FAT WAGTAIL NATURE

Birding At Work

2011-12-29T12:42:00.001-08:00

WORK BIRDING

I'm very lucky to be one of these people that work outside and can enjoy nature whilst I work. But anyone I think can do abit of birding wherever you are even in a office. You take 5 minutes looking out the window at lunch or 5 minutes on your fag break and you'll be amazed what you see. During my fun raising stint with work in Plymouth Town Centre during a busy Christmas shopping morning I saw Pied Wagtail, Starling, Blue Tit, Robin and even Goldcrest. There are birds there if you just look for awhile .. Give it a go and you'll be suprised what you see. Also remember if you haven't already make sure you have food out for the birds. It's not as cold as last year but the birds are still happy for abit of extra food. Back to birdwatching at work i'm very lucky to have a variety of species around the grounds during winter. I have a feeding station set up so I can view the birds when i'm having my lunch. Species so far are Blue,Great,Coal, Long Tailed Tit, Greenfinch, Goldfinch, Chaffinch, House Sparrow, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Starling and the occasional Bullfinch.
Around the field areas there are Redwing,Fieldfare & Meadow Pipit. Buzzard, Sparrowhawk and Kestrel are seen regulary. Best two ever birds I've seen at work has to be a Hoopoe and Waxwing. Quite a year this year for birds at work.

AND IN OTHER NEWS

I have been learning at work recently how to ring our wild injured owls we get in and rehabilitate back into the wild under the guidance of Mark Grantham. If you don't no much about ringing or the B.T.O (British Trust Ornithology) click here. I am also going to be doing some of this "out in the field" so to speak which I'm very much looking forward to but I have alot to learn. Will keep you updated on how I get on.

Short Eared Owl

Patch Visits

2011-12-05T15:20:00.000-08:00

Par Football Field - 42 Oystercatcher
St.Andrews Pool - 16 Teal & 2 Water Rail
Par Bay - 5 Great Crested Grebe, 7 Common Scoter & 1 Great Northern Diver
Par Beach Pool - 3 Tufted Duck (2f & 1m), 2 Oystercatcher, 1 Little Grebe, 1 Kingfisher, 1 Little Gull & Red Breasted Merganser on the river Imerys side .

Med Gull Video

2011-12-05T10:43:00.000-08:00

Med Gull - Par Beach Pool

Gulls Of Par

2011-11-15T13:51:00.000-08:00

Lesser Black-backed Gull - Larus fuscus

Mediterranean Gull - Ichthyaetus melanocephalus

Little Gull - Larus minutus

Common Gull - Larus canus

Herring Gull - Larus argentatus

Black Headed Gull - Chroicocephalus ridibundus

Great Black-backed Gull - Larus marinus

Mega Hunting

2011-09-13T14:00:00.000-07:00

Sabine's Gull

Greater Yellowlegs

Sabine's Gull

Heres a very poor image of the wonderful Greater Yellowlegs thats on the Camel Estuary atm at Wadebridge and also a really obliging Sabine's Gull who at one point came within 8 feet of watching birders.

Kingfisher (Male)

2011-08-25T06:43:00.001-07:00

Kingfisher (Male) - Alcedo atthis

Now with the silly season nearly on it's way I thought i'd drag myself out and have a look at Par and see what was about. Works been very busy so not had chance to get out as much as i'd like. Visited the imerys end at low tide this morning and waited at my normal spot and after a hour or so I was rewarded with this chap who wasen't to amused me pointing my camera at him.

Weekend Birding

2011-05-02T09:36:00.001-07:00

Just stayed local this weekend and did some birding and photography at Carne Grey which is a heathland resoration area at Trethurgy St.Austell and Par Beach Pool.

Cuckoo - Cuculus canorus

Cuckoo - Cuculus canorur

Willow Warbler - Phylloscopus trochilus

Grey Heron - Ardea cinerea

I'm back

2011-04-09T03:27:00.001-07:00

Malaysian Brown Wood Owl - Strix leptogrammica

Hello and a huge big apology for my lack of posts .. It's a combination of being ill with a unknown virus (now much better) and work which is as busy as ever. Hopefully I can now crack on and continue the blog on a regular basis. This year I have decided to have a fun go and seeing how many species of bird I can get in a year. Not going to go mad with it, just a fun thing and in turn hopefully see some nice birds in return and maybe some photo's to go with it. People can keep on track with what i'm seeing using the "bubo listings" I have at the top and I will also be keeping a list on the left hand menu of some of my "bird records". I will be most happy if I can get to 200 birds this year as this is really the first year i've ever seriously bird watched. I'm still a novice but eager to learn and improve. I have a new header which is probably the most photographed Diver in Cornwall .. This bird upon my visit appears to have a injured foot. It still seems to be fishing well so hopefully it'll survive.

2011-01-22T10:53:00.000-08:00

Bittern showed well for only around 5 minutes spending most of the time right at the back of the pool well out of view.

Eurasian Bittern - Par Beach Pool

Dodgyscoping

2011-01-20T12:05:00.000-08:00

Heres a list of some of the birds seen today. Also I'd like to annouce I've invented a new type of video/photo taking which i've named "Dodgyscoping". Please feel free to laugh and some superb footage (ha ha) of Eider and Black Throated Diver. If i'm not posting in the next few weeks i'm off filming for the bbc.

Porthpean : Black Throated Diver (6), Razorbill (4), Fulmar (11), Great Crested Grebe (3), 2 Flocks of Common Scoter (21) & (11)

Charlestown : Red Necked Grebe (1), Black Throated Diver (5), Fulmar (7), Great Northern Diver (1)

Carlyon Bay : Black Throated Diver (5), Fulmar (13), Gannet (3), Slavonian Grebe (7), Razorbill (17), Great Northern Diver (2)

Spit Beach : Eider (8 - Immature Male & 7 Female), Razorbill (9), Black Throated Diver (1), Great Crested Grebe (20)

Par Beach Pool - Gadwall (Male & Female), Wigeon (1 Male), Shoveler (3 Female), Snipe (14), Scaup (Male & Female), Bittern showing well and at one point sitting in a tree at the back of the pool. Another different bird (A Carey) showing earlier as well.

More Bittern

2011-01-13T08:16:00.000-08:00

Hopefully I'm not boring you all with my Bittern pictures but I can't help but try and photo this excellent bird .. and being secretive it's quite a challange. Finally caught up with it today after seeing it climbing all over he reeds and it posed quite well for a time before flying in behind the reeds at the back of the pool. Also I finally confirmed the Cetti's Warler is still around after it briefly appeared and shouted at me before zipping into the reeds and not seen again.

Bittern Joy

2011-01-07T10:15:00.000-08:00

Goldcrest - Regulus regulus

After multiple attempts to track the bird down I have finally managed some Bittern shots at Par.
The day started at St.Andrews at the "hard rock cafe" where I saw a great deal of varying finch and tit species. I managed Coal and Marsh Tit which where patch ticks as well as Siskin. Also a very obliging Goldcrest in around the swamp area.
Then at Par Beach Pool I saw a male Reed Bunting (Patch Tick), the 5 Bar Headed Geese flew in with a lone Barnacle Goose in tow and of course the Bittern.
I started off at the back of the pool low in cover with my camo gear on waiting for the Bittern to see if it would make a appearance. It made a appearance flying high over me towards the car park, flying over my car before dropping into the reeds by the depth marker. The Bittern had a new latin name for those few minutes. I did though get a good view of where it went and made my way quietly down and located it around 20 foot in front of me. It spotted me and skypointed for around 15 minutes before slowly walking off. Managed to grab Andrew who managed to get its bum sloping off into the reeds. Really amazing it's ability to hide. With a slight turn of the head it would seemingly vanish. Certainly my best bird of the year so far !!

Bittern - Botaurus stellaris

Bittern

2011-01-05T09:32:00.000-08:00

Bittern - Botaurus stellaris (Record shot)

The Bittern was showing very well at the back of the pool at 2pm today and I had a year and patch tick as 5 Snipe came down into the reeds by the depth marker. Also a patch tick with a lone Jackdaw by the pool.

Jan 2nd + 4th

2011-01-05T04:43:00.000-08:00

Stonechat - Saxicola torquata

Water Rail - Rallus aquaticus

Had a great day on Sunday with Angie and Trevor where we visited Spit Beach, St.Andrews Pool and Par Beach Pool/Bay. The day started off well scoping the bay with Black Throated Diver, Common Scoter, Eider and my best bird of the day a single Velvet Scoter which was a life tick. Also on the rocks were Grey Plover which again is a life tick for me. The rain came down but didn't deter us from marching on down to the harbour where there were the pair of Scaup present, Shelduck, Redshank, Dunlin, Little Grebe, Bar Tailed Godwit and Ringed Plover.
Then onto St.Andrews where we got some cracking views of Water Rail feeding in around the marsh area. Angie spotted a Kingfisher but I missed that so will have to wait abit longer to tick that off for the year. No sign either of the Goosander which would have made a year tick.
Onto Par Beach Pool where we had a cracking view of the Bittern at the pool. I have to say this is up there with one of my fav birding moments. Gorgeous bird and so ellusive so great to get a good view on your local patch. Also Gadwall, Wigeon, Teal were seen. Very cold and wet day but thoroughly enjoyable. Big thank you to Trevor and Angie for there company and good humour !

On the 4th I made my way up to Menabilly to have my first look of the year. In the fields leading up to the carpark were good numbers of Redwing and Fieldfare with a solitary Lapwing.
Into the carpark which was a mud pit, I scanned around and saw loads of Starlings (200+) down towards the farm, large mixed finch flock mainly of Chaffinch, Lapwings being very loud in the field to the left. Female Kestrel and a solitary Skylark. Down to Par Beach Pool to try and get a photo of the Bittern which I saw but sadly it flew everywhere but towards me.
Hopefully very soon getting myself a scope so I'll hopefully be able to upgrade my i.d skills and get cracking finding some nice birds, although using "Bins" has taught me alot of other usefull i.d skills like behaviour to determine a potential species.

Tufted Duck - Aythya fuligula

Brent Geese - Branta bernicla

New Years Patch Visit

2011-01-01T08:59:00.000-08:00

Firecrest - Regulus ignicapillus

A very Happy New Year to you all

Manoa valley today produced a very pretty Firecrest along with around 20 Meadow Pipits and all the common ticks including Dipper and Grey Wagtail.
St.Andrews had 2 Shoveler Duck (m & f) with no sign of the Female Goosander. Did have a look in Snowlands but very quiet indeed.
Par Beach Pool still had the Female Goldeneye showing at the back right along with Tufted and a few Teal. Didn't see the Bittern but had been seen in the morning.
I met Bob and Lesley Mitchell at St.Andrews Pool who said there was a Black Restart on the beach at Par near the river mouth which I saw and watched as it fed with Pied Wagtails. I also met another man at Par but I've forgotten his name so apologies if your reading this.

