Bog trotting

The warm weather tempted me out onto the local heaths last weekend, Morden Bog being a particular favourite at this time of year. Emperor Moths were whirling past in the heat but I was unable to find one perched. This has long been a photographic target for me and I am determined to achieve it one day, and without the aid of a pheromone lure! Fortunately there is still plenty of the spring left to persevere. In the meantime, some offerings from the weekend: 

The first thing I stumbled across was not a sign of the developing spring but the outgoing winter: a Great Grey Shrike.

Close views of an impressive bird - it will soon be heading off for its breeding grounds

This well camouflaged Woodlark flushed form the path and perched above me briefly

A Yellowhammer was easier to spot

Stonechat is always prominent on the heathlands...

...and Dartford Warblers are more evident at this time of year.

Siskin was among the songsters at Morden Bog...

...as was the Mistle Thrush - a haunting song

A migrant Wheatear was out on the heath

Judging by the webbed rear feet I believe this to be a Palmate Newt - photographed in a large puddle on a heathland path

A Stoat was also a welcome surprise at Morden Bog

And finally, one of the most sought after spring migrants has returned to the Bog: Common Redstart, a singing male

Grey Sunday

It was a bit of a Grey Sunday around Portland and Weymouth yesterday weather wise. Fortunately it was brightened up by some smart birds, the memory of which was enough to cheer me along on the way into work this morning on Blue Monday - the most depressing day of the year, apparently. As well as a handsome male Black Redstart at Chesil Cove, a female type was also present. A few pictures of this and some other highlights of the day below.

Black Redstart, Chesil Cove

Just as confiding as the male

Always a pleasure to bump into this species

It's been a good winter for approachable Great Northern Divers

This one was close in off Portland Castle

A Kestrel at Portland Bill was a bit bedraggled

The Bill quarry Little Owls have a bit more shelter

 

Male Red-breasted Merganser near Portland Castle

Wren, Portland Bill

I was able to photograph this Dartford Warbler at Portland Bill out of the car window

On the way home, a Goldcrest was singing over the traffic noise in downtown Weymouth

Med Gull is virtually guaranteed in the Radipole Lake car park at this time of year

Some rare sightings in Purbeck

My old friend Matt Jones, taking a break from showing Kiwis to tourists on Stewart Island, NZ, paid me a visit recently. Having seen to family duties in his native Kent, and attended to business promoting his adopted country's wares at the Rutland Water Birdfair, he was good enough to find the time to squeeze in a visit to Dorset for a day's birding. He was particularly keen to see Osprey, Spoonbill and Yellow-legged Gull for his trip list so we headed straight for Middlebere.

Woodlark on Soldiers Road

Redstart at Middlebere

This is Matt near the Houseboats on Studland. If you are ever fortunate enough to get to Stewart Island on a guided birding trip, there is a good chance he will be showing you around

Dartford Warbler at Middlebere

Before he had taken a seat in the hide I had an Osprey lined up in the telescope. Locating the Spoonbills and Yellow-legged Gull required no optics as they were sat in the channel straight in front of the hide. So that was easy. We took our time wandering the track back to the car picking up a good selection of common migrants, and ended the day stumbling upon a family of Woodlark on Soldiers Road. It was good to catch up as this was only Matt's second visit in 2 years, so he's now officially rarer than White-winged Black Tern in Poole Harbour.

Green Sandpiper at Middlebere

Marsh Harrier at Middlebere

Yellow-legged Gull at Middlebere

Osprey at Middlebere

A couple of nights later, another real rarity was to be found at Swineham, and for one night only: me. Sightings of me there have been almost as rare as sightings of White-winged Black Terns, of which we have had three in three years now. A good run, such that they have been more numerous over that period than the generally commoner Black Tern. So it was good to find one of the latter hawking at the end of the pit. I had it to myself for the 40 minutes or so it was present before it moved out to the Wareham Channel.

Black Tern at Swineham

A moulting adult

More than I deserved after wilful neglect of Swineham in recent months

Less contrast in the upperparts compared to White-winged Black Tern which shows a whiter rump in any plumage

Back to Purbeck

After the excitement of yesterday's Greater Yellowlegs twitch, I spent a couple of hours closer to home this morning looking for migrants at the excellent Durlston Country Park. I didn't have to go far before stumbling across a cracking male Redstart. After that it proved to be harder going, though plenty of Blackcap were in evidence and I also heard my first Whitethroat of the year.

