I missed a Dunlin by minutes this morning but the consolation prize was a Curlew! These are occasional birds of late and this one was showing well despite the dire light...
It meant goodbye!
Showing posts with label Curlew. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Curlew. Show all posts
Wednesday, 13 March 2024
Venus Pool - Curlew
Tuesday, 15 November 2022
Venus Pool - 20 yo Curlew (metal ring)
Getting a decent pic of the colour ringed (LU) Curlew at Venus Pool was easy-peasy. During mid November another ringed bird (this time bearing just a metal ring) was seen by Dave Chapman and myself. Reading the ring number would be a difficult task to say the least however! I'd got loads of images to trawl through, little thinking I could clinch the full ring number but I had a go...
The first part of the code? P490...
The number 4 clearly follows... P4904
With colours and large letters, ringing recoveries are so much easier nowadays but the reporting rate is still somewhat infrequent!
Tuesday, 8 November 2022
Venus Pool - Colour ringed Curlew
Two Curlews have been present and seen regularly on the reserve since the end of July. They were initially stand offish but showing much better now. Their 'close' behaviour suggested that the 'resident' pair were an item but todays events suggest that may not be the case? Today they were joined by a colour ringed bird and I spent an hour or so trying to get any clear letters on the Darvic rings.
Here he is and shall we call him Lu?
But what about our friends at RAF Shawbury with yet another helicopter flying over the reserve. Aren't flying birds an aviation risk?
The only other sightings since being ringed were at Shatterford near Bewdley in April 2021 and more recently (but not formally registered sightings) at Upton Warren.
And as for 'events' this ringed Curlew seems to be hanging around with one of the twosome to the exclusion of the other! We shall see what happens...
Saturday, 5 November 2022
Venus Pool - Curlew coming close
Two Curlews in once again at Venus Pool and one of them ventured quite close. Always nice to have a bird walking towards you...
The sun will shine again one day?
Tuesday, 31 March 2020
On this day (March 31st)... in 2019, 2014 and 2008
It's the last day of March and I'll take you back 12 months to Venus Pool and a Pink-footed Goose, name of Nelson....
A pleasant couple of hours spent at VP this afternoon, produced good numbers of Sand Martins, at least 30 flying high plus a couple of Swallows. With the water dropping, the margins will hopefully turn up a wader or two? He says! The only bird of note, yet another Goose, this time a Pink-foot we ought to call Nelson as something seemed mortally amiss with his right eye...
A pleasant couple of hours spent at VP this afternoon, produced good numbers of Sand Martins, at least 30 flying high plus a couple of Swallows. With the water dropping, the margins will hopefully turn up a wader or two? He says! The only bird of note, yet another Goose, this time a Pink-foot we ought to call Nelson as something seemed mortally amiss with his right eye...
I've tried to keep the pics tasteful by showing the 'best' side!
Apart from sleeping, a quick wash and flap...
Then a paddle about...
With a lot of territorial disputes going on, a bit of 'pelagic practice' - I even pointed my camera at a Coot!
And an obliging Little Grebe...
Both sides look good on this one!
Apart from sleeping, a quick wash and flap...
Then a paddle about...
With a lot of territorial disputes going on, a bit of 'pelagic practice' - I even pointed my camera at a Coot!
And an obliging Little Grebe...
Both sides look good on this one!
It's becoming less busy at the moment so hopefully able to get out and about ?
Returning from my south coast trip on March 31st 2014, the route home somehow took in South wales!!
... The highlight of this tour was of course a visit to see Gemma in Swansea :-) As she was busy until the early evening, I had to find something to do en-route? Well, with Cardiff Bay and a good chance of Bonaparte's Gull (2 were seen the previous day) it had to be worth a go.....
After a fruitless call and 15 mins wasted at Cardiff yacht club (doh) I crossed the estuary to Cardiff Bay! yacht club and found the parking area adjacent to it where local birders had been viewing the bay. It took 30 mins or so but eventually with a couple of local we were on the one and only Bonaparte's Gull remaining :-) Problem was - it was at least 400m away and strictly distant scope views! I could see it was working a line with other Black-headed Gulls not too far from the far bank - accessible via the Barrage - another short drive was indicated.....
There were at least four cranes on the far bank too! :-)
Down to business and here's some representative record shots......
Sorting out the Boney from the Black heads was fairly easy! A much whiter head with contrasting more prominent ear spot plus darker grey upperparts made it stand out....
The neat trailing black edge to the primaries was also clear, even at distance.
Plus the translucent outer primaries....
Putting it all together here - plus the black bill and flesh pink legs!
Whilst most insects were plucked from the water surface - quite a few came from aerial pursuit!
The most difficult aspect to capture was the upperwing pattern - just about managed here...
Against the buildings, an elegant gull indeed!
With rain starting to fall late afternoon, it was time top wrap up a great two hour session which produced two Little Gulls (adult and 1st winter). Here's the distant adult, nicely flushed pink .....