A Very Happy New Year

2010-12-31T12:41:00.000-08:00

As the year comes to a close I would like to thank all the people that look at my blog and wish all a Very Happy New Year. I plan to expand my posts with abit more info than normal and try a few new things to hopefully make it a more interesting experience for both myself and the "viewers".
During this years birding I've been joined by some very special fellow birders and would like to thank Angie and Trevor, Andrew Carey and of course Roger Lane who's experience in the area I now call my "patch" is second to none. He has taught me a great deal and continues to enspire me with his birding tales as well as being an all round super chap. Also anyone else I've met and forgotten to mention.
I've learned also that yes it's great zooming around Cornwall looking for glamorous birds, but i've found the joy of finding a different bird on the patch far more rewarding. My best patch birds this year has to be Cetti's Warbler, Squacco Heron and the Bittern. Although I could have whisked my way down to Marazion to see Cetti's and Bittern, hearing and glimpsing the Cetti's and watching a Bittern flying low over a icy pond on your local area far more rewarding. And a Squacco on a local patch was amazing.
I finished my year with a St.Austell Baywatch total of 117 birds which I'm very pleased with. My Cornwall list was 131. Not a huge total due to not racing around after county ticks but I did see some great birds like Green Heron, Cattle Egret and Squacco Heron.
So next year becons in a few hours and all the lists start again .. 117 patch ticks is going to be tricky to beat but I shall give it a go ..

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL

Merry Christmas

2010-12-24T09:58:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas To All Blog Followers

Patch Visits

2010-12-22T14:44:00.000-08:00

Goldcrest - Regulus regulus

Manoa Valley (am)

Goldcrest (20+), Flock of (20+) Goldfinch, Grey Wagtail (1), 2 flocks of (12+) Long Tailed Tits, 30+ Redwing over, 4 Fieldfare over, Male Bullfinch (1) and a very pretty Firecrest (patch tick) who was feeding by the metal gate at the end of the lane as you drive in and park on the left.

Spit Beach

In the harbour : Bar Tailed Godwit (4), Ringed Plover (8), Dunlin (34), Redshank (3), Little Grebe (3) and a male Scaup which is a year and patch tick.
Off the beach : 3 Eider (2 female and immature male)

Par Beach Pool

Wigeon (18), Teal (39), Male Shoveler (1) and also reported male Goldeneye on the river. Can't remember the chaps name. The Bittern made a appearance again this afternoon at 3:40pm. Just packed the camera up and ready to go home then from the right out it came right across the pool before dropping down in behind the trees just behind the caravans just to the right. Went round for a look but no sign.

Chiffchaff - Phylloscopus collybita

St.Andrews Pool

2010-12-10T10:23:00.000-08:00

Heres a few shots taken today at Par and despite the poor light i'm quite happy with

Goosander - Mergus merganser

Tufted Duck - Aythya fuligula

Merry Christmas Dog Walkers

2010-12-08T10:20:00.000-08:00

I would like this opportunity to wish all the b*st*rds err sorry lovely dog walkers of the world a very Merry Christmas and a very big thank you for spending the entire year flushing all the birds we've been trying to watch and photograph.

Without you guys I would have probably got some great photo's and seen some great birds but thank goodness you were there to scare em off with your slobbering uncontrolable mutts.

So Merry Christmas and may Redwings eat your Christmas Dinner, Meadow Pipits drink your booze and Buzzards eat your dogs !!!

Off Work

2010-11-19T06:12:00.001-08:00

Sadly due to illness atm and me having to wait for a appointment I'm off work so not out much. So I decided to share a few of my shots which I consider some of my favs. Hope you enjoy !

White Billed Diver - Gavia adamsii

Kingfisher - Alcedo atthis

Great Northern Diver - Gavia immer

Common Darter - Sympetrum striolatum

Dipper - Cinclus cinclus

Patch Visit 15/11/10

2010-11-17T04:37:00.000-08:00

Barnacle Goose - Branta leucopsis

Blackbird - Turdus merula

Spit Beach

2 Stonechats (1m + 1f) on the gorse by the hut
7 Turnstone, 4 Dunlin, 19 Ringed Plover and 1 Bar Tailed Godwit in the harbour

St.Andrews Pool

1 Water Rail near the "hard rock cafe", 3 Marsh Tit feeding on the hard rock cafe", 1 Jay and 7 Teal (6 male and 1 female)

Par Beach Pool

Barnacle Goose and 1 x Snipe

Marsh Tit - Poecile palustris

Work Feeding Station

2010-11-08T15:05:00.000-08:00

The work feeding station is now attracting alot of interest and at lunch managed to get a few shots. A new bird for the station this autumn/winter is a male blackcap but he was rather shy.

Great Spotted Woodpecker

House Sparrow

Great Spotted Woodpecker

Patch Visit

2010-10-29T08:16:00.000-07:00

Lesser Black Backed Gull - Larus fuscus

Braved the wind and rain and visited the patch this morning and saw the following

Spit Beach

Long Tailed Tit (3), Herring Gull (52), Cormorant (2), G B B Gull (2), Oystercatcher (32), Curlew (4), Little Egret (1), Turnstone (6) and a very splendid Black Redstart. Typical it started to chuck it down so didn't get a decent picture.

St.Andrews Pool

Mallard (18), Black Headed Gull (26), Crow (8), Chaffinch (4), Robin(3), Moorhen (10), Crow (3), Herring Gull (4), Long Tailed Tit (5), Goldcrest (2), Mute Swan (3), Pied Wagtail (2), Blue Tit(5), Great Tit(2), Wren (4), Buzzard (1) Jackdaw (1) and Raven(1). Water Rail heard but not seen.

Par Beach Pool

Black Headed Gull (91), Herring Gull (87), Cormorant (2), Crow (3), Mute Swan (11), L B B Gull (2), G B B Gull (1), Coot (29), Mallard (47), Moorhen (14) and Canada Goose (42). Just a quick noss here as rained again.

Owl Arrival

2010-10-27T12:26:00.001-07:00

Had a interesting arrival at my works owl hospital. To find out more just click here

Work & M.O.T

2010-10-21T04:09:00.000-07:00

Robin - Erithacus rubecula

Sadly due to work and my car being out of action for awhile i've not been able to get out as much as I'd like and pictures have been reduced to lunch break at work. I did though have 2 Firecrests at work a few days back but sadly no camera at hand. Here's a couple of pictures I did get amongst the mayhem. Hopefully normality will resume soon !

Dunnock - Prunella modularis

Diary Of A Owl Keeper

2010-10-15T11:54:00.000-07:00

I have started a new blog here which will document my work and what goes on, on a day to day basis. If anyone is unaware I work at the Screech Owl Sanctuary near Indian Queens, Cornwall, England, U.K. It will cover lots of hopefully interesting things about working with owls and hopefully people will enjoy reading.

Pale Bellied Brent Geese

2010-10-08T08:53:00.000-07:00

3 of 5 Pale Bellied Brent Geese that were at Par Beach today

Green Heron (Part 2)

2010-10-07T08:13:00.001-07:00

Super little bird which finally showed after 4 hours to a decent view although the light was poor and it was in and out of the undergrowth. Still managed to get a few shots off. Was odd seeing a Heron so small !!

Green Heron

2010-10-06T10:48:00.000-07:00

Just a quick one ... Very much looking forward to seeing the Green Heron tomorrow if it's still there. Not only being just up the road from me I also have 2 days off ... normally these things turn up on a working day so hopefully sucess tomorrow ... Watch this space !!

Wildlife Of Switzerland

2010-10-04T10:24:00.001-07:00

Nuthatch

Common Buzzard

House Sparrow

Roe Deer

2010-09-26T06:07:00.001-07:00

One of the most "different" commonly seen birds during my visit in Switzerland was the Black Redstart. I saw one of these birds everday during my visit in various locations around Switzerland. Very common in the towns and local villages. Was also nice to hear them sing as they sound lovley and also very photogenic. I saw more Black Redstarts then Robins and Blue Tits. The above image was taken in Bern City Centre and the below imagine in Lutzelfluh.

Altreu...Switzerland

2010-09-15T13:42:00.000-07:00

Now this was a great evening for me when I visited the town of Altreu in South West Switzerland. I was told about these birds before the trip but I wasn't told when I would be going or where it was. So I was being driven to a random Swiss place when out the car window I caught a climpse of a White Stork. My eyes popped out my head as I counted 7 more in a plowed field just to the right of the road. Now not having ever seen wild Storks before this was quite a sight, especially feeding by the side of a road in a field. Cracking birds and a life tick for me.

The migratory White Stork (Ciconia ciconia) became extinct in Switzerland in 1950. A reintroduction project with intensive management (translocation, prevention of migration, artificial feeding) started in 1948, and 175 pairs were breeding in 2000.

Threats to the species include the drainage of wetlands and other agricultural intensification, collisions with overhead power lines, use of persistent pesticides and (largely illegal) hunting on passage and the wintering grounds. German birds have been found with African arrow heads in them.
And people around here complain about Seagulls nesting on there roofs lol I counted around 24 birds around the town both on the nests and in the fields feeding.

Mammals Of Bern Zoo

2010-09-13T09:33:00.000-07:00

Now arrived back from Switzerland and had a excellent time. Although it wasn't a birding trip I did manage two life ticks so that was good. Was also good to see how the wildlife varied from ours. I'll document my trip here over the next week or so. I'll start with some photo's from Berne Zoo which is located along the Aare river, with many outdoor enclosures that actually integrate the river.

Mountain Cat

European Ground Squirrel

Short Eared Elephant Shrew

Squirrel Monkey

Cotton Top Tamarin

Mountain Hare

Brown Bear

A Post At Long Last

2010-09-03T12:51:00.000-07:00

Severe apologies for my lack of activity on the blog but sadly day upon day of tourists does take your toll on you. And when you finally manage to get out with your camera, you sadly end up with yet more tourists. I sadly would probably throw them all into the nearest body of water after not to long so i've had the summer off and become somewhat of a recluse lol. Sadly my only birds I've really seen this summer have been our owls and I can't really add Spectacled Owl to my year list.

I am happy to say that i'm now back and raring to go .. and i'm kicking off my birding September with a trip to Switzerland for a week. My sister lives there so free bed and board and hopefully some nice local stuff. My sister keeps telling me all about the Red Kites and the White Storks nesting nearby so it's about time I go take a look ... and of course takes some pictures. I will be documenting the trip of course here when I get back and of course all the local birds from mid September onwards.

Thank you for being patient

5 Minutes At Last

2010-07-07T14:19:00.000-07:00

Black Headed Gull - Chroicocephalus ridibundus

Today I finally got 5 minutes to go out and have a look down at the pool as it seems I haven't been down there for ages. Sadly a trio of the World Cup, Family and work has kept me away.
Got down there for a hour from 3pm.

Good numbers of Black Headed Gull down in the left hand corner in the shallows. Had a scan but no Med Gulls presents. A juvenile Cormorant was present fishing then sat on two poles on the back of the pool which were now exposed due to the water loss. 3 Cygnets were seen with mum and hundreds of Canada Geese. Would be nice if there weren't so many of these about as they produce alot of crap in a not so huge pool. Had a look around by the reeds, which was quiet until I disturbed a pair of Reed Warblers who both had food in the mouth so presumably feeding young atm. I aslo found a Willow Warbler feeding young.

