Sunny Days Out

With a sunny and calm day forecasted for Saturday 22nd February I decided to head out to look for Goshawks at my usual spot. However I read the bus timetables incorrectly and ended up having to catch a different numbered bus before walking about a mile to get to my usual starting point but never mind, the extra exercise will do me good.

There was very little breeze and it was a little bit misty and hazy but it felt mild and there were birds singing away as I began my walk up to my lookout point. The path wasn't too muddy either and the mist slowly began to dissipate as the breeze gently picked up.

I managed to find 4 Red-legged Partridges in the fields amongst copious Pheasants along with a male Stonechat, a Mistle Thrush and around 20 skittish Redwings. I had a look for Fieldfare too but with no luck and I drew a blank on Marsh Tit in the woodland as well.

I was hot and out of puff on negotiating the hills to get to my lookout spot but after catching my breath and setting my scope up I began to scan the skies only to find nothing was up on the air, not even a Buzzard. I figured that it may have been too early in the day as the breeze hadn't really gotten going and while it felt mild it wasn't that warm and thermals hadn't started to develop so I just had to wait. 

Goshawk Viewpoint

Eventually I picked up a few Buzzards displaying and soon after a distant Goshawk which showed briefly over the trees before disappearing, a large looking bird and with Colgate white underparts in the bright sunshine. I eventually refound it but it had flown further up the valley and then it disappeared from view again.

More Buzzards were taking to the air along with a female Sparrowhawk and a few Raven before I found another Goshawk circling with 2 Buzzards, this bird was darker underneath but it was large again and had a few feints at one of the Buzzards before drifting away.

I then found another Goshawk, large and very white looking underneath but with some secondary feathers missing on its right wing. At one point a male Sparrowhawk appeared and interacted with it before heading away and it looked really tiny compared to the Goshawk.

I then caught sight of possibly the first Goshawk I had seen earlier and I watched it for a while in display flight mode with its white under tail coverts all fluffed out. It was a joy to watch despite being high up in the sky and distant but the stylised wing flapping and swoops and stalls were great to see.

Very suddenly all the Woodpigeons and Corvids in the nearby wood noisely scattered out of the trees and as I watched I picked up an immature Goshawk powering through the branches causing complete panic. It disappeared over a ridge but I continued to see Woodpigeons and Crows taking to the air along its route, a close but all too brief view of a monster of a bird, large, fast and powerful looking and exciting to see.

It was soon time to head back home but not before my tripod snapped on me, I'm not sure what happened but as I turned the scope around to scan the sky it buckled towards me and as I looked down one of the legs had just snapped off! I wonder if there had been some stress damage to the leg when it fell off Langstone Rock and onto the beach below back in 2022 and today it finally gave up the ghost, it's never been the same since this incident anyway but hopefully David can work his magic on it and sort out some kind of a repair.

Velbon Tripod Woes

David very cleverly managed to fix the tripod using a glass fibre rod and epoxy, it seems to be OK but I'll have to see how it fares in the field. I did fish out my old Opticron tripod to use in the meantime, I bought it back in 2012 and I only used it a few times as I didn't get on with it so it was stored away and forgotten about but it's actually not a bad scope and has a Manfrotto head on it. 

With Tuesday 25th February being another fine and sunny day and wanting my repaired tripod to be rested for a bit longer I decided to take my old Opticron tripod out birding with me on a trip to Looe to see how I got on with it in case the Velbon tripod repair didn't hold.

The forecast was for a lovely day but no sooner had I stepped off the train at Looe than I was greeted with rain! I walked out to nearby Hannafore Point, somewhere I haven't visited before, and as I arrived the rain fortunately cleared through and the sun reappeared.

I set up my scope and scanned about, finding a male and an immature male Eider close in offshore along with Gulls, Shags and Cormorants. I also found a distant Great Northern Diver and then an even more distant group of 4 more before finally getting onto a Slavonian Grebe just as it dived underwater. Despite scanning about with my scope it took me a while to refind it but eventually it showed well if distantly in harsh light and swelly seas.

Eiders

Banjo Pier, Looe

Also of note were a Razorbill, 2 Curlew, a Kestrel, a Grey Seal and 9 Rabbits before I headed back to the train station in Looe for the journey home but not before picking up some lemon meringue pie from a cafe for our tea.

"Nelson", Looe

And so to the tripod, it's actually a pretty good one, much better than my Velbon tripod, stronger and sturdier but heavier and bulky and especially the head which seems overly complicated and has an unnecessarily long panning handle. It has twist leg locks too which I'm not keen on but overall it's not bad and better than I remember.

It was another lovely sunny day on Thursday 27th February as I headed down to Cornwall with my friend Sue to hopefully see the juvenile Spoonbill wintering on the Hayle estuary. On arriving at Copperhouse Creek we quickly found the Spoonbill feeding on the low tide before it promptly went to sleep as Spoonbills are prone to doing but it gave some nice views when it occassionally woke up. Other highlights here were a Snipe, a Chiffchaff, a Black-tailed Godwit, 4 Grey Plover and 2 Greenshank.

