Photos:
Comma, Lapwing, Green Sandpiper, Little Ringed Plover, juvenile Black-headed Gull, Black-tailed Godwit and male Redstart at Upton Warren
Grey Partridge with chick at Rixton
July 5th
No birding today – none whatsoever. In exile in Birmingham for several days this week and also for the foreseeable future. Not impressed.
July 6th
Birmingham has been wet and windy today – a bit miserable. After work I managed a quick hour or so at Upton Warren to alleviate the sense of being confined I get when stuck in large cities. One of the first birds seen was a male Redstart – one of a pair which pitched up here a few weeks ago. Bit of an odd place for them – nevertheless the bird showed well in the field behind the hide if distant. The Peregrine pair were on the mast while on the flashes were 15 Green Sandpipers, 2 Common Sandpipers, 7 Little Ringed Plovers, 3 Avocets, 3 stunning Black-tailed Godwits, 3 Teal and various warblers plus a Water Rail. Very enjoyable if somewhat brief escape from Brum.
July 7th
Not much change at HGF this evening. A single Little Ringed Plover was present on the pool. All four juvenile Kestrels were perched on the end of the barn with the male keeping an eye on them from a nearby lookout post. A flock of Long-tailed Tits were noisy in the garden this evening. At dusk the noise arose from a juvenile Tawny Owl which perched for a while in the large Ash tree – two adults were calling from nearby – probably Waterworks Lane.
July 8th
A bit of change at HGF this morning with singles of Ringed Plover, Little Ringed Plover and Common Sandpiper providing wader interest. Three juvenile Kestrels were perched on the barn with no sign of the fourth or the adults. At lunch I nipped out for some fresh air and wandered round Moat Lane pools. Good news – the Common Tern now has at least two young crawling around on her little island. A Green Sandpiper was also present on the pool but flew off noisily and headed off over the mosses.
I went back early evening while returning from the vets with Bill. A group of teenagers were present setting up camp by the pool and roaring around the pool on a jet ski. The silly twits kept hitting small mud islands just beneath the surface and coming off – they couldn’t seem to come to grips with the idea that this wasn’t a deep pool and nor was it uniform depth. The tern was obviously anxious and flew around a lot calling. Also on pool 2 were a pair of Little Ringed Plovers while two Green Woodpeckers flew across pool 1 – the first I have seen here this year. Around 250 Lesser Black-backed Gulls were present on the tip – around half a dozen Herring Gull with them but nothing else. On Holly Bush Lane a pair of Red-legged Partridges ran across the road while nearby a pair of Grey Partridges were shepherding a half grown youngster around.
Late evening I nipped over to Newton-Le-Willows and took Bill for a walk down Barrow Lane. It was threatening to rain when I arrived and I nearly turned back, however the rain didn’t quite materialise so I ended up walking down to the concrete bollards. The Quail was picked up calling almost immediately and it spent the next half an hour moving through the hedge and going back and forth between the wheat field and the oat field. The Sedge Warbler sang for a while and then flew into the potato field with what was presumably his missus. Three Corn Buntings and a few Skylarks plus two Yellow Wagtails flying in and out of the spud patch – a bit quieter than normal though, probably as a result of the weather. Heading back I bumped into Jonathan and his nephew, Laurie, and we stopped for a natter while getting soaked as the rain then kicked in.
Comma, Lapwing, Green Sandpiper, Little Ringed Plover, juvenile Black-headed Gull, Black-tailed Godwit and male Redstart at Upton Warren
Grey Partridge with chick at Rixton
July 5th
No birding today – none whatsoever. In exile in Birmingham for several days this week and also for the foreseeable future. Not impressed.
July 6th
Birmingham has been wet and windy today – a bit miserable. After work I managed a quick hour or so at Upton Warren to alleviate the sense of being confined I get when stuck in large cities. One of the first birds seen was a male Redstart – one of a pair which pitched up here a few weeks ago. Bit of an odd place for them – nevertheless the bird showed well in the field behind the hide if distant. The Peregrine pair were on the mast while on the flashes were 15 Green Sandpipers, 2 Common Sandpipers, 7 Little Ringed Plovers, 3 Avocets, 3 stunning Black-tailed Godwits, 3 Teal and various warblers plus a Water Rail. Very enjoyable if somewhat brief escape from Brum.
July 7th
Not much change at HGF this evening. A single Little Ringed Plover was present on the pool. All four juvenile Kestrels were perched on the end of the barn with the male keeping an eye on them from a nearby lookout post. A flock of Long-tailed Tits were noisy in the garden this evening. At dusk the noise arose from a juvenile Tawny Owl which perched for a while in the large Ash tree – two adults were calling from nearby – probably Waterworks Lane.
July 8th
A bit of change at HGF this morning with singles of Ringed Plover, Little Ringed Plover and Common Sandpiper providing wader interest. Three juvenile Kestrels were perched on the barn with no sign of the fourth or the adults. At lunch I nipped out for some fresh air and wandered round Moat Lane pools. Good news – the Common Tern now has at least two young crawling around on her little island. A Green Sandpiper was also present on the pool but flew off noisily and headed off over the mosses.
I went back early evening while returning from the vets with Bill. A group of teenagers were present setting up camp by the pool and roaring around the pool on a jet ski. The silly twits kept hitting small mud islands just beneath the surface and coming off – they couldn’t seem to come to grips with the idea that this wasn’t a deep pool and nor was it uniform depth. The tern was obviously anxious and flew around a lot calling. Also on pool 2 were a pair of Little Ringed Plovers while two Green Woodpeckers flew across pool 1 – the first I have seen here this year. Around 250 Lesser Black-backed Gulls were present on the tip – around half a dozen Herring Gull with them but nothing else. On Holly Bush Lane a pair of Red-legged Partridges ran across the road while nearby a pair of Grey Partridges were shepherding a half grown youngster around.
Late evening I nipped over to Newton-Le-Willows and took Bill for a walk down Barrow Lane. It was threatening to rain when I arrived and I nearly turned back, however the rain didn’t quite materialise so I ended up walking down to the concrete bollards. The Quail was picked up calling almost immediately and it spent the next half an hour moving through the hedge and going back and forth between the wheat field and the oat field. The Sedge Warbler sang for a while and then flew into the potato field with what was presumably his missus. Three Corn Buntings and a few Skylarks plus two Yellow Wagtails flying in and out of the spud patch – a bit quieter than normal though, probably as a result of the weather. Heading back I bumped into Jonathan and his nephew, Laurie, and we stopped for a natter while getting soaked as the rain then kicked in.
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