27th APRIL 2007.

MORE GREAT VIEWS OF SPARROWHAWK.

The weather was a little disappointing as we had been promised blazing sunshine and record April temperatures. It was, however, overcast and just a little chilly as we waited for the ‘bus. Our visit to the Leg O’Mutton today was specifically for the chance too see the Sparrowhawk nest again before the foliage grows too thick to see it anymore. We would be going on to the WWT Barnes centre afterwards where we were booked in for a Reptile Walk.

RECYCLING NATURE

Photo: Reg Norman

The wind had risen a little by the time we arrived and it continued to get cooler. It was much quieter than when we were here last week; there was still affair bit of birdsong but the birds seemed to be keeping out of sight. There were also fewer joggers but the dog walkers were much in evidence; the dogs around here seem to be, generally, well behaved.
All around us the fresh green foliage was bright and cheery even though the sun was not out. It was very pleasant just walking around early in the morning. We stood still in some places; letting the birds get used to us and allowing them to go on about their business. People, too, were going about their business; some stopping to say ‘hello’ and others to offer little gems of information about the reserve itself.
We arrived at the point where we watched the Sparrowhawk last week and were a little worried to find no activity in the nest area. There was no need to worry; one of the birds soon showed up carrying yet more nest material. We thought that we could only see the one bird and wondered where the other might be. On the nest and out of sight? We watched for a good fifteen minutes before moving on.

EGYPTIAN GOOSE IN TREE

Photo; Reg Norman

The Thames was very low although it was flooding very quickly; no gulls or waders were visible on the far bank though which was a disappointment.
Resuming our walk around the reservoir, around the ‘thin’ end, we stopped to look into the clearing in the wooded area that bounds the water. There was certainly a lot of activity although identifying the myriad small birds was a little difficult in the gloom. There was one Wren that kept up its’ ‘Tick, tick, tick’ warning all the time that we were there.
We came to another vantage point where we might see the Sparrowhawk nest once again. This time we were able to see one of the birds firmly settled deep in the nest itself. We would not have been able to see the bird from where we were earlier. We thought of Terry and how he might get some fabulous ‘digiscope’ pictures from this point. We were planning to come back on Sunday and hoped that he might join us.
The Heron nests, on the rafts on the water, were interesting in the fact that they were all at different stages of development. Some had a couple of very large chicks; others were clearly still at the ‘sitting’ stage. Some really good shots would be available to ‘digiscopers’.

RECYCLED FENCING

Photo: Reg Norman

The weather had turned really quite chilly and just before we left the site I was forced to put my fleece on to keep warm! Weather forecasts? Huh!

BIRDS SEEN: Blackbird, Blue Tit, Robin, Wren, Reed Warbler, Sedge Warbler, Carrion Crow, Great Tit, Egyptian Goose, Coot, Ring Necked Parakeet, Cormorant, Heron, Moorhen, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Canada Goose, Mute Swan, Coal Tit, Long Tailed Tit, Stock Dove, Pochard, Mallard, Starling, Sparrowhawk, Jackdaw, Tufted Duck, Ruddy Duck.

22nd April 2007.

LEG O’ MUTTON, THE SPARROWHAWK.

What a fabulous start to the morning; clear blue skies and quite warm! We had decided to start our day with a trip to the Lonsdale Road Local Nature Reserve, a place we knew fairly well and usually in the wet! We had not been here for several months and didn’t know quite what to expect.

LEONS' FIRST SWEEP OF THE SITE

Photo: Reg Norman

We just missed a ’bus and made a mental note to leave at ten-to the hour next time as we used to do. We walked down Roehampton Lane to wait for the next ‘bus at Barnes Railway station; you get more choice from there. We did not have to wait for long and were soon on our way. I thought that we had been joined by a super-hero, all lycra and a flowing red cape. Leon said that there were a bunch of fools RUNNING FOR FUN at a marathon in London somewhere! Tchh! The things people do! “It’ll be on the telly later” ventured my companion, “No it won’t!” thought I.
Most of the trees in the reserve were, by now, covered in there first light green leaves. This would make seeing the smaller birds a little harder but who cares; it was such a lovely day.
The joggers were starting to come out as were the dog-walkers; all very pleasant with lots of friendly greetings.
We did not see that many birds but we could hear them all about us. There must have been more Wrens per square foot than anywhere else in Britain; their song really dominated the air. Apart from the parakeets of course.

