Tag Archives: Coot

RSPB Ham wall – August 2018

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I headed to RSPB Ham Wall over the August Bank Holiday weekend with a friend who wanted to try out a couple of cameras he had hired. I also had with me my new Sigma 150mm Macro 2.8, I had put it on my old Nikon D300 seeing I probably wouldn’t need to crop into the images much.  Although we had gone to go bird watching we were also trying out new kit 🙂    

We headed down to Tor hide; from previous visits we know it is a good place to spot bitterns!  There was a fair amount of activity, a marsh harrier, gadwall, great white egret, cormorant, swallow, little brown thing that flew between the reeds that I just saw out of the corner of my eye (I have no idea at all what it was!), black headed gull, moorhen, the Red Arrows flew over!, little grebe, and of course a bittern.  It took a very short flight over the reed beds, I was lucky to get a photo as by the time you had seen it, it was gone! 

After a few hours I walked back to the car park to use the facilities!  On the way I saw a mute swan and 4 cygnets and a little creature ran across the path.  I’m not sure who was most surprised, me or him, we both stopped, looked at each other briefly and he shot into the grass.  I think it was a vole but it was such a brief encounter I can’t be certain.  That will teach me for not taking my camera!

On the walk to the Avalon Hide I saw another vole! This one didn’t stop to look, he just shot across the path!  The hide wasn’t too busy when we got there but people were very spread out, it became obvious after a while that people who were there together were taking up a window each rather than sitting together to allow others to sit down. Now I do see the value of a window each because it allows you more room, however, I have always moved to sit with a companion if others come in to sit down, I just see it as polite. We had to squeeze in a gap in between a window and someone’s scope because they were taking up two windows, they were sat a good few feet away from the windows and at an angle, it was a little odd, they didn’t even acknowledge we were there!  After a while of feeling rather uncomfortable we were able to move to a window that became available.  

There wasn’t a huge number of birds about but enough to keep us occupied: little egret, great white egret, mute swan, coot, house martin, cormorant, 4 marsh harriers at once and a sparrowhawk!  The lady sat next to me noticed it at the same time and we were debating on what it was at the time.  I think it took us both by surprise sat in the water by the reeds. 

With regards to my new lens, after a bit of testing I think it would work better on my D3s, the D300 just doesn’t seem to work properly with it, it didn’t seem to want to focus, it just wasn’t right.  I normally have a wide angle on the D3s so looks like I might have to do some switching of lenses while out in the field when necessary!  Not something I like to do if I can help it, I rather dislike cleaning camera sensors!

RSPB Radipole – April 2017

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My second day at the coast was spent at RSPB Radipole.  I had seen online the locations where certain species had been seen on site so I had an idea of where I wanted to go. I headed out towards the new screen.  Having never been to Radipole before I was a little puzzled by the number of people with shopping bags – it all became clear when I realised there is a housing estate on the other side; what a lovely route to walk into town. It was an overcast day and I soon realised on arrival at the screen that I should have been better prepared and worn more layers! The wind was blowing in the right direction to come straight through the viewing slats!

The Marsh Harriers were active, with three riding the thermals at one point.  They didn’t come over the screen on this occasion, staying on the far end of the site, it was lovely to see them gliding gracefully across the sky, I kept thinking about the houses that look over the site wondering if the people there stop to watch.  There were a couple of Little Egret and a Grey Heron who were constantly moving around feeding in front of the screen. 

I finally saw a Cetti’s Warbler, I had been hearing them all day but they are so difficult to locate.  I saw something fly into the base of a bush, I got down to its level and could just see it though the twigs and leaves.  It isn’t a great photo, but it is the first one I’ve actually seen! I would have thought there must be about 15 on site.

When visiting an RSPB site I always have lunch in their Café, that most of the sites have, I think it’s a great way to help fund the charity and also help local suppliers; they always use local produce where possible.  The food, drinks and especially cakes are always of a superb standard ☺

It was sad to see that the Mute Swan next to the Discovery Centre no longer had eggs, there was a Mallard sat on the nest when I was there. I don’t know why they were gone but I did hear someone say it could have been rats and later during the afternoon I saw a Brown Rat so I guess that could explain it.  I liked seeing the Hooded Merganser trying to take control of the waters and chasing the Tufted Ducks at every turn.  He has now been living there for 10 years, he obviously found a good home when he flew off course all that time ago.  

