Viewing entries tagged
Robin

Llandegfedd Rewards

Just when you’re having a bad day, struggling to get out the house and motivated due to health reasons, by which time the day is almost gone but I arrived at the north end of Llandegfedd at 3:30pm, to be rewarded with a fishing Osprey right in front of the car park. I didn’t even need to leave the car park as the bird patrolled the perimeter, giving me several hover flights as he hunted the shallows. Moments later a Red Kite flew into the same air space, and it was nice to see the size comparison between the two species. Kites certainly have the bulk but there didn’t look like there was much in the wing length between the two.

I’ve started to turn my attention to our spring bug life, of which there were plenty on the wing during this short lived heatwave. I clocked 24c in my car! and by next week we’ll be experiencing another cold snap with -1 night-time temps. This weather is truly crazy. If that’s not a sign of global warming in April I don’t know what is.

Good to see my local population of Violet Oil-beetles out in good numbers with over 20 adults and plenty of larvae on the lesser celandines. Andrenna Sp. present but not sure what species, not sure if the picture will show enough of it’s features to identify it to Sp.

Sound

I always make the effort to record Yellowhammer when able, not just because they sound amazing but because I’m hoping I one day record a different dialect. The predominant dialect in Wales is XIB but there are small isolated populations that sing different dialect, which might suggest that those birds originate from a different area, possibly even a different country.

It was nice to see a Female out in the open for a change too, as they usually stay hidden, tucked up in the middle of a Gorse bush. You can see how well her rustic colours blend into the twig colours: making them much harder to spot when they’re sitting on the nest.

Yellowhammer F - SR1A1767.jpg

A few other showy songsters came in the form of a Nuthatch, which is another personal favourite of mine. They have such a rich quality to all of their calls, and they have quite a variety of different song types. This shows two types you’ll likely hear in the spring but it also shows their high pitch squeal call which can catch some people out when heard on its own.

Common species non-the-less, but it’s cool hearing the subtle differences between the Robin’s winter and spring song. Here’s a good example of a spring song, which tends to have more heft behind the lower notes, and less scratchy higher notes.

By far my favourite recording though was of this blackbird, which was at quite the distance away, 20m or so, but thanks to the Schoeps CCM 4 inside the dish, it makes it sound like the microphone is right in-front of it’s bill. I’ve never experienced this level of quality inside a dish before, it honestly sounds like a shotgun recording. Very pleased.

Nocmig

It’s been a mixed bag so far but really please with some of the birds that I’ve got already. Waders are just starting to pour in, with Golden Plover flocks, Curlew, Grey Heron and Little Ringed Plovers, but for me, hearing migrating Blackcap, singing their migratory song, is pretty epic. How on earth these birds navigate the darkness I do not know.

I’m still waiting on confirmation from a few mysteries too, which a probable Bittern and White-front Goose flock, but they’re a bit distant so might have to let those go.

Nocmig

Birding

My first ‘birding’ trip to Llandegfedd this year proved fruitful with a Kittiwake flying in over our heads on the dam wall, continuing on a NW flight path. Not sure if it’s a migrating bird or if it’s been blown off course during the last storm but I presume it’s the latter. There’s so much we don’t yet know about migratory birds, which is why Nocmig recording is quite an exciting activity to take part in. All that community data could really help paint a bigger picture about bird movements and distribution and all this could be achieved from the comfort of your home. So far I’ve only heard a Swallow, I haven’t actually seen one yet but looking forward to it.

One spring migrant I’ve certainly heard plenty of so far is the Chiffchaff. At first I wasn’t sure if it was just the birds that overwintered here that were singing, but I can confirm now on the Gwent Levels that they’re everywhere already! Here’s a recording from Llandegfedd this week.

I love this time of year, as winter migrants start to properly sing and ‘warm up’ to spring, but at the same time, spring migrants are arriving and starting to reclaim territories, so you get this cross-over of sounds from birds that live in totally different worlds to each other. You would have probably heard this by now but if you haven’t, keep a close eye on the Ivy and Holly bushes, especially around open fields of waterways. As the Redwing flock up, they’ll often sing together, creating a wall of sound that sounds way bigger than it actually is. The scratchy sub-song of the Redwing is quite common in winter but it’s less common to get a single bird sing their spring song, which is exactly what you can hear slightly in the recording below. Just a few fluty notes is all it takes.