Reed Warbler - Acrocephalus scirpaceus

Wingz Birds Sanctuary

2010-06-22T14:25:00.000-07:00

White Crested Laughing Thrush - Garrulax leucolophus

Sacred Ibis - Threskiornis aethiopicus

Apologies again for the lack of posts recently, it's been a combination of World Cup, Hayfever and Work thats kept me away from the patch. Not "wild" birds photographed today but a few captive birds. I visited Wingz Bird Sanctuary which is owned by Grenville and Anita Allen. It's a super place and they haven't been open very long, but already you can see it coming together. There main two aims to conserve rare bird species from all round the world and educate people about all the birds and animals on display. If you like tropical birds Wingz is your place. Hopefully I'll get out and about soon and get some more "wild" pictures. You can find information about Wingz here and here.

Meerkat - Suricata suricatta

Bali Starling - Leucopsar rothschildi

Treskilling Downs

2010-06-06T16:06:00.000-07:00

Paid my first visit today to Treskilling Downs just outside of Luxulyan. Angie and Trevor very kindly showed me were it was, and I followed them to the site. We met Roger Lane there who very kindly pointed out some great butterflies and generally shared his extensive knowledge of the subject. Lots of Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff, Linnet and a few Raven over. My photo's of the butterflies were rubbish and need a macro lense and the help of a tripod.

The butterflies I saw today were as follows :

Speckled Wood
Common Blue
Green Veined White
Small Pearl Bordered Fitilary
Small Heath
Dingy Skipper

Many thanks again to Trevor, Angie and Roger

Going Cuckoo

2010-06-04T12:32:00.000-07:00

Little Grebe - Tachybaptus ruficollis

Big apologies for not posting anything in awhile. Work has been hectic and what little time I have had, it's been rather fruitless until a few days ago and today. I've been up to Carloggas Downs pretty much every evening after work on the look out for Cuckoo. Meadow Pipit, Skylark, Linnet, Stonechat and even Green Woodpecker were seen, no sodding Cuckoo. That was until last night when I managed to see 4 birds. None than four birds at once how very random. Sadly due to a dog walker (*shakes fist*) that flushed one particular bird I didn't get a photo. I shall not been defeated and will get one if it kills me. I just wish gorse bushes were less prickly although I do like smelling of coconut. Early morning today I visited Snowlands fisheries (Where the Squacco was seen) to see if I could find the Turtle Dove that was reported there. No luck sadly as there was alot of Groundwork going on and as I understand from Trevor and Angies Blogs the birds very shy. I did though locate a singing Male Reed Warbler and what was most probably a silent female feeding around the reed stems. Upon talking to the finder of the Squacco Heron (Rob Davey), who visits Snowlands quite regulary, they have attempted to breed but failed in recent years. Lots of Damsleflies around but I will be back to i.d them properly and keep tabs on what I've seen. I did though get my first Painted Lady butterfly on one of the main gravel drives as you come in. Sadly very skitty and no photo.

The girlfriend and I were planning to spend the day up at the Tamar Otter Sanctuary, but a 4 mile tailback on the A30 put pay to that and we decided to get to Tehidy Woods.
Turned out to be a great day as we located a Great Spotted Woodpecker nest which sounded like just the one chick present. The adult male bird was very wary as there were 2/3 Jays around and obviously didn't want to give the nest away. There was also a very handsome Little Grebe in full summage plummage. One of my favourite birds as there such a fun Grebe to watch.

Great Spotted Woodpecker - Dendrocopus major

Reed Warbler - Acrocephalus scirpaceus

Alpine Birds

2010-05-29T13:43:00.000-07:00

Cracking photo/video blog from a chap called Dale Forbes who is situated in Austria, which can be found here. Well worth a look

Birds And Butterflies

2010-05-28T09:20:00.000-07:00

Mallard Ducklings - Anas platyrhynchos

Canada Geese Goslings - Branta canadensis

Had a quick look this morning down at the pool to see if the Wood Sandpiper was possibly still in the area. Had a listen in the reeds and counted 5 Reed Warblers Singing (2 birds singing at the back were the caravans are). Also 2 non singing birds were seen at the front reeds. Not singing but very active, possibly females feeding. Lots of baby ducks and goslings around sticking very close to there mums.
Had a look for some butterflies in the wilderness and got 1 x Orange Tip & 1 x Green Veined White by the boardwalk and in a clearing just above the Western Carpark 1 x Common Blue. Roger Lane informs me this is a first for Par this year. Hopefully I'll get better with my i.d skills with abit more practice. Not the greatest images in the world but just kept for record shots.

Orange Tip - Anthocharis cardamines

Common Blue - Polyommatus icarus

Green Veined White - Pieris napi

Bird Talk At Par

2010-05-27T14:59:00.000-07:00

Just completed tonight a talk on the birds of Par and conducted a photo slideshow of the birds that can be found there. An excellent turn out and the talk went very well. Thanks goes to Friends Of Par Beach (which can be found here and here) for inviting me along and doing a great job sorting everything out.

More Squacco Heron

2010-05-23T10:38:00.000-07:00

Couldn't resist nipping back down to snowlands fisheries and getting another glimpse of this stunning little Heron. Was great to meet Ashley and Monty there, even though I didn't recognise who Monty was Lol (Sorry).

Squacco Heron - Ardeola ralloides

Squacco Heron

2010-05-22T14:53:00.001-07:00

Squacco Heron - Ardeola ralloides

Had a phone call from a friend (and a very welcome phone call at that), that a Squacco Heron was at Snowlands Fisheries in Par. Being a possible life, county and patch tick It was to good a chance to miss. Met Trevor and Angie down there as well as several other birders including the local birder who found it who's name escapes me. Managed to get a reasonable shot but not amazing as light was fading fast and it was getting rather dark. Still rather pleased to see it and was amazed at how good it was climbing trees. Not my own find but great to see such a pretty bird on your own local patch.

Loe Bar And Pool

2010-05-14T15:08:00.000-07:00

Male Stonechat -Saxicola torquata

Kestrel - Falco tinnunculus

As it was my birthday yesterday my girlfriend suprised me and took me down to Loe Bar and the Pool. It was a glorious day and we made the most of the good weather. In and around the Car Park there were Linnets, Stonechats, and a very noisy Whitethroat who was charging up in the air doing his display flight before zipping down again in the brambles. Managed to get a shot of him as he came out to see who this odd person was lurking with a camera. Nearly fell in a gorse bush whilst trying to get in position but thats all part of the fun. Also the male Stonechat posed for me nicely. Walking along the coastpath there were 3 x Wheatear down on the beach zipping about and a male and female Kestrel hovering about 30m apart hunting. Had a good stroll around 50% of the pool. Lots of finches singing, plenty of Chiffchaff and the odd Blackcap. Also 2 x Reed Warbler were heard singing away in the reeds. I missed it, but my girlfriend spotted a Fox casually walking along the hedge line of a field and into a bush. Typical !!

Male Stonechat -Saxicola torquata

Whitethroat - Sylvia communis

Carloggas Downs

2010-05-11T13:31:00.000-07:00

Skylark - Alauda arvensis

Visited Carloggas Downs this evening and recorded the following :

12 x Linnet
3 x Skylark
2 x Meadow Pipit
3 x Stonechat (1m & 2f)
1 x Green Woodpecker sat in a field directly below the larger car park area where the "plaque" stone is. Flew off then started to yaffle. New patch tick !

No sign of any Cuckoo yet but hopefully I'll get one before the summer ends

An Illustrated Guide To The Bird Life At Par Beach And Pool

2010-05-10T13:09:00.000-07:00

I'm doing a talk in conjunction with the Friends of Par Beach entilted "An illustrated guide to the bird life at Par Beach and Pool". Will be showing some of my photo's and telling people what they can see around the Par area, when it's there and why it's there.

When? 27th May meeting at 7:30pm

Where? Gott Hall, Par Green, PL24 2AF

Cost? £1.50 entrance for members (please remember to bring your membership card with you) and £2.50 for non-members
How? Just turn up. Light refreshments will be available.

Contact? info@parbeach.com

Par Warblers

2010-04-28T10:10:00.000-07:00

Reed Warbler - Acrocephalus scirpaceus

Had a trip down to the pool today in the morning and bumped into Trevor. I decided I'd take him down to show him were I'd seen the Cetti's Warbler as his hearing is limited. We got some good views of Sedge, Reed and Cetti's Warbler and the reed bed and surrounding area was ALIVE with birds. At the peak I must have counted 7 x Sedge , 2 x Reed Warbler, 1 x Blackcap, 1 x Willow Warbler and 1 x Chiffchaff all singing. I aslo managed a few shots. The below Sedge Warbler is ringed but I sadly can't make out to well whats on it. If anyone has better eyesight then me feel free to enlighten me.

Sedge Warbler - Acrocephalus schoenobaenus

Painted Lady

2010-04-27T15:08:00.000-07:00

Grey Squirrel - Sciurus carolinensis

Went off to Hayle Estuary today with my girlfriend to have a look around the estuary, and off course eat a lovely Philps pasty. Few bits around with a Male Wheatear, 3 Sedge Warbler and 12 Whimbrel all seen around Ryans Field. The best was 2 x Common Sandpiper near the pub across the road which is a year tick for me. Then off to Tehidy woods which was relativly quiet which makes a change. Plenty of Rooks now with the Rookery being very active. A Buzzard went over and the whole place errupted .. Buzzard legged it quickly. Always a nice place to get photo's of birds with very tame Great and Blue Tits always waiting for any snacks on offer. Grey Squirrels as normal were very active .. and we were constantly followed as we always carry some peanuts when we visit. Pleasure to photograph.

Robin - Erithacus rubecula

Then onto Wheal Coates at St.Agnes for some tea ... My girlfriend then very bravely (shes not a fan of butterflys and bugs) points out a butterfly on a rock and I duelly photographed and recognised as a Painted Lady. I then consulted with Par resident bird and Butterfly expert Roger Lane who tells me it's most likely Cornwall first record this year !! Excellent and the gf was very pleased.

Painted Lady - Vanessa cardui

Garden Warbler

2010-04-26T14:17:00.000-07:00

Garden Warbler - Sylvia borin

I forgot to post this yesterday but I had my first Garden Warbler of the year at work yesterday singing from behind my falconry shed. First one I've seen in Cornwall as all previous birds have been out the county. Maybe the rain had slowed it down as never recorded one at work yet. Heres a picture of one I got at Roadford resevoir last May.

BirdTrack

2010-04-23T10:51:00.000-07:00

One of my photo's of a Whitethroat has been selected to appear on the Birdtrack website which can be viewed here. By far my best photo of this species and the photo in full is below.

