The local list, and beyond...

After a good morning’s birding last Sunday I awoke on Monday to another dry, bright day. The idea of spending it inside, at work didn’t really appeal but I had no choice, the money pays for the bikes I enjoy so much and also for the fuel to go birding! I did try and make the most of it though by taking a bit of a diversion on the ride to work. I went in search of Cetti’s Warbler.

Two Cetti’s took up residence by the River Derwent last spring and it looks like they have managed to survive the harsh winter we’ve had here. Both birds have been heard singing over the past couple of weeks and on Monday I was lucky enough to hear one of them. Maybe if I had had the time the bird would have shown itself but, for now, I’m happy to have species 83 on the “10-Mile List”, even if it is a “heard only” .

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Yesterday, Lynda and I spent the day birding in Thetford Forest with the Derby RSPB Group. This is a trip I look forward to each year. The birding is usually good, the weather okay and the walk, at both sites, is enjoyable too. This year proved to be just as good, if not better, than any in the past.

The day started off at 7:30am when the coach left Derby. By the time we were on the outskirts of Nottingham I was already dozing off to sleep! The trip to Thetford, by coach, is not the quickest of journeys so it gives you plenty of time to catch up on the shut-eye. I did managed to be awake in time for the breakfast stop on the A17 - a sausage & bacon sandwich - and also to see a group of around 40 Golden Plover fly alongside the coach at one point. Two zebras and two camels, outside of a circus tent, completed the excitement for the journey.

Santon Downham, as usual, was the first venue we visited and although I recorded just 30 species it was a very rewarding couple of hours of birding. Just a matter of yards from the coach and we were watching a group of 8 Crossbill. Whilst admiring these stunning birds we were interrupted by 3 Marsh Tit as they flew around above us and then landed in a small bush by the roadside. A little further down the path and we came across 3 Yellowhammer, a Great Spotted Woodpecker and the first of many Long-tailed Tit, Coal Tit, Great Tit and Blue Tit.

As we continued on towards the open heath area my thoughts started to turn to finding Woodlark, one of the target species of this trip. It was at this point that I was mugged! That’s right, mugged! By a group of sheep! They had decided that they were hungry and that my beef and onion pie was going to be on their menu for lunch. What they didn’t realise is that I’m rather well know on the RSPB trips for my love of food and that I do not share it! They stood no chance.

The bandits move in for the kill...

The ring leader!

Once past the sheep we soon heard a Woodlark singing. That was the easy part, we then had to try and see it. After at least ten minutes of scanning the ground around the area we thought the birds were we finally spotted a Woodlark. It was flying around above us! What Lynda and I thought were two birds singing from the floor turned out to be just one bird in song flight. I was so used to seeing these elusive little brown jobs on the ground that I never even thought about looking up! As we moved on from the Woodlark we also added Jay to our day list as a single bird flew from the cover of a small wood by the railway line.

Brambling was the next species we located with around half a dozen birds feeding on the railway embankment and also showing well from the lower branches of a group of beech trees. As we started to head back to the coach we paused for a short while in a small wooded area by the church and located Wren, Treecreeper, Siskin and Goldfinch. The walk along the river was rather quiet but did turn up Mallard, Pheasant and Green Woodpecker. Lynda and I also managed distant views of a Goshawk that would have taken bird-of-the-day award if it had been just a little closer. As it was, the views were just too distant, and too brief.

The second part of the day was spent at Lynford Arboretum and the, now, rather grandly named Lynford Water. For years we have visited the arboretum and also checked the gravel pits at the rear of the car park. Now that the gravel extraction has finished we are able to visit Lynford Water... the same gravel pits but without the machinery and with some information boards! Actually, that is a little unfair. They have done a lot of work to landscape the area and have also put in a number of gravel paths and a hide. It was from the hide that we came across possibly the most unexpected bird of the day, a Mediterranean Gull. Ten Common Gull, 4 Lesser Black-backed Gull and around 200 Black-headed Gull were also present. Other birds on the lakes included Great Crested Grebe, Mute Swan, Greylag Goose, Gadwall, Tufted Duck and a female Goldeneye.

