January 2011 - New Years Day Birding

Saturday 1st: The first day of the New Year is traditionally a day when "Birders" get out and about for those first ticks of the year! This one is no different. A cold and wet day with the promise of sporadic rain shows... great! For Sandra and myself, it started with a drive down to Sheffield in search of those elusive Waxwings! Unfortunately when we got there at 10am, there were none to be seen, though Sandra did see a small flock of birds through her binoculars that may have been a group of Waxwings though we couldn't confirm this as I had left my binoculars in the car! A walk around Abbeydale constantly searching the leafless trees and skies did not reveal any of these birds. Though a small group of Long-tailed Tits did provide our first sighting of the year! A Robin, Carrion Crows and half-a-dozen Wood Pigeons added to that tally.

So a trip out towards Redmires Reservoir and towards the Peak District. We didn't actually get to the Reservoir but a sighting of flocks of Fieldfares by Sandra in fields at the roadside necessitated a short road side stop to view them and take photos. Sandra was thrilled as this was a FIRST for her and the first time that I have seen more that one Fieldfare! There were loads of them! We estimated that there could be circa 60 after I did a quick count. As can be seen in a photo above, but not seen by us at the time is a Redwing. Redwings will often join Fieldfares in large flocks. The light rain was constant throughout the day wherever we went and annoying.

Driving on, we ended-up at a small NR called Rivelin. A small secluded car park with picnic area and two small ponds surrounded by trees. Six drake and seven duck Mallards occupied the frozen ponds, a few Long-tailed tits in the trees and a couple of Robins. But a Wren seemed interested in me and landed on the wooden fence just 4 feet away and sang to me. I was so close I could even see it's throat moving as it sang. Of course for reasons I shan't go into, my camera was in the car so no photo of this friendly Wren.

On to Thryburgh Country Park near Rotherham. As with other locations, ice was prevalent here with large swathes of the lake frozen. Mallards, Black-headed Gulls and Common Coots were in very large numbers and flocked around anyone who went near the waters' edge in the hope of food. The Swan Goose was still there and I noticed a tag on it's leg. A lone Great-Crested Grebe in winter plumage, (as Sandra pointed-out) was out on the water.

Before we embarked on a trek around the Park, someone,presumably a Park Ranger came with a huge bucket and threw bread and other food to the flock. From all sides; Canada Geese, Coots, Mallards and inevitably the Gulls rushed to grab their own piece of food. This was when I photographed the Coot below, looking suitably satisfied with itself have just eaten! Look at those huge feet!

In the trees on the bank of the lake were Goldfinches and Chaffinches. We walked over to the hide and there we were treated to a flock feeding at the bird table and peanut feeder of Tree Sparrows, with a few Blue Tits, Great Tits and the one Yellowhammer.

Seeing Tree Sparrows here was a surprise to me because although Thryburgh is in the countryside and surrounded by fields, a town, Rotherham was only a few miles away.

Time was short, it was 3:30pm and darkness would fall by 4pm. The lake didn't look that large an area so we decided to have a quick walk around it back to the car. Well, to cut a long story short, apart from it being very muddy and wet, we saw no more birds! We got to the other side of the lake and were forced to back-track!

It turned-out that a huge fence was blocking off the footpath and it was locked too! Too high to climb so we had no choice, we had to back track, the way we came! The race was on! Get back to the car before it gets dark and the main gate is locked!

A quick march back got us to the car in the gathering gloom. All other cars and people had already departed. The Tea Shop was locked! Thankfully the gate was not locked and we did get home for our respective dinners. I've done some things while out birding, but almost getting locked-in at a site is crazy!!

November 2010 - Thrybergh Country Park

Sunday 15th: Not planning to do any Birding this weekend, Sunday dawned a sunny but cold day and an unplanned trip to Sheffield was on. I have never seen a Waxwing and currently, there is a population invasion from Scandinavia. A quick drive to Sheffield and the location that I had, produced nothing! Next time I will be armed with several locations. I am determined to see at least one Waxwing before the end of the year! The website http://www.sbsg.org/ looks a good place for picking up sightings. So determined that my trip out was not totally wasted, I drove on up to Thrybergh CP near Rotherham.

A small country park where there is a lake with various waterfowl. Plenty of Mallards, Coots and Canada Geese not to mention the ever predsent Black-headed Gulls. But what caught my eye was a unusual goose, the type of which I had never known existed, let alone seen! It turns out that this goose is called a Swan Goose (Anser cygnoides). Originally from China/Mongolia, its possible that this is an escapee. It seemed 'at home' with the other waterfowl and a Greylag Goose spent alot of time in its company. Several Lapwings came in from the surrounding fields. There were also large numbers of hybrid Mallards as the photos show. Apparently Mallards routinely cross breed with other ducks. At the car park, 3 Mistle Thrushes and a female Bullfinch were in the trees, but not much else was seen. A very quiet day!

November 2009 - Correction: Pochard female at Lakeside.

Saturday 7th: What a difference a day makes! After a week of rain, today we awoke to a bright sunny morning. A trip down to the Lakeside was called for! But it was chilly and even colder down by the water, definitely coat and gloves weather! The usual suspects were there; Mute Swans circa 30+, Canada Geese patrolling in small family parties, maybe 50+, Mallards circa 40+, Tufted Ducks 20+, Black-headed Gulls circa 40+ along with a Little Grebe, a juvenile Great Crested Grebe (on it's own) and a solitary duck that I couldn't readily identify. Luckily I had taken photos and short videos. After checking with my Birdguides DVD and other sources I have now positively identified this as a female Ring-necked Duck.





As the two photos above show, there is a ring around it's eye. click on each image to see a larger version and one can just see the white band across the bill. The duck was in a group of Tufted Ducks, but the difference in shape and size is readily apparent when compared to a female Tufty. And of course, it has no tuft at the back of it's head! I saw no sign of a male Ring-necked Duck and would welcome any comments about this sighting. Below is a short video of the Pochard.
Correction: After a comment on www.youtube.com , Mel and I have identified this duck as a female Pochard.







The image below shows a pair of Canada Geese. One of these is seen "scolding" the other. This went on for some time without the other replying. They swam as a pair away with the "Scolding" still in progress but to a lesser extent. Is this a male asserting itself over a rival? Comment are welcomed.





I also noticed a Great Crested Grebe juvenile that was most definitely alone. It seemed in good health and large enough to survive. Do the adults cut them loose after a few months?



And of course, the Black-headed Gull. Always seen and most numerous on many lakes and fields.