Not a bad image of another fly over 100m distant :-)
Plus two Med Gulls (2nd and 1st Winter) Here's the 1st winter...
off to Swansea and a tasty Italian meal :-)
To finish off on March 31st 2008, I'm sure nothing much has changed, Curlew at Venus Pool plus Dipper and Wheatears elsewhere in the Shire!
Back to base in Shropshire and with hopes of early migrants, I had an early start at Venus Pool. There was plenty of variety on the water, a Chiffchaff singing but nothing of real note. The high point was when a couple of Curlews made their way from the 'stump island' to the near grassy bank, about 40m left of the hide - a golden opportunity for a flight shot!!
Longnor was en-route to Titterstone Clee with a single Dipper sat on the stones waiting for me! A great opportunity to capture just about every angle you might want see.......
I knew it was too early to have any real chance of Ring Ouzel but you never know? There were quite a few birds to be seen however: Stonechat, Meadow Pipit and Wheatear in good numbers! I estimated approximately a dozen in the quarry and just as many elsewhere! They were quite flighty though, difficult to assess numbers. Males were certainly predominant but there were females too, some bearing colour rings.
Buzzards and a pair of Ravens displaying above plus a Peregrine flying through......
The final destination was Bury Ditches and yet another Peregrine was seen just the other side of Aston on Clun. Closely followed by a Red Kite approx 1/2 mile past Clunton on the way to the ditches (not a chance of stopping for either bird though).
A melodic welcome to Bury Ditches with both Yellowhammer and Song Thrush singing next in the car park, contrasting with the raucous tones of the large flock of Fieldfare (plenty of Thrushes still here) in the adjacent fields. The rain came so I opted not to walk up to the fort.
A great end to a fantastic month of birding - will be a hard act to follow!
Returning from my south coast trip on March 31st 2014, the route home somehow took in South wales!!
... The highlight of this tour was of course a visit to see Gemma in Swansea :-) As she was busy until the early evening, I had to find something to do en-route? Well, with Cardiff Bay and a good chance of Bonaparte's Gull (2 were seen the previous day) it had to be worth a go.....
After a fruitless call and 15 mins wasted at Cardiff yacht club (doh) I crossed the estuary to Cardiff Bay! yacht club and found the parking area adjacent to it where local birders had been viewing the bay. It took 30 mins or so but eventually with a couple of local we were on the one and only Bonaparte's Gull remaining :-) Problem was - it was at least 400m away and strictly distant scope views! I could see it was working a line with other Black-headed Gulls not too far from the far bank - accessible via the Barrage - another short drive was indicated.....
There were at least four cranes on the far bank too! :-)
Down to business and here's some representative record shots......
Sorting out the Boney from the Black heads was fairly easy! A much whiter head with contrasting more prominent ear spot plus darker grey upperparts made it stand out....
The neat trailing black edge to the primaries was also clear, even at distance.
Plus the translucent outer primaries....
Putting it all together here - plus the black bill and flesh pink legs!
Whilst most insects were plucked from the water surface - quite a few came from aerial pursuit!
The most difficult aspect to capture was the upperwing pattern - just about managed here...
Against the buildings, an elegant gull indeed!
With rain starting to fall late afternoon, it was time top wrap up a great two hour session which produced two Little Gulls (adult and 1st winter). Here's the distant adult, nicely flushed pink .....
Not a bad image of another fly over 100m distant :-)
Plus two Med Gulls (2nd and 1st Winter) Here's the 1st winter...
off to Swansea and a tasty Italian meal :-)
To finish off on March 31st 2008, I'm sure nothing much has changed, Curlew at Venus Pool plus Dipper and Wheatears elsewhere in the Shire!
Back to base in Shropshire and with hopes of early migrants, I had an early start at Venus Pool. There was plenty of variety on the water, a Chiffchaff singing but nothing of real note. The high point was when a couple of Curlews made their way from the 'stump island' to the near grassy bank, about 40m left of the hide - a golden opportunity for a flight shot!!
Longnor was en-route to Titterstone Clee with a single Dipper sat on the stones waiting for me! A great opportunity to capture just about every angle you might want see.......
I knew it was too early to have any real chance of Ring Ouzel but you never know? There were quite a few birds to be seen however: Stonechat, Meadow Pipit and Wheatear in good numbers! I estimated approximately a dozen in the quarry and just as many elsewhere! They were quite flighty though, difficult to assess numbers. Males were certainly predominant but there were females too, some bearing colour rings.
Buzzards and a pair of Ravens displaying above plus a Peregrine flying through......
The final destination was Bury Ditches and yet another Peregrine was seen just the other side of Aston on Clun. Closely followed by a Red Kite approx 1/2 mile past Clunton on the way to the ditches (not a chance of stopping for either bird though).
A melodic welcome to Bury Ditches with both Yellowhammer and Song Thrush singing next in the car park, contrasting with the raucous tones of the large flock of Fieldfare (plenty of Thrushes still here) in the adjacent fields. The rain came so I opted not to walk up to the fort.
A great end to a fantastic month of birding - will be a hard act to follow!
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