Oh I forgot to mention that our trip to Portugal has been published on the internet here by Richard and it includes latitude and longtitude co-ordinates so if you take a satnav with you you can just bang them in and away you go.
I quite unsuccessfully loaded my twitter account to this page and kept having problems with log in pop-ups. Anyway if any of you out there feel the need to to follow Blurredbirding on Twitter it can be done so from here., it is quite addictive when fully into it. Just type in Blurredbirding into the search box and hit follow, quite a few of my blogging freinds are on there too. I am current trying to work out how I can to do live twitter updates with images from the field for next year, so what this space, or rather that space.
MY
5th December 2009
I bring you this post whilst feeling very unwell with the dreaded lurgy or something similar.
I really have lost the sense of urgency in my birding now, it's taken eleven and a bit months to gradually grind me down, but still, what a blast. I have been working on an end of year post, just to sum up some of highs and lows of our regions 2009 birding to which some of you I suppose will think of me in 2009 as just a twitcher, but I have been to several places within the region I have not been to before and will have finished on over three quarters of the total of birds seen in our WMBC four counties. Such achievement, you will have to agree.
What about next year?
Blithfield Reservoir - Staffordshire 8.15am
A Great Northern Diver (or Great Malvern it said in one WMBC bullitin once) was seen in flight over the dam thursday gone and then a unconfirmed sighting of one yesterday had my hopes high.
A good mooch around the deep end produced very little to show for such effort. No diver, a handful of Great Crested Grebe, Goldeneye and Eurasian Wigeon on the water along with several Fieldfare and Meadow Pipit on the side lines.
Since my article on the Greater Scaup last week, the blighter has buggered off, obviously didn't like life in the spotlight, which left lean pickings around Tad Bay.
An adult Whooper Swan was in bay, a leave over from yeasterday and happy to stay close to three semi-resident Mutes. Several male Goosander were also present along with large numbers of Eurasian Wigeon and Teal. Stansley Wood held a large flock of Linnet that rested on the edge of wood between feeding in a small triangle of rough stuff. Three Bramblings joined in with 20 or so Chaffinch and the odd Goldfinch.
MY
I really have lost the sense of urgency in my birding now, it's taken eleven and a bit months to gradually grind me down, but still, what a blast. I have been working on an end of year post, just to sum up some of highs and lows of our regions 2009 birding to which some of you I suppose will think of me in 2009 as just a twitcher, but I have been to several places within the region I have not been to before and will have finished on over three quarters of the total of birds seen in our WMBC four counties. Such achievement, you will have to agree.
What about next year?
Blithfield Reservoir - Staffordshire 8.15am
A Great Northern Diver (or Great Malvern it said in one WMBC bullitin once) was seen in flight over the dam thursday gone and then a unconfirmed sighting of one yesterday had my hopes high.
A good mooch around the deep end produced very little to show for such effort. No diver, a handful of Great Crested Grebe, Goldeneye and Eurasian Wigeon on the water along with several Fieldfare and Meadow Pipit on the side lines.
Since my article on the Greater Scaup last week, the blighter has buggered off, obviously didn't like life in the spotlight, which left lean pickings around Tad Bay.
An adult Whooper Swan was in bay, a leave over from yeasterday and happy to stay close to three semi-resident Mutes. Several male Goosander were also present along with large numbers of Eurasian Wigeon and Teal. Stansley Wood held a large flock of Linnet that rested on the edge of wood between feeding in a small triangle of rough stuff. Three Bramblings joined in with 20 or so Chaffinch and the odd Goldfinch.
Y a GBB I here you say, why indeed.
No birding Sunday due to feeling positively ill and five days on have still got it.
MY
28th NOVEMBER 2009
I was going to start this post by saying that my visit to Blithfield Reservoir was much the same as my last three visits and there really seems little change in anything here, which usually means the dreaded settled westerly systems, but had forgotton about the events of this week. A first for Britain in the form of a "fregretta" Storm Petrel, Black or Whire-bellied on the 25th that was blown up the Severn Estuary along with Leach's Petrel, many Kittiwake, Grey Phalarope and Gannets. Then there is the Pacific Diver thats on the estuary somewhere, so really although south-westerlies are fairly rubbish for us, they can be very good elsewhere in the country.
Locally Grey Phalarope and Kittiwakes featured during the working week and really put paid to my chances of acheiving the regional listing record of 222, here I am stuck on 216 with the likes of Grey Phalarope, Kittiwake, R.B Merganser, Purple Sandpiper and Red Kite all eluding me so far this year. Oh well I always new November was pretty key and I am wise enough not to book loads of holiday for local birding.
So onto todays visit to Blithfield.
Redhank have dropped to 3, a single Dunlin joined them in Blithe Bay.
A couple of Willow Tit, a Chiffchaff and a single Marsh Tit were the pick of the passerines whilst a few Fieldfare remained below the dam. Duck numbers have appeared to swell with large numbers of Eurasian Wigeon and Common Teal whilst 4 Pintail, 5 Gadwall, 1 Goosander, 2 Yellow-legged Gullwere also noted
Identification of Greater Scaup 1st winter - The Blurred Approach.
