Friday, 28 August 2015

Updated year List

Although I do not take part in any year list competitions etc, I do like to keep a tab on what I see each year. Last year, my total of 221 species was reasonably respectable for a committed non twitching birder who invariably just visits Kent (esp Dungeness,) Portland a couple of times per year and North Norfolk at least once a month as well as a few sites within Hertfordshire (Amwell regularly, Tring a couple of times and maybe Stockers Lake and the Lea Valley.) Having said that, if I happen to be in Norfolk and a good bird turns up or is present, I shall make an effort to see it; just not wait for more than half an hour for it to show. eg icterine warbler at Burnham Overy dunes showed within 5 minutes and not again as I waited the half hour to improve on photos. A sort of twitching, I suppose!
I have just updated this year's list, having noted many omissions of everyday birds, most seen locally and not added.
Archive photo: Little Hadham winter 2008: goldcrest

  1. red throated diver (Holkham)
  2. great northern diver (Portland)
  3. black necked grebe (Amwell)
  4. little grebe
  5. great crested grebe
  6. red necked grebe (Holkham)
  7. fulmar (Portland)
  8. manx shearwater (Portland)
  9. balearic shearwater (Portland)
  10. gannet
  11. cormorant
  12. shag (Portland)
  13. Little bittern (Lakenheath)
  14. cattle egret (Dungeness)
  15. little egret
  16. great white egret (Dungeness)
  17. grey heron
  18. spoonbill (Norfolk)
  19. mute swan
  20. pink footed goose
  21. greylag goose
  22. canada goose
  23. barnacle goose (Scotney Pits)
  24. brent goose
  25. shelduck
  26. egyptian goose
  27. mallard
  28. gadwall
  29. pintail
  30. shoveler
  31. wigeon
  32. teal
  33. garganey (Cley)
  34. pochard
  35. red crested pochard (Titchwell)
  36. scaup (Dungeness)
  37. tufted duck
  38. common scoter
  39. goldeneye
  40. smew
  41. goosander
  42. red breasted merganser
  43. red kite
  44. marsh harrier
  45. hen harrier (Titchwell)
  46. common buzzard
  47. sparrowhawk
  48. goshawk (Swaffham area)
  49. kestrel
  50. hobby
  51. peregrine
  52. red legged partridge
  53. grey partridge
  54. pheasant
  55. water rail
  56. moorhen
  57. coot
  58. crane (Lakenheath)
  59. oystercatcher
  60. avocet
  61. stone curlew (Weeting Heath)
  62. little ringed plover
  63. ringed plover
  64. grey plover
  65. dotterel (Choseley)
  66. golden plover
  67. lapwing
  68. knot
  69. sanderling
  70. turnstone
  71. dunlin
  72. curlew sandpiper (Titchwell)
  73. little stint (Norfolk)
  74. wood sandpiper
  75. green sandpiper
  76. common sandpiper
  77. redshank
  78. spotted redshank
  79. greenshank
  80. black tailed godwit
  81. bar tailed godwit
  82. curlew
  83. whimbrel (Norfolk)
  84. snipe
  85. white rumped sandpiper (Titchwell)
  86. ruff
  87. great skua (Portland)
  88. Arctic skua (Titchwell)
  89. black headed gull
  90. common gull
  91. mediterranean gull
  92. herring gull
  93. yellow legged gull
  94. caspian gull (Amwell)
  95. lesser black backed gull
  96. greater black backed gull
  97. little gull (Cley)
  98. kittiwake (Dungeness)
  99. Iceland gull (Weybourne)
  100. little tern
  101. sandwich tern
  102. common tern
  103. guillemot
  104. razorbill
  105. stock dove
  106. wood pigeon
  107. collared dove
  108. turtle dove
  109. cuckoo
  110. tawny owl
  111. barn owl
  112. little owl
  113. swift
  114. kingfisher
  115. ring necked parakeet (M25)
  116. green woodpecker
  117. great spotted woodpecker
  118. skylark
  119. woodlark (Kelling)
  120. sand martin
  121. swallow
  122. house martin
  123. water pipit (Titchwell)
  124. rock pipit (Portland)
  125. meadow pipit
  126. tree pipit (Norfolk)
  127. pied wagtail
  128. white wagtail (Lakenheath)
  129. yellow wagtail
  130. grey wagtail
  131. wren
  132. dunnock
  133. robin
  134. nightingale (Wiverton)
  135. black redstart
  136. wheatear
  137. whinchat (Portland)
  138. stonechat
  139. song thrush
  140. redwing
  141. mistle thrush
  142. fieldfare
  143. blackbird
  144. garden warbler
  145. blackcap
  146. lesser whitethroat
  147. whitethroat
  148. dartford warbler (Kelling)
  149. sedge warbler
  150. grasshopper warbler
  151. cetti's warbler
  152. reed warbler
  153. icterine warbler (Burnham Overy)
  154. willow warbler
  155. chiffchaff
  156. goldcrest
  157. spotted flycatcher
  158. pied flycatcher (Portland)
  159. great tit
  160. blue tit
  161. coal tit
  162. marsh tit
  163. long tailed tit
  164. bearded reedling
  165. nuthatch
  166. treecreeper
  167. magpie
  168. jay
  169. jackdaw
  170. rook
  171. carrion crow
  172. raven (Portland)
  173. starling
  174. house sparrow
  175. tree sparrow (Dungeness)
  176. chaffinch
  177. brambling (Titchwell)
  178. linnet
  179. twite (Thornham)
  180. redpoll
  181. goldfinch
  182. siskin
  183. bullfinch
  184. greenfinch
  185. snow bunting (Weybourne)
  186. Lapland bunting (Weybourne)
  187. reed bunting
  188. yellowhammer
  189. bittern (Titchwell)
  190. osprey (Choseley)
  191. redstart (Holme)
  192. yellow browed warbler (Wells Woods)
  193. firecrest (Wells Woods)


