Whole Lotta Rosie

Otherwise engaged over the last couple of days (trying to finish a paper for the next London Bird Report amongst other things) but safe in the knowledge that the south-westerlies have persisted and the skies have remained clear, the Mrs and I both felt like an evening walk, and so took off along the cliff paths and down onto the Brigg just after high tide.

Enjoying the waders and seal pups towards the Brigg end, I was delighted to hear that fantastically distinctive call above me ("like the other tern calls played backwards", as Amity brilliantly put it at the time), and looked up to find three Roseate Terns patrolling the rocky shoreline.

Filey cetaceans article, part one

Published this week by Birdguides, the article is now free-to-view on my wordpress site via the link below (with apologies for the previous subscribers-only link):

Postcards from the edge - Invasion of the cetaceans (part one)

Filey, 26th July - 6th August 2013

Garganey at the Tip

An enjoyable and pleasantly varied twelve-day stretch here in Filey; once again the extended time-frame for this bulletin happily reflects not a lack of material (as might be expected at this time of year) but, on the contrary, plenty of other subject matter to plunder and a reflection of much spare time spent out in the field (as opposed to indoors, messing around with blogs and the like).

Wood Sandpiper at the Dams

Efforts have been focused both on the Dams for a rich and varied turnover of passage waders, and the Brigg for passing, resting and feeding coastal species. Both have entertained greatly over the period, ensuring the expected midsummer doldrums effectively failed to materialise at all this year.

Sanderlings on the Brigg

Beginning at the Dams: despite the tall vegetation surrounding the pools (due for a cut this week, so it may well get better still anon), the exposed edges of mud have consistently pulled down a range of waders - hence, daily visits, often early in the morning and then at various other times of day depending on conditions.

Common Darter, Parish Wood

The turnover of species has been highly entertaining, and (while not always entirely rain-dependent) often much more dynamic after thunderstorms and weather fronts have moved through. In the last fortnight, I've caught up with Avocets (three), a Little Ringed Plover, Lapwing (up to 56), Wood Sandpiper (several), Green Sandpiper (up to five), Common Sandpiper (up to five), Redshank .....

Sparrowhawk pursuing Dunlin at the Dams

..... Greenshank (up to three), Dunlin (up to eleven), Black-tailed Godwit (up to eight), Curlew, Whimbrel (up to four), Common Snipe (up to three) and Ruff (up to seven) at this comparatively tiny site alone, totalling fourteen species there.

Sanderling and Dunlins over the tip of the Brigg

On / over the Brigg, meanwhile, and the roll-call goes on: Ringed Plovers (up to ten), Purple Sandpipers (up to seven), Golden Plovers (a handful through and odd ones down), Knot (big numbers during sea-watches of up to three hundred, and up to sixty on the Brigg), Sanderling (over a hundred through on good days, and usually at least handful in situ), Turnstones (ditto)........

Adult summer Dunlin on the Brigg

..... Oystercatchers (ditto), Dunlins (three figures through on several days, and up to 25 present on the Brigg), Common Sandpipers (odd ones through and down), odd Green Sandpipers and Greenshanks through, occasional Bar-tailed Godwits, Curlews, and Whimbrels (impressive three-figure tallies, including many large flocks).

Little Ringed Plover at the Dams

So without really trying - or indeed the presence of any scarcer possibilities (Spotted Redshank, Little Stint, Curlew Sandpiper, you know where we are) - twenty-one wader species have entered the notebook within the last fortnight.

Turnstones on the Brigg

A Garganey (which we found skulking at the Tip pools on 4th) was a nice bonus a few days ago and only the second of the year locally; it later relocated to the Dams, and was still around the next day at least.

Summer-plumaged Knot and Turnstones

Otherwise, the sea has been relatively quiet, with tern, skua and shearwater passage pretty muted so far, and on the land, migrant passerines are effectively yet to register. No bad thing on either score, it'll all happen soon enough, and lucky for me (and gods willing) I'll be in pole position when it does; watch this space.

Southbound Knot past the Brigg

Southbound Whimbrels (part of a 90-strong flock)

Sterna stuff

Sandwich

All from the Brigg the other day, partly in the hope of encouraging scarcer terns onto the rocks this afternoon and beyond....

Arctic

Common

Sandwiches

Arctics (adult and juvenile)

Sandwich

Roseate - Knot

Whitby Minkes

25 degrees celsius, a millpond ocean, clear blue skies, whales and shearwaters within a few minutes of boarding the boat? No, not California, Sydney or Massachusetts, but the glorious North Yorkshire coast. More specifically Whitby, less than an hour up the coast and venue of one of the most ridiculously easy and pleasant pelagics imaginable this morning.





Thanks to an offer courtesy of our Filey Bay neighbours Keith and Claire, we were leaving the harbour shortly after 0730 this morning on the Eske Belle III with just eight other people (and two friendly dogs) aboard, and before we'd finished marveling at the plate glass sea and cloudless sky, two Minke Whales were wonderfully close and showy by the boat.

With slightly alarmed Guillemot

We enjoyed their company for at least the next hour or more, with the added bonuses of about 50 Manx Shearwaters, freshly-fledged Guillemot chicks, Common and Sandwich Terns and plenty more, back in time for breakfast and ice cream by mid-morning. Summer's here.

Harbour Porpoise

One of many Manxies close to the boat

A few jars of a Saturday night

A lazy day rounded off perfectly by a drive into the forest in search of Nightjars, with Rich, Gaynor, Dan and Ammie. Pitching up on a track in a likely area, we were soon surrounded by a minimum of five churring males, a couple of which treated us to close-up, multiple fly-bys. As if that weren't enough, one swooped onto a young conifer and perched in clear view for long enough not to just to fill the field of view, but to even allow an attempt at a few photos.





They also provided a second opportunity to test drive the new toy, the highly recommended Olympus LS-11 sound recorder (this after arriving in the mail the evening before the Marsh Warbler a few days ago - what timing...), and what a beautiful, eerie sound. Hard to believe such otherworldly wonders are only half an hour from where we live.




We also stumbled across a Common Redstart nest site nearby....

Knots Landing

More summery sandpiper splendour from the end of the Brigg over the last couple of days. Knot are pretty class at any time, all the better on a wave-washed outcrop a short walk from my front door, with the golden evening sun illuminating their varied states of moult. Lucky lucky.