Gwent Birding

Too cold to rain,... almost

2012-02-09T21:31:00.000Z

Have had a couple of days upstairs this week, not upstairs proper, but upstairs enough to be wandering around in a landscape of hoar frost, catty ice and all-round general frizzness. Very few birds of note: Woodcock, a couple of brave Stonechats and a handful of Snipe were about the sum of it.

It's not a tiny lorry, it's very far away

2012-02-06T21:11:00.000Z

It was pretty quiet out there today, one or two Crossbills high overhead was about my lot.

If you click on the picture you will see a bridge,... and another bridge, and two pylons and a bit of land,... on both sides! And a teeny-tiny lorry.

Nippy out

2012-02-01T23:22:00.000Z

A couple of chilly days out in the field. Nothing too exciting but still heaps of Yellowhammers in the South Gloucestershire hedgerows or, at least, heaps more than in the South Gwentshire hedgerows.

Don't see enough of these round here. Didn't see this one round here.

Random larid beauty

2012-01-23T23:17:00.001Z

She walks in beauty, like the night // Of cloudless climes and starry skies; // And all that’s best of dark and bright // Meet in her aspect and her eyes...

Lord Byron (George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron, later George Gordon Noel) there, with a poem inspired by his love of all things larid.

Ooh! Tea and biscuits

2012-01-22T18:13:00.001Z

This morning, both Glossy Ibis were again in the field at the top end of Boat Lane before flying further out onto the grasslands. They are observable from either Boat Lane or Goldcliff Road. Whichever vantage point you try, don't park at the top end of Boat Lane, it is not appreciated by the local resident(s) and rubs the Countryside and Rights of Way Act up the wrong way too,... or something along those lines,... so don't do it.

Between Boat Lane, Saltmarsh/Farmfield lanes and Llanwern we also had 80+ Greylag Goose, 2 Greylag x Canada Goose hybrids, 4 Stonechat (bit thin on the ground at the mo) and a Chiffchaff.

[NB. I'm giving up on titles, you will now get whatever enters my mind just before I press 'publish post'.]

Íslendingasögur or Up at Buggerall

2012-01-21T21:23:00.000Z

Það dreymdi mig, að eg þóttist ríða fram hjá Pont-y-pŵl. Þar þóttist eg sjá Íslendisvanr mjög marga og sóttu þeir allir að mér en eg sneri undan fram að Llandegfeddhaf. Þá þótti mér þeir sækja að öllum megin en eg varðist. Eg skaut alla þá er fremstir voru þar til er þeir gengu svo að mér að eg mátti eigi boganum við koma. Tók eg þá sverðið og vó eg með annarri hendi en lagði með atgeirinum annarri hendi. Hlífði eg mér þá ekki og þóttist eg þá eigi vita hvað mér hlífði. Drap eg þá marga svanr og með mér Senoj en Naheem þótti mér þeir hafa undir og slíta á honum brjóstið og hafði einn hjartað í munni sér. En eg þóttist verða svo reiður að eg hjó svanr í sundur fyrir aftan bóguna og eftir það þóttu mér stökkva svanr.

Harrowing huh?! And you know what, this afternoon, it all came true,... honest.

[NB. Obviously, names have been changed to protect the innocent; oh, and I couldn't decide which title to go with,... take your pick.]

Oooh, shiny shiny

2012-01-20T23:58:00.000Z

Took a while but, eventually, had good views of the two Glossy Ibis this afternoon. At turns they pottered about in the glorious sunshine, a shimmering vision of burnished copper and verdigris; or, wading under overcast skies, taking on the look of a pair of grumpy, overweight, oil-stained Curlew.

Earlier, whilst wandering in search of the ibis, had the Greenland White-front with Canadas just west of the sea-wall end of Boat Lane; and had a first-winter female Merlin towards the sea-wall end of Saltmarsh Lane, she came up off the deck but proceeded to sit in the top of a hedge preening,... all very nice and prolonged viewy.

Goosander survey take 3

2012-01-15T18:54:00.000Z

Despite the lowered water level on the top basin, Ynys-y-fro is really going out of its way to remain shite this winter. One Gadwall, three Shoveler and ten Teal were the best of the wildfowl during this afternoon's Goosander survey; a single Chiffchaff was the only other mentionable. I even counted a flyover flock of Jackdaw,... not good,... not good.

Technology exceeding humanity

2012-01-14T22:37:00.000Z

Spent most of the day trying to fix my Coolpix, the internal clock appears to have reset itself to 1843. Bloody nuisance.

Bleeding 'pencil of nature', Calotype schmalotype is what I say.

Of course, the silver lining is that, were I to nip to Iceland and point it at Eldey, I might yet get a photo of a Great Auk.

Hampshire, Hampshire, Hampshire

2012-01-13T21:43:00.000Z

Hampshire, Hampshire, Hampshire,
There's an old saying in Hampshire,
"Hampshire is top banana,... yeeeah."
But why is it so great?
Well I'll tell you why it,
It's because of the birds that live in Hampshire,
And it is these birds that I'll be telling you about in this award breaking blog post.

Went to Hampshire today, saw Spanish Sparrow and Dark-eyed Junco and some other birds and ponies,... but them are not birds. The end.

Unfortunately, the above sign proved too much for the Meehan,... he never returned, as far as I know he fashioned a bed out of Dorset Apple Cake and stayed the night.

I went outside

2012-01-12T22:56:00.000Z

Despite suffering from the arse end of proper manflu, I have actually been in the field this week. Not an awful lot to show for it, but I have bumped into Woodcock and Black Redstart.

A real rarity, a field of stubble and, whaddaya know, this was the only place I saw Skylark and Reed Bunting today. The conservation of farmland birds,... it ain't rocket surgery is it.

Welcome to Gwent

2011-12-30T16:46:00.000Z

Imagine this for six months of the year,...

... it's a bit like living in a forgotten, damp corner of a Tim Burton's 'Sleepy Hollow',... minus Christina Ricci,... and devoid of the excitement.

Weather for laying down and avoiding,... or for popping to Cardiff to bag merino base layers in the sales. Job done.

Magor Pill and Marsh

2011-12-29T23:39:00.000Z

A half-hearted, semi-coordinated search for yesterday's putative Black Brant saw me heading eastwards this morning. Unfortunately, thanks to the usual level of disturbance along the Severn Estuary SPA (e.g. two dog-walkers exercising their walkees on the limited areas of uncovered saltmarsh at high tide), Magor Pill only produced wheeling masses of calidrids wasting their energy supplies out over the water; the small, breakaway parties that did briefly settle only contained Dunlin and soon skittered off again. At one point I counted a flock of 1,600 birds but there were probably nearer 3,000 present in total. Wildfowl were dominated by Shelduck, certainly no geese around, and apart from a female Merlin it was all rather tedious.

A potter around Magor Marsh produced three Cetti's Warbler (including two singing males) and 1 Water Rail. Couldn't muster so much as a Chiffchaff amongst the tit flock, let alone a Firecrest,... or better. Cut my losses, buggered off home.

Does anything rhyme with massacre?

2011-12-18T19:15:00.000Z

Urgh! Ynys-y-fro twice in three days,... not healthy,... not healthy at all.

Mind you, I did actually record a Goosander on this, the second, Gwent [Gwentian? Gwentish?] Goosander Survey visit. It didn't actually sully its plumage with Ynys-y-fro water though, just a flyover, heading SE.

'Highlights' [hold on], 'highlights' [those inverted commas big enough for ya?] included: 1 Teal, 1 Gadwall, 3 Shoveler, 3 flyover Lapwing and a Snipe which flushed from the field into which the Woodcock disappeared last time - cryptic-coloured-long-schnozz central. The Little Grebe numbers are still in double figures but the lone 1st-winter Moorhen is yet to attract any friends, despite the low water levels and exposed mud on the top basin.

[Brassica? A half-rhyme at least.]

No snow

2011-12-16T17:52:00.000Z

The promised once-in-a-hundred-year snow storm produced a dusting on the hill opposite and a slightly threatening looking sky. Despite the obvious dangers, I headed off to Ynys-y-fro in the hope of witnessing the predictable exodus of Lapwing and Golden Plover fleeing the ferocious arctic blast. One Teal, one Gadwall, four Shoveler and a nascent runny nose later and I was in Morrisons looking for organic baked beans with which to line the cupboards. You never know, I could be trapped in this not-quite-whiteout, beyond the reach of outside help, you may never hear from me again.

I'm going downstairs for a cuppa,... I may be some time.

Someone at the Highways Agency knows his Gwent birding locations.

Still not much doing

2011-12-16T00:57:00.000Z

Whether at sea-level or up-country, this week, when I have been out, I have been getting cold and wet,... and seeing precious little to make it all worthwhile. Mind you, beats sitting at the computer.

