A weekend's birding at Hornsea Mere

Well that was a great weekend down at The Mere!!

Although we had Easterly winds for the latter part of the week, the weather was dry so wasn't just good enough to bring in any migrants. However, we had rain on Saturday so a walk around the local patch would be worthwhile.

Saturday 12 September 2015
It was pouring with rain in the early morning so I reckoned it would be useful to check out Kirkholme Point to see if anything had dropped in. I left the camera at home as it was just too wet to risk a non-waterproof camera getting ruined.

I was greeted by a male Sparrowhawk hunting for his breakfast, great start to the morning. We had 2 Little Gulls on the jetty and 4 more feeding over the water at the North side of the point. Checking out the water line there was a Common Sandpiper still hanging on and a Dunlin still showing signs of breeding plumage, but the best was a Knot feeding along the water's edge. We don't get many Knot at The Mere so I was well pleased with this sighting. Several Pied Wagtails were flitting around as were 2 Yellow Wagtails. The usual flock of Goldfinch were feeding on the rapidly disappearing thistle heads.

I left KP and walked round to the fields to check them out, hoping for Redstart or Wheatear perhaps?

In the 1st field there were another 6 Yellow Wagtails and a host of Swallows feeding up for their long journey south. Looking our over The Mere I saw the usual suspects, but in greater numbers now as Autumn beckons. Gadwall were up to c.200, Tufted Ducks were numerous but estimated at c.450, Coot are the most common and are probably over the 1,000 mark now. Pochard and Wigeon are also slowly building in numbers. A nice looking juvenile Great Crested Grebe was close in by the reed bed. Mute Swans are here of course with around 100+.

Nothing else of note so I headed home but on my way past some tall conifers I heard Goldcrests. I stopped and watched and spotted at least 4 flying in and out of the conifers.

Sunday 13 September 2015
A dry and very still morning so another opportunity to check out what Hornsea Mere had in store.

On my way out of the house I saw the local House Martins were still flying around and visiting nests for some strange reason. I must ask about this behaviour to see if anyone can cast any light on it.

Down at KP there was a strange lack of hirundines. Not enough wind? Don't know, but I only saw 2 Swallows all morning! 2 Yellow Wagtails and 7 Pied Wagtails plus 3 Little Gulls on the jetty was all that KP had to offer this morning.

2 Little Gulls on the jetty

I hurried round to the fields, intending to walk over to the hide and met a friend (Mike) on the way who said he'd come with me. He gave me a lift to the fields which was a bonus :)

Entering 1st field we checked for anything new that may have dropped in, but the first half hour of our walk was barren. Nothing of note in the fields or on the water until - yes, a female Goldeneye - the first of the autumn/winter and a sign of things to come. We walked through 2nd field with again nothing to catch our attention, so Mike said he'd go back for the car and meet me in the hide. I continued my walk.

Going into the next field I passed the large reed bed and saw a few Reed Buntings, checked out Ouzel Hedge but nothing there apart from a few Goldfinch. Approaching the stile in the corner I saw several birds flying around the elderberry bushes so I stopped and watched for half an hour and was glad I did. As well as the Blue Tits, Great Tits, Dunnocks and Robins I saw 2 Whitethroat, a Garden Warbler and an immature Reed Warbler. A good haul for mid-September!

Young Reed Warbler

 While watching the birds in the hedgerow there were a few butterflies around too. Red Admiral, Peacock, Small Tortoiseshell and Large White were on the flowers in the area of set-aside.

 

Realising I'd said that I'd meet Mike in the hide I hurried on. Time passes so quickly when you're engrossed :)

A good sized group of Long-tailed Tits were calling away in the pines as I walked down the path towards the hide, and the sun was shining brightly so it boded well for an hour or so in the hide.

On entering the hide Mike was there as expected, and also George. After exchanging pleasantries we settled down to watch the comings and goings and George said he'd seen Hobby before we arrived, so we hoped they would return. 3 Grey Heron were fishing in the corner and a light coloured object in a willow caught my eye so I asked if Mike could check it out with his scope. Turned out to be a young male Marsh Harrier, George reckoned probably 2 calendar year.

 Lots of Tufted Duck and Coot were flying and swimming in, accompanied by Great Crested Grebes (9 birds by the end of the watch) so we knew that sailing boats were now out on The Mere as they drive the birds into Decoy where the hide is.

Then the much anticipated happened - Hobby!!! 2 young birds were seen around the hide for 10 minutes or so giving great views and catching the many dragonflies that were innocently feeding and egg-laying.

My best photos yet of Hobby, and although they weren't full adults with the red patches around the legs, they were fantastic to watch as they caught insects and eat them on the wing.

Here are photos of a couple of their possible prey items:

Southern Migrant Hawker (I think)

Common Darters ovipositing

Before George and Mike left, George spotted lots of raptors high up over the west - he counted 10 Common Buzzard, although I could only see 6 from my vantage point.

I hung on for a while to see if anything else turned up but it didn't so I headed home. Along Southorpe Road there were more dragonflies and butterflies and I added Speckled Wood to the day's tally.

