Oriental Express

Whilst most sane individuals snoozed away the ‘extra’ hour in glorious slumber, I – courtesy of a dawn alarm call from my neighbouring Little Owl – was down at the Point of Ayr early doors for a visible migration watch.

Birds were moving through – almost exclusively finches – but it was a steady flow more than a torrent, so after things had tailed off after an hour or so I moved over to the Old Colliery site.

A group of thirty Siskins were feeding on the alders next to the hide path, but otherwise things were spookily quiet.

However, the still autumnal morning air was soon pierced by a very familiar racket and I looked up to see the profile of a Rose-ringed Parakeet shooting across the BHP works.

In India, they are one of the most common birds and the number I have seen is probably approaching a googleplex, but this was a first in the UK for me!

An introduced species, I know, but an unexpected addition to my Flintshire list this year nonetheless. I can’t say that I am overjoyed that they are establishing themselves in Blighty – I am a bit of a hardliner when it comes to non-native species and I would probably favour their removal.

Local Little Owl take note – especially if you continue to wake me up too early!

Vis Mig Talacre Dunes 31.10.10 – 07.05am to 08.00am

Chaffinch 259
Siskin 22
Greenfinch 12
Brambling 3
Goldfinch 3
Linnet 12
Bullfinch 2
Woodpigeon 6
Meadow Pipit 6
Fieldfare 1

Old Colliery Site

Rose-ringed Parakeet 1
Siskin 35
Merlin 1
Snipe 1
Little Grebe 3

Until later.

There Be Shrikes?

Nipped into a blustery Cop Hole over lunchtime today. The pool was very, very quiet with only a couple of first winter drake Tufted Duck braving the gusty wind.

On initial inspection, the marsh didn’t fare much better, but after parking my arse on the damp embankment for twenty minutes or so a ringtail Hen Harrier appeared from nowhere and was then promptly ushered over to the rifle range by a couple of Carrion Crows.

It looked like a juvenile male to me – yet another addition to the list of young, immature and adult female Hen Harriers that almost seem to occupy the estuary exclusively.

On another note, I have been running the rule over Halkyn Mountain as a possible subject for a year’s intensive patching.

Despite being scarred by a couple of humungous quarries, there appears to be a fair amount of decent habitat to explore, although to be honest initial findings reveal birds to be a little thin on the ground.

It looks ideal for a wintering Great Grey Shrike though and last year I was pretty damn certain I found an Eastern Stonechat, so I will continue to keep tabs on the area over the winter and who knows…

Until later.

The Boy Done Good

A duo of male Peregrines terrorising the wader roost on Oakenholt Marsh was the highlight of a few hours spent at Connah’s Quay NR early this afternoon.

Both falcons were fairly distant, but in all probability were the adult and juvenile from the power station. Hunting lessons look to be progressing well with the young bird looking the part, but not quite succeeding in making a kill.

‘Kal ho naa ho’ as they in India…there will always be tomorrow…

Other birds on the marsh included masses of Canada Geese and good numbers of Lapwing too, whilst Spotted Redshanks and Greenshank continue to haunt the bunded pools.

Meanwhile, somebody has been busy on the stream that runs in front of the West Hide – a guerrilla raid has resulted in four sticks being placed over the water as prospective Kingfisher perches. The local avian fisherman has not been slow in taking advantage with the furthest vantage point already occupied!

Woe betides the perpetrator of this heinous, provocative and seditious act on RSPB land. Expect stooges to be dispatched lickety-split to remove the offending articles – the perches clearly benefit wildlife and facilitate people in seeing the birds.

Also on the radar today: a male Sparrowhawk…

Until later.

Tata For Now

“Bloody-cold this morning” I said to Ray Mears as he took a break from Arctic Survival training inside the West Hide at Connah’s Quay this morning.

Still, being ice-blasted from the biting wind at least took my mind of my aching joints. That and talking to Ray – freezing temperatures and a mega dose of pharmaceuticals can do strange things to you…

Good numbers of Dunnies and Teal out on the sand and mud flats before high tide, with a larger serving of Oystercatchers and Blackwits over towards Flint Castle.

Nothing out of the ordinary however, so after bidding farewell to everybody’s favourite survival expert it was over to the relatively toasty Middle Hide.

