Moving Targets

Since it was the last day of May, I decided to target some of the easier species still missing from BirdTrack's local 10km square May list for 2007. Of those previously reported in May, the following seemed like realistic targets:

• Grey Partridge
• Goldcrest
• Coal Tit
• Nuthatch
• Treecreeper

In other words, the ones not commonly seen at the Mill Lakes! So I planned a rough route around the main woodland, taking in the Bestwood Quarry for a chance at the Partridge.

I began down the steep path to Hanging Heath, locating a rather silent Chiffchaff alongside the path ahead, and showing well. It was being mobbed by what appeared to be a juvenile Robin. Joining the main path near the Horse Paddock, a Common Whitethroat was singing at the top of a gorse bush in Keith's Corner.

A pair of Jay were feeding on the grass behind the Adventure Playground, as was a single Mistle Thrush - the first I've seen on the main site. I sat for a while at the Khalsa Wood - always an active area - to get two of my targets. Two Coal Tit were up in the trees and a single Nuthatch flew to the tree trunk in front of me. A male Blackcap perched in a nearby bush and began to sing, and a flock/family of Long-tailed Tit had one juvenile being fed by its parents - the first juvenile I've ever seen. At least one Chiffchaff was heard naming itself nearby.

I was hoping to have a chat with Steve (the ranger), but no-one was in at the office, so I headed to the northern side of the woods to cut through to Bestwood Quarry. It started to rain, and on the way, I was pretty sure I heard a Tawny Owl calling. On reaching the path that cuts through, I saw it had been fenced up; and not just a little fence, but the large metal fencing that's appearing all around the park borders. This meant a detour, which was a pain, considering it was raining and I didn't see any birds.

Just inside the entrance to Bestwood Quarry a Common Whitethroat was singing from the top of a hedge, and a Barn Swallow was perched on an overhead wire. Two different pairs of Mistle Thrush were on the main slope - today was becoming a good day for them. Rather than the main path I decided to follow the trail down into the quarry for once, the rain started to get heavier and I found some cover under a tree which allowed me to view the slope. Almost immediately a small pale coloured bird landed in the scrub in front of me, providing me with good views of a Lesser Whitethroat.

After the rain had passed, I walked further around and picked up two more small birds flying over the scrub for one to disappear into a bush, whilst the other perched above. After finding a comfortable position with some cover, I focussed the bins on what was my first Linnet since I got back into birding - a perfectly-lit male. The other - a female - reappeared flying back towards an area to my right, and the male followed. The pair were repeatedly flying back and forth, from what must be a nest of young, to thistle-like plants providing them with seeds. The male almost-always watched over and escorted the female, whilst she collected and delivered the food. A really enjoyable scene for me to watch.

I could hear a Skylark singing overhead as I set off back along the main path, and a Green Woodpecker flew over me in the direction of the entrance. Around the corner, one - probably the same bird - was flushed out of the small meadow by the plantation where it had been feeding, as was a Stock Dove, which provided me with good views. Heading back up the path alongside the Parkside Pasture a brown speckled butterfly caught my attention, being a new species for me - I'm fairly certain it was a species called Speckled Wood.

Getting back to the task at hand, I scanned all the yew along the Woodman's Path for Goldcrest, but without luck. I haven't seen one in a while now - probably due to the time of year? Despite this, one of the larger yews did have a family of Coal Tit, with two adults feeding one or more juveniles, which were even hovering to feed themselves.

A male Kestrel was a nice surprise in Big Wood School Field, reasonably close to the fence. I watched it for a few minutes as it literally ran around on a patch of grass feeding on something from the ground. I guess this was some sort of insect(s), as I saw no sign of any worms. Further along, another Nuthatch was seen briefly up in the trees, and a single Jay flew down into Ted Heath. My last hope of a Treecreeper or Goldcrest was in the trees just before the Pit Tip, but despite waiting a few minutes for any signs, there was nothing about. However, just as I moved towards the exit, two Great Spotted Woodpecker flew over my head calling, and landed in a nearby tree. I had brief - but good - views of both birds, as one fed the other. Possibly a juvenile, but more probably the male passing the food it'd collected to the female for her to take back to the nest. A great finish to a lovely mid-day walk, with 32 species recorded, most of which came with good views.