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This is me

This is me
At the end of another Norfolk Coastal footpath walk. 47 miles, 3 days 99 species of bird. September 2009

Caley Wood view

Caley Wood view
sunshine through the canopy 29.05.08

A walk along the Warta Valley, Poznan, Poland. Feb 2007

A walk along the Warta Valley, Poznan, Poland. Feb 2007
Best birds on this walk: black and middle spotted woodpecker and short toed treecreeper

About Me

My photo
A primary school teacher for 30 years, I retired from teaching in July 2009 to set up my own science enhancement and communication company. The Primary Works offers science clubs, workshops and staged science shows nationwide. I have always been interested in bird watching since my early years. Apparently my first tick was after inquiring about a chaffinch and then receiving the Observer book of birds. By the age of 9 I had moved on to Tory Peterson's collins guide and was now involved on YOC birding holidays to Northumbria, Essex coast, Slimbridge and Yorkshire. My twitching rule is that I will willingly travel 1km for each gram the bird weighs. However, I have had many rarities just by being in the right place. I have travelled widely throughout Europe and also visited Australia and Sri Lanka. In 2016 I spent time at Portland Bird Obs and two trips to Aviero, Portugal. 2017 found me back in Sri Lanka in Feb/March, then July and back for New Year's Eve celebrations in December. Also returned to The Camargue in May for a 4 day trip. Few plans for 2018, but nothing yet booked apart from a trip to the IOW.

Grey heron

Grey heron
Over the allotment 28.09.08

Southern Hawker

Southern Hawker
Ridge footpath 27.08.08

Juvenile green woodpecker (17.08.08)

Juvenile green woodpecker (17.08.08)
Note the stripes, denoting a bird fledged this year.

common blue

common blue
Ash Valley G.C. 15.08.08

Indian balsam (impatiens glandulifera)