Stone Curlew at The Mere this morning

As I was walking through the fields south of Hornsea Mere this morning I saw a gull in the set-aside area. It wasn't the usual Black-headed or Herring Gull so I looked through the bins and saw it was  Common Gull. They do come in after breeding and over-winter but this one was very early so I thought I'd take a few photos. As I was snapping away I saw another bird take off in the background, through the camera lens.

I could see it was a wader-like bird so rather than waste time putting the camera down and getting the bins I just fired off a few shots so I could review them afterwards and see what it was. I lost the bird in the trees so I returned to the Common Gull. This was 09:33 according to the time on the photos.

As I reached the corner of the field I decided to have a look at the photos and see if I could id the other bird. I looked and zoomed in as far as possible and although the image was very grainy, my first thought was Stone Curlew. Can't be though, not round here I reckoned. So I carried on towards the hide.

When I got to the hide a friend of mine was in there so after the usual pleasantries I asked him if he'd take a look at the photos to see what he thought. Unfortuantely he didn't have his glasses with him so he couldn't see properly but I said it was a possible Stone Curlew so he asked if it had a yellow eye and I said yes. While we were discussing further id features, another friend, Mark, turned up and he looked and said straight away that it was indeed a Stone Curlew and it was a first record for Hornsea Mere!!! Wow!

We went out to where I had first seen it over an hour ago and it had returned to the same place. Mark was able to get some photos and I got some better ones too.

We had lost sight of the bird while we were hopping around like excited school kids so after waiting for a while and casting around what may have been suitable habitat for it near by, we separated as I was due back home, and we agreed that they would look for the bird over towards Wassand Hall where there was likely habitat and I was going to check the set-aside and ploughed areas towards Southorpe Road. They relocated the bird at about 13:15.

While we were looking for the Stone Curlew we also saw Hobby, Bullfinch, Skylark (3), Marsh Harrier (2), Buzzard, Kestrel, Curlew (3) and Lapwing (2).

On my way to Southorpe Road I came across my first Painted Lady butterfly of the year. What a great day!!

Oh yes, the Common Gull looked like a 2cy bird to me. It still had some of the juvenile feathers...

Highlights from the last 2 weeks

Tues 19 May 2015, North Cave Wetlands
A fine day at North Cave, including the must-do visit to The Wild Bird for some of Angie's bakewell tart.
Good birds around too with a Temmink's Stint at Dryham together with a couple of Wood Sandpipers.

Wood Sandpiper and Little Ringed Plover

Wed 20 May 2015, Hornsea Mere
A single Cuckoo was calling in 2nd field and soon showed itself for a few photos.

Cuckoo at The Mere

Friday 22 May 2015, Whisby Nature Reserve Lincoln
A long planned visit today down to Lincolnshire in order to see and hear Nightingale passed off smoothly with great views and a brilliantly close encounter with its song too. Well worth the travelling time of 3 hours there and back. A quiet day at the reserve other than the star birds.

Saturday 23 May 2015, Cowden
A brisk walk around the promising site down at Cowden really paid dividends this morning with 2 Turtle Doves singing at the south of the site. Warblers were singing here, there and everywhere with numerous Whitethroat, Lesser Whitethroat, Blackcap, Grasshopper Warbler, Chiff Chaff and Willow Warbler. 2 Cuckoos were calling from quite a long way off but were easily visible through the bins.
A nice surprise turned up in shape of 3 fox cubs, playing on the old tarmac road that runs north to south through the site. One by one they spotted me as I approached until there was just one left - but not for long.

Monday 25 May 2015, Hornsea Mere
Another dry and sunny day here on the East Coast of Yorkshire so the Mere beckoned and I answered by walking down to the fields, through to the hide at Wassand on Decoy Channel and south east to Goxhill before returning home on the disused railway line. Although there were no particularly special birds or wildlife it was a good, clear day with the usual suspects showing well.

One of just a few remaining Shovelers

Gadwall

 

The resident pair of Kestrels were hunting and carrying food to their nest. We should be seeing young ones soon.
Cetti's Warblers were still singing in the hedgerows - what a fabulous song it has.

Tuesday 26 May 2015, home
I went for a walk down to the Mere at 06:30 and got back about 10:30 and saw more House Martins around the house than before. It looks like there had been an influx of late arrivals so I hoped that the old nests on the gable end of the house would be populated. The Martins must have been hungry because they were landing on every nook and cranny on the house, even on the small ledges above the windows where the air vents are, probably eating flies in the spider's webs (and some spiders too).

Wednesday 27 May 2015, Bempton Cliffs
Puffins, Kittiwakes, Razorbills, Guillemots, Corn Buntings, Gannets, Linnets and Fulmars. Nothing new but great to see good numbers of all species.

Saturday 30 May 2015, Wheldrake Ings
My first visit over to Wheldrake Ings just 10 miles outside York was made on another dry and sunny day. I was hoping to see Grey Wagtail and Nuthatch as we don't get these species at Hornsea and surrounding area, but neither turned up. Never mind, there were plenty of other birds to see and hear.

