Weekend's birding

On Saturday we headed to Holy Island hoping that some migrants might have been brought down by the weather conditions, and although there was quite a few common migrants, there was none of the hoped for scarcities. The counts were as follows:

17 Wheatear
9 Robin
12 Lesser Whitethroat
19 Chiffchaff
3 Blackcap
1 Reed Warbler
1 Sedge Warbler
200+ Fieldfare
2 Redwing
1 Pied Flycatcher
1 Ring Ouzel
1 Brambling
1 Siskin
8 White Wagtail
1 Redstart

Sunday saw us heading up to Druridge as there had been a Great White Egret and Spoonbill there in the past few days. No luck with either at first, only a female Scaup at Cresswell with 6 Goosanders and 8 Red-breasted Mergansers. On arriving home we heard that the Great White Egret was at Druridge Pools, so we set off again. While driving past Bell's Farm I saw a large white bird on the pond, but assumed it was one of the Swans which had been there earlier, so headed to Druridge Pools. On discovering that it wasn't there we rushed back to Bell's Pond, and sure enough there it was, in exactly the same place as that white bird I saw earlier. It showed really well before the cows flushed it and it flew off west. A Yellow Wagtail was also there and a Common Sandpiper was at Druridge Pools.

Great White Egret

White Wagtails