No sooner said than done.

The good Lord must have been listening - He sent me a Redpoll!

We had our first spring Meadow Pipit over north last week. In the sheep field, which now has sheep and lambs in it, the Little Owl has moved out - temporarily, until the sheep go, then he/she will be back. The eight Jackdaws that nest in the farmhouse chimneys use the field instead. However, the local head Crow takes exception to this at times and harries them into leaving. The Daws just make a lot of noisy fuss, return to the rooftop and bide their time until the coast is clear once more. The Magpie nest is finished but there is no sign of incubation yet as the pair can be seen loafing on/keeping a look-out from the hill. ['She' was sat atop the nest today] With the first flush of Hawthorn leaves, the Long-tailed Tits are busy prospecting and hoping to pick up a bit of wool from the field opposite. The Moorhen pair are proving elusive.

In the garden, most of the residents are singing and their lady friends are starting to get brood patches, though none I've seen has yet got a full blooded one apart from a Robin, today. Dunnocks are everywhere. The Blackcaps (at least 3) are still with us, scoffing the soaked sultanas and mealworms between bouts of singing and dancing. I have managed to pick up a couple of Denise's Siskins lately (National Park, 11 miles away) and also a stray Greenfinch (4CY) from John who lives at the other end of our (rather straggly) village. His garden faces a wood and open farmland, while I'm surrounded by large gardens and light industrial. John has just told me he's netted a Brambling from Norway and a host of Siskins coming to drink at his pond, so I'm definitely in the wrong place.

Just broken into another £196 's worth of rings! I hope my pension's going to go up in the Budget! Good job I don't need any nets just yet!

God's gift

Plodding on regardless with a good day invariably followed by a rubbish on. Time to move the nets around. Won't be long now before the first Chiffs arrive.

Blue Tit 3 (1)
Great Tit 1 (1)
Long-tailed Tit (1)
Blackcap (2)
Wren (2) - both male, one not seen since last March
Blackbird 3 (4)
Song Thrush 1
Robin (6) - that's a full house!
Dunnock (3)
House Sparrow 1 (3)
Chaffinch 3 (3)
Greenfinch 1C
Goldfinch 13 (10)
Siskin 2 + 1C
Lesser Redpoll 1
Bullfinch (1)

27 new birds + 2 'local' Controls + (37 recaptures)

A bit different

Wind and rain stopped play - first for 20 days! Nobody mention the word "drought" - you know what happened last time!

Wet, wet, wet

I'll get it off my chest now - it's been wet and windy, most of all, yesterday and today. We've only had an inch and a quarter or so (32++mm) in 18 hours, not as bad as further south. The Doniford Stream is running high already and still has to reach its peak. I don't know when that will be as it's still raining!      

Today is the Village Fete. I was thinking of entering the BSD in the bitch classes as she had a bath earlier in the week. She'll be wet through again by the time I walk up there! Wonder if Diane (organiser and next door neighbour) has called the whole thing off?

Juvenile GSW

First up was this Great Spotted Woodpecker of the juvenile kind - easily told by its red cap [adult males have a red nape]. I knew that I had replaced the old peanuts with some fresh ones for a good reason.

Juvenile (female?) Blackcap

It was a relief to catch a couple of young Blackcaps around the garden, too. The male had started singing again but I had not got on to any offspring to date. Until this week.

Adult male 'King Harry' outside the kitchen window

I haven't caught any Goldfinches for some while now; it must be about 3 weeks since one hit the nets.

Small Tortoiseshell

Painted Lady

Last Saturday, the sun did come out and it got quite hot. A few butterflies emerged from wherever they had been sheltering and I managed some shots of two of them. There was also a Red Admiral but 'it' was very active and wouldn't settle for long.

I've been sneaking in bits of ringing in the garden at 5 or 6 o'clock in the morning, when it's not been a stiff blow. Not much to report other than it turned up a different set of birds, as you can see.   

Juvenile Robin

There are lots of young Robins around at last, and one or two of them are just beginning their PJ moult, showing a modest few red feathers in the top corners of their breasts.

The tally for the week was:

Gt. Spot. Woodpecker 1 - juvenile

Blue Tit 5 (1) - all juvs except the re-trap, an adult female

Wren 1 - a youngster

Robin (3) - all this year's offspring

Dunnock 2 (1) - two juvs and a 'daddy'

Blackcap 2 - juvs

WHITETHROAT 1 - this year's bird

Blackbird (1) - female with a good BP; third clutch?

House Sparrow (1) - last year's juv, a female with wrinkly BP

Siskin 2 - another local breeding pair

Total 14 new, 7 re-traps, 10 species

I managed a short spate of gardening on Thursday afternoon. It was very pleasant with a background of Siskin song in my ears - until the dustcarts raced round the corner, returning to base at shift end.

