Fuerteventura Day 4: Southern Sibe

After a busy first few days to our trip, we fancied our fourth day being a bit more relaxed. We spent the morning at Faro de Toston just north of our apartment in El Cotillo.

It was the most productive site for waders we visited during the week, with over 60 Ringed Plover and 20 Kentish Plover on the various small beaches. Other waders were 3 Whimbrel, a Grey Plover, 2 Turnstone, 5 Common Sandpiper and 3 Dunlin. Some showy Berthelot's Pipits were around the point, along with 2 Trumpeter Finches and 4 Sandwich Terns.

For the afternoon we drove to the Fimapaire Valley, just east of La Oliva. We didn't expect very much here but had a nice surprise when I found a Yellow-browed Warbler in a small patch of willows in the west end of the valley. A flock of 40+ Spanish Sparrows and several Hoopoes were also in the willows.

The valley was good for Laughing Doves with several flying around the various goat farms. Southern Grey Shrikes were easy to see and flyovers included an Egyptian Vulture, Ruddy Shelduck and a group of 11 Pallid Swifts.

Yellow-browed Warbler

Southern Grey Shrikes - adult and juvenile

Berthelot's Pipit

Kentish Plover

Common Sandpiper

Laughing Dove

Barbary Ground Squirrel

Yellow-browed Warbler habitat

Another catch up...

Not much time for words again, so here's a selection of videos and images from the last few weeks...

Videograbs of one of two Honey Buzzards at Wykeham Forest. Also seen were Goshawks, Kestrels, Common Buzzards and a juvenile Marsh Harrier. See the video here. 

Marsh Tit near Scarborough

Videograb of an Osprey at Rutland Water. Other Birdfair birding highlights included Red-necked Phalarope and Great White Egret. 

Wood and Common Sandpipers from Druridge Pools

Phonescoped shot of one of two Scaup back at Chevington today (29th). 2 Spotted Redshank were here on the 27th. 

Pec double

I mentioned to my dad as we were leaving home today that I'd like to find a Pec Sand in the area as there had been quite a few reports from other counties recently, although didn't actually have very much hope...

Our first stop was Hauxley where a few hours produced a good count of at least 108 Black-tailed Godwits, as well as 2 Ruff, a Common Sandpiper and a Knot among the more usual waders. The Estuary at Amble held 77 Black-tailed Godwits which included a lot more adults than at Hauxley, so it is possible that there are some very large numbers in the area. One was colour-ringed, and a Kingfisher and 6 Goosanders gave good views, while the injured Whooper Swan was visible towards Warkworth.

Next we headed to Druridge Pools and were pleased to see our first juvenile Curlew Sandpiper of the year when we arrived, as well as a Greenshank, 5 Ruff and 30+ Dunlin. We walked around to the south facing hide and gave it about twenty minutes. We were just getting ready to move on when I decided to have a last scan of the far edge looking back towards the screen.

I noticed a bird feeding alongside a Redshank which I thought looked interesting - it was slightly larger than a Dunlin with quite a pot-bellied look and I thought I could see a sharply defined dark chest - although the views were very distant, which combined with the heat haze to make confirming it impossible. I headed back down the path to view from the NE corner but there was no sign.

On reaching the screen again I set the scope and started scanning the Dunlin and was pleased to see a really smart juvenile Pectoral Sandpiper feeding among them. I then realised the bird stood next to it was another Pec Sand! The first time I've seen more than one together, and a very welcome set of bonus points for Patchwork Challenge!

Cresswell was quieter with 8 Black-tailed Godwits, 2 Little Egrets and a Yellow Wagtail.

Pectoral Sandpipers - video should be viewed in HD at 720p/1080p

Curlew Sandpiper - video should be viewed in HD at 720p/1080p

Goosander

Stonechats

Willow Warbler

Great start to July...

I have to say we didn't really have great expectations for today when we first set off, but it turned out to be a really good day of summer birding...