Common Whitethroat - Sylvia communis

Cetti's Warbler

2010-04-19T10:38:00.000-07:00

Cetti's Warbler - Cettia cetti

Took a trip down to Par Beach Pool again today at 11am to have a look and listen for the warblers. Went down to scan the bay from the beach first though as was rewarded with 2 x Sandwich Terns which is a year and patch tick. On the way back from the beach in the dunes area I heard a Sedge Warbler which was sat in a bramble thicket. It sat 8 foot in front of me singing away and yet again couldn't see it. 20 minutes later I saw its bum appear before it skulked off and vanished.
Decided then the next course of action was to get down to the reeds by the depth marker and have a listen. I was quickly listening to 2 x Sedge Warbler singing away. Again very close and I perched down to try and get a shot. I then got frightened half to death as no more than 6 foot in front of me .. a Cetti's started a quick burst of singing before seeing me and darting off. My first glimpse and I was chuffed (Life, Year and Patch tick). Even better though 10 minutes later, it shot up into a small willow along side the reeds and sang. I managed to fire a few shots off before again it vanished. Fantastic feeling knowing I've finally got a shot of as i've been calling him "Mr.Elusive". Not the best images in the world .. I'm just happy to get a few pictures of him.

Cetti's Warbler - Cettia cetti

Warblers And Herons

2010-04-18T07:30:00.000-07:00

Chiffchaff - Phylloscopus collybita

Visited Par Beach alittle later then planned after having left my camera in my Gf's car (D'oh). The beach was already quite heavily populated with tourists and the Wheaters had legged it.
Went down to the reeds by the depth marker and spotted a rather obliging Chiffchaff who posed for his photo before shooting off. There was also a Willow Warbler in the pines but very high up and not easy to photo well. After a short wait I located 2 Sedge Warblers (New Patch and YearTick) both were being extremly secretive yet amazing noisy. One did pop up high enough to get a glimpse. I also caught a climpse of a Reed Warbler(New Patch and YearTick) who wasn't singing, just feeding in amongst the stems. Was just about to go home when the friendly Grey Heron popped in and started to fish and I managed a few good shots. The fish were in the shallows and proved easy pickings.

Grey Heron - Ardea cinerea

100 Patch Ticks Reached

2010-04-17T13:01:00.000-07:00

With 3 Wheatears seen this evening on Par beach (2m + 1f) that brings the total to the magic total of 100 birds species since January 1st 2010. Rather fitting it being Wheatear as it's the bird my blog is named after. If anyone doesn't no the story it was when last year my girlfriend spotted one and commented "Look at that fat wagtail " and the name has stuck.

Whimbrel

2010-04-16T16:13:00.000-07:00

A few images taken this evening at Spit Beach near Par

Whimbrel - Numenius phaeopus

Quite a Tale (Well Not If Your a Lizard ! )

2010-04-15T13:18:00.000-07:00

Mallard - Anas platyrhynchos

This is a joint post from today and yesterday as i've been mighty busy running around the St.Austell area and just collapsed in a lump when I got home. Yesterday I paid a visit to the Gribbin Head in between Par and Fowey in the hope of finding some migrants. Very little migrants about apart from Chiffchaffs. There were though 3 flocks of 30+ Linnet with some very pretty males in there little red tinted suits. Up on the head looking out over the bay I saw on his usual place a male Peregrine. Very noisy bird making lots of screaming noises as he flew every 20 mins up and down the cliff face. Also noted was a Fulmar and a seal which made it was on towards Fowey.
I quickly scanned the fields around the car park and noted 1 Skylark up larking, a very noisy Blackcap in the hedge and 2 x Red Legged Partridge (Patch Tick). I was also suprised upon getting home that I havn't seen a Blackcap yet this year on the patch so another welcome patch tick. Thats patch ticks 97 and 98. That 100 mark is looming closer.. Looking forward to seeing what my end of year total will be.

Mallard Duckling - Anas platyrhynchos

Today I made my way to Par Beach Pool and the wilderness area there. I first sat for a hour by the reeds listening and hopefully seeing the Cetti's Warbler. Sadly I didn't see or hear a sound other than Chiffchaffs, Willow Warbler and Blackcap. I did enjoy watching the ducklings playing around and being carefully watched by dad. Just as I was getting up a female Kestrel had come up out of the dunes area and made its way over the top of me. I fired a few shots off and thought nothing of it, until I noticed it had something in it's talons. Not a vole or mouse or bird ... a Common Lizard ! You can see in the below picture the lizard has shed it's tail as they do in defence. I recorded a Male Tufted Duck on the pool also which is most unusual and they normally have left by now. Down in the wilderness area I went looking for butterflys and was rewarded with 5 Speckled Wood and 4 Peacock Butterflys.
Then later in the evening I went to Pentewan and a relaxing barbecue with the girlfriend. Quite a few Fulmar about and always a pleasure to watch. Then whilst watching the sea I nearly choked on my vanilla cheesecake (very yummy) as I saw a fin come up. Then within 12 feet in came 2 x Bottlenose Dolphins riding the waves. Amazing !! Not only that, they treated us to 7/8 flips into the air as they made there way across the beach and out of sight out towards Mevagissey. Incredible and guess were my camera was ? In my boot .. wont see anything interesting I thought !! Lesson learned

Kestrel - Falco tinnunculus

A Ring and a Warbler !

2010-04-12T12:49:00.001-07:00

As it was such a nice evening, the gf and I decided to have a walk round St.Andrews Pool and then Par Beach Pool. St.Andrews was very quiet with only a few Moorhen and Canada Geese present. At the back of the pool I noticed that a female swan was sitting on a nest at the back with a very grumpy male near by. My girlfriend then said "That male swan has a ring on his leg". I then swore as I'd left the camera at home. Luckily I was allowed to borrow hers and I took a few shots of the ring so I could send off the details to the BTO.
Then we moved off to Par Beach Pool with all the regulars present. Chiffchaff and again Willow Warbler making alot of noise. Then around 8pm we went down by the depth marker to watch some ducklings who were running around the grass fighting over a rather large worm one of them caught. Then from no where a amazingly loud burst of song from the reeds. Before I could locate what was making it, the noise stopped and that was that. I was though pretty sure i'd heard that before as i've been checking out the Cetti's Warbler song on the internet. Having come home and now checked, I am most pleased to say it was. Fantastic !! Only now need to get a picture of it which is no easy thing being awfully shy birds.

A Post At Last

2010-04-09T14:12:00.000-07:00

Little Egret - Egretta garzetta

Apologies about lack of posts recently .. The joys of work and being very busy. Will be bringing you some news of baby owls soon .. with pictures. Watch this space. I have also had to change my email. My new email is Fat_Wagtail@hotmail.co.uk

Finally got out today for a proper look around after a very busy few weeks at work. Now with the lighter evenings, I can visit the patch after work and get some more reports in and photo's. Went down to the Hayle estuary this morning with the gf. She is getting very good with her bird song as she pointed out a Blackcap last time we were down singing in a bush. We both did laugh though as she swore to me that she could hear a "Whistle Warbler" singing .. Lol.
Hayle wasn't as busy as I thought it maybe with tourists, but if I do hear "Oooh thats a big lense, what do you take photo's of ... birds ?" one more time I may scream !!
On the estuary were the usual Herring Gulls, Shelduck, Oystercatcher, a Cormorant and a single Little Egret belting around comically trying to catch small fishes. He did sit still for me to take his picture be it in the sun abit. I also got a picture of a rather friendly Shelduck. The walk along the estaury by the memorial gardens is a very pretty one and they have done a great job with the plants and flowers. The cherry blossom was out and looked lovely.

Shelduck - Tadorna tadorna

Then off to Malpas and the river there was dead .. sod all birds not even a Heron or Godwit .. Only thing we saw were 2 Cormorant. There were a few singing Chiffchaff about as we walked around the small duckpond near the back 0f the tennis courts. There was a female Mute Swan on eggs on the island there and the most territoral male Mute Swan I have ever seen. Sadly one particular Mallard (a partial hybrid) was the target, The male Mute Swan must have been bombing around the pond for about 20 minutes before it got bored and decided to have a preen. It certainly would have been a ex duck if the swan had grabbed it. The Rookery is in fine form much to my girlfriends disgust as they crapped all over her new car .. Renaul Clio Blue with a touch of brown and white ..

Then fish and chips were on the cards at Par and we sat and watched the pond which is fairly quiet atm ... a couple of Swallows were skimming about over the water. Lots of Jackdaws were down busy eating all the leftovers that people had scattered about. I love watching all the corvids as there such switched on birds and comical to watch. Just as we were leaving we spotted a Heron in the reeds creeping up on some ducklings. As well as small fish, Herons will also take young ducks and frogs. Luckily a boy resembling Harry Potter turned up and rode past on his bike and scared him into the shallows. Here he had to make do scaring rudd. Sadly due to the failing light I didn't get any decent shots. I did though hear and see after abit of searching my first belated Willow Warbler of the year. Patch tick 96 and Year tick 109 .

Jackdaw - Corvus monedula

The Work Patch

2010-04-01T12:22:00.000-07:00

As promised heres a quick guide to the birdlife around my workplace and the sort of habitat were they frequent. Not the most amazing pictures but sadly not the greatest weather.

This is the pond area and the sanctuary which contains lots of Mirror and Common Carp. We have some resident Mallards and a pair of Canada Geese which breed every year. You can see her sitting on the island in the picture. We also have a Grey Heron who sits on the corner and helps keep the fish population down.

This is a thick hedgerow to the right of the pool. Holds the usual Blackbirds, Wrens, Chaffinches etc but comes alive in spring and summer with Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler and Blackcap.

This lawn is the favourate haunt of a pair of Mistle Thrushes who nest in the farm next door. We also get the odd Blackbird and Pied Wagtail. The Geese and Ducks also root around up here in wet weather.

Now this may seem just a boring old hedge consisting of hawthorn and a few other species but this hedge (which is behind my falconry shed) produces loads of various species. Long tailed,Marsh, Willow, Blue, Coal and Great Tit. Yellowhammer, Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler, Linnet and even a Cuckoo.

This is my main falconry lawn where I conduct my displays. The Robins and Blackbirds love this lawn as do the Dunnocks. Loads of worms on here as you may see by the mole hills. Also good numbers of Redwing are here in winter.

This is the main field at the sanctuary as you drive in on the right. Loads of species in the hedges along the side and back. Tits and Finches mainly although we do get Whitethroat in summer. Kestrels and Buzzard hunt in and around as does our resident pair of Sparrowhawk. Blackbirds, Starlings and Redwing feed here in winter as does 8/9 Meadow Pipit.

Hopefully will be doing a update on whats going on work wise also with the owls. 15 pairs of owls on eggs atm so i'll be a busy boy !!

Black tailed Godwit

2010-03-25T10:49:00.000-07:00

Black-tailed Godwit - Limosa limosa

Image of the very tame bird at Par Beach Pool yesterday. Sadly really rubbish light !

For a change .. Rain !!