Male Siskin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Post-Valentine's agony

Half term! The grand-children arrived on Tuesday and my priorities had to change. The garden is looking bleak after the frosts but there are signs of spring, with a few Snowdrops out and the crocuses pushing up but not yet open because of the wintry weather. The buds are showing on the Pussy Willow, too. Twelve Redwings have been sitting in the Ash trees and swooping across the garden, looking for the remaining Pyracantha berries as well as any fruits on the Ivy that the Woodpigeons and Blackbirds have missed.
It being half-term, the steam trains on the West Somerset "branch" line have started running again after the mid-winter lay-off, when essential maintenance takes place. Of course, we had to take in the station as part of our walks. This is one of Pete Waterman's locos.
During one of our local tours, we popped in to Carhampton church to view the magnificent rood screen. I was more interested in the large churchyard. This is only cut at the 'back end'; the rest of the year it is allowed to grow naturally and it contains a large variety of common and not so common plants, about 100 in all. The dozen Yew trees are magnificent and were playing host to a group of noisy Siskins and Chaffinches.
The family were leaving on Friday, so I was able to put some nets out. This gave me a chance to show Erin (8) birds close up in the hand. She liked the 'big' Redwings and the 'wriggly' Blackcap; and she was able to name them.
Here's the list of what was caught and ringed (re-trapped):
Blackcap 1 (1)
Blackbird 1
Redwing 4
Dunnock 1 (1) - still they come
House Sparrow 3 (1)
Greenfinch 1
Goldfinch 5
Bullfinch 1 (1)

Total 17 (4)

Yesterday, Denise and I recce'ed an orchard with a view to catching some Fieldfares before they decide to up and go. The wind was against us, billowing the nets, and the sun was also bright. We did manage to suss out the most sheltered part for a future attempt. This will probably be sooner rather than later, as the 400 or so birds could well depart as the temperature is forecast to reach the mid-teens later in the week.
Fingers crossed!

Summat's up!

Well, with the weather, it is. 14 degC today and 9 degC overnight, too. The Camellia has just flowered, next door's Pyracantha is still laden with berries and there's berries remaining on the big Holly also. Needless to say, there's no birds about the garden; well, feeding any way. There are some singing birds belting it out - Mistle Thrush (as you would expect), plus Song Thrush, Robin, Blue Tit, Dunnock, Wren, even Redwing. I ended December with 63 new birds of 18 species for the month.


My 2011 total for the garden and, for the second half of the year only, for the water meadows comes in at 1600 new birds with 518 retraps, covering 41 species.

New birds ringed here - Sparrowhawk 3, Woodpigeon 4, Collared Dove 7, Kingfisher 6, Great Spotted Woodpecker 2, Swallow 1, Meadow Pipit 14, Pied Wagtail 3, Dipper 2, Wren 26, Dunnock 64, Robin 51, Blackbird 119, Song Thrush 15, Redwing 2, Mistle Thrush 2, Sedge Warbler 4, Reed Warbler 1, Lesser Whitethroat 2, Whitethroat 20, Garden Warbler 1, Blackcap 135, Chiffchaff 141, Willow Warbler 22, Goldcrest 17, Firecrest 1, Long-tailed Tit 88, Coal Tit 12, Blue Tit 165, Great Tit 64, Treecreeper 1, Jay 1, Magpie 1, Jackdaw 1, House Sparrow 51, Chaffinch 50, Brambling 52, Greenfinch 97, Goldfinch 301, Siskin 43, Bullfinch 8.

I ringed another 200 or so elsewhere in UK, making 2011 a really enjoyable year; but, in contrast, it looks as if 2012 will get off to a slow start, unlike the year just gone. Am going to have to spread my wings a little this coming year by finding new sites closer to the trainees' homes. And, we're still messing around with the house and garden. A big improvement after 12 months - but will it ever be finished I ask myself?

I wish everyone a Happy, Healthy, Safe, Prosperous and Enjoyable New Year and I look forward to reading some of your comments on my "ramblings".

While we wait

While we wait for the weather to improve and the majority of the leaves to descend to the ground, out of harms way, I thought it might be a fitting time to recap on the year so far. To this end, here follows a list of the top twenty species that I have ringed so far this year.

1. Goldfinch - 290
2. Blue Tit - 264
3. Chiffchaff - 150
4. Blackcap - 127
5. Blackbird - 117
6. Great Tit - 105
7. Long-tailed Tit - 104
8. Greenfinch - 94
9. Dunnock - 67
10. Brambling - 52


That amounts to 77% of all the new birds ringed by me thus far.

