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So this is the third year, and second full year, of my nocmig (nocturnal migration sound recording) studies here on the Yorkshire coast - time sure flies, eh? - and once again, I ran several recorders, two of which were here in Filey. Results were again surprising and fascinating, and the learning curve continues its upward trajectory.... highlights of the period January to June inclusive ranged from scarcities such as Quail, Snow Buntings, Tundra Bean Goose, Ring Ouzels and Jack Snipe to impressive movements of winter thrushes and Common Scoters - and even a surprise nocmig-gold Chiffchaff!
Chiffchaff - one of the nocmig stars of the show, over North Cliff in the early hours of 15th March
FILEY NORTH CLIFF
Once again I deployed an Audiomoth at my North Cliff study site, and - because of the convenience of being able to pre-program recording times and let it do its thing for extended periods - I was able to maintain almost constant coverage there, especially during migration seasons.
A total of 18 nights were covered in January (almost all in the latter half of the month), and while it was predictably quiet, species picked up included Pink-footed Geese, Wigeon, Mallard and Teal, several Golden and a Grey Plover, a few Blackbirds and Common Snipe, and two unexpected bonus scarcities - a Jack Snipe on 19th and a Tundra Bean Goose on 15th.
The distinctive pee-yoo-wee of Grey Plovers were recorded during several spring months
Much of February (19 nights recorded) was quiet, although the year's first flock of Whooper Swans passed over on the night of 13th, and a flock of Snow Buntings (my first nocmig record) overflew the recorder on the night of the 6th; otherwise a smattering of Moorhens, Coot, Snipe, Pink-feet, Mallard and Teal and Common and Black-headed Gulls were the fairly expected back-up.
As anticipated, March saw a far better diversity and abundance, with at least thirty species recorded in active migration through the month - this despite losing the first twelve nights to technical issues. Of wildfowl, small numbers of Pink-feet, Teal, Gadwall and Mallard were recorded, with good Wigeon passage later in the month, and - as hoped - impressive Common Scoter movements, beginning on the 23rd with six flocks; a further two flocks on 24th, six more on 26th, one on 27th and no fewer than 14 flocks on 28th further enhanced the much-anticipated annual 'Scoter window' around this time.
Wigeon - good numbers moved through during nights towards the end of March
Rallids featured in the form of plenty of Moorhens, several Water Rails and Coot, while ten wader species included Knot, Grey Plover, Lapwing and plenty of Curlews. Passerines featured relatively well, with Fieldfare, Skylarks and Song Thrushes, Blackbird numbers into double figures on several nights (with a peak of 69 on 24th) and decent tallies of Redwing doubtless heading back to Scandinavia - several nights ran into the hundreds, with a peak of 302 on 23rd. Pick of the bunch, however, was a Chiffchaff, clearly flying over the recorder and calling multiple times at 0042hrs on - proper nocmig gold on a windswept clifftop!
Redwings continued to feature regularly throughout April, with a peak of 239 on 4th; much of the month, however, was unfortunately plagued by strong winds and near-unanalysable spectrograms, although plenty of species made it into the notebook, albeit in generally small numbers. Highlights over 21 nights recordings included a Ring Ouzel on 16th, the first Whimbrel and Common Sandpipers, and another eleven flocks of Common Scoters (up to 18th).
Redwings were on the move in good numbers in the early spring