Ref 1 - 0 Liverpool

2011-12-05T23:31:00.000Z

We had a great view and, when the ref is brought up in front for crimes against football, I am expecting to be called as a star witness. One penalty-non-penalty, one disallowed non-offside-offside goal and one non-sending-off-sending-off resulted in our first loss in 12 games.

"The referee's a stereotype!" rang from the Putney End.

Better post something or people will think I've left the country

2011-12-04T18:39:00.000Z

If anyone is looking for a few digiscoping bits and bobs, there's a camera, adapter/adaptor and eyepiece on sale here. It's not mine, although the camera is identical to mine, actually let me just check,...

... no, it's not mine.

A day during which the sun and Barney take the piss

2011-11-24T23:55:00.001Z

Another day goosing around down Boat Lane. All of the birds were slightly more amenable than they have been, in fact the Greenland Whitefront was within 'almost close' range at times. Mind you, just as the entire flock started to draw near, the sun disappeared, which means I still haven't bagged really good photos of the hutchinsii/taverneri-but-most-probably-hutchinsii-given-the-ranges-etc Cackling Goose but did manage some passable video before they were all flushed onto the pill by something scary, unknown and unseen.

On top of the crap light and borderline working distance, getting pictures of the wee fella was not helped by Barney working on his photo-bombing technique.

[NB. Still no sound recordings, couldn't help but bag the new Cetti's singing down there though.]

What is happening to Autumnwatch?

2011-11-21T14:05:00.000Z

More evidence of the BBC dumbing down their nature/environmental programming. Who has Chris Packham taken birdwatching now? I think that's Martin Hughes-Games on the right but don't recognise the others?

Ynys-y-fro tick!

2011-11-20T20:24:00.000Z

The Goosander survey at Ynys-y-fro produced precisely no Goosander. It did turn up three Wigeon, nine Shoveler, a Gadwall and nine Little Grebe, all of which, I'd say, qualify for 'good haul' status in a Ynys-y-fro context [NB. should that be "an Ynys-y-fro context"?]. The real highlight, however, was a Woodcock which flew across the road as I gave up on trying to see in the dark (damn my lack of tapetum) and headed back to the car - Ynys-y-fro tick!

Oh yeah, I saw a Sharp-tailed Sand today

2011-11-19T23:41:00.001Z

Bagged the Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Long-billed Dowitchers and Spotted Sandpiper (plus Red-breasted Merganser, Bewick's Swans, etc., etc.) at Chew Valley Lake this morning and then popped down to Torr Reservoir for the really good stuff,...

A few images of the, rather light-dependent, breast coloration, the contrast between coverts and their pale tips and bill structure [NB. Will try for better shots of the same on the Gwent bird tomorrow,... again]. Didn't hear any calls definitely attributable to the Richardson's but, when the entire Canada (plus Bar-headed,... plus Canada x Greylag hybrid) flock flew from the fields to the reservoir at dusk, I did hear two very high pitched (but more-or-less canadensis structured calls), probably higher pitched than any female canadensis I have heard and, presumably, emanating from the little guy/gal.

Cutesy but not too cutesy bill profile. This bird has a much more restricted whitish collar at the base of the neck sock than our little tiddler.

Second generation scapular tips markedly more contrasting (broader and paler) than, actually not that contrasting, juvenile covert tips.

Ditto re scaps but note that brassy/bronzey sheen to the upper breast/lower neck.

Ditto re scaps but, wait a minute?! Where'd the metalwork go?

A less subtle example of the effect of different lighting on the breast. Now you see it,...

Never been to Torr before, not a bad little reservoir, even had a few waders with two Black-tailed Godwits, eight Snipe and five Lapwing dotted about,... not quite Chew mind.

And you thought hybrid geese were shit

2011-11-17T22:47:00.000Z

Ever seen a Goshawk x Sparrowhawk hybrid? No, I hadn't either, until today, when a chap comes along the sea-wall noisy accipiter on his glove. Luckily, for those of you who may want to see such a chimaera, and despite a certain caginess on the part of the owner, I was told it was "from a bloke in Wales" so, who knows, at some point one or two might escape and roam about, confusing all and sundry.

It's birds like this that bring out my cynical side, I couldn't help but wonder: a. about the origin of the breeding stock; and b. what is the point in this hybrid? I mean, if, for whatever reason, you wanted a bird of prey somewhere between Goshawk and Sparrowhawk why not get a Cooper's Hawk? Or a life,... obviously,... you could just get a life.

Don't get me started on Gyr x Merlin.

New goose in town

2011-11-14T20:50:00.001Z

Hanging with the homeboys,...

... ready for action,...

... strutting his stuff, "Hell-o ladies!"...

... making an entrance, "Let's PARRR-TAY!"

Keeping his head down, "Who let them in?!"

The dark-breasted hutchinsii-type Cackling Goose spent the morning on Goldcliff Pill, as did the two Canada x Greylag hybrids. Yesterday morning's Greenland White-fronted Goose was present on the grasslands but, for long periods, was hidden from view,... and Barney is still in his field.

PS. This bird is being reported by RBA as an escape, I would suggest 'of unknown origin' is a better label. This bird has occurred at the 'right' time of year, is the 'right' age, has arrived at roughly the same time as hutchinsii-types elsewhere (Islay [2], Sligo [3], Mayo [1], Donegal [1] and Somerset [1]), has arrived with another transatlantic species (Greenland White-fronted Goose, [only the second for Gwent]), is behaving like a wild bird, lacks any signs of captivity, has arrived at the same time as other transatlantic geese appearing in the region (Pale-bellied Brent Goose and Black Brant in Glamorgan), and is on the western side of the UK. OK, so there are lots of hutchinsii-type Cackling Goose in captivity and Gwent isn't Islay (and all the points above have a slight whiff of desperation hanging over them) but, if you keep a Welsh or Gwent list, you should probably make the effort to see it.

He's only ickle

2011-11-13T11:46:00.003Z

Early November, appears at the same time as Greenland White-fronted Goose (Gwent's second record), unringed, undamaged wings, won't allow close approach; well that's the provenance sorted, now what the furcular is it?

Bill: small, short, stubby but not quite the ridiculous little triangular affair of minima.
Body size: very small, only seen in close association with UK feral Canada Goose (mostly canadensis? Referred to here as canadensis) although Greenland White-fronted Goose and Barnacle Goose also present. Body length appeared approximately two thirds of canadensis but much less in bulk (you might get three to every one canadensis; or, to put it another way, if a canadensis is 3 hours at Gas mark 6, then this bird would only be 1.5 hrs). Whilst not seen alongside one another, it seemed slightly smaller than Barnacle.
Neck: quite thick and, at all times, very short, even when extended during pre-flight anxiety behaviour.

Overall colour: dark, upperpart base colour a shade or two darker than canadensis; underparts very dark similar to canadensis upperparts, pretty concolouress across breast and belly, darker on lower neck, contrasting strongly with white collar, and regular pale and sparse blackish barring on flanks. Also a slight brassy sheen to the breast. Vent undertail and uppertail white. Tail blackish.
White 'cheeks': quite extensive and, though thinning slightly, still broad and square-ended at top.
Collar: clean white, quite deep on fore-neck thinning, and petering out, on sides.
Black chin stripe: lacking, although perhaps a slight 'dent' of black below the bill (maybe).
Voice: not heard (yet)
Structure: proportionately narrow in 'arm' and 'hand', quite a pointed wingtip; horizontal carriage; steep forehead and square head shape.

Structurally good (great?) for hutchinsii but really dark-breasted. Anyone got a photo of Hanson's 'baffinensis'?

See here for discussion and photos of the recent (near identical) bird at CVL, Blagdon Lake and Torr Reservoir (co-travellers or co-escapees?); and see here, and the references therein, for a good starting point to a white-cheeked goose inspired mental disorder.

Catching the penny?

2011-11-12T19:47:00.000Z

Caught up with CH's Slavonian Grebe at Uskmouth this morning then went on a tour of likely Pallas'/Yellow-browed/Firecrest locales in the surrounding environs all of which looked exceedingly likely, none of which produced. Actually, Fishyfinger/Fishybox [or whatever it is called] Lane looked absolutely perfect for a Dusky Warbler and I consider it the height of rudeness that one wasn't present. Of those things that did pop up, mentionables included: a juv/first-winter Marsh Harrier, the female Pochard hybrid, good numbers of Water Rails, a few flyover Snipe and Skylark, and both Chiffchaff and Blackcap.

Saw a fair few of these today.

Might have missed top bird of the day though, NC had a, presumably escaped but who knows(?), ickle (minima-looking hutchinsii apparently,... maybe) Canada Goose this evening.

I've been here before

2011-11-11T13:19:00.000Z

Thought I'd finished my extended vigil on the much disputed Avon/South Gloucestershire boundary, but no, another week back on the soft banks of the Severn. Nothing too outrageous to report: 16 Dark-bellied Brent Geese, the odd Yellowhammer and Little Egret, a few Rock Pipits and a Brambling; best (and worst) of the bunch though was the terrible view of a Hawfinch disappearing NE high overhead. I hate getting shit views of a good bird.

