Sunday 16 September 2018

15th September


The big news is that Hobby has nested in the parish, the first breeding record. I had found a bird a couple of weeks ago in an area I hadn’t visited for some months. The bird was very territorial, aggressively driving off other birds, and I had seen it on every subsequent visit. Then this week I saw it with one, or possibly two, juvenile birds. I wanted to keep my distance so I don’t have any decent pics but at least you can see what it is…


Chris Knight texted me this morning to say he had had Whinchat and Wheatear in Morton. I joined him there, on the path between Morton and Thrintoft, and we turned up at least four Wheatears, my first of the year…


(a Wheatear amongst wheat ears!)


No sign of the Whinchat unfortunately but in looking for it we found three very smart Small Coppers…


Nearby the large arable field along school lane held 119 Curlew.
Earlier in the day I had walked along the river, highlights were single Greenshank and Green Sandpiper, three Snipe, twenty Golden Plover, two Little Egret and a skein of 26 Greylags. I also had a skein in the week…


We always get these geese over in the autumn but I don’t know if these are just short range local movements or part of something more significant.
On Langlands I had my first Little Owl of the year, I normally record them in every month. I don’t know what has happened to them but they are missing from virtually all of the traditional sites this year.
Frank found another Small copper…


And we had Roe Deer and an excellent total of seven Hares…

Sunday 2 September 2018

1st September


Another walk down the Swale today. This time I crossed over from the village, through Langlands and then over to the river and through to Morton bridge. Highlight was a Hobby, my first of the year, hunting over Langlands. The first Meadow Pipits have also returned with birds in the top fields and along the Swale. A flock of around sixty Swallows were feeding over the top fields too.
On the river itself there were at least two Greenshank still present along with Snipe, Redshank, A single Common Sandpiper…


And one (poorly photographed!) Green Sandpiper…


I also had four Buzzards along the river (and later another seven circling above our garden), plus three Little Egrets..


And four Cormorants, including this Angel of the Swale…



Year list to end of August - 93 species (pathetic!)