I’ve recorded quite a lot so I won’t post everything, but here’s a comparison between the song of a Goldcrest and a Firecrest. Other than the fact that they’re both high pitch, they’re quite different when you know what you’re listening out for, so here’s a comparison. That dainty, bouncy rhythm of the Goldcrest is quite distinctive compared to the Firecrests loud-sharp-monotone song, that speeds up towards the end.

I have plenty more new recordings to listen to. I’m really starting to become more proud of the work that I do, and the benefits that it has, not just for my own mental health, but for others than are stuck in isolation, not just because of covid lockdowns but because they’re confined to the house, care home or hospital bed.
Below, probably one of my favourite, as it’s my very own Garden Blackbird that is now gracing me every morning and evening. I’ve commented on the track where mimicry is used.

My local Yellowhammer’s are back on territory and it’s so nice to hear this iconic song again. I can’t imagine the countryside without it. We need more gorse! Hedgerows aren’t enough, we need to protect our gorse patches and not allow farming culture to cut it all down. Even the brecon beacons national park have a lot to answer for, for needlessly cutting down gorse. Cattle can graze around it, and it doesn’t spoilt the view, it enhances it, as a mountain side covered in flowering gorse is a site to behold.

If you haven’t managed to get to your local mountains yet, the moorland soundtrack is in full swing again. Plenty of Skylark and Meadow Pipit displaying. The only sad the about that trip was seeing the amount of destruction done to our protected peat bogs. 4X4 and off-road vehicles have a lot to answer for, not only do they pose a threat to ground nesting birds but the damage they’ve have caused to our nationally important peat bogs is almost irreversible. They think it’s just grass, and that the grass will grow back, but that is not our moorlands work! they aren’t in many ways like ancient woodland, formed over hundreds of years, and once damaged like this, take a very long time to recover. The exposed peat makes the moorland less affective at storing water, which can cause flooding, as that water is no longer being stored and released slowly. It also contributes to global warming, as it makes the peat less affective at storing carbon. I hate seeing this happen on our doorstep but truth is, it’s happening everywhere. It’s good to see the police are starting to tackle this but I do think that off-roaders need somewhere where they can practise their hobby and enjoy themselves without causing damage. Simply educating people isn’t going to be enough.

Some other cool moments for sound were these Carrion Crows, that were in full territorial dispute. At first I thought they were dive bombing a predator, but they were actually dive bombing each other. |f you listen to the start of the recording, you can hear two birds forming a bond with each other by rubbing their bills together.

I’ll hopefully get more opportunities to record Siskin, as I know they can be excellent at mimicking other birds. In this recording you can hear Swallow and Green Woodpecker, but I’ve heard some that are quite elaborate with it.

This Robin actually did a pretty good job at mimicking other birds. I’ve commented a few of the more obvious species on the actual track, check them out.

Nocmig

Right! Now onto the good stuff, as migration is well and truly underway! And like last spring, I have high hopes for something special flying over the house. So far it’s been mixed bags, but last night, despite the northerly winds, I had quite a variety of cool birds.

I won’t upload every recording, but I’ve also had Wigeon, Snipe and good numbers of Moorhen, Coot, Mallard, Redwing and small numbers of Song Thrush too. As we approach April, things should really pick up, as so much starts moving, it’s quite exciting as you never know what you might have flying over your house at night. I’m expecting Common Scoter any day now as they have started moving all across the country but I’m also looking forward to Terns arriving, Spotted Flycatchers and Tree Pipits, which seemed to be a popular one for me last year.

I’ll end with some sleep material and a celebration of my local streams.


Back to 'normal'

So our firebreak is over in Wales, what does this mean, well I hope that it means people were sensible, people stuck to the rules and prevent further spread of this hideous virus so that we have a chance of at-least spending Christmas with our families, but I must say, my trust in people these days has certainly been tested.