I would not be ashamed to admit that I too sometimes get in a fuddle when it comes down to sorting out plumages and ages of birds and it is something I have always been keen on, rather than just looking at a bird, ticking the box and legging it, I feel that a little time spent just getting to grips with age, plumage and moult reaps dividends. This individual looks set to winter in Tad Bay, although ironically I didn't see today due to some disturbance. It can show very well from the Education Hide in Stansley Wood and associates with the few Pochard and Tufted Duck, that are in Tad and convienently sleep just off the western shore of the bay.
Note how the prominent white wing bar extends well onto the greater coverts (main outer flight feathers), a feature that would seperate it from the American counterpart Lesser Scaup, the latters white white wing bar neatly falling short of the greyish primaries.
There you go, 1st winter drake Greater Scaup, a seaduck with attitude, don't just take them for granted, take a closer look.
MY
Locally Grey Phalarope and Kittiwakes featured during the working week and really put paid to my chances of acheiving the regional listing record of 222, here I am stuck on 216 with the likes of Grey Phalarope, Kittiwake, R.B Merganser, Purple Sandpiper and Red Kite all eluding me so far this year. Oh well I always new November was pretty key and I am wise enough not to book loads of holiday for local birding.
So onto todays visit to Blithfield.
Redhank have dropped to 3, a single Dunlin joined them in Blithe Bay.
A couple of Willow Tit, a Chiffchaff and a single Marsh Tit were the pick of the passerines whilst a few Fieldfare remained below the dam. Duck numbers have appeared to swell with large numbers of Eurasian Wigeon and Common Teal whilst 4 Pintail, 5 Gadwall, 1 Goosander, 2 Yellow-legged Gullwere also noted
Identification of Greater Scaup 1st winter - The Blurred Approach.
I would not be ashamed to admit that I too sometimes get in a fuddle when it comes down to sorting out plumages and ages of birds and it is something I have always been keen on, rather than just looking at a bird, ticking the box and legging it, I feel that a little time spent just getting to grips with age, plumage and moult reaps dividends. This individual looks set to winter in Tad Bay, although ironically I didn't see today due to some disturbance. It can show very well from the Education Hide in Stansley Wood and associates with the few Pochard and Tufted Duck, that are in Tad and convienently sleep just off the western shore of the bay.
What many people do when confronted with possible Greater Scaup (especially female) is just forget how big they really are and on average when compared to Tufted Duck is larger in all departments, distinct broad body, large wide bill and large rounded head, which really should make Greater Scaup stand out (even whilst asleep) in a flock of Tufted Duck
In the above image the Greater Scaup (left hand bird), dwarfs the central Tufted Duck and body size wise appears the same as the drake Pochard to the right.
The above image details the typical head shape of Greater Scaup, the rear of crown is smooth, the head is large and tuft-less. Tufted Duck, as per it's name usually shows some sort of crest and even in juvenile plumage.
One of the key identification of Greater Scaup is the bill pattern, this is classic Greater, look at the nail (bill tip), it is black and usually shows no bleeding over the rest of the bill tip. Tufted Duck however shows much more black on bill and generally covers the whole bill tip.
The males back and scapulars are white and brownish -black strongly vermiculated, whilst the rump and uppertail are black. Flanks, in adult are crisp white, in 1st winter the flanks are grey-brown with white vermiculations which it will lose with maturity. Not discernable in any off these images further differences in plumage is colour of the head, in good light appears glossed green as opposed to purplish in Tufted Duck.
The males back and scapulars are white and brownish -black strongly vermiculated, whilst the rump and uppertail are black. Flanks, in adult are crisp white, in 1st winter the flanks are grey-brown with white vermiculations which it will lose with maturity. Not discernable in any off these images further differences in plumage is colour of the head, in good light appears glossed green as opposed to purplish in Tufted Duck.
There you go, 1st winter drake Greater Scaup, a seaduck with attitude, don't just take them for granted, take a closer look.
MY
14/15th NOVEMBER 2009
I was chatting to someone a few months ago and he was telling me how he was getting bored with birding blogs that witter on about anything other than birds and in fact had stopped looking at some of them. So taking that on board here is my new post.
Blithfield Reservoir - Staffordshire - all bloody weekend.
A sumary of this weekends birding in and around Blithfield didn't really deserve the treatment I gave it in my pre-post, so here it is.
Fieldfare featured with 17 on Saturday and 40 on Sunday, with 10 Redwing on the latter.
7 Dunlin, 4 Redshank were still present on Saturday along with the long staying Shelduck.
Adult male Peregrine on Saturday cleared Tad Bay and 100 Golden Plover flew through.
1st winter drake Scaup looks settled, whilst duck numbers in general are poor, with 3 Pintail, a max of 6 Pochard being the best. 2 Goosander, 1 G.B.B and 3+Herring Guls, with a smal flock 8 Skylark were noted Staurday.
MY
Blithfield Reservoir - Staffordshire - all bloody weekend.
A sumary of this weekends birding in and around Blithfield didn't really deserve the treatment I gave it in my pre-post, so here it is.
Fieldfare featured with 17 on Saturday and 40 on Sunday, with 10 Redwing on the latter.
7 Dunlin, 4 Redshank were still present on Saturday along with the long staying Shelduck.
Adult male Peregrine on Saturday cleared Tad Bay and 100 Golden Plover flew through.
1st winter drake Scaup looks settled, whilst duck numbers in general are poor, with 3 Pintail, a max of 6 Pochard being the best. 2 Goosander, 1 G.B.B and 3+Herring Guls, with a smal flock 8 Skylark were noted Staurday.
MY
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