Feeding frenzies

There were massive seabird feeding frenzies seen from pelagic trips out of the Isles of Scilly the day before my arrival and the day after my departure for three trips out on the Sapphire earlier this month. I might have felt a bit cheated but for the fact that we encountered our own on the return journey on Scillonian III on the Sunday evening. We were approaching the mainland not far from the Wolf Rock lighthouse when Manx Sheawaters and Short-beaked Common Dolphins started appearing in large numbers.

Short-beaked Common Dolphin  - this one was taken on a pelagic on 5th August

Common Dolphin from Scillonian III

One from earlier in the day on the Sapphire

Views of Great Shearwater from Scillonian III were exceptional

A steady stream of Great Shearwaters crossed our bows as we headed for Penzance

There are five Great Shearwaters in this shot alone - the view for several hundred yards ahead of us was similar

Sooty Shearwater from Scillonian III

Manx Shearwater from Scillonian III

Cory's Shearwater from Scillonian III

Manx Shearwater

We disturbed several rafts of Manxies as we steamed through, and on close inspection some of the rafts appeared to contain more Great than Manx Shearwaters. The odd Sooty and Cory's were also present. There were birds on the water as far as the eye could see and when dolphins started to cause the surface of the water to boil it felt like we were approaching the centre of the action. This was confirmed shortly afterwards when a whale appeared to blow some distance ahead. I readied the camera as we approached the spot and managed to get a few shots of a Minke Whale surfacing close to the ship.

First view of the Minke was quite distant

A dolphin surfaces behind the Minke Whale as Manx Shearwaters track it in the air

The next time the Minke Whale surfaced it was much closer to the ship

Several flocks of Arctic Terns were seen at sea

Arctic Tern

Fulmar is a frequent companion on pelagic trips

Gannet with rising Moon behind

Great Skua was seen on all three pelagics

Close scrutiny of photos revealed this to be an adult Long-tailed Skua

Sooty Shearwater with Bishop Rock lighthouse behind

Prat in curls?

A few months ago I offered Northumberland to the Scots as part of a deal to keep Scottish birds on my list (if they vote for independence), partly on the basis that I'd never had a tick there. That's all changed now having seen a Bridled Tern there earlier this month, and this week, back again for a family holiday, I've also seen a Collared Pratincole (my second) and a Stilt Sandpiper (my third) in the county. Had the Bridled Tern shown a bit quicker a few weekends ago I might even have had time to twitch a Black-winged Pratincole which put in a brief appearance. So I now fully accept it's not a county list to be dismissed lightly by cocky southerners. And the deal is off, Scotland.

The Northumbrian mid-week twitching scene, I've discovered, seems to consist of the same dozen or so good natured blokes (or blurks, as they are called up here). I bumped into one as I parked the car at the scene of Monday's mini-twitch and had to listen carefully to the description of where he had seen the Pratincole (pron. Prat-in-curl). 'Flying o'er wor heeds', it transpires, roughly translates as 'look up'.

Neither the Pratincole nor the Stilt Sand was more than 45 minutes away, so I was able to twitch them without seriously interrupting the flow of the family holiday. Monday, before the Pratincole was found, we spent back on the Farne Islands, introducing the children to the smell of guano and the territorial violence of Arctic Terns. I struggle to get them to enjoy birding trips with me mostly, but the sight of aggressive Terns repeatedly attacking innocent passers-by, and Dad getting crapped on regularly by seabirds, amused them greatly. Amid the fun, a few pictures were taken.

This Arctic Tern on the lighthouse wall didn't appear to be guarding a nest or chicks...

...but it certainly had an attitude problem

A more placid Arctic Tern

Still many Arctic Tern chicks at various stages of development as with my last visit in early July - this one of the younger ones

Guillemots packed all the available ledges just over a fortnight ago - now just a handful are left, including this Bridled Guillemot

A few pairs of Fulmar were on nests on Staple Island

Fulmar as it's meant to be seen - gliding on straight wings

Fulmar chick - fluffy, but not a bird to cuddle as it will spit foul-smelling oil at you

Still plenty of Puffins bringing food to nests or just loafing on the cliffs of Staple Island

Looks like a good year for sandeels

Shag - the only seabird that breeds on the Farnes and then sticks around for the winter

A prehistoric looking bird...

...even more so with the chicks

A bit of an ugly duckling, if truth be told

The Collared Pratincole, present for just one evening near Ashington, showed distantly but well

The white rump, and contrast between black primaries and otherwise brown upperparts can be seen here. With scope views a white trailing edge to the wing could also be made out.