A Silhouette in the Dark

A late evening walk to the Mill Lakes produced a few good birds. It began with a Green Woodpecker and two singing Skylark over the Pit Tip, followed by good views of a Common Whitethroat at Dawson's Corner by the western entrance. Nothing was to be seen at the Reedbed tonight, but the far side of the Mill Lakes gave me the best views I've ever had of two male Ruddy Duck: one with a bright blue bill and the other paler blue/grey. Both were parading the lake giving their display calls. Heading further around the lake (clockwise) a single male Shelduck was looking a little lost - a bit odd at this time of year.

The Leen Pastures had a single male Common Pheasant wandering amongst the rabbits and cattle, but no sign of anything else. Along the Railway Track a Dunnock was singing at the top of a gorse bush and three Brown Hare were on the golf course, but no sign of any Owls, which is what I'd been hoping for.

Back at the north end of the lake, I poured myself a coffee whilst watching all the wildfowl move towards their roosting positions. As the sunlight faded, a small bird flashed past me in the light of the (almost) full moon. A small bird, about the size of a Starling, had flown from the bank to one of the small islands, and landed on a tree branch that overhangs the water. All I could make out in the poor light was a light lower half and darker upper... then it started wagging its tail in the constant fashion that Grey Wagtails do, so it was almost certainly a Grey Wagtail. I watched it for several minutes while finishing my coffee, and it seemed to have gone to roost there. Something to note for my next pre-dawn visit.

It was gone 10pm, and the light had all but gone, so I headed back with the hope of glimpsing an Owl. Some parts of the Sustrans path were pretty closed in, so I used my torch to guide the way, flicking it up into the trees every so often - just in case! As I reached the point where the path doubles back on itself a noise from the trees behind me caught my attention. It sounded like an Owl call, so I shone the torch up for a quick glance... nothing... and then another call. Moving closer to the source of the sound, I was surprised that it was coming from mid-way up the tree, rather than the top. Shining the torch was answered by the same call, but further back, so I followed.

Using the sound (rather than the light) I was able to pinpoint what I thought was an Owl-like silhouette close to the main trunk of a tree about 20 feet away. Watching it with the bins, it didn't move, and I started to think I was looking in the wrong spot when it suddenly swooped downward and moved further away. I was about to get the video camera's night vision on when, all of a sudden, I heard several voices nearby and getting closer. This area isn't the best of places to be hanging around in the dark by yourself, so I went on my way contently, having just seen my first-ever Tawny Owl.

A Notts Rarity?... (or Just an Escape?)

Today I headed out fairly early, planning a long walk around to the Mill Lakes via the Goosedale area. The plan was to head through the woods and up Lamin's Lane to get there, but things didn't work out like that.

There wasn't much about in the woods, but a couple of singing Wren were the first I'd seen in a while. The first notable sighting was a Common Whitethroat singing from an overhead wire up Lamin's Lane. Several Greenfinch were doing the same thing, and a couple of Lapwing were in the adjacent field. As I headed up towards Killarney Park, I realized that the map was at home, and having never come as far as this, I was a little unsure as to how I'd find my way through: the place was like a maze of dead-ends. My hopeless wanderings paid off in the form of a distant male Yellowhammer singing at the top of hedge in a nearby farmer's field and close views (and footage) of a Willow Warbler managing to sing whilst carrying a fly in its bill. There were also good numbers of House Sparrow around the park, with many of the residents providing feeders and tables.

As I was about to turn around and give up, I found a public footpath up a so-called "Private Road", which led me down through the woods and into a farmer's field. There seemed to be a choice of two paths, one headed in the direction I was aiming for, but looked as if it dwindled to nothing, and the other was a more obvious path, but led towards Broadvalley Stables. Having wasted an hour wandering around the holiday park, I copped out and took the safe root. It produced another singing male Yellowhammer and a load of Skylark on the way, with some good views too.

At the Mill Lakes there was little of note on the lake: a pair of Ruddy Duck and a pair of Gadwall were probably the pairs seen on my previous visit. The number of Mute Swan seemed to be high at 19, but I've not done serious counts before. Heading to the north end, a female Blackcap was feeding in the trees along the path, but that was about it.