Male Common Redstart

Male Blackcap (#147)

Chiffchaff

Having checked the meadows and scrub it was down to the cliff edge where I knew I could guarantee adding Fulmar to the photo year-list. Several duly obliged and a Raven also gronked past a few times as I watched.

Fulmar (#148)

Fulmar

Raven

As I studied the Fulmars a dark shape came out of the sun, momentarily casting a large shadow over me: Peregrine. It stooped towards the Guillemot colony, honing in on a small party of birds which were flying out to sea, and appearing to grab one in mid-air. Ultimately, it could not hang on to the auk which wriggled free and dropped to the safety of the water.

Peregrine Falcon

The Peregrine's legs straddle an apparently prone Guillemot...

...but it managed to turn and get away

A short but productive stop at Soldiers Road on the way home added two photo-ticks to the year list without leaving the car, Dartford Warbler and Woodlark - both Schedule 1 species so photographed from a respectful distance (see here for some sensible advice and a summary of the law on photographing Schedule 1 species). If only some respect had been shown by the two different parties of dog walkers who arrived during the time I was there and ignored the polite but prominent signs asking them to keep dogs on a lead, precisely to protect ground nesting birds such as these.

Dartford Warbler (#149)

Woodlark - a good species to bring up #150 for the photo list in 2015

Male Stonechat

Greenish with envy

After a successful Pacific Swift twitch in Suffolk on Saturday - try saying that when you've had a few - I thought I would take the liberty afforded by Father's Day to look for another good bird closer to home on Sunday. The Greenish Warbler on Portland was always going to be tricky as it was reported as elusive before being trapped at the Obs, and kept an even lower profile after being stroked by the ringers (who wouldn't?).

Linnet, Portland Bill

I didn't see it in the end but there were some friendly faces to catch up with anyway. These included Kevin, the County Recorder (non-birders please note, that's like a Bishop in birding, or a Company Secretary, if you prefer a secular analogy); and Brett, who taught me more about my 7D camera in 2 minutes than I've worked out for myself in two months. Apparently you have to put batteries in. Who knew!

Dunnock, Portland Bill

Also present was a small flock of Mitchells, my near neighbours in Purbeck. The head of the family has a reputation for calmness, reasonableness and boundless patience. But then she's not a birder. Her husband is though, and a respectable member of the Dorset Bird Club politburo to boot. While he can normally be found diligently completing his WeBS counts and Breeding Bird Surveys around Poole Harbour, we occasionally have to stage a kidnapping so he can get away from the thraldom of proper birding and the Sunday leagues to twitch quality birds like Sandhill Crane in Suffolk, or Spanish Sparrow in Hampshire.


Whitethroat, Portland Bill

Apart from birds, the other thing Mitchell Snr and I have in common is that and our sons play for the same under-10s football team, and while mine shows no interest in birding, his has just started listing (BOU 103 already). I've often wondered how I would feel about my own boys getting into birding. On the one hand, it would be great to teach them the ropes and have someone to share the pleasures of the hobby with.

Wood Mouse on the Observatory Wall, Portland

On the other, I might miss the solitude, which is a big part of the attraction. On balance though, it has to be a good thing, and at this fundamental level: when age catches up with me, my pension won't stretch to a pager and I've lost both memory and bladder control, I'm going to need someone to drive me around to see birds.

Dartford Warbler - not on Portland, this one on a recent visit to Morden Bog

Now that both Mitchell Snr and Jnr are birding, I do wonder what will happen in future if a good bird turns up during a game. I, for instance, wouldn't hesitate to slope off unnoticed by normal people, but as fellow bird-nerds they would now both know exactly what I was up to. Then again if the bird is good enough, all three of us might be keen to go. How would we get away? Perhaps if Mitchell Jnr feigns injury me and his dad could act as stretcher bearers? But then what about my son? Could we really leave him behind? Of course not!

Redstart, Morden Bog

So there's only one thing for it: convert him to the dark side too. I've already tested the waters:

Dad: 'So do you think you'll get into birding then?'
Son: 'No. I'm not the birding type.'
Dad: 'And what is 'the birding type' exactly?'
Pregnant pause
Son: 'Patient. And quiet.'

I was secretly impressed: tact, self-deprecation and self-knowledge. Not bad for a 9-year old. Whether he takes to birding or not, it's a comfort to know that for now at least we still have one important thing to unite us: neither of us has Greenish Warbler on our Dorset list.

Redstart, Morden Bog