This view shows a rusty underwing and black border to the throat

Puffins, Staple Island



Puffin, Staple Island

Arctic Terns

Before the Bridled Tern provided a rousing finale to a weekend on the Farne Islands earlier this month, I had plenty of time to photograph the raucous and aggressive Arctic Terns which breed there colonially:

One of the smallest - and cutest - Arctic Terns I saw

These slightly older chicks were just out of a nest on the edge of the boardwalk

This young bird was waiting for the adult to bring food to the quayside

The begging started when the parent bird came into view...

...and here's lunch

With so many chicks to worry about the parent birds were at their most aggressive - not even the Rangers were safe

An unusually placid adult on the lichen covered walls of Inner Farne

Another adult

Adult birds were often alongside the boat apparently washing small fish before feeding the chicks

I didn't really have the weather and blue skies for flight photography but I quite like this one

And breathe...

Dorset's Smooth Snakes and Sand Lizards could finally un-clench on Monday morning as it became apparent that the Short-toed Eagle had moved on. Although I saw the bird twice and only really had to wait a couple of hours between the initial sighting and my own, it still left me with a buzz which I took with me on my return to work on Monday. I always expect something mega-rare in the first week of June because (i) there always is (ii) I'm always busy after a half-term break, and tied up the following weekend with the start of the camping season, Claire's birthday etc etc. No surprise then that a Spectacled Warbler turned up in Norfolk. But not even that prediction being proved  correct could wipe the smile off this week as the Eagle had already got June off to a flying start.


Terrible photos of tiny waders #1: Little Ringed Plover at Swineham 24th May

Terrible photos of tiny waders #2: just a single bird present for the day

I had the whole week off, and, fortunately with hindsight, we decided not to go away. The downside of this was that the bills still rolled in through the letter box, and I was constantly reminded about the windows needing cleaning, gutters wanting fixing etc. The up-side was that I could get away with a lot more local birding and was a bit freer to twitch should something good turn up.

Terrible photos of tiny waders #3: Temminck's Stint at Lodmoor, 30th May

Terrible photos of tiny waders #4: here with a Ruff for size comparison.

It started with the best of intentions, flogging the patch in the hope of re-discovering the Black-winged Stilts which turned up last time I went away, or the Great White Egret which had been burning the candle at both ends, going out early and coming back late to roost and feed at mystery locations. The Stilts returned - but to nearby Lytchett Bay not Swineham, and, having dissed this site in a previous post I was too proud to beg it's guardians for access to the off-limits location. Several early/late shifts failed to turn up the Egret as well, so not a great start to the week.


Spotted Flycatcher at Morden Bog: taken just 3 days before the Eagle arrived

Treecreeper at Morden Bog with spider

But perseverance was rewarded with a patch tick in the form of a Turnstone. Not exactly a bird to get anyone else's pulse racing, except perhaps Marcus, but surprisingly rare at Swineham. By Wednesday, the Turnstone looked like it might be the highlight of the week: a poor return for my efforts by any standard. Then things picked up with a Serin at Durlston that morning, a Ross's Gull on the Exe Estuary in the afternoon, and the following day a Temminck's Stint at Lodmoor offered the chance of a Dorset tick which I duly snaffled up in a quick smash and grab.

Twitching the Temminck's provided an opportunity to catch up with the Arctic Tern which has summered with the Common Terns in recent years

Arctic Tern in the foreground - a slighter, shorter-legged and more blood-red billed bird than the Common Tern behind

Throughout the week my kit was packed for an emergency twitch - 'have leave, will travel' being my motto at times like this - and news of a Slender-billed Gull in Norfolk had me haring off in that direction on Monday in pursuit. Reason and mathematics fortunately intervened soon after as it dawned on me that (a) I wouldn't get there before dark (b) it was Bank Holiday Monday so I might be stuck on the M25 until Tuesday. I had got no further than Longham Lakes by this point, and the bird disappeared in any case, so a lucky escape there at least.

Arctic Tern on the left - not the long tail streamers and neat black line on the trailing edge of the primaries

Here quite a dark-billed Common Tern coming in to land...

Bee-eaters were appearing everywhere throughout the week: on the ringing nets at Portland Bill, on wires at Durlston, and chatting up the locals in bars with their smooth continental patter. I was up and down to the Portland and Purbeck coast like a quarry lorry but just couldn't get there fast enough to add one of these stunners to my Dorset list. Then the Eagle appeared to sweep all the best laid weekend plans away with one flap of its awesome wings. I spent the rest of the weekend resisting the massive temptation to write blog posts with Eagle-based puns in the title, figuring they would all be taken by other bloggers anyway. Andy Mears said he was looking forward to my post, so good to know it was eagley-awaited by one person at least. See what I did there?


...and a Sandwich Tern to complete the collection

And one more of the Ross's Gull - High Arctic wanderer and bird of the week until elbowed out of the way by a certain raptor from warmer climes.