2011.....A Review Of My Year In The Natural World.

Donna Nook,November.

Tetney,November.

Worlaby Carrs,October.

Pyramidal Orchid,Barton,June.

Male Azure Damselfly,Messingham Sand Quarries LWTR,June.

Male Red-eyed Damselfly,Messingham Sand Quarries LWTR,May.

Ovi-positing female Hairy Dragonfly,Messingham Sand Quarries LWTR,May.

Female Scarce Chaser,Woodwalton Fen NNR,May.

Well 2011 was a great year in some respects,particularly on the birding front,but was a poor one for my beloved insects,particularly Dragons and Butterflies,this is a rough account of what i observed.


January.


  
Birding began in earnest in January with myself,along with the Grimsby lads,making the journey to Norfolk on the 16th for the juv. male Northern Harrier,our first NEW bird of the year.And thankfully after the long journey he didn't disappoint showing particularly well when he roosted at Titchwell along with 3 Hen Harrier and 12 Marsh.Other goodies during the day included a fine Drake American Wigeon at Cley,20 Shorelark(11 at Cley and 9 at Titchwell),Black Brant at Wells,2 Red-necked Grebe and 2 Redhead Smew at Titchwell and a juv. Rough-legged Buzzard at Burnham Overy,my 2nd of 5 through the year.Local highlights through Jan,had included the wintering juv. Rough-legged Buzzard at South Ferriby,Hooded Crow at Donna Nook and 9 fine Bewick's Swan at New Holland.Another trip out of the county on the 29th with,again the Grimsby lads,added juvenile Great-northern Diver at Scarborough and at least 4 Goshawk and Great-grey Shrike along with 25 Crossbill at Wykeham Forest/Troutsdale ending a good month and start to the new birding year.




February.


Another potentially new species was seen at Whitton on the 6th,a 1st winter Greenland White-fronted Goose amongst the 'Pink' flock,providing me with my first sighting of this distinctive race and a 'mooted' future split.The patch also provided a nice surprise today in the form of a flock of 23 Waxwing,gorging themselves on Guelder Rose berries at the railway crossing.An excellent day out on 27th saw Chris and myself seeing a long list of good birds,which included the 1st winter Greenland Whitefront,this time at South Ferriby,a pair of Long-tailed Duck and male Arctic Redpoll at Barton along with 2 Otter and my first male Adder of the year later at Laughton.




March.


Another visit to Laughton on the 12th saw me recording at least 6 male and 1 female Adder and a visit with Chris to Donna,next day saw us re-aquainting ourselves with the Hooded Crow again at Quad 3.On the 19th a big movement of Whooper Swans moving north,saw at least 78 birds passing through the Ancholme valley,with one flock of 55 birds being impressive and 8 'Taiga' Bean Geese on the local patch at Worlaby,providing me with my first sighting of this race in Lincolnshire.Another good day out next day saw me adding a cracking male Black Redstart and Firecrest to my yearlist at Barton,with both birds showing very well.The 27th saw a trip only just over the border to South Yorkshire and Hatfield Moor with Chris and Dave,were we where treated to superb views of 9 Black-necked and the superb male Red-necked Grebe,with firsts for the year including Sand Martin and Little-ringed Plover.The day ended with me dashing to Worlaby to add a cracking Great-grey Shrike to my local patch list.A repeat visit next day saw me seeing the Great-grey again and adding a long awaited Red Kite to the patch list.A visit to Messingham on the last day of the month,saw me enjoying another encounter with that superb aquatic mustelid on Grebe lake,with me also seeing my first Swallow and House Martins of the year and quite a few insects which included Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell butterflies.




April.


