2023 for better or worse _ Soukous

[Soukous]

 

Nest western: UK’s vulnerable kittiwakes flock to bird hotels

As the cliffside habitats of the gull come under increasing pressure, artificial nest sites are being built to help the gulls adapt

 

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/apr/28/nest-western-uk-vulnerable-kittiwakes-flock-to-bird-hotels-aoe

 

Lowestoft has been invaded by Kittiwakes for many years, with them nesting on just about every available surface so whilst there is undoubtedly and altruistic motive behind this it is also trues the local residents are keen to get the birds off their roofs and balconies.

[Galana]

17 hours ago, Soukous said:

Having erased all traces of my error I should explain. I got my gull ID wrong. Rookie mistake.

Don't feel too bad. You got the so called Baltic Gull L. fuscus fuscus. Easily confused, legs apart with Greater BB.

Local British variety fuscus graellsii  is much lighter and can be confused with Yellow-legged.

Did this confusion lead to the word 'Gullible'?

[Soukous]

A beautiful morning so I brought my camera along on the dog walk. Lots of small birds about but only distant shots possible as they saw me - or the dog - before I could get anywhere close.

 

# 126 - (Northern) Wheatear - Oenanthe oenanthe

Shingle Street, Suffolk. April 2023

 

 

# 127 - Skylark - Alauda arvensis

Shingle Street, Suffolk. April 2023

 

 

 

# 128 - Linnet - Linaria cannabina

Shingle Street, Suffolk. April 2023

 

 

 

# 129 - Magpie - Pica pica

Shingle Street, Suffolk. April 2023

I've been ignoring Magpies this year but as this one was in front of me and I had my camera...

Edited May 4, 2023 by Soukous

[Soukous]

a couple more from Shingle Street

 

# 130 - Reed Bunting - Emberiza schoeniclus

 

 

# 131 - Sedge Warbler - Acrocephalus schoenobaenus

 

They were very noisy but also very elusive, skulking in the reeds

 

 

there were also quite a few Meadow Pipits around so here's an improvement on the one I posted at #31

 

Edited May 4, 2023 by Soukous

[Tdgraves]

Lovely photos Martin

[Soukous]

A stroll by the river produced a few more, nothing rare or exciting though

 

# 132 - Mallard - Anas platyrhynchos

Trimley Marshes, Suffolk. May 2023

 

they don't come much more common than this

 

 

# 133 - Gadwall - Anas strepera

Trimley Marshes, Suffolk. May 2023

 

 

# 134 - Great Crested Grebe - Podiceps cristatus

River Orwell, Suffolk. May 2023

 

there was a pair with lovely crests, but they were too far away for decent photos

 

# 135 - Tufted Duck - Aythya fuligula

Loompit Lakes, Suffolk. May 2023

 

 

# 136 - Pied Wagtail - Motacilla alba yarrellii

River orwell, Suffolk. May 2023

 

 

Edited May 4, 2023 by Soukous

[PeterHG]

Beautiful photos! I'd love to see the last one, even though it may be quite common for you.

[Soukous]

51 minutes ago, PeterHG said:

Beautiful photos! I'd love to see the last one, even though it may be quite common for you.

 

Come on over, it may have flown on a it but that is no problem for you. I never know whether it should be called Pied or White Wagtail as I am not 100% clear on the difference

[Soukous]

1 hour ago, Soukous said:

 

Come on over, it may have flown on a it but that is no problem for you. I never know whether it should be called Pied or White Wagtail as I am not 100% clear on the difference

 

so now I know.

 

Pied Wagtails (Motacilla alba yarrellii) and continental White Wagtails (Motacilla alba alba) are two different subspecies of the same species - which confusingly is known as "White Wagtail" (Motacilla alba).

The continental subspecies, which are the only ones we tend to call White Wagtails are never as dark on the back as the bird in your photo, and also typically lack the extensive dark grey along the flanks.

[Galana]

Whilst not wishing to add to your confusion, your correspondent's description of M, alba alba as a continental species can be misleading. Most of the 'White wagtails' seen in UK are said to be on passage to/from Iceland.

