Smew at Tophill Low

 For a change I went somewhere other than a few miles from my front door. Although we spent the first few hours at the Mere seeing Velvet Scoter, Scaup and Long-tailed Duck, myself and a couple of friends went over to Tophill Low to hopefully see the drake Smew that's been there for a while.

We got straight onto it and it came as close as it could to the reservoir wall, which was perfect. These were the best views I've had of Smew.

We tried to get some video but as it was feeding at the time this was difficult and very frustrating...as soon as we got the bird in the viewfinder it dived again.

Diving Duck Blues

I managed a bit of video eventually.

There are quite a few fish in the reservoir as evidenced by not only the Smew coming up with one:

Smew with a roach or rudd by the looks of the fish

as above

But also a Great Crested Grebe coming up with another:

Great Crested Grebe with either a roach or a rudd

It rained a bit but we were lucky to be in the hide when it poured down.

Thanks Andy and Nick for your great company and your bonhomie😊👍

Golden Plovers Fill Your Eyes

 Once again, song association kicks in. This time it's The Beatles with Golden Slumbers from Abbey Road in 1969. 

Golden slumbers fill your eyes

Smiles await you when you rise

Having walked through Rolston and down to the hide I was nearly home when I heard a Lapwing call from just over the hedgerow. I got the bins on a gap in the hedge and saw a Lapwing - and a couple of Golden Plovers too. Local gold dust as I haven't seen a Golden Plover from the house/garden yet and this field runs up alongside our house!

I crept up to the gap and settled myself down to take some photos...and flushed a Woodcock in the process! No pics of that though.

Golden Plover and Lapwing

Golden Plovers having a flap

Golden Plovers in the ploughed area

16 Golden Plovers and 2 Lapwing

A tractor had just started to plough the field so gulls and other birds were just arriving. Starlings were spotting the opportunity and about 150 flew in while I was watching.

Even better was that the tractor continued to work its way around the field, and when I checked from the bedroom window just after lunchtime there were several plovers in view - Green and Golden - so I got a new entry for my garden list for the Golden Plover.

Did you know? Other names for the Lapwing, or Northern Lapwing as it is now called, are Peewit and Green Plover. I knew the bird by Peewit when I was younger, and  this name is derived from its call during breeding season. "Lapwing" by the way is from the way the bird flies or perhaps from its behaviour of pretending to have a damaged wing to lure predators away from its nest.

I have found over time that Redwing is one of the most difficult birds to get near and photograph. The past few days I've seen hundreds of Fieldfare and Redwing and I've got several decent shots of Fieldfare, but Redwing always seem to fly off or fly out of the blind side of nearby bushes and trees just when you think you've got a chance of togging them. I know the thing to do is to wait and be patient for them to come back. Well, today I was under the hedge clicking away at the plovers when a few Redwing landed just above me.

Decent photo of a Redwing at last

Slightly different to the one above

 Here are a couple of examples of not-so-good Redwing pics from yesterday.

The water at the west end of the Mere as viewed from Decoy hide is almost totally frozen over and this morning there were no birds at all to be seen out there - apart from a dead Mute Swan.

Frozen Mere

Crows feeding on a dead Barnacle Goose

From first field there was open water attracting the ducks and swans, but there was also the sad sight of another dead Barnacle Goose.

I'll finish off with a few photos from the last few days which have been chilly to say the least. Still getting out before the sun is up is good for the soul, not to mention being quieter too.

Greylags

They follow me where ever I go

Goldcrest

Icy teasels

All in all it's just another winter's day

 It was a fine, cold, frosty morning as I set out, thinking this is what a winter's day should be like. I carefully found my way over the ice-bound pavements and was soon striding out normally once I reached grass, where my feet could get a bit of grip.

I headed to the hide at the Mere once more, given the water's iced over in places I was hoping to see an early morning Bittern again. If only. As it happened I didn't see a Bittern, but one of these days I will get another opportunity to have unobscurred views.

A GSW was drumming yesterday morning in the wood and 3 Great Spotted Woodpeckers were seen or heard on my walk today, but none of them were drumming.

Cold, blue light pervaded the view from the hide

In the hide I watched for a while hoping something interesting would turn up. The Mute Swans were acting as ice breakers, carving their way through, and a few Goldeneye paddled about in the small patches of clear water. 

I stamped my feet and blew on my hands trying to stay warm - neither of these helped much, my extremeties remained comfortably numb ❄️❄️

Half an hour later the view was, at times, much better as the sun got up above the tree line.

Warm, softer light with the sun shining

The fat old sun was obscurred by clouds (Cirrus Minor?) every now and then, but I had high hopes that it would eventually come out and stay out.

Meanwhile 2 Whooper Swans had flown in at the west end, avoiding the thin ice on the Mere. I wondered how long they would stay, as they don't usually hang about.

Whooper Swan flapping about

Whooper Swans at the west end

10 minutes later the swans were off, flying eastwards.

Point me at the sky and let me fly

Whooper Swans going elsewhere

It was a bit gloomy when the swans flew off - let there be more light! Still, that's what winter brings, half-lit and gloomy days along with a few bright ones in and among.

As I needed to get my limbs moving and my blood circulating again, it was time I was elsewhere too so I packed up and set off. 5 minutes later I could feel my fingers coming back to life 🤣

The usual Redwings and Fieldfares were in the hedgerows and hawthorns, so I couldn't resist another photo.

