Month: November 2020

The wind continued mainly southerly but a swing to the east occurred on the last day of the period. Becoming no easier to see, the male Parrot Crossbill remained into the week.

Continuing to elicit some interest, the Barnacle Goose flock, still present at Clifford Hill GP into this week, had significantly reduced to twenty by 21st and they remained there until the week’s end.

One also lingered at Stanford Res all week. While the six Pink-footed Geese remained ensconced at Hollowell Res throughout the period, some inflight entertainment came in the form of a flock of some fifty to fifty-five heading north-west over Harringworth Lodge Lake on the morning of 21st. This appears to have been part of a wider national movement on the day and back at Stanford, two joined the local Greylags and three flew over.

The following day, five Whooper Swans flew east at the latter locality, constituting the 160th species for the year at that site, equalling its best-ever species total, which was in 2017. DIRFT 3 was paid a surprise visit by five Ruddy Shelducks on 22nd, although they were absent the next day, while the long-staying female was seen again at Hollowell on 26th-27th. Numbers of Red-crested Pochards fell to just four at Pitsford Res, although two were found at Clifford Hill GP on 23rd.

Looking set for a protracted stay, the juvenile Great Northern Diver remained throughout at Hollowell. Surprisingly, no Cattle Egrets were reported this week but Great Egrets continued to be reported from seven sites. Hollowell and Pitsford were the only sites away from the Nene Valley and Thrapston again logged the week’s highest site count of five on 27th.

Following their initial discovery on 12th, three locally unseasonal Curlews continued to come in to roost on the DIRFT 3 A5 pools, being seen just prior to dusk on 23rd and 26th, while the only other notable wader was Jack Snipe, with singles at Hollowell on 23rd and Stanford on 27th, plus four on a field pool close to Ravensthorpe STW on 26th.

In addition to the semi-regular third-winter Caspian Gull again at Hollowell on 24th, the same date saw a first-winter come in to roost at Boddington Res and three – an adult and two third-winters – were at DIRFT 3 on 26th.

This week’s Yellow-legged Gulls rallied somewhat, with one at Pitsford on 21st and 24th, two at DIRFT 3 on 23rd and eleven counted in the Boddington roost on 24th.

Two Short-eared Owls emerged during the period – one from a roadside field north of Sywell AF on 22nd and the other, remaining in the air for an hour, was at Pitsford on 26th, while this week’s Merlin was a female at Stanwick on the first of these two dates.

Wintering Stonechats were recorded from DIRFT 3, Hollowell, Lilbourne Meadows LNR, Pitsford, Stanford and Thrapston, with no more than four at any one site.

Last week’s male Parrot Crossbill continued to elude, evade and generally played hard to get, being seen only briefly on 21st at Wakerley Great Wood, which continued to host Crossbills, clearly on the up this week, with at least sixty-one being present there on 27th. Up to nine were still being seen at Hollowell during the period, eight were still in Bucknell Wood on 22nd and singles flew over both Stanwick GP and Pitsford on 24th.

A mild, southerly airstream continued into the first half of the period before the wind swung momentarily northerly toward the week’s end. The chance discovery of a fine male Parrot Crossbill duly elicited a local northerly movement by those hoping to catch a glimpse.

With last week’s presumed ‘C list’ Barnacle Goose flock still present at Clifford Hill GP, having risen to forty-one on 15th, some light was at last shed on its origin.

 
One of two Barnacle Geese found at Stanford Res last week was also metal-ringed on its left leg but no colour rings were in evidence. Both birds remained until 16th. Meanwhile, the goose theme continued at Hollowell Res, where last week’s six Pink-footed Geese were back up again to seven on 19th. The only other waterfowl of note were Red-crested Pochards which, this week, were confined only to Pitsford Res, where the highest count was eight on 19th.

Back at Hollowell, the juvenile Great Northern Diver was still present on 19th, after becoming evasive in the early part of the week.

Cattle Egrets remained, as usual, in the Stanwick/Irthlingborough area, where the highest count was six on 16th and 18th. Upsizing, Great Egrets were again much in evidence, widespread across at least ten localities in the county, from Blatherwycke Lake to Stanford in the north and along the Nene Valley from Thrapston GP to Billing GP, Thrapston logging the week’s highest site count of five on 15th.

A superb total of fourteen Jack Snipes at Daventry CP on 17th was nearly triple last week’s count from there and is surely a record count for the site.