On the 2nd,the bizarre experience of twitching a rare bird in someones living room!saw Graham,Neil and myself heading to Chipping Norton in Oxfordshire to pay homage to the wintering 1st winter Oriental-turtle Dove and it put on a great show,right infront of the patio window.This garden was a sanctuary for birds with us also seeing 14 Brambling and very tame pair of Bullfinch.
A visit to Chambers farm Wood on the 17th saw me enjoying an array of birds and wildlife which included my first Garden Warbler,Cuckoo,Grasshopper Warbler and Turtle Doves of the year,the latter,sadly,1 of only 2 birds seen throughout the whole summer!.Also seen on this day were 3 Grass Snake,14 Common Lizard,3 each of Muntjac and Brambling and my first Orange Tip butterflies of the year.The 23rd was the first BIG insect day of the year,with high temperatures,and an early emergence of Odonata took place and provided me with my earliest records ever of Hairy Dragonfly(3),Common-blue Damselfly(64),Azure Damselfly(11),Blue-tailed Damselfly(5) and Four-spot Chaser(1).Also seen were 2 Large-red Damselfly.Typically,with all this insect action,2 1st summer Hobby were watched taking advantage of the abundance of flying prey.On the 24th a family day out was diverted to see and hear 3 superb singing male Nightingale at their Lincolnshire stronghold at Whisby Pits at Lincoln.A very busy 3 days at the end of the month saw some crackers being seen,with me adding to my yearlist a gorgeous Collared Pratincole at South Killingholme,Tawny Pipit and 7 Dotterel at Tetney and the majestic,wintering White-tailed Eagle at Ruckland.The Tawny Pipit and W.T.E. being important additions to my 'Linc's' list also.




May.


On the 1st,the largest count of Hairy Dragonfly i have heard of recorded in the county,saw at least 50 being counted at Messingham Sand Quarries,an amazing number.A return visit next day,saw me enjoying a lovely Drake Garganey and 3 Wood Sands on the reserve and my first Swift and Brown Argus of the year.With the kind offer of a trip to Woodwalton Fen in Cambridgshire on the 7th,Colin and myself enjoyed seeing and photographing one of,if not,THE UK's most striking dragonfly species,Scarce Chaser.We managed to find a total of 18 insects and they were all the striking,orange abdomened tenerals,superb!!.Also here,highlights were provided by 3 Chinese-water Deer and 3 singing male Nightingale.A visit to nearby Holme Fen on the journey home saw us recording a new moth species for ourselves in the form of 2 Peacock Moth.Some good dragon counts on the 9th and 21st at MSQ saw me recording my highest counts for Four-spot Chaser(48,7th) and Azure Damselfly(1020,21st) for the reserve,being pretty exceptional.The month ended with some nice views of a pair of Common Crane at West Butterwick beside the Trent,with a singing male Quail and Hobby also recorded.




June.


A trip to one of my favourite sites,Crowle Moor on the 4th saw me seeing and recording some good numbers of insects,with the highlights being provided by 97 Large Heath,55 Four-spot Chaser and 201 Large-red Damselfly.On the 11th, a visit along with Dave and Teresa to Troutsdale in North Yorkshire,saw us enjoying the amazing spectacle of 2 displaying male Honey Buzzards,with 2 females being seen also,superb stuff.Also here were at least 2 male Goshawk,19 Crossbill,3 Spotted Flycatcher and 4 Grey Wagtail.On the 20th June,a few nice sightings at MSQ included singles of Crossbill,Siskin and Hobby,with my only Broad-bodied Chaser of the year being seen,a female.On the 25th,a visit to the patch,saw me seeing the 2 summering 'Special' birds,the 2nd calendar year female Osprey and 2nd calendar year Common Crane.They were both to be enjoyed on several more occasions through the summer months.Another trip over the border into Yorkshire on the 26th to the superb upland habitat at Fen Bog,saw the highlights including 35 Small pearl-bordered Fritillary,1 Dark-green Fritillary,30 Keeled Skimmer,3 Golden-ringed Dragonfly and the biggest surprise of the day,a cracking male Nightjar flushed from a bracken covered hillside while walking over the moor!.


July.