Late afternoon I headed to the concrete bridge to watch the Swallows over the reeds.  I saw something out of the corner of my eye, got the camera lined up, took one shot and it was gone – it was a Bearded Tit!  Unfortunately it had a reed in front of it but I am still please with the shot, it’s the first picture I have managed to get of one actually in reeds!  RSPB Leighton Moss is a great place to take pictures of them on the grit trays.  The Swallows were not so easy to get a shot of!    

My full sightings list:
Birds: Gadwall, Canada geese, Marsh Harrier, Moorhen, Swallows, Grey Heron, Little Egret, Mallard, Coot, Teal, Magpie, Great Tit, Cetti’s Warbler, Carrion Crow, Tufted Ducks, Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Great-crested Grebe, Dunnock, Bearded Tit, Hooded Merganser, Blackbird
Mammals: Brown Rat 
Butterflies: Speckled Wood

RSPB Lodmoor – April 2017

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I decided it was time to take a few days off work, so that’s what I did just before Easter and headed to the coast.  I have been following Weymouth Wetlands on Twitter for a while now, knowing that it would be a destination I would be visiting. I think Twitter is great for researching what wildlife you can spot around the country, specifically when you are going to a named site.  

I arrived in Weymouth in the afternoon and quickly visited the Discovery Centre to have a look at their recent sightings board before moving on to Lodmoor.  Lodmoor is about 4 miles along the coast from the Discovery Centre and really easy to find.  Both of the car parks for the RSPB sites in Weymouth are council owned so make sure you take change with you.  The worse part it deciding how long you think you are going to stay!

I decided to walk the Marsh Trail and the Reedbed Trail which join together to make a loop.  One of my first sightings was a Canada Goose sat on a nest on an island fairly close to the path, it was nice to see. There were quite a few people out in the reserve, so I walked on until I found a free bench to sit on.  I could see, over to the left a small flock of Black-tailed Godwits but they flew off before I could get a proper look.  They did fly back over later and I managed to grab a quick photograph.

I was suddenly aware of movement to my left and a Rabbit hopped out of the grass, it didn’t seem bothered by me which is always concerning.  As I walked passed it only moved a few feet, it looked like it had been hit in the head, but I am more inclined to think it had Mixamytosis 🙁

It was a lovely sunny day though and as I moved along the Reedbed Trail I became aware of the Swallows that were flying overhead, my first sighting this year 🙂

There were about 20 House Sparrows darting in and out of the hedgerow opposite the houses and Blackbirds that kept hoping about on the grass.  All afternoon there was one bird that I heard continually, I had no idea what it was but was sure I was being stalked by it!! I would think I heard approx. 10+ of them on the site.  I am still in the very early stages of learning bird song’s but this one I will now remember – a Cetti’s Warbler! 

I ended my afternoon with a quick walk across the road to the beach, no trip to the coast would be right without seeing the sea 🙂

My full sightings list:
Birds: Canada Goose (1 on nest), Shelduck, Coot, Little Egret, Mute Swan, Moorhen, Black-tailed Godwit, Mallards, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Blackbird, Dunnock, Pochard, Teal,  Gadwall, Woodpigeon, Tufted Duck, Cormorant, Goldfinch, Magpie, Great Tit, Swallow, Grey Heron, Carrion Crow, heard Cetti’s Warbler, Black-headed Gull
Mammals: Rabbit
Butterflies: Speckled Wood

RSPB Ham Wall – December 2016

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Over the Christmas break I decided to take a trip to RSPB Ham Wall. Although I didn’t leave overly early it was still freezing and misty outside. After an hour and 20min drive to Glastonbury the mist had cleared and the sun bathed the wetlands.

I have only been to Ham Wall once before and that was in June so this time I decided to explore a little more of the site. It was also an excuse to keep warm! 

At one of the screens I was watching 6 Snipe, when the lady next to me asked if I knew what the smaller bird next to them was. She thought it was a Water Pipit, as she had heard one had been seen recently, so having a closer look and comparing it to an image I looked up on my phone we decided it indeed was a Water Pipit. This was the first Water Pipit either of us had knowingly seen. A great start to the day!