I decided to walk along the Railway Line to the Water Meadow, but this didn't produce anything but unfamiliar birdsong. I didn't venture down the embankment alongside the gate, but scanned the Golf Course in the hope of a Linnet. A single Barnacle Goose feeding with several Greylag Goose caught my attention - aside from being a patch tick, an in-land Barnacle Goose on a hot day at the end of May seemed a bit odd. It wasn't until after I'd reported what is a very rare winter visitor in Notts, that I realized it must have been feral - a pencil tick! I watched and filmed it for a few minutes in the pleasant morning sun, before my attention was caught by a Lapwing flying over and settling on the hill behind. Soon afterwards, a party of golfers appeared and put the geese up into the air, flying away in the direction of the Mill Lakes.

Walking further along the railway line produced several Whitethroat species, at least one of which was a Lesser Whitethroat, as heard by Norman the last time I was here. I looked about and listened for the Kestrel at the bridge, and the male appeared, hovering and calling before it disappeared again. A female Bullfinch was seen on the lawn of the nearby garden, but that was about all until back at the lake.

As I walked around the far side of the lake, a gull flew in from the south and landed on the water. At first glance it was just a Black-headed Gull, but on closer inspection I wasn't so sure. Having recently got back into birding, I haven't seen many gulls in summer plumage for a long time now. This gulls stood out to me because it's head and tail looked very brown, I would say chestnut brown. The bill was a deep red, and seemed longer than that of a Black-headed Gull. I noted several other details too, all of which later confirmed a Black-headed Gull, the tail colour may have been a trick of the light or some form of age/moult variation.

A Chiffchaff was near the entrance to the Reedbed, and my first Sedge Warbler was singing away in the scrub opposite the Reedbed. It kept flying from a perch in the scrub to some reeds on the opposite bank and back again to sing. At the end of the Reedbed Boardwalk a male Reed Bunting was seen singing away in one of the trees that break out of the Reedbed. A nearby female was seen almost on the water's edge, chasing or being chased about by another small bird (possibly a Sedge Warbler). Leaving the board walk, a male Bullfinch was on the grass behind the Alder Carr.

The return walk produced another male Kestrel over Dawson's Corner and a distant Sparrowhawk soaring above the trees and gardens near the Pit Tip Top. In all, a great morning (despite a little sunburn), with 50+ species seen and a couple of patch/life ticks.

Not So Swift Swift

An afternoon walk to the Adventure Playground with the kids produced three Common Swift - a surprisingly late patch tick! I'm sure I've seen them over the park from the house already this year (and probably in previous years too), but I've been too busy for birding since then. Also of note was my first Cuckoo, calling from the woods behind the Adventure Playground. However, I'm not counting it until I've seen one. A Green Woodpecker was on the large dead tree above the Three Ponds, and some other tree climbing birds (possibly juvenile Nuthatch) were too, but I didn't get a decent look.

An Evening in the Rain

A Garganey had been reported at the Mill Lakes by lunchtime, and despite the fact I should have been working, I couldn't pass up the opportunity of another lifer on my local patch, so I told myself that I'd go in the evening if I managed to get enough work done that day. By the end of the day (well 6pm), my work had gone well, so I quickly packed my things and headed off (although I'd have probably convinced myself to go either way!).

As I set off there was a little light rain, nothing to worry about, but enough to warrant waterproofs. Due to the rain, I didn't bother to stop and look at anything on the way there, and by the time I reached the Mill Lakes, the rain was quite heavy. A large group of House Martin and Barn Swallow were swarming over the trees and surface of the water, feeding on all the flies. I had a quick look over the Reedbed, but all it produced was a pair of wet and misted bins. After doing my best to dry them out enough to see through, I knew I'd have a tough time seeing much; but I ploughed on regardless.

Moving around the near side of the lake produced at least one male Ruddy Duck in summer plumage with reasonable views, despite the rain. A pair of Gadwall were the first of the year for me, and at the northern end of the lake, just south of Mud Island was a stunning male Garganey. Even in the rain, this bird looked great. I chanced some video footage in the rain as it paddled off towards the islands in the middle.There wasn't much point in staying after it disappeared from view: It was getting dark, and I was already soaked. I headed for the warmth of home, and the comfort of dry clothes and a cup of tea.