Birdseekers Trip Report

Yorkshire - September 2009

The week before the 13th saw many good birds turn up around the country and then promptly depart again. It would have been nice to have shown the group the male Pallid Harrier in Cambridgeshire but the bird had other ideas and left on Wednesday! Finally, on Saturday night, I plumped for Yorkshire and crossed my fingers.

The day started well when Frank saw a Tawny Owl while he was waiting to be picked up. The drive north also provided Jay, Golden Plover and Kestrel.

Our first stop was at Edderthorpe Flash, a new RSPB site between Barnsley and Doncaster. We walked to the now famous bench where a Spotted Crake had been entertaining visitors for a few weeks. Sure enough, after a few minutes, the crake showed well allowing close study through telescopes.

The flashes also held a nice array of ducks - though all were in eclipse plumage - Ringed Plover, Snipe, Water Rail and a noisy flock of Canada and Greylag Geese.

When everyone had seen the crake well, we retraced our route back to Wombwell Ings. We arrived to hear the news we wanted: the Pectoral Sandpiper was showing on the pool.

The Pec didn't show as well as the crake, but nevertheless everyone managed to see it. Also present were four Greenshanks, a Green Sandpiper and a handful of Dunlin. A Hobby treated us to a fly past.

Just as I was wondering where to go next, news filtered through about a Booted Warbler at Spurn. The decision was made and off we went. Before heading off, it would have been an oversight not to make use of the facilities at Old Moor RSPB just a stone throw away!

We made reasonable time even though the A63 through Hull was closed. Smart navigation by Richard LJ kept us on course around The Land of Prescott and we reached Spurn at midday.

We wandered to The Warren, stopping to admire Pied Flycatcher, Tree Sparrow and Stonechat on the way. The group of people standing on a dune indicated where the Booted Warbler was: there's nothing like fieldcraft when it comes to spotting a rarity!

Over the next hour, everyone saw this pale warbler in flight and Richard managed a good, albeit brief, view of it perched. The strong wind meant that we were only going to get similar views if we stayed longer so we decided to concentrate on the choppy sea instead.

Wind may not be good for flighty warblers but it brings seabirds into view on the coast. Between us, we managed to add Sooty, Balearic and Manx Shearwater to the day's list as well as Gannet, Arctic Skua, Kittiwake, Sandwich Tern, Guillemot and Red-throated Diver.

Those birds flying into the wind looked like they were having a hard time but those sensible enough to be wind-assisted made Usain Boult look like a snail. Wheeeee!

Waders were also present in good numbers. Bar-tailed Godwit, Grey Plover, Knot and Dunlin were in various states of moult and wear. Some were still in smart breeding plumage, others in winter garb while others were in between. None of us could find a Whimbrel in amongst the Curlews, though.

We then decided to trawl the hedges of Spurn to find our own birds and to stretch our legs. ‘The Triange’ was quiet but a garden produced a Chiffchaff and a few other bits and bobs.

Most people indulged in an ice cream before embarking on the trek to Beacon Ponds. The sheltered hedge along the way proved disappointingly birdless. We paused for another seawatch, and then headed for the hide. A Wheatear posed nicely for photos on the beach.

The pools were quiet, with just a stunning Grey Plover, three Dunlin and some Little Grebes as reward for our efforts. The walk back to the van produced very little so we made our way home while totting up the day's list. We also found out that we had missed a Pomarine Skua complete with spoons over The Warren just after we had left!

In total, the Official List Compiler, Richard S, confirmed we had seen 91 species on the day; a respectable total. Thanks to the flightiness of the Booted Warbler, the showy Spotted Crake was voted Bird of the Day.

I have updated the Notts Birders' out of county trip list, which can now be found on the website.

The next trip will take place on Sunday, January 17th when we will attempt to get down to the south coast for a day with a local expert (expect an early start to maximise birding time!). Booking for this will start at 9.00am on Saturday, December 5th on 0115 9830946.

The Day's List

Birds

1. Mute Swan
2. Greylag Goose
3. Canada Goose
4. Shelduck
5. Wigeon
6. Gadwall
7. Teal
8. Mallard
9. Shoveler
10. Tufted Duck
11. Pheasant
12. Red-throated Diver
13. Little Grebe
14. Sooty Shearwater
15. Manx Shearwater
16. Balearic Shearwater
17. Gannet
18. Cormorant
19. Shag
20. Little Egret
21. Grey heron
22. Sparrowhawk
23. Buzzard
24. Kestrel
25. Hobby
26. Water Rail
27. Spotted Crake
28. Moorhen
29. Coot
30. Oystercatcher
31. Ringed Plover
32. Golden Plover
33. Grey Plover
34. Lapwing
35. Knot
36. Sanderling
37. Pectoral Sandpiper
38. Dunlin
39. Snipe
40. Bar-tailed Godwit
41. Curlew
42. Green Sandpiper
43. Greenshank
44. Redshank
45. Turnstone
46. Arctic Skua
47. Kittiwake
48. Black-headed Gull
49. Lesser Black-backed Gull
50. Herring Gull
51. Great Black-backed Gull
52. Sandwich Tern
53. Guillemot
54. Feral Pigeon
55. Stock Dove
56. Woodpigeon
57. Collared Dove
58. Tawny Owl
59. Skylark
60. Swallow
61. House Martin
62. Meadow Pipit
63. Yellow Wagtail
64. Pied Wagtail
65. Wren
66. Dunnock
67. Robin
68. Stonechat
69. Wheatear
70. Blackbird
71. Booted Warbler
72. Chiffchaff
73. Pied Flycatcher
74. Blue Tit
75. Great Tit
76. Jay
77. Magpie
78. Jackdaw
79. Crow
80. Rook
81. Starling
82. House Sparrow
83. Tree Sparrow
84. Chaffinch
85. Greenfinch
86. Goldfinch
87. Linnet
88. Reed Bunting

Mammals

1. Grey Seal
2. Roe Deer
3. Red Fox
4. Grey Squirrel
5. Brown Hare

Insects

1. Migrant Hawker
2. Small White
3. Small Tortoishell