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Tag Archives: Oystercatchers

Birding at Whiteford Point

14 Monday Jan 2019

Posted by sconzani in animals, birds, nature, walks, winter

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

birding, birtdwatching, Brent geese, British birds, Curlew, Dunlin, Glamorgan Bird Club, horses, Little egret, Llanrhidian Marsh, Oystercatchers, saltmarsh, Shelduck, Whiteford Point

Yesterday was our first Glamorgan Bird Club field trip for 2019, and what a magnificent day it was!

190114 (6) whiteford point

I hadn’t been to this part of the Gower peninsula before – our walk was through the National Trust property at Whiteford Point – and the scenery, like that all over the Gower, was stunning.

190114 (1) saltmarsh at whiteford point

190114 (2) whiteford point

With forestry, saltmarsh and coast line, the environment is very diverse, which means there’s a wonderful variety of flora and fauna to be seen, not just birds – though the bird life certainly didn’t disappoint. And there were many handsome ponies nibbling on the saltmarsh.

190114 (3) horses at whiteford point

As well as most of the smaller, more common birds – blackbirds, robins, singing Song thrushes, calling Bullfinches, a big mixed flock of Chaffinches, Linnets and Reed buntings – we also disturbed both Common snipe and Jack snipe that were lurking in the reed beds next to the path. The Jack snipe was a lifer for me, though views were brief as the birds shot up suddenly and unexpectedly, flew a short way, then disappeared back into the reeds.

190114 (4) brent geese and flying dunlin

Once we reached the beach, we saw a wide range of waders and sea birds. Here a flock of Dunlin flies past Brent geese grazing along the shoreline.

190114 (5) shelduck and dunlin

More skittish Dunlin flying along the shore, this time above the heads of feeding Shelducks.

190114 (7) oystercatchers and curlew

It was wonderful to see such good numbers of Curlew, here with even larger numbers of the ubiquitous Oystercatchers. We also enjoyed sightings of some less common birds – a Great northern diver quite close to the shore; a Slavonian grebe further off and diving frequently so not easy to keep track of; a Red-breasted merganser a distant speck through the ’scopes.

190114 (7) a raft of eider

My favourites were undoubtedly the Eider ducks. I fell in love with them when I first heard their call on our birding trip to Northumberland last year.

190114 (8) horses on the marsh

Eventually, we made the long trek back to the cars and moved on to nearby Llanrhidian Marsh, to await the dusk, hopeful of harriers and perhaps an owl or two. More ponies were running free on the marsh – they looked unloved and uncared for, their manes very long and tatty, but, as we waited, a man arrived and fed them some meal from a bucket. They were very handsome and quite inquisitive.

190114 (9) little egrets

The marsh seemed alive with Little egrets, and we had good sightings of several Great whites – another year first for me. Some of our group saw a Hen harrier, and a couple of Red kites came in gliding low, hunting for their supper, but no owls appeared and the harrier did not return.

Still, as the sun went down, we were treated to this stunning sunset, and we returned home tired but happy after a most excellent day’s birding in a superb setting.

190114 (10) sunset over llanrhidian marsh

Here’s my trip list: Blackbird, Black-headed Gull, Black-tailed Godwit, Blue Tit, Brent Goose, Bullfinch, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Coal Tit, Collared Dove, Buzzard, Eider, Redshank, Snipe, Cormorant, Dunlin, Dunnock, Curlew, Teal, Wigeon, Golden Plover, Stonechat, Goldcrest, Goldfinch, Great Black-backed Gull, Great Crested Grebe, Great White Egret, Great Northern Diver, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Great Tit, Green Woodpecker, Greenshank, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jack Snipe, Jackdaw, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Linnet, Little Egret, Long-tailed Tit, Magpie, Mallard, Meadow Pipit, Lapwing, Pintail, Oystercatcher, Pheasant, Pied Wagtail, Raven, Red Kite, Red-breasted Merganser, Reed Bunting, Robin, Sanderling, Shelduck, Slavonian Grebe, Song Thrush, Starling, Treecreeper, Woodpigeon, Wren.

My birding friend and I saw Greenshank at Penclawdd when we stopped for a quick scan on the way to Whiteford Point so my total for the day was 61 and, as other birders saw a few birds I didn’t, the club’s total was 70. Those extras were, most notably, that Hen harrier but also Common gull, Green sandpiper, Jay, Merlin, Redwing, Rook, Stock dove and Turnstone.