Shrike porn

2011-11-07T19:21:00.000Z

A couple more of this lovely little fella/lass from Saturday.

It's amazing how much difference...

... a slight change in the auto white balance makes. If I was interested in accuracy I guess I'd start carrying a neutral grey card around with me.

[NB. Just in case nobody notices, I removed a twig from the background of the top image.]

Where not to watch birds in Gwent: Caldicot Moor

2011-11-06T18:16:00.000Z

The long-awaited second instalment of this once-every-37-months feature takes in the delightful Caldicot Moor.

Location - Just south-east of Undy; from junction J23a of the M4 head south and then bear left (signposted Magor), at the mini-roundabout turn right and stay on the B4245 for approximately 4.5 km through Magor and Undy. On reaching Llanfihangel near Rogiet turn right onto the minor road signposted Severn Tunnel Junction Station. After approximately 0.5 km you will pass the station on your left, head over the bridge crossing the railway and then, almost immediately, the bridge over the M4. On crossing the second bridge you have arrived at the eastern end of the moor.

Access - The majority of the moor, can be viewed from the main track (telescope essential) which you join by turning right at the T-junction approximately 200 m from the M4 bridge mentioned above. This track runs south-west across the moor before reaching another T-junction (turn right) and then another (turn left); it then joins a minor road which can be followed to Undy and the B4245. On the left, 600 m along the main track, is Fisherman's Lane, a track leading to the sea wall.

Habitat - The fields to the south of the road are largely improved grassland grazed by cattle and sheep; those to the north are a mixture of improved grassland and arable with limited areas prone to flooding.

Species - Very few species of bird have been located at this site making it another of the premier sites for not watching birds in the county. Apart from seeing a very small number of Buzzard, Kestrel, Lapwing and Skylark, this afternoon I managed to not watch birds during most of my visit.

Caldicot Moor, probably best to stay to the track or you might get shot in the privates.

Fisherman's Lane, tree-lined along its southern half, but for lying under a Gwentish sky, it would look ideal for a Yellow-browed Warbler or Firecrest.

Shrikeathon Day 2

2011-11-05T19:25:00.000Z

An hour into our return to Pembs and it didn't look good; a Black Redstart had popped up, a Lapland Bunting had gone over and two or three misplaced Water Rails had been logged in amongst the very 'birdy' fields and hedgerows, but there was a distinct lack of shrike. Then, a bit of long distance, mobile communication orchestrated, wizardry, resulted in us locating the lovely little critter sitting on the 'wrong' side of a nearby hedge. After another temporary disappearing trick (during which, entertainment was provided by a first-winter Hen Harrier) the bird resurfaced, eventually working its way back to the, now almost famous, five-bar gate, at which it showed down to not many metres at all.

A quick nose around in the bottom of the valley failed to result in the hoped for Pallas'/Yellow-browed/Firecrest but was punctuated with a brief heart-stopping moment when I noticed an amorphous, pale sandy, blob in the bottom of some dense scrub. The colour wasn't unlike the flanks of American Woodcock, but this is not why the moment was heart-stopping, no, the anxiety occurred on realising that I was not observing it, it was observing me,... the hunter had become the hunted,... I had come face to face with the Pembrokeshire Panther.

Shrikeathon Day 1

2011-11-04T19:52:00.001Z

Schlepped up to Salop for the shrike. Good scope views but left the Coolpix in the car, so had to make do with the DSLR,... you can see what it is.

PS. Overheard at the twitch: "I suppose if it was a 'normal' one it would sit on the top of the bushes".

SQUIDGY BAWWWG!

2011-11-01T23:39:00.001Z

Lovely day in the hills, in between the showers it was mostly dry,... except in the wet bits.

Hen's teeth

2011-10-29T21:11:00.000+01:00

Well that doesn't happen often. I leave Gwent for some decent birding and Gwent has a better day than I do. The birding gods are fickle fairy folk aren't they. Fickle and bleeding annoying.

What a silly bunt

2011-10-28T23:34:00.000+01:00

Popped down to Peterstone/Sluice Farm in search of the Lapland Bunting this afternoon. Slogged from the church to beyond the blockhouse and back. There were pipits, there were larks, there were even buntings, but not the right bunting. Short-eared Owl and Black Redstart, both near the blockhouse, were probably the highlights. Discovering that, given enough time, my wellie/waterproof sock combination still results in a wet left foot was probably the lowlight.

I assume these nets are part of a healthy, well managed and efficiently regulated fishery along this part of the estuary.

Nicer piccies

2011-10-27T13:35:00.001+01:00

Look what appeared in my inbox this morning. I think Mr. Thoburn may have found this blog and taken pity on my attempts at photography :)

Image courtesy of Gary Thoburn (www.garytsphotos.zenfolio.com).

Image courtesy of Gary Thoburn (www.garytsphotos.zenfolio.com). I should point out, these images were taken in the warming glow of the low-angled evening light, the first two images in yesterday's post, taken in overcast conditions, are probably a more accurate impression of the colour tones of the bird's plumage,... these are much nicer piccies though :)

Better make the best of it

2011-10-26T23:19:00.000+01:00

Not showing so well this afternoon,...

... either it knew I had my proper camera,...

... or it may have noticed the 15-20 other people knocking around. Still jubbly though,... very jubbly.

The internal timeline of the clueless mind

2011-10-25T23:56:00.010+01:00

The first 15 things that crossed my mind on finding a Pied Wheatear:

Oooh look! A wheatear [lower case], this will probably be bird of the day.
Er,... why isn't that a female Pied?
Why do I keep my Coolpix at the bottom of my bastard-to-open rucksack and not in my pocket?
Pale, grey-toned and cold-looking overall, fringing to the lower scaps (f. difficult to see on crown, mantle, etc.), chat-like jizz, quite long-winged.
Why won't this bird show me it's tail pattern?
Oooh,... there's the tail.
Can I remember how to exclude Eastern Black-eared? Can I bog-roll.
The usual pangs of self-doubt admixed with the fear that some bastard will appear and re-identify it as melanoleuca and then I'll have to live with the searing mental anguish until, one bleak winter's morning, I'm found face down in an icy ditch, a brisk northerly snatching the last few sodden pages of Magnus Ullman's seminal 1994 Dutch Birding paper from my rigid grasp.
Better 'phone a friend'. [having attempted to phone at least half a dozen 'friends', none of whom picked up...]
Is my phone on the blink? [remembering my crack IT training I turn it off and on again].
When is my new phone arriving?
Input garnered from Messers Seth, Gates, Bull and Townend (not neccesarily in that order [can't remember order, many thanks all]).
Better put it out as a Pied then.
Always trust your first impressions, unless they're wrong, in which case, don't.
OMG! One of the locals seems to have his phone switched off, another is in Norfolk and I think another just thought I said Pied Flycatcher,... *is* my phone on the blink? Am I on the blink? Is everyone else on the blink?

... and so it went on, indeed, goes on.

Up on the roof.

Oldbury-on-Severn Pied Wheatear Information

2011-10-25T22:30:00.004+01:00

Just sticking this up quickly to give directions, etc. Don't worry, will add more later.

Location: The bird was feeding on and around the buildings at Thornbury Sailing Club and around the wooden post/tyres, etc., adjacent to the concrete slipway. As far as I know the bird was present until dusk.

Parking: Parking is available in Oldbury-on-Severn, opposite the pub at OS grid ST608924.

Access: If walking from the above parking, take the path along the north side of the sluice/drain and after about 900m you arrive at the sailing club. This area is officially private (owned by the sailing club) but, having been asked, members of the club were happy to allow access this afternoon. I would strongly suggest asking somebody on site, if present, before wandering across to the slipway or, once a club member arrives check whether it is OK to remain near the slipway. Obviously stay away from the boats.

STUCK [...] WITH AN OWL!

2011-10-24T20:05:00.000+01:00

A seemingly knackered Short-eared Owl was 'bird of the windy day' over yonder in sunny South Gloucestcestcestcestcestcestershire. It spent the hours hunkering in the seaweed, only moving when forced by the local corvids/gulls or, later on, when the incoming tide reached its ankles.

Quite a dark and well-marked bird, *must* be suinda or bogotensis, actually, why shoot low? Galápagos Short-eared Owl on my Glos list!

Brand new wooden-skin pill-box hide

2011-10-23T20:47:00.000+01:00

Saltmarsh Lane and foreshore were dead-diddly-dead-dead this afternoon, probably not helped by the party of 20 passing ramblers or the fishyman on the saltmarsh with his Staffordshire Bull Terrier.

Goldcliff Lagoons were slightly better. At least six Greenshank were present over high tide along with two Spotted Redshank and 35 Grey Plover. Non-highlights included: one Black-tailed Godwit, one Snipe, 155 Lapwing, 47 Redshank, 23 Oystercatcher, 70 Dunlin and 12 Fieldfare heading east.

