Kentish Plover at Rye Harbour + Jack Snipe at Tewinbury N/R

Just Jimmy & myself today, Brian needs to be else wear today.
So we drive 80 miles or so to Rye in East sussex, the target a Kentish Plover that has been seen here since the 25th March.
The trip down was looking good until about 10 miles from Rye it started to snow, the road became really white in no time at all.
We arrive & park in Harbour road, then walk down to Lime Kiln cottage & start to scan over the scrape where the Plover had been reported.
We spot many  Ringed Plover, Redshank, Dunlin, Avocet, Shellduck, Lapwing, but no target bird.
So with the cold getting to us we decide to walk round to the Ternery pool hide to look for a Med Gull.
It's a long walk round but it did get the blood flowing again.
The pool is alive with hundreds of Oystercatcher, also the same number of Sandwich Terns, Jimmy soon gets on to a couple of Med Gulls over the back of the pool, it's another year tick for both of us.
Just as we are coming out of the hide the pager goes of to tell us the Kentish Plover has been seen, so it's a very quick run back to the cottage, when we get there a few scopes had it in view, still panting we manage to set up the scope & see the target bird with great views of it, a great year tick.
That is 6 year ticks over the 2 days, so a good couple of days.

On the third day of the Easter break Sunday, Jimmy & I head of to Tewin in Hertfordshire for a look for the reported Jack Snipe, it's only 25miles from home so no real rush.
On getting there we park the car but head off in the wrong direction, with not seeing the hide we turn back to find the two tier hide not to far away from the car park.
  After a  scan of the pool Jimmy sights the Jack Snipe in the reed's in front of us, it's hidden behind some reed's but we get a good view in the scope.
Another tick for the year, still got another day to get out with the boys tomorrow before they go back to work after the Easter holiday. so 7 tick's & counting for the weekend.

                                                                                   

Meadow Pipit

Meadow Pipit

Garganey + Dartford Warbler at Minsmere

Up early to go to Minsmere to look for the Garganey, as we get near we take a quick look over Dunwich heath.As we walk over the heath we spook a Woodcock that flies up in front of us, Jimmy & myself needed one for a year tick so a good start to the day. Then Brian hears the call of a Dartford Warbler, we soon find the bush & see the first of three that give us a good display, another year tick for all three of us. A few Skylarks show well. We see a herd of Deer roaming the heath, always a nice sight to see.  Off to Minsmere now, the first thing we do is to stand round the feeders to wait for a Marsh Tit, one is seen after a few minutes but I had been sent to get the coffee, so I missed it, but I get one before going home, that's another year tick for me. Off now down to Island mere hide for the target bird of the day, a pair of Garganey are seen as soon as we enter into the hide, they are not to mobile & although close to the hide they stay partly hidden behind a clump of reeds, so a good photo not possible for me, but Brian got a good photo & let me use it on this blog.   With the target seen it's off to walk the whole way way round the reserve, in one of the hides we see 2 female & 1 male Smew, also 3 Whooper Swans very close to us, I love to watch these Swans, we have already ticked them this year, but a real treat for me.  

Whooper Swan

Whooper back view

The Deer herd

On the way home we stop off at Wivenhoe to look for the Long-eared Owl that Brian got last week,we don't have any luck,but a quick look over the estuary we see many Black-tailed Godwit, also some Oyster catchers, Redshank, as well. A nice little stop off we will come back here when the sun is out for some close up photos.                                                                    
 

Garganey  Brian's photo

                                                                                 

Oyster Catcher

Black-tail Godwit

My Garden today



Wren



Ring-necked Parakeet

Magpie

Bluetit

Robin

Pied Wagtail

Just messing about looking out the garden today, these are just a few of the birds that came to visit us today.
Also in today was the Goldcrest, Chaffinch all over the grass, many Blackbirds, a pair of Greenfinch, just the one Redpoll, Collared Dove, Pigeon,Starlings,Goldfinch,House Sparrows, Great Tit, 3 Long-tailed Tits, 2 Cormorant flew over on the way to the lake.

Redpoll

Green Sandpiper at Waterworks N/R

Looking on London Birders I see a Little Owl posted at Waterworks N/R in Leyton.
I have never been there before, so I give it a try.
It turns out to be a really nice place to pass away a few hours, I walk down to the hide as told, I expect to see the normal shape building for a hide, but not this one, it is a long corridor with windows down each side, you walk down to a roundabout at the bottom also with windows all round, it gives great views over each scrape.
I start off looking for the Kingfishers that have just been seen in the last couple of days, no luck this time, but a Green Sandpiper drops in, I need this for a year tick,( 164 ).
As I move round looking out of each window, I see a close up Heron, some Pochard, a few Teal, Shoveler,
Tufted Duck, also sitting in a bush over looking the pond is a Sparrowhawk.
I meet a nice fellow & spend the next couple of hours with him, we walk over the road to the stables to look for the Little Owl,I never got to see it, but the walk & talk was very nice.
I will be back soon to try for the Owl on another day.
I am only 2 miles away from Abney park cemetery, so I pay a quick visit to look for the Tawny Owl, that has been posted.
When I get there the office is shut so I have no idea where to look, so a it's going to be a hard job to locate it. I ask a few people if they know of it's where abouts, but most don't know what I am talking about.
So with only a little time to play with, I give up, but I will be back.
Over all not to much about, but a really nice few hours spent birding.