Spoonbill - a new bird for Sue

We carried onwards to nearby Godrevy but not before paying a brief visit to Sue's Uncle Pete in Carbis Bay and while it had been warm in the sunshine at the sheltered Copperhouse Creek it was cooler in the breeze at the more exposed cliffs of Godrevy. This didn't seem to bother the 100+ Grey Seals hauled out on the beach or swimming in the sea at Mutton Cove, an amazing sight and the most Grey Seals I've ever seen together.

Godrevy Lighthouse

Grey Seals, Mutton Cove

Grey Seals

Other highlights here were 2 Raven, a Kestrel, 2 Fulmars, 2 Guillemots, Gannets and Kittiwakes but the birds of the day were 2 Chough which flew high overhead calling before drifting off towards Hayle.

It was yet again a sunny day on Friday 28th February so we headed out to Hope Cove for a walk along the coast path to Thurlestone and back. The sea was flat calm and birdless but South Huish Marsh was flooded and packed out with birds and the highlights were 2 Water Rails feeding out in the open with a third bird heard, 10+ Snipe, 7 Oystercatcher, 3 Little Egret, 2 pairs of Stonechats, a Greylag Goose and 2 Cattle Egret.

Raven, Hope Cove

And so February comes to an end, a sixth of the year already gone, and the dry and sunny weather is looking set to continue for a few more days yet.

A 4 Grebe Day

It was back to being cold and cloudy again with a biting easterly wind on Thursday 13th February but I headed over to Torpoint for a look about off Marine Drive on the low tide. I didn't arrive until around 1pm just as the low tide was on the turn and there was a lot of mud on view in the dull and grey light.

On arriving I had a quick scan about with my binoculars and immediately picked up a Slavonian Grebe along the shoreline just as it dived underwater. I set my scope up for a better look but couldn't refind it although I did pick up a Little Grebe and then a Black-necked Grebe in the same area. I began to doubt myself before eventually refinding the Slavonian Grebe, I had a few more brief views of it between dives before it just disappeared as Slavonian (and Red-necked) Grebes often do here at St.Johns Lake and I never saw it again.

The Black-necked Grebe continued to give some nice views though but again spent very little time at the surface between dives as it covered quite a large area and was difficult to keep track of. The Little Grebe was eventually joined by another and a Great Northern Diver appeared briefly but I spent some time watching 3 Common Scoter which had been asleep out on the water before waking up to feed on Crabs. One bird was a female but the other two were immature males, one with black and brown plumage and an area of yellow developing on the top of its bill and the other with no yellow on the bill and more female type plumage but with darker feathering appearing on the face and back.

I then walked over to nearby Chapeldown Road where I found another Little Grebe and another Black-necked Grebe along with 5 Great Crested Grebes but there was no sign of the Red-necked Grebe so I had to make do with a 4 Grebe day. I also picked up another small Grebe diving away over on the opposite shore, distant views only even with my scope and in choppy waters but either my 3rd Black-necked Grebe of the day (at least 4 have been present here this winter) or the elusive Slavonian Grebe. Needless to say I soon lost track of it and I never saw it again.

Across the mudflats the usual Dunlin, Redshank, Curlew, Oystercatcher, Teal, Grey Plover, Wigeon and Shelduck were noted along with a Little Egret and Common Gulls while Turnstones and 3 Ringed Plover were feeding on the seaweed covered shore in front of me. To round off my short visit I found another Great Northern Diver feeding by the Torpoint Ferry as I headed home, a nice end to a very cold birding visit.

Great Northern Diver

It was milder and there were occassional sunny spells on Sunday 16th February as I headed out to The Plym for a walk but it was still cold in the strong easterly breeze. I had hoped to be up and out early but after a family meal and drinks the previous day I had trouble getting started and I didn't arrive at Longbridge until around 9:30am where it was already busy with walkers and dogs.

Snowdrops at Saltram

High tide was at around 8:00am and with it being a spring tide Blaxton Meadow was a lake with no mud on show at all and so Curlews and 15 Oystercatchers were roosting on the islands in front of the hide and Redshanks were roosting along the embankment at the back with 8 Greenshank, at least 6 Dunlin and a Snipe. Also present amongst the usuals were 14 Common Gulls (12 adults, 2 1st winters) and 2 adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls plus a female Teal was found feeding in amongst the Wigeon. A surprise sighting was of 2 Collared Doves feeding together along the waters edge at the back of the Meadow.

Wigeon

Redshank

Out on the river there were 2 pairs of Goosanders, a pair of Red-breasted Mergansers, a Mute Swan, a Little Grebe and 2 Shags but there was no sign of the recent Great Northern Divers.

The view from above The Amphitheatre

Around The Park the highlights were 2 Skylark, a pair of Stonechat, 2 Meadow Pipit, 3 Bullfinch (2 males), 2 Greenfinch and 4 Roe Deer. The female Red-crested Pochard was still present on the duck pond with the Mandarin Ducks and the 2 Stock Dove were still present eating grain on the pond side.

Red-crested Pochard 

Good to see some repair work being done to the fencing at the Wet Wood to keep the numerous dogs out

Mute Swan - maybe one of 2024's cygnets?

Corky Bark on Field Elm