During the lockdown I’ve still been as busy as ever with my surveying Jobs, mostly on the Gwent Levels. Whilst it has been great to still get outdoors, the weather has been questionable, and I don’t take advantage of my Job. As soon as the survey is finished I’ve been coming straight home. I did however get to find a rare bird on one of my surveys, in the form of a Richard’s Pipit.

I didn’t have a camera with my on my survey, or my sound recording gear, so I quickly took advantage of the only device I had, which was my mobile phone. I was amazed how much the video actually did capture, and thanks to the bird doing another circle, I was able to get 5 calls on video of the bird flying over. The spectrograph confirms it perfectly, with two horizontal higher modulations either side of the triangle shaped call, which is diagnostic for the species, which also separates it from the similar call from a Tawny Pipit, which only has a single upper modulation on the latter slope of the call, but that also has a double syllable.

I only wished I was quick enough for the Red-throated Pipit I had on a similar survey last month, but that bird was way too quick for me and I made the mistake in searching for my audio app on my mobile phone, instead of going for the camera. So top tip, if you ever think you have an interesting bird that is calling, go straight for the camera app and take a video. The audio quality is actually pretty decent for a mobile and the spectrograph never lies.

Below are a few photos from random surveys over the last month. I haven’t taken many pics, simply for lack of time. In other news though, during lockdown there was a Snow Bunting up the British mountain, found by Mike Jones and refound by a few local people on their daily walks up the mountain. The bird was feeding alongside the main road in typical Snow Bunting fashion but I don’t believe it hung around for long enough but if you’re looking for something todo withy our new found freedom, it’s well worth a visit up The British top road. The bird was sighted near the cattle grid at the old entrance of Blaencuffin Canyon.

Nocmig

Well I honestly don’t know where to start with Nocmig. November has been insane!!! With huge numbers of winter thrushes, some days noticeably better than others though and with added wader activity. I’ve had good numbers of Grey and Golden Plover, a few Lapwing but the last two nights a strong movement of Dunlin too. The last two nights I’ve had Barn Owl, which makes me wonder if there’s just a local bird but there isn’t much left of my local area in turns of hunting grounds so I really don’t know on that one.

One thing is for sure, I’ve added a lot more to my ‘mystery files’, something I one day hope to dedicate a blog post (or three) too, as I’m sure some of them might be interesting, and at the very least a good story.
So far this month alone, only 9 days in I’ve had over 2,122 Redwing Calls, 146 Blackbird, 81 Song Thrush, 8 robin, 6 Fieldfare, and I won’t bother counting the amount of random waders but here’s a few of my favourites below.

I’ve had that many birds, I was saving them all to start with but when you’ve got over 700 Redwing in one night, I’ve come to be a little more selective lol. That said, even the Redwing vary greatly, so it’s always worth saving the ‘odd’ looking calls just incase it catches you out again one day. I’ll do another blog on odd sounding Redwing as it’s quite amazing how much they vary in shape, size and frequency. Below is a picture of my favourite shape by far, but by no means a common shape to find.

Redwing Zigzags

Naturally, with migration doing well at night, Visible migration can also be just as good too. This month saw thousands, if not hundreds of thousands passing over pontypool alone, and with it, quite the number of Chaffinch’s and Thrushes. Getting my first Brambling of the year was nice, but nicer that it came so close to the microphone to reveal that subtle chaffinch type call that they also make. Sometimes, as we learned one morning, they don’t make their iconic raspy call at all, so it’s important to learn the subtle calls too as we had a whole flock of Brambling and not one of them made the rasp call.

I’ll end with another Robin, the song of winter, with a collection of both urban and natural sounds in the background.

