WE FOUND STONE CURLEW BY CHANCE AND IT'S ANOTHER LIFER

Steve and myself both decided that our next planned trip would be to look for Hen Harrier at a location Steve had been given down in Wiltshire. It was opposite Compton Farm a place where we had both been on a few of our birding trips out. We followed a narrow road that went on to become a track we followed it as far as we could but it had become unpassable due to the huge ruts and big deep puddles which a 4x4 vehicle would find challenging. Rather than risk grounding Steve's van and being stuck in the middle of nowhere we decided to head back to the main road. We scanned the sky and countryside and talked to one of the locals but we couldn't locate any Hen Harriers.

We found on our map and not to far away from where we were an RSPB reserve called Winterbourne Downs nature reserve, so we decided to go there and have a look rather than waste the day.

We pulled into the car park and noticed a sign where people write their sightings on, it said 45 Stone Curlew sighted only two days previous. I thought it was a wind up but as we both had never seen Stone Curlews before it did get our pulses racing. About fifty yards up from the entrance there was a gap in the trees where you can see the fields opposite. It was a fair old distance but Steve could make out some birds moving in a big area where the vegetation had been cut quite low. He looked through his scope and shouted "Stone Curlew" I then quickly had a look as well and there they were another lifer for both myself and Steve the very strange looking but non the less beautiful Stone Curlew.

our first stone curlew

The image above is a frame grab of one of the birds from a video I digiscoped as trying to photograph them was useless as they were so far away. I've enhanced it on my computer but the actual video was plagued by heat haze which you can see below.

There must have been 30 plus birds there, they were in amongst loads of Lapwings that were also occupying the same area of low vegetation.

  We moved up the track further where there was a viewing platform that got you a little closer to the birds.

We walked all the way around the reserve and had a great couple of hours watching these cracking birds. 

Stone Curlew are Summer migrants to the UK arriving in March and staying until October so we were lucky to have caught them just before they depart for South West Europe and Africa where they'll spend the Winter.

We decide then to head off to Compton Farm where there was a slim chance we might get to see a Hen Harrier. We parked in the narrow lane above the farm and started scanning the open fields where we couldn't believe our luck as a group of Great Bustards were only about 50 yards from us. Here's a still and some digiscoped videos of these majestic birds.

great bustards

What an incredible encounter that was, we have seen them in the past but never that close.

We thought we would go down to the bottom area of the farm and have a look but as we got into the van Steve spotted a Kestrel on a post just in front of the van. It stayed there just long enough for me to get off a few shots.

kestrel

Looks like a female but seeing how spotty it was it might have been a juvenile.

It then flew up onto a lamppost as we were following it down but then decided to fly off into some distant trees.

the last sighting of our kestrel

At the bottom area of the farm there were some nice Red Kites drifting in the wind.

red kite

We also saw some Corn Buntings in the adjacent trees and on the electrical overhead wires, they were joined by Goldfinches and Linnets.

Here's a picture and a short clip of the Buntings.

corn bunting

We also had a flyby Sparrowhawk but it was far to quick for any pics or vids.

We may have missed the Hen Harriers but what a day it had been a lifer in the form of the Stone Curlew and the remarkably close views of Great Bustard absolutely superb.

SHORTIES SAVED THE DAY

Just a week ago Steve and myself had planned to go to RSPB Westhay Moor in Somerset to hopefully see and photograph Bearded tits and Kingfishers. We spent a couple of hours there searching but except for a couple of very brief sightings neither species were showing.

A change of plan was called for so we decided to go to a place called Aust which is just outside Bristol and sits underneath the old Severn Crossing. Steve had recently seen Short Eared Owls there so with fingers crossed we arrived there hopefully to see these lovely Owls.

The tide was coming in and there was hardly a breath of wind ideal condition for the Owls, so we were both hopeful the Shorties would show. We walked around for a couple of hours not seeing a thing except for a lone Peregrine perched high on a gantry to far away for any pictures but I suppose still nice to see. We decided to go for a coffee and come back later as it had been a long day, but as we were driving off  something caught my eye. "Short Eared Owl" I shouted, Steve stopped the car instantly and pulled over and there it was a beautiful Short Eared Owl out hunting over the saltmarsh. 

short eared owl

I managed to get some decent images and Steve had some lovely footage with his scope and iPhone combo.