11. Robin - 49
12. Chaffinch - 48
13. House Sparrow - 47
14. Siskin - 42
15. Willow Warbler - 31
16. Wren - 27
17. Whitethroat - 25
18. Coat Tit - 24
19. Goldcrest - 17
20. Meadow Pipit - 14

These 10 species account for another 18.5%, leaving a mere 4.5% to cover the other 23 species. Of those 23 species, eight have only 1 bird ringed against their name, the rest averaging five apiece.

Somewhere between 8 and 9 should come Manx Shearwater but they were all birds done at the RSPCA hospital at West Hatch. [See blog of Sept. 11th.]

Depending on the weather, and more especially the temperatures both here and on the continent, the finch and thrush totals could well move around a bit before the year's end. At this moment I am anticipating ringing the 1500th bird within my home 1km grid square before mid-month. Meanwhile, we wait.

PS. I did knock out an 80' net ride now that the veg. is shrinking, to supercede the current 40' Net 1 alongside the stream. It should prove a better proposition and still catch the Dippers and Kingfishers as well as the tits and finches!. Other net extensions to follow over the winter, thanks to a brush-cutter and high pruners.

Nowt

Gave up and furled after a female Sparr hit the '20' and wriggled free before I could get on her. No other birds "caught". As I will be away for the next few days, no garden ringing until the week-end. The wind's all wrong and NE, so it's no great worry. Stay tuned.

Away day

Decided to forego ringing in favour of a day out. Took ourselves off to Brean Down with the dogs. The weather was dull at first, becoming hazy later during the morning.

By the time we left (about sidereal noon) the temperature had reached 20C.


That's "Weston-super-Mud" in the background!

There were plenty of summer migrants about; there must have been in excess of 100 male/singing Willow Warblers. Close behind on Number 2 was Whitethroat. Conditions have been favourable in the last couple of days for migrants to cross the Channel and they have pored in!

Common Whitethroat (c) Edward D Green

A fair few Chiffchaffs and plenty of Meadow Pipits were seen/heard and several pairs of Linnet gave Jen a year tick. All the while we walked the two kilometres along the lower (ha, ha) path, Herring and Lesser Black-back Gulls glided into the bay towards the River Axe, making full use of the updraughts. A year tick for me was one of my favourite birds, the House Martin, 'prritting' above the gulls.

The Bluebells were coming out and will be at their best next week-end (Easter) but the Cowslips (below) were in full bloom, often surrounded by violets.


After watching two Tree Pipits and three spanking male Stonechats, we arrived at the fort, which has an interesting history.


This was built in the middle of the 19th century, along with three others [Steep Holm, Flat Holm & one on the Welsh coast], to defend the Bristol Channel against invasion by the French. On the return walk, we only heard one of the three Grasshopper Warblers that we had picked up on the way out to the fort. As much as we stared at the vegetation (bramble, naturally)....


There was a secretive one in here, honest.

... we could not clap eyes on any of these little buggers, partly because of the steep terrain that made viewing low vegetation difficult.

Grasshopper Warbler (c) Edward D Green

We finished off our 2 hour walk with a nice mug of coffee and a lump of coffee and walnut cake at the National Trust cafe.

Some tourists

10:40 am and passengers are awaiting the first departure of the year from Williton Station, just a couple of hundred yards/metres from home. The station canopy has been completed and painted, but only just in time. The bases for the overbridge are also finished and the (new) fencing reinstated; it will be November now before the refurbished bridge is lifted into place. This week, the council also took out the unsafe footbridge at Watchet, which will also be replaced during the November closure.

The West Somerset Railway 2011 season got underway on Saturday 19 February. One surprise is the rostering of a visiting locomotive - GWR 4-6-0 no 7812 "Erlestoke Manor" - which will work one of the two steam trains. No 7812 started work by hauling the 10.25am from Bishops Lydeard facing Taunton. Here she is, tender first, entering the station.


"Erlestoke Manor" will continue starting each morning with the first train from Bishops Lydeard, until the Spring Steam Gala. This morning, pulling a full compliment of carriages (inc buffet), it was packed with folk off to Minehead, possibly Butlins, as next week is half term. We did the obligatory waving.

GWR 2-6-2T no 5553 works the Minehead diagram and was the first to arrive at Williton and exchange tokens, seen above before the Manor class loco arrived. There will be four trains a day in each direction 'all this week' (except Monday & Friday) and I look forward to hearing them even as far away as Washford and Sampford Brett.