SWANS NEST FROM ATOP THE BANK

Photo: Reg Norman

Leon, as usual, was the first to see a raptor; a Sparrowhawk sitting in a tree. I saw it just in time to see it ‘stoop’ into the trees on the other side of the reservoir. It had obviously missed whatever it had gone for as it soon returned to its’ perch. It was then that Leon spotted the nest; although out in the open it was fairly well concealed! We watched the bird for quite some time as it continued to ‘stoop’ every now and then; although it never returned to the nest with anything. Except once when it brought back a twig to replace one that it had dislodged. We carried on walking around the reservoir, stopping to have a quick look at the Thames which was so high we saw nothing of note, until w e came upon some Heron nests. The birds were actually nesting on the small rafts provided by the people who run the site. Both Leon and I were not a little surprised as we thought that Herons only nested in trees; obviously not the case! It was good to see so many birds nesting; we had had some lovely views of a Swans’ nest from the bank a little earlier on.

FINAL LOOK BACK ALONG THE RESERVOIR

Photo: Reg Norman

We made up our minds to come back again very shortly to see the progress made by the different birds; next week most probably!
We left the site to make our way to the London Wetland Centre for the second part of our day!

BIRDS SEEN: Goldfinch, Dunnock, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Wood Pigeon, Ring Necked Parakeet, Blackbird, Wren, Carrion Crow, Starling, Coot, Moorhen, Mallard, Canada Goose, Heron, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Little Grebe, Mute Swan, Chaffinch, Blackcap, Swift, Robin, Sparrowhawk, Coal Tit, Jay, Tufted Duck.

14th APRIL 2007.

OUR THIRD VISIT TO THE PARK.

The weather forecast was for a lovely warm and sunny day. What an understatement! It was absolutely beautiful as we met up at 07:00 outside of our blocks of flats. The birds wee singing as if in celebration of such a wonderful day. Even the walk to the park was full of promise as many small birds were to be seen flitting back and forth.

ROEHAMPTON GATE

Photo: Reg Norman

We had decided to cover an area that neither of us had been to for some time; this would take us from Roehampton Gate to Richmond Gate following the boundary wall for nearly the entire journey. As we entered the first thing to strike me was the number of people already here! There were literally dozens of joggers, dog walkers and even horse riders! I wondered what time they had to get up to get ready and tack-up. As we passed the different people we were nearly always greeted with a cheery “hello!”

VERY EARLY RIDERS!

Photo: Reg Norman

All around us the sounds of birds filled the air; the birds themselves flashing across our field of view in ever increasing numbers. I would not like to guess how many Blue and Great Tits we saw in those couple of hours. The only thing that spoiled it for me was the raucous call of the Ring Necked Parakeets. They were everywhere, there beady little eyes on us even from holes in the trees.
We strolled along, taking our time, just enjoying being out and about. Every now and then we would spot a different type of bird and would watch it until it decided to move on. Leon ventured that he would love to see a Treecreeper and, blow me down, one appeared! Immediately! We watched for a few minutes until he, too, vanished from sight. Say you would really love to see a Ring Ouzel I said to Leon. He did so and, blow me down, nothing! Useless bugger!
We were soon near to the end of our walk; we reached the pond just before Richmond Gate and were both a little sorry to be there. There was a Heron at the pond and he seemed to be very busy hunting whatever. A sign of the time times was the beer can that was floating alongside of him.

ALCHOHOLIC HERON?

