Offa’s Hike

Just a few lines from North Wales, sadly no photos as I forgot my card reader and anyway, the interweb is down at The Overlook Hotel. That should be Bron-y-Bryn but looking at the tacky Xmas lights, it’s the sort of place that could send you mad!

Yesterday’s incessant rain washed out a trip to the high tide roost to Point of Ayr. We did go but everything got soaked.

This morning, Leigh and I met up with ‘Biggest Twitcher’ Alan Davies at Rhyl Marine Lake where the Great Northern Diver was doing its best battleship impression. A few Goldeneye and Red-breasted Merganser too in the gloom.

On to Kinmel Bay to seen the Snow Bunting before the ringers started netting them and a drop in at the Mercury Enterprise Park gave us a bonus Short-eared Owl hunting after two days of hard conditions.

Short-eared Owl

Our final stop was RSPB Conwy where we were given a bit of info on our quarry. Passing the spot four times we were gripped off when Bob was seen back at the spot and showed us gripping shots of Firecrest. Leigh and I did manage brief views but Alan and now Ruth dipped out. Our final, final spot was the coffee shop for a welcome round of Mochas and Hot Chocolates.

An enjoyable morning all round.

Conwy Castle

Patchwork

After a few years doing various yearlists, this year I am going to start concentrating on a regular, workable, patch… it does incorporate various elements that I’ve been trying out in the past few years. It is wholly within the City boundary and it’s still in the Soar Valley and has a my vismig spot at the Mammoth. Finally it encompases my WeBS count area.

The Patch

The patch contains Watermead Country Park South and the whole of Birstall Meadows now I have permission to enter the whole site from Leicester City Council. There will be a few historical records to go in but generally I’m starting from scratch. Here’s hoping…

Who’s Been At The Sherry Then?

This is rather surreal… has Taiga been ruled out?

Shriking My Responsibilities?

After spending days eating and drinking I reckon a lot of birders were looking to get out and see some birds today and maybe stake out a few sites for starting the year list on 1 January 2012. I know I was ready for some fresh air and so was Leigh and today we had a mission… find Leigh a LEO.

Leigh’s brother Matthew was also ready for a day out so we picked him up just after 08.00 and headed in to Staffordshire. Our first stop was the Great Grey Shrike at Upper Longdon on the edge of Cannock Chase. We could see the bird as we pulled up perched on a tall snag on one of the few un-felled Pines (probably because it was a dead Pine). Not a tame bird this one so it was digiscoping all the way… sorry.

Great Grey Shrike

Great Grey Shrike

Great Grey Shrike

Great Grey Shrike

With not much else to be seen we headed off to a site in Staffordshire known for roosting Long-eared Owl. A good hour and a half search had revealed a few pellets… looks like they are mostly feeding on Shrews but no Owls. We decided to give up and head home as the news wasn’t good from my local contact. As we approached the car park we me another birder who said if we gave him 10 minutes he’d find us a bird. He was almost as good as his word as he took us to another spot in the wood but this time Matt was first to pick up a bird high in the canopy. Sadly it was pretty obscured and bloody high. This video was the best I could manage.

There is a LEO there honest. With now bursting bladders we headed back to the car for a sprint to the nearest loos near Uttoxeter and then home… Leigh was happy with her lifer!

Rattus norvegicus

One of the joys of my job is I’m often out of the office and I get to take my lunch break in nice places. On Thursday I was out in NW Leicestershire so I dropped in for a quick visit to Kelham Bridge. Up to five Willow Tit were coming to the feeders but without my DSLR digiscoping was nigh on impossible.

Other visitors to the feeders were a bit easier such as this Brown Rat. Rats get a bad press but we need them to clear up some of the shit we discard so cut them some slack.

Brown Rat

This male Great Spotted Woodpecker would also drop on to the feeders then take nuts to a tree to eat them.

