First a confession, I sinned and left the patch for some easy birds down at Ashleworth , Redstart , Little Egrets , and species that are hard to get on the patch such as Willow Warbler were all easy picking s.
So since Sunday there have been variations of the usual birds on a daily basis , highlites being a very vocal Cuckoo which has called for the last 4 days and a flyover Red Kite which headed north east , maybe a late migrant .
A Curlew has been calling again from the river meadows again and most migrants are now busy raising their young . House Martins seem to be here in about the same numbers as last year, although we seem to have lost our Yellow Wagtails ,but I may have seen a Spotted Flycatcher earlier from the car as I drove into the driveway , it was a brief view so no definite id as yet ,but here "s hoping .
There are 2 pairs of Moorhens breeding on the patch this year ,a first for all the years I have lived here. There was also a male Yellowhammer present ,a good summer record. For my Bullfinch fan , I have managed to see at least three including a rather buff female .
There are plenty of Whitethroats this year and I am hoping it will be a bumper year for them .Blackcaps are faring well as are Chiffchaffs.
A proper update will follow on Saturday morning
Thursday, 22 May 2014
Saturday, 17 May 2014
Missing friends
Its a case of wall to wall sunshine at the moment , so there fore no birds that are passing over are liable to stop off. The last week as has been fairly quiet with only a Cuckoo of note .
It is fair to say that overall the spring has been very poor with birds only been seen in small numbers or even not at all. We seem to have lost our breeding Willow Warblers ,Yellow Wagtails and as yet our Spotted Flycatchers have not arrived .As far as House Martins concerned they are only present in very small numbers and Swallows are in low numbers as well. I wonder if this a local thing or have other people seen this ?
This morning was a stunning morning with the patch looking resplendent with Hawthorn in full flower and the fields covered in Buttercups .
In the hedges were 6 Blackcap ,along with 7 Whitethroat, 5 Chiffchaff and 1 Lesser Whitethroat.
The pastureland held 8 plus Skylark which were in fine voice , 3 Red Legged Partridge and a pair of Linnet which look as if they are breeding .
A Green Woodpecker and a Greater Spotted Woodpecker both called but were unseen.
Overhead 10 Swallow and just 3 House Martin were seen and 2 Buzzards soared overhead.
Just as I got home a fine pair of Bullfinch flew in front of me ,male and female were seen and I heard another when passing a hedgerow so 3 were in the vicinity .
All in all very quiet but who knows what may turn up .
It is fair to say that overall the spring has been very poor with birds only been seen in small numbers or even not at all. We seem to have lost our breeding Willow Warblers ,Yellow Wagtails and as yet our Spotted Flycatchers have not arrived .As far as House Martins concerned they are only present in very small numbers and Swallows are in low numbers as well. I wonder if this a local thing or have other people seen this ?
This morning was a stunning morning with the patch looking resplendent with Hawthorn in full flower and the fields covered in Buttercups .
In the hedges were 6 Blackcap ,along with 7 Whitethroat, 5 Chiffchaff and 1 Lesser Whitethroat.
The pastureland held 8 plus Skylark which were in fine voice , 3 Red Legged Partridge and a pair of Linnet which look as if they are breeding .
A Green Woodpecker and a Greater Spotted Woodpecker both called but were unseen.
Overhead 10 Swallow and just 3 House Martin were seen and 2 Buzzards soared overhead.
Just as I got home a fine pair of Bullfinch flew in front of me ,male and female were seen and I heard another when passing a hedgerow so 3 were in the vicinity .
All in all very quiet but who knows what may turn up .
Monday, 12 May 2014
High Drama
Sunday was a morning of high winds, heavy rain showers and a very cold feel , sort of October in May if you get my feeling. With that in mind I was not expecting to see much and I right I did"nt see much at all.
In the hedges were 5 Blackcap which sang despite the wind etc , meagre support were in the form of 2 Chiffchaff, 3 Whitethroat , and a Lesser Whitethroat .
Overhead 5 Swallow fed over the fields and the first 3 House Matins were around their nest sites at Town Street farm.
Around the fields itself were 5 Skylark ,1 Red Legged Partridge and a healthy 9 Stock Dove . In the field that has the Wheatears in there were 2Pied Wagtails feeding.
Bird of the day came in the form of a female Sparrow Hawk that zipped out a hedgerow and into a large oak tree.
As the title suggests the big news of the day was the sad event of one of the older nest boxes being dislodged by the wind and falling onto the lawn .Inside were 3 very recently hatched chicks and 4 eggs ,I managed to put the chicks and eggs back into the box and reattach the box to the tree although the box now has a large gap at the back and it is impossible to fix with the chicks in there , the adults were still trying to feed the young last night, but I have checked this afternoon and it looks as if they have given up ,very sad .