[Soukous]

1 hour ago, Galana said:

Whilst not wishing to add to your confusion, your correspondent's description of M, alba alba as a continental species can be misleading. Most of the 'White wagtails' seen in UK are said to be on passage to/from Iceland.

 

[Soukous]

Even on an overcast day there are some visitors that can brighten up the garden

 

# 137 - Pheasant - Phasianus colchicus

IP13 6EF, Suffolk. May 2023

 

 

 

[Kitsafari]

wow i would love to have that in my garden any day. 

 

[PeterHG]

10 hours ago, Kitsafari said:

wow i would love to have that in my garden any da

It wouldn’t fit in our garden with the long tail

[Kitsafari]

1 hour ago, PeterHG said:

It wouldn’t fit in our garden with the long tail

 

It would in ours! but the neighbours' cats will also delight in its presence

[Soukous]

talking of long tails 

Great pretender: the bird with an Elvis-like quiff that can’t stop mimicking

 

"In the dense forests of south India’s Western Ghats, you may be lucky enough to spot a greater racket-tailed drongo crooning to birds of other species nearby. But the drongo is not singing. It is mimicking the other birds, according to ethno-ornithologist Samira Agnihotri."

 

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/may/09/bird-with-an-elvis-like-quiff-that-cant-stop-mimicking-india-aoe

[Galana]

4 hours ago, Soukous said:

talking of long tails 

Depends on who you are talking to. Over here Long tails have had a totally different meaning since Plague.

[Soukous]

It seemed like a good idea at the time.

 

In recent years I have tried to make at least 1 trip to Scotland; partly in search of birds, but mostly because I simply love the landscapes and the wide open spaces.

I much prefer self-catering accommodation, but almost all such properties want bookings in multiples of a week rather than just a couple of days. I find this quite limiting as I get bored driving back & forth on the same road every day so I thought it might be fun to go camping again.

 

I know, Scotland & camping; what was I thinking?

 

Scotland would be new territory for Madame Soukous but she could not quite understand why we would not be visiting any towns, cities or anywhere else where there might be a concentration of buildings & people. Eventually it clicked that where we were going there were not much of either.

 

Just getting there involves a lot of driving; from the Suffolk coast to the north west of Scotland - assuming we took a direct route - is over 1000 miles (that's 1600km), and of course we were not going to follow a direct route.

 

First stop was in the Lake Distrct, at the northern end of the Kirkstone Pass, and it was here that the folly of my decision - to go camping - became apparent.

A bitingly cold wind was complemented by occasional rain showers, which meant that the simple pleasure of sitting in the open was not an option.

 

Of course the scenery was spectacular, when viewed from the comfort of a vehicle, but opportunities for birding were pretty much nil.

 

Next stop was the eastern Trossachs, near Aberfoyle where the weather was kinder, before we drove up to Findhorn on the Moray Firth where I hoped I might find a few bireds whilst Madame strolled along the beach with the dog.

 

It was only on the 5th day of our trip that I grabbed my first bird.       Sorry, that is untrue. The Treecreeper, the Grey Wagtail, the Long-tailed Tit and the Pied Flycatcher were all photographed in the Lake District, just out side Rydal, which is a bit north of Ambleside.

 

# 138 - Eider - Somateria mollissima

Coast off Cullen, Scotland. May 2023

 

 

I did see a couple more later in the trip when the light was better

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 24, 2023 by Soukous

[Soukous]

I was surprised how many fewer birds I was seeing compared with my last visit to Moray Firth 2 years ago. Avian Flu really had taken a heavy toll all along the coast.

 

By now I had given up going out looking for birds and was just photographing those that presented themselves.

 

# 139 - Chaffinch - Fringilla coelebs

Spey Bay, Scotland. May 2023

 

 

# 140 - Common Whitethroat - Sylvia communis

Spey Bay, Scotland. May 2023

 

 

 

From Moray, we were heading north westwards to Scourie, on the west coast; the plan being to visit Handa Island and do a boat trip to the Summer Isles from Ullapool.

Despite the lack of birds, the landscapes meant that the driving was almost always enjoyable, with plenty of stops. 

 

As corrected in my previous post, these birds were actually seen while we were in the Lake District. You'd think that with so few on my list I'd know the exact location I saw each of them but alas not.

