New Years Day Twitch 2021 - Part I

For the sake of brevity, most images have been lifted from the archive!

Not a single peep throughout the night on several visits to a -5°C doorstep (which made it the coldest night of the year) but the occasional glimpses of a

 95% waning gibbous Moon was something of a bonus

followed by a White Out (frost only) at dawn.

The first signs of any kind of birdlife came as late as 06:32 when at least one, but maybe 2, 

TAWNY OWL

started knocking it out but maybe not this juvenile. Remembering an addition to the list may include eith a sight or sound record there were a few vocalists to get the show on the road including:-

BLACKBIRD

HERRING GULL

WOOD PIGEON

thankfully there was a reprise from the local

CETTI'S WARBLER

while the 'chacking calls' from the Ash Trees at the stables, which have become a roost, indicated

FIELDFARE

Apart from the Owl and the Warbler all others were 'seen' subsequently but first on view was a

ROBIN
followed in quick successionby

CARRION CROW

DUNNOCK
and

MAGPIE
but then followed by something not even thought of let alone expected.........
On the near ice covered surface of the main pond there was but one small break in the freeze occupied by c2 pairs of 'fighting'? 'displaying'?

MOORHEN

A bit of nonsense to kick a New Year off is harmless enough but the conditions
got us to thinking that these might just be the only Waterfowl of the day.
Bringing up the rearguard, before heading for the ploughed fields to the west, came

WREN
a small party of vocal

GREENFINCH
with a much larger flock of

STARLINGs
to close the first chapter of what should be 3 instalments!

That Was the Year That Was!

 Well, having survived 2020 it just remains to wish all our Valued Readers a

Happy, Healthy, Safe and Prosperous New Year

before getting into reflective mode. Confined to our recording area alone we recorded a reduced 122 species of Birds, another shortfall below the +400 mark of the previous 3 years of 390 Moths and having covered the Mammals on a previous post we can leave it at that. While there was no additions to the Bird List we did secure c5 new Moth species.

Being unable to help ourselves we, as ever, flashed up a Moth Trap to cover the night of the First of the Year but more in hope than ambition! However, on that first cold, cold night we did catch a single Moth by way of a

CHESTNUT
after which the 'bleak' set in. The first noteable Bird of the year was a carry-over

BLACK REDSTART
from the previous year which spent the whole of the winter patroling the Sererage Works Fence before a second was found

plying between the Heath and nearby Solar Panel Compound.
It is hoped we will be showing you this years representative in the very near future.

The first addition to the Moth List was taken on the Heath on the 29th June and luckily a day that Dave Foot had chosen to join us as

DWARF PUG
was a compleatly new Insect for me.

Back to the earlier months when the 'hunters' seem to have moved in with sporadic records of

PEREGRINE

and

MERLIN
while a once breeding species here

LITTLE OWL
took up an all too short residency while again it was Dave who added the only

YELLOWHAMMER
once a prolific breeding bird (gone are the days) to the Year List.

27/06/2020 saw the next addition to the Moth List a fine looking

NARROW-BORDERED FIVE-SPOT BURNET

Spring was very much a game of 2 halves with only our 3rd and again vocal

NIGHTINGALE
but still reluctant to meet the eye, while usually reasonably numerous

YELLOW WAGTAIL
reached nowhere near double figures while on the other hand breeding

WOODLARK
went off the scale with on certain days the

JUVENILE's
being uncountable.

DEVON CARPET
was the next addition to the list on the last day of July while our frequent dusk sorties for

NIGHTJAR

appeared to show a decent increase in numbers

with a second nest in as many years being spotted from the footpath.
However, there was a downside as on those same visits Woodcock were all but absent.
Late summer brought with it our second only and strangely vocal

WOOD WARBLER
while back in the World of Moths the best was certainly saved until last.
Within a fortnight of each other, 15/08 and 26/08 respectivly, came unarguably the c2 best Insects of the year

SHINING MARBLED
and

SLENDER BURNISHED BRASS
both of course addition to the list.

