Saw the weather systems headed our way and cant go out at weekend so made sure i was out today! Rocked up at 9ish to immediately get rubbish views of the Greenish Warbler plus Willow Warbler, Redstart & Goldcrest everywhere. Dipped the Yellow-browed Warbler that had been seen earlier. All of a sudden Little Bunting comes over the CB- ran from the Crown and Anchor car park to Beacon Lane but to no avail it had already flown. Pretty quickly after a Great Grey Shrike was seen in the triangle but oh no i get an important call from work- i get a brief flight view whilst talking to the boss. Whilst looking along the bushes I see the shrike take flight along the canal and down into the bushes the last I see of it. A poke around the crown and...
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Had a twitch for the bluethorat at Spurn today that was almost entirely unproductive. Dipped it but did see both pied and spot flys in the crown and anchor car park. Was blimming cold as well. A stonchat and a few meadow pipits were also about. Had a promising phylloscopus warbler briefly in the crown and anchor car park that gave a trisyllabic goldcrest like call, but different somehow. After registering at uni thought id drop in on North Cave after yesterdays good luck. Saw that a phalarope species had been noted in the book and immediately picked up a Grey Phalarope on the far side of the main lake spinning like a top. Lifer. Sweet. My luck isnt too bad at the moment!
Pallid Harriers are on the move with several birds reported, among them adult males too. An unusual Steppe Common Buzzard was also seen in West Hungary.
A nice flock of 208 Dotterels was reported from the Hortobagy along with a long staying immature White Pelican and a single Short-toed Lark. Lesser White-fronted Geese have also arrived to the ortobagy with a flock of 42 birds reported.
Interesting bird records included 2 Pectoral Sandpipers and a Yellow-browed Warbler ringed, as well as many Bar-tailed Godwits.
Migration is really in full swing now in Hungary.
Magic Birding Circuit Ecuador
Trip Report
March 4 – 23, 2007 ;)
[LEFT]The Hosteria San Jorge was built as a traditional 18th Century Spanish Hosteria. It consists of 200 acres in the Pichincha Foothills. San Jorge is the only reserve within minutes of the Capital of Quito and it offers the incredible Magic Birding Circuit, this consists of 5 nature and bird watching reserves with the possibility of seeing over 800 species of birds; it covers almost all of the altitudes in Ecuador from the Paramo to the Sub tropical Rainforests.
March 4, 2007 Arrive Quito Airport, Dr. George Cruz waiting
for us with very warm and friendly greetings,
George is the owner of the San Jorge Magic Birding Circuit, George transferred us to his...
This is my first ever blog. It has been almost a spur of the moment decision to create it. After all everyone is posting blogs these days.
All three of Frieda and Frodo's chicks have now hatched.
See Frodocam
Felix the osprey has reached Cenral America. He certainly moves. Hope he changes direction now. See Felix's Journey
Spent a long weekend without much birding, just a few Red-rumped Swallows buzzing around our BBQ site along with the resident Japanese Wagtail, Black-backed Wagtail and Bull-headed Shrike.
Then come Tuesday I was back at my local patch Hiroshima Castle, trying to find migs.
Yesterday found 3 Short-tailed Bush Warblers together, along with just 1 Arctic Warbler and 1 Brown Flycatcher.
Today was a little better with a Black-browed Reed Warbler, looking very out of place in the ornamental bushes, 2-3 Brown Flycatcher, a singing Japanese Thrush and no less than 7 Arctic Warblers gleaning together..could even hear their bills snapping!
More goodies t come I hope.:t:
Stunning photographs of three of the London Wetland Centre’s most familiar wetland birds – a Mute swan, Heron and Shelduck were the unanimous winners of the first ever WWT Nikon Photographic Competition announced at an awards ceremony last week.
The awards celebrated the wealth of wildlife and wetland experiences on offer to visitors at WWT’s nine UK centres and showcased the talent of amateur and junior photographers.
For more information about the WWT competition and winners, please visit:
http://www.europe-nikon.com/news_room/news.html?locale=en_GB&bandwidth=broad&id=1149&type_index=2&universe=[universe:xx]
Had my first visit to North Cave in a while as im back at Hull uni for my 2nd year. Had a Buzzard being mobbed by crows and gulls over South Cave on my way to the reserve. Was just having a quick look in, Red-legged Partridge from the car. Lots of Common & BH Gulls plus a single Herring. Plenty of wildfowl about including Pochard and Shoveller. A presumed escape Barnacle Goose was good looking. No waders bar a few lapwings. Lots of Little Grebes about. Was just about to leave when i spotted a juv Black Tern hawking over the reedbed lake. Yorkshire year tick 189! Get in. Gonna be birding a lot over the next few days- exciting considering the winds. Mint!
Frodo and Frieda are proud parents again. No doubt it is going to be a busy time over the next two months.
The Hancock forum follows this nest quite closely.
See Frodo and Frieda on Hancock Forum
It seems as if Frieda's chicks are about to hatch in Brisbane. It should happen any time now!
See http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/extras/frodocam/default.htm
This is a place where it's rare to have a day without anything rare. I'd say between today and August, there wasn't a day when either a godwit (about 3 Hudsonians long-staying, one Marbled flyover), phalaropes (about 3 Wilson's, two Red-necked) or something else (avocet, golden-plovers, etc etc) was present. Today it was an avocet.
So I met BF user OwlTalon and we spent a good part of the morning at the north end of the East pond. At first nothing spectacular... Least Sandpipers, Semis, a couple of White-rumped. Farther down we encountered our first Westerns of the day (abundant). At the first spit we located some Semi Plovers, a couple of Greater Yellowlegs, and, thanks to OT, a pair of Pectoral Sandpipers on the island. Did I mention...