On the Loxton’s Marsh Trail there were Black-headed Gulls doing laps of the reeds. They were so predictable it was quite easy to get a nice shot of them. I quite like Black-headed Gulls they seem to have a lot of personality 🙂

I headed to Avalon Hide in the afternoon. On the walk there, there were signs that Deer had been sleeping in the reeds.  The hide is currently being used by a Barn Owl as it’s dining room so there are a lot of Starling feathers about! With the sun creeping just above the tree line the reeds seemed like they were made of gold. A great time for a Bittern to appear at the far side of the reed bed 🙂

I headed back outside at 3pm to get set for watching the Starlings. There were hundreds of people congregated so I stood a little away from the crowd. They first started to appear at 16:08, streams of them coming in from all angles, diving down into the reeds. The sound they make is lovely. Unfortunately there were no murmurations but the sheer number alone was a sight to see. Its definitely worth a visit. 

My full sightings list:
Wren, Robin, Snipe, Water Pipit, Shovler, Great-crested Grebe, Coot, Mallard, Cormorant, Little Grebe, Mute Swan, Grey Heron, Great White Egret, Black Headed Gull, Greylag Geese, Canada Geese, Kingfisher, Wigeon, Stonechat, Reed Bunting

Boxing Day 2016 – Visit to WWT Slimbridge

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For a change of scenery on Boxing Day I headed to WWT Slimbridge with my parents. We have visited Slimbridge a number of times before, although not in the colder months and my Mum wanted to see the Bewick’s Swans in particular. So taking the back roads to avoid the Boxing day sales traffic we headed towards Gloucester. 

Even as an adult I buy grain to feed the birds. The Nene Geese came to greet us asking nicely for food; I lost my packet of food to my Dad who took to feeding them and every Moorhen he saw! We took a slow walk towards the Zeiss hide stopping for lunch at the picnic benches on route.  My parents aren’t birders so don’t like sitting in hides for long but during the periods of time they managed to sit still, I saw Roe Deer, a Curlew, Bewick’s Swans in the distance, a couple of Mute Swan and hundreds of Lapwing and Wigeon.  

Warm drinks were needed after a walk around the site, the restaurant was packed but I managed to get us a table near the window which was very fortuitous as I saw my first Grey Wagtail, so of course I grabbed my camera and headed outside for a record shot! 

Towards the end of our visit we headed to the Peng observatory, knowing we wanted to be there for the 4pm feeding to have a closer look at the Bewick’s Swans.  It is a nice place to sit and watch the bird’s slowly growing in number as they head in for feeding time.  It was lovely to see the birds following the wheelbarrow of food, there were about 30 Bewick’s, a real treat to witness and something I highly recommend seeing if you have time to stay till closing.

My full list of sightings:
Birds: Curlew, Bewick’s Swan, Mute, Swan, Tufted Duck, Lapwing, Wigeon, Black-headed Gull, Shelduck, Coot, Moorhen, Reshank, Jackdaw, Rook, Teal, Pintail, Grey Wagtail, Long-tailed Tit, Woodpigeon, Song Thrush
Mammals: Roe Deer

RSPB Ham Wall – June 2016

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RSPB Ham Wall - Glastonbury TorAs part of ’30 Days Wild’ I set out for the day to visit RSPB Ham Wall. I had heard of Ham Wall because of the Starlings they get in winter but I knew little about the site.

I had read the RSPB’s recent sightings blog posts before heading out so had an idea of what it was possible to see and where they might be. Obviously Bittern was at the top of the list!

It took me longer to get there than anticipated, I’m sure the satnav took me the scenic route! The car park is beautiful with wildflowers between the parking bays. I’d just stepped out of the car and heard a chap say ‘there’s a bittern flying overhead’ I caught a quick glimps – a shape moving in the distance.

Access via the main path wasn’t available due to work on the bridge so I followed the diversion signs and headed towards Tor view hide. On route I stopped at some of the screens to see what was about. A gentleman pointed me in the direction of a screen where a heron was nicely posing.

RSPB Ham Wall - BitternThe hide was quite busy when I got there with only a couple of seats spare. As people left I moved to a seat with a better view. The girl sat next to me was a regular to the site and amazing at spotting bitterns flying over the reeds, my first proper bittern sighting was thanks to her 🙂 There were plenty of other birds to watch including the incredibly cute Coot chicks.