The month began with an out of county trip to the huge Rockingham forest complex in Cambridgeshire/Northants,with the highlights being 15 Silver-washed Fritillary,12 White-letter Hairstreak and my first Violet Helleborines.Bird wise,this superb area saw us enjoying a cracking Honey Buzzard in the air with 2 Common Buzzard,single Crossbill and several Nuthatch and Marsh Tit.A visit later to the nearby Fairmyn Wood/Lady Wood area,saw us enjoying at least 5 magnificent Purple Emperor,which included an egg-laying female.On the 9th/10th a couple of visits to the patch at Bonby Carrs,saw me enjoying more superb views of the summering Osprey and Common Crane and me finding 2 cracking caterpillars in the form of Sallow Kitten and Puss Moth.The latter,one i had wanted to see since i became interested in wildlife as a child.The 12th had me dashing from work to Alkborough,to get brief views of my first Marsh Sandpiper,another quality find by Neil Drinkall.Fortunately the bird began to settle into a pattern,residing at Blacktoft Sands RSPB,so a visit there on the 16th,got me superb,prolonged views of this cracking adult.Other birds enjoyed at this flagship reserve included 2 Wood Sandpiper,2 Spoonbill,17 Little Egret and 7 Green Sandpiper.The next day,while taking part in my monthly WEBS count at New Holland,a nice find in the form of another Honey Buzzard,flew south west inland there.Finally,another visit to the patch at Bonby,saw me finding a fairly good insect for the area,a male Roesel's-bush Cricket.It was of the migratory 'Macropterous' form and is the first record i have personally heard of in the area.


August.


A visit to Alkborough on the 7th to lead a Butterfly and Dragonfly walk,resulted in very few highlights insect wise,due to the weather,but a few birds were logged in the form of 3 Spoonbill,3 Ruddy Shelduck and 6 juvenile Beardies.Local patch watching on the 9th and 14th provided some nice sightings,with the continued presence of both the Osprey and Common Crane,with a juv.Peregrine on both dates and a Whinchat and Spot Fly on the 14th.On the evening of the 12th,a visit to my sisters,coincided with a visit to see the massive numbers of Little Gulls at Hornsea Mere,with me seeing at least 900 birds!,this included at least 700 on view at one time,an amazing sight to see.Another trip out of the county,this time to Filey Brigg on the 28th,saw Chris and myself seeing nothing out of the ordinary,but enjoying superb views of Arctic Skua,Manx and Sooty Shearwater,Bonxie,Whimbrel and Wheatear,an enjoyable day just watching common birds.


September.


The 3rd saw more local birding to start off the month,with me visiting Bonby Carrs,South Ferriby and Alkborough Flats and enjoying some nice sightings of the 2nd calendar yr. Common Crane at Bonby,followed by 3 Hobby at South Ferriby and finishing the day at Alkborough with 9 Spoonbill and 17 Little Egret.The Spoonbills being the largest flock i have observed,a great sight.Another visit to Alkborough again on the 11th saw me adding a nice juv. Pectoral Sandpiper to the yearlist.The 17th and 18th saw me adding 2 quality birds to my Lincolnshire list,the first on the 17th was a first record for the county and came in the form of a 'Surinamensis' Black Tern at Covenham Res,this is the american form of Black Tern and was found by GPC.The bird showed superbly to the expectant crowd and proved very popular over the coming days.Also here were an adult and juvenile Red-necked Grebe,which showed possible characters of the american race.The 18th saw me at last, adding Sabine's Gull to my Lincolnshire list,with me visiting the juvenile bird at Leadenham Tip.It gave superb views,actually flying past me at one point,before returning to its favoured pool,an absolute cracker!.A bonus find after enjoying the gull,was a Clouded Yellow along a roadside verge.A trip down the coast on the 24th,saw very little of note apart from 2 juv. Little Stint,5 juv.Curlew Sandpiper and my first Lapland Bunting of the autumn,all at Rimac,with a return visit to Covenham on the way home,enjoying more superb views of the American Black Tern and another couple of juv. Little Stint.Local patching on the 26th saw my second juv. Whinchat of the autumn being logged and 16 Common Buzzard and 5 Marsh Harrier ending another superb months birding.


October.


