Bamburgh area y'day afternoon: 11 Taiga Bean Geese Hoppen Kiln Flash, Crane flew over, 3 drake L T Ducks with 100+ Common Scoter from Stag Rocks, 1000+ Pale-bellied Brents, 800 Pinkfeet & 16 Barnacle Geese in fields north of Budle Bay, 5 Avocets feeding Budle Bay @ntbirdclub.bsky.social
Scaling Dam : 1 Tundra Bean Goose, 5 Russian White-fronted Geese, immature drake Scaup and Slavonian Grebe this morning From hide. @nybirdnews.bsky.social @teesbirds.bsky.social
There were 6 free flying Hawaiian Geese in Farndale a couple of months ago, near the farm that has a few exotic species.
Quite why I decided to go birdwatching before work in that blizzard remains a mystery!
You were lucky, Bill. A few local birders who were a little younger than you could not get there due to a lack of independent transport.
My best 2 birds today were on a local moor very close to Cleveland: 2 Ravens being mobbed by a Kestrel & a ringtail Hen Harrier. Also 10 Common Buzzard & hundreds of Fieldfare. @teesbirds.bsky.social @nybirdnews.bsky.social
40 years ago today I had the good fortune to find this juvenile Ivory Gull on Saltburn Beach, before work and in a blizzard. Not the rarest bird I have found but perhaps the most dramatic. It stayed for a week and was widely twitched. @nybirdnews.bsky.social @teesbirds.bsky.social
Still there at 3.30. Quite undisturbed there. No sport activity in this weather I guess.
Readable colour ring? Any of the others ringed too?
Adult Shag’s crests are quite different, thin wispy things. Obviously not present on young birds. Incidentally, the odd thing is that it is easy to identify a distant Shag on the Tees by waiting for it to dive. They really leap out of the water compared with a Cormorant’s dive.
Very surprising that this is the first ever such case given the large number of Hen Harriers killed by these wretched people. The BBC TV news coverage mentioned the need for a licensing system for grouse shooting moors in England and Wales but did not mention that Scotland already has this.
Cormorants, Keith. The white thigh patch on one of them is the first clue and the head structure and patterns fit Cormorant.
Looks good, Eric. I believe the small populations in UK have almost disappeared but this will presumably be a local escape. I saw them long ago in Dumfries & Galloway and in Norfolk.
Third calendar year Herring Gull I would think. Pity though as Caspian Gull is long overdue on Coatham Marsh.
Yes, definite Herring Gull. I don't think there has ever been an undisputed photographed Caspian Gull on Chatham Marsh though they should occasionally occur there as many Redcar beach gulls go there to bath.
South Gare: Cryptic Woodcock in Shrike bushes today (found by Scannerman with thermal bins). Orange Buckthorn berries by golf course held many feeding birds including male Blackcap, Redwings, Fieldfares & Long-tailed Tit. @teesbirds.bsky.social @nybirdnews.bsky.social @northyorksbirds.bsky.social
Marske coastal field: at least 800 Golden Plover feeding, my highest number here for over 10 years. Seas too rough to fully count Eider at Redcar but well over 100. @teesbirds.bsky.social @nybirdnews.bsky.social @northyorksbirds.bsky.social
Must be. A very odd striking individual with a complete orange breast band and lots of orange and little streaking on the flanks. I recall an apparent Merlin (in Essex?) about 20 years ago in winter that many birders thought was a Red-footed Falcon because of the orange underparts.
Redcar: 350+ Eider of Zetland slipway, 1 Drake R B Merganser, 3 Common Scoter & 6 Shag. On the coastal field an adult male Merlin & 9 B H Gulls using the flood pool trying to clean off some kind of rusty brown pollution on their underparts. Oil spill? @teesbirds.bsky.social @nybirdnews.bsky.social
Off Green Lane car park, Redcar: Long-tailed Duck flew south at 11am, 8 Common Scoter, 6 Eider, 6 Shag & 1 R T Diver on sea. Adult Russian White-fronted Goose still on Marske coastal field at 1245. @teesbirds.bsky.social @nybirdnews.bsky.social @northyorksbirds.bsky.social
Redcar: first-winter Little Gull with the BHGull gathering on the sea off Green Lane car park this afternoon, possibly wintering here. At least 250 Eider, mostly very distant, 3 Red-throated Divers & 2 Razorbill on sea. @teesbirds.bsky.social @nybirdnews.bsky.social @northyorksbirds.bsky.social
Redcar/Marske: adult Med Gull on beach, 85 Pinkfeet south at 1140. On sea: 200+ Eider (low tide so low count), 32 Common Scoter, 6 R T Diver, 20 Shag on one rock, 3 drake R B Merganser, Razorbill, 5 Guillemot,2 Grey Heron
@nybirdnews.bsky.social @northyorksbirds.bsky.social @teesbirds.bsky.social
Redcar from Zetland slipway: 2 first-winter Little Gulls feeding at midday.
Also 340+Eider & 7 Red-throated Diver. Very few auks around now, just 1 Guillemot. @teesbirds.bsky.social @nybirdnews.bsky.social @northyorksbirds.bsky.social
Sadly it will not load videos take on a Nikon Coolpix P900 which is a fairly common camera. They acknowledged the problem many months ago but have not fixed it.
Some of the local police probably belong to the illegal hunt so what’s the point?
South Gare Olive-backed Pipit cropped. A typical view in the long grass. @teesbirds.bsky.social @nybirdnews.bsky.social @northyorksbirds.bsky.social
South Gare Olive-backed Pipit. mostly in long grass and not bothered by people. Marske birds easier: 2 Great Northern Dive & 1 Slavonian Grebe on sea, 2 Dark-bellied Brent Geese & 5 Grey Partridge on field. @teesbirds.bsky.social @nybirdnews.bsky.social @northyorksbirds.bsky.social
Only seen by the photographer who was not really aware of Oriental Turtle Dove. This is is the best (of 3) image I have seen and I assume Bob posted his best photos. A lot of people looked for it extensively. It seemed fairly obvious that it must be Oriental. Your photo improvements are interesting
The Shetland Oriental Turtle Doves this week and Scannerman Bob's Turtle Dove sp. at South Gare on 19th November 22. Food for thought! @teesbirds.bsky.social @nybirdnews.bsky.social @northyorksbirds.bsky.social
Around Redcar a bird counting morning: 400+ Eider off Zetland roundabout, 336 Golden Plover on Marske coastal field, 120 Pinkfeet south over South Gare & 500+ Golden Plover flying above Seaton Common (seen from South Gare). Only 3 R T Diver today. @teesbirds.bsky.social @nybirdnews.bsky.social