Separated At Birth…

Imran Khan and Shakin’ Stevens

Imran Khan

Shakin’ Stevens

Classic Old Sports Grounds No3: Fartown, Huddersfield

Now these days since the Shameful ‘merger’ of Huddersfield Giants with Sheffield Eagles (for the Giants to snatch away Sheffield Eagles Super League place) I’m no fan of Shuddersfield but way back when I used to enjoy my Sunday afternoon trips to Huddersfield to watch The Dons or just to watch any game really in the Slalom Lager Rugby League Division Two.

Yorkshire Cup

In the 1980s Huddersfield RLFC had fallen from grace and their lovely Fartown ground could have said to have followed suit but even in the early 1980s it could still be used as a neutral ground for big Rugby League events.

The ground started life in 1868 as a Cricket Gound and when I knew the ground Cricket was still played next door. One thing I am a sucker for are barrel roofed stands or cover for terracing and that’s something the Fartown possesed as well as a lovely gabled Main stand (wooden) and a huge terrace opposite… in short a proper sports ground.

Fartown

Fartown

Fartown

One thing that might not be known about the ground is that it hosted Association football back in when in 1882 10000 turned up to watch The Wednesday play Blackburn Rovers in an FA Cup semi-final. The Wednesday missed out on an early chance of FA Cup glory eventually losing 5-1 at Fallowfield following a 0-0 draw in Huddersfield.

Rugby League is still played at Fartown but Shuddersfield now play at the MacAlpine stadium they share with Huddersfield Town FC.

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Merry Christmas

Red Grouse

Unlike some people this bird was photographed at Strines during a real snow storm…

Snowgate – Top Artist Admits Snow Was Faked

After the shocking revelations that the BBC and the Frozen Planet team filmed a Polar Bear giving birth to her cubs in a Dutch Zoo and not a den in the High Arctic; The Drunkbirder can now reveal that a top British artist has faked snow on his e-Christmas card. Tightwad Andy Mackay aka The Leicester Llama tried saving money by not sending out cards this year and posted a lovely picture of a Kingfisher in the snow on his facebook page as well as shamelessly sending it by email to friends.

Kingfisher In The Snow

With little thought for the Christmas card economy or the needs of Nightjars to recolonise clear-fell areas Mackay cropped an image of the Kingfisher from an  image of his original, excellent painting and added the snow in Photoshop. The whole shocking truth of this deception was admitted by Mackay in the comments.

Kingfisher

I spent last night trawling the internet and found the original painting. As of this morning in an email Mr Mackay sees little problem with his deception and refuses to withdraw the image and send out proper cards…

If you do want to buy some genuine artwork from Andy please visit his websites Wildlife Art by Andrew Mackay or Pet Portraits by Andrew Mackay.

Shetland Bird Report 2010

Shetland Bird Report 2010

Despite having few resident or breeding species for Shetland it’s a case of quality  and quantity… quality in terms of species such as Red-necked Phalarope that do breed and quantity in terms of rare vagrants that pitch up on the islands. The year list for 2010 was 263 species, 10 above the nine year average. There is also quantity in terms of ‘rare’ and ‘scarce’ with three Sykes’s Warbler (the total for Britain as a whole is only 14) and around 150 Yellow-browed Warbler tells you all you need to know.

This years report is a fantastic 144 pages that is chock full of information. It’s not all rarities, though that’s what attracts more and more birders each autumn, so breeding is discussed along with the regular WeBS counts. Following a seasonal summary we are into the systematic list which makes up the bulk of the report. The editorial team have done a great job as it is readable and informative and enlivened by some excellent photographs. Shetland is blessed with some brilliant bird photographers so that is only to be expected.

At the back of the report are five articles ranging from breeding expansions and colonisation by Leach’s Petrel and Storm Petrel to a first for Scotland – Egyptian Goose and a first for Shetland – Water Pipit! This amply illustrates the enigma that is Shetland Birding… Coal Tit is a description species whereas Yellow-browed Warbler can, on some days, be the most common warbler.

The report can be purchased for £10 from Rob Fray, Sunnydell, East Shore, Virkie, Shetland ZE3 9JS

Membership enquiries should be addressed to Russ Haywood, Lamnaberg, Wester Quarff, Shetland ZE2 9EZ this includes complimentary membership of the Shetland Bird Club that comes with a purchased Bird Report for one year.