April must jump out but my favourite memory for the last year is when a holidaying birder from London asked if he could visit the patch .He had never seen a Redstart and that time we seem to be in a rich vain of form as far as these birds were concerned ,we eventually found a female but it was hard work and we had been tripping over them for the previous weeks , it was great to give this birder a lifer and it will stay with him forever as his first Redstart.  On the same walk we saw the first 3 Meadow Pipits of the Autumn and that was the same buzz for me ,the signal that the Autumn migration had started .
So thank you to all the birds that let me spot you as you passed through ,to the ones I missed I will get you next time, thank you to all you guys who have read this inane dribble and stayed the course ,you may have discovered the cure for insomnia .
If I have inspired you to leave a little space in your hectic life for some wildlife (not sex ,drugs and rock n roll ) then get out there and see what you might spot ,you will be surprised what you might find .I wish you all a Happy New Year and thanks for reading Tirley Twittering.
The new year beckons and I wonder what we will see this year ?

Sunday 28 December 2014

26th and 28th update.

As the old year spills quickly away there seems little hope that we will add one more species total of 87 for the year. But being the optimist I was out with Willow on Boxing day morning to see what was about. Of course I was not feeling on top form as I was in the process of attaining an infection under a cracked wisdom tooth , not much seasonal cheer in that department .
There were still good numbers of Blackbirds around with a massive 29 plus seen today .The other winter Thrushes still were over the patch with 31plus Fieldfare and 90 plus Redwing feeding on the hedgerows or on pasture. Just a single Mistle Thrush but still at least 7 Song Thrush also. There were also 2 Bullfinch around we seem to be enjoying a good run of these at the moment .
 In the top fields there were still good numbers of birds with a mobile flock of at least 30 plus Meadow Pipits along with at least 8 Pied Wagtails mixed in with them .
In the same vicinity were at least 14 plus Skylark and a good count of 16 Stock Dove ,the latter being a good count for this time of year.
The by now usual 2 Red Legged Partridge headed for the hills as we appeared . The other bird of note was a flock of at least 250 plus Starling feeding in the same fields , good to see some in numbers after a poor Autumn for them on the patch .
On the raptor front we managed a single Buzzard, a male Kestrel perched over a ploughed field and a female Sparrow Hawk which made a failed attempt at a Skylark .
The pastures are attracting a few passing Gulls and a small flock of Lesser Black Backed, Herring, Common, and Black Headed Gulls were feeding amongst the cattle.
The best of the rest today were a Green Woodpecker and a calling Jay.
The 28th dawned very cold after a hard frost ,the first of the winter too really bite. It was a clear blue sky that greeted Willow and I this morning and I had to wrap a scarf over my swollen cheek/ mouth to keep out the cold as I was in great pain with this flaming infection, I am beginning to wonder  when the drugs will kick in ,it cannot come soon enough believe me !
 The frost was heavy on the ground and the patch still held good numbers of winter Thrush with 77 plus Redwing, 48 plus Fieldfare, 4 Mistle Thrush, 20 plus Blackbird and at least 5 Song Thrush .
On the top fields there were still 14 plus Meadow Pipits, 4 Pied Wagtails and just 4 Skylark, all reduced in numbers perhaps there have been moved on by the cold snap. One bird has increased however with over 350 plus Starling feeding on the nearby pastures.
The gull flock today included 10 Lesser Black Backed Gulls, 1 Common Gull, 4 Herring Gull and 10 Black Headed Gull .
 On the raptor front just a couple Buzzard today was all we could muster.
An over flying Mute Swan was nice to see ( not something we see that often so worthy of a mention).
The best of the rest today were a Green Woodpecker ,a fly over Greater Spotted Woodpecker, 2 Bullfinch, and 3 Stock Dove.
 However the best sighting by a country mile was a fine Fox that looked a picture of health as it trotted over the frost whitened fields, just superb and a large middle finger to local Fox hunt .  Lets hope they all got really wet and cold yesterday .
Out tomorrow to see whats about so expect another update.