2010-03-24T10:38:00.000-07:00

Before I start with todays findings I was most pleased yesterday upon driving to Plymouth to see my first Green Woodpecker of the year. It flew over the road on the hill just as you drop down into Lostwithiel. Excellent as I thought iI'd probably have to wait alittle while longer before I got that tick. Decided to sod the rain and go out anyway as i've been working most of the week and haven't been able to get out. Also because of the rain I haven't been able to take any photo's of the habitat at work, but that will follow soon. Todays findings are as follows :

St.Andrews Pool : 4 x Jays, 1 x Grey Heron, 10 x Long tailed tits, 2 x Goldcrest & 1 x Chiffchaff (singing)

Par Beach Pool : 1 x Reed Bunting (M), 3 Chiffchaff (2 singing), 1 x Oystercatcher, 1 x Black Tailed Godwit, 11 x Sand Martin, 1 x Swallow, 8 x Snipe, 1 x Water Rail & 10 Mallard Ducklings

The Sand Martins and Swallow are a patch and year tick. Thats 95 for the patch and 108 for the year. Nearly at a 100. The Godwit today was VERY tame and it was feeding literally 6 foot from the car for worms on the grass verge. I also went down and had a look at a path that had been cut out by the friends of par beach and they have done a sterling job. Would have liked to go and help out but sadly I work normally on a sundays. Nice to see spring is on it's way .. Still no sign of any Cetti's !!

Work Page In Progress

2010-03-19T11:31:00.000-07:00

"Melanistic" European Dark Breasted Barn Owl - Tyto alba guttata

Now I was going to have by now a page set up with a few pictures of the habitat at my workplace, with what birds are were etc but sadly because of the yucky weather I've been unable to do it yet. I will also be doing a guide to my local patch as well so people can have a better idea of where I'm seeing the birds. Few people would understand where I was talking about when mentioning "The Wilderness" area for example at Par Beach Pool. So instead here's a couple of owl pictures Ive taken along the years.

Spectacled Owl - Pulsatrix perspicillata

The Fall Of The Pigeon

2010-03-17T16:10:00.000-07:00

All the usual birds at work this morning apart from one. I drove into the work car park at 9am this morning to see something sitting in the middle of it. Upon closer inspection It was a Peregrine (small so presumed male) sitting on a very fat Wood Pigeon. The car park was literally covered in feathers. Sadly it saw me before I saw it and it legged it. Sadly the visitors wouldn't really like to see a half mutilated pigeon in the car park so I threw it onto one of our rehab avaries out in our "top field", about 100m away, hoping it may come back. Sadly for the Peregrine about a hour later, the resident Buzzard spotted it and took it off on a nearby telegraph pole and that was that. We normally get 3-4 Peregrines over a year.. and this one made it 2 so far in 2010. Last year I saw a female somehow managing to fly off with a very fat Mallard.

Work List

2010-03-16T15:45:00.000-07:00

It has suddenly dawned on me .. and why I havn't done this already over the years is beyond me, but make a work list of birds I see out and about around the grounds. Luckily I have been keeping a record but have been rather slack in actually posting anything on here.. so here goes what i've found and where I am doing the counting. My work is based at the Screech Owl Sanctuary on the Goss Moor at Indian Queens in Cornwall here. I spend like most people .. 5 days a week and work roughly 9am to 6pm. Whilst working of course there's plenty of time to bird spot. So Far the species seen in 2010 are as follows :

1.Grey Heron 2.Canada Goose 3.Mallard 4.Sparrowhawk 5.Common Buzzard 6.Kestrel 7.Peregrine Falcon 8.Pheasant 9.Herring Gull 10.Wood Pigeon 11.Collared Dove 12.Great Spotted Woodpecker 13.Meadow Pipit 14. Pied Wagtail 15. Grey Wagtail 16. Wren 17. Dunnock 18. Robin 19. Blackbird 20. Song Thrush 21. Redwing 22. Mistle Thrush 23. Goldcrest 24. Long-tailed Tit 25. Blue Tit 26. Great Tit 27. Coal tit 28. Jay 29. Magpie 30. Carrion Crow 31. Raven 32. Starling 33. House Sparrow 34. Chaffinch 35. Greenfinch 36. Goldfinch

These are all birds that I happen to notice whilst working away. Never kept an accurate record before so will be interesting to see how I do numbers wise. Will keep you posted.

Hard Rock Cafe

2010-03-16T08:26:00.000-07:00

Wren - Troglodytes troglodytes

Coal Tit - Periparus ater

Blue Tit - Cyanistes caeruleus

Dippers

2010-03-15T12:17:00.000-07:00

Dipper - Cinclus cinclus

First day off it would seem for quite awhile today so made my way off down to St.Andrews Pool.Wouldn't be ages as I had to wip off for a haircut at 1pm. Upon pulling into the carpark I bumped into Trevor (who some of you may or may not no). He runs a super blog called St.Austell Baywatch which can be viewed here. Trevor had brought with him some seed and we wandered off and put some on the "hard rock cafe". This is a rather large boulder which the birds feed from. We decided to let the birds have 5 minutes so we decided to wander round the pool. Very quiet atm with only a few Canada Geese, Mallard, Moorhen and the odd Teal still about. We did though encounter 2 x Goldcrest flitting in amongst the branches. We then made our way back to the hard rock cafe where the birds had started feeding. Chaffinch, Robin, Great, Marsh, Blue and Coal Tit were all busy feeding and taking seed. Behind the "hard rock cafe" is Tywardreath marsh and I could occasionally hear a Water Rail and the drumming of a Great Spotted Woodpecker at the back end of it. The marsh and surrounding area was literally crawling with Wrens. There must have been at least 15+ birds either calling or feeding. Then something caught my eye, which I thought was Greenfinch but upon turning round fully realised it was a female Siskin. The bird was literally 6 foot away. I managed to get Trevors attention but sadly it hopped it and he only got the ass end of it disapearing into a bush. I then said cheerio to Trevor and went off to have my hair chopped off. My hair sadly is rather like a bramble ... grows extremly fast. I was rather worried soon i'd be sporting the Don King style, not good ! I wasn't going to venture out anymore but i had the itch again so made my way down to the manoa valley to look for Dipper and Grey Wagtail. I was wondering how to get a good shot as one side of the bank was fenced off, and I thought i'd have to do a army assault course to get down to the river bank. Then upon driving in I noticed a ridiculously obvious path to get to the other side of the unfenced bit. How I have missed that before I don't no .. Durrrr !! I was later seriously regretting not bringing any claymore mines with me due to the sheer amount of careless dog walkers. I won't have a moan about them to much .. but needless to say most of them are MUPPETS !! Trying to photograph Dippers whilst there are dogs crapping in the river is not advised. The sight of bits of dog walker flying everywere was becoming more and more appealing. It eventually calmed down and I picked up 2 Dippers (presumably a pair) shooting down the river. On with the camo jacket and a quick walk further downstream I noticed some stones which were covered in birdy poop. I thought great hopefully Dipper poop. I sat for around 25 minutes with no avail until one bird eventually posed for me and I got my shots. Certainly my best encounter with this species and never really new what a nice song these birds have. I'm pretty sure they would nest somewhere along the river and hopefully I can locate it within the next few months. Now have to decide where to go tomorrow .. and also will post a few more pics from today.

Wren - Troglodytes troglodytes

Down West

2010-03-13T13:22:00.000-08:00

Shelduck - Tadorna tadorna

Today I visited with my girlfriend a few site down west with glorious weather in the morning but it did get abit cloudy in the afternoon. First of all I visited Hayle Estuary. Species seen included Redshank, Curlew, Black Headed Gull, Shelduck, Ringed Plover and Dunlin. Along in one of the gardens there was a feeding station which was attracting lots of Chaffinch, Greenfinch and Goldfinch. Then we went to Lelant Saltings station and viewed the estuary from there. There was a big flock of Wigeon present being very noisy. We then paid a long overdue visit to St Gothian Sands NR as I haven't been in a very long while and shall be returning again soon. Lapwing, Redshank, Pied and Grey Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Kestrel, Buzzard, were seen and the highlight was 2 (m) Wheatear, which are a year tick for me, making it 105 species for the year. Now only 95 species to go for the 200.. we shall see lol. Looking forward to getting out on the patch monday and tuesday, with hopefully some good weather. Just recieved some information this morning in the post regarding the WeBs surveys. Now just waiting for the confirmation via email about starting on the patch.

Pied Wagtail - Montacilla alba

Cold Cold & More Cold

2010-03-08T13:07:00.000-08:00

Oystercatcher - Haematopus ostralegus

Just a quick visit to Par Beach Pool on Sunday morning as I had food to make in the afternoon then out with my girlfriend in the evening. It was BITTER down at the pool with the wind making it feel even colder. Very quiet atm with nothing exceptional around. Did have a quick look to see if the Jack Snipe could be seen but sadly no sign. I should imagine it'll move on soon if not already. There were though the regular party of Oystercatchers who were posing for me nicely until another dog walker scared them off (grumble grumble). I have contacted the local WeBS organiser and hopefully I'll be able to start with the St.Austell Bay area soon.Many thanks to Simon Taylor for passing on the information to me . I'm just waiting for further feedback about it and then hopefully I can move forward with it. The Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) is the scheme which monitors non-breeding waterbirds in the UK. The principal aims of WeBS are to identify population sizes, determine trends in numbers and distribution and to identify important sites for waterbirds.More information can be found here.

Mute Swan - Cygnus olor

Westcountry T.V

2010-03-04T15:23:00.000-08:00

Eagle Owl Eye Reflection (And Me)

A few weeks back in Febuary I did a bit at work for Westcountry T.V where the presenter would be doing some jobs at the sanctuary. This was part of there "odd jobs" section were every week they would be doing a "odd job". It was bloody freezing that day and they filmed about 45 mins .. which turned out to be about 4 minutes of film. Hopefully thats normal and not that I was crap at acting for 41 minutes of it. Hopefully the link will work HERE .. if it doesn't I will have to try it again .. Nice bunch of people and it was refreshing not to be asked by a tv person .. "Can you put a letter in it's mouth and make it fly around like in Harry Potter ?" .. Errr no .. I then normally entice them to stroke a grumpy owl and reply " Hmm he's never bitten that hard before" snigger snigger .. One of the perks of the job and saves feeding them on certain days. On a happier note it will hopefully drum up some publicity.

Work & Work

2010-03-02T10:36:00.000-08:00

Snipe - Gallinago gallinago

Sadly due to work I have been rather busy and not out much on site. I did have the pleasure of looking after the Cornish Wildlife Trust Photographic group on Sunday and they were a pleasure to look after. Some smashing images and again would like to thank the kind donations I recieved. Was good to finally meet Steve, Rachel and Ashley. I can now put a face to the pictures.

Did think of venturing out to take a few pics of some rarities these last few days, but due to there sitiuation and location (Black Duck and Lesser Scaup) not much chance to photo them. I did make it out to the patch and recorded the following. I was going to take a few pictures but ended up sitting by the reeds for an hour in the hope the Jack Snipe would show itself again. Sadly not so heres a old image of a Snipe I took a few years back at the same place and a Mute Swan.

1st March - Cliffpath from Par to Polkerris
1 Buzzard, 1 Kestrel (M), 30+ Meadow Pipit & 20 + Pied Wagtail in sheep field directly below farm, 1 singing Skylark and possible Whitethroat (heard not seen).

2nd March - By caravans behind Par Beach Pool
Reed Bunting (M & F), 10 + Greenfinch, 20+ Goldfinch, Chiffchaff & Jack Snipe. Nothing apparently from the Cetti's recently. Will have to keep my eyes and ears open.