[NB. Yes, ladles and gentlespoons, birding in Gwent has inspired the coining and use of the new ornithological term 'non-highlight'.]

The view from the new hide. Look birds in the afternoon that aren't silhouettes!

Good enough in a squeeze

2011-10-19T00:08:00.000+01:00

And now for that in depth review of the iPhone 4S as a digiscoping/binning camera or, because I have a life and would rather be doing something else, a quick image of something on the other side of my study,...

iPhone 4S + Leica 8x42 Ultravids at minimum focus distance under terrible lighting with my standard digi-scoping post-processing applied, i.e. into Nikon Capture NX2 for a very small amount of contrast (+5), resized for blog (900 pixels along longest edge) and a gentle unsharp mask (intensity 20%, radius 3%, threshold 1).

I'm sure I could get a picture of a large, slow moving rarity if I absolutely had to. I'll probably still reach for the DSLR to document the flyby Asian Red-rumped Swallow mind.

PS. If I remember, I'll point it at a bird this weekend,... stay tuned tech fans.

PPS. I saw my first Short-eared Owl of the autumn today,... and a Dark-bellied Brent Goose, both over yonder, in deepest South Gloucestershire.

October in Gwent

2011-10-16T16:49:00.000+01:00

Another morning doing the lanes and Uskmouth, this time preceded by a few light showers, absolutely bound to have forced down the migrating hordes and decorated the hedgerows with Yellow-broweds and Firecrests,... or not. Almost identical species as Friday, mostly in slightly smaller numbers:

Lots - Siskin;
Plenty - Chaffinch and Redpoll;
A fair few - Lapwing, Skylark, Meadow Pipit, Fieldfare, Redwing, Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Goldcrest, Bearded Tit and Goldfinch;
A handful - alba wagtail, Linnet and Reed Bunting; and
One - aythya hybrid and Snipe.

PS. When they find my body below Goldcliff Point, head and torso embedded in the mud, legs stiffly protruding, Black-headed Gull perched on my upturned boot, this blog will be reappraised and gain an entry in The Guinness Book of World Records under 'the longest and most convoluted suicide note EVER'.

Throwing the morning hours away

2011-10-14T17:56:00.001+01:00

A morning 'vis migging' and Yellow-browed hunting down the lanes seemed a great idea. The light SE breeze promised much but, without a little weather to push stuff down, only produced an airborne parade devoid of a star performer. Managed to muster the following movers and shakers:

Lots - Siskin and Redpoll;
Plenty - Lapwing, Skylark, Redwing and Chaffinch;
A fair few - Meadow Pipit, Fieldfare, Bearded Tit (doing the spirally-up-high-are-they-aren't-they-going-to-actually-fly-off-thing), Greenfinch (seemed to be moving) and Goldfinch;
A handful - Snipe, alba wagtail, Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Linnet and Reed Bunting; and
One - Ruff, Whimbrel, Swallow, Grey Wagtail and Stonechat.

Not a Yellow-browed Warbler,... barely a bird really,... feathered mouse?

Bird poisoning in Monmouthshire

2011-10-12T17:48:00.002+01:00

The following was issued yesterday by RSPB Cymru, in conjunction with Gwent Police and the Welsh Assembly Government.

Authorities appeal for information over bird poisoning in Monmouthshire

RSPB offers £1000 reward for information leading to a conviction

Gwent Police, the Welsh Government and RSPB Cymru are appealing for information after a buzzard and two ravens were found poisoned in July at a site near Blaenavon, Monmouthshire. The RSPB is offering a reward of £1000 for information leading to a conviction.

Welsh Government Officials collected the birds as part of its Wildlife Incident Investigation Scheme (WIIS) which investigates the death of wildlife throughout the UK where there is evidence that pesticide might have been involved.

The carcasses were sent for toxicological analysis where it was discovered they had been poisoned with the banned pesticide carbofuran. Two dead pigeons were also found which had been laced with a pesticide and it is believed these had been put out as an illegal poison bait. Tragically, two dead peregrines were found at the same site in July 2010 and these had also been poisoned with carbofuran.

The agricultural pesticide, carbofuran which has been banned for almost ten years, has been persistently abused to illegally poison birds of prey and other wildlife in the UK.

PC Robert Maddocks, Wildlife Crime Officer with Gwent Police, said: “Our enquiries are ongoing to establish who is responsible for administering the poison used in these cases. All birds of prey, such as buzzards and peregrine falcons, are protected by law and it is illegal to kill them or disturb their nests.”
RSPB Investigations Officer Guy Shorrock said: “This is another dreadful incident of wildlife poisoning. There has been a persistent problem with the targeting and killing of peregrines in South Wales, and we believe it was this species being targeted in the latest incident. However, these crimes are completely indiscriminate other wildlife and people are put at risk from the illegal use of these highly toxic chemicals. We hope that the reward will encourage anyone with information to come forward.”

Environment Minister, John Griffiths said: “Wildlife forms an integral part of Wales’ unique and beautiful environment. It is important that we all work together to protect this environment for future generations and that incidents such as these are fully investigated and where applicable, action is taken.”

All birds of prey and ravens are fully protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. A person convicted of killing one of these birds or using pesticides illegally could be fined up to £5000 and /or six months in jail.

If members of the public have information about this crime they can call the RSPB on 0845 466 3636. All information will be handled in strictest confidence.

Ibis 1-0 Icky

2011-10-09T20:12:00.000+01:00

This sight was last seen in Gwent airspace almost exactly 109 years ago (11th October 1902 to 9th October 2011).

Saw the, slightly skittish, Glossy Ibis on the 'farm pond' adjacent to Goldcliff Lagoons. After half an hour it flew SW, seemingly back towards the pools, but we didn't relocate it until checking the Saltmarsh Grasslands near Boat Lane a good hour and a half later. It then headed NW towards Nash and I headed down Saltmarsh Lane in search of passerine excitement. Didn't get far mind. News of a 'hippo' at Peterstone Gout had me scurrying westward. Despite a prolonged, weather hindered, look see, there was no chunky warbler joy at the gout, at least, not beyond a handful of Blackcaps.

What a grey day

2011-10-05T23:34:00.001+01:00

South Gloucestershire was grey today. The skies were grey, the water was grey, the mud was grey, the grass was grey, the rain was very grey, even the birds were grey. The only things that weren't grey were my first Merlin of the autumn, which was mostly brown, and the underside of the flyover Golden Plover which was mostly white.

MotD is just about to start

2011-10-01T22:29:00.003+01:00

1 Pallid Harrier, 1 Hobby, 4 Crossbill, 4 Snipe, 2 Wheatear,... more words later.

[Addendum: spent most of the day on Black Down, Zomerset. After six hours of sun and scenery, with just a little yompage mixed in, we finally coincided with the Pallid Harrier. It then showed repeatedly, and for lengthy periods, but only really close on one brief flypast,... nice bird mind.]

This one's for... Xenon

2011-09-30T19:54:00.000+01:00

A demi-decent Goldcliff wader roost over a highish high tide produced: 1 Little Stint, 1 Curlew Sandpiper, 1 Golden Plover (flyover, heading NE), 2 Spotted Redshank, 7 Grey Plover, 50+ Avocet (seen in flight when flushed from the pill), 7 Ruff, 7 Greenshank, 200+ Curlew plus Lapwing, Ringed Plover, Dunlin and Redshank in the sort of numbers which fail to inspire a count. Non-waders included: 1 Kingfisher and 1 Peregrine plus, overhead, Skylark, Swallow, Grey and Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Linnet, Siskin and Reed Bunting.

The height of joy was reached on realising the first of the two new hides was open for business. Screaming like a girl, I hot-footed it from the sea-wall and, knees shaking and fingers popping, I started up the access-everybody entry ramp,... half an hour later, excitement levels somewhat eroded, I reached the door and, whaddya know, a prestigious luxury hide. Beautifully decorated inside, wooden floors throughout, large observation room with 50" LED TV, library (again with 50" LED TV), dining area with staffed kitchen (free non-alcoholic beverages and a tempting selection of pastries, cakes and chocolates on offer [including my personal favourite: petite Madeleine de Commercy, yum-yum]), and finally, bathroom facilities done out very tastefully in marble with mini swimming pool, jacuzzi and Turkish bath. Sweet. Good job everyone. I did not realise Carlsberg did bird hides.

Actually, I'll have a Mivvi

2011-09-29T23:56:00.000+01:00

Lovely day out up-country, nothing too exciting on the birding front (a couple of juvenile Red Kites were about the best) but the undoubted sighting of the day was the ice-cream man taking a piss up the back of his own ice-cream van, before having a good old scratch of his arse and then climbing back in to take up his post alongside the Mr. Whippy dispenser. All I'm suggesting is - don't eat the cone. Don't. Eat. The. Cone.