On the 6th,more long distance twitching along with Graham and Neil,saw us heading to Boyton Marshes in Suffolk for the superb adult Sandhill Crane.The bird showed admirably and we managed some great views of it feeding and in flight also,a beauty!.This was obviously my first sighting of this migratory american species.Other birds seen during the day included a single Hobby,4 Wheatear and a 2nd winter Med. Gull.An all day effort down the Linc's coast on the 14th,had us seeing a few nice bits which included a late Pied Flycatcher at Rimac and a Yellow-browed Warbler and an 'In off' juv. Rough-legged Buzzard at Seaview Farm.Other niceities through the day came in the form of 2 Short-eared Owl,Peregrine,2 Merlin and male Stonechat.The 15th had me dashing to Barton to see only my second Ferruginous Duck and like the last one a male,albiet this one being a 1st winter,another class find by Graham.Local patching again between 18th-22nd saw us all enjoying another Rough-leg at Worlaby,my fourth for the patch and a lovely surprise addition to the patch list in the form of 6 Crossbill on the 18th.The month ended on a high,when Neil found another quality bird,a Lesser Yellowlegs,firstly at Bagmoor,but then it re-located to an accessible site,Alkborough Flats,were it was enjoyed by many and made for a nice end to the month.


November.


The month started with a bang on the 5th,no pun intended,with Dave and myself heading to Spurn to see our first Isabelline Wheatear,the bird put on a great show to the gathered crowd,an absolute cracker.Next day,bird of the year for the patch,came in the form of a Lapland Bunting seen twice in flight and was a long awaited addition for myself after me already seeing Snow Bunting.Also seen on the 6th were a whopping 15 Short-eared Owl,the largest count i have recorded at Worlaby,superb stuff!!.On the 12th an all day visit to the coast with Chris saw us seeing the previous days 'Desert' Lesser Whitethroat,found by Graham and Neil and what a superb little bird it was too.This turned out to be a very productive day with us also seeing 3 'Tundra' Bean Geese and 50 Eurasian White-fronted Geese at Pyes's Hall along with Black Brant,9 Lapland Bunting,2 Peregrine,3 Merlin,2 Hen Harrier and 9 Whooper Swan at Donna Nook,what a day!.A visit to the Tetney area again with Chris on the 12th,was also a great day out with us seeing an ultra tame Great-grey Shrike,3 Bewick's and 5 Whooper Swan,2 Short-eared Owl and 2 Merlin.A return visit to Donna Nook on the 23rd saw me logging my latest Northern Wheatear,with a juv. along the beach near Pye's.Other goodies recorded included 4 White-fronted Geese south,Peregrine,Merlin and 15 Lapland Bunting.On the journey home,i popped in at Covenham and found a further 2 'Tundra' Bean Geese and 7 White-fronted Geese on an adjacent cereal field and a superb 1st winter male Snow Bunting watched feeding along the reservoir wall.More geese on the 26th and 27th included me seeing 26 more 'Tundra' Bean's on the wold top above Worlaby and 20 White-fronted Geese at Winterton(26th) and 2 'Tundra' Beans and 17 White-fronted Geese at Messingham(27th).The latter date saw me seeing a single Mealy Redpoll with a flock of Lesser's at Messingham.


December.




No real highlights were observed until mid-way through the month on the 17th,with a trip firstly to Donna Nook seeing again the Black Brant from back in November and a few other bits which included 4 Pale-bellied Brent,6 Lap. Bunt. and a Kingfisher.Later we went to look for the reported juv. Rough-legged Buzzard at Withern,but only managed brief views of it perched on a roadside hedge before it disappeared onto a distant hawthorn.A bit of local birding on the 26th looking for the elusive Great-white Egret,saw me again missing this bird,but i managed to see an unseasonal Green Sandpiper,3 Goosander and superb views of a flyby Bittern.Next day saw Chris and myself heading for the Yorkshire coast,with us getting nice views of the 1st winter male Desert Wheatear at Bempton,with a bonus Short-eared Owl thrown in for good measure and later a visit to Scarborough paid divedends with us seeing Great-northern Diver,6 Med. Gulls,34 Purple Sandpiper and the resident pair of Peregrines.Another day out on the 30th with Chris and fellow Grimbarians,Tony and Ian,got us a nice list of birds despite the poor weather conditions,these included superb views of the RLB at Withern,Red-necked Grebe and 2 drake Goosander at Covenham and finally 4 'Tundra' Bean Geese,10 Whooper and 2 Bewick's Swan,2 Short-eared Owl and a Barn Owl at Thoresby Bridge.The year ended on the 31st with a day out with Dave and with us finally catching up with Great-white Egret and also seeing a very interesting Great-grey Shrike at Wroot,that was showing some characters of the 'Homiyeri' race.To end the day 3 'Tundra' Beans above Worlaby village on the wold top and 3 Short-eared Owls on the patch ended a great years birding and wildlife watching.

