A Late Cluster of Warblers

This morning I went out to look for the two (or any!) Northern Wheatear that were seen on Friday afternoon on the Pit Tip. I didn't count on finding them, and I didn't find them. They've almost certainly moved on. Oh well- that's how it goes.

At the back of the Pit Tip Plantation a Red Fox was trotting across the path and down through the cow field, completely unphased by my presence. Heading down to Dawson's Corner three Grey Partridge were together in the cow field to the north. Dawson's Corner itself was pretty active with warblers. Chiffchaff were calling and one was singing, a male Blackcap was feeding on elder berries, and a Common Whitethroat was hanging about too. Along the hedgerow of the horse field, a low babble-like song caught my attention, and I got onto the Lesser Whitethroat that was singing it - a bit late in the year, eh?

At the Mill Lakes two juvenile Cormorant were on Tern Island showing off their white/pale breasts. In the middle part of the lake a single eclipse male Shoveler was being typically shy and swimming off after seeing me, and a female Ruddy Duck was knocking about there too. At least two pairs of Gadwall were present at the north end of the lake, and there were two female or eclipse male Teal around Mud Island. Heading back along the Sustrans path there was at least one juvenile Common Whitethroat moving through the trees near to the footbrdige, and whilst watching it a juvenile Goldcrest appeared.

Back at Dawson's Corner the warblers were still active, and a juvenile Chiffchaff was tagging on to a mixed Tit flock that also contained a single Coal Tit. Up on the Pit Tip Top a Sparrowhawk was sat in the trees of the conservation area along Front Line, and a dog walker flushed a group of eleven Meadow Pipit for me to count. Before heading home, I had a quick walk up Lamin's Lane in the hope of picking up the odd migrant, but it was all rather quiet. Three Mistle Thrush flew over heading for the woodland, a couple of Yellowhammer were on the wires, and a male Kestrel was hunting over Lamin's Plantation. Almost fifty species recorded, so I can't complain.

Quietly Content

Two Spotted Flaycatcher were reported on the Friends Forum, near to the Hatton Close entrance to the park. Almost certainly passing through, but there was a chance they were still around, after all, the Pied Flaycatcher was around for a few days. Anyway, I headed out at first light, and there wasn't much to see or hear along the path behind Warren Hill, so I headed out onto the Pit Tip, where it was also quiet. I did meet Carl (the guy who'd seen the Spotted Flycatchers) though, and he gave me all the details - they'd moved on. The only notable sightings on the Pit Tip were a pair of Lesser Black-backed Gull flying over, and a singing male Chiffchaff at Dawson's Corner and a further bird heard calling at the Sidings.

I didn't have too long before heading off to work, so I put in a quick visit to Bestwood Quarry. At the entrance a Great Spotted Woodpecker flushed into a nearby tree and remained out of view as a Sparrowhawk flew over. Heading down to my usual scoping spot, in front of the hillside, a scruffy looking Common Buzzard was being mobbed by two crows as it flew over from behind the hill towards Warrenhill Plantation. From the brief views, it looked to be a pale-phase juvenile.

I was about to head back when I heard alarm calls coming from further along the valley, and looked up to see a raptor in an odd flight manoeuvre. It was a small- to medium-sized bird, and seemed to be making a short vertical lifting flight whilst calling, up from one of the trees, or possibly from behind it. All I could make out was the underside - pale and streaked or barred, with an orange or rusty colour around the legs. I made my way up the path, nearer to the bird's location, hoping it might have been a Hobby. A Red Fox darted across the path from the approximate location of the tree that the bird had been near to. This, I assumed, was the cause of alarm. Reaching the level of the tree's top, there was no sign of the bird around the tree, but a Sparrowhawk was gliding lower down through the valley, and so I assumed that it was the same bird.

From the higher vantage point, I scanned the opposite hillside as the sun began to warm everything up. I located a single Common Whitethroat, and heard some more Chiffchaff calling. A small party of larger gulls flew over to the east, containing five Lesser Black-backed Gull and two Herring Gull, and a Common Buzzard was calling in the distance, but remained out of sight. A relatively quiet morning, but enjoyable nonetheless.

First in a While

Well, since I'd not been out for over a month I decided to make a good morning of it and visit most of the park - weather permitting. However, the weather wasn't very permitting, and it rained most of the morning, making life difficult for my optics and my not-so-waterproof left walking boot!

At dawn, there was little to see or hear on the Pit Tip Top. No Skylark, no Meadow Pipit, just a lowly Lesser Black-backed Gull flying over. Even the very common stuff was eluding me - except a load of Woodpigeon - but it's hard not to see one of those. Dawson's Corner was scarcely better. I could hear a couple of Willow Warbler and Chiffchaff calling, but never saw them.