First up was Druridge Pools (via Bell's Farm where there was a couple of Little Gulls). A Green Sandpiper was showing well in front of the screen and the number of Black-tailed Godwits had increased to 19. The three Spoonbills also flew off heading west. We then heard news of a possible Pacific Golden Plover, so, given it would be a lifer for both of us and presented a bit of an ID challenge, we decided to go for a look. My dad may also be able to catch up with the Corn Bunting...

Unfortunately it was quickly apparent when we arrived that our target was no longer in the Golden Plover flock, but the lingering second-summer Glaucous Gull was snoozing on the rocks and the Corn Bunting was still around.

Just as we were getting ready to leave, news came on of a White-winged Black Tern at Chevington so we headed back that way. By the time we got to the bay, the stunning adult summer White-winged Black Tern had moved to Druridge Pools where it showed nicely on and off for the next hour or so. Such good birds! Two Greenshank and a Ruff also appeared here.

Finally we had a look for orchids in the dunes at Chevington, which resulted in 5 different types being seen, and we also got onto a Red Kite moving inland which had been spotted just to the north by other observers, providing me with a very welcome patch tick!

Other good birds seen today included Avocets, Little Ringed Plovers, Common Sandpipers and a Little Owl.

PWC 2017
Species: 156
Points: 218

White-winged Black Tern

Red Kite

Great White hat-trick

The highlight of this morning's birding was a Great White Egret at Druridge Pools which was our third of the year. Other birds here included a Little Stint, 2 Curlew Sandpipers, 3 Black-tailed Godwit, a Greenshank and Bar-tailed Godwit as well as 3 Little Egrets.

A further 14 Little Egrets were at Cresswell along with 3 at Amble and 6 at Castle Island. Other birds at Cresswell Pond included 4 Greenshank, a Common Sandpiper and 2 Black-tailed Godwits. 5 more Black-tailed Godwits came in off the sea here and continued west. While Castle Island held 3 Ruff and 20 Black-tailed Godwits.

A flock of 12 Ruff were stood ankle deep in water at the south end of the north pool at Chevington so hopefully some mud may appear there soon. 4 Pintail were also here.

The water level at Bothal Pond is starting to look good and it had attracted a juvenile Little Ringed Plover, Ringed Plover, Ruff, Green Sandpiper as well as 5 Dunlin and 5 Black-tailed Godwits when we visited today.

Great White Egret

More Curlew Sands...

Holy Island was our first stop this morning though it was very quiet with just a single Pied Flycatcher and 8 Willow Warblers, so we headed to Druridge Pools.

As soon as we arrived in the Budge Screen it started pouring down although the birds more than made up for the miserable weather. There were 9 Curlew Sandpipers which included an adult in mostly winter plumage as well as 2 Little Stints, 20+ Ruff, 8 Black-tailed Godwit, a Common Sandpiper and a Yellow Wagtail. 6 Knot also made a brief appearance. We're really enjoying having so many waders here.

Pied Flycatcher

Waders still on the up..

3 Curlew Sandpipers at Cresswell Pond this morning were our first in Northumberland since September 2014 and we beat our record county Little Egret again with 16 at Cresswell this morning along with 25+ Black-tailed Godwit (several flocks flew over without stopping), 2 Knot, 4 Greenshank, 3 Common Sandpiper, 2 Avocet, a Water Rail and a Mediterranean Gulls also at the pond. A large flock of Black-headed Gulls visible in the distance from the car parking area held at least 30 more Mediterranean Gulls.

One of the first birds I looked at from the Budge Screen was a Wood Sandpiper in the north-east corner of the Budge Fields and it disappeared into the grass after a few seconds. We later walked along the path to the two hides and saw the Wood Sand again from here While we were stood here a Sparrowhawk flew over flushing the waders, most of which landed back on the fields, so we headed back to the screen. There were now 4 juvenile Little Stints walking around together (although quickly split up again), at least 22 Ruff, 25 Dunlin, 4 Black-tailed Godwits and a fly over Greenshank. It's amazing how many waders can stay invisible in the tussocks. We were also quite surprised to see a female Goosander land in front of the Budge Screen. They occasionally visit the big pool but we've never seen one actually on the Budge Fields before! 3 Common Sandpipers on the north pool were our first on the ground on the patch this year.