Water Rail

2010-02-19T15:37:00.000-08:00

Water Rail - Rallus aquaticus

Now I was going to put thursday and fridays report together but I didn't get out today so I'll just report on thursday. I've been itching to get out since working the previous 6 days so was most upset to find it raining. I did though set out to the Par Beach Pool area in the hope it would stop. I was hoping to see the Water Rail again and try and get another photo and maybe of the Chiffchaff I saw. I was also going to check to see if my mystery warbler was still around. I pulled up inside the beach carpark and was going to make the eastern stream my first port of call. Sadly it went from drizzling to hammering it down. So i decided to eat my lunch and wait for it to stop. Whilst eating I watched a Buzzard running around in the field next to the cliff path looking for worms, shortly joined by a Kestrel. It finally stopped raining and made my way along to see what was about. There were 3/4 Chiffchaff amongst the reeds and my job of taking a photo was being hampered by dogs.. and owners who sadly needed the training just as much as the canine companions. I did manage to get a few shots and was most pleased with the result. The Water Rail was being very secretive and I got good views ... of its arse between the reeds. It finally showed itself for a brief moment and I finally got a half decent shot. I was going to drive to the pool but i was frozen and again the rain set in.

Chiffchaff - Phylloscopus collybita

Yellow Browed Warbler

2010-02-11T12:31:00.000-08:00

After having a discussion with a few birding pro's I'm pretty sure I've seen a Yellow Browed Warbler today at Par Beach Pool. If anyone has seen it or visits and see's it please let me no as i'd like a confirmation i.d. It moved like a Goldcrest on speed so sadly I wasn't quick enough to photo.

Patch Visit

2010-02-11T07:24:00.000-08:00

Water Rail - Rallus aquaticus

Menabilly Car Park (1st Visit Of The Year)
10 x Redwing
1 x Skylark (went up singing a few times) Patch & Year Tick
20 x Chaffinch
1 x Buzzard
1 x Female Sparrowhawk
2 x Great Spotted Woodpecker (one drumming)
3 x Lapwing over
1 x Pheasant Patch Tick
1 x Female Brambling Patch & Year Tick

Polkerris
3 x Lapwing over
1 x Great black backed gull
3 x Black Throated Diver

Par Beach Pool
1 x Chiffchaff (Very pale looking bird by the eastern stream. Most probaly a Siberian Chiffchaff race "tristis"
1 x Water Rail
1 x Female Stonechat
1 x Great black backed Gull
7 x Snipe

Great Black Backed Gull - Larus marinus

Tawny Owl

2010-02-10T14:14:00.000-08:00

Tawny Owl - Strix aluco

Last week we had a Tawny owl in at work found near the lost gardens of Heligan. It had flown into a plastic fence and got trapped and spent the night in quite a tangle. Apart from a slight swollen wing joint he was fine. After a dose of anti-inflammatory, 7 days later (tonight) he was able to be released. Myself, my girlfriend and her mum went out late afternoon to were he was found and succesfully released him back into the wild. He picked up abit of height and glided down the valley into a wooded area. It was round abouts my 300th owl/raptor release and everyone sends the hairs up on the back on your neck. A very worthwhile part of my job. The picture is from a regular pair I visit around spring time who nest at a undisclosed site near St.Austell.

Marazion & St.Ives

2010-02-10T09:58:00.000-08:00

Stonechat (Female) - Saxicola torquata

The girlfreind and I had a excellent visit to Marazion rspb reserve and beach yesterday. Also had a jolly good stroll around St.Ives. I had been busy in the kitchen the night before and made a leek and potato soup which went down a treat. Very chilly day today and we could see by the smoke that a lot of the reeds were being cut and burnt. Naturally marshland over time would turn into woodland. So reedbeds are cut and the reserve flooded to keep it as the important reserve it is. They do a very good job. Sadly also it was very dull and the light wasn't great. Spoke to a few birders and there had been no sign of any Bitterns. The Water Pipit they had seen but it went as quick as it came. Birds I recorded of interest were Oystercatcher, Snipe, Stonechat (Friendly fellows on the beach), Meadow Pipit, Pied Wagtail, Teal, Grey Heron, Moorhen, Coot, Turnstone and a lone Sanderling which is a Cornwall year tick. Off the harbour wall at St.Ives we did see a lone Shag fishing.

Stonechat (Male) - Saxicola torquata

Bloody Cold

2010-02-08T10:11:00.000-08:00

Shoveler (Female) - Anas clypeata

Day off today so decided to visit Porthpean and the Par Beach Pool. Had a good trip as had a life tick and a patch tick, but it was bitter when the wind was blowing.

Had nearly 2 hours at Porthpean watching the sea (10am-12pm) and first birds I picked up on were Fulmar. I counted around 30 birds in the time I was there. Also present were 3 x Black Throated Diver (Preening away) and 2 x Common Scoter who flew around for 3-4 minutes before landing and I could get a proper i.d.Also fishing out in the bay was a Shag which is a very welcome new patch tick. About an hour and a half into watching the bay and feeling myself begining to freeze I picked up a diver on the right hand side of the bay, 1 x Red Throated Diver. I got a really good view and referred to my good old bird book just to check. The white clearly extended above the eye and the back did appear to have pale speckles. Chuffed with that. Onto Par Beach Pool were the only real thing of note was 1 Female Shoveler Duck.

I'm very nearly at 100 patch ticks with a total so far of 90 birds, which i'm quite chuffed with having set myself a target of 100. Be interesting to see what number I finish with. My Cornwall 2010 list stands currently at 101.

2010-02-03T05:29:00.000-08:00

Jackdaw - Corvus monedula

Visited Par Beach and the Pool today and instead of the normal routine of jotting down the unusual or rare species, I decided to do a head count of all the species. I'll be doing this on a fairly regular basis so I can keep an eye on changes over the coming months i.e numbers of species and also hopefully how this changes over the years. Sadly didn't get to record anything in the wilderness area or river due to it pouring with rain. The count today is as follows from 10:00am to 12pm.

Par Beach Pool
Herring Gull (19) - Mute Swan (23) - Wood Pigeon (2) - Carrion Crow (3) - Robin (2) - Canada Geese (52) - Moorhen (21) - Coot (23) - Black Headed Gull (72) - Lesser Black Backed Gull (1) Blackbird (5) Jackdaw (6) - Tufted Duck (4m + 2f) -Mallard (15) - Chaffinch (3) - Dunnock (3) - Pied Wagtail (1) - House Sparrow (9) - Snipe (7) - Great Tit (1) - Great Spotted Woodpecker (1) - Water Rail (1) - Cormorant (1)

Par Beach
Herring Gull (24) - Mute Swan (1) - Rock Pipit (2) - Black Headed Gull (47) - Carrion Crow (5) - Oystercatcher (7) - Great Black Backed Gull (1) - Pied Wagtail (3) - Stonechat (1 f)

I am also going to be getting involved with the friends of Par beach. There website is http://www.parbeach.com/index.html and you can also get in touch via facebook here http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=123478384321. As well as hopefully showing people around the site, hopefully we can help to explain to people why the birds we have at Par are there and how we can look after them. Many thanks to Trevor for getting me in contact with them. Was great to finally meet you two on the "Patch" and we must have a proper session sometime.

One last thing before I toddle off is that you may well see me on the local Westcountry news in the next couple of weeks. No I haven't been arrested .. it's all to do with my work at the owl sanctuary. I had to do some filming regarding one of there reporters doing my job for the day. Will keep you informed. I was just making sure when they were filming I wasn't going to do anything silly i.e trip up or have the owl bite me. I really don't want to end up of Dennis Norton's "It'll be alright on the night".

Tufted Duck - Aythya fuligula

Chilly Par Visit

2010-01-26T15:17:00.001-08:00

Nipped out to Par Beach Pool for a while this afternoon (2pm -3pm) and boy was it chilly. All the usual motley crew were there with 7 Tufted Ducks on the pool, mostly frequenting the back near the Island. I did pick up a Goose also that was doing it's best to hide and I think it's a Greylag. I have sent the I.d off to have it double checked and will let you no when I get my response. Greylag would make it tick 83 for the year. Seems to be closing in on my total of 100.. but won't count my chickens just yet lol.

Yes confirmed as Greylag

Tresillian Visit

2010-01-25T02:07:00.000-08:00

Apologies for the abscent posts as have been running around doing other things. But back on track now and will report the last weeks findings in brief and new year ticks.
Woodcock, Bar-tailed Godwit, Treecreeper, Dipper, Slavonian Grebe, Shelduck, Kestrel, Lesser Black Back Gull, Little Grebe, Sparrowhawk, Willow Tit, Nuthatch and Greenshank.

Went down to Tresillian today to have a look around and managed to find the Cattle Egret (Life Tick) which had been reported yesterday afternoon. It was quite far away and not good for photography. It was though close enough to i.d as Cattle Egret as I had a nose through another birders scope. Also a I managed to locate 2 Red Breasted Merganser (Life Tick) that were on the river (1 Male, 1 Female). All the usual jobs were there including Greenshank, Cormorant, Curlew, Shelduck, Bar tailed Godwit and Redshank.

Purple Sandpiper

2010-01-13T08:39:00.000-08:00

Common Buzzard - Buteo buteo

Had a visit to Spit Beach and both the Par pools today and saw the following. I also have enclosed a picture of the Blackcap thats in the garden atm.

Spit Beach 12-1pm
2 x Pink Footed Geese (Flew over from the Gribben, over Spit Beach and off over the golf course. Low flight so could see them well in my binoculars. I sadly couldn't get my camera out in time.
2 x Purple Sandpiper (Feeding with 4 Turnstones)
2 x Great Northern Diver and 4 unknown divers in a group. Quite possibly Black throated. (Have taken a poor record picture and have sent to Roger to see what he thinks.) Roger has since emailed and is 90% sure there Black throated.
1 x Med Gull in the harbour with 14 Black headed Gull
Also seen were : Little Egret, Curlew, Oystercatcher, Buzzard and Redwing

St.Andrews Pool 1pm :1:30pm
2 x Shoveler (1 x male 1 x Female)
1 x Tufted Duck
1 x Great Spotted Woodpecker
1 x Water Rail
1 x Bullfinch

Par Beach Pool and surrounding area
1 x Goldeneye (Male) still on river
2 x Grey Wagtail by river
2 x Meadow Pipit on beach
12 x Snipe at Pbp
8 x Wigeon at pbp (3 Male 5 Female)

Blackcap - Sylvia atricapilla

Nice visit to Par

2010-01-11T15:19:00.000-08:00

I had a short but lovely visit to Par Beach Pool today with the Girlfriend. We had a packed lunch and tea before going up to the river to see the Goldeneye, which she was eager to see. Still very icy and we had to be careful not to end up on our bums. We had a good view of him preening before heading back to the car. Had a quick scan of the shore and spotted 2 Wigeon which is a first for the year. Also feeding on the grass verge were 4 Rook, and again a year tick.
Very interesting news about the Red Crested Pochard.. We shall see if they come back or are seen again!