In the arboretum we located Coal Tit, Nuthatch, Greenfinch, Siskin, Goldfinch, Lesser Redpoll and another group of 8 Crossbill. At least 3 Hawfinch were in the usual trees at the back of the arboretum and they showed well despite the light not being too good. Two Redwing were also in the trees here and a small group of Pheasant were feeding in the field, one of which was one of the pure white ones that we have seen here in previous years. The walk back to the car park turned up a Moorhen, Wren, Robin, a couple of Song Thrush, a single Goldcrest and also another Marsh Tit.

In total, 41 species were seen at Lynford. When including birds seen from the coach, from Santon Downham and also Lynford we recorded 51 species in all. It may not be a huge total but it did include some great birds.

Thetford Forest...

The trip to Thetford Forest yesterday produced the goods once again - some great birds and also some reasonably good weather too. The day also started off a lot more relaxed than last month’s RSPB trip; we remembered to set the alarm on Saturday night and didn’t have to rush to catch the coach! The rain that had been forecast for much of the morning started to fall just as we left the house, but had stopped by the time we reached Derby. From then on it was a dry and bright day. Once again, whilst waiting for the coach, we had good views of the Derby Cathedral Peregrines.

Derby Cathedral.

Santon Downham was our first stop of the day and provided us with a total of 33 species, which, spookily enough, is exactly the same as last year’s trip! Woodlark is always the main target bird for us at this location and, after a bit of searching, we struck it lucky once again. At least two larks were seen and in the end they gave great views to everyone on the trip. Whilst watching the Woodlark, and making sure everyone else got to see them, I also picked up Buzzard, Green Woodpecker, Mistle Thrush, Yellowhammer, numerous Siskin and a Jay. March 14 and this is the first Jay I’ve seen all year! Where are they all?

A little further along the path from the Woodlark Lynda and I caught up with a small group of our party that said they had found something of interest - it turned out to be an Adder! They said it was a way of thanking me for finding the Woodlark. Little did they know, if there’s one thing I HATE its snakes! I did manage to build up enough nerve to get a quick photo but came out in a cold sweat in the process! I was not a happy bunny at this point and moved swiftly on!

Want a better photo? Take your own!

The walk back to the coach, along the river path, was a little quieter than usual but we did manage to see a Great Spotted Woodpecker, a pair of Grey Wagtail, a small flock of Redwing and a Goldcrest. A Water Rail provided many of us with outstanding views as it fed on the riverbank. The bird spent long periods of time out in the open and was not in the least worried about people passing by on the path, most unusual for this species.

Our second site of the day was Lynford Arboretum, just a short drive away. The arboretum, and nearby lakes, were rather quiet compared with previous visits with just 32 species being seen by Lynda and I. We have no complaints about the quality of birding here though as we got to see Hawfinch, a site speciality, and also a group of 12 Crossbill. The Crossbill gave themselves away by calling loudly as they approached us through the woods and then settled in the top of a tree right in front of us. We got great views of the birds but unfortunately only one other member of our group was close by at the time, the other 45 or so missed out! Maybe in future they’ll not be so keen to show me snakes in return for Woodlarks!

Other birds here included Little Grebe, Great Crested Grebe, Great Spotted and also Green Woodpecker, Song and Mistle Thrush, Treecreeper and Siskin. Two albino Pheasants were also seen. As we walked back to the coach at the end of the afternoon we came across a rather nice carving that had been created on a broken tree trunk - I don’t think I’d fancy meeting this guy in the dark!

In and out of "the zone"...

After a somewhat difficult week at work I was more than ready for my two days off this weekend. I ought to have treated myself to a few hours extra in bed, to try and catch up on lost sleep, but sacrifices had to be made if I was to get my target birds this weekend! On Saturday I was out of bed at 6:00am; this morning it was 6:45am - no rest for the wicked as they say.