Thursday 25 December 2014

23rd /24th update , A Christmas Cracker

With the Holidays about to start, it was the right thing to do and get out on that patch. It was mild, and windy with some rather unpleasant sheets of drizzle passing over. The patch has been quiet of late but today it perked up with some good numbers of the  winter visitors we see around at this time of year.
The main birds once again on the patch were the winter Thrush s with a good count of 280 plus Fieldfare along with 70 plus Redwing and another good number of Blackbirds with at least 25 plus been seen .There were also 3 Mistle Thrush and at least 7 Song Thrush.
In the tops fields there were at least 25 plus Meadow Pipits and a healthy 20 plus Pied wagtails feeding on a stubble field. It was good to see a small flock of 15 plus Chaffinch. In the field margins 3 Red Legged Partridges lurked. .There were a suprising number of Stock Doves about with 30 plus today far more than usual  .Skylarks chipped in with 15 plus today.
There are not as many Starlings this winter so a count of 150 plus was nice to see.
The hedges are quiet at this time of year ,and I found a good count of 4 Bullfinch today . Robins are back to the normal numbers. I am going to just mention a nice small flock of 6 Common Gull on pasture ,great birds which are often over looked .They are very demure birds ,a real northern bird and nice to see down here in the winter.
Overhead a Raven passed eastwards and a Green Woodpecker called .
Christmas dawned colder , so just a tad more seasonal .The first birds I saw were 2 Greater Spotted Woodpeckers which flew low over to the south .
As I walked the magic hedgerow a small bird came into view and it was nice to be able to report a cracking little Goldcrest , a great little bird to see on the patch at this time of year. The first Linnets were seen for awhile  with a couple in the hedges.
Winter Thrush s were still around but in much smaller numbers than yesterday. All  I could manage were 15 plus Fieldfare, 12 plus Redwing ,4 Mistle Thrush and still a healthy 16 plus Blackbirds .There were at least 7 Song Thrush present.
In the hedges today of note were 8 Long Tailed Tits and a female Bullfinch .
On the pastures today were 20 plus Meadow Pipits , along with 12 plus Skylark and just 6 Pied Wagtails .A couple of Red Legged Partridges hot footed over the fields when they saw me coming towards them .
The best of the rest were a Buzzard, 2 Green Woodpecker ,a Jay and just 6 Stock Dove today .
Any way thanks for reading this drivel and as we enter the last week lets hope for a Christmas Big one .

Sunday 21 December 2014

overdue update

Sorry its been a bit quiet on the blog front but the Christmas rush has made visits to the patch not as regular as they should have been .
The patch has slipped into the winter doldrums and there have been very few high lights apart from Tawny Owls which have been vocal and on Thursday a Little Owl which called several times .
 So Willow and I ventured onto the patch in the hope that maybe Santa may deliver something cracking into my Christmas Stocking as you who read this drivel know I have been or at least tried to have been a good boy this year. He did not deliver and the bird life was what I would of expected to have found at this time of year.
The winter Thrush count for today amounted to 52 plus Redwing, 25 plus Field fare ,2  Mistle Thrush ,the odd Song Thrush and around 19 plus Blackbird.
The only birds of note in the hedges were a passing flock of 10 Long Tailed Tits  ,and an assortment of Finches in one area with 15 plus Chaffinch ,10 plus Goldfinch and 4 Greenfinch all together .
It was quite good on the pastures however with 20 plus Meadow Pipits and a good count of 17 plus Pied wagtails feeding on the manured fields .There were also a small flock of 4 Stock Dove present.
The flock of Skylarks that winter with us only amounted to 7 plus Birds today ,a lower number than I would of expected.
On the raptor front a male Sparrow Hawk cruised over the garden and there were 2 Kestrel hunting the patch today. The Buzzard count got to 3 today .
The only other birds of note were 2 Jays calling to each other and the usual Green Woodpecker .
So it looks as if the patch is limping over the line towards the end of the year and unless we get some cold weather I cannot see us getting another species to add to our tally for the year

Sunday 7 December 2014

Back on the Patch ,and one that got away

Life has been getting in the way of the birding for the last couple of weeks and last weekend I went to see England play Australia so again I was not able to cover the patch.
The last couple of weeks has seen a male Peregrine over the patch ,calling Little Owl early one evening ,my first ever garden Jays (2), garden Bullfinch , and a liberal sprinkling of winter Thrushes .The feeders although busy have not brought anything unusual in as the weather has remained for the most part fairly mild ,that been said the last couple of days have been colder.
So Willow and I hit the patch as soon it was semi light ,it was milder with some lively showers moving through .It was obvious that we still had a good number of Blackbirds wintering with us with a final count of 26 plus seen today, but there was one bird that as it shot from my right made a call like a RING OUZEL,  it was not a Fieldfare, Blackbird coloured but I did not get a long enough view to positively ID it .It was gone in a flash and I have seen Ring Ouzel before but I cannot claim it as it was just too quick to get a firm bead on it .It could of been 88 but we remain on 87. It would be very late for a Ring Ouzel but they are still been seen as are other late summer migrants. The one that got away.
Winter Thrush were all over the patch and counts of 45 plus Redwing and 57 plus Fieldfare were nice to see, also present were 7 Song Thrush and 3 Mistle Thrush, have I seen all 5 species of British Thrush this morning ?  we will never know !
Along the hedges a female Stonechat was a good bird to see ,maybe she is wintering with us, others of her kind have since moved on. I managed to find 4 Bullfinch this morning ,including one very near the cottage again . Its also nice to report a Chiffchaff which was hwooeting away in the hedgerow, I could not turn into one of the Siberian variety ,it was just a Chiffchaff  but still a good bird to see. The number of Robins is back to normal levels and unless we get another influx I will not count them again.
The pastures were quiet with just 3 each of Meadow Pipit and Skylark (although I did see a flock of 9 yesterday) ,  Stock Dove numbered only 4 . There was a flock of 120 plus Starling  feeding on sheep pasture . Around the dung heaps 3 Pied Wagtails were feeding .
Overhead a Raven passed over ,and 3 Buzzards were floating about .Other Raptors seen were a male Kestrel and a superb Peregrine that made an unsuccessful attempt at some Woodpigeons
The best of the rest were a Green Woodpecker.
With the weather turning colder lets hope for the big one before the years end.