Thrushes Galore

2010-01-10T15:23:00.000-08:00

Fieldfare - Turdus pilaris

Today I decided not to venture out as had a few bits to do at home. The rest of the day would be helping the birds around the garden with this horrid weather. Now normally my garden (In St.Austell) doesn't have the greatest bird life. In fact if we get more than the Dunnock, House Sparrow, Blackbird or Robin I'm thrilled. So today was rather exciting but yet very sad knowing exactly why I saw the birds I did. Birds seen today were 14 x Redwing, 1 x Fieldfare , 3 x Blackbird, 1 x Robin, 1x Wren, 2 x Collared Dove, 1 x Song Thrush, 3 x Goldfinch, 6 x House Sparrow, 1 x Dunnock, 1 x Meadow Pipit and 1 x Blackcap (F). I also saw over the garden, flocks of Fieldfare and Lapwing which I've never seen in my area. The reason I was seeing all these birds was of course the horrid weather. I made my way out into the garden with a industrial bag of dried mixed fruit, peanuts, meal worms, old dundee cake and bread and placed in various positions around the garden. The reasons for spreading it out was the resident Male Blackbird. Any "Turdus" Thrush that came into the garden was simply scared off. After a hour of chasing he got bored and let the others in. Even he would struggle against 14 Redwing. Anyhow they spent most of the day squabbling with each other over the food even though there was more than enough to go round. I also, which worked well and the birds loved it, was to lift up various stones, plant pots etc and expose some of the insects/ grubs etc for a hour or so. I also dug over the verges and soil and they very much appreciated that. The Meadow Pipit certainly did, which I was amazed to see and nearly spat my tea out. I may venture to the pool tomorrow after seeing what the weathers like, and off course re feed the birds at home.

Song Thrush - Turdus philomelos

A Icy Visit

2010-01-09T08:31:00.000-08:00

Gadwall - Anas strepera

Manage to get out the drive and up the road today, and past that, the roads weren't to bad and made my way to Par Beach Pool. Parked up first at the western car park and everything was rather icy and snowy still, so carefully made my way to the river. At first glance not a lot but after 5 minutes the Kingfisher came and sat in the tree opposite, before flying back down the river. I managed to locate the Goldeneye right up the end by the sluice gate. I made my way up onto the Imerys road and along to the bridge and managed to get a few shots. On the way back in a alder tree in the "wilderness area" there were a few tits in a tree. Upon closer inspection there were 2 Blue Tits with a lone Coal Tit. Then made my way down to the sea were I could spot just 2 Great Crested Grebe's. Then to the pool which was nearly all iced over apart from one section on the opposite side. Made my way round to the other side thus disturbing 6 Dunlin( feeding by the caravans) and a Snipe which was down by pool side. Birds of note were 8 Shoveler (7 Male + 1 Female), 2 Gadwall (1 Male + 1 Female), 5 Teal (3 Female + 2 Male) and several Lapwing and a Raven over. Sadly no sign of the Pink Footed Geese. Did see Nigel Climpson and had a interesting conversation with him, and as always Roger who I saw just as I was leaving. With the snow apparently on it's way I may not been out for a few days, but was good to get out. My heart goes out to these poor birds and there search for food in these horrible conditions. Having just read through my list again I realise I have not put down Stonechat yet, having seen on on my first visit to Par this year (2nd Jan). Duelly ammended.

New Patch Ticks For The Year - Lapwing, Kingfisher, Goldeneye, Raven, Snipe, Shoveler, Coal Tit and Great Crested Grebe

Life Tick - Goldeneye

Goldeneye - Bucephala clangula

Shoveler (With Coot) - Anas clypeata

Garden Birds

2010-01-08T11:16:00.000-08:00

Southern White Faced Owl - Ptilopsis granti

As I'm not out much at the moment .. I decided to watch the birds today for a while in the garden and made sure they have plenty of grub. As well as Niger seeds, Wild Bird Mix and Peanuts, I have made them some special mix lol. This consists of bread, mixed fruit peel, fruit cake and peanuts. And by the rate it's disappearing I think they like it. The Song Thrush and Blackbird certainly do ! I also have some mealworms which the Robin certainly appreciated. Although I'm preaching to the converted Britain's gardens are an increasingly important refuge for several species of threatened species, especially during icy conditions. Several Red-List birds use gardens regularly in winter, including Starling House Sparrow and Song Thrush The icy weather will bring further Red-List birds to gardens, including Redpolls, Yellowhammers and Tree Sparrows. To help these birds, the RSPB is urging as many people as possible to feed garden birds. Lets help our feathered friends through this nasty cold ! And to cheer everyone up .. here's a couple of pictures of a cute baby Owls.

Ashy Faced Owl - Tyto glaucops

Walk To Porthpean

2010-01-07T09:09:00.000-08:00

Redwing - Turdus iliacus

Walked to Portpean today and had 2 hours there (12pm -2pm).
Main road leading down to the carpark - Jay x 1, Great Spotted Woodpecker x 1, Yellowhammer x 8, Common Buzzard x 1 and Collared Dove x 2 .
Grass area just below were the boats are stored (on the right with a few picnic benches) - Redwing x 3 and Fieldfare x 1
On The Beach/On Sea - Fulmar x 3, Black Redstart x 1 (on the main beach wall), Little Egret x 1, Great Northern Diver x 1, Black Throated Diver x 1 (flew in just as I was leaving) and Common Scoter x 1. Also the pair of seals were seen.

Thats 56 for the "Patch" and 65 for my "Cornwall" List.. Not bad considering Ive not been out much Lol

Grey Wagtail - Motacilla cinerea

Snow halts play

2010-01-05T13:04:00.000-08:00

Sadly I didn't get to go anywhere today due to the snow and judging by the weather now it doesn't look to great for tomorrow. A long walk to Porthpean may be in order if I decide to be that mad lol I'll see if I can find my ski's lol

Wheal Coates

2010-01-04T13:53:00.000-08:00

Had a lovely trip with my girlfriend today to Wheal Coates near St.Agnes. Very scenic and tranquil place and I recommend a visit. I had 5 year ticks today with Meadow Pipit, Common Buzzard, Kestrel, Redwing and Stonechat. I'm also pretty sure I had Golden Plover but sadly not enough to get a firm i.d. So that's 54 for the year which is not bad as I've not been zooming around trying to target species yet. Will try and get the simple stuff ticked first. Out again tomorrow weather permitting. I notice on the CBWPS site Nigel Climpson has a rather splendid picture of a Male Goldeneye which he took today on the Par River. Hopefully it's still around tomorrow for me to photo and patch tick. Would be a life tick for me also.

First Patch Visit Of The Year

2010-01-02T08:31:00.000-08:00

Moorhen - Gallinula chloropus

Finally got out today and had my first look at the patch and quite a productive day it was to. Birds and locations stated below. Being my first first visit of the year I have loads of year ticks but I did manage two Life ticks which was nice.

Spit Beach
Magpie, Long Tailed Tit, Robin, Blackbird, Wren, Chaffinch,Herring Gull, Great Black Backed Gull, Starling, Oystercatcher, Black Headed Gull, Cormorant, Turnstone, Curlew, Mediterranean Gull, Grey Heron, Redshank, Dunlin, Ring Plover, Rock Pipit, Pied Wagtail and Song Thrush.

St.Andrews Pool
Pied Wagtail, Grey Wagtail, Mallard, Black Headed Gull, Mute Swan, Long Tailed Tit, Tufted Duck, Canada Goose, Robin, Wren, Chaffinch, Song Thrush, Mistle Thrush, Moorhen, Water Rail, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Siskin, Blackbird, Goldcrest and Teal.

Par Beach Pool
Pied Wagtail, Mute Swan, Blackbird, Coot, Moorhen, Jackdaw, Mallard, Black Headed Gull, Herring Gull, Dunnock, Tufted Duck, Canada Goose, Oystercatcher, Common Gull (Life Tick), Wood Pigeon, Blue Tit, Long Tailed Tit, Goldfinch, Greenfinch and Gadwall (Life Tick).

Thats a Total of 44 birds for the Patch and 48 for the year so far so very happy with that. I also bumped into Roger at the pool and had a good old chat.

Common Gull - Larus canus

Happy New Year

2010-01-01T01:05:00.000-08:00

Now that it's the new year I found myself wondering what would be a realistic target bird wise to get this year in Cornwall and I decided upon these figures. Firstly for my local path I've decided upon 120 species this year. From May until end of December I did make 88 species so I reckon I stand a small chance of getting that... We shall see. For my "Cornwall" total I've decided upon 200. Now seeing as I've only ever seen "131" birds to date you may think that's mad. But then again I can't really say I've been madly looking since I first fell in love with birds (and the feathered type). I'm not a mad twitcher by any means and we shouldn't forget why we get out with our camera's , scopes and binoculars ... The birds themselves and to enjoy them.

Today's total birds is 21 which is not a bad start considering I haven't even been to the patch yet. Will see if I get there tomorrow as its looking like a very cold night and frost in the morning isn't good for driving. (BTW First bird of the year a Robin ).

Not a lot of birds .. Quite a lot of people

2009-12-30T13:09:00.000-08:00

As i've had lots of family things to do over the festive period ( and luckily avoiding so far the dreaded lurgy) I haven't been able to get out and about at all recently. So was mightily chuffed to get out today for a short excursion to St.Andrews Pool and Par Beach Pool. Sadly 98% of the surrounding area thought the same and I was swamped with adults wearing silly Christmas jumpers, tiny children throwing small loafs of bread at the Mallards and dogs of all shapes and sizes seemingly seeking me out to annoy me . And no i'm not Victor Meldrew.. but my luck didn't seem on from that point. I recon I could have fallen into a bowl of Tits and come out sucking my thumb. So sadly not the greatest day in the world for bird watching .. I did see a few bits around. At St.Andrews Pool I did see a few Chiffchaff (No sign of Yellow Browed Warbler), Tufted Duck (Unusual for there ?) will have to ask Roger, but I've never seen one at that location.Several Teal and a Water Rail (Patch Tick). Onto Par Beach Pool. No sign of Goldeneye or Gadwall but did see 2 Teal and a Snipe which I flushed quite by accident. I was going to visit the beach but decided against it due to the hordes. No bird would have stayed about. Here's to quiet venues with lots of birds :)

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all Friends and Followers

2009-12-22T11:25:00.000-08:00

Christmas Puddings And Grebes

2009-12-16T15:20:00.000-08:00

Black Redstart - Phoenicurus ochruros

Got up early this morning as I was going to make Christmas Puddings.. and it went to plan, which is unusual for me as I normally use the smoke alarm as a timer. Anyhow I did debate letting it near any heat as it did have enough port in it to blow a hole in the side of a small building. It didn't blow up which was nice and I let it cook. Upon making the mixture, some of the pudding didn't look quite right so had to test it *whistles*. Best be on the safe side eh !
I then decided to spend 3 hours down at Polkerris which in fairness I have been neglecting as it was my first proper visit. I certainly won't be ignoring it again as I had a cracking trip. I feel quite bad about letting Trevor read this as he is stuck with awful car problems. Sorry !!
I arrived at 11:00am and quickly picked up a Great Northern Diver which was a fair way our but you could just make it out as these are bigger than Red or Black Throated. Then I had about 20 minutes later, great views of another Great Northern as It fished for crabs about 30 m in front of me off the harbour wall. Pictures were ok but not worth keeping. I then decided to move down behind the wall to the rocks. I did a bit of rock climbing ( I should have been born a monkey) and got down for a scan. I managed to pick up a grebe about midday going like the clappers across the bay.. which I spotted was a Great Crested Grebe. As Roger has said there appears to be 9 wintering in the bay atm. This was a first for me this year so a patch tick for me. I then literally 5 minutes later saw what I thought was another G C Grebe but this time was a lot slower moving. I got rather excited when I made the i.d as it was a Slavonian Grebe. Gorgeous little bird and a patch and life tick for me. The Black-necked Grebe is similar but doesn't have such clean white cheeks going up to the eye, and it has a more upturned bill. I later picked up another Great Northern Diver and 3 Fulmar shooting around the cliffs. I was hoping to catch a climpse of the Black Redstart whilst I was down there and was begining to lose hope as I was frozen in places I didnt think could freeze and the light really wasnt great. I then whilst walking across the harbour wall to go back to the car caught something hopping across the wall. I got the bins out and YES .. Black Redstart. The people sitting in the Rashleigh Inn must have thought I was nuts as I did a Indiana Jones type manouver along the wall to get some shots. Dead friendly bird as it happens and stood 8 foot in front of me and fed before being scared off by a grumpy Pied Wagtail.Another patch tick. And to make the day perfect upon walking back to the car I had a Pheasant in a garden as you walk up to the car park and a Raven over. Both patch ticks for me. So 1 Life Tick and 3 Patch Ticks.. Not a bad days work. Apologies for the Slav shot as its just for the record. I've also seen on Birdguides (Im not a full member yet) that theres been a Yellow Browed Warbler seen in Par. Anyone any ideas where in the area ? Would be a patch tick for me.

