GRIPPED!

Birders are `gripped` when a bird is seen by others but not themselves. This normally refers to a rarity, nationally, or, as in my case locally.

I have been away for a few days, mine and Lisa`s only break this year and during that brief time a bird was found in the PBC recording area that has been a bit of a bogey bird for me locally. A first winter Pied Flycatcher was seen in a garden by a local birder in the east of the area and the news was put out on the local bird site. I was away and the bird was only present for a day and a bit, as I say `GRIPPED`!

Mike Weedon and Brian Stone have been `after` this bird locally since God was a boy and Mike was the only one of us mad local listers in the area on Saturday. He got some stonking views and some rather lovely photo`s of this bird, click here to have a look. I am very pleased for Mike (he says through gritted teeth), but upset for Brian as he has `wanted` this bird for goodness knows how long. There is normally at least one of these birds locally per year, so hopefully the wait will not be too long, there is always next year!

Below is a photo of a young Robin that has been present in my back garden, learning the ropes of how to be a Robin in this big bad world. The resident adult, I assume its parent has now `had enough` of this youngster and is constantly trying to chase it off, but to no avail, the plucky youngster refuses to give up and keeps coming back.

I only post it because I like the picture and it shows me that I may have missed out on the Pied Fly, but I can still see beauty in the `common` birds in our area.

A blackberrying Whitethroat

It is that time of year when the warblers start to bulk up in readiness for their long migration back to Africa. In the Spring and Summer these birds tend to eat insects and beetles, but when the nights start to draw in they begin to feed on berries (they also do this on their wintering grounds prior to migration).

The above photo`s shows a Common Whitethroat doing just that, choosing a ripe blackberry and consuming it with ease. You will see lots of these little birds in fairly large mixed flocks going through hedgerows feasting on ripened berries before they make the long trip to the Sahel in North Africa where they will spend the winter months.

Gulls

I am a bit of a pedant when it comes to the term "Gull". The common terminology for these (mostly) white birds is Seagull, but let me tell you, there is no such bird as a Seagull, they are GULLS, Black-headed ones, Herring ones even Little ones, but not Sea ones!

I may be a pedant about getting the name right, but when it comes to identification of these beasts I am a beginner. Don`t get me wrong, I can I.D. an adult Herring Gull and even pull out an adult Mediterranean Gull in summer plumage from a flock of Black-headed Gulls, but when it comes to the juvenile, 1st winter, 2nd winter etc plumages I am a complete novice! With this in mind I contacted our local Gull expert Josh Jones the other day with a view to get a few pointers. Josh had found a juvenile and 2nd winter Caspian Gull at the local tip and had kindly said that he would give me a tutorial in identifying the birds. The rain was falling and the sky was grey, not ideal conditions, but we gave it a go.

The 2nd winter bird is in the photo below, can you spot it? (Click on the photo to make it larger)

The photo below shows the bird at a slightly closer range. The bird right in the middle of the shot, looking to the left, looking very pale, that`s the one! This bird, once I got my eye in stuck out like a sore thumb, it was a huge hulk of a beast, with a large straight bill. Josh told me that he thought it was a male.


The photo below shows the juvenile bird. Again, can you pick it out from the other Gulls present?

It is the one directly to the right of the Black Back. Again, a large bird, with a large straight black bill and pale head and again, once I got my eye in, fairly obvious!

The photo below shows the same bird in an aggressive frame of mind attacking a juvenile Herring Gull. The Caspian Gull is the one with very pale underwings, a useful pointer to the I.D.


Josh is amazingly knowledgeable on these birds, he is able to pull out juvenile Yellow-legged Gulls from a group of 20 juvenile Herring Gulls, all looking the same to the untrained eye. He is also extremely patient with a numpty like me, pointing out various key features to identifying these birds. I cannot recommend highly enough a visit to his blog where he explains in more detail the various key features of these birds, click here to have a look.

Thanks to Josh`s help I have a little more knowledge in these magnificent creatures, but they are definitely not Seagulls!

Wheatear

The first Wheatear on Autumn migration appeared at Maxey GP the other day. The bird was only present for the morning of the 19th and has obviously moved on somewhere else to continue its migration to Africa. Hopefully it will survive and return next Spring, perhaps even stopping off at Maxey as it passes through on its way to its breeding grounds!

Juvenile Green Woodpecker

The Green Woodpecker is the largest British Woodpecker, about the size of a Feral Pigeon. The above pictures are of a juvenile bird, the heavily spotted and barred plumage will soon be lost as it moults into its adult plumage of vivid green with a yellow-green rump and red crown. This moult takes place between August and September. There are a fair few of these juveniles around at the moment, none more so than at Maxey GP where I have seen at least 4 individuals, including this one.

Those of us that are of a certain age will remember the television programme `Bagpuss` and perhaps the character of `Old Professor Yaffle, an old wooden book-end in the shape of a woodpecker`. The Green Woodpecker is also known as The Yaffle bird because of its unmistakable call, normally heard in Spring, but is also uttered when taking off in fright, a loud `laughing` noise, not unlike Professor Yaffles laugh.

Cob

Mute Monday