Wet And Windy,But Good Birds........

A free day again today,so i joined the Grimbarians,Chris,Tony and Ian for a foray around the north east part of the county,taking in some of the goodies on offer.We started proceedings at a very windy and incredibly cold Withern to look for the beautiful Scandi Buteo and after much scanning and a false alarm Chris found this stunning vole scoffer hunting over the rough fields to the west of the village.We managed some great views of this lovely bird as we were constantly battered by the strong north westerly,as it quartered the sorrounding fields looking for its vole breakfast.On my last visit i had only gained brief views of this Rough-leg,but today i was nicely recompensed.Other sightings logged here included a couple of Little Egret and at least 4 Common Buzzard.Our next stop was Covenham Res and we made our way to shelter from the wind behind the strategically placed Yacht club buildings,this made for a good choice as the heavens opened for a good hour with some of the heaviest rain i have seen for a while.Enjoying our respite from the weather,we managed to find the previous days Red-necked Grebe after some help from Covenham regular Keith Robinson.It was watched at distance feeding around the water tower and became the 6th bird i have managed to see this year.Other birds observed here were a couple of dapper drake Goosander,looking like big,white exocet missiles in flight and as equally as streamlined on the water,very nice!.The final destination was the nearby Thoresby bridge,which was the most productive site of the day.The main highlights here consisted of the resident 4 'Tundra' Bean Geese,which were watched leisurely grazing on the sugar beet in the field along with 10 Whooper and 2 Bewick's Swan.The Bean's becoming my 35th,36th,37th and 38th birds of the autumn/winter period,amazing!.The Whooper Swans consisted of 8 adult birds and 2 juveniles and the Bewick's,both adults.A nice surprise here came in the form of 2 Short-eared Owl watched hunting along the drain bank side and a single Barn Owl was also seen hunting an adjacent set-aside strip.So all in all,a very successful day,considering the weather conditions and a big thanks to Catkin for driving.

Desert Beauty and Scarborough Bits.......

As both of us were on our Christmas hols,Chris picked me up today and we headed into gods own country to see if we could manage to see the still present Desert Wheatear at Bempton and mop up on some goodies at Scarborough also.As we arrived at a drizzly Bempton,talk about de-ja vu,we made our way around to the Staple Neuk viewpoint and began searching for the Wheatear,when i eventually got onto him feeding as on my previous visit around the deserted Gannet nests.Eventually we managed some nice views of the bird as he was finding plenty of insect food amongst the nooks and crannies of the cliff,a great relief to see.This bird was first seen in the 3rd week of November and looks like it may winter.Also here was a single Short-eared Owl hunting a set-aside strip,giving decent views as another band of low cloud passed over.After enjoying this Desert cracker we made our way over to Scarborough.Holbeck car park was the next stop,were the expected Med Gulls put on a great show after being enticed down with some Dairy lea sandwiches and cheesy wotsits.There were 3 adults and 3 1st winter birds,the 1st winters being particularly appealing and included 1 bird which had a silver BTO type ring on its left leg,who knows where it has originated,no doubt eastern Europe.Off the car park i managed to pick out the Great-northern Diver feeding out in South Bay and hoped for better views later.After eventually finding a parking place along Marine drive,we were treated to some nice views of the resident pair of Peregrines as they rested on their cliff top home,what majestic birds this species are,casually surveying the marine kingdom.Around the harbour and south bay was were most of the action was and i quickly spotted the Great-northern Diver again for the second time today,about half way across the bay,giving fairly good views,with that super smooth diving action,just slipping below the surface of the water,along with 9 Common Scoter,3 Red-throated Diver,7 Great-crested Grebe,half a dozen Shag and several Guillemot dotted about over the calm sea.In the harbour only a single Great-crested Grebe and Guillemot showed today,although a couple of Red-throated Diver gave really nice views through the scope nearby.As the tide began to come in,the Purple Sands began to gather at the east pier to roost and gave great views as they jostled for position to get out of the way of any incoming waves.It was really nice to get such good views of this super little wader with 21 birds gathered on 1 rock together and a decent total of 34 being seen overall.An excellent day apart from the dodgy weather early on.