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A stroll at Sully

06 Tuesday Feb 2018

Posted by sconzani in birds, coastal fauna, nature, seaside, walks

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Tags

birding, birdwatching, British birds, Curlew, Grey plover, Little ringed plover, Oystercatchers, Rock pipit, Sully, Turnstone, Wales Coastal Path

At 9:20am yesterday I was on the bus to Sully, looking forward to seeing what seabirds might be scavenging along the shore at the 10:16 high tide. A bonus was seeing my first pheasant of the year in a passing field.

180206 Sully stroll (1)

Walking down the long narrow path to the beach, I was immediately rewarded with the sight of Black-headed gulls and Oystercatchers looking for worms in the neighbouring field, and a Rock pipit flew up from the shore to join them in their foraging.

180206 Sully stroll (2)
180206 Sully stroll (3)

The beach looked empty as I strolled along the ‘coastal path’ – really just a line of rocks and mud here – but a flurry of loud peeping made me turn my head and bring the camera up in time to catch this flock of Turnstones flying in.

180206 Sully stroll (4)180206 Sully stroll (5)

Further east, scanning the water’s edge with my binoculars, I finally spotted an interesting little group of 3 Turnstones, a Little ringed plover and a Grey plover, the latter two year ticks for me, and I’d not seen a Grey plover so close before (I’m still talking a couple of hundred metres away but see-able with bins and long lens). I watched them for perhaps 10 minutes before two loud women and their dog scared the birds off.

180206 Sully stroll (6)

180206 Sully stroll (7)
180206 Sully stroll (8)

Last, but mostly certainly not least, as these beautiful birds are endangered in Britain, 28 handsome Curlews were using their long curving beaks to probe the playing fields that abut the coastal path in search of worms. After 15 minutes’ watching I left them to their feast, with a silent ‘thanks for being the icing on the cake of my lovely morning at Sully’, and strolled on …

180206 Sully stroll (9)180206 Sully stroll (10)

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Oyks, for short

18 Monday Dec 2017

Posted by sconzani in birds, nature

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birding, birdwatching, British birds, Dickie bird, Gilliebride, Oyks, Oystercatchers, Sea nanpie, Seapie

The Oystercatcher is one of the few British waders that I knew well, and whose call I could already easily recognise, before I came to live in this country because we also have Oystercatchers in New Zealand and, indeed, they can be found on coastlines around much of the world. They are not all the same species though – the most common New Zealand species is Haematopus unicolor and the British bird is Haematopus ostralegus.

171218 oystercatchers (3)
171218 oystercatchers (2)

Those Latin names are a bit of a mouthful so let’s stick with Oystercatcher, though whoever gave them that name wasn’t very observant – they don’t actually ‘catch’ anything and, while I’m sure they enjoy breaking open the odd oyster when they find one, they eat all types of shellfish.

171218 oystercatchers (4)

I particularly like some of their vernacular names (listed in Stefan Buczacki’s Fauna Britannica): in Norfolk they’re known as Dickie birds; in Scotland Gilliebrides (the word ‘bride’ is a reference to St Bridget of Ireland who was said to be the patron saint of birds and carried an Oystercatcher in each hand); in Yorkshire they’re known as Sea nanpies; and as Seapies (‘pie’, meaning black and white, just as in the name Magpie), in Lancashire, Norfolk, Gloucestershire and Cornwall; and in northern England, appropriately enough, they’re called Mussel crackers. But, if all those names are too much to remember, we could just call them Oyks, for short.

171218 oystercatchers (1)

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Birding at Dawlish Warren

19 Sunday Nov 2017

Posted by sconzani in birds, nature

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

birding, birdwatching, Brent geese, British birds, Dawlish Warren, Dunlin, Exe estuary, Grey plover, national nature reserve, Oystercatchers, Shelduck

Last Sunday I joined ten hardy souls from the Glamorgan Bird Club (and two of their equally hardy children) to brave the strong polar winds and occasional stinging rain showers to check out the birding delights of south Devon. After a brief stopover at Labrador Bay for the Cirl buntings (see yesterday’s post), we headed to the National Nature Reserve at Dawlish Warren, to check the beach, sand dunes, and mudflats of the Exe estuary.

171119 Dawlish Warren (1)
171119 Dawlish Warren (3)
171119 Dawlish Warren (2)
171119 Dawlish Warren (4)

We had immediate success sea-watching from the beach, with good views of two Red-throated and one Great northern diver – both new birds for me, as well as Great crested grebes, Cormorant and the always-impressive sight of a Gannet crashing headfirst into the waves to dive for fish.