More waders here, including over a hundred K-not, Dunlin, Redshank, plus fifteen Spotted Redshank and three Greenshank.

For afters it was over to Shotton Pools Nature Reserve over at Corus, or should that now be the Tata Shotton Works Nature Reserve? I wonder if the name change was greeted with a chorus of boos? (I should be shot for that one).

I must admit that seeing the ‘Tata’ logo in the United Kingdom a little unnerving; having spent long periods in India, I used to the ubiquitous brand appearing on practically everything, but it seems more that a little odd back in Blighty.

As Denzil has noted, much work has been done down here over the last two months – not much of it sympathetic to the avian inhabitants - I imagine the Cetti’s Warblers may be applying for housing benefit this winter.

Good birds around today though, with a Kingfisher (above, pictured from the Space Station) a nice surprise; even more surprising was that it appeared to have caught an actual fish from the cooling pools.

Two Green Sandpipers were also on the manor, plus a Snipe and the first Goldeneye I have seen this winter.

Not bad, not bad at all.

Until later.

Heaven 17

I nipped over to Flint way just after lunch for a quick poke around Connah’s Quay and Cop Hole.

Arriving in the West Hide, I met up with Keith LJ whom informed me that I had just missed my 2672nd Mediterranean Gull this year – bugger.

A hopeful scan over the mudflats revealed good numbers of shorebirds still, plus increasing numbers of Wigeon and Pintail, but to my chagrin the Med had skedaddled.

With no news of the Barred Warbler – and in birding no news is bad news – I resigned myself to half an hour in the middle hide.

Not the numbers of waders of yesteryear, but eleven Spotted Redshanks were on show, including this active trio above – hardly a shot of Cohen vintage, but not bad for a mobile phone and ‘scope!

After twenty minutes, my curiosity got the better of me and I decided to take a punt on the Barred Warbler over near the rifle range. En route I just had time to work through a group of waders roosting on the marsh and low and behold amongst the Redshank and Dunlin stood another six Spotted Redshanks – a record here for me!

But on to Cop Hole it was where yesterday’s finder of the Barred Warbler was in situ, but regrettably the warbler was not.

A really great find by Stan Skelton yesterday and I am doubly miffed that I couldn’t get over there to see it and that I had missed a great Flintshire bird – what an addition that would have been…

Until later.

Poco Seawatch

Following a night of strong westerly winds and a continued - albeit lighter - north westerly this morning, I spent an hour or so in the dunes at Talacre over high tide this morning.

Whilst I wasn't exactly beating the Skuas off with my Leicas, a few interesting birds flew out of the estuary including a hat-trick of Brent Geese flying west.

Other birds included a handful of distant Common Scoters - that seem to fly like unguided missiles to me - and a couple of Red-breasted Mergansers and Great Crested Grebes.

Of additional interest was what seemed like a decent passage of Common Gulls this morning. Hands-up, I am not what you would call au-fait with their migratory meanderings, but at least thirty adult birds went through today.

Until later.

The Sloe Food Movement

Four hours passed in no time at all down at Connah’s Quay today with a typical excellent variety of species recorded.

Birds of the day probably go to a couple of Kingfishers – one in hot pursuit of t’other - that flew across the front of the newly officially anointed West Hide, although the three Peregrines on show (a big female perched on Oakenholt Marsh, plus what looked like a father and son circling near Flint Bridge) ran a close second.

Waders were aplenty with good numbers of Redshank and Dunlin feeding on the mudflats, although being around the neap tide time a large amount on mud and sand was exposed and thus the majority of the shorebirds were a good distance away.

The shaven Bunded Pools also had a small flock of Blackwits and Knot and whilst the numbers of Greenshank start to reduce – just five today – the count of Spotted Redshanks now appears to be into the teens.

Twelve birds for definite on the pools, and possibly another three further along the shoreline add up a respectable fifteen and this would corroborate a rumoured total of the same number over the weekend.

Canada Geese get rather overlooked by most birders (me included), but it would be hard to argue that the two and a half thousand or so present on the marsh today didn't represent a great 'natural' spectacle. Scrutiny of the flock revealed a score or so of various hybrids, a few Greylags and what appeared to be a Canada/Brent cross - a new one for me!

