Early Start

Willow and I were out by 6am today, it was grey ,blustery and quite Autumn like. As we left the cottage a Tawny Owl called one last time before retiring for the day.
We entered the field with the magic hedgerow and after a quite start the birds starting to show themselves. There were not quite as many but with the colder and blustery conditions they were keeping their heads down.
The bushes provide plenty of berries and insects along this uncut hedge. I managed to find 8 plus Chiffchaff, 3 plus Willow Warbler, 2 Lesser Whitethroat, a female Blackcap  and a Spotted Flycatcher.
Overhead the start of the House Martin and Swallow migration was obvious with a count of 85 plus heading south west and a further 20 plus still active around the local colony. Swallows passed in the same direction with 46 plus heading   most passing straight over ,just 1 or 2 seemingly being local birds.
 The first 5 Common Gulls of the Autumn flew south and A Pied Wagtail passed over .
As I walked over the pastures the first Skylark was heard passing overhead the first for a number of days. Also seen were 3 Brown Hares ,Willow was not that bothered knowing it would be futile to chase them as they were far too quick for her.
A lot more Stock Doves were around today with 7 seen today. As we neared home we managed to see a cracking male Redstart away from the usual location and a Bullfinch was heard pewing away in the hedgerow.
On the raptor front a female Kestrel ,a male Sparrow hawk and 3 Buzzards were present.
The best of the rest were a Green Woodpecker, Greater Spotted Woodpecker ,a flock of 40 plus feral Greylag Geese over . It was also noticeable that there were more Goldfinch present today with 20 plus ,a sure sign that Autumn is well and truly on its way .   

Its all yellow

After a week away with work I was keen to get back onto the patch to see what has happened since last week .The weather was fine still warm with a gusty wind .
The first bird I heard was a Greater Spotted Woodpecker and in the end 2 were seen or heard ,also about were a Green Woodpecker.
 Along the magic hedgerow today were a fair variety of birds but not quite the number I saw last week .Most of the following birds were seen in the afore mentioned apart the odd bird. Totals were as follows 8 Chiffchaff, 5 Blackcap, 5 Whitethroat, at least 3 Redstart ( I think maybe four but not quite sure ), and just 2 Willow Warbler today.
As I left the hedge I was really pleased to first hear then see 2 adult and 1 juvenile Yellow Wagtails passing over in a small flock ,were they the local breeders or were they passing migrants?   , I hope they were the former but if they were they have been very elusive this year.
Overhead the conditions must have been perfect for the local Buzzards as up to 8 were seen over the patch today ,also a male Sparrow hawk put in an appearance. There was no sign of the Kestrel today.
2 Raven passed south low the patch both strangely silent today.
I only managed 1 Stock Dove today , much lower than the normal count we are used too.
It seems to have been a good year for the local House Martins as they appeared very active around the local colonies today with at 25 plus around today . Swallows kept them company with at 22 plus ,they seem to have been local birds as none were passing over straight south or south west.
So a bit quieter than last week but still a fair return ,lets hope for the migration engine to really start cranking up over the next few weeks , we still have to find another 4 species if we are to beat last years total of 83 .