Winter gulls this week included two adult Mediterranean Gulls – one flying south-west over Stanwick GP on 19th and the other at Boddington Res the following day. The third-winter Caspian Gull was again at Hollowell on 14th and 17th, while a first-winter visited Daventry CP on the latter date. Single adult Yellow-legged Gulls were at Pitsford on 14th-15th, Hollowell and Daventry on 17th and at Thrapston on 18th.

A Short-eared Owl was reported from the Irthlingborough area on 16th, while this week’s Merlin was an immature male at Harrington AF on 18th.

As a result of their often nebulous nature, ‘possibles’ rarely feature in this report but for the sake of completeness and on the off-chance that a Northamptonshire first – a ‘mega’ at that – could potentially be passing us by, it would seem prudent to include the possible Dusky Thrush reported on 20th. Said to have been with Fieldfares and Redwings, close to the north-west corner of Kingthorn Wood, between Greens Norton and Bradden, late morning, the news was released during the afternoon. Those (three) who made it to the site in gloomy conditions met with disappointment as a highly animated flock of some four hundred or so winter thrushes kept their distance and eventually split up and dispersed. But in case anyone fancies chancing his or her arm, it’s a very nice area, with a pocket park …

Back down to earth somewhat, Stonechats were recorded from Boddington, Hollowell, Pitsford, Stanford and Thrapston. Once again, four at Hollowell on 17th was the highest total at any locality.

But tangible bird of the week, without doubt, was the smart male Parrot Crossbill photographed at Wakerley Great Wood on 15th. The first of these vagrant cone-crunchers for almost 30 years and not the easiest to pin down – and there may have been more than just the one.

 

A veritable supporting cast, Crossbills were prevalent at the same site throughout, with more than forty estimated to be present. Hollowell, too, is fast proving itself to be a reliable site for this species, with numbers there growing throughout the week and peaking in excess of twenty on 20th, while at least five flew north-west over Harrington AF on the same date.

The air off the continent – south-easterlies, subsequently swinging southerly – resulted in a generally mild week, during which a number of new birds arrived on the scene, of which Great Northern Diver and Bearded Tits headed the cast …

Barnacle Geese on the romp, however, provided additional interest. We are used to the odd one or two feral birds tagging along with local Canadas and Greylags but it’s always exhilarating to encounter a large flock, whatever its origin. And so it came to pass that roving multiples were seen in the Nene Valley this week, with twenty-seven flying south-west over Ditchford GP on 10th, some or all of which may have accounted for the larger number of thirty-six on the ground at Clifford Hill GP, two days later, on 12th. The feral population in neighbouring Bedfordshire seems to be their most likely origin

Black and white toned down to not quite fifty shades of grey at Hollowell Res, as the six Pink-footed Geese remained throughout the period and the female Ruddy Shelduck, although there on 9th, took another trip up to Crick, where it was seen at Foxholes Fisheries on 11th.

Pitsford Res retained at least ten Red-crested Pochards throughout the period and four were found at Daventry CP on 9th, remaining until the following day.

Given the recent numbers inland over the past week, it would have been unthinkable not to have at least one of our reservoirs proving attractive to at least one Great Northern Diver and our first for 2020, a nice, scaly juvenile, duly appeared at Hollowell on 13th.

Similarly, with a great deal of focus on, and time invested by birders in, Stortons GP this week, it came as no real surprise when a Bittern appeared briefly in flight there on 10th.

The now resident population of Cattle Egrets in the Nene Valley remained, as usual, in the Stanwick/Irthlingborough area, where the highest count was nine on 7th. Away from there, one flew north-east at Boddington Res on 13th – the first record for the site and it may well have been the bird that briefly visited the Balscote Quarry NR near Banbury, Oxfordshire on 1st November. A humdrum of Great Egrets – the new collective noun, perhaps – saw double figures in the county, with five at Thrapston GP on 10th and ones, twos and threes across seven further localities. Given that our wintering population is quite mobile, it’s difficult to assess the true total.

Waders do not feature strongly at this time of the year, so three locally unseasonal Curlews coming in at dusk to roost on the pools at DIRFT 3 was unusual on 12th, while five Jack Snipes at Daventry CP on 9th appear to be the first for the autumn, as well as being a healthy site total.

We’re not quite there with the time window for ‘white-wingers’ yet, so the next tier down for the scarcer gulls was occupied this week by the itinerant third-winter Caspian Gull again at Hollowell on 9th and 11th, while a first-winter visited DIRFT 3 on 12th. The same site held up to three adult Yellow-legged Gulls on 11th-12th and further singles were seen at Thrapston on 7th and Pitsford Res on 11th.