It was interesting to note that many of the trees, bushes and shrubs have been trimmed along the road to the Field Centre – possibly before the last Open Day?

Interesting because large numbers of autumn berries appear to have been removed in the process, prompting the question is tidiness more important than food for the birds…?

Connah’s Quay NR 18.10.10

2,000+ Canada Goose
3 Shoveler
3 Peregrine (adult female, adult male and juvenile male)
12+ Spotted Redshank
5 Greenshank
500 Black-tailed Godwit
300 Knot
400 Dunlin
2 Ringed Plover
2 Kingfisher
15 Skylark
2 GC Grebe (adult and juvenile)
1 Little Grebe

Until later.

Chanterelle Show-and-tell

Incredibly, when out looking for fungi yet again this evening I stumbled across another good Flintshire bird: a Marsh Tit!

Truth is indeed stranger than fiction; go out looking for Wood Blewits at Coed y Garth and find a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker; go out looking for Chanterelles (pictured above) at Llyn Helyg and I find a Marsh Tit.

I’m sure there is some strange, profound cosmic truth here – either that or I am becoming psychotic from eating too many mushrooms. Or maybe I am just feckin’ lucky…

I picked up the Marsh Tit feeding in the undergrowth right near the entrance to Llyn Helyg at SJ117777 – just over the style next to the metal gate and on the left.

It is perhaps not too surprising to find them here as it is classic Marsh Tit habitat: mature deciduous trees with plenty of rotting stumps and branches. Hopefully one may even have the courtesy to pay a visit to my feeding station in my back garden a mile away in Lloc.

Even closer to home, the Little Owl that lives in the old oak across the road from me was in good form last night waking me up with a few verses of loud screeching at three in the morning.

Taking its cue from the Little Owl, the local Tawny Owl also decided to crank it up a little too. Any chance of some sleep chaps?

Llyn Helyg 14.10.10

1 Marsh Tit
13 Chanterelles

Until later.

Lesser spotted in Coed y Garth

Out mushrooming in Coed y Garth this evening when I heard a faint tapping from the top of the tree I was standing next to.

I looked up and casual as you like was a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker working its way up the branch only ten or so feet away from me!

A first for Flintshire!

Bugger all else about though.

Until later.

The Longest Day

A long, long, day out in the field today, save an hour or so for a late Breakfast, produced an excellent haul of birds, plus some strong evidence that autumn migration is finally kicking-in.

So, let’s begin at the beginning as they say.

A quick trip down to the Point of Ayr at dawn – ostensibly to walk my dog – turned into full-on stravaigin when it was obvious a good number of birds was on the move. Signs were good from the start when I heard a Goldcrest calling from a conifer in near the car park and although there were few birds on the ground, the next couple of hours produced a heavy passage of mainly finches including two groups of Crossbill and a score or so Siskin.

A nose around the colliery lagoons added Kingfisher, Greenshank, the resident Little Grebes and a couple of Kestrels, whilst the surrounding grassland held excellent numbers of Skylarks, Meadow Pipits and a flock of Linnet.

After a hearty breakfast of puffball, eggs and bacon, it was back on the road and on towards Connah’s Quay. After a quartet of Little Stint had been reported yesterday, the aim was to pick up at least one today, but despite much searching I drew a blank.

Plenty of other wader around though (including good numbers on the Bunded Pools – hopefully I am wrong about the vegetation bring too short and they stay), with the highlight being seven Spotted Redshanks from the middle hide.

With some familiar ‘boat races’ around too, including Geoff, Keith. Mark and Stan it was an excellent few hours. However, attempts to locate the Long-billed Dowitcher were curtailed somewhat when a couple of young pikies decided they were going to attempt to steal a boat moored on the edge of the pools. Exit birds stage left.

This was a cue for Stan and me to head over to Kop Hole and have a good a scan over the marsh.

It was a glorious warm evening – toasty enough for a Ruddy Darter and Hawker sp – and with superb visibility too. Although never close, we watched a couple of Marsh Harriers, a ringtail Hen Harrier and a Merlin that were all hunting and a little nearer a couple of Swallows hawked insects over one of the flashes.

Also over the marsh was a small flock of fifteen very unsettled Brent Geese (numbers on the up now), whilst closer to home a late Wheatear sat on my old tree stump seat. The soundtrack to the evening was kindly provided by a noisy Water Rail that called constantly from the ditch behind us.