 A mid-autumnal

GREAT WHITE EGRET
was only our forth ever and the final 'goodie' of the year but with traps, or trap. being run to the bitter end we ended the Moth Season with a second only

STREAK

plus outrageous numbers of both

SCARCE MERVEILLE du JOUR
and

DECEMBER MOTH
Here's Hoping for 2021 - Good Luck to All!

Let's Twitch Again - Like We Did Last Summer

A VERY HAPPY, HEARTY, SAFE and PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR 

to all our Valued Readers with Many Thanks for your Support.

For those unfamiliar, a TWITCH is Birder's parlance for chasing after a particular species, more often than not a rarity, or spending a day, or other agreed period, spotting as many species as possible! It had always been custom and practice to undertake one of the latter on the first day of each month, but with declining returns and shortage of time (Moths and Blogs) it has now reduced to just New Year's Day. The term is derived from the feeling you get from the moment you recieve that phone call alerting you to yet another Mega Rarity, who knows how many miles away, as the doubts creep in as to whether you will see it or not. My most distant from home 'twich' in UK was the very mobile

SNOWY EGRET
then 600 miles away from Weymouth on the golf course at Stephenson, Argyleshire in 2002. However, this was not only a one way trip but also financed by BP as returning to the Oil Rig for yet another hitch. The longest return trip by far in a single day in UK was to view a rather underwhelming

PINE BUNTING (1992)
  at Alnwick, Northumberland which was a 840 miles round trip Weymouth to Weymouth.  Years ago some might have considered this something of a 'Lad Thing' but at the time of the bunting        American 

Pheobe Snetsinger 

was the most prolific Birder in the World (the first person to knotch up 8,000 species) before her untimely death in a car accident on Madagascar.

Those 2 fetes pale by comparrison to a compulssion to Twitch 2 more species for the Gull List along with many, many other things, taking me firstly from London to Baja California, Mexico to find

YELLOW-FOOTED GULL
before Hawaii were among many others the deminutive and delicate

FAIRY TERN

endemic
HAWAIIAN DUCK
huge

HAWAIIAN MONK SEAL
and

LAYSAN ALBATROS
were all recorded,

followed by the overland jaunt along the full length of the Alaska Highway before flying to the Pirbilof Island of Saint Paul's to add

RED-LEGGED KITTIWAKE

as the penultimate of the 56 Gull Species in the World and who knows how many 'thousands' of miles (37,000 springs to mind?), with the last

RELECT GULL
being added some years later in South Korea without photographic evidence.

That is where we will be until dusk, and maybe beyond, with the result to be publised as soon as we can cobble together the Post.

You Scratch Mine - I'll Scratch Yours

 Still something of a struggle despite a few hours of sunshine but, to make matters worse again the Heath becomes a No Go Area due to high water and mud levels!

First up was a better view in better light

than our previous go at the 'bird on a wire' the local male

KESTREL
Nothing of note until arriving at the Irrigation Pond where there were 2 surprises in as many seconds. The first would have to be proven but potentially a new

LITTLE GREBE

a bit coy but

with the second a certainty as the first ever December record here of a

COOT
not at all obliging or active

but with hopes that it might remain into 2021.
Good news from next door as all c3 of the winter resident Grebes were in attendace, confirming the previous as a 4th, along with an

overdue pair of

MALLARD

with She

and

already making those suggestive nodding gestures to each other.
About to leave when this obliging

BLUE TIT

started feeding

no more than a yard from the car.
On the way to the Sewerage Works there was something of a Genesis moment
All in a Mouses Night

I can't see you but I know you're there

got to get beside you 'cause it's really cold out here.

in this instance the Mouse being replaced by a Coal Tit.

Followed in quick succession by

2 to 3 dozen

MEADOW PIPIT

preening in this favoured Oak.
All to be found at that destination were a few

preening

BLACK-HEADED GULLs

before finding yet another

BUZZARD KILL

(Wood Pigeon)

before ending our day at the gateway to the Heath and a

Moment of Mirth