Birderbf beat me to the summary. I can't really sum it up better than he did, nor do I have pictures!! Lots of unusual birds, and four lifers for me!! (AMAV, PESA, STSA, and BASA). Again lots of surprises, all the peeps in one day (Baird's is a REAL treat!!), a Sharp-shinned Hawk attacking some peeps (they retailiated with ferocity :-O), and above all the American Pipit. encounter is detailed and illustrated in my friends blog. Check it out for the full trip report.
Twitched the Buff-breasted Sandpiper and got some reasonable views from the road. On the reserve Ruff, Hobby, Marsh Harrier, Yellow Wags, Dunlin, Curlew, Spotted Redshank, Green Sand, Greenshank was about the height of excitement. Good variety of species but not the numbers hoped for.
Yesterday I went out to Lake Constance in search for anything good. Last Wednesday a Great Skua and a Sabine's Gull were seen, but since then the weather was to good and I hadn't much hope.
The ferry from Romanshorn to Friedrichshafen and back was absolutely unproductive, nothing than some Yellow-legged Gulls. A walk along the shore from Kesswil to Güttingen produced a nice male Eider and a juvenile Mediterranean Gull. A final lookout at Triboltingen was a bit better, with a Marsh Harrier, a Great White Egret and twenty Little Gulls. It was then when I received a text message about a Pectoral Sandpiper at the Flachsee Unterlunkhofen. I calculated my travel time and came to the conclusion that I would arrive in darkness.
So I got up...
The week has been very frustrating weather wise, but after torrential rain yesterday morning there was a lull which enabled me to scan the sea off Starr Gate in flat calm conditions.
There were at least 4000 scoter visible, and probably nearer 5000. It is always great to see such numbers, a shame they aren't a bit closer.
Off on birding travels twice in the next few weeks, hope to have something to report.
Stephen.
Hi all, had a huge flight for the little spot by my house on Wednesday, with around 250 Broad-wingeds in only two hours. Today, much smaller flight of about 65 Broad-wingeds, 4 Northern Harriers, My first adult GOLDEN EAGLE of the year and a Peregrine Falcon providing us with excellent looks.
Had a trip out to Wheldrake after work yesterday. Got rewards with my first Redwings of the autumn. Also a couple of Sparrowhawks being mobbed high up by crows. Got a late Spotted Flycatcher 1st summer which took my Yorkshire year list to 187. Also good numbers of other migrant passerines about with quite a few Phylloscs and Goldcrests. Down at the pool hide had a couple of Greenshanks (patch tick 101) plus some distant Common Sands and Redshank. Plenty of hirundines about and meadow pipits. Was alive with bird movement!
Well...its that time of year again. Summer is starting to come to a close and fall is just around the corner. I really love this time of year because bird activity seems to bounce back from an uneventful lull during the "dog days of summer". Vireos, Warblers, Flycatchers, and many other birds begin to gorge themselves on grapes, pokeberries, and other ripe fruit. Feeder activity is also starting to increase. For the first time in months I have seen Gold Finches visiting my feeders. These petite birds which are a brilliant gold during the breeding season have already morphed into their dull winter plumage. I am eagerly waiting for the return of my Red-bellied Woodpeckers and Chickadees. Winter seems like an eternity away...
Other...
My grandmother, who lived in what is now Slovakia near thy Polish border, told me about a local delicacy. This took place about 1900. Small migrating birds were netted and plucked and roasted whole and eaten in one bite. The birds probably ate pine cone seeds because she said that the entrails were not removed in order to provide the pine taste.
The custom sounds similar to the French eating the Ortalan Bunting, Emberiza hortulana.
Any clues!
I will be going birding on Sunday, at a new spot for me. However, I've still got a day of school ad a busy weekend. As you can see, my profile picture and avatar have changed, reflecting the non-birding aspect of my life ;) ;). I am preparing for this walk at the Marine Center in Oceanside with great joy. I will update when I go!!
Migration is in full swing in the first weeks of September in Hungary. Thrush Nightingales and Red-breasted Flycatchers have mostly passed through Hungary by now and Rollers, Bee-eaters, Golden Orioles and Lesser Grey Shrikes are also on their way south.
More and more waders arrive from the north among them rarer ones such as Broad-billed Sandpiper, Bar-tailed Godwit, Knot, Sanderling, Red-necked Phalarope and Turnstone that are reported daily from several wetlands of the country.
Ospreys are also observed daily and there were a few Pallid Harriers reported from the East of Hungary. Red-footed Falcons are still here in big flocks but not for very long.
A first, Ashtead Common, and frankly a bit disappointing birdwise, even thoug Jamie and I enjoyed our three hour ramble. Highlight was a great view of a Nuthatch trying to ear a hazel nut and several GSW's. I was after a LSW, but no joy.
Jamie and Sandra in tow on a beautiful morning. Highlight was a pair of Blackcaps fliting about in a holy tree, must be a chance they will stay for the winter. Heard a Chiffchaff, and saw a bunch of Mistle Thrushes fighting over a Hawthorne Tree. Also saw a Common Whitethroat, possibly last of the year.
I was very, very surprised to see a small bird with wingbars flitting around outside my bedroom window today, as I live in a bird-free area. Blackpoll Warbler? What a fine surprise, I thought, until I saw it had a gray face, a grass-green crown, nape and back, and humungous wingbars. Chesnut-sided! That got me wondering what else I'd seen from my "yard," but when I made a list I found many 'maybes' and 'possiby's'. Not good enough! So I watched out the window and tallied a pair of kestrels, a goldfinch and a few flyby cowbirds to make myself feel a bit better.
Anyhow, the call of the backyard didn't last. My sudden was shatterred when a boring old House Sparrow (I think, no, I hope) slammed into the same window I'd seen the warbler out...
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