Fun on the Ythan

Just got back from a very brief visit to Aberdeenshire. We stayed in the village of Newburgh, on the Ythan estuary, a mere 370 miles from St Helens! I only really had one day birding, though we did spend some time at Balmoral on the way up on Saturday, and saw a few bits and pieces there, such as several Common Sandpipers on the River Dee. Really nice birds, but it was the following day which I was really excited about, because the Ythan estuary is famous for it's flocks of Eider.

And it didn't let me down..... by 8am on Sunday, I'd found an adult drake King Eider at the mouth of the Ythan with very little trouble, and following the advice of a local birder, I'd even managed to pick out a potential Northern Eider (borealis) with its sails clear to see as it displayed to a female Eider. There were hundreds of Eiders at this magical place, as well as at least 200 Sandwich Terns, lots of Little Terns and a few each of Common and Arctic, and also about 50 Seals, a mixture of Common and Grey. Then it was back to the hotel for breakfast!

Out again at 9am, and by 10am I'd seen 1st summer Bonaparte's Gull higher up the river and five Dotterel at Collieston! I couldn't quite sustain the pace after that, and dipped on the White-billed Diver, one of five which has been at Portsoy, but I did at least get summer plumage Great Northern Diver and four Long-tailed Ducks there

We finished the day at Forvie Sands NNR and saw a few decent sea birds, including small colonies of Guillemot, Razorbill, Kittiwake, Fulmar and Cormorant. Also on the reserve, a few Meadow Saxifrage, Cowslips, False Oxslips and masses of Crowberry.

The following day, we called in at the very disappointing Loch of the Lowes in Perthshire and had two painfully poor views of two Ospreys....

Photos include record shot of sleeping King Eider, lots of Common Eider (gold star to anybody who picks out a borealis from that lot), angry Cormorants, Meadow Saxifrage, False Oxslips and scenery shots from Forvie.

Billinge Hill - Ring Ouzel

There was a cracking male Ring Ouzel on Billinge Hill today, apparently on the site of the old quarry, though it doesn't look much like a quarry to me.

The photo won't win many awards, except perhaps the worst Ring Ouzel photo of the year award. Ah, well, it's a record shot.....

Upper Teesdale - Spring Gentians

Today I finally achieved a lifelong ambition of visiting the Upper Teesdale valley in the North Pennines. Why I've never been before is difficult to say, but it was certainly an occasion worth waiting for, because it is a place which has been described as probably the most important botanical site in England, and it is home to a wealth of wonderful flowers, including spectacularly, the Spring Gentian. This a is a sun loving flower, which closes on cloudy days, but on warm sunny days in spring provides a stunning display of electric blue flowers. This is the only place in the UK where you can see this wonderful display, and fortunately, we chose the perfect day.

It's been an early spring, and the gentians were in full flower along the banks of the Tees near Forest Teesdale, and most spectacularly near Cow Green Reserveroir on Widdybank Fell. They are only small, but don't be decieved, they have a personality as big and as grand as any flower you are ever likely to see, they are like precious jewels lying in the grass and sparkling in the sun!

The gentians are not the only stars. In places, the banks of the Tees are amass with Bird's-eye Primroses, on a scale which I have never come close to experiencing before. Lots of other flowers too, such as Cowslips, pansies and violets, and plenty still to come, it is only April after all!

In such company the birds were very much a secondary interest, but there was plenty to see. On the Tees near Cronkley Scar there was a fabulous male Ring Ouzel, and the moorland was alive with sounds of breeding waders, Curlew, Oystercatcher, Lapwing, Redshank and on the river Common Sandpiper. Plenty of Red Grouse on the moors, and there is a healthy poulation of Black Grouse here as well, though we didn't see any.

A truely exhilarating experience.

Pendle Hill - Dotterel and Green Hairstreak

Today we made our annual pilgrimage to Pendle Hill in the hope of finding Dotterel. We weren't disappointed, with two of these enigmatic birds just below the summit, which was earily shrouded in mist (hence the foggy looking photos!). They were quite tame, and in the fog we struggled to find them until we almost tripped over them, but once we had found them, they carried on feeding, almost oblivious to our presence.
On the way up we failed to see any of the reported Ring Ouzels, but we did see good numbers of Green Hairstreak butterflies, feeding on the Bilberry, which is a larval foodplant. A breathtakingly colourful sight!

Eccleston Mere

1 Swift

Eccleston Mere

Willow Tit 1 in hedge along stream, Grasshopper Warbler 1 reeling behind yacht club hut.

Warblers and other things - Sankey Valley

Another beautiful morning, another bike ride from Carr Mill Dam to Mucky Mountains at Earlestown.

Warblers singing this morning between 7:00-7:45am were: Reed Warbler 10 (mainly Havannah Flashes), Grasshopper Warbler 1 (Havannah Flashes), Whitethroat 8 (mainly around Penkford / Nine Arches), Blackcap 8, Chiffchaff 10, Willow Warbler 11. Still no Sedge Warbler, but it's easy to miss stuff when you're clattering along at speed on the bike!

Other birds seen today, 2 Great Spotted Woodpeckers near Havannah Flashes, Kingfisher Penkford, 5 Sand Martins Penkford, 2 Grey Wagtails near the Ship Inn.

Warblers in the Sankey Valley

Warblers singing in the Sankey Valley this morning (7:00 - 7:45am) between Carr Mill and Mucky Mountains (Earlestown): Whitethroat 7 (Mainly at Penkford / Nine Arches), Grasshopper Warbler 2 (inc. 1 seen at Havannah Flashes), Reed Warbler 5 (near Ship Inn and Havannah Flashes), Chiffchaff 10, Willow Warbler 8, Blackcap 6.

Sankey Valley

Grasshopper Warbler 1 reeling between Havannah Flashes and Penkford, Reed Warbler 3 singing at Havannah Flashes, Whitethroat 2 singing near Nine Arches, Earlestown. Also several Orange Tip butterflies, a couple of Speckled Wood, Small Tortoiseshells and a single Brimstone all around Mucky Mountains / Bradley Lock at lunch time.