Hot spot

The patch has been running hot at the moment with Autumn migration really going along at a nice pace. The magic hedgerow has attracted Redstart , multiple Spotted Flycatchers, Lesser Whitethroats, Whitethroats, Blackcaps, Chiffchaffs and Willow Warblers . There has been the first trickle of Swallow and Martins passing south and south west as well. The Thursday morning as I was getting up for work a Little Owl was calling ,a small compensation for getting up at 4.15am  !
So as Saturday dawned clear and sunny I was sort of optimistic that it could be a good walk. Stumbling bleary eyed out of the front door with Willow doing her pre walk two legged dance in front of me my spider senses were alerted by a Willow Warbler singing from the hedgerow just behind the cottage .It was game on then .
Into the first field and towards the magic hedgerow , yep lots of movement and darting little birds feeding on the Elderberries and insects . As I walked along the hedge line it was Chiffchaffs that were most evident and in the end I found at least 14 plus As I sorted through them I managed to see 5 Willow Warblers with 2 very helpfully singing .
Also darting about were 3 Lesser Whitethroat , 2 Whitethroat, 2 male and 1 female Redstart  now this was getting really good , after finding 4 Spotted Flycatchers I was thinking could it get any better when my attention was drawn to a bird sitting on a fence post at the edge of a fodder beet field, a quick glance and I was greeted by a superb Whinchat flycatching .Cracking birds and a real treat to see them on the patch .
 The sounds of House Martins made me glance skywards and a flock of 40 plus House Martins passed over heading down the river valley south . Swallows seem to have been local birds with 7 plus been seen .
Moving on away from the hedges a Mistle Thrush passed over ,as did the  usually invisible Green Woodpecker  .A Greater Spotted Woody called and flew straight over my head.
As I turned for home the soft call of a Bullfinch alerted to its presence ,but I did not catch a glimpse of it.
The sun was now fairly high up raptors started to appear , first a hunting female Kestrel ,then a male Sparrow hawk and then Buzzards ,first the usual mewing juvenile but then joined by 5 adults who together with a Sparrow hawk were soaring over the cottage together, an awesome sight.
The Raven is still hanging around and there were 4 Stock doves in the usual places.  
It was also nice to find a small flock of 15 plus House Sparrows feeding on thee edge of a maize field .
So the autumn is beginning to hot up and even in my little patch of no where you can see migration happening, so I suppose it does not matter where you are really if you keep your eyes peeled on your on area you will be surprised what you see .Patch birding is hard but worth the rewards when they appear  The Autumn has stared well so lets hope its just the start of a cracker.   

Magic Hedgerow

After breaking Willow s heart early this morning  when I opted for delights of Cleeve Hill and the  birds that inhabit our only upland area I eventually made onto the patch mid morning .
As mentioned yesterday the hedge that usually produces the most migrants again dished out the goods .If I had been there earlier what might I have turned up ?
Todays goodies were 2 Spotted Flycatchers ,with one very showy bird , Blackcap, 2 Chiffchaff, 2 Whitethroat,  a male Redstart, Lesser Whitethroat, and the Autumns second Willow Warbler .
Overhead 13 plus House Martin and 20 plus Swallows were about ,including one flock of 15 that passed straight over due south . The Autumns first 5 Black Headed Gulls passed south downriver.
Yet another Raven was seen today along with the constant mewing of a young Buzzard. The female Kestrel was still surveying her field that she has adopted as her own  .
 Once again the super natural Green Woodpecker called from somewhere.
 So a truncated walk today but it feels as if the patch is sort of purple right now with nice birds passing through .

Migrants on the move .

The morning dawned with heavy rain showers but still warm So after a quick of coffee and a bowl of Cornflakes Willow and I duly advanced into the rain.
 The first field we entered can be good for migrants along the hedgerows ,it is the highest field on the patch  and as such seems to catch any passing birds ,so with these rain showers about it would seem that this just may happen ,and guess what it did.
Along the hedgerow were up to 5 Spotted Flycatchers feeding in the light rain ,some were really close ,they really are great birds , also there  were 4 Chiffchaff, 1 Lesser Whitethroat feeding on elderberries along with 3 Blackcap  but best of all was a cracking male Redstart which pushes the patch total to 80 so far this year. Having missed the other one from a couple of weeks ago it came as a relief and its the first of the year for the patch as I was unsuccessful in seeing one in the spring (I have seen others but not the patch ).
Eventually moving on through the rain a female Kestrel was in her recently usual place and a couple of Buzzards were mewing .
 The invisible Green Woodpecker called but was  not seen and just 3 Stock Dove were seen the rest were no doubt trying to keep dry somewhere.
Overhead just 1 House Martin today and a trickle of Swallows amounted to 14 plus birds.
At the top end of the patch a Warblers contact call alerted me and after a bit of staring into the trees and hedgerow (Willow must think I am mad ), I eventually found the Autumns first  Willow Warbler feeding in the hedge, now that is a sign that Autumn has began for sure.
As I neared the cottage the churring of a Whitethroat allowed me just catch a glance as it disappeared into a hedgerow.
A party of 3 Raven were on the deck ,a nice change to see them on the ground instead of the usual overflying birds. Its easy to forget just how massive they are . Finally 2 Brown Hares darted away ,Willow was looking the other way at the time no doubt day dreaming about the upcoming breakfast.
So we can see that the great Autumn migration is starting ,the next few weeks will hopefully bring some surprise s and we have still plenty of time to see if we can surpass last years total of 83 species .
 The patch total now stands at 80