In the hedges were 5 Blackcap which sang despite the wind etc , meagre support were in the form of 2 Chiffchaff, 3 Whitethroat , and a Lesser Whitethroat .
Overhead 5 Swallow fed over the fields and the first 3 House Matins were around their nest sites at Town Street farm.
Around the fields itself were 5 Skylark ,1 Red Legged Partridge and a healthy 9 Stock Dove . In the field that has the Wheatears in there were 2Pied Wagtails feeding.
Bird of the day came in the form of a female Sparrow Hawk that zipped out a hedgerow and into a large oak tree.
As the title suggests the big news of the day was the sad event of one of the older nest boxes being dislodged by the wind and falling onto the lawn .Inside were 3 very recently hatched chicks and 4 eggs ,I managed to put the chicks and eggs back into the box and reattach the box to the tree although the box now has a large gap at the back and it is impossible to fix with the chicks in there , the adults were still trying to feed the young last night, but I have checked this afternoon and it looks as if they have given up ,very sad .
Saturday, 10 May 2014
Rant time
The last week has seen the return of wind and some heavy showers and during my brief visits to the patch it was nice to see a steady through put of Wheatears passing through and the addition of species number 73 with the appearance of 2 Sand Martin in amongst a flock of 10 Swallows that were grounded in the high winds .Although there are two small colonies nearby on the river it is a bird that does not show up too often.
I was out at 7am in an effort to correct the lousy coverage over the last weeks and although it was windy some birds are still passing through and some of the summer migrants and resident birds are busy with job of breeding and setting up territory .
In the hedges this morning were 6 Blackcap, 4 Chiffchaff , 6 Whitethroat , and still 2 Lesser Whitethroat.
A distant Cuckoo called briefly as did a Green Woodpecker. On the pasture a fine male Wheatear rested on his long journey and 7 Skylark were in fine voice. 2 Red legged Partridge ran over the field margin and disappeared from view . A Pied Wagtail was feeding on a recently rolled field.
Overhead 9 Swallow , just a single House Martin put in an appearance. It was then that species number 74 appeared with the first 5 Swift of the year heading north ,great birds , I love them .
A nice count of 8 Stock Dove were in breeding areas ,and a Moorhen called hidden from a small pond .
For my Bullfinch fan I managed to hear one but could not find it as it was hidden in the vegetation. 4 Buzzards were taking advantage of the conditions overhead . Willow and I also flushed 2 fine Brown Hares.
In the garden the pair of Blue Tits have failed as the nest box was damaged with the roof being half broken off, I will have to replace that for next year. It is good to see that Blackbirds and Starlings seem to be having a good breeding season locally. Some of our summer migrants are still missing to a larger extent with hardly any local House Martins ,Willow Warblers ,only one passing Yellow Wagtail and still no Spotted Flycatchers.
So the rant , People you must watch and support Chris Packham and his quest to stop the spring hunting in Malta , if you see what is going on it is a disgrace, with everything and I mean everything being blown out of the sky. Write to your MEP ,call the embassy ,boycott the island, I urge you to watch this, its on U Tube, it will make your blood boil . A similar thing is occurring in the Lebanon ,you can see this on Facebook with a group called Stop the Slaughter in Lebanon ,you will stare in disbelief at what these people are doing to OUR birds. We have to stop it now.
The patch list now stands at 74 .
A further update tomorrow
I was out at 7am in an effort to correct the lousy coverage over the last weeks and although it was windy some birds are still passing through and some of the summer migrants and resident birds are busy with job of breeding and setting up territory .
In the hedges this morning were 6 Blackcap, 4 Chiffchaff , 6 Whitethroat , and still 2 Lesser Whitethroat.
A distant Cuckoo called briefly as did a Green Woodpecker. On the pasture a fine male Wheatear rested on his long journey and 7 Skylark were in fine voice. 2 Red legged Partridge ran over the field margin and disappeared from view . A Pied Wagtail was feeding on a recently rolled field.
Overhead 9 Swallow , just a single House Martin put in an appearance. It was then that species number 74 appeared with the first 5 Swift of the year heading north ,great birds , I love them .
A nice count of 8 Stock Dove were in breeding areas ,and a Moorhen called hidden from a small pond .
For my Bullfinch fan I managed to hear one but could not find it as it was hidden in the vegetation. 4 Buzzards were taking advantage of the conditions overhead . Willow and I also flushed 2 fine Brown Hares.
In the garden the pair of Blue Tits have failed as the nest box was damaged with the roof being half broken off, I will have to replace that for next year. It is good to see that Blackbirds and Starlings seem to be having a good breeding season locally. Some of our summer migrants are still missing to a larger extent with hardly any local House Martins ,Willow Warblers ,only one passing Yellow Wagtail and still no Spotted Flycatchers.