Nothing better than a little vis mig

2011-09-25T23:28:00.000+01:00

The skies are alive with the sound of 'prrüt-üt'.

American Golden Plover,... in Gwent!

2011-09-23T23:51:00.007+01:00

Headed to West Usk for a bit more shutterbuggery of the phalarope, a look for the Pec and a shufti of the wader roost. On arrival it was pretty obvious, pretty quickly, that the phalarope and Pec had done gone and the tide was producing nothing (not helped by the fact I'd thought high water was at 14:30, it actually rolled in at 16:15). And then something caught my eye on the water's edge,...

1. My first view of the plover this afternoon, hmmm, looks interesting,... 2. The point at which I phoned NC (knowing he'd be out and about somewhere) and suggested he'd be best off heading my way,... "Interesting pluvialis plover,... small-headed/billed,... capped appearance,... big ol' super,... looks quite long-legged". Whilst we were still on the phone the bird hopped across two small creeks in the mud, momentarily opening it's wings, I didn't see gleaming white, but were those axillaries dusky or in shadow? "Er! Yeah, I think you'd better get down here..."

Still hadn't nailed it when NC appeared, the bird having stayed pretty much head-on in the interval, refusing to reveal the relative positions of tertials, primaries and tail. It then got pushed further up by the rising tide before coming to rest behind a large clump of spartina. NC had grabbed an image which seemed to show an attenuated rear end and the black on the underparts extending towards the undertail. Stuck it out as a 'probable'. Now the dilemma, do we scoot right to, hopefully, get the profile view and risk flushing it? Or do we await the arrival of the County Recorder? Being the well behaved little birders we are...

... County Recorder arrives (finally!), so I scurried right, and within 30 yards I'm looking at the elegant profile of an AGP (left-hand image below) and the rest, as the cliche goes, is Gwent ornithological history.

The all important rear end structure; looking ridiculously long-legged/necked/arsed when spooked by three fisherfolk; and, on being flushed by the aforementioned fishymen, the duskiest of underwings, even when slightly over-exposed in bright, low-angled sunlight.

First for Gwent! Tut-tut Gwent birders of yore.

[NB. Re quality of images, distance and heat haze my dear reader, distance and heat haze.]

Little in the way of sunshine

2011-09-22T19:09:00.000+01:00

Another one from last weekend, just in time for this weekend,... when we can all go out and play again.

It rained on and off for the first 72 hours of this bird's stay,... no wonder the colour has drained from his cheeks.

Grey Phalarope at West Usk Lighthouse

2011-09-18T23:39:00.000+01:00

You know when there is a flipping easy to photograph bird down the road and you end up laying in mud, cow shit and rubbish for hours in the rain because you can't think of anything better to do? Yeah, that...

I suppose the colour on the sides of the neck would be best described as 'chamois', or maybe 'misty buff'.

Please note the rather large rain drops.

If you look carefully at the reflection in the bird's eye, you can just make out a bedraggled, mud-spattered, prostrate, semi-aquatic lifeform,... that's me that is.

I was having a nice cup of tea when Nathan found this, alas, it remained unfinished,...

... on the plus side, for those of us on Twitter at least, the arrival of this bird did lead to us learning that the County Recorder can't spell 'bugger'.

And then it came much too close to focus on,... which was nice. It fed, pretty much, the whole time I was present, did the anti-predator crouchy-thing on three occasions (in response to Kestrel, Buzzard and [maybe] Woodpigeon?!) and called twice.

Whilst I was fannying around a Little Stint dropped in, before instantly deciding to try somewhere else; amongst the roost at high tide were two or three Curlew Sandpipers and a Sanderling; three or four Wheatear dotted about along the sea wall; and overhead passage included Redpoll, Skylark, Mipit and hirundines.

Working nine 'til five

2011-09-17T22:42:00.001+01:00

Goldcliff 09:00-1200
High tide on the lagoons produced 1 Little Stint, 2 Curlew Sand, 2 Knot, 1 Sanderling, 1 Barwit, 3 Greenshank and 5 Ruff; and, overhead, a few Yellow Wagtail and Siskins, a few more Skylark, Swallows and Mipits.

Boat Lane and Goldcliff Pill 12:00-12:30
One Green Sandpiper and Barney on the pool plus c.200 Shelduck flushed from the pill by three kids riding their bikes along the top of the sea-wall

Saltmarsh and Farmfield lanes 12:30-14:00
Two Whitethroat and a fair few Chiffchaff and Blackcap in the hedgerows; overhead the trickle of hirundines (mostly Swallow) heading east had become a constant flow.

Uskmouth 14:00-17:00
A brief 'commic' tern distantly over the lagoons, two or three Greenshank on the foreshore and slightly better views of the Wryneck...

Deep in the thick stuff something stirs.

An over the shoulder jynx squint.

Showing off its water repellent properties.

Showing quite well by the end.

In short

2011-09-15T23:53:00.001+01:00

Today in brief: dead Little Grebe,... alive Goshawk,... gone Grey Phalarope,... not gone Wryneck.

The only living boy in Newport

2011-09-13T23:42:00.011+01:00

I get the news I need on the weather report

Must remember to up the volume on the iPod when using it as an alarm clock. Three Weetabix, glass of orange, no time for tea.

Oh, I can gather all the news I need on the weather report

Out into the low angled, unruly sun to join the ranks of golden flanked traffic and a delicious drive through the rush in a caffeine free, sleep starved, not-in-a-hurry-to-get-anywhere fuzz.

Hey, I've got nothing to do today but smile

Met at Goldcliff by the last few eddies caused by Katia's passing and a wandering, collarless retriever; neither promised too much in the way of seabirds but I was on autopilot and soon lining up on the nuthouse-cum-naval academy.

Do-n-doh do-n-doh do-doh and here I am

An hour, a Great Crested Grebe and the first in a series of sharp downpours later and I start wondering about waders at the pools. But, before I could muster the gumption for a Buff-breast hunt, a trickle offshore provided just enough entertainment to ensure my inertia. One each of Manxie, 'auk sp.' and Gannet, and a handful of Arctic Terns would probably have been enough to maintain my spine-eroding embrace of tripod and scope, so a (the?) juvenile/1st-winter Little Gull was just the dinky little toy, on the icing, on the big, brown wobbly cake.

The only living boy in Newport

And then I had to head off and do some 'work',... 'work',... I think that's the correct spelling.

Apparently a local escapee,... no bugger appeared to be looking for him mind.

PS. There was also a Wheatear in the garden of the pink house and a trickle of Skylark, Swallows, pipits and wagtails overhead.

Lovely little larid

2011-09-12T22:22:00.001+01:00

Popped out for an afternoon's fieldwork only to be met by Katia coming the other way,... at some pace. Missed an Arctic Skua, which almost certainly went straight over my head, but did (re)find a Little Gull that looks the spitting image of the bird seen at New Passage yesterday.

Diabolical image of a bird that deserved much better. Must try harder.

[Addenda: 1. the above all took place in Glos not Gwent; and 2. warning, prolonged exposure to the gorgeous smaller larids (Little, Sabine's, Ross', etc.) has been shown to result in a chronic debilitating condition 'Gull Phwoar! Syndrome', if observers experience such symptoms as fatigue, headaches and boredom when looking at less good looking birds they should visit their GP as soon as birding allows.]

Into the wilderness

2011-09-10T23:44:00.001+01:00

You know God doesn't exist? Yeah? We all agree on that? Good. Well, if he did (which he doesn't) and he decided to forsake somewhere (which he won't, because, remember, he doesn't exist) it would be Garnlydan Reservoir. Hats off to the chap who summoned the fortitude to go birding there this afternoon, let's face it, if anyone deserved to find a Gwent rare today it was him. Handily, the Wryneck in all its streaky loveliness, was easy to relocate (location marked 'X' on the sketch map below or details on the GOS sightings page here), less handily about half an hour after we arrived so did a thousand year storm. The bird, quite understandably, took cover in the lone bush on the banking of the reservoir; the two birders, less understandably, stood in the raging gale and horizontal precipitation like a pair of prize plums. Finally, the penny dropped that this was but the first of a likely 960 hours of rain, and we squelched our way back to the cars with a nice Gwent year-tick, moist underwear (mostly caused by weather ingress) and incipient bouts of pneumonia to show for our trip into the uplands.

The star bolts for cover, presumably mistaking the nearby Hawthorn for Gopher Wood.

Map showing location of Wryneck (click to see larger version).

[NB. Gopher Wood?! WTF was/is Gopher Wood? I mean, beyond just one of the more obvious transliteration errors in the Bibble.]