Hobby was the best bird of the day, catching insects over the River Derwent. 2 Little Egrets did their stalking thing; Curlews did their bubbling singing; a Common Tern was doing nothing but lazing on a wooden platform; Reed Buntings were flitting and chiming; a Buzzard was soaring...I was enjoying myself and losing track of time and eventually I ran out of time so I had to dash to pick up my wife and daughter in York.
There were lots of damselflies near the river and this species was particularly numerous. It could be a demoiselle but I'm still trying to get a positive id.

Beautiful Demoiselle? 

Hobby and Garganey at Hornsea Mere

Well the Hobby has been hanging around the Mere for a few days now but it isn't making my life easier by posing for a decent photo. It has been flying quite high catching insects and every now and then coming down to fly over the water. It is a work in progress and hopefully I'll have a few more opportunities to get it right.

Hobby enjoying an in-flight meal

Meanwhile, just to distract my attention, a nice drake Garganey appeared just 30 yards off shore -

One of the few remaining Shovelers was also dabbling just off the reed bed -

Numerous Swifts were feeding high with Swallows, House Martins and a few Sand Martins nearer the Mere surface. With a Cuckoo sounding off in the sycamore trees, Sedge Warblers in song flight in the reed bed and Reed Warblers going about their usual business it made for a lovely morning despite the very cool westerly wind.

Hornsea Mere in a 40 mph wind

The wind at the Mere this afternoon was very strong indeed and made walking hard work. I was after Hobby but didn't hold out too much hope with the windy conditions.

An hour or so in the hide at the East end was largely unfruitful apart from views of the resident Marsh Harriers and hundreds of Sand Martins that had been pushed down by the wind. A Swift made a brief appearance as did a single Common Tern (90% it was Common, not Arctic).

I walked back home via the fields to check for Hobby but no luck, however, the summer plumage Red-necked Grebe was there, showing well and quite close in to the south shore. I never realised they have weird feet a la Coot and Moorhen!

Red-necked Grebe with Sand Martin fly past

There must have been upwards of 500 Sand Martins on the Mere with a scattering of Swallows and House Martins mixed in.

As I neared the last field I saw a Kestrel hovering in the wind. It was doing its best to remain stationary but it looked to be fighting a loosing battle and as I closed in it landed on the shore of the Mere and had a drink then perched on a tree stump to regain some strength. It was probably knackered as it was very accomodating and didn't fly off as I fired off a few photos.

South Side of Hornsea Mere

A dry, sunny morning today but with a cold wind blowing from the East. I decided to don my shorts anyway as I intended to cover a few miles and the sun was good and warm in the lee of the wind.

As soon as I reached the Mere I was greeted with a salvo of song from the assembled Sedge Warblers. There were 4 in close proximity and 2 of them were indulging in their wonderful song flight. 3 male Reed Bunting were fratching but a 4th was singing contentedly from the top of a shrub only 10 yards away.

Mallards, Greylag Geese (with goslings in tow), Coot, Mute Swan and Tufted Duck were all present and provided a great backdrop to the more "interesting" species and migrants on show through the morning. A Song Thrush was singing its heart out in the trees and the sun was shining and I was out and about in the open air - what a brilliant way to pass the time :)

Continuing my westerly walk along the South side of the Mere I could hear a Skylark singing over the fields and a pair of Lapwing were protecting their territory and seeing off corvids. Linnets were flitting overhead and twittering.

As I approached the area which is good for warblers I listened hard for the bird I was after, but although there were more Sedge Warblers and Reed Buntings as well as Willow Warblers and Chiffchaff I couldn't hear the bird I was seeking....yet. Another 200 yards and I stopped to listen, and was shaken to my boots by an explosive burst of song right in front of me! Cetti's Warbler. Great stuff, just what I'd come for. Often heard but seldom seen, Cetti's Warbler is a skulking little blighter but if you watch closely you will be rewarded with glimpses of one. I saw two of them several times but never long enough or clearly enough to get a photo. I stayed an hour hoping to get an opportunity but eventually I gave up and moved on.

Consolation prize - a Chiffchaff

20 yards further and I turned my bins onto the Mere to see what was about other than dozens of Black Headed Gulls and a few Herring Gulls. No terns today but a Gadwall or two and....something else - a Garganey. A drake Garganey showing through the top of the reed bed.

Drake Garganey

Garganey and Gadwall

Sorry for the poor pics. They are heavily cropped but they were the best I could get from my vantage point. Record shots at best. After scanning the remainder of the open water that I could and seeing 6 Shoveler, a few Tufted Duck and a Great Crested Grebe I carried on.

Next along was an area of just-ploughed set aside where I was hoping for Yellow Wagtail but instead I found a splendid male Wheatear feeding:

Time had moved on quickly and I'd been out nearly 3 hours already so I put my foot down and walked through the last half mile of my outward walk pretty quickly, accompanied by singing Blackcaps, Blackbirds, Dunnocks and Robins. I turned for home via fields and a traffic-free tarmac road which has arable crops either side, so I was more than happy to see and hear Yellowhammer, Skylark and Tree Sparrow.

What will tomorrow bring I wonder??