So the rant , People you must watch and support Chris Packham and his quest to stop the spring hunting in Malta , if you see what is going on it is a disgrace, with everything and I mean everything being blown out of the sky. Write to your MEP ,call the embassy ,boycott the island, I urge you to watch this, its on U Tube, it will make your blood boil . A similar thing is occurring in the Lebanon ,you can see this on Facebook with a group called Stop the Slaughter in Lebanon ,you will stare in disbelief at what these people are doing to OUR birds. We have to stop it now.
The patch list now stands at 74 .
A further update tomorrow
Sunday, 4 May 2014
Two more for the patch.
Its been awhile since I updated the blog , circumstances have dictated otherwise, so in truth I may have missed some stuff that may have passed through .But that been said I got out on Thursday and found 2 more species for the year list .The first been 2 singing Lesser Whitethroats which were kept company by just 2 Chiffchaff, 4 Blackcap, 2 Whitethroat. It was mid afternoon so bird song was not at a premium .
A Cuckoo called from the river meadows and 5 Buzzards were up enjoying the conditions.
It was nice to see a Raven the first for awhile and Skylarks were in fine voice although there were only 4 .
Overhead 11 Swallows passed over , the best bird of the day was a fine male Yellow Wagtail which called as it passed due north .
In the pasture were the usual 2 Red Legged Partridge kept company by 2 Pied Wagtail.
The patch list goes to 72 for the year.
A Cuckoo called from the river meadows and 5 Buzzards were up enjoying the conditions.
It was nice to see a Raven the first for awhile and Skylarks were in fine voice although there were only 4 .
Overhead 11 Swallows passed over , the best bird of the day was a fine male Yellow Wagtail which called as it passed due north .
In the pasture were the usual 2 Red Legged Partridge kept company by 2 Pied Wagtail.
The patch list goes to 72 for the year.
Monday, 21 April 2014
Come in number 70 your time is up
A perfect morning , clear blue skies , a slight breeze , just perfect. Willow woke me up at 6.30am so I was out early. By the looks of it there had been a shower overnight ,had there been a few migrants brought down ? .
There were a few more Blackcaps around today with 9 been seen or heard and Chiffchaffs were slightly down with 5 . The Willow Warbler was singing again near the cottage but I think it will move on soon. Whitethroats remain at a static 5 , all singing from the hedges .
The good weather brought the sound of a Cuckoo calling from the direction of the river meadows . It was then things started hotting up when I discovered a superb male Whinchat on a patch of rough ground , number 70 for the patch for this year.
I had already passed some fields looking for Wheatears without success but on passing the same field there 2 fine males present , showing that birds were on the move, a little further on and another 3 males were found in another field .
Other birds moving north overhead were a trickle of 6 Swallow and a single House Martin , also a rather late Meadow Pipit , the first for quite a while .
On the pastures were at least 9 Skylarks were in fine voice ,and 3 Red Legged Partridge were dotted about . I managed to see a Yellowhammer as it disappeared over the hedges and I heard a Bullfinch calling from a hedge somewhere .I am always looking for Bullfinches now ,as there is a fan who reads this rubbish !
The best of the rest were 2 Mistle Thrush, 2 Pied Wagtail , Stock Dove , Moorhen , Greater Spotted Woodpecker .
The morning finished with 3 Buzzards over the cottage calling to each other .
The patch count stands at 70 .
There were a few more Blackcaps around today with 9 been seen or heard and Chiffchaffs were slightly down with 5 . The Willow Warbler was singing again near the cottage but I think it will move on soon. Whitethroats remain at a static 5 , all singing from the hedges .
The good weather brought the sound of a Cuckoo calling from the direction of the river meadows . It was then things started hotting up when I discovered a superb male Whinchat on a patch of rough ground , number 70 for the patch for this year.
I had already passed some fields looking for Wheatears without success but on passing the same field there 2 fine males present , showing that birds were on the move, a little further on and another 3 males were found in another field .
Other birds moving north overhead were a trickle of 6 Swallow and a single House Martin , also a rather late Meadow Pipit , the first for quite a while .
On the pastures were at least 9 Skylarks were in fine voice ,and 3 Red Legged Partridge were dotted about . I managed to see a Yellowhammer as it disappeared over the hedges and I heard a Bullfinch calling from a hedge somewhere .I am always looking for Bullfinches now ,as there is a fan who reads this rubbish !
The best of the rest were 2 Mistle Thrush, 2 Pied Wagtail , Stock Dove , Moorhen , Greater Spotted Woodpecker .
The morning finished with 3 Buzzards over the cottage calling to each other .
