2014 SUMMARY

Pretty poor birding ths year generally - only #4 LIFERS - 2 of those in the last week of the year!
A total of #134 bird species seen this year - even with an East Coast trip with Rob in May.
Highlights are:
Yellowlegs on local ressies - after we had been around the country looking for rarities
Breeding Firecrest at my new work place of Ashridge
Penduline in both Italy and UK.
Bird hide built!

Here's to an attempt to get to the 300 species in 2015

Bird Hide progress

Working on the invisibility cloak for the hide...!
The artificial ivy coming through quite nicely - and the mini hedge plants are in.
Work to be done on the top part of the hedge still, and the front muddy area.

Ivy stapling underway - as well as bushes planted..

What's that sticking out the hedge - is it a monster? 

Robin very close by the hide - taken with my phone!

Last LIFER of the Year #291

A PENDULINE TIT rounded off the year - all be it a fleeting view of this little beauty. The bird had been at seen the day before at Meadow Lane in Beds - we were driving down from Darlington the day before but didnt get to the turning until after dark. Shame as it had been showing very well all day - with perfect light on the bull rushes.
I got up early to get there before light to see if I could get a nice shot before I had to get back for a family meet up with Rob & co.
Very cold morning - beautiful blue sky and crispy air

Chilly but beautiful morning 

After about 10 mins, the signal came up that the bird had arisen from the reeds. I got about a 5 second view through the binos before it rose up out of the lake and headed south to the sewage works.

It was expected that it would come back (it did this the day before) 

After about an hour and a half I had to ditch the vigil as I had to go home. 

Quite pleased to hear it didnt come back - as I would have missed a great picture in that light and on the reeds.

Bunch of twitchers freezing their nuts off - post tit departure!

Here's one some more fortunate person took the day before - not my pic!

Not my pic, but the bird I saw!

Year tick at charity stop

Ventured out to Caring for Life with Anna,Jen and Jon - and stumbled across a family of TREE SPARROW- a nice surprise !
Year tick #125

Tree sparrow on a crisp day

Lovely surroundings

Boxing Day LIFER!!!

A 45 minute trip to  Pugney's County Park near Wakefield produced only the second lifer of the year - a BLYTH'S PIPIT - on a flooded field in a local industrial park. The bird has been there a couple of weeks now - and needed someone walking quite close by to tease it out of the grass and into the trees. A very rare bird that hangs out in Asia / Mongolia. Another mystery as to why it is here....
Lifer # 290 - #124 for the year

BLYTH'S PIPIT - a MEGA!!! 

Brief views on the branches 

The site of the sighting

Industrial Park the LBJ was hanging out in 

Dark Lord Darth Twitcher

Christmas Day in the hide

A beautiful morning and a little time spent in the hide with Anna

Quite cosy! 

Amazing blue sky through the peek holes

Hide going covert Part 1

Stage one of hide cover up!!

Fake fern stapled on 

Starting to melt into the background but not done yet ! 

Granville Hide sightings

Sightings from the hide this morning:
BLACK HEADED GULL
WOOD PIGEON

Also had a darkness visit - using the night vision scope (which just gets to the edge of the copse)

Nothing seen however on this occasion.

First spot from "The Roost" Bird Hide @ Granville

During the Granville Bird hide installation , multiple FOX sightings occured - Leon captured this one having a poop!

Also present was a RED KITE - that landed in the field

Red Fox caught in the act from the Hide 

Granville Bird Hide - Operation "Chuck it over the hedge"

A detailed and highly risky project to get the hide from the dojo and into the field, then back it into the hedge...

Sounds easy.

Thanks for the help of Russ "The Welly" , Leon "Let's do it and have a beer" and "Mind Control" Forsh...

Over it goes! Quality Forsh using Jedi mind tricks and I'm taking a pic!

There's an elf in the hide! Its in position

Room with a view 

Cant see that!? Needs some camoflague me thinks..

Pretty slender 

Granville Bird Hide Carpentry Part 2

It took some time to cut the holes and then fit them back in again - and to make them actually shut properly!!

Looking like some sort of hide....