Our final stop was Castle Island where the water levels were unfortunately back to normal, though there was still good numbers of waders including a Curlew Sandpiper, Little Ringed Plover, Green Sandpiper, 29+ Black-tailed Godwit and 6 Common Sandpipers along with 6 Little Egret.

PWC 2016
Species: 152
Points: 199

Two of the Curlew Sandpipers at Cresswell

Goosander - unusual habitat!

Waders on the move...

Our first stop was Chevington this morning to look for terns at the burn mouth but unfortunately the beach was tern-free and the north pool. Sadly the water level looks to high here to attract any rarities this autumn.

Druridge Pools is looking much better and today there were 6+ Ruff (there had been 10 yesterday evening), 8 Black-tailed Godwit, flyover Greenshank and Yellow Wagtail as well as a Goldeneye on the big pool. We were also a bit surprised to see a flock of 7 Pintail drop onto the big pool. They had a short bathe before flying off north - fresh in?

Cresswell Pond once gain held 7 Little Egrets however today this included a colour-ringed bird (photo below) as well as 2 Greenshank and 9 Avocets. 5 juvenile Black-tailed Godwits dropped in and a flock of 5 Whimbrel appeared to come in off the sea before flying south over the hide.

The day's highlight as Castle Island where the water levels were the lowest we've ever seen them. With the low water levels came the waders with a minimum of 46 Black-tailed Godwits, 6+ Ruff, 4 Common Sandpipers, a Knot (which we were told was the first here for twenty years!), a Green Sandpiper, a Little Ringed Plover and 2 Avocets among the commoner species. Little Egrets were also out in force with a total of 14 birds being my highest ever count in Northumberland.

Pintail

Juvenile Cuckoo

Colour-ringed Little Egret

A couple more days...

Yesterday evening we headed to Cresswell Pond for the evening. The highlight was three Little Stints, which comprised of two juveniles and a colour-ringed adult from Norway. Other waders included 2 Ruff, 4 Black-tailed Godwit, 3 Common Sandpipers and 3 Avocet as well as Mediterranean Gulls (one juvenile), 3 Yellow Wagtails and 9 Little Egret. The field to the north of Bell's Farm held 14 Mediterranean Gulls with the usual gulls.

This morning we decided to have a seawatch at Newbiggin which produced the following birds over two hours...

1 Sooty Shearwater
35 Manx Shearwater
1 Velvet Scoter - drake north.
1 Common Scoter
3+ Roseate Tern

The bay at Newbiggin held a minimum of 46 Mediterranean Gulls. Unfortunately the water level at Castle Island had risen so there wasn't many waders. Finally 2 Green Sandpipers were at Bothal Pond.

Egret influx...

Here's a late blog post about our trip out birding on Tuesday and we were surprised how many Little Egrets were around...

We started at Castle Island where there were 7 Little Egrets and waders included a Ruff, Little Ringed Plover, 3 Avocets, 5 Common Sandpipers and 19 Black-tailed Godwits.

Cresswell Pond was still looking good and when we looked out of the hide there were 8 Little Egrets sat in the mud in front of the hide. However they soon split up as a juvenile Peregrine flew low over the pond. Other highlights here included a Greenshank, Ruff, Whimbrel, 4 Black-tailed Godwits and 2 Common Sandpipers.

3 Greenshank remained at Druridge Pools along with a first-summer Mediterranean Gull. 

Little Egrets and two Black-tailed Godwits

Peregrine record shots - too fast and too close for me!

Stoat

Local birding...

Spent the morning on the patch where there is signs of autumn migration getting underway...

The vegetation at Druridge Pools is starting to get quite tall and it was difficult to determine just how many Greenshank were present. Eventually we confirmed five different birds. These were new for the patch year list, as was a flyover Common Sandpiper.Other waders here included 2 Ruff (adult and juvenile) and a Black-tailed Godwit. 2 Little Egrets were also on the Budge Fields and 2 Goosanders were on the north pool, it seems to have been a good year for these on the patch. An adult Mediterranean Gull was with the Black-headed Gulls in the field to the west.