Black Redstart - Phoenicurus ochruros

Par Trip

2009-12-15T11:34:00.000-08:00

Robin - Erithacus rubecula

After initially wanting to go out in the morning I find my camera battery is flat (durr) so had to settle to going out for around 1pm. First port of call was St.Andrews Pool at Par. Not much about although 2 Chiffchaff and 6 Teal (2 male and 4 females) were present. I then made my way to Par Beach Pool and the wilderness area. It was quiet until I disturbed 2 Jays who shouted at me before flying off. I was also lucky enough to see a Great Spotted Woodpecker on the side of one of the big pine trees. So overjoyed I was to see this bird I nearly ended up in a hedge as I tripped over a root, thus not getting a photo. After I stopped laughing at myself I did manage to spot a couple of Goldcrests apparently fighting with each other over something. They wern't to amused with each other. I then moved down to the shoreline "Salad Bowl" aptly named by Trevor. It was alive with about 14 Turnstones all rooting for food. Also present where 2 Pied Wagtail, Rock Pipit and a handsome male Stonechat. Nothing at all on the river not even a Grey Wagtail. Then moved to the Pool and noticed that something had killed a juvenile Herring Gull (i'm guessing fox ?). 4 Tufted Ducks were present on the pool and very little else different so to speak. I did though have a very friendly Robin pose for me. Although they are common there certainly one of my fav birds. My fav bird btw is the Tawny Owl.. hands down winner for me.
Also out of interest I'd thought i'd let you no how the nutfeeders are going at work. This is the species list using the "Feeder area" atm.

Blackbird, Mistle Thrush, Redwing, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Coal Tit, Long Tailed Tit, Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Chaffinch, Dunnock, House Sparrow, Robin and Great Spotted Woodpecker. Better than watching tv whilst having your lunch I can tell you.

Robin - Erithacus rubecula

Great Northern Divers

2009-12-10T07:21:00.000-08:00

Great Northern Diver - Gavia immer

Finally got to get out today to have a look around locally and for once was very much blessed with the weather. First I had a look around Porthpean for a hour (11am - 12pm). Only thing of interest was a lone Great Northern Diver which sadly was out of range for my lens.
Then decided to have a look down at Spit Beach as two G N Divers had been reported a few days ago feeding within the harbour. Upon arrival in the harbour area I picked up a diver right the other side so sat at waited for it to come my way. Whilst waiting the usual where around .. the odd Curlew and 8-9 Turnstones feeding amongst the seaweed.Also a Kingfisher shot across the harbour at a great rate of knots. It appears one is wintering in that area also, making the Kingfisher total in the Par area 3 ? Eventually after hiding behind a sea wall for over a hour another bird swam in and they met in the middle of the harbour and made a bee line right past me. One even stopped to fish and even luckier caught a crab which it scoffed pretty much in one go. Gorgeous birds and very happy with my shots.

Great Northern Diver - Gavia immer

News In Brief

2009-11-22T15:01:00.000-08:00

Common Sandpiper - Actitis hypoleucos

Just a quick report on two trips I've made recently in between working which is exceptionally busy this time of year with the Owl sanctuary doing a lot of fun raising. Birds of note where :

Malpas near Truro - 18th November 2009
Black tailed Godwits - 13
Dunlin - 10
Shelduck - 6
Curlew - 6
Common Sandpiper - 2
Little Egret - 2
Redshank -2

Tresillian near Truro - 22nd November 2009
Redshank - 28
Curlew - 14
Shelduck - 4
Greenshank - 1
Little Grebe - 11
Grey Heron - 1
Goldcrest - 1
*Firecrest* - 1
Bullfinch - 1

Quick Visit

2009-11-17T13:41:00.000-08:00

Tufted Duck - Aythya fuligula

Had a quick visit to Par Beach Pool and the beach today. Usual suspects on the pool which was very full and up to the red marker. 6 Tufted Ducks were present on the pool and seem as normal very shy. I did a stealth sneak round the other side of the pool and hide between the reeds and managed to get a few decent shots of a male bird. Also of note was 1 Little Grebe and a Cormorant, which was fishing for flatfish that must have come up with the high tide and reside in the pool atm. Not alot present on the beach due to masses of dog walkers. I think I'll start visiting a bit later in the day as I seem to attract them. No sign of the Bittern Roger saw. May pop down before dusk soon and see if I see any movement for him.

Back to birding

2009-11-09T10:54:00.000-08:00

Redshank - Tringa totanus

Finally after work, car problems and horrid weather I am now back. Apologies for the lack of posts but it should be back to business from now on (fingers crossed).
Spit beach was the target today as I haven't been down there for around a month so was eager to see what changes there would be down there. Arrived around 10am and the tide was almost in, so decided to sit on the small concrete jetty opposite the small ruin building and sea watch for a bit. On arrival and for about 30 mins not a dicky bird about. I was also wondering where all the Cormorant and Shags were, as didn't see a single bird. Then at around 10:45 I picked up something diving straight ahead of me and was pretty sure this was my first diver, although didn't get a good look at it straight away. It then reappeared and I got my bins on it long enough to see it was a Great Northern Diver.. Excellent as a first for me down at Spit and also bird number 80 of the year. It promptly disappeared again and I lost it as there was a lot of sunlight on the water. For the next 20 mins not a lot was seen apart from a few Oystercatcher flying past. At around 11:15 I picked up 6 low flying ducks flying from Carylon bay direction towards Par. Lost them in the sun but caught sight of them again as they landed. One of them broke from the group and landed on its own, so I did a bit of stealth walking along the rocks to see if I could get a better look. I managed to get the i.d as a Common Scoter which is a life tick for me .. I'm guessing the other 5 were also Common Scoter. Would have had better views if 2 people in canoes didn't scare it off. I then made my way into the inner harbour to have a look around. I didn't expect to see anything as Imerys seem to be destroying things with JCB'S in the adjacent area. I was most surprised as the birds in there didn't seem to care, Birds noted were Kingfisher (shot across the harbour into a tree on the opposite side), 2 Curlew, 30 Turnstone, 20 Ringed Plover, 1 Dunlin and another new patch tick 3 Redshank which brings the total to 82 species of bird.
On the way back to the car a large flock of Tits moved threw the bushes under the bridge over the Imerys road. In the flock were mainly Long Tailed Tits but also Great and Blue. Also of note were 2 Goldcrest seen in the muddy wooded path area near the car park

Busy Busy

2009-10-18T15:18:00.001-07:00

Pied Wagtail - Montacilla alba

This blog entry is sadly very late as I've been rather busy with other things .. but will bring you a quick late report from my days sightings. Par area today and visited Par Beach, Par Beach Pool and St.Andrews Pool. Par Beach Pool was very quiet today with really the only things of note were the immature male Teal and a lone Male Wigeon. Plenty of Pied Wagtails along the pool edge.Then went down to Par Beach and had a look at low tide for the Brent Geese. No where to be seen and sadly yet to see them. Be a life tick if I did manage one. There were also 5 Female Wigeon at the western end of the beach about 12ft out bobbing stationary on the sean preening away. Then St.Andrews pool which was very very quiet. Only thing of real note was a Grey Wagtail. What I did notice there were RATS !! And lots of them ... shame I didn't have my Eagle Owl handy. Funny I was saying the same thing on Par Beach with all the uncontrollable dogs running around ...

Good Deed For The Day

2009-10-15T15:56:00.001-07:00

Peregrine Falcon - Falco peregrinus

Sadly due to my rather busy work schedule, again I didn't get to watch much birds today, but of course I'm always on the look out. As I pulled onto the old a30 outside Roche going to work, I did see a large flock of "Thrush" looking birds and I'm pretty sure they were Redwing, although can't be sure. The visitors were out in force and they kept me busy with there questions. At lunchtime on the feeders I had the usual mob of Great Tit, Blue Tit, Robin, House Sparrow, Chaffinch and Dunnock. May get some finches if I can remember to get my feeders. Completely forgot on my last day off...ooops ! I also happen to see (I think) a Bank Vole scurrying around underneath the feeders. Not the safest place to live in a owl sanctuary Lol. Leaving the crib room I heard a right raucous from a Wren who somehow managed to get stuck in a owl aviary. Luckily the owl was out (not that the Wren would have been troubled) and I managed to skeet the bird out the door. My good deed for the day. Now as well as the 200 birds in a year list which I'd thought I'd have a go at (Simon Taylor will be doing a blog about his 200 which should be good), I was wondering could I get 100 species in the Par area as well ? Well I'm going to give it a go and be interesting to see what I can come up with. Also as I took no pictures AGAIN today I thought I'll leave you with a Peregrine photo I took last year at New Polzeath.

All work And No Play

2009-10-14T15:27:00.000-07:00

Goldfinch - Carduelis carduelis

Sadly had very little time to watch or photo birds as work was very busy today. Nothing really of note today other than on the drive down the lane to work. Upon one telegraph pole were 3 Great Spotted Woodpecker. Never seen this amount of Woodpeckers together, so something must be going on. Perhaps they all work for B.T ? Has the recession hit the Woodpecker community of Goss Moor? As I didn't take any pictures I'll leave you with a Goldfinch I took yesterday. As I'm expecting a group of "Wobblies" in tomorrow (O.A.P's) I probably won't get much bird watching done apart from lunch at the bird feeders. I simply cannot wait for the questions from them like "Why has the owl got one leg" and my all time favourate question asked "Do Owls breathe?"... When I was asked that I did wonder if any men in white coats where bringing up the rear Lol. I do love the public.