 

# 141 - Pied Flycatcher - Ficedula hypoleuca

near Rydal, Scotland. May 2023

 

 

# 142 - Grey Wagtail - Motacilla cinerea

near Rydal, Scotland. May 2023

 

 

this one was much more elusive. Judging by the sounds around me there were at least 4 of them nearby, but whenever I saw them flying they always ended up out of sight on the back side of the tree.

 

# 143 - (Eurasian, if you use Merlin) Treecreeper - Certhia familiaris

near Rydal, Scotland. May 2023

 

 

a Long-tailed Tit also posed nicely with his lunch (already listed at #126)

 

 

Edited May 24, 2023 by Soukous

[PeterHG]

Not a good start to the camping trip. but you did get some very good photos!

[Galana]

A brave start.

If you are there now then the weather is wonderful. AND to avoid camping I do know s/c places that will book part weeks. Also booking.com have many.

Some excellent birds and I can understand the confusion in location at times.

[Soukous]

After a lovely drive along the A838, we reached Scourie.

Our campsite was located on a small cliff, overlooking the bay, and it was not raining. In fact it was a sunny afternoon, albeit with a stiff cold wind.

 

We'd arrived too late to cross to Handa Island so we contented ourselves with exploring the area. As with much of the far north fo Scotland, the scenery is magnificent but Lord help you if you are looking for a place to eat or a pub.

 

The reason we (well, really just me) were there was to visit Handa Island. As the island is 'closed' on Sundays that only left us the next day, saturday, to go across. And the weather forecast was for rain throughout the day.

It had to be done though, so early next morning we drove the 6 miles to the pier at Tarbet. After a short while others began to arrive and we learned that they had tried to cross the day before but the congestion at the small parking area was so bad they had given up. The big problem, they all said, is oversized motorhomes. The sign at the top of the road states it is unsuitable for caravans and coaches. That does not deter some drivers who think their caravan is not really 'that' big, or who do not appreciate that their motorhome is actually the same size as a small coach.

 

 

The weather forecast was correct. It did rain, but only intermittently, 5 minutes rain, then 5 minutes no rain was a recurring pattern.

 

From the pier at tarbet, we were taken across to Handa island on the appropriately named Handa Ferry, A rubber boat, from which we jumped off onto the beach.

 

 

from where the resident volunteers led us to the visitor centre for a briefing.

Handa is usually a surefire place for Skuas, particularly Great Skuas, but apparently the population has declined by 75% as a result of Avian flu.

Other birds to be found are Puffins, Razorbills, Guillemots, Fulmars, Kittiwakes and occasional Gannets.

 

Suitably briefed, we set off to follow the trail around the island.

 

 

 

The 2 areas of greatest interest were Puffin Bay and the Great Stack.

No puffins at Puffin Bay, but lots of Fulmars.

 

# 144 - Fulmar - Fulmarus glacialis

 

 

 

I was surprised how short the Fulmar body is in comparison to the wingspan

 

 

 

Edited May 25, 2023 by Soukous

[Soukous]

A short distance from Puffin Bay, is the Great Stack. A rock stack that provides a nesting site for seabirds, mostly Guillemots & Razorbills

 

# 145 - Guillemot - Uria aalge

 

 

# 146 - Razorbill - Alca torda

 

 

 

There were a few Puffins there too. As they have not yet laid eggs there was not much activity yet, with much of their time spent out at sea just fattening up.

 

# 147 - Puffin - Fratercula arctica

 

 

 

This was definitely not the best place to see Puffins. Other locations like Farne Islands, Skomer or even Bempton Cliffs allow watchers to get much closer.

 

 

[Soukous]

I did spot a Bonxie, two in fact, but overall the visit was a bit of a disappointment in terms of bird sightings.

 

# 148 - Great Skua (Bonxie) - Stercorarius skua

 

 

 

I was very glad to have been in the first boat across as the paths were beginning to get a bit crowded as I made my way back to the beach. And when I got back to Tarbet I could see why. The parking area, and the approach road were jam packed with vehicles; mostly campervans, making it hard to get out.

 

 

[Soukous]

13 hours ago, Galana said:

If you are there now then the weather is wonderful.

 

That is no surprise as we are back home now.