Redwing in the early morning sun

 

As I was writing this I was struck by the fact I had unconsciously used a few Pink Floyd song titles. So I carried on and used a few more 😀 I think there are 13 Pink Floyd song titles hidden in the text above, ignoring the blatant partial one in the heading. Also, a little known album title is there too.

Songs:

If

One Of These Days

Comfortably Numb

Fat Old Sun

Obscurred By Clouds

Cirrus Minor

High Hopes

The Thin Ice

Stay

Point Me At The Sky

Let There Be More Light

Time

Coming Back To Life

Album title: More - a soundtrack from 1969

A Merely Wonderful Morning

 Wow.

 What a morning.

Bittern, Waxwings and Slav Grebe all within half an hour.

08:29 - I had a call from Jon telling me he had a Slav Grebe off Heslop's, but I was on my way to the hide, so I had that to hopefully look forward to.

I passed a load of Redwings (c40) and Fieldfares (c100) at Weatherhill on my way to the hide and stopped to take photos - I wish I hadn't...

Fieldfare and Redwing

Redwing

Fieldfare

Fieldfare

The sun was shining in a clear blue sky, although it was barely above zero as evidenced by the frozen slider on the gate. It took some effort to get it to move, but it was a lovely morning as I walked past the pines towards the hide.

I got to the hide and scanned the beautiful vista. The usual birds were there, Mute Swans and Goldeneye, a few Mallards and a single Great Crested Grebe. Something flew in to the reed bed opposite - a Bittern no less. It landed on top of the reeds that have either gone over or have been cut and sat there in full view. I got my camera and pressed the zoom control - no response. I looked at the display and saw the fateful words - battery exhausted. Bugger. No spare with me either as I thought 50% power in the camera was enough when I set off. Wish I hadn't taken those photos of Redwing and FIeldfare now!

I took some pics with the phone although I knew they were useless. Ah well, still the Slav to go for.

As I walked through Heslop's I heard a call overhead that I knew (I'd played it a few times last week to prepare myself). Waxwing! I looked up and saw a bird going over so I got the bins on it - deffo Waxwing with another just behind it.  No sense in getting the camera out though 😢

On to second field and a chance of seeing the Slavonian Grebe. I got the bins onto a bird that looked like the Slav which was just off Heslop's. Watched it for a while and when it dived I rang Jon to tell him I had it, but he said he had a Slav off the reed bed at the east end. We thought we had two but as I couldn't relocate mine we stayed with one. Again, no photos and this was getting too much to bear.

I went back to the hide in the afternoon with a full battery and a spare, but of course the Bittern didn't show. Oh well. More experience to add to life's rich pageant.

 In Heslop's where they have cut the reeds there was a Mute Swan with a weird looking neck. I saw it in the afternoon on the water from the hide. Hope it's OK.

Bullfinches are more scarce than they used to be before they hacked down the large stand of hawthorns by Weatherhill. I was pleased to see one this morning.

Bullfinch

The folk at Weatherhill never seem to tire of cutting down any trees that look too big or may get in the way of whatever development they are undertaking. I estimate over 30 mature trees lost along the track to their place, could be more further along too.

Thinning out the trees to allow the undergrowth to grow through perhaps? Nah - just wanton destruction.

New Camera

 I have finally taken the difficult decision to trade in my DSLR gear for a smaller, lighter camera that will allow me to carry it without breaking my back and I'll arrive home refreshed from my daily walk rather than totally cream crackered 😂

This will be the first time in over 40 years that I will be without an SLR camera, but hopefully the change will be for the better. We'll see.

I've had the camera for a few days but the weather has been against me, with very poor light for most of the time. I'm still getting to grips with focus and light settings but my control of these will improve over time.

Here are a few of my early efforts:

Misty morning web of intrigue

Whoopers over Heslop's (4 of 8)

Juvenile Dark Bellied Brent Goose

Same as above, taken from the bedroom window 😀

Roe deer getting their feet dirty in the ploughed field

One thing I've noticed is that the time for the camera to wake up and get to full zoom is much longer than the DSLR. I expected a lag from experience with my Nikon P900 but if a photo opportunity arises, a bird flying over or a mammal running past, then you have seconds to react and get the shot. This morning about 20 Lapwing flew over and by the time I'd waited for the camera to be ready they had gone. I'll just have to accept that for the convenience and lightness of a bridge camera there are downsides too.

Long-tailed Tits have been the most frequently seen bird this month but getting enough light has been the problem. This one was taken with +1.7 compensation, ISO 320, 600mm, 1/250 sec, F4.

Long-tailed Tit

Likewise this Cormorant, +0.3 exposure bias, ISO 320, 600mm, 1/250 sec, F4.

Cormorant from the hide

GS pecker in Wassand Wood

Yew berries seem to be a bit scarce this year

The sun appeared for a minute or two on KP which let me get some better light on the subject.

Common Gull preening on a KP jetty

Then it disappeared again as the Goldcrest came out to feed in Bull Hole.

Goldcrest

This morning was another dull day with a solid ENE wind in my face, and a bit of rain every now and then.

The view southwards

There were 8 Sanderling along the tide line but they were, as is all too usual here, kept on their toes by dogs chasing them.

Come on in, the water's lovely

Formation prancing on the beach

That's it for now. More later hopefully.