East Chevington was quieter with a singing Grasshopper Warbler and an Arctic Skua offshore along with 4 Little Terns.

The water levels at Cresswell Pond were looking great today and were proving very attractive to waders: 12 Black-tailed Godwits, 1 Bar-tailed Godwit, 1 Ruff, 1 Knot, 3 Common Sandpiper, 2 Avocets (including a colour-ringed immature) and lots of Dunlin and Curlew. 2 adult Mediterranean Gulls were sat on the west spit along with 3 Little Egrets and 2 Yellow Wagtail were near the causeway.

PWC 2016
Species: 148
Points: 193

Staying quiet...

Had a morning to spare so headed out to the patch today. Once again it was quiet with no additions for Patchwork Challenge though a few common birds kept us entertained.

First up was Druridge Pools where we managed our first good views of Yellow Wagtail this year with a pair of adults with 3 juveniles. There were also at least 15 Black-tailed Godwit, a fly over Whimbrel and Little Egret. A juvenile Wheatear was sowing nicely in front of the south-facing hide. The male Marsh Harrier flew over Druridge Pools and we saw two of the juveniles at Chevington later in the day.

10 more Black-tailed Godwit were at Cresswell Pond including a colour-ringed bird. Other waders here included a Ruff, Whimbrel and 2 Common Sandpiper. Pairs of Little Egrets and Water Rail were also on the pond and I picked up a Hobby flying north through the dunes.

Wheatear at Druridge Pools

Back to normal...

Last weekend's highlights: Western Subalpine Warbler, 2 Bluethroats, Whiskered Terns, Grey-headed Wagtail, Dotterel, Spoonbills.....

This weekend: one Ruddy Duck.

As you have probably worked out, it was a quiet return to the patch yesterday morning. 3 Little Gulls were the best Chevington had to offer. A walk along the old coal road to look for Little Ringed Plovers only revealed a single Common Ringed Plover though 2 Yellow Wagtails were a patch year tick.

Druridge Pools held 9 Whimbrel, a Little Egret, White Wagtail and the Goosander still

Moving to Cresswell a drake Ruddy Duck snoozing in the south-west corner was unexpected. Surely this will be the last one we see..? Also on the pond was a Little Egret and a Common Sandpiper.

Ruddy Duck close to home in 2014...

Teesside Twitching...

With a host of birds being reported from Teesside we decided that would be our destination on Saturday...

Our first stop was the outer bowling green on Hartlepool Headland where the stunning male Red-spotted Bluethroat was giving superb views down to just a few metres at times. Only my second in Britain and first view on the ground after one in song flight at Welney in 2011.

Before the reserve at Saltholme opened we had a look at the flooded fields on Seaton Common north of the east of the Zinc Works Road where a male Grey-headed Wagtail had been present for a view days. The very smart Wagtail was still present and showed well through the scope before flying off south with a White Wagtail.

Next was the RSPB reserve at Saltholme. We were quickly onto one of the adult Whiskered Terns sat on a tern raft in front of the visitor centre. We walked around the edge of the lake and the two Whiskered Terns were giving some very close fly-bys. I was surprised how inconspicuous they were sat in among the Common Terns yet they really stood out in flight.

Also on the reserve were 5 Spoonbills (including a bird with German colour-rings), 2 first-summer Little Gulls, my first Common Sandpiper of the year and at least a dozen Avocets.

Once we reached Danby Beacon on the North York Moors it took a while for the trip of 10 Dotterels to be found but once they were the birds were very confiding if you sat still.

Back in Northumberland Druridge Pools felt very quiet apart from a drake Garganey from the south facing hide.

We had a brilliant day on Teesside with my second-ever Bluethroat, Whiskered Terns and Dotterel along with my first ever Grey-headed Wagtail being the highlights.

Male Red-spotted Bluethroat

Whiskered Terns

Dotterel

Grey-headed Wagtail - record shots!

Spoonbills

Common Sandpiper