Photo; Reg Norman

We enjoyed this particular walk immensely, I am sure that we will do it again. I hope hat it will not be long before we do so. We were now going on to the WWT at Barnes and the first part of the journey there was the walk along the top of Richmond Hill, past the Royal Home and overlooking the Thames. This must be one of the best views in London. Shame the ‘Roebuck’ wasn’t open for breakfast!

VIEW FROM RICHMOND HILL

Photo: Reg Norman

BIRDS SEEN: Cormorant, Grey Wagtail, Jay, Magpie, Chaffinch, Starling, Ring Necked parakeet, Blue Tit, Wood pigeon, Carrion Crow, Goldfinch, Wren, Great Tit, Blackbird, Mute Swan, Coal Tit, Jackdaw, Egyptian Goose, Mallard Tufted Duck, Coot, Mistle Thrush, Green Woodpecker, Treecreeper, Robin, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Stock Dove, Long Tailed Tit, Skylark, Chiffchaff, Greenfinch, Heron.

8th APRIL 2007.

GLORIOUS DAY AT PAGHAM HARBOUR.

The weather forecast looked like it was to be correct for both Leons and my first visit to Pagham Harbour. We had often heard about the site but nothing can prepare you for the natural splendour of the place. Both Terry and Liz had been on two occasions before so were ready for it but we were both knocked out the minute that we arrived!

CHURCH NORTON SPIT

Photo: Reg Norman.

We set off just after seven so as to make the most of the day. Just before we arrived we stopped at a ‘Little Chef’ for breakfast; this set us up nicely for the day.
Our first stop was at Church Norton on the south-west side of the harbour. The woods bordering the path from the car park were alive with birdsong; some of which I had not heard before, driving home the need for me to study harder to improve my chances of spotting even more birds!

SEAWARD EDGE OF THE WOODLAND

Photo; Leon Rusk.

Reaching the harbour itself the first thing you notice is the sheer size of the place; then, slowly it dawns on you just how beautiful it is as well. Within moments we were all looking all over the place; everywhere that I looked I could see birds moving around and feeding on the mud. The first bird to be seen was a Curlew; unusual for us but in great numbers here. There were also plenty of Redshanks but these are not at all unfamiliar to us as we see them regularly a WWT London.

HARBOUR MUDLATS, SIDLESHAM

Photo: Leon Rusk

After having a quick look around on the harbour mudflats we moved up onto the great shingle bank (Church Norton Spit) to look at the sea and its’ shore. Large areas at the top of the bank have been set aside for nesting bids but we were obviously too early in the season for there to be any action of that sort!

TOWARDS THE HARBOUR ENTRANCE, DRAINED

Photo: Leon Rusk.

I was soon to see one bird for the first time in small flocks; Turnstones, I am sure that I have seen them in the past but not since I have been ‘birding’ in earnest! They are probably one of the most aptly named of birds for that is exactly what they were doing as they marched up and down the beach!
Liz, who was to have a brilliant day spotting birds before the rest of us, soon spied some Mergansers not too far off the beach; I had scanned the area and missed them! I think the sun was in my eyes!

TURNSTONE

Photo; Leon Rusk / Terry Burton

Having looked at the beach area we moved back down from the shingle bank and moved towards the meadow area. There were some good views of many small birds in woods on the far side and also of some Redshank in the shallows of the mudflats below us. Leon and terry decided to try to get some shots of the birds, digiscoping with Terrys’ ‘scope and Leons’ camera.

REDSHANK

Photo: Leon Rusk / Terry Burton

A Common Buzzard was spotted over the woodlands and we were able to watch him for quite some time. This was to be quite a common occurrence throughout the day!
The Ferry Pool, at the north-west side of the harbour was our next stopping place. We had decided, on Terry and Lizs’ advice, to try some other spots and return to Church Norton later in the day when the tide had come in. Hopefully there would be more birds to see, driven in by the rising tide.
We popped into the visitor centre for a quick look around before moving to the hide that overlooks the pool where we were to spend a little time. Liz came up with yet another great spot, a Kestrel sitting on a power cable with trees behind it! I had just scanned that area and missed it. The sun must have been in my eyes!