On the birdy front, I had a flock of 150-200 Siskins together with 20-30 Goldfinch in the Alders along the Doniford Stream between High Bridge and Egrove; they were disturbed by a car coming up the track. I did manage to catch and ring a pair of these diminuitive finches this morning, too. Should be able to catch more of these when the Alder seed runs out sometime next month.

Other news - we have frog spawn in our tiny pond, spotted when fishing out a dead, bloated frog that had four males hanging on to it.

A cold and frosty evening

Tonight was the first of the Carol Trains that run for three evenings. One comes up from Bishops Lydeard and the other from Minehead. They meet and exchange engines at Williton. The passengers alight together with their particular brass/silver band and sing carols, the up passengers in the car park and the down passengers on the platform.

We arrived shortly after 7pm, anticipating the first arrival at around 7:30. At first we were told that it would be 7:40 but the volunteer staff soon found out that it would be 8:40. So we sat in the warm 'Waiting Room' with a coal fire and a cup of coffee.

It turned out that the up train arrived before half-eight and before twenty minutes of carols were over, the Minehead train arrived, having been delayed by 10 minutes due to an incident. The engines then switched tracks, ready to pull a different set of carriages back to where they started. It was quite cold by now and we were beginning to feel and so we left for home. It was nearly 10 o'clock before the trains departed; I heard the down train puffing its way up the 1:99 incline to Stogumper from my bedroom as I typed this.

Today's garden birds featured a good number of Brambling again, 8 to be exact, together with 25+ Chaffinch, about 20 Greenfinch (although not all at once) and 8 King Harrys (Goldfinch to you), plus the usual Blue, Great and Coal Tits, Robins, Dunnocks, Pied Wag, Jackdaws, Rooks, Wood Pigeons and Herring Gulls.

Mini walks started

I say that loosely; the dogs need exercise other than careering round the garden. Mostly it's to the shops via the rec. and beside the "river" Willit. Yesterday we ventured a little further, this time out in to the countryside.

We took a path that sort of follows the Willit downstream to Donniford. After crossing the railway, you come to a nursery beside the "river". A good place to look out for birds and always turns up Song Thrush [why don't they come into the garden - it's only 300m.] Turning up "the drive", there are a number of decent Alders and usually some Siskins. Much of the land is permanent pasture with horses nearest the water.

As the drive widens out nearer the farm and barn conversions, there are more bushes. There always seems to be a number of Blackbirds here; I wonder if they're locals or incomers?

The path passes through the old farmyard and rises up a little, with sheep pasture on the steep hill to the east. There was Fieldfare in a veteran tree that looked possibly good for Little Owl. The dogs have to navigate the stiles using various devices of opening and closing a small hole at ground level.

Further on it looked like turnips but was probably beet. The hedges here are old and thick and have already been sliced off. Devoid of anything other than a Dunnock.

Eventually we came to a small converted farmhouse and an unmade road called 'Watery Lane' ['cos it's beside the "river"]. Although the area turns into a couple of dozen old holiday bungalows, we suspect the gardens are someone's pride and joy in summer.

There was a remnant orchard near the "main road" with loads of fallen apples. On the deck enjoying them were a couple of Blackbirds, some Chaffinch, a Woodpigeon and a female Pheasant. I expect she had  ventured out from the small plantation on the overlooking hill; it looked much like a shooter's lay-out. We returned back the way we came without event.

We connected withthe Santa Special at the station. Lots of smoke, steam and whistles, with a bit of flag waving and baton changing.

Extra species that have arrived in the garden since my last posting are:
Blackcap 1, Greenfinch up to 11, Green Woodpecker, Mistle Thrush, Pied Wagtail & Treecreeper. Chaffinch are now up to a dozen or more at a time.

Garden feeders - just before the post dawn rush!
 A local birder called Frank reckons he saw a Lesser 'pecker a couple of weeks ago, just along where we had walked, his first for 10 years or so.

Getting the cat "sorted" on Tuesday.

POSTSCRIPT:     On the way back through the station platform I had a chat with the "Stationmaster". When the line was British Rail, he had worked there for 27 years until closure of the line following Beeching. He was dressed in his uniform with silver braid on his cap. Jenny went to the Parish Council meeting tonight, Monday [the day after] and learnt that he had died that same evening, less than six hours after I last spoke to him. He was well liked in the village and a bit of a character.

Walks temporarily abandoned

This blog is now coming to you from sunny (or snowy) Somerzet!

The West Somerset Railway is just down the road.