We were joined by a birding friend of ours called Peter Richards he was lucky enough to have arrived just as the birds started showing.

Here's just one of Steve's video clips.

We followed the bird as it quartered the area now and again diving down trying to catch a vole.

short eared owl quartering the saltmarsh

It was joined by two other Shorties as we tracked it hunting. I managed to get this clip of one of the Owls when it did eventually land.

We had forgotten all about the coffee and the disappointment of  not seeing our target species at Westhay these wonderful Short Eared Owls had undoubtedly saved the day.

We stayed until the light had almost gone watching these majestic birds over the saltmarsh at Aust what an excellent afternoons birding.

ORTOLAN BUNTING

The Ortolan Bunting is a passage visitor to the UK from Europe which makes it a nice rarity to see during autumn migration. It spends the Summer months in most of mainland Europe before departing to tropical Africa for the Winter. So when three individual birds were found by a birder called Dante Shepherd above Merthyr just off the Heads of the Valleys road in early September myself and once again my great birding friend Steve Bool went up to hopefully see them and add them to our now ever growing British list.

The weather was a bit dreary when we got there on that morning, a bit misty and damp and the light wasn't great. We walked down the side of an old railway track to where the birds were last seen and our luck was in as one of them was perched up on a small berry tree. We got our gear ready a bit sharpish where by now it had dropped down to the floor where it was feeding on grass seeds.

our first ortolan bunting

Steve the master digiscoper soon had the Ortolan Bunting in his sights and this is one of his short vids he took of the bird.

The bird was moving along a grass banking so we could see it pretty well, I'm thinking it's a first Winter bird but I could be wrong.

Here's a couple more of Steve's clips and photos that I took.

ortolan bunting

what a gorgeous looking bunting

We were there for an hour or so when the weather started to close in and the bird had gone out of sight so we decided to call it a day and head home, happy that we'd seen it and very happy that we had managed to get some decent pictures and footage of this super little passage migrant.

LONG EARED OWL

There's been some absolutely superb images of Long Eared Owl on social media lately and it's a bird that both myself and my birding buddy Steve Bool have never seen. Luckily we both know a great bloke called Fletch Lewis who is a birder and a massive Owl enthusiast who travels to many different sites to watch and photograph Owls in the UK.

He gave us a location near Burnley in Lancashire where a few pairs of Long Eared Owl's breed. This was back in late August so the young Owls have now left the nest but will still be hanging around the adults territory.

We set off ridiculously early to get up there by first light hoping to see these beautiful birds. We arrived at the site weary eyed but full of hope of seeing the Owls, the site was a mix of scattered pine trees, mixed woodland and a huge expanse of moorland ideal habitat for them. We walked around a bit looking at everything that moved, before deciding to split up. Steve went further into the trees and I went up on the edge of the moorland where there was a small stone wall that separated the trees from the moorland. Within five minutes of me looking into the scattered pine trees from the wall I saw a large mottled brown coloured bird drop to the floor, within five seconds it flew back up in to one of the trees. I quickly got my binoculars on it and there it was my first Long Eared Owl.

my first long eared owl

long eared owl look at them orange eyes

I quickly rang Steve and told him the great news and within a couple of minutes he had sprinted up from where he had been looking he was exhausted and sweating but also delighted to see his first Long Eared Owl.

We both set up our scopes to do some digiscoping of the Owl which I have to say was incredibly tame and seemed to be oblivious to us and the few other people who had turned up by now. The bird was so close we had to back off a bit with our scopes to get the bird in the frame.

Below is a short clip I scoped of the Long Eared Owl. 

It stayed there for a while before flying up to an area where there were some dead branches and yet again it just perched there not taking any notice of which by now were quite a few birders who were watching and photographing it.

the long eared owl posing at the top of a dead branch

Below is another clip of this beautiful bird.

Here's some pics of the bird as it flew to yet another bare branch out in the open, what an absolute beauty and so tolerant.

And here's another short video.

It finally flew to yet another bare branch once again right out in the open before flying onto a tree and then decided to fly into the wood disappearing out of sight.

the last picture I took of this incredible bird

After it went deeper into the wood we both decided to call it a day but as you can imagine both Steve and myself were absolutely buzzing, what a morning it had been. To get so close to this wonderful owl was an absolute privilege. A massive thank you to Fletch who told us about this site and to Steve for driving all the way to Lancashire and back in one day what a man, but I think he would agree with me to finally get to see the beautiful Long Eared Owl a lifer for us both was well worth it. What a bird.