A cracking day!

Point of Ayr, early morning:

50+ Crossbill
1 Kingfisher
1 Greenshank
2 Little Grebe
2 Kestrel

Connah’s Quay, early afternoon:

7 Spotted Redshank
1 Greenshank

Kop Hole, early evening:

2 Marsh Harrier (adult male, juv/fem)
1 Hen Harrier (ringtail)
1 Merlin
1 Peregrine
15 Brent Goose
2 Swallow
1 Pochard
1 Water Rail
1 Wheatear

Until later.

Far from the Madding Crowds

I was going to head down to Connah's Quay for the high tide today, but en route I remembered it was open day, so in pursuit of a more peaceful couple of hours I changed tack and headed for Bagillt Marsh.

With the tide galloping in, I decided to sit on top of the small hill next to Bagillt Dock and look for some Grebes, but it wasn't Great Cresties I saw on the water, but three Brent Geese - dark bellied by the look of it too, although the light was pony.

In actual fact, I was surprised at just how much activity there was on this stretch of the estuary: lots of small wader flocks zipped by, containing modest numbers of Oystercatchers, Blackwits, Knot and Redshank, but the star bird of the vigil was a female Merlin that flew in to the marsh from across the water.

Feeling jolly pleased with myself I headed home only to discover that four Little Stints had been reported from Connah's Quay - a much sought after Flintshire year tick. Do'h!

Continuing with the Connah's Quay NR theme, I emailed David Jones yesterday about the crew cut that has been inflicted on the vegetation around the Bunded Pools.

All credit to DJ, he responded quickly, although I don't think he took too kindly to my inquiry, Here is his communication:

I note your comments, I can assure you that we do liaise with EON and infact have a 5 year management plan which includes a cutting regime, we meet once a year to see whether our actions are working. The following bodies are involved in the discussions; Richard Toft Consultant Ecologist, Fenella Bellinger Consultant Landscape Designer, RSPB, Countryside Council for Wales, EON and ourselves.

Your comments about making stupid (I didn't say stupid - Ed) decisions are not helpful, if you want to be involved in the decision making process our AGM is on Friday 10th December, you need to get a member to nominate you as a Trustee.

Regards
David Jones
Chairman

Sort of prompts the question, how many ecologists does it take to cock-up a nature reserve?

Seriously though, it is fairly obvious to many of us that use CQNR on a regular basis that obliterating the cover around the pools was not a wise move.

In all fairness, the Deeside Naturalist Society do an excellent job - especially when you consider that it is staffed by volunteers and run on a shoestring budget. Ever since I have joined they have bulit an extra hide and put up a couple of screens; heck if they had been in charge over at Inner Marsh Farm and had the RSPB's resources behind them they would have constructed an exact replica of the Taj Mahal down at the Point of Ayr by now.

Still, I would like to put a couple of points forward at the AGM, so if anybody out there wants to nominate me as a trustee them I would be very grateful. I can also raise the issue of the slits in the West Hide that really need widening...

Until later.

Slowly, slowly, catchey monkey.

An excellent few hours over the high tide at the Point of Ayr this morning was capped with two Lapland Buntings found feeding on the small shingle bank to the left of the old hide area.

This couplet represent the first and second birds for me anywhere and being in Flintshire too made finding the birds even more satisfying.

Longspurs notwithstanding, the thousands of Blackwits and Oystercatchers roosting on the spit made the trip worthwhile alone, although predicatably they were subject to disturbance from a couple of plonkers with two Alsatians and also, rather crassly, a birder.

It was good to see the leucistic Oystercatcher back for another year and other interesting birds included a dozy female Goosander, a tardy juvenile Sandwich Tern, a fresh looking Grey Plover and a maurading Peregrine.

Wildfowl numbers are on the up with around seven hundred and fifty Shelduck and a century or so of Pintail and Wigeon.

The numbers:

Oystercatcher VIIIM
Black-tailed Godwit IIMVD
Shelduck VIICL
Wigeon C
Pintail C
Lapland Bunting II
Sandwich Tern I
Peregrine I
Grey Plover I
Skylark XL
Linnet XX

Hail Caesar.

