Rough-Legged Buzzard Capel Fleet

After not getting out on Saturday due to the awful weather, a late decision on sunday to go to Reculver in Kent,weather still not good, but not raining, so we meet Brian at 6.30 & 70 miles later we are walking along the sea front path over looking the sea one side & wet grassland on the other side.
It's very windy & hard to communicate with each other,but still enjoyable, not to much about a single Curlew, couple of Grey Plovers, Shellduck, many Redshank, Finches, Meadow Pipits aplenty, & Pied Wagtails, also some Ringed Plover, a single Red Throated Diver, & flocks of Brent Geese.
After walking for what seems miles we turn to go back to the car & now we find out what wind really is,
We decide to drive to Capel Fleet watch point before we head home to look for a male Hen Harrier.

After a few minutes of looking over the fields, Jimmy picks up a really nice male Marsh Harrier, it flies quite close to us, but not near enough to get a photo worth having in this bad light.
After this we see at least 7 female M Harriers, a Sparrowhawk sits on the lime pile & gives good views to us.then Brian picks out a Rough-Legged Buzzard feeding on a Rabbit, we watch the bird for a long time & I am sure its a R L, another birder shows up  but Miss's it, just as he gets in his car we call him back as it looks like it had returned, I don't think it's the same bird myself, but not sure,the other fellow has doubt's about what the bird is, this now set's Jimmy & Brian thinking if they called it right, not so me I am sure it's what we called it first of all & the pair of them don't get to much wrong.
A windy old day, but we still got loads of fun out of being out looking at the birds ,no male Hen Harrier, but

always next time.


Curlew

Grey Plover

Reculver Towers

Short-E Owls Cambridge



Jay



Just nice

 While walking over the meadow on friday, I meet Adam & he tells me he has seen the Kingfisher on the river Roding by Debden Bridge, so I walk along the Roding to the bridge, but no sign, so I scan the bushes on the way back & pick out a Song Thrush just by the little brook between the fields as I try for a photo a dog barks at me & it must of spooked a Kingfisher as it flies along the ditch &turns into the river, so target bird found always nice to see them, only down side I only ever see them in flight, never sitting to let me get a nice photo.

nice Autumn colour

On Saturday Jimmy & I meet up with Brian for a short trip to Jimmys patch at Lea Valley C P trying for the Bittern thats been seen this week.
We stay for a couple of hours but no sign, only a Water Rail, a Great spotted Woodpecker feeds on feeders. A quick walk down to the weir to look for a Grey Wagtail as Jimmy has not seen one over here this year & wanted it for a tick, but no luck. On the way back we see Goldcrest in the bushes, some Egyptian Geese are on the Goose field.
Home now to watch Arsenal v Spurs.

Arsenal win 5-2 so the whole family are happy.

On Sunday Brian thinks better of driving to Devon for a big twitch, & instead we head off to Burwell fen in Cambridge for a look at S E Owls.
It's only about 1 hour away, so we set out at 12 0'clock & we are soon looking over the Fens, we look from the bridge for some time but no luck, so off for a walk along the path through the Fen, we soon see one Owl flying along the bank a fair distance away.We set up the scopes with some other people, & soon we see at least 4 0wls up a lot closer to us this time, what a great sight to see these birds.



S E Owl the best I could get

 We see also plenty of Reed Bunting, flocks of Goldfinch, Stonechat also seen.
On the way home we see Thousands of Rooks flying above us, a really great sight that you don't see every day.


Just before we left the Fens



Maybe Penduline tit Grove Ferry

A six o'clock meet & off to Grove Ferry in Kent for the Penduline Tits reported there all week.
We walk down past the the hill towards the hide, the birds have been seen in this area, as we stand & listen we hear what we think is the bird, over the next hour we hear it again, & some other birders have heard it as well.
We walk up & down the track without any luck, so I have a go in the hide, at least 10 birders here, but no luck.
Jimmy leaves us  to try & get a Water Pipit that he needs for a year tick.
As Brian & I & another birder stay put , a bird flies up, Brian never got the bins onto it,but the other fellow & myself did,I was not sure myself but the other chap calls it as the bird, it flies over the hide & we follow it & the 3 chaps there see it land, but could not confirm.
Brian then spots the bird briefly, I never saw it, so I don't know if I can count it as a tick.
It is raining now so into the hide for a spell.loads of birds here the highlight being six Snipe flying across the front of us.
Out of the hide now & I get a photo of a Bearded Tit, also a Stonechat sits up to give good views.



Stonechat

 


Bearded Tit

  The phots are not to sharp as it is a really gloomy dull day.


Grove Ferry is part of Stodmarsh



Stone chat



Over the lake

A nice walk round the lake today, it is full of all the usual stuff,at least 20 Tuffed Duck, Wigeon, Gadwall, Shoveler, Swans, Coot, Moorhen, Mallard, 2 Great-Crested Grebe, 50 Canada Geese.

Walking around the bushes I see Long tailed Tit, Fieldfare, 3 Goldcrest, 3 Jays, Blue Tits, & Great Tits by the dozens, Starlings just filling the trees, a few Robins, a large flock of Goldfinch, 2 Greenfinch, also the Green Woodpecker is in the usual place, I see this every day at the same place.
I see 2 Parakeets on the way home.



Green Woodpecker


The Little Owl has not been showing all week.

I get talking to a fellow who tells me he's name is Adam & he turns out to be a fellow birder, we talk for some time about the places we have been to & what we have seen over the year.
It turns out to be he's local patch as well, althrough we have never met before, a nice man, & when we part we promise to tell each other if we see anything of note on the patch.





Fildfare



Ring-Necked Parakeet



Desert Wheatear at Abberton.




Desert Weatear

 

With Brian being away with his family for a birthday treat this weekend, Jimmy & I set out to get the Desert Wheatear at Abberton.

The bird has been seen all week, so fingers crossed it's still there today,when we get there we see one single birder who had just seen it, & tells us where to see it.
We are soon on to it in the car park hopping from post to post, we get some snaps of it but the light is not good so early in the morning.

 So we head off to Cudmore Grove C P,  to try for the Jack Snipe, it's about 9 miles away so not to far.

We head down the path to the scrape, & it's not to long before Jimmy picks out the Jack Snipe, this was a good spot by Jimmy as the scrape is packed with 100's of Teal, Wigeon, Black-Tailed Godwit,Geese,& at least 50 Common Snipe.

We both needed this bird for a year tick, so not a bad start as it's not 9 o'clock yet, a lifer at Abberton & a year tick here not bad.


Snow Bunting

 Off now to Stone Point as a Snow Bunting has been seen there, it takes a bit of finding, but find it we do, its a single bird so we have done well.
Also 3 Rock Pipit  are spotted at the same place.
Out on the mudflats are hundreds of Golden Plovers, some Ringed Plovers, Knot, Curlew, & Grey Plover.

Black- T Godwit

Looking over the fields we see 600 hundred Brent Geese, in amongst them 1 Pale-Bellied Goose is seen.
Heading back to Abberton for some better photos of the Wheatear, we stop & look over the causeway & I get another year tick in a Red-Crested Pochard, this is my 248th bird of the year, so 250 is looking good.



Deseert Whearear

  Back at Abberton the car park is packed & there are birders all over the place now, the bird is showing really well its not timid at all, so the photos are better now. Off home now well satisfied with how the day has gone. I hope Brian has had a great day as well, we missed him, but roll on next week.




 



 


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Desert Wheatear