SIDLESHAM QUAYSIDE

Photo: Reg Norman

We started to follow the path along the north-western side of the harbour towards the village called Sidlesham. This path has wooded and bushy areas on one side and the salt marsh on the other. All around was the sound of birds and there flitting shapes could be seen as we walked along. Yet again Liz spotted a long distance bird. There was a Green Woodpecker in a tree a very long way off. How she saw it I do not know, even when pointed out to me I found it difficult to spot. Must have been something to do with the sun!
We all thought that we might fancy either a cup of coffee or a swift pint so, as we headed for the village, all eyes were searching for the first sign of a pub. Liz saw it first and the pace picked up noticeably as we closed in on it! Calamity! It was closed for refurbishment!

ORNITHOLOGICAL DISATER, PUB CLOSED!

Photo: Reg Norman

We made our way back towards the Visitor Centre by the shorter of the two routes back. Not that we were in any particular hurry; just to cover as much ground as possible. On the way back we came across some Oystercatchers who were vying for the attentions of one of their females. There was lots of their ‘parading’ courtship dance and some pretty violent fighting with feathers flying. This accompanied all the while with their incredibly loud piercing shrieks.
In the distance, above Church Norton, we could see several Common Buzzards wheeling in the clear blue sky.
We then came upon a dead rat. Leon dutifully took a photo for his new collection; he had seen one at the London WWT the week before and was therefore on a roll!

ANOTHER FOR THE COLLECTION!

Photo: Leon Rusk.

Having made our way back to Terrys’ car we set off to Selsey Bill. The weather was now very warm indeed; even more so now that we were away from the cooling sea-breeze. We were all grateful for the air conditioning system! We stopped briefly to quench our thirsts at a nice little pub called ‘The Nelson’, taking seats in the neat garden. The beer was good and we have noted its’ whereabouts for our next visit!
We were hoping to see some sea ducks once at the beach but there was very little about apart from some gulls and some Cormorants perched on the poles above the groynes. Terry and Leon had a go at digiscoping the latter with quite good results! Leaving Selsey, we made our way back to Church Norton

CORMORANT SILHOUETTE

Photo: Leon Rusk / Terry Burton

What a difference! The tide had indeed come in and gave the place a whole new look! Where there had been beds of grass and runnels in the mud, there was now an enormous lake dotted with several islands. The Mergansers were now inside the harbour and there were many more gulls, all apparently asleep! We spent quite some time looking out across the harbour, thankful for Terrys’ ‘scope! We were able to add Dunlin and Greenshank to our list as we scanned the whole area.

TOWARDS THE HARBOUR ENTRANCE, FLOODED

Photo: Reg Norman.

The shingle bank was by now very crowded with people enjoying the beautiful weather so we decided not to bother going back up onto it. Instead we watched the meadows where many small birds flitted amongst the trees and bushes. Above them wheeled the Buzzards, vanishing every now and then.
All good things, sadly, must come to an end and so we made our way back to Terrys’ car to start the journey home. We stopped by the mound of the old Norman keep to watch some small birds amongst the bushes there. Liz and Leon had walked on ahead a little way but Leon soon came back saying,”Blackcap!” Terry and I joined them quickly and soon had the bird in our glasses. It was flitting about like a mad thing but presenting well all the time. Terry decided to try to get a photo of it but as soon as he had his ‘scope and Leons’ camera set up, the bird vanished in to the bushes only to reappear every time that Terry stopped trying snap it!

CAN YOU SPOT THE BLACKCAP?

Photo: Leon Rusk.