A Golden Sunday

Willow and I were out by just after 6am , me being having been woken by the gentle call of a Bullfinch outside the bedroom window .
It was a tad colder today although still warm , and the birds that were around had seemed to have moved on ,but there were a few new arrivals.
Overhead 12 plus Swallows whizzed around they all seemed to local birds .They were joined by 6 local House Martins and a further 8 birds that flew over at height in a single flock heading south west.
There were still 3 Kestrel on the patch ,one been seen to take a small rodent and devour atop a telegraph pole. . There were a least 4 Buzzards  ,2 being mewing juveniles calling constantly.
A Raven was herd distantly as was the usual invisible Green Woodpecker , also about were  4 Greater Spotted Woodies.
A single Cormorant  passed downriver heading towards the estuary ,after a paucity of records I am starting to see them again on a regular basis.
Along the hedgerows this morning were 5 Chiffchaff (still no Willows ) , 4 Blackcap and a good count of 6 Whitethroat. Here"s hoping that we get a good run on the warbler front this Autumn.
On the pasture were a Red Legged Partridge with 4 recently mobile chicks ,6 Stock Dove and 2/3 Skylarks.
 The Linnets have gone with just a couple of birds seen today.
The patch looked in fine fettle today with the sun shining on the golden Maize and the recently mown grassland ,it was a really beautiful English summers morning and a privilege to be out and about.

And so it begins

The start of the Autumn migration appears to be starting on the patch with the first few birds on the move been see. Over the last week in the village a Spotted Flycatcher was seen and a Lesser Whitethroat along with Blackcaps were seen feeding on the first elder berries. The hedges were full of the sounds of contact calls of warblers , Chiffchaff and maybe the odd Willow Warbler.
 So it was early Saturday that Willow and I ventured onto the patch, clear blue skies ,bright sun and not too hot as we were early enough to be the heat.
 The very first obvious birds seen were Kestrels with 4 been seen ,the newly mown fields are to their liking ,easier hunting I am guessing. Helping to carry the raptor flag were at least 4 Buzzards ,the juveniles calling to be fed but mum and dad ignoring them forcing them too hunt for themselves .
 In the hedges it appears that some birds are filtering through the patch with 12 plus Chiffchaff (could not find any Willow Warblers), , 4 Blackcap and a Lesser Whitethroat and its close relative a Common Whitethroat were all seen .
The Autumns first flock of Linnets were seen with a flock of 9 which paused briefly, the end total was 15 plus .
There were a few Swallows which seem to be moving south west with a flock of 6 flying high over ,the final count was 21 plus ,a few local birds but a trickle of birds passing over. Just 5 House Martins today , I just could not  seem to find any today.
A Raven was heard as was a Green Woodpecker ,speaking of Woodpeckers ,2 Greater Spotted were about today.
On the meadows there were still 6 plus Skylarks ,they seem to have bred on the patch this year and whats more have been successful . .6 Stock Dove were in the usual places and a Yellow Wagtail called from the fodder beet field were they have been for awhile .
A local Pied Wagtail sat atop a farm barn and a couple of Brown Hares were sat in the meadows .
As we made our way back to the cottage the gentle call of a Bullfinch alerted us  to its present , a great way to finish the walk .
So although it feels like high summer, for the birds Autumn has already started and the start of the great journeys they undertake  have started . The best time of the year has started so in the words of a famous Robbie  Williams song "come grab your binoculars and come follow me "