Saturday’s first birding site was Allestree Park and I was in search of Lesser Spotted Woodpecker. Last year I had been lucky enough to locate two birds at Allestree so I was reasonably hopeful of success again this year, especially as other local birders have reported seeing them over the past week or so. It took me almost two hours but in the end I did manage to track down a male Lesser ‘pecker and it showed well for around 5 minutes, drumming away at a dead branch all the while. I tried for photos of this tiny little woodpecker but failed miserably! I blame the wind for moving the branch, and also my ‘scope, around too much. The cloudy conditions didn’t help either, as there was very little light getting through to the camera lens - enough excuses yet? Last year's photo wasn’t great, but it was better!

A very blurred Lesser Spotted Woodpecker!

Allestree entertained me for almost four hours in the end and I managed to locate a total of 35 species. I wouldn’t normally spend so long here but I was hoping to find a Jay in the woodland, a bird I also need for my “10-Mile List”. Once again, I failed to see one. For a couple of weeks now I’ve been thinking that there is a distinct lack of Jay in the Derby/Trent Valley area and, having spoken to one or two other birders, this is looking to be true. Next weekend I plan on trying a site that should almost guarantee me a sighting - we’ll see.

Of the species seen at Allestree the more notable included Great Crested Grebe (a pair displaying to each other), 10 Mandarin Duck, Sparrowhawk, 8 Stock Dove, 4 Great Spotted Woodpecker, 2 Grey Wagtail, 2 Song Thrush, Nuthatch, Treecreeper and a flock of 20 Siskin. The Mandarin showed well for a change and the Siskin gave views down to less than 15 feet at times. A Green Woodpecker was calling for much of the morning but never showed itself. Seeing it’s little cousin more than made up for that though.

Mandarin Duck.

Having taken a few hours break back at home for lunch, and a quick sleep in front of the TV, I headed back out again for the last 2½ hours of daylight at Foremark Reservoir. Yes, I know, on Monday I said that I’d not be returning there any time soon but the thought of adding that Iceland Gull to my “10-Mile List” was just too much of a draw for me and I had to give it another go. I was the first birder to arrive at the reservoir so at least I had the pick of the benches - not that any of them are comfortable or warm - and I started to scan the gulls that had already started to settle on the water.

I’m pretty sure that there was a Caspian Gull in with the Herring Gulls but, almost as soon as I got the bird in my ’scope and in focus, it took flight and I never relocated it. As the afternoon drew on more birders arrived and more eyes meant more birds located in the 1000’s of gulls that were now in the roost - I wouldn’t go as far as to say it was enjoyable but at least there was lots of birds to look at!

At 4:35pm the “excitement” started... someone had spotted an Iceland Gull flying over the reservoir! As the bird was called out I actually felt my heart rate increase slightly; was I getting excited about a gull? Surely not? The Iceland Gull settled on the water some distance from us but due to it’s size and colouring it still stuck out like a sore thumb amongst all the other birds. A short while later and we were treated to a second Iceland Gull - it too was some distance from us but showed better as it landed on a sandbank.

By now the light was starting to fade and I was getting ready to pack up and head for home. Luckily, I held on until just after 5:30pm and was able to add one more new bird to my count, a Red-necked Grebe. The grebe has been on the reservoir since early February but has proved tricky to locate at times, so I’d never bothered. On Saturday evening it appeared out of nowhere right in front of us! Although not yet in full summer plumage the grebe was still a very smart looking bird, much better than any gull in my opinion. Not counting the possible Caspian Gull, I recorded a total of 19 species at Foremark.

Today, I have been birding outside of my 10-mile zone. I had planned on going to Willington but was talked out of it by my birding friends Mike and Chris. We went off twitching some of the local Derbyshire goodies. It was an enjoyable morning and, thankfully, I’ve not heard of anything special turning up at Willington in my absence!

We met up at 8:00am at Cromford, near Matlock, with the aim of seeing Hawfinch. I’m pleased to say we achieved our goal. In recent days and weeks up to 15 Hawfinch have been reported at this location but this morning I had to make do with just three birds. If just one of those birds could relocate itself to somewhere closer to home I’d be more than happy!

Cromford also provided good views of Little Grebe, Grey Wagtail, Long-tailed Tit, Coal Tit, Nuthatch and Goldfinch. The highlight for me of the 20 species seen here wasn’t the Hawfinch but a pair of Dipper. Okay, Dipper isn’t a particularly scarce bird when compared to Hawfinch but not only did they show very well they were both heard singing on a number of occasions too. A great start to the day.