The two (2!) removal men worked hard and unloaded two (2!) lorries in one (1!) day; we now have a house full of boxes! Jen is working hard to clear them and a couple of rooms do look habitable - just. My study is still piled high just waiting for Jen to finish her bit so that I can move some of the stuff out and assemble my large desk and filing cabinets. With the computer set up properly and the paperwork filed away, I should be able to fill the bookshelves from the remaining thirty (yes, 30!) archive boxes of mainly bird books.

The village is a marvellous place with all manner of shops, including an old fashioned hardware shop, chainsaw and clothing stores attached! Ah, the smell of chain oil! They do ride on mowers, as well; we'll be needing one of them come the spring.

View from our kitchen window (L-R); ringing hut almost obscured by Camelia.


Put some feeders out and ordered 45kg of SFH off eBay which came today; turns out it was 28 bags of 1.75kg each! Even with carriage charges, it was still cheaper than from the pet store round the corner. In two days we have had 22 species of bird in the garden that we know of.
[Blackbird 1+, Black-headed Gull 2, Blue Tit 5+, Chaffinch 2, Coal Tit 2, Collared Dove 2, Dunnock 2, Goldcrest 1, Goldfinch 5, Great Spot 1, Great Tit 2+, Herring Gull 2, House Sparrow 5(+), Jackdaw 2, Long-tailed Tit 3+, Pied Wagtail 1, Robin 2, Rook 2, Siskin 1+, Starling 1, Wood Pigeon 5, Wren 1]

We haven't had time to explore the local walks yet; the dogs have had theirs running round the garden or up to the village via the rec. (they call it the Memorial Ground)! We live on the edge of the village and it's a good half mile to the centre. Although the trunk A road passes our door, we are set back quite a way with a thick hedge in between. Occasionally we hear a lorry rumble pass, but that's either during the morning "rush hour" or in the quiet of the evening.

Got to go into Bridgwater to get my car fixed (20 miles +), 'cos the EMS light came on as we drove through Bridgwater on Monday evening. More expense we could do without right now. Still - needs must!.                       

Go west! (pt.4)

Needed to get in some walking and that after the celebrations.

Day 12 (actually 13) - Sunday lunch promised at the "Wellie", Boscastle. Jen had visited not long before the disastrous flood and a camping neighbour was there on that day in 2004. Coincidentally, the Boscastle flood was on 16 August and the Lynmouth flood was on 15 August 1952, a day I will always remember.

We went via the coast road and through a very pretty, and much "glammed up" village of Polzeath, where we posted letters and cards home.

 
Polzeath harbour. 


 From there, we went to Port Issac. We parked outside the village and walked down. Later, we climbed back. On Mayday, I had chatted to one of the inshore lifeboat crew up at the Social Club, while sitting on the grass. Jen spent a lot of time poking round all the ally ways, looking at the old fishermen's cottages up the narrow streets. Meanwhile, I contemplated visiting a grumpy old doctor at his surgery above the harbour. Hehe.

Recognise it? Doc Martin's house. Quite a few of the locations at "Port Wenn" are filmed here. And by-the-by, those are not 'Fisherman's Friends', singing "No Hopers, Jokers and Rogues'.

From there, we went on to Boscastle. The repairs to the village and its infra-structure took five years to complete. At present, it all looks very pristine and new but I suspect the slate will weather down over the next decade and plants and mosses will colonise the walls as wind-blown dust settles in the cracks.

V

View of Boscastle harbour, secluded but tricky to enter in poor weather.

Today was also the day a yanky White-throated Sparrow was found up the Tintagel road, by Trevalga. Star bird!

Pics of this bird can be found HERE and a video clip here

Day 14. More walking, this time as an excuse to look for colour-ringed Corn Buntings. We opted to park at Harlyn beach and walk round Trevone Head on the coast path to Constantine Bay (clean toilets).

Harlyn Bay on an ebb tide, with F4 northerlies.

We only found three singing Corn bunts and I was able to 'scope just the one, which was ring-less. On the other hand, we picked up Rock Pipit, a Gannet fishing off Trevone and 'Quies' [islets off-shore], a few Fulmars, Buzzards, Kestrel, Sky Larks singing 'everywhere', plenty of large and small gulls, and noisy Oystercatchers and passing Whimbrels. We walked back via the golf course to Harlyn, stopping off at the pub for a cold, Polish, lager beer, before returning to the car.

From there, we dropped into Padstow for a 'cornish cream tea' as Jen didn't want to leave without one. Then it was back to our windswept camp site to do a little packing up. On the morrow, we were anticipating a long drive of 6-7 hours to Bedford, with Jen taking another 2 to get to Lynn.

V

"View from our lounge window, Padstow".

And the Blackbird chicks (at least three) from the Leylandii by the water tap fledged today and were partitioned between mum and dad. A good holiday, all things considered - and over too soon.