I couldn't get round to posting an account of yesterday's travels as I was pretty busy with chores and other stuff until the wee small hours of this morning. As to whether I saw anything interesting enough to write about in the first place I will leave for you to decide, good luck! Yesterday's weather was yet another on the recent conveyor belt of grey and dampish days that we have endured of late but it was at least dry. Having blagged a lift to Blatherwycke I then walked along to Deene before carrying on across Deenethorpe Airfield and ending up at Weldon.
There's a growing collection of wildfowl on Blatherwycke Lake but most of it was of the more mundane variety, a Black Swan and several Egyptian Geese added a touch of the exotic. Best bird on view was a Kingfisher though the view was typically fleeting. The stroll between here and Deene was unproductive but things did improve a modicum once I got to the lake. I always scan the fast flowing Willowbrook at Deene in case there's a Dipper hanging around, I've yet to score but will continue to check just in case. My Dipper dipping did not depress me however as I had a brief view of an Otter swimming down the brook. In the churchyard I saw my first Redwings of the autumn, other sightings followed at Deenethorpe village and the neighbouring airfield. At the lake there is a growing collection of birds but, as with Blatherwycke, there was not much of note to report. Interesting sightings here included Raven and Grey Wagtail, the inflow turned out to be rather dull.
Deenethorpe village was quiet but the airfield was mercifully a little more interesting. Two Golden Plovers were heard and then seen as they flew overhead and the air was alive with the calls of Skylarks. A Chiffchaff was calling on the edge of Weldon Park Wood, there still seems to be quite a few holding on for the time being at least. A rather large aeroplane then distracted me, Deenethorpe is generally the home of microlights and other small stuff so the sight and sound of a turboprop aircraft landing was quite a change. It's visit was seemingly brief and the plane was gone within ten minutes, later research revealed that it was a Pilatus PC 12. The rest of my walk was uneventful and an unusually punctual X4 meant that I didn't have time to grab my customary pint in the George before returning home.
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| Med Gull |
This morning I awoke bleary eyed and somewhat the worse for wear, a Judas Priest tribute gig having kept me up far longer than is good for a fellow of my advancing years. My original plan had been to accompany Shozzer to Rutland Water for another attempt to find Rock Pipits but not for the first time this month an American wader contrived to spoil that notion. Reports came through from Eyebrook yesterday afternoon that an American Golden Plover was associating with normal Goldies at the inflow. Now I know that I'd already seen the Pitsford bird this autumn but neither Alan nor I could pass up on the chance to see our seventh yank of the year particularly when it was so close to home. Rain was forecast to arrive sometime this morning but the early part of the morning was actually sunny and the light conditions were pretty good for a change.
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| Ringed Plover and another shot of the AGP |
On arrival we parked next to a small group of birders scanning the inflow but their news was not encouraging, the bird had been showing but had apparently since done a bunk. We began to check a large flock of Goldies that were further up the Eye Brook and eventually I found the bird but only got a few record shots off before a Peregrine flushed the whole lot including a Redshank that had been hanging around with them. Luckily for us and also the people that arrived a little later the AGP returned and treated us to some good views. Eventually I wandered off towards the car park and saw two Ringed Plovers on the nearby shore that had been reported earlier. Returning to the small huddle of birders brought dividends as Alan found an adult Mediterranean Gull that stopped briefly to preen before moving on.
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| Scaup |
We followed the gull's example soon after and moved on ourselves heading towards the island. From north of the island a scan of the opposite shore produced views of two drake and one duck Red Crested Pochard though they were too distant for pics. Next stop was the viewing bunker south of the island where a female Scaup was the highlight. By now rain was just beginning to fall and a decision was made to throw the towel in though not before we popped into the 'spoons for a celebratory pint
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