MSQ Bits,26.12.11.

A hopeful visit today to MSQ to look for the reported Great-white Egret,drew a big blank,but a few other birds were seen and partially made up for the dip.Best bird honours went to a Bittern which did a superb flypast from right to left in front of the Duck hide giving excellent views of this cracking heron,before it crashed into the windswept reeds on the other side of the lake from which we were viewing.This is my first Bittern sighting here for a couple of years and my first since one at Far-Ings a few weeks ago.Also in the vicinity of the Bittern was a single drake Goosander which was watched loafing and feeding,giving nice views of this whopper of a duck.It was great to watch it using the 'Snorkelling' behaviour they use to great effect,catching several fish.Earlier i had seen a pair fly in over the lake and do a quick circuit,before heading off in the direction of Twigmoor.The last noteworthy sighting went to a single Green Sandpiper watched feeding in the dried up area down from the car park at the far end of Grebe lake.It initially gave itself away with that distinct 'Peet,weet weet' call and then settled back down to feed again.This species is becoming a more and more common sight in winter due to the milder conditions we are now experiencing at this time of year and many are deciding not to make the long journey to tropical Africa.Today there was also a nice mix of wildfowl feeding on the main lake,with Teal,Wigeon and Gadwall featuring,the Gadwall in good numbers with 86 birds present and Wigeon with 16.Passerines were thin on the ground,with only 2 Siskin seen and a couple of female Bullfinch put on a fine show outside the Duck hide window,superb!.A good few hours in some bright sun for a change.

Happy Christmas.

I would just like to say a very merry christmas and a happy and prosperous new year to all my readers,followers and fellow bloggers and great wildlife watching for 2012.

Dreary Donna and Beautiful Buteo......

Pye's Hall.

Sleeping Grey Seal pup.

An all day trip out with Dave today,saw us managing a few nice bits and bobs to brighten the wintery gloom.Our first port of call was a very cold and cloudy Donna Nook,were the most notable sighting went to a showy Black Brant along with its Dark-bellied relatives,feeding at fairly close range on the area of saltmarsh just west of Stonebridge car park.This particular bird is well marked with a very distinct collar which almost reaches at the hindneck and a striking white flank patch,a nice bird.Other sightings here consisted of 6 flyover Lapland and a single Snow Bunting.Mammal sightings obviously included the huge numbers of Grey Seals,with quite a good number of pups still present and a single Weasel seen in the dunes.After visiting Donna we made the short journey over to Withern and managed to connect with the Rlb,albeit briefly as i saw it perched on a nearby roadside hedgerow.This is my fourth bird for the year and the 3rd in the autumn/winter period.The only other sighting of note was a Red Kite seen just south of Louth Tip.Not a bad day despite the gloomy conditions.

Rainy Day......

I made the daft decision to visit Bempton on Sunday for the stunning male Desert Wheatear and spent the whole time i watched this cracking bird getting a proper soaking.Thankfully my newly aquired Sprayway jacket and Craghoppers trousers stood up admirably against the rainy blast.The Wheatear was watched as i he fed in relative shelter around the deserted Gannet colony at the Staple Newk viewpoint and was finding plenty of insect food to eat around the nests and little hollows in the cliff.This is the birds 3rd week in residence after an inexperienced member of the public had stumbled across this desert waif,nice find!.This is my 5th sighting of this lovely species of Wheatear,with 3,all males in Yorkshire and 2 females in Lincolnshire.After my visit to the Bempton,i made a brief stop off at Hornsea Mere and managed to find the 1st winter male Long-tailed Duck that had been reported along with a distant Red-breasted Merg,but after another band of rain came in off the sea i called it a day.The only other sightings of note had been provided by at least 10 Harbour Porpoise off Bempton while watching the Whitearse.Some nice birds today,but dire weather conditions,so much for the forecast.

Whooper's......

A trip out this morning with Trace to do a bit of shopping,saw us enjoying the great sight of 15 Whooper Swans flying south over Tesco at Scunthorpe.This species is,as i have mentioned before in my top 5 fave birds,a very nice diversion away from the shopping.