Winter Thrushes

It’s been another random month so far, with Lockdown restrictions disrupting day-to-day lives yet again. There seems to be a lot more uncertainly this time around, with localised restrictions. Especially for people who live on the edge of county boarders who aren’t able to travel under a mile in one direction, yet people from the other-side of the country can travel there no problems . Well of course all that’s changing now, and about time it was really as it’s no longer about everyone being in the same boat, it becomes a little bit more about pot-luck as to where you live, as people living on the board-line will feel these restrictions even more frustrating. Of course it’l all be worth it in the long run, so long as everyone plays their part and doesn’t stretch things too far. Though I do think if the Government acted faster in the first place, they may have been able to avoid a second outbreak entirely.. I’m lucky that my Job gets me out of the county a little, whilst my survey work on the gwent levels continues. Here are some photos of a very mixed autumn so far. Not much on the photography side of things but I’m fine with that as it’s meant spending more time birding, sound recording and generally just being outdoors and learning more about the natural world.

Nocmig

This has been thee month for Nocmig recordings it would seem, as the winter thrushes arrive, the time spent going thru my nocturnal recordings has almost tippled, largely due to the sheer quantity of Redwing but also because the winds are up, and my neighbours wind chimes make it even harder to pick out the birds.
I’m trying to not let it get to me though as I’m as determined and committed as ever to these recordings.
It’s truly amazing what you get over your house at night. So far this month I’ve had a total of 686 Redwing, 118 Song Thrush, 37 Blackbird, 4 Fieldfare, 8 Robin, 5 Dunlin, 1 Wigeon Flock, Grey Heron, Curlew and I’m yet to total up the amount of Goldcrest calls as I had a huge movement of them in one night, made difficult to count due to wind chimes. Bare-in-mind that these numbers are only the birds that call. If you’ve ever watched a flock of Redwing fly over, you might only get one or two actually call in a flock of 70 birds, so the sheer number of Redwing flying over to get a total of 686 calls, is quite staggering and this is just the beginning of migration season.

I almost forgot that at the end of last month I also had a few Plovers, with Golden and Grey Plover and by far my favourite was 2 Barn Owls! Since they dug up my local fields for housing, I did wonder if we’d ever see them again as they used to breed here. These are just migratory birds though I believe, either young birds looking for new territories or adults seeking warmer climates for the winter.

Birding

I had hoped for a Yellow-browed Warbler this autumn, with a hope of getting a recording of that iconic call they make, but the only local bird found, was by Steve Preddy in Newport, which of course is out of county and despite working in Newport, this would have been for total pleasure and not work.. :) So i’ll just have to keep my ears out for my own, or wait till next year. Llandegfedd Reservoir has seen some nice birds though, which is about time, it’s been quite poor this year really for rarities. On the same birding trip with Craig Constance, soon after getting out of the car, Craig latches eyes on a Red-throated Diver which just dived, which I confirmed for myself once it emerged from the water. Before I even had time to lock the scope onto the Red-throated Diver he spots a second rarity in the form of a female Red-breasted Merganser! He was on a roll that morning for sure lol. Below are some phone pics thru my scope. Talking about phone pics, here are some more Phone-scope pic from not 1, but 13! Ring Ouzel in Blaeavon last week. Craig and I also had a run in with a ‘Mealy Type’ Common Redpoll that landed at our feet to feed up the British, but continued north up onto the moorland.

Sound Recording

Below are a few calls that you’ll only hear in the autumn and winter time really. A flock of Fieldfare, and also a small feeding flock of Redpoll. Both were quite windy but nice to get recordings either way of a new species.

I’m continuing to record as much Robin’s as I can this winter, 1. because it’s my form of bird therapy, and reminds me of spring and 2. because I’m intrigued to see if I can spot any different dialects, or any mimicking phrases they might possess.

For example, this bird I recorded on the Gwent Levels, does a fantastic job at interjecting a Blue Tit song, within it’s own phrase. This is quite a popular way of using mimicry in birds with complex songs, as in order to stand out from their rivals, they need more material to work with, so interjecting random sections of songs from other species of birds, makes their own song sound more elaborate and therefor, more appealing. It also demonstrates their ability to listen, learn and perform difficult tunes that fall outside of their typical vocabulary. Listen to that third phrase and see if you can hear it for yourself.