Everything I touched today turned shiny

2011-09-09T23:53:00.009+01:00

A 1st-winter Arctic Tern kicked off the day on the South Glos bank, then followed two Curlew Sandpipers and a dose of Wheatear before, at just gone elevenses, four Great Black-backed Gulls drew attention to themselves and the Manxie they were harassing; it had to dive headlong into the drink on several occasions before the gulls got bored and the, otherwise healthy looking, tubenose bolted towards the old bridge. Redstart and Bar-tailed Godwit appeared, then a couple of Siskin popped over, and, as the wind dropped to powder-puff levels, it really hotted up. A flock of 24 (mostly Arctic) 'commic' terns flew low downriver followed by a lone Common Tern and then,... panic! Every gull within half a mile took to the air which proved to be a precursor to a Bonxie heading purposefully downstream, mid-channel, two foot off the water; not giving a second look to the gulls and terns but still exuding an aura that suggested it was constituted of nothing less than pure aggression coated in feathers.

Next stop Goldcliff. I arrived pretty much simultaneously as a flipping female Peregrine and had to make do with the wader leftovers: Sanderling, Curlew Sandpiper, Knot, Ruff and Greenshank. Also a few Wheatear around and about 35 Yellow Wagtail.

Then Uskmouth for some tinkering with a net lane. Due to the window in the wind we thought we'd stick up a net or four, it proved worthwhile as 15 Yellow Wagtails piled in, probably the largest annual total for Gwent since Yellow Wagtails were invented.

Left the house at 08:30, returned 21:15, consider the diem carped.

From seawatch to riverwatch

2011-09-08T17:46:00.010+01:00

A quick look in at Severn Beach on the way to work yesterday produced Stormy, Manxie, Mallie, Gannet, a few Arctic Terns and the big brown wobbly Severn doing its best to look like the sea.

Everyone does know the images get slightly bigger if you click on them don't they.

[silent scream]

2011-09-06T23:58:00.006+01:00

In a change to the run-of-the-mill, and to reflect the high tech gizmo infused world that is birding in the UK today, this post will not follow the standard template but consist of an annotated data printout from my newest app purchase 'OW-b Monitor v2.2'. You will probably have to click on the graph to see the text/details.

In relation to the above I have just a couple of queries:

Why is the bird being referred to by RBA and TurdForum as 'Madeiran Petrel' surely that invites confusion with regard to Zino's Petrel; why not 'Madeiran Storm-petrel' or 'Band-rumped Petrel'; or even 'Madeiran Storm-petrel type' or 'Band-rumped Petrel type' (I'm assuming the observer[s] will not have ruled out the various species[?] within the group)?
Why did the pagers in our car only go off at some point just prior to 16:00 when the first observation was at 14:30? I'm sure there is a perfectly understandable explanation, I just wanna hear it.

PS. If anyone finds a Spotted Sandpiper at Hayle in the next few days, so help me Jeebus, I will lay waste to all creation.

[Addendum: have heard second/third hand the reason why the initial sighting did not get disseminated into the birding ether; something along the lines of the identity realised/confirmed in light of second sighting,... all very plausible.]

[Addendum again: have now heard first hand that the above was/is a fair representation of the happenings at Pendeen.]

An interesting* Sedge Warbler

2011-09-04T19:15:00.000+01:00

A big dose of Sedge Warblers down at the reserve this morning (about 150 processed amongst a catch of nearly 200 birds), one of which appeared to be undertaking an unusually extensive post-breeding moult. The standard partial post-breeding moult in Sedge Warblers involves the replacement of body feathers only, this bird obviously had other ideas,...

Right wing: primaries 1-3 (numbered descendently) new and fully grown; 4 new, almost fully grown; 5 in pin, not visible in image; 6 missing; 7 old; 8 new, almost fully grown; and 9 old. Primary coverts have been/are being replaced in line with the primary moult.

Left wing: primaries 1-3 new and fully grown; 4 new, almost fully grown; 5-7 in pin/missing, not visible in image; 8-9 new and fully grown. Primary coverts have been/are being replaced in line with the primary moult. One secondary (4?) (numbered ascendently) is also in pin/missing, not visible in image and the fourth greater secondary covert has been replaced.

The bird was showing a limited amount of body moult and no moult in the tail, as would be expected.

Presumably this moult will be suspended and the bulk of the secondaries (plus tertials and tail) replaced in the winter quarters.

* 'interesting' in this instance is being used in a loose, ironic or downright misleading manner and may, or may not, denote the actual existence, or former/future existence, of anything described as 'of interest' as per standard English usage.

'Stit'? 'Tip'? 'Tit'?

2011-09-02T19:27:00.002+01:00

From amongst the poo-eeping plovers was heard a stitting stint.

Oh look,... one of them.

Spent most of the day wading through oodles of Fox Moth caterpillars.

[Addendum (again): for those who don't do the Twitter thing, this bird was at Rhaslas Pond, Glamorganganganshireyshire.]

Nothing special and,... not much else

2011-08-31T18:25:00.001+01:00

A pretty high tide produced very little over in Gloucestcestcestershire, just more common migrants, lots of Yellow Wagtails, phylloscs, etc., and a few Wheatear and Tree Pipit.

[Addendum: there was something else, forgot to mention, had 2-3 Painted Lady flutterbys, first I've seen for ages.]

Don't believe the hype

2011-08-29T20:05:00.000+01:00

That's a parrotbill, not a tit,...

... and that's a moustache, not a beard...

... don't believe half of what you see and none of what you hear or, to put it another way, some writers I know are damn devils.

I'm not waving, I'm drowning

2011-08-26T19:56:00.000+01:00

Spent Wednesday getting bedraggled by a couple of thousand year storms. There I stood, on the English side of the stream, staring down-channel into the strengthening blow as the murky, hissing curtain of drench drew towards me; unfortunately, evasion was impossible and I just had to embrace the deluge. Luckily, my personal photographer was on hand to record the event for the inevitable, though as yet untitled, autobiography.

Despite saturated, figure-hugging (some might say lady attracting) combats and a nigh life-threatening case of trench foot, I did manage to stumble over Arctic and Common Tern, and a couple of Curlew Sandpiper.

My first terrible photograph of a Curlew Sand of the autumn.

One late-finish-cum-early-start later and the following morning broke all sunny and jubbly and smattered with passagey passerines. Spotted Flycatcher, Redstart and three Whinchat were the best, but a few Tree Pipit speeezed over, oodles of Yellow Wag and Wheatear decorated the dewy turf and the wet hedgerows were dripping with Whitethroat and phylloscs,...

... and all was well across favoured Albion's lustrous fields.

Fear and loathing at Greenman

2011-08-23T22:02:00.000+01:00

They had two bags of ~~grass~~ organic romaine hearts, seventy-five ~~pellets of mescaline~~ ml of aged balsamic dressing, five ~~sheets of high-powered blotter acid~~ packs of cherubino cherry vine tomatoes, a saltshaker half-full of ~~cocaine~~ oak-smoked salt, and a whole galaxy of multi-coloured ~~uppers, downers, screamers and laughers~~ dried herbs and spices; also, a quart of ~~tequila~~ raspberry & guava juice, a quart of ~~rum~~ kiwi, apple & lime smoothie, a case of ~~beer~~ assorted new world Sauvignon Blancs, a ~~pint~~ haunch of raw ~~ether~~ venison, and two dozen ~~amyls~~ Gloucestershire old spot pork sausages.

Holy Jesus. Who were these goddamn animals?

Somewhere, Andy Pandy's lifeless body lies naked in a nettle-filled ditch.

... and then everyone went home to watch The Great British Bake Off.

That didn't take long did it

2011-08-22T18:23:00.000+01:00

So the hides weren't even finished before being vandalised. Bored youth? Disaffected locals? Or bored youth egged on by disaffected locals? Random wandering arsonist? Surely someone saw something on a Sunday afternoon in August (or was everyone at Greenman or the Birdfair?); there must have been a grockle or two circulating, I'm assuming the tide was all wrong for a proper visit.

If anyone reads this and did see something (shifty-looking youth or, just as likely, adult) I'm sure CCW would like to hear from you. Contact details for CCW are available under 'Who looks after it' halfway down the linked page --> click here.

An ex-owl

2011-08-16T20:43:00.000+01:00

Barn Owl remains, probably a Peregrine kill by the sounds of it. From the shape of the outermost primary (not that you can see it in this image) and the uniform condition of the available primaries, it looks to be one of this year's young. The available larger underwing primary coverts have dusky tips and smaller underwing primary coverts miniscule shaft streaks at the tip of the feathers, enough to sex it as a female(?).

[Remains and info c/o CH]

Harbour, island, heath, beach

2011-08-15T23:07:00.001+01:00

[NB. Here are a few 'holiday' snaps, I'll add some proper words tomorrow]

One week later,...