Indian balsam (impatiens glandulifera)
River Ash

azure damselfly

azure damselfly
River Ash 28.07.08

marbled white

marbled white
Discovered at Westland Green 22.07.08

ruddy darter

ruddy darter
Bush Wood 21.07.08

honeysuckle 19.07.08

honeysuckle 19.07.08
growing in hedgerow in Chapel Lane

cinnabar moth caterpillar

cinnabar moth caterpillar
Photographed on ragwort 19.07.08

Bittersweet

Bittersweet
Study of petals 11.06.08

male yellowhammer

male yellowhammer
08.06.08

common blue butterfly

common blue butterfly
06.06.08

River Ash

River Ash
looking south from the bridge at Hadham Ford

Common poppy (papaver rhoeas)

Common poppy (papaver rhoeas)
in rape field 29.05.08

Caley Wood sunshine

Caley Wood sunshine
29.05.08

Millenium Wood fox

Millenium Wood fox
24.05.08

common comfrey (symphytum officinale)

common comfrey (symphytum officinale)
06.05.08 banks of the River Ash

Garlic Mustard or Jack by the Hedge,(Alliara petiolata)

Garlic Mustard or Jack by the Hedge,(Alliara petiolata)
flowers, leaves and fruit edible . Good in salad and pesto

April showers

April showers
Double rainbow 30.04.08

Caley Wood bluebells

Caley Wood bluebells
22.04.08

Yellow Archangel

Yellow Archangel
Chapel Lane (20.04.08)

sunlight 16.04.08

sunlight 16.04.08
looking south west from Bush Wood

snowy buds

snowy buds
06.04.08 in Bush Wood

Looking north west

Looking north west
05.04.08 evening shower approaching

Back Garden

Back Garden
Easter Sunday (23.03.08)

Brick Kiln Hill

Brick Kiln Hill
Looking east (23.03.08)

No play today

No play today
The 2nd hole at Ash Valley golf course

Teasel head

Teasel head
Bush Wood (21.03.08)

Reflections

Reflections
daffodils at Bush Wood pond (21.03.08)

Swollen River Ash

Swollen River Ash
The river at the bottom of Winding Hill 16.03.08

Daybreak over the chapel

Daybreak over the chapel
Thursday 13th March

Wild daffodils (narcissus pseudonarcissus)

Wild daffodils (narcissus pseudonarcissus)
growing in Bush Wood

January snowdrops

January snowdrops
Banks of River Ash, north of Much Hadham

Good Moon

Good Moon
From garden 24.01.08

Village Green

Village Green
Looking east towards Acremore Street

Looking south before Hadham Ford

Looking south before Hadham Ford
rare January blue sky

Useful sites

The following are some useful websites that may interest readers of this blog.
Firstly, Bishop's Stortford Natural History Society http://bsnhs.webplus.net/

Fellow birder, Gary Whelan's blog. Gives reports from our trips out together plus reports from his trips abroad. http://hairybirders.blogspot.co.uk
http://www.hertsbirdclub.org.uk/ The official herts bird club website. Frequently updated, listing bird sightings around the county. Offers links to many other websites. Both of these sites also offer links to yahoo discussion groups.
http://www.birdforum.net/ An international site. You can enter as a guest but become a member( free) to post comments, bird sightings and just about anything to do with wild birds. Good news updates, classified section for binoculars, cameras etc.
http://www.guidedbirdwatching.com/ A new site set up where you can contact people worldwide who will help you find good birds in their country. UK section being set up presently.
http://www.britainsbirder.co.uk/
Fellow birders blog. Strtford resident, Graeme Smith regulary birds the area south of Stortford as well as around Spellbrook and the River Stort from Spellbrook to Twyford Locks. Some superb bird photography: Graeme uses a digital camera attached to his powerful telescope to get detailled images of the birds he sees. Well worth a browse.
Two local sites that may be of interest can be found at
http://www.thehadhams.com/ www.thepelhams.net/content/section/12/139/

South Easterly walk

South Easterly walk
black, normal, red extended walk

South Westerly route.

South Westerly route.
Black usual, red extended

North Easterly walk

North Easterly walk
black short, walk. Red, extended

North West Patch

North West Patch
black route regular. Red route the extended wander