What a perfect day we had had! The weather was lovely, there were lots of birds seen, the scenery was beautiful and the company perfect! We did not have much trouble getting home and Terry kindly dropped us off at ‘The Angel’ where we could discuss the days’ events. We had a couple of pints as well.

BIRDS SEEN: Long Tailed Tit, Rook, Great Tit, Carrion Crow, Mute Swan, Robin, Pheasant, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Shelduck, Oystercatcher, Curlew, Redshank, Cormorant, Blue Tit, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Wood Pigeon, Chaffinch, Dunnock, Chiffchaff, Wren, Greenfinch, Stonechat, Little Egret, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Black Headed Gull, Lapwing, Starling, Turnstone, Red Breasted Merganser, Magpie, Goldfinch, Common Sandpiper, Coot, Mallard, Moorhen, Common Buzzard, Ringed Plover, Green Woodpecker, Tufted Duck, Wigeon, Teal, Kestrel, Heron, Coal Tit, Collared Dove, Herring Gull, Jackdaw, Great Black Backed Gull, Dunlin, Greenshank, Blackcap, Meadow Pipit.

18th MARCH 2007.

LEONS FIRST HP / KG AND NO OWLS.

We had heard on the grapevine that there was a family of Tawny Owls to be seen at Kensington Gardens and so Leon joined me for an early start to see them. It was a fairly grey start to the day although we were expecting the weather to improve as the day went along. We were going along to WWT London as soon as we got back from HPKG.

ROTTEN ROW

Photo: Leon Rusk.

We arrived at Hyde Park at about twenty to eight, it had got a little colder and the wind had picked up quite a fair bit. So much for the weather forecast! Entering the park by the Albert Gate we made our way to the North side of the Serpentine and into the teeth of a full-scale gale! I had never seen such waves on this stretch of water and most birds seem to have thought the better of venturing out. Pulling our coats about us to keep out the wind we made our way westwards towards Kensington Gardens. There were much fewer joggers about as well, obviously not as (fool) hardy as us! There were quite a few geese and ducks on the leeward side of the island; it was certainly less of a job for them to fight the wind and waves. There were also few seagulls about although the ones that were seemed to be actually enjoying themselves.

THE LIDO AREA

Photo: Leon Rusk.

When we reached the wooded area just before the bridge we saw quite a few smaller birds, mostly Finches and Tits, but they were keeping to the lower parts of the vegetation and out of the wind. The sun had started to show itself every now and then but it had no effect on the temperature; in fact we were sure that it was getting colder!
At the Italian Garden the sun shone through the fountain spray forming rainbows; Leon tried to capture the effect with his camera. Unusually there were no birds at the fountains apart from one solitary Tufted Duck!

THE ITALIAN GARDEN

Photo: Leon Rusk.

We made our way eastwards to the place where we were expecting to see the owls but could find no trace of them. We found out later that I had misinterpreted the directions and had missed them by a gnats’ whisker!
There were quite a few birds along the bank this side; tucked in close to avoid the wind. Again, those in the bushes and trees were low down in the vegetation and out of the worst of the weather.

PRIMROSES ON BANK BY BRIDGE

Photo; Leon Rusk.

Deciding to give the whole thing best, we made our way fairly quickly back towards the exit, stopping only to investigate some possible sighting or to take the odd photo. However bad the weather is, it is still a beautiful place.

LEON, A SELF PORTRAIT!

Photo: Leon Rusk.

BIRDS SEEN: Mallard, Wood Pigeon, Feral Pigeon, Great Tit, Carrion Crow, Moorhen, Magpie, Canada Goose, Coot, Mute Swan, Ring Necked Parakeet, Greylag Goose, Pochard, Tufted Duck, Wigeon, Great Crested Grebe, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Black Headed Gull, Starling, Blackbird, Blue Tit, Wren, Robin, Cormorant, Herring Gull, Ruddy Duck, Heron, Green Woodpecker, Goldcrest, Coal Tit, Long Tailed Tit, Goldfinch, Chaffinch, Jackdaw.