All a bit 'lost in the mists of time', but,... a couple of days pottering around Poole Harbour and Purbeck produced the usual bits and bobs. An ill-advised trip to Arne on an August weekend afternoon was pretty pointless (I always end up there but I never know why), although I did locate a sacrificial crop which might be worth a visit later in the autumn, and Whimbrel and Knot were amongst the waders in the harbour. Various stops at Middlebere generated lots of Yellow-legged Gulls, Greenshank, Green Sandpiper, Knot plus Barn Owl, Hobby, Water Rail, Yellow Wagtail and Redstart; no Osprey or Marsh Harrier though. The best on a busy Brownsea was probably Spotted Redshank, Common Sandpiper, more Greenshank and stem ginger ice cream. Studland was inundated with the oily-broiling mass, did have a little paddle though; and an escape to the heath added Dartford Warbler, Tree Pipit, Black Darter and Small Red Damselfly.

They seek her here, they seek her there.

OMG! All that bollocks the farmers spout is true, they are evil,... or is he just hungry?

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream.

I'd rather go for a paddle thanks.

Glorious?

2011-08-12T18:29:00.000+01:00

Slept through the alarm, bolted breakfast, cannon-balled the bypass and rocked up just half an hour the wrong side of the allotted start time. Luckily, the hunchback of Ochrwyth had already got most of the nets up, so I concentrated my efforts on identifying which was the blearier of my eyes and whether indigestion could be life-threatening.

Visible/audible passage was almost non-existent, just a couple of Yellow Wags passed over, the only other 'mentionable' was a Marsh Harrier but, basically, it was just another dose of acro.

The flow of Sedge Warblers continues, although they are mostly juveniles/first-winters,... unlike this one.

Scarnage

2011-08-11T20:48:00.000+01:00

Walking directly through barbed wire fences in the middle of the night. Not a completely safe past-time. Who knew?

The bloody aftermath following literally* hours of acute trauma care,...

If you think this is horrific please note my left leg is MISSING.

* Readers should be aware that 'literally' may be being used in a non-literal sense.

Pray tell me, sir, whose duck are you?

2011-08-07T14:34:00.000+01:00

A call duck with a faraway look in his eye, probably due to the fact that he is pondering the maximum amount of information required to perfectly recreate himself down to the quantum level. I guess, were we able to listen in on his thoughts at the precise time this photo was taken, we would hear something along the lines of,...

"Assuming I have an average weight of 1.5 kg (excluding the post-Xmas bloat) and a volume of 1260 cm³, then my energy (E = m·c²) will be 1.34813·10¹⁷ J and, if I were a sphere, then the radius (V = 4·π·r³/3) would be 6.70030·10⁻² m. Therefore, the maximum information needed to perfectly describe me down to the quantum level (the Bekenstein bound [I ≤ 2·π·r·E/ħ·c·ln 2]) will be 2.58991·10⁴² bit, implying my number of different states (Ω=2^I) is at most 10^{7.79640·1041},... quack."

Should have got a job on the bins

2011-08-06T20:18:00.004+01:00

A mornin' on the nets and another three figure haul of Sedge Warbler. Two bore rings from afar, or not so afar, they weren't our rings anyhow,... oh, the excitement of it all.

Very little on the newish patch of cut reed, just Beardies and Sedgies feeding around the edge, surely a Spotted Crake will potter out at some stage*. The only other 'just-about-notables' were a flyover Tree Pipit, a few Yellow Wags and a Marsh Harrier.

* Dear reader, please be aware that the phrase 'some stage' in this instance should be taken to mean anytime in the next 25 years.

The endless ebb and flow

2011-08-05T19:34:00.000+01:00

Another high-tide, another few hours at Goldcliff. A juv Wood Sandpiper feeding on the back of Lagoon 3 (viewable from the sea wall) was the best of it; 3 Turnstone, 2 Knot, 2+ Greenshank plus Whimbrel and Yellow Wagtails provided the support. Nothing of note at Boat Lane.

Not looking his best. Heavy moult and a wind up the jacksie never did anyone any favours.

PS. The hides are appearing like mushrooms, one and a half down/up, one to go.

All a bit post-Boris

2011-07-31T19:19:00.000+01:00

This morning's high-tide was the dampest of squibs, the Pec Sand hadn't returned and the numbers of Dunlin were well down. It didn't leave much to work through in the hope of pulling out another goody and, come eleven o'clock, it was time for some pretty full-on TMS-accompanied snoozing. The weekend's haul at the reserve hasn't been a bad start to the passage period proper though, with 'mentionables' including: the mobile, attention seeking 2nd cal year male Marsh Harrier popping up all over the shop; passage waders including LRPs, Grey Plover, Blackwits, Whimbrels, Greenshanks, Green Sands, Common Sand, Turnstone and, of course, the Pectoral Sand; and a few odds and sods including Cuckoo, Kingfisher, Yellow Wags, Gropper, Beardies, etc. And, amongst all the fun, we found time to hand out rings to 150 passing acros - Sedge Warbler passage is well and truly underway.

Look! A bird worthy of the label 'bird'

2011-07-30T22:58:00.001+01:00

Finally, a half decent bird in Gwent. Found by the all powerful County Recorder late this afternoon, the Pec Sand was present until high tide when it flew west, towards the 'grasslands'. Hopefully, it will reappear on tomorrow's high tide, which reminds me,... bed-time.

Possibly the best image of a scarce wader in the history of the world ever.

Still no birds...

2011-07-27T22:40:00.000+01:00

... but I've got a couple of little gems for ya.

Booyakka!

Ooooofff!

Writing about common shite in an overly excitable manner,... it might just catch on you know.

They seek him here,...

2011-07-24T19:35:00.000+01:00

Stumbled over this a few days ago whilst attempting to avoid a boot full of bog. Not rare but pwetty.

Bog Pimpernel Anagallis tenella (or, at least, I hope it is) described in Blamey et al. as "charming", one of its more subjective identification features.

Garden beastie poker

2011-07-22T19:27:00.001+01:00

I see your Forest Shieldbug (albeit this one looks a bit more 'coppery') and raise you,...

... one Slow-worm.

PS. I would just like to state that I am not responsible for the cleanliness, or otherwise, of the kitchen window on which the shieldbug is sat. Not my job. Not. My. Job.

Positively Mediterranean

2011-07-20T22:51:00.000+01:00

The last three wet-dry-wet-wet-dry days in the field have been lovingly sprinkled with Med Gulls, Whimbrels, Common Sands, Yellow Wags, etc. It would seem stuff is thinking about being on the move through these 'ere parts. The autumn is upon us. Time to don the Superbirder pants, find the *MONSTER* that will, inevitably, rock up in Gwent this year and claim my rightful place in the pantheon of ornithological gods that roam the banks of the great grey-green, greasy limpid Severn stream.

[Note to self: drinking Ribena from the bottle is neither big nor clever,... take more water with it (or at least dilute to taste).]

Common Sands Ho!

2011-07-19T22:03:00.004+01:00

You're gonna need to click here and...

Common Sands.

Common, Common, Common,
Common Sands, ho!

Common Sands are on the move,
Common Sands are loose,
Feel the magic, hear the tswee,
Common Sands are loose.

Common, Common,
Common, Common Sands.

Common, Common,
Common, Common Sands.

[ad bleedin’ infinitum]

A shiny little button for an eye

2011-07-16T00:15:00.038+01:00

I'd forgotten I'd taken this. Just look at him back there, all cutesy-schmutesy, bright-as-a-button, don't you just wanna scoop him up in your arms, bundle him in cotton-wool and keep him forever? Awwwww, who's a pretty ickle boy? Who's a lovely little first-summer male Pied Wheatear then? Eh? Who's got a fluffy little tummy? Mmm? Who's a pretty ickle 2nd calendar-year Oenanthe pleschanka? Mmm? Oh yes you are,... oh yes you are.

Obviously, for the full serotonin, prolactin and oxytocin releasing experience, you will need to click on the image for the larger version.

[NB. Gwentbirding - Little Owl photo free zone.]

Even cuter than...

2011-07-15T00:19:00.000+01:00

... a million photos of Little Owls.

The first bubby Oystercatchers to be ringed in Gwent since before forever?

Shriek!

2011-07-07T20:06:00.000+01:00

House Spider Tegenaria gigantea, the size of a dinner plate,... honest.

Is that Sugarloaf in the background?

2011-07-05T20:10:00.000+01:00

My girlfriend went on holiday to the Alps and all she brought me back was this choughing picture.

Raise, call or fold

2011-07-02T17:07:00.000+01:00

You only call? Well let's go visit Mr. More, your Creeping Thistle,... and I raise two Musk Thistles and a white variant Marsh Thistle.

I can't stand it.

South.

I'm going south.

South street Seaport the man says, can't stand the heat, he can't stand it.

You wanna play cards? The bet is two Musk Thistles and a white variant Marsh Thistle.

Basic botany for fans of Saint Etienne and/or David Mamet,... and they said it couldn't be done.

There's no spark, no light in the dark

2011-06-26T23:29:00.000+01:00

An even less high high tide today and even less to show for it. Kingfisher probably the best of the bunch [NB. Had one on Friday too but forgot to mention it]. It was so awful I was reduced to sitting next to a puddle taking pictures of dirt common birds having a bath,...

