A Bit Tricky Finding Some Treats

 A foggy shroud descended on the county this morning and with little wind to talk about it took some time before it shifted. I joined up with Shozzer for a trip around some local sites, it was by no means a great day but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

Pintail and Shovellers

We began at Wakerley where the hoped for Crossbills failed to put in an appearance. The dank and foggy conditions may well have prompted a Tawny Owl to give a hoot or two and we heard at least one Fieldfare, my first of the autumn, flying somewhere above us. Several Marsh Tits were noted and there was a reasonable selection of the commoner woodland passerines around. Our travels then took us to Blatherwycke for a look at the lake. Nothing of any great interest to report, a drake Pintail was the highlight. Wildfowl numbers are beginning to build and at least twenty Shovellers were present. Other birds in the general area included more Fieldfares, a Great White Egret and at least one Snipe.

Golden Plovers and Spotted Redshank

After lunch and a pint in the 'spoons we squeezed in an hour at Eyebrook where we spent most of the time at the sharp end. The now long staying Spotted Redshank is still on site and other waders in the area included several hundred Golden Plover, at least fifteen Snipe, several Dunlin and a Ruff. Other observers saw some Red Crested Pochards off the plantation but with the light waning we had to take their word for it and headed back towards Corby.

Windswept, Not That Interesting

 I fear that the American Pipit may have leeched off all of my local birding luck as today's excursion was every bit as rubbish as yesterday's! Once again I joined up with regular birding pal Alan Shorrock for a tour of several local sites. The weather though sunny was also very windy and at times we struggled to contend with the conditions.

Black Swans and Common Darters

We began at Deene where a scan of the lake produced sightings of the three Black Swan cygnets but not much else other than a Grey Wagtail. On our way back to the car a Speckled Wood was a very pleasant surprise as it was my latest sighting ever. Three Common Darters were also sheltering from the gale, two males and a female, though in this case I managed to get a few shots of them. Nearby Blatherwycke was similarly dull though a female Goldeneye was my site first record of this species and as a result much appreciated. Other than a Great White Egret there was little else to report and Alan and I, as is often the case, ended our session with a pint in the nearby Cross Keys in King's Cliffe.

Poor record shot of Goldeneye and GWE.

To The Coach And Horses...The Long Way

 I was up before the lark this morning though not it seems before the Robin as I walked towards the town centre. My plan was to try and avoid the forecast rain which is why I wanted to catch the first X4 heading towards Earls Barton. On the way I was treated to a beautiful sunrise of pastel pinks and blues as well as fiery orange, just a shame that many of my fellow passengers were too engrossed in their phones to see it. Once the bus had dropped me off in the village I wasted no time in heading towards the river.

Stonechat and Egyptian Geese

A Water Rail squealed as I passed Mill Lake where I checked through the many Wigeon in the hope that one of their American cousins might have joined them, none had! At Hardwater Lake there was a pair of Stonechats while in a field on the opposite side of the road the leucistic Egyptian Goose was still present. Summer Leys itself was a bit rubbish really, a Marsh Harrier was perhaps the only real highlight. Both Siskins and a Redpoll were heard on my walk around the reserve but all in all it was a bit duff. Light rain began to fall as I checked Mary's Lake, luckily for me it didn't get any heavier as I walked towards Wellingborough along the Nene. That had changed by the time that I'd reached the town itself but the ever reliable Coach and Horses provided some much needed shelter until it was time to catch my bus home.

Kestrel and Marsh Harrier

I Don't Hate Mondays

 Apologies to the Boomtown Rats but this was one Monday that did not suck at all! I was glad that no one was sitting opposite me when I was checking the local bird news during my break at work as otherwise they would have had to endure a salad shower. Pictures and reports of an American Pipit at Clifford Hill found by many a county birder's new best friend Tyler Atkinson had me swearing and choking at the same time. An overwhelming sense of FOMO gripped me and my mind raced trying to think of ways that would allow me to connect with this county first. I abandoned my lunch and went to talk to the boss explaining that an ornithological emergency had occurred which required my immediate attention. Miraculously my boss, clearly an intelligent and accommodating sort, agreed to let me leave early which meant that I now needed to find a lift.

American Pipit

Phil Rogers was almost as keen I was to see the bird and after suffering a double whammy of disappointment at the hands of both the NHS and Stagecoach earlier in the day arrived to pick me up just after four. Rush hour traffic, particularly in Northampton itself, had this decidedly atheist birder offering up silent prayers to the birding gods. We arrived at Clifford Hill as the sky was beginning to turn pink on the western horizon and I marched towards a small crowd of birders gathered on the southern shore. Sheep scattered as I strolled purposefully towards the group, rather shame facedly I'd left Phil in my wake. When I got to the spot several helpful birders put me on to the bird which fed pretty close to where they were were gathered. Good views were had and I even managed to get a few pics. Phil arrived and also got decent views before the pipit departed westwards possibly off to roost.

More pipit shots.