Poco Vis Mig

Some – albeit small – signs of visible migration at the Point of Ayr this morning with a high, wide and handsome Great Spotted Woodpecker, a couple of Siskins and a handful of Chaffinches moving through.

It was interesting to note that Richard Smith’s article on visible migration contained in the latest newsletter http://www.deeestuary.co.uk/news.htmstates that some birds move towards the POA from the north Wirral area. In my experience, the birds passing over the dunes at Talacre are generally passing in the opposite direction – from west to east and over towards Hilbre??

Not much in the dunes to write home about, but the return walk along the beach was a little more interesting producing thirty-four Grey Plover and my first Sanderling of the winter – a flock of four flying along the shore.

On t’other side of the Point, the Kingfisher is still milling around the bridge near the entrance to the scrap metal yard and a peek through the bins revealed the massive flock of Blackwits picked up by Denzil (patch invader!!) at Ffynnongroyw few days ago to still be on the manor.

Less productive was an evening raid to the rifle range to look for some Shorties.

Score:

Wildfowlers 9 – Short-eared Owls 0

A distant ringtail Hen Harrier and a Sparrowhawk was as good as it got on the marsh, but of more interest was a probable Black-necked Grebe on the pool adjacent to the Steelworks roundabout. I say probable as it was getting dark and I was viewing the bird from the guard post. Unfortunately the bird sloped into the reeds as I moved to get a closer look, but I’m pretty sure – not much mistaking that steep forehead and upturned bill…

Until later.

Armies of Dunlin

Popped into the Connah's Quay for an hour over lunch. Like my hair, the tide was receding slowly and the freshly replenished mudflats were brimming with Dunlin.

It's not often that you get large number of Dunnies down at Connah's Quay - there were circa fifteen hundred today - and a quick scan through the ranks revealed most of them to be the larger Alpina race - some still sporting their summer gear.

It was hard to work my way through them as the entire flock - plus a similar number of Redshank - were very unsettled and kept moving around in large groups as if they were battalions of troops being marshaled by an indecisive General.

Nevertheless, I did mange to pick out a couple of juvenile Curlew Sandpipers and a young Bar-tailed Godwit, but the hoped for Little Stint remained elusive.

Strangely, apart from a small handful feeding near the west hide, I could not locate the Black-tailed Godwits that should be numbering in the thousands now!

A brief visit to the bunded pools was also drew a blank, with three Spotted Redshanks the only birds of note.

Until later.

The Merry Springers Show

I have been out plenty over the last week - but although I have been in the great outdoors at least a couple of times per day I have had a couple of deranged Springer Spaniels in tow.

As one can imagine, this is not very conducive to good birding. Nevertheless, I must have walked the entire Flintshire side of the Dee Estuary in segments over the last week in between sitting and home writing sarcastic comments about the Royal Society for Picnics and Barbeques (Okay, enough is enough! It’s being on the social and trying to live on 65 quid a week – it makes you bitter!!!)

Anyways, my best ‘discovery’ has been the old colliery pools and surrounding area that lie past Ground Zero at the Point of Ayr.

Until a few weeks ago, I had never walked in this section, but it is incredible habitat – a mixture of pools (the middle one pictured above), wet grassland and scrub.

Over a few visits I have clocked Little Grebe, Greenshank, Kingfisher, Kestrel, Wheatear, a pair of juvenile Ravens and a probable Lapland Bunting, I say ‘probable’ as I’ve never seen one for sure and have no clue what their call sounds like. Incidentally, if anybody knows where I can get a sound file of the call, then can you please let me know?

The Lappy was in quite an interesting area as it happens – right at the point where the seawall that passes behind the pools reaches the railway wall at the western end of Ffynnongroyw beach. For some reason part seems to hold a good concentration of migrant passerines – on every occasion I have walked this far there has always been good numbers of birds.

Other interesting observations this week have been a good count of over ten Great Crested Grebes on the river channel of Bagillt Marsh (they seem to have vanished from around Connah’s Quay), a few hundred Golden Plover flying north along the shoreline the same evening and quite a few sightings of Ringed Plover too between Mostyn and Flint.

All this walking along the coast then gave me an idea: why not walk the entire length from Prestatyn to Flint and then get the train back. What the heck - buy an open return and do it both ways!

Until later.