Great Northern Diver.at Staines

Really nasty weather on saturday stops us going anywhere.
So with the weather a bit better on sunday we meet up with Brian at 6.30 & head for Sandhurst, it's about 68 miles away, the target is the Pallas's Warbler that has been about for some weeks now.
As we going past Staines Reservoir we pop in for a quick look for the Great Northern Diver that has been reported. Brian spots it after about 20 minutes, it's right over the back of the water, so another good spot by Brian, 163 ticks for the year for me.
We also see a Black-necked Grebe, 2 Little Grebe, 2 Great Crested Grebe that treated us to a head-wagging display.
We don't hang about to long as it's really cold & it's a very exposed site.
Not to far away now from Sandhurst, when we get there, we find the car park & head up the track to the river looking for  the conveyor belt that has been posted as the most likely place to see the Pallas's.
Two hours later with the rain getting harder, we still get no sight of it.
We had split up to cover more ground but apart from Brian thinking he had heard it nothing doing.
Up & down the river we see many Goldcrest, Robin, Tits of allsorts, Dunnock, but we have to give up as the rain is getting heavy.

Velvet Scoter at Dungeness

Jimmy & I meet up with Brian at 6 o'clock, no plans made about where to go, so Brian wastes no time in setting of to Dungeness, 7. 30 & we are sitting by the lighthouse by the beach, the mist is quite thick, so instead of going up on the beach we head to the moat, we spend over an hour looking around, not to much about, so we give the beach a try.
When we get up next to the hide we meet a local bird counter, we spend a good couple of hours with him.
The  first birds we see are Red-throated Diver, we see dozens as we watch here.
20 Little Gulls are seen, Auks are plenty, Razorbills, Guillemots, Kittiwake near to the beach.
Jimmy picks up 2 Sandwich Terns sitting on the bouy, another year tick, then a flock of Scoters pass by, Brian soon picks out 2 Velvet Scoters amongst them, a year tick for Jimmy & me.
Also seen Gadwall, Wigeon, Shellduck, Pintail, & also Goosander seen.
Looking at the power station wall I spot a Chiffchaff sitting there, another year tick, also seen on the wall is a Black Redstart & 2 Meadow Pipits.
We have to leave now as this is only a short visit today.
Before we leave we shoot down to the Reserve to see if any thing is reported today, on the way we see 4 Great- white Egrets, the Tree Sparrows are plentiful. Nothing on the Reserve we needed so a quick look over the other side of the road to look for Firecrest that we are told was seen yesterday, Jimmy needs one for a tick.

Tree Sparrow

While he scans the bushes Brian & myself go in the hide, we meet some other birders in there that we know, apart from Golden eye, not to much to see, but we do have a good old talk.
Jimmy has no luck with the Firecrest, so we must head home now, a really nice morning spent at one of our best spots.

My Garden birds today.

Long-tailed Tit

Greenfinch

Redpoll

Blackcap

Just sitting looking out my garden, it's very busy today, in a 20 minute spell, I see a few House Sparrows, also Starling, Blackbird, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Long-tail Tit, Robin, Collared Dove, Dunnock, 3 Greenfinch, 1Goldcrest, Female Blackcap, at least 5 Redpoll, 5 Parakeets fly over squawking away, 1 Jay, a few Magpies, Chaffinch, Pigeon,  

Bramfield for Hawfinch + Yellowhammer

Jimmy wanted to go to Bramfield to see the Hawfinch for a year tick for himself, I had already been here this year for it with Robert.
So with Brian going back to Thetford for another try with the Otters, I drive the 20 miles to St Andrews church at Bramfield, within a few minutes of arrival we pick out 2 Hawfinch sitting in the trees across from the church, we stay here looking to see how many birds are here, we see 2 more about an hour later & 1 on it's own, they might have been the birds we saw earlier, we help some people to see them as it was hard to get onto them, it's nice to make sure everyone who takes time to come to see them, get's to do just that, it's horrible to make the effort & go home without seeing them.
We have a walk about the church grounds over looking the fields, looking for Owls that we saw last time we came here.
Not to be today, but we do see some nice Yellowhammers in the bushes.
Off home now, a nice little trip & the target achieved.
We get a call from Brian to say he had seen the Otters,this time, he had taken Sue with him & she is good at spotting things,so we all had a good little day out.
No photos of the Hawfinch this time, they were a bit to deep in the trees & it was to dark.




Yelowhammer



 December photo of Hawfinch



Black Redstart at Rainham

With Brian going solo looking for the Otters at Thetford today . Jimmy & I drive the short trip to Rainham marsh in search of the Black Redstart that Brian had seen earlier in the week.
I park in Ferry Lane & we see 2 birders just up the grass hill looking over the wall, this looks good to us, so we climb the small hill & there is the target a few yards away on the rocks, a cracking male Black Redstart.
As we watch a Grey Wagtail shows well, this we both needed for the year tick.
Off to look for Jack Snipe along the Thames wall now, as we walk we see some Snipe fly up in front of us, but no J Snipe, but we see 2 Water Pipit, & a few Rock Pipit, another year tick for me.
A quick look to see if any Owls are up, not lucky today so off home with both of us getting 2 year ticks.

We hear from Brian & as yet no sign of the Otters, but he gets a year tick with a nice Kingfisher so a good morning not to far from home.