Following last week’s discovery of two in the reedbed at Stortons GP, Bearded Tits had doubled their total to four there by 7th. Only two were seen on 8th and one was heard calling on 12th but two subsequently appeared at Stanford Res on 13th. Initially found in the small reedbed on the Leicestershire bank, they vacated the area after only a short period of time, and were watched heading east into Northamptonshire airspace …

Always popular, Stonechats were recorded from fewer sites during the period than of late. Boddington, The Brampton Valley, DIRFT 3, Pitsford, Stanford and Thrapston each held between one and four, while five at Hollowell on 9th was the highest total at any locality.

After a significant downturn in numbers a few weeks back, Crossbills bounced back, strengthening their presence this week with perhaps as many as forty in the car park larches at Wakerley Great Wood, smaller numbers at nearby Fineshade Wood, up to thirteen at Hollowell and ones or twos flying over Scaldwell, Stanford and Stanwick. Hopefully, they will stick around throughout the forthcoming winter.

The long-established south-westerly airstream was dispensed with mid-week by a high pressure system, bringing clearer skies and a swing to the south-east, which saw the autumn’s first frost on 4th – a date which produced some cracking fireworks of the birding kind …

Predictably, Hollowell Res hung on to its Pink-footed Goose flock, well, six of them at least and the female Ruddy Shelduck remained there until 4th. Two more Pink-footed Geese paid a brief visit to Summer Leys LNR, also on 4th.

Red-crested Pochards extended the number of visited localities from last week’s three to four, with Pitsford’s fifteen still present on 2nd, up to four at Summer Leys on 2nd-3rd, a drake at Hollowell on 4th and a female at Stortons GP on 5th, while a first-winter Greater Scaup was discovered off the dam at Pitsford on the same date.

But the fireworks kicked off a day early for one gobsmacked observer. Yes, Glossy Ibis steals the show once more, making the news for the second week running. Not five, this time – just one is all it takes and this particular one flew low over St. James, Northampton, before landing momentarily on a house roof, from which it quickly took flight after being attacked by two Carrion Crows. That was on 4th. Bizarre! Described as looking weak and sickly, it flew off low, appearing to be struggling to gain height. Look out for next week’s, then …

In what is now the new normal, up to eight Cattle Egrets remained at Stanwick throughout, while Great Egrets were seen at seven localities, with the highest count being just three, at Hollowell, on 4th.

With all the early autumn ones long gone, that peculiar sense of déjà vu must have crept into the minds of birders at Stanford Res when they notched up another Shag there on 3rd. Said to have been seen the day before, it had certainly gone by the day after.

With the only sighting last week of the wandering, red wing-tagged juvenile female Marsh Harrier being Summer Leys on 26th, she was back there and being seen daily from 31st to 3rd but by the following day, 4th, she had clearly developed itchy wings and left the confines of the Nene Valley, being seen hunting over fields near Preston Deanery before heading high south-east toward Salcey Forest. The last goodbye, perhaps.

Further in-flight entertainment this week came in the shape of a Hoopoe, with views snatched briefly near Christie’s Copse, in Pitsford’s Walgrave Bay, on 5th. The last in the county was at Ditchford GP on a more typical date in May 2019 but late autumn birds are not without precedent.

Another splash of seasonal colour was provided by a nine-strong flock of Bearded Tits, initially picked up flying over Summer Leys Main Lake on 4th. They crossed the road and pitched down in the corner of Earls Barton GP’s Reedbed Pit, before flying off high south-west. Birders elsewhere duly jumped on the beardie bandwagon and two were found the next day at Stortons GP, when another was heard calling from reeds near Pioneer Hide, back at Summer Leys.

The flames of autumn continued to burn, however, as a Firecrest was found at Byfield Pool on 31st and another was trapped and ringed at Stanford on 4th, only the seventh ever to be ringed by the group there.

And then there were Stonechats, with records from nine sites this week.

 

Following which were the seed-crunchers – two Hawfinches at a ‘private site’ near Tansor on 4th and an array of Crossbills, with thirteen flying west over Pitsford, also on 4th and two at Hollowell on the same date. Elsewhere, singles flew south-west over Hanging Houghton on 5th, west over Scaldwell on 6th and again at Hollowell on the same date. Autumn, it seems, is far from over.