The missus,...

Meself...

... and the boys.

PS. If a bang wakes you up tonight, you'll know I have shot myself out of boredom; if it's a creaking that disturbs your slumber, I'll have opted for the noose.
PPS. Radiohead and Pam Ayres references in the same post; pearls, I'm giving you pearls here.

Bluuurrgh

2011-06-24T20:00:00.000+01:00

Not the highest of high tides at the pools over lunchtime, mind you, any birds that had been pushed onto the lagoons were kicked back off as the farmer rounded up his sheep just before high water. Two Knot on the tideline were the 'highlight' but a Common Sandpiper also hinted at passage, as did a few Black-tailed Godwit, Dunlin, etc. A few of the young waders seem to have made it, more-or-less full-grown young of Avocet, Oystercatcher and Redshank were all present.

One of the nibbling horde currently carpeting the turf behind the viewing platforms with hundreds of potential silent footsteps.

Scarlet Pimpernel

2011-06-22T23:21:00.000+01:00

No sign of the Common Rosefinch this evening, perhaps it took one look at the local Peregrine and moved on sharpish.

Well of course it was nailed there, otherwise it would have muscled up to that chainlink fence and 'voom'!

Pixie parasols

2011-06-20T08:17:00.001+01:00

Mycena sp. presumably a [something] Bonnet; narrowed it down to probably one of about four species. If anyone knows what it is, feel free to drop me a line, otherwise I'll label it Mycena impossiblensis Lesser Ivory Nipple-bonnet.

PS. Note the photo-bombing thrip(?), little geezer managed to sneak into both pictures (you may have to click on the images to view the larger versions to truly appreciate his cheeky little fizzog).

No cars, only boats?

2011-06-19T16:24:00.000+01:00

Meant to post this ages ago and, by now, I guess y'all aware of this but,... we are not supposed to park down Boat Lane anymore, albeit the miniscule and not particularly eye-catching sign is easily missed.

A funny old week

2011-06-17T16:25:00.001+01:00

"If at first you don't succeed, call in an airstrike."

It's been a funny old week. Day and night traversing the black-veined hills, weaving between the malignancies of misuse and pocket-sized refuges of moor, fridd and mire. Things that have flown by have included: Goshawk, Red Kite, Little Ringed Plover, Nightjar, Redstart, Grasshopper Warbler, Golden-ringed Dragonfly, Dark Green Fritillary and a fair few water droplets.

A bit red in the cheeks

2011-06-16T08:32:00.003+01:00

Given the bloke has a face that looks like that, I almost feel sorry for him, talk about shooting fish in a barrel,... feel free to write your own punchline.

[NB. FYI one of the above is a minister with a portfolio including climate change and yet suggests Britain strongly supports drilling for oil in the Arctic,... the other is not a twat.]

National Dog Reserve

2011-06-15T16:19:00.000+01:00

Isn't Kenfig lovely, that is, once you have weaved through the packs of dogs at the car park, avoided the fragrant piles of sun-baked turds and got beyond the bloke testing his retriever by repeatedly kicking a rugby ball into the scrub, beyond the old dear with her plastic catapulty-arm-extension-throwing-thingy, beyond the two people encouraging their four dogs into the lake and, finally, beyond the Alan Partridge-esque bloke stood atop a dune shouting "Buster,... Buster,... Buster,... Buster,... ... ... Buster,... Buster,... Buster,... ... ... Buster!" Really, isn't it lovely. Country parks, amenity grasslands, National Nature Reserves they're all the same thing aren't they?

I'm glad botany is nothing but a black hole of unknowing to me, otherwise I'd have been there for ages.

I'll just stick to the big pretty ones.

Ditto regarding bugs; plenty of these about, also Grass Rivulets all over the place.

Summer is here

2011-06-12T18:16:00.000+01:00

Not a day for sitting on Goldcliff Point, no matter how many Sooty Shearwaters have just been seen off Glamorgan.

Given I couldn't see the outdoors through the deluge, I have spent the day poring over an article about Bulgaria and reading about the interesting chaps of 'The Milesian School', that Anaximander eh? Bit of a trailblazer. He was pondering evolution in 550 BC. What a clever little bunny.

Over the sea to Dunye

2011-06-11T23:57:00.003+01:00

"And opposite to this Clyff [Goldcliff], about the midst of the Severn, lyeth a small Isle, called Denny Island." Monmouthshire, Blome's Britannia 1673. Unbelievably, Denny has its own Wikipedia page which, amongst all manner of other incredibly interesting facts, states that the island first appears in the historical record as 'Dunye' in 1373 and that, in Old English, the name means 'island shaped like a down (i.e. a hill with a rounded profile), see here for more Denny titbits, a perusal of which is guaranteed to instantly cure insomnia.

The amount of fishing gear, litter and general anthropogenic detritus on Denny (and throughout the estuary) is beyond a fucking joke. This is what happens when an adult Cormorant gets a 1.5 inch barbed hook embedded in its carpel joint and and the hook, and attached line, becomes entangled on the tree mallow adjacent to its nest. I'm guessing this bird died of dehydration/starvation over the course of several days. We also found an unfledged chick, still within the nest, with a hook lodged in its throat and line hanging from its bill, presumably having been fed the discarded gear by an unsuspecting parent whilst still attached to a fish. Good job fisherfolk,... good job.

At this age, everything is cute,... even Great Black-backed Gulls,... even when, moments later, they shit all down your leg.

PS. Oh yeah, and this is what happens when Charlie Brooker [you know, him off the telly] 'retweets' a link to your website; getting on for 3,000 visitors precisely none of which are interested in either 'Gwent' or 'birding' and all because of this.

I'm just going to slip this on here and hope nobody notices

2011-06-07T23:45:00.001+01:00

You know when the day starts with a rude awakening at some ungodly hour to the sound of a 'The Littlest Hobo' ringtone? And then an ever so slightly rabid voice at the other end says such things as 'cracking', 'dirty twitching' and 'ladders'? Yeah,... that.

Hartlepool, it's all about monkeys and HMS Trincomalee innit?

Addendum (as promised)...

"Where's the north from here?"
"Up, just drive up."

And so we did,... and were soon parking at Hartlepool headland.

Skipping down Olive Street, full of the joys, we couldn't help but do a quick lap of the green, waving to the bowling types as we went, before barreling through the garage, wheeling around the garden squealing "Weeeeeeee!", and coming to a halt to rapturous applause from the massed ranks of camouflage fetishists. Unfortunately, it soon dawned that we wouldn't be getting to play on any ladders but we did see 'The Doctor', and his rhubarb, so it wasn't all birds, birds, birds.

Talking of birds, the bird appeared within minutes, and a grottier example of a White-throated Robin you couldn't have hoped to have seen, but it was a White-throated Robin, and this was Hartlepool, so the choice of which White-throated Robin to look at was rather limited. Just think though, with just one trip to Turkey you could have had one like this (well, one trip to Turkey and a sprinkling of magic MP3 and Photoshop dust).

After two hours of soaking up the robin, interspersed with brief bouts of hide and seek (Is he in the rose garden? No. Garage? No. Shrubbery? Yes!) and a quick game of French cricket on the lovingly manicured lawn, it was off home. At every junction we headed downwards and were soon saying our goodbyes and going our separate ways on the banks of the River Severn*. And that, apart from a closed M4, high volumes of Psychadelic Horseshit and a sweet potato and mushroom lasagne, was that.

And that is exactly what happened and any other version of events should be taken with a pinch of salt because you can't trust anyone nowadays, not even people that write stuff down.

*So named because Julius Caesar was incapable of passing up the opportunity of a good joke [it was actually the sixth river he discovered during his invasions of Britain]. To quote Vercingetorix at the Battle of Alesia "That Caesar, what a wag").

Two awful photographs

2011-06-04T16:59:00.000+01:00

Apart from a one armed farmer and an unruly sheepdog called Sancho Panza, the four and a half hours at the pools this morning didn't really produce much. There was a notable movement of small gulls with single Mediterranean and Common amongst 60+ Black-headed Gulls; and Marsh Harrier and Peregrine provided a bit of raptor-shaped interest. Apart from that, the 'best' wader was a Little Ringed Plover which flew in and, two minutes later, out again; and the 'best' duck was the crocked(?) male Wigeon.

First-summer Mediterranean Gull drifting in off the estuary, not too many minutes later it was off again having not taken a shine to the Peregrine passing over.

Much more excitement was generated this afternoon by a tweet from the SW suggesting a Red Kite was heading NE,... eyes to the skies,... and,... Shit-ting! (as I believe the youth say).

It might be a scruffy, distant, out of focus Red Kite, but it is my scruffy, distant, out of focus Red Kite garden tick. Grateful thanks to Matt B.

What happens when it rains?

2011-06-02T23:48:00.000+01:00

Apparently, the driver's seat is the only part of a Vauxhall Corsa that does not dissolve on contact with water.