Atlantic air pushed back in during the period with temperatures falling slightly as a result, although atmospheric humidity remained high. With new birds arriving, migration was clearly on the up and the cross-country Crossbill movement continued apace …
Having returned last week, the infamous female Ruddy Shelduck was mobile around its established small area of choice in northwest Northants, being seen at Ravensthorpe Res on 12th before moving back to nearby (as the duck flies) Winwick Pools the following day. The movements of this returning bird fit well within the increasingly strong pattern to the species’ occurrence in the UK. A small peak in March and April – coinciding with the timing of the birds’ spring migration – is followed by a noticeable spike in late summer and early autumn, peaking between July and September. This is in parallel with the northward moult migration movement of European breeders, involving up to 2000 birds arriving in The Netherlands during summer, while small numbers remain during the UK winter, bottoming out in February. In 2021, the British Ornithologists’ Union Records Committee began a review of the status of Ruddy Shelduck in the UK, which appears still to be ongoing four years later. What happens in the BOURC stays in the BOURC, or so it seems, so don’t hold your breath … For further details from a wider perspective see here.
But we’re not done with contentious ducks just yet. Found during the early evening of 13th was a female Ferruginous Duck at Stanford Res. It had departed by the following morning. While its identification is not in doubt, its origin may well be. Looking back at the last one, a juvenile drake present at Daventry CP between 31st July and 15th September 2022, it was accepted by the British Birds Rarities Committee but, along with others in Nottinghamshire, Yorkshire and Warwickshire, it was placed in a group classification where identification was accepted, but origin is uncertain or known not to be wild. This bird is likely to follow suit, although it is recognised that late summer drought-induced vagrancy may occur for this species.
There was no such worry over waders in general, but concern of a different kind with regard to Curlews, one of which was seen in flight over Old Pastures Wood, Yardley Hastings on 17th. In recent years, numbers of this species have been dropping locally, with no proven Northamptonshire breeding records since 2018, although it has been suspected in the north-east of the county. This reflects the British Trust for Ornithology’s Breeding Bird Survey which revealed a 49% decline in breeding Curlews across the UK from 1995-2021. It is now included on the UK Red List of Birds of Conservation Concern and the UK holds over one-quarter of the global breeding population which, in a wider context, is highly significant.
Once again, Black-tailed Godwits featured reasonably strongly during the period, with Clifford Hill GP producing the maximum of eleven on 14th and one on 17th, Summer Leys LNR holding on to five on 15th-16th and one on 12th and Pitsford Res securing two on 14th and one on 15th.
A single Wood Sandpiper made a short stopover at Clifford Hill early on 16th, while the early autumn trickle of Greenshanks continued with singles at Daventry CP on 14th-15th and Pitsford on 17th.
The first, neatly-scalloped juvenile Mediterranean Gull of the year paid a visit to Boddington Res on 15th and a second-summer Caspian Gull was found at Daventry CP the following day.
Yellow-legged Gulls were, predictably, to be found at Pitsford, where there were four on 15th and one on 16th, while Daventry held a juvenile on 15th and an adult on 16th and single adults visited Stanford on 12th and Thrapston GP on 17th.
A Little Tern at Ditchford GP’s Irthlingborough Lakes & Meadows NR was a surprise on 13th.
This week’s Bittern was a short-shower at Summer Leys on 16th, while the number of Cattle Egrets at the Nene Valley breeding site climbed from four or five on 12th to eleven – including seven adults – on 17th.
Four sites dished up Ospreys, the reservoirs of Pitsford and Stanford producing singles on 14th and 16th at the former and on 12th and 14th at the latter, with Thrapston/Titchmarsh getting in on the action with birds on 14th, 17th and 18th, while Harrington AF produced a northbound flyover on 17th. The latter site also held single Marsh Harriers on 12th and 14th-15th.
Passerine migration gained momentum this week with Common Redstarts featuring strongly for the time of year. Blueberry Farm, Maidwell produced one, possibly two, between 12th and 18th, Harrington singles on 12th, 14th-15th and 17th, the Brampton Valley between Cottesbrooke and Hanging Houghton one on 17th-18th, while further singles were at Hollowell Res on 13th and Litchborough the following day. Following the autumn’s first at Blueberry Farm last week, a Whinchat was again there on 14th and two more were found at Harrington on 15th. Another 2025 autumn first was a juvenile Stonechat trapped and ringed at Stanford on 17th.
And then there were Crossbills. The influx continued with a notable movement logged across seven localities, with the highest number of ten flying east over Kettering on the last day of the period. Supplementing this were eight at Wakerley Great Wood on 13th followed by a straggler there on 16th, four flew west over Abington Park, Northampton on 17th, three flew over Fermyn Wood on 12th, two flew over Blueberry Farm on 18th, the same day seeing two separate individuals moving over Harrington, while one was at Harry’s Park Wood on 13th.
Northants birds 