Bufflehead in Dorset - 8 March 2010

As I had a day off on Monday I went to see the rare American duck that had appeared in Dorset near Langton Herring. That part of the Dorset coast is separated from the sea by the longest shingle bank in Europe, Chesil Beach, which stretches for nearly seventeen miles from Portland to West Bay. The lagoon formed by the shingle bank, the Fleet, is partially tidal and the water is brackish.

Wanting to avoid the rush hour traffic, I left home at 05.30 and arrived at the Fleet at about 0800. I scanned the water but no sign of the bufflehead, as the duck is called. My view of the Fleet wasn't clear as the coast has irregularities that obscure the view. Then the pager bleeped and I read 'no news of the bufflehead'!! Great!

Shortly afterwards the pager bleeped again and confirmed that the bufflehead was present. Judging by the position given I should have been able to see it, but I couldn't.

A few more birdwatchers arrived and we rounded a hill to get a better view of the Fleet. The bufflehead was way off in the distance but easily identifiable by its unique markings. We decided to get closer by going to Langton Herring. Even from there it was fairly distant and this shot is just for the record.

Bufflehead

After gleaning some useful information from Jackie as to where I might find hawfinches (thanks, Jackie), I went to Radipole Lake RSPB in Weymouth to see the long-staying hooded merganser, then to Portland Bill for a little seawatching.

Hooded merganser

On the way to Portland I stopped at the top of the hill to admire and photograph the magnificent view of Chesil Beach, the Portland isthmus and Weymouth.

Chesil Beach. At over 16 miles, the longest shingle bank in Europe.


At the Portland Bird Observatory, near the beach I noticed a small flock of rock pipits, which allowed me to get fairly close. There were no black redstarts, however.

Rock pipit.


At Portland Bill I saw some common scoter on the sea, and a couple of gannets.

There was time to go to the New Forest before dark to see if the hawfinches were about. I had some trouble finding the arboretum but when I did get there those waiting said they had seen nothing. A goldcrest entertained us from a nearby conifer.

Goldcrest

All the other birds that flew in were greenfinches, chaffinches, goldfinches or siskins. One or two of the birders left to go home as the light faded. Two other birds flew in and I looked through my scope to see a nice pair of hawfinches at last!  In the time it took me to take off my scope and pick up my camera they had gone. Ah, well! At least I'd seen them.

Bank holiday. Three days of birds. Day 2

Sunday 24 May 2009.

On the Sunday, 24 May, I went to Bempton Cliffs RSPB, a sort of poor man's Farne Isles. You don't have to pay for boats, you're not dependent on the weather to see the birds and the bird life is nearly as good. Almost immediately I met Di Stone who had already spent at least a day at the cliffs and knew where all the best spots were. Gannets, guillemots, kittiwakes, razorbills, fulmars and even a few puffins swelled my year list, together with a rock pipit. With Di's help I took close views of most birds there. Thank you, Di. Gannets were soaring close to the cliffs' edge and many of the photos I took were of them.

Gannet soaring off Bempton Cliffs, E Yorkshire

Guillemot, Bempton Cliffs, E Yorkshire

Kittiwake, Bempton Cliffs, E Yorkshire


Razorbill, Bempton Cliffs, E Yorkshire

After about five and a half hours I left and moved down the road to Flamborough Head. I stayed for an hour before driving back down to Brandon near to Lakenheath and Weeting again. I wasn't happy about the stone curlews and the golden orioles. I got to Weeting at dusk, knowing that the stone curlews were most active at dusk and dawn. I saw nothing but I did stop to observe the spotted flycatchers again, seeing them mate at one point.


Again I had no B&B arranged. I went to Brandon and asked at the pub. I was told that the owner of the bowling alley let rooms. One was available at £42 inc breakfast. A bit steep (Bridlington was £23) but I had little choice. A little later the receptionist told me that, as it was a bank holiday next day, they couldn't offer me breakfast so I could have the room only for £35. I wasn't disappointed about this as I'll explain in my next post.......

2008 Roundup - Part 2

The next week my wife, Lynne, and I went to Shetland for five days. Shetland is something of a Mecca for birdwatchers and Lynne has also wanted to go there for a while. I won’t bore you too much with the problems of flying on a very small plane and needing to carry a fairly large lens in hand luggage, but if I tell you I can’t print Lynne’s reply when she learnt that her entire hand luggage would have to be replaced with one lens in a rucksack you’ll get the drift. Shetland is treeless, rather like Iceland but less dramatic. In summer, days are long. You really get good value out of the daylight. Roads are good and traffic jams are unheard of. Petrol was £1.40 a litre then but probably cheaper now.

Shetland landscape


We stayed two days at Sumburgh, a few minutes from the RSPB reserve at Sumburgh Head. There were still puffins in early August but not that many. Still, there were twite, another lifer, and Lynne pointed out some small birds to me on the grass bank just over the wall. I looked and knew they were crossbills, another lifer, but it wasn’t till I got back to the hotel that I realised they were juvenile two barred crossbills, rare vagrants from northern Russia. What I didn’t know was that nearby there were adult birds that are very colourful! If only I’d had my iPhone then, I would have been able to access the Internet and see what was about!


Two barred crossbill


Next day was Noss, an island off the East Coast, sporting loads of Great skuas (bonxies), about 20,000 gannets, rock pipits, arctic skuas and some seals. It’s quite impressive to see so many gannets, and the smell stays with you for quite a while too!



Gannet, Noss, Shetland.



Great skua, Noss, Shetland.


Next was the island of Mousa for black guillemot, red throated diver and storm petrels. Well we didn’t actually see the petrels, which only come at night.


Red throated diver, Mousa, Shetland.



We then moved to the North West, where the highlights were Whooper swans with young and merlin.


Whooper swan with cygnet, Shetland.



Next a trip to Hermaness in the very North of the islands where it was blowing a gale. On reaching the cliffs after walking across the reserve I sat down to rest and watch the birds. Thousands of gannets wheeled below me over the sea, plunging every so often from a great height to fish. Fulmars soared along the cliffs; puffins came and went bringing food for their young.


Fulmar Hermaness, Shetland.


One puffin approached and then circled round again, …..and again, ….and again. I wondered why he didn’t go to his burrow. Then he landed 2m from me and stared at my feet. I was in ecstasy. A puffin with at least 15 sand eels in its bill was 2m away from me. I quickly took several pictures, one of which I regard as one of the best shots I have been lucky enough to get, and looked down at my feet to see what he was staring at. My leg was in front of his burrow!!! I moved away and he scurried in at last.


Puffin with sand eels, Hermaness, Shetland


A last day in Lerwick and then home. The last three months of the year started with the sighting of a green heron at West Hythe in Kent. I went with David Campbell on a very wet and dreary day and the heron never came out from the tree he was sheltering under. I don’t blame him!


Green heron, West Hythe, Kent.


The following month a night heron was found in exactly the same place! What are the chances of that? I went to see that one as well.


Night heron, West Hythe, Kent.


I had always denied being a twitcher, but as I also went to see the desert wheatear at Sandwich, the hooded merganser at Radipole lake (on the way to the Westcountry) and the hawfinch at Bookham I suppose I must have turned into one of sorts this year. I also saw black redstart for the first time at Portland Bill; a very nice bird.


Black redstart, Portland Bill.


Finally, I went to see waxwings at Folkestone, also a lifer and a very handsome bird.


Waxwing, Folkestone, Kent.



All in all it was a very enjoyable year. My thanks to David Campbell who was with me and educated me on many of the outings. I was never so dedicated or knowledgeable at that age!

Happy New Year to you all.