SOME BEAUTIFUL BARN OWLS

A good birding friend of ours Peter Richards gave us a heads up to a Barn Owl site near Caerphilly in South Wales, and with it being only an half hour away from home myself and Steve thought we'd take a look. I won't put exactly where the site is as Barn Owls are schedule one birds so it is illegal to disturb them and I wouldn't want hoards of people going there as it could be detrimental for the birds. 

When we got to the site it was pitch black but you could just about make out the Owls in the old buildings where they roost. Steve got into the back of the van where he set up his scope and put his camo net over himself while I sat in the front seat with my scope balanced on the window using a bean bag.

The first few pictures and videos we took where only record shots as it was still pretty dark but as the light got better we were able to get some quite nice footage/pics of the birds.

barn owl

a nice shot of two together

  Here's some short clips of the Owls, it looks like the little runty bird is giving us a bit of a dance.

This short clip is a bit shaky with me trying to balance the scope and keep the birds in frame.

It soon got really light so the Owls disappeared inside the buildings to roost for the day.

Three together

 

Great to see this family of Barn Owls doing so well even if it was only for a short time. I think that overall Barn Owls have had quite a successful year nation wide. A few years ago their numbers were dipping really badly but with sites like this one lets hope they can make a come back and be a common sight in our country side once again.

HOBBY'S

A birding friend of ours called Brian Chappell was lucky enough to discover a pair of breeding Hobby's on his patch in a place called the Vale in Glamorgan S. Wales and he was kind enough to invite myself and Steve Bool down there to take a look at these beautiful raptors.

We couldn't stop long as we didn't want to disturb the birds but were lucky enough to have some superb views of these cracking birds of prey that come here all the way from the south of the Sahara Desert in tropical Africa to breed and stay with us through the Summer months.

During our short visit we managed some pictures of the adults and the two youngsters which were quite close to fully fledging and leaving the nest.

Here are some of our efforts.

Hobby

hobby chicks close to fledging

The male Hobby was a right feisty individual, chasing off anything that came near the nest, when we were there it chased off a Peregrine falcon before settling back down near the female.

The great news is that both chicks have fledged successfully and were joining the adults out of the nest. They should hopefully be on their way to Africa by now but what a privilege it was to spend an hour with these absolute beauties. 

 

LONG TAILED SHRIKE

 The Long tailed Shrike is a bird that is found over much of Asia from Kazakhstan to New Guinea, it is found mainly in scrub and open habitats. Many of the temperate zone populations are migratory moving south in Winter, while those in the tropics tend to be sedentary although they may make short distance movements.

So you can imagine the excitement and surprise when a single bird turned up in mid July at Eastleach Martin which is right on the Gloucestershire Oxfordshire border. This is only the third ever record of the bird to be seen in the UK so of course Steve and myself set off up there hoping to see which might well be a once in a lifetime chance of seeing this long travelled but lost bird. 

When we got there we found out we had to park in a field which one of the local farmers had provided it was to help stop blocking the narrow lanes between the fields where the bird had settled. They charged everyone £5 a car and gave all the proceeds to charity what a fantastic gesture.

We made it back to the area where the Shrike was last seen and with a little help off two other birders who we met when we arrived we located the bird fairly quickly, a mega tick for both me and Steve the gorgeous Long Tailed Shrike.

long tailed shrike

The Shrike had settled in a line of scrubby bushes and was moving to different perches it would sometimes disappear for a short while but would pop back into view again giving some excellent views.

I also did a bit of digiscoping and managed to get a couple of decent clips.

The bird was apparently in moult hence it's scruffy appearance and would stay until September until it had fully gained it's new set of feathers.

long tailed shrike during it's moult.

Steve absolutely fell in love with this bird and went up to see it about ten times before it finally left, here's a couple of stunning images and a short video that he took of the bird now fully moulted.

What a pleasure it was to spend some quality time with this gorgeous Shrike.

There were some nice birds there as well as the Shrike which included Corn Buntings, Yellowhammers, Whinchat, Red Legged Partridge and the very rare Grey Partridge which Steve managed to get some footage of and a nice picture.

a very rare grey partridge

A great day out to see such a rare bird and an added bonus of Grey Partridge what more could we ask for absolutely brilliant.