Quite neat if I do say so myself!

Look! no hands!!

Looking quite homely.. now it needs a home!

Granville Bird Hide Painting and Carpentry Phase Part 1

Time to cut out the peep holes and camo it up!

Nice splash of forest green,,, one of a few layers

First jogsaw cut hole.. Rather tricky under artifical light! 

God bless John Seymour and his workshop! Very handy indeed

Granville Bird Hide building phase

Project Bird hide underway...

Yikes slightly daunting task putting that lot toegther!

Just like that - it's in place! (took a couple of weeks!)

Back door hinge and slightly elevated roof (v technical this) 

Gannet at Wilstone

A speedy trip to Wilstone at lunchtime after a birdnews alert produced a GANNET - the 4th occurrence in the local area I believe.
LGRE and Joan present - the bird stayed for about 3 hours before heading off

LEO year tick at Elmley NR

On our way home from Whitstable we had a stop at Elmley nature reserve and were lucky to see two lovely LONG EARED OWL.

When we were there, the one and only LGRE appeared - always good entertainment - Neil MB you missed him again !!!

Long Eared Owl 

LGRE in action - on the phone as ever!

Dunstable Lifer

A lifer in Dunstable! 

After two trips (first on Sunday, then the following Friday) I connected with and got a picture (just) of a BARRED WARBLER that has been hiding out in a hawthorn / blackberry bush for over a week.

The first appearance of this species in Beds - and lifer # 289 for myself.

Barred Warbler

Wilstone Year ticks

A quick visit to Wilstone produced 2 WHOOPER SWAN, a GREENSHANK and a GREEN SANDPIPER

Year tick at Ashridge

A lunchtime walk around the grounds - I heard the call of a Raven.
Followed the sound to see a RAVEN calling and flying from the tree tops
Year tick #118

Ressie year tick - Black Tern

A quick round trip to Startops reservoir produced a needed year tick - a juvenile BLACK TERN
Year tick # 117

Fox in the Granville Field

I went for a wander to the copse - as I heard owls the night before - and this lovely fox was trampling across the cut crop field.

Fox!

Ashridge firecrest

A wander around my new local work patch produced a family of firecrests - a fantastic sight indeed. Let's see if any other rare birds appear in the gardens !!

Penduline Tit in Italy

On hols in a lovely place called Iseo - a lake in Northern Italy with Anna.
Local nature reserve a walk away from the hotel.
Having a lovely stroll around (knowing pendulines breed here)  - and I stumble across nesting Pendule Tits!
I could hear them calling, and then looked up above in the trees to see this nest and the adult feeding the chicks.
Amazing!!!

Nesting Penduline Tits in Italy 

Wind up tick at Ivinghoe

I ventured out to Ivinghoe Beacon to get a few butterfly year ticks - nothing! However on the way back I stopped off at the farmers field at Down Farm by Pitstone Hill - one CORN BUNTING clicking and whirling nicely on the wire

Corn Bunting

Granville moth tick

Working from home on the kitchen patio, I heard a high speed wing flap and saw this lovely HUMMINGBIRD MOTH - it stayed around long enough for me to get the camera and get a few shots

Hummingbird Moth in the garden

Magical Otmoor

A relatively quick stop at Otmoor reserve on the way back from Newbury and on the way to see Seany boy.

What a great evening show - I saw 3 CUCKOO flying across the closes meadow. On the way back a pair of TURTLE DOVE were showing very nicely. Such a lovely bird. 

Then to top it off the GLOSSY IBIS that has been around for a few days flew up and across the Closes field . Great view through the mini scope .

Picture below taken using my iPhone with the new scope attachment. Works nicely!

Turtle Dove purring away at Otmoor

Cotswolds wander and twitch on way home

After Rob had left to travel back I went for a wander down the River in search for a cuckoo - no such luck but some nice sightings including a skylark and also a common snipe

Skylark

On the return home I stopped at Farmoor Ressie in Oxon for a RED NECKED GREBE and also a DUNLIN

Red Necked Grebe in great light

Dunlin very close to the Ressie edge