After a couple of hours I moved onto Alavon hide for a quick look. There were a pair of Marsh Harriers constantly in the sky along with a Great White Egret on what looked like its nest.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time there and look forward to heading back there in the Autumn to see the Starlings 🙂

My full list of sightings for the day:
Birds: Bittern, Mute Swan, Mallard, Cormorant, Grey Heron, Great Crested Grebe, Tufted Duck, Coot, Great White Egret, Little Grebe, Hobby, Buzzard, Swift, Marsh Harrier, Pied Wagtail
Insects: Stag beetle

Potteric Carr Nature Reserve – April 2016

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I didn’t want to drive all the way to East Yorkshire in one go, but wanted to make the most of the time away visiting wildlife.  After a search on Google I discovered Potteric Carr Nature Reserve and made a plan for a route that passed by Doncaster.

Potteric Carr was so easy to find, so easy in fact I had to double check I hadn’t got lost! One of the lovely volunteers gave me an overview of what had been seen recently and I was off on my way around the site.

One of the first birds I encountered was a Moorhen chick trying to follow its parent across a stream.  They soon disappeared into the vegetation though.

I made my way to the Kingfisher Tearooms for a spot of lunch. I can highly recommend the bacon sandwiches and Cream Tea’s 🙂

Opposite the Tearooms is Willow Pool Hide. I thought I’d pop in for a quick look and ended up staying nearly 2 hours; there were adorable Canada Goose goslings with their parents and a rather cute brown rat feeding on the food put out for the birds!

I finally managed to drag myself away and headed towards the Duchess Hide. Half way there it decided to rain which meant a pit stop under a bridge to get the wet weather clothes out! The weather cleared by the time I got to the hide and as the rain clouds moved away they gave a lovely backdrop to Huxter Well Marsh. A Marsh Harrier was making regular flights across the marsh and there were Blackcaps and Wrens in the vegetation just in front of the hide. Out of the corner of my eye I saw something to my right, a Roe Deer had walked out of the bushes. It stood temporarily and then ran across the front of the hide.

It was getting late and I was conscious that the car park was going to be locked at 5pm (if you would like to stay later than 5pm, ask at the front desk when you arrive) and I had another hour drive to my hotel for the night!

I decided to take the Dragonfly Trail back, walking along Mother Drain and although I wasn’t really looking for anything in particular I saw something move on the ground. It took me a while to figure out where it had gone, but a small movement drew me to this little chap. I’m not 100% sure, but I thinks it’s a Field Vole, a lovely end to a very nice day exploring 🙂

My full list of sightings for the day:
Birds: Black-headed Gull, Blackcap, Canada Goose, Carrion crow, Chaffinch, Coot, Gadwall, Great crested grebe, Grey heron, Mallard, Moorhen, Pheasant, Reed bunting, Robin, Swallow
Mammals: Brown Rat, Field Vole, Roe deer

Lower Moor Farm – March 2016

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There were definite signs of spring at Lower Moor Farm last Friday.  Grey Herons and Carrion Crows nest building along with Common Frogs mating and my first butterfly sightings of the year.

We arrived on site at about 10am, it was still very quiet, there only being two cars in the Car Park. I thought it was going to be really busy so it was a nice surprise.

My first spot of the day was a Grey Heron who was collecting nesting material on the far bank of Cottage Lake.  According to the log book in the hide he had been doing this for at least 40mins.  It was nice to just sit and watch his process, on occasion he seemed a bit ambitious with the size of twig he was trying and failing to pick up.

The Wildlife Trusts - Lower Moor Farm - Grey Heron gathering nesting material

The Wildlife Trusts - Lower Moor Farm - Reed Bunting (Female)My lesson learnt for the day is ‘Remember to take the bird book even if you think you won’t need it!’…  to the left of the hide there is a feeder that had been topped up that morning.  I was fairly sure what I was watching was a Reed Bunting but I doubted myself as I had never actually seen one before.  Seeing I had no phone signal I had no way of double checking either.

After lunch we moved round to the other hide looking over Swallow Pool which looks upon the other side of the tree the Grey Heron had been flying to that morning.  There turned out to be two Grey Heron nests in the tree quite close together.  Some people came into the hide saying they had seen three Roe Deer, not long after one appeared further down the lake and proceeded to take a swim across.

I look forward to visiting Lower Moor Farm again soon, I hear they have Otters but they haven’t been seen for a while…

My full list of sightings for the day:
Butterflies: Brimstone, Small Tortoiseshell
Birds: Canada Goose, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Coot, Cormorant, Dunnock, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Grey Heron, Long-tailed Tit, Mallard, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Red-crested Pochard, Reed Bunting, Robin, Wren
Amphibians: Common Frog
Mammals: Roe Deer