The patch count stands at 70 .
Sunday, 20 April 2014
Prolonged 69er !
The weekend dawned clear, bright ,with some sunshine on offer. So I was ready to clock up the 70th species for the patch as it appeared the conditions would be perfect for doing just that , but as you can see it was not to be. That being said however it was still a productive walk.
First bird heard was a singing Willow Warbler near the cottage, they are moving through at the moment ,although they do breed very close by at Ashleworth . Their close relative the Chiffchaff seemed to have arrived in numbers with 8 been seen or heard ,however Blackcap only numbered 2 , some having moved on .
In the hedges Whitethroats were up in number with 4 singing from a number of locations , but no sign of any Lesser Whitethroats as yet .
From the river meadows came the call of a Curlew , I hope they succeed in breeding this year .
On the pasture there were at least 8 Skylark in fine voice and a good count of 6 of Red Legged Partridge around .
The ever present Green Woodpecker called and 2 Stock Dove put in a appearance . A distant drumming Greater Spotted Woodpecker was also heard .
It is pleasing to report that a pair of Mistle Thrush appear to have bred on the patch , I saw birds carrying food to the nest , a good sign.
On the raptor front 2 Buzzards were overhead and a female Kestrel was given a good shoeing by the local crows as she made her way over the patch .
There were a few Swallows noted with small flock noted in the top fields ,some birds resting on a wire fence, perhaps taking a quick rest during their journey north, numbers are still low with only 6 seen today.
What a difference a day makes as Sunday has dawned cold ,grey with a biting wind. I have a feeling that it will have put the brakes on migration . I went on the usual circuit not very optimistic and it was confirmed as it was a very quiet walk.
There was a trickle of northward bound Swallows with 12 zipping past .
In the hedges were 5 Blackcap and 9 Chiffchaff this morning , but just 2 Whitethroat were seen , one giving a good view of its display flight this morning.
The male Yellowhammer is still singing which is a good sign , so I am keeping my fingers crossed.
On the pastures were just 2 Skylarks and a single Red Legged Partridge , perhaps it was just too cold for singing today.
For my Bullfinch fan ,success ! when I found 2 stonking males and 1 female near one of their usual feeding places , so they are around .
The best of the rest of a rather short list were a Greater Spotted Woodpecker and 3 Stock Dove.
In the garden the pair of Blue Tits are in residence in the nest box and the Robins have set up home in the adjoining hedgerow of the our nearest neighbours .
I have already seen a juvenile Blackbird in the garden which seems very early
First bird heard was a singing Willow Warbler near the cottage, they are moving through at the moment ,although they do breed very close by at Ashleworth . Their close relative the Chiffchaff seemed to have arrived in numbers with 8 been seen or heard ,however Blackcap only numbered 2 , some having moved on .
In the hedges Whitethroats were up in number with 4 singing from a number of locations , but no sign of any Lesser Whitethroats as yet .
From the river meadows came the call of a Curlew , I hope they succeed in breeding this year .
On the pasture there were at least 8 Skylark in fine voice and a good count of 6 of Red Legged Partridge around .
The ever present Green Woodpecker called and 2 Stock Dove put in a appearance . A distant drumming Greater Spotted Woodpecker was also heard .
It is pleasing to report that a pair of Mistle Thrush appear to have bred on the patch , I saw birds carrying food to the nest , a good sign.
On the raptor front 2 Buzzards were overhead and a female Kestrel was given a good shoeing by the local crows as she made her way over the patch .
There were a few Swallows noted with small flock noted in the top fields ,some birds resting on a wire fence, perhaps taking a quick rest during their journey north, numbers are still low with only 6 seen today.
What a difference a day makes as Sunday has dawned cold ,grey with a biting wind. I have a feeling that it will have put the brakes on migration . I went on the usual circuit not very optimistic and it was confirmed as it was a very quiet walk.
There was a trickle of northward bound Swallows with 12 zipping past .
In the hedges were 5 Blackcap and 9 Chiffchaff this morning , but just 2 Whitethroat were seen , one giving a good view of its display flight this morning.
The male Yellowhammer is still singing which is a good sign , so I am keeping my fingers crossed.
On the pastures were just 2 Skylarks and a single Red Legged Partridge , perhaps it was just too cold for singing today.
For my Bullfinch fan ,success ! when I found 2 stonking males and 1 female near one of their usual feeding places , so they are around .
The best of the rest of a rather short list were a Greater Spotted Woodpecker and 3 Stock Dove.
In the garden the pair of Blue Tits are in residence in the nest box and the Robins have set up home in the adjoining hedgerow of the our nearest neighbours .
I have already seen a juvenile Blackbird in the garden which seems very early
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