Another quiet day at Spurn

Out with Andy on Sunday and we originally planned to start in the Hornsea area but after a phone call from Mark informing us that Golden Oriole, Bee-eater and Quail had already been reported from Spurn we changed our minds. As we arrived we received further news of a Tawny Pipit at Easington Lagoons so we decided to try for that first, the bird had disappeared by the time we reached the area it had been seen and it was 15-20 mins before it was relocated, we got good scope views but the bird was very active and often disappeared into the grass and coupled with a strong Northwesterly wind made getting a photograph fairly challenging to say the least. We had a wander down to Beacon Ponds looking for a summer plumaged Water Pipit but failed to locate that although there were a few Little Terns around, then went on to Sammy's Point and the peninsula itself but there was no further sign of any of the other good birds, very quiet was the word although there was a good selection of Waders on the rising tide. Late afternoon we headed off to Bewholme near Hornsea hoping for Temminck's Stint, its an interesting little spot I saw Crane here last year and there were two Dunlin, Little Ringed Plover, Wood Sandpiper and Greenshank but no sign of the Temminck's this evening.

Tamarix in flower

Plenty of Whitethroats

Humber foreshore from the point

a selection of Waders

Blacktoft Sands

Had a trip out after work yesterday (thursday) to Blacktoft, it was fairly quiet though, no Great Snipes or anything running around even the Garganey had gone into hiding, Avocets have chicks though and there is still a handful of Black Tailed Godwits present plus the Marsh Harriers were performing well, I was half hoping to get a shot of a Grasshopper Warbler that has been posing recently but it was a bit windy for that really. Called off at Bank Island on the way home where a Red Rumped Swallow had been reported earlier in the day but there was no sign of it this evening.

Weekend Birding

Set off to work early last Friday and went to North Cave Wetlands to try for the Caspian Gull that had been around for a day or two, no sign of it when I arrived though in fact there were no large Gulls at all, a bit of recompense though when a Lesser Whitethroat sang out in the open briefly. On Sunday I joined the York Bird Club on their field outing to the East Coast, it was a rainy start but we decided to head over the Humber Bridge to Rosper Road Pools, Immingham where a Collared Pratincole has been on and off for a week or more, the rain cleared by 9am and we gave it another hour after that but there was no sign it this morning. We headed back over the Bridge and round to Spurn hoping the rain may have brought in some good birds, surprisingly it hadn’t it was remarkably quiet although there was a good selection of some of the more commoner migrants including Whimbrel and Spotted Flycatcher as well as good passage of Swallows and a Marsh Harrier in the Triangle. Called off at North Cave again on the way home but it was very quiet there as well.

Lesser Whitethroat posed briefly

running for cover at North Cave

a couple of Whimbrel in the Triangle area at Spurn

Hirundines

common Whitethroat

Scotland Day 4

We had a sleep in this morning then set off for home after breakfast, the Hooded Crow was seen just outside the village again, we had a quick look at Loch Vaa near Aviemore as we passed, this used to be a site for Slavonian Grebes and rumour had it that a pair had returned but none seen there today, just a Little Grebe, another Hooded Crow was seen on the outskirts of Aviemore as we passed through on the way to Loch an Eilein for a final attempt at finding some Crossbills, the Wood Warblers were still singing by the turn off and although it was a pleasant walk around a very scenic Loch there were still no Crossbills to be found, a Red Squirrel in the car park and loads of Green Hairstreaks on the Bilberry in the woods were the highlights. It was a great weekend with fantastic weather and I personally saw around 86 species.

Loch Vaa

Red Squirrel in the car park

Loch an Eilein scenics

Green Hairstreak on Bilberry

Stirling Castle on the way home