The river at Cromford.

From Cromford we moved on to Carsington Water. Here I noted a total of 34 species in what proved to be a rather quiet 2½ hours. The reservoir held all the usual suspects such as Little Grebe, Great Crested Grebe, Wigeon, Tufted Duck and Goldeneye. A female Scaup was seen from Paul Stanley hide and a single Great Northern Diver was seen from Lane End hide. The walk to the bay overlooking the wildlife centre gave sightings of Nuthatch, Bullfinch, and Tree Sparrow.

A total of 46 Barnacle Geese were grazing in one of the fields by the reservoir and 7 Ruddy Duck were doing their best to blend into the background - just in case someone decided they needed culling! Don’t get me started on that one! A single Buzzard was soaring over a distant hillside and a Curlew was heard calling but was never seen.

At 12:30pm I left Mike and Chris to continue the day on their own as I needed to be back home in time for lunch. The birding had been okay but Lynda’s homemade lasagne was always going to take priority, even if I’d been birding within my 10-mile zone! A text message from Chris late this afternoon revealed that I’d missed out on a further 2 Great Northern Divers, a Common Scoter, Curlew, Little Owl, 3 Stonechat and a male Hen Harrier. All good stuff but they missed lasagne!!!

With the addition of Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, Iceland Gull and Red-necked Grebe my “10-Mile List” now stands at 97 species.

Thetford trip...

Weather forecasts... I’m sure they were invented just to confuse me! The rain that should have made a mess of yesterday's birding trip never materialised - well, not until we were safely back on the coach and on the way home - and we enjoyed a pleasant, but overcast, day

The bird list for the day got underway whilst we waited for the coach to arrive at the pickup point, in Derby. The pair of Peregrine that are resident on Derby Cathedral gave good views with one bird perched on the cathedral whilst the other did repeated "flyovers" for the crowd below. Other birds seen on the way to Thetford included Wigeon, Fieldfare and Red-Legged Partridge.

Looking for Woodlark - two landed behind me as I took this photo!

Our first stop of the day was Santon Downham, a regular venue for our RSPB outings. Bird highlights here were, for me, Woodlark (two birds giving very good views), Brambling, Siskin, Marsh Tit and a single Chiffchaff. The Chiffchaff was a welcome find as it was my first spring migrant of the year.

A couple of the lambs out grazing the heath.

Another sign of the arrival of spring was the number of lambs out grazing the heath. The 2½ hours spent walking the heath and woodland of Santon Downham gave us a total of 33 species.

All Saints Church, Santon.

Lynford Arboretum was our second site of the day, another favourite with our RSPB group. The arboretum is one of the more reliable sites in the country to see Hawfinch and we were not to be disappointed as Lynda and I were able to see a group of four of these very shy finches. Other woodland species located here included Treecreeper, Goldcrest, Coal Tit and more Siskin.

Have you ever looked REALLY close at the colours of a Mallard?

Out on the water of the, now restored, gravel pit lakes the birds included Greylag Goose, Great Crested Grebe, Goosander, Pochard, Shelduck, Egyptian Goose, Kingfisher and Oystercatcher.

Two and a half hours in the arboretum saw Lynda and I pick up a total of 40 species. More importantly, we returned to the coach after a very pleasant day birding without getting wet! The rain started to fall a very short time after we left the car park!

Spring in Lynford Arboretum.

Including the Peregrine seen in Derby, and a few birds seen from the coach on the way to Thetford, we located a total of 54 species. It is not the biggest day count we have ever had but then again it's not every day we get to see Woodlark, Brambling AND Hawfinch!

Today, I awoke to the sound of heavy rain and strong wind. I stayed in bed for an extra couple of hours! By early afternoon the rain had stopped but the wind was still very strong so I decided against any local birding.

Next weekend I have 3½ days off work so if the weather is okay I’ll have plenty of time to chase after birds for my local "10-Mile List". I’ll not be trusting the weather forecast though!