The walk back to the car was somewhat more relaxed, it's always nicer when the bird is in the bag. This was my second sighting of this species in my lifetime though my previous bird was then called a Buff-bellied Pipit when I saw it way back in 1988 on the Isles of Scilly. I don't think that Orange Donny forced the name change, it was probably a taxonomic shift that prompted it. I know some local birders had been hoping for a good yankee migrant this autumn but I feel that people were expecting it to be a wader and certainly not a passerine. We left as the dusk descended and picked up Cheryl on our way through Corby before heading to the spoons where a meal and celebratory pint were enjoyed.

Whoopers On The Move

 I spent the morning of my one day weekend wandering around the Blatherwycke Lake area having blagged a lift there with my step son. My session began at the eastern end of the lake from a gateway on the King's Cliffe road. Little of interest was seen on this  part of the lake and I made my way towards the village. A Snipe called as it flew overhead and there was a small selection of wildfowl on view as I continued on my way.

Whooper Swans

Progress was brought to a halt by the sound of Whooper Swans calling, nine spiralled down on to the lake and began to feed and drink. Minutes later another group of nine arrived and joined the others as I attempted to get some pictures. A further count several minutes later revealed twenty birds in total which was my largest flock in the county to date. Sixteen adults and four immatures were involved and they became increasingly restless until they left and flew eastwards calling as they went. A memorable encounter with one of my favourite birds.

Grey Wag, Black Swan and nesting Coot

Once the swans had departed there was not much else to report, a Grey Wagtail and Black Swan were at the bridge and several Siskins and a  Raven were heard near the church. The Merlin app suggested that several cracking quackers may have been lurking in the neighbourhood but you can't always put too much faith into technology!

Merlin mythology!

Pitstop

 I can barely believe it but my back shift week has arrived with indecent haste which means that I get a lieu day off instead of Saturday. Today was that day and I joined forces with Alan for a trip over to Pitsford. Our main target was the Slavonian Grebe which has been present for a few days, the American or as I prefer to call it South Canadian Wigeon  being a hoped for bonus.

Dunlins and Ringed Plover

In unseasonably warm weather we arrived at the reservoir and parked along the old road a little to the west of the causeway. There are plenty of ducks north of the causeway and we spent some time sifting through in search of the wigeon. I found a drake that looked like a promising candidate, it was a drab looking specimen which suggested a drake coming out of eclipse but the views were distant and brief and the birds all flew before I could get any kind of confirmation. Another birder then gave us up to date gen on the Slavonian and we set off to look for it in Holcot Bay .

Dreadful Slav record shot and GWE

On our way we saw two Dunlins and an immature Ringed Plover on the western bank just north of the causeway, Alan had earlier found a Green Sandpiper in Scaldwell Bay. Plenty of Great White Egrets were found north of the causeway, it's hard to believe how rare this bird used to be in even relatively recent times. Shozzer picked out the grebe and we enjoyed some distant views for the next hour or so, the grebe spent much of its time underwater. Some truly dreadful record shots were attempted with Al's proving to be slightly less offensive than mine! The only insect of note was a Clouded Yellow next to the old road. Having decided to call it quits we headed back towards Corby, a stop at the Royal Oak in Walgrave providing some much needed refreshment.

Spitfire and Alan's attempt at a Slav record pic.

The Call Of The Wild

 My brief period of liberty is almost over and I'm now facing the prospect of returning to the banal world of my day to day work life. Before that unpleasantness ensues however I took the chance to join up with Shozzer and make the short cross border hop to Eyebrook. The weather was glorious with blue skies and plenty of sunshine with just the hint of a breeze blowing in from the west.

Lapwing, Snipe and Dunlin

We began at the car park where we scanned the shoreline in search of waders or Rock Pipits but neither obliged. A short trip took us to the sharp end where things picked up to quite a significant degree. An impressive total of at least thirty Snipes were noted and up to nine Dunlin were seen too. Best wader was a Spotted Redshank which gave some great views as it fed in the shallows on the Leics bank. A Black-tailed Godwit and four Ringed Plovers were also present as well as a flock of Lapwings. Our next stop was at the fence on the Leicestershire side where we had even better views of the Spotshank but not a great deal else.

Spotted Redshank

Further travels around the res took us to Hollyoaks from where a total of five drake and four duck Red crested Pochards were distantly noted feeding off the plantation shore.  Little of any interest aside from ten plus Pintails were seen from either the island or from Sam's Dyke and we opted to return to the inflow. A male Stonechat was new for the day while Ravens continued to soundtrack our visit, we heard at least two pairs calling throughout our stay. As we were preparing to leave a familiar and welcome call alerted us to the arrival of eight Whooper Swans. In the bright October sunshine they all looked to be adults as they landed between the tern rafts and Stoke Dry. Further investigation revealed that there were four immatures as well as four adults, my first migrant Whoopers of the autumn. Time was by now pressing on and we packed up the gear and headed backed to Corby by way of the spoons.

Whooper Swans