171119 Dawlish Warren (5)171119 Dawlish Warren (6)171119 Dawlish Warren (7)

Though half of me got soaked during the walk out to the hide at the end of the sandspit (must invest in good, lined waterproof trousers!), the effort was worth it for the wealth of waders to be seen, feeding along the water’s edge and hunkering down on the sandy beach against the biting winds. As well as large numbers of Oystercatchers and Brent geese, there were also Dunlin and Ringed plover, Shelducks and Sanderlings, Turnstones, Bar- and Black-tailed godwits and a couple of Curlew, plus the ubiquitous gull species.

171119 River Exe (1)171119 River Exe (4)

Later, we stopped further up the Exe for a quick look over the river, where I managed to snap three Grey plover amongst a flock of Dunlin flying past. It was a long but grand day’s birding and, with four lifers to add to my sightings’ list, I was well pleased.

171119 River Exe (3)171119 River Exe (5)

You can find out more about the flora and fauna of Dawlish Warren here, and check this link for the latest bird sightings at Dawlish Warren.

171119 River Exe (2)

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Birding at Chesil Beach

21 Saturday Oct 2017

Posted by sconzani in birds, coastal fauna, nature

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Tags

birding, birdwatching, Brent geese, British birds, Chesil Beach, Dorset Wildlife Trust Centre, Little egret, Mediterranean gulls, Oystercatchers, Sandwich terns, The Fleet

171021 Chesil Beach (2)

After exploring RSPB Lodmoor, our birding road trip moved on to Chesil Beach, and what an amazing place it is!

171021 Chesil Beach (1)

To quote a brochure I picked up: ‘Chesil Beach is a natural wonder – a bank of 180 billion pebbles stretching for 18 miles along Dorset’s coast, linking Portland to the mainland. Trapped behind the beach is the Fleet, one of the largest saline lagoons in the country and a haven for bird and marine life’.

171021 Med gulls Sandwich terns171021 Brent geese Med gulls

Here we staked ourselves out behind the Dorset Wildlife Trust Centre, trying, somewhat ineffectually, to shelter from the bracing winds. The wind chill was worth it though, as we had good views of a gaggle of Brent geese and a large flock of Mediterranean gulls.

171021 Sandwich terns

Amongst the gulls were two Sandwich terns, and the beach was also hosting the ubiquitous Oystercatchers and more common gulls, a Bar-tailed godwit and a solitary Dunlin.

171021 Oystercatchers Gull

A Wheatear dotted about on the grass below the pebble bank and, when we briefly stopped here again on our way home on Sunday, a Little egret entertained with its fishing antics, paddling about very successfully in the waterways. Next time I need to climb that bank!

171021 Little egret

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Two go cuckoo at Camber

25 Thursday May 2017

Posted by sconzani in birds, coastal fauna, nature, walks

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

birding, birdwatching, Black-headed gull, Common tern, Gadwall, Lapwing, Marsh harrier, Oystercatchers, Ringed plover, Rye Harbour Nature Reserve, sheep, Shelduck, Skylark, Sussex Wildlife Trust guided walk

I celebrated my birthday, with my friend Jill, with a quick morning romp around the bird hides at Rye Harbour Nature Reserve, followed by an afternoon Sussex Wildlife Trust guided walk around the inland part of the reserve, including a peek inside the normally locked Camber Castle. And what a superb day it was!

170524 Rye Harbour fauna (10)

I’ve already blogged about one of the highlights, the gorgeous Avocets and their chicks; another was hearing, and catching a fleeting glimpse of my very first Cuckoo. Here are a few more (not so crisp) photos of the wonderful (but mostly distant) wildlife we saw: Common terns, Skylark, Oystercatchers and Dunlin, Black-headed gull, Ringed plover, Gadwall and Shelduck, Lapwing and a Pied wagtail, Marsh harrier, and a number 72; plus, not pictured, Redshank, Coot, Cormorant, Tufted duck, Mallard, Little ringed plover, Grey heron, Kestrel and Whitethroat, as well as the more common birds. A birthday to remember!

170524 Rye Harbour fauna (1)
170524 Rye Harbour fauna (2)
170524 Rye Harbour fauna (3)
170524 Rye Harbour fauna (4)
170524 Rye Harbour fauna (5)
170524 Rye Harbour fauna (6)
170524 Rye Harbour fauna (7)
170524 Rye Harbour fauna (8)
170524 Rye Harbour fauna (9)

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About me

sconzani

sconzani

I'm a writer and photographer; researcher and blogger; birder and nature lover; countryside rambler and city strider; volunteer and biodiversity recorder.

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