The Reedbed was bare, except for a Wren on the Boardwalk and another Willow Warbler calling nearby. The two remaining juvenile Mute Swan were together on the lake, and a single Cormarant briefly flew around the south end. Duck-wise there were far more Mallard than are usually present, with around 250 birds seen. They were very flighty, and seemed to be working their way toward the south end, where most of the 20 or so Tufted Duck were. At the north end was a single Gadwall, and an eclipse male Teal. A Kingfisher calling from a perch on Mud Island, provided the best footage I managed to-date, and returned to the perched a few times throughout the hour.

The Leen Pastures and Broad Valley Stables were both very quiet, with nothing of note during a light rain shower. At Bestwood Quarry the quietness continued, and two Green Woodpecker flying over were the only new birds I picked up on. I sat down to try and scope the hillside, but it was silent and still. Looking up, something was flying over towards Lamin's Lane, it looked gullish, so I got the bins onto it before it disappeared. How glad I was that I bothered to look - it was a Curlew. My first for the park! Keeping my eyes to the sky, I also picked up a distant Sparrowhawk high over the back of the Quarry before I headed home.

A Visit to Tophouse Farm

This evening I walked to the Friends of Bestwood Country Park meeting that was held at Tophouse Farm. On the way there I glimpsed a pair of Grey Partridge with at least one juvenile, as they ran into cover in the cereal field to the north-east of the junction on Lamin's Lane. Later that evening we saw - what I assume was - another pair in the middle of the field to the west of the junction. A Grey Heron was also flying over near the farm, probably from the lake at Lakeside (Papplewick Pumping Station), and there were good numbers of Barn Swallow and House Martin around the farm too. Walking back after dark, at least two Tawny Owl were calling from around the Dinosaur Dell area.

One Gone, Two to Stay?

This morning there were at least nine Skylark over the Pit Tip Top, and a singing male Meadow Pipit on top of a fence post on the track to the Cow Gates. Three juvenile Chiffchaff were catching insects at the Sustrans entrance to Dawson's Corner, and two Willow Warbler were calling nearby too.

At the Mill Lakes the Mute Swan family seem to hae lost one of their young, with only two juveniles present at the southern end of the lake. A female Ruddy Duck was also seen at the southern end. At the other end of the lake there was a single male Teal, and 23 Black-headed Gull were on the water, including two juveniles. At least two Sand Martin were amongst a larger group of House Martin that were hawking insects over the lake, and a Grey Wagtail was seen briefly on Mud Island before flying off to the north. On the way back, a group of four Mistle Thrush were on the Horse Paddock near the entrance to Bestwood Quarry.

Playing on the Line

Four Meadow Pipit were showing well on the Pit Tip Top this morning, and a Mistle Thrush flew over the Plantation from the direction of Dunvegan Gate. A Brown Hare was alongside the Plantation gate by the pond, and another Meadow Pipit was displaying from a fence post along the path down to the Cow Gates. At Dawson's Corner there was a juvenile Common Whitethroat, and a singing male Chiffchaff.

At the Mill Lakes, three of the juvenile Mute Swan were with their parents, and a group of three Jay flew to a tree on a nearby island whilst I was trying to scope an elusive duck, which turned out to be a female Ruddy Duck. Before heading to the Leen Pastures I noted a pair of Chiffchaff were again at the Double Gates - a singing male and a calling female. A Common Whitethroat was singing along the Railway Embankment at Leen Pastures, and a pair of Bullfinch were seen there too. Two Herring Gull flew north-east together over Leen Pastures, and I got some great views of a party of three juvenile Kestrel playing together on the Railway Line: Two perched on the old signal ladder, and one down on the rails.

Back at the lake a pair of Common Tern were over the north end. Both were calling, and one was carrying a small fish, with the other was chasing after it. They flew around several times low over the lake before heading off. On the way home, a female with a juvenile Green Woodpecker were seen calling in a tree between Alexandra Lodge and Calluna Clearing.

Signets

My morning visit to the Mill Lakes produced a male Bullfinch feeding in a hedgerow along Sustrans path - the first I've seen in ages. A Grey Wagtail flew from close to the Vehicle Bridge over the Reedbed towards the tram line as I arrived at the lake, whilst a couple of Reed Warbler and a Lesser Whitethroat were singing close to the Reedbed Boardwalk. A male Kestrel was over the scrub opposite the Reedbed, and a pair of Mute Swan were with three young at the southern end of lake - probably the pair that nested nearby.

At least 80 Canada Goose were present in three large groups, including one bird that had odd head markings and pink bill, possibly hybridized with a Greylag Goose. A single male Gadwall was present at the northern end of the lake, and a single adult Black-headed Gull flew over and settled on the water. A relatively quiet morning.