I’ve also been continuing to record water sources, that I intend on using to create a nature album. I hope to sell this album on In Our Nature CIC’s website, so that people who might be stuck indoors or are suffering from mental health issues, can bring the sound of nature into their homes. We’re offering a number of different activities at In Our Nature CIC, but one that I’m particularly excited about is our Sound Walk. Be sure to join our facebook group and keep informed about upcoming projects.

I’ll end with a distant pic of this female Marsh Harrier from my dusk survey near Magor Marsh this week.

Female Marsh Harrier

End of a Season

The picture you see below, will likely be the last of the season, as my last nest has sadly been predated. Over-all the season was a success, with all my other pairs successfully fledging two chicks each. That is a great year for these birds that don’t have a very high success rate. I suspect the failure of this particular pair was down to a Tawny Owl, that was very persistent throughout the night, doing low flights right over the nest site. I was surprised after a nocturnal session how many males were still churring last week, but I suspect it was more of a ‘goodbye’ churr, cuing to the females that the time has come, because the following days, all of my roost sites were un-occupied and I found this female miles from her nest, roosting in a tree. It’s probably a welcomed changed after sitting in mud and poo for most of the season.

Here’s a short clip of the pair seeing off a hunting Tawny Owl:

Midnight used this log roost almost every single day as it was close enough to the nest that he could keep an eye. Not all males will do this, but it made sense for him todo this the second time around, as the first clutch failed. Two sets of eyes are better than one. I only located one of the fledglings, so it’s likely that they’ve left the clear-fell now and headed to more suitable feeding grounds ready to migrate for the first time to Africa. It always amazes me how chicks know where to go..

I’ve done so much travelling between work and random birding trips since my last blog, so I won’t bore you with all the details. Here’s a selection below that highlights my favourite moments, most of which were on the Gwent Levels but some, like the Southern Dune Tiger Beetle were from the Gower. Small Red-eyed Damselflies were numerous at the reen entrance to Goldcliff Lagoons which was nice, as I’ve never seen one officially before. Lesser Marsh Grasshoppers seem to be turning up everywhere on the Levels now I know what I’m looking for. Their sound is actually quite similar to Field Grasshopper but the notes are spaced differently. You can hear it better when slowed down so I’ve including a recording below.

Sound


Below are some targeted flock recordings from Goldcliff Lagoons on a nocturnal visit. It’s quite difficult to get one of the platforms to yourself at high tide with so many visitors, especially this time of year where it becomes more popular due to arriving migrants, so I visited after dark, on a late high tide. There were still quite a few birds feeding in the dimming light, but even after dark, simply moving the dish around you can target specific species. It’s great hearing such a variety of waders in one place, with the added sounds of Shelduck, Little Egret and Greylag Geese in the background. It’s also been beneficial to me, to see different variations of calls on the spectrograph, from wader species, as it helps me ID some of the more unusual calls you get on Nocmig recordings.

Nocmig

What a turn out so far! In my last blog I spoke of how autumn migration has well and truly began, and whilst everyone knows this, I didn’t expect to get all these species over the house already! Wood Sandpiper was on my wish-list and it didn’t take long to get one! I had a Wood Sand long before I had a Green Sandpiper, which goes to show it’s not all about how common the species is, you really could end up with anything on these recordings, regardless of where you live.

Below I put together a selection of different calls, all of which I had within one night, just so you can see the visual differences side by side.

Here’s a few more species, all dated accordingly, but I’ve also had quite a few Dunlin, Ringed Plover, Whimbrel, Crossbill, Swifts, House Martin, Swallow, Oystercatcher, Moorhen, Grey Heron, Coot, Spotted Flycatcher and many unknown smaller birds that are going to take a while to ID.

I’ll leave the blog with a Robin recording, which seems to be taking over at the moment.

Time, Business & Mental Health

The only advantage of being unemployed for four months in the year, is that I've got time to develop myself and finally start my own business. My choice to start this business was one made out of self pride, as I could well have signed on and claimed off the government, but I've been there before and during in that low period in my life, I found it extremely damaging to my mental health. Weekly visits to the Job Centre, being sent to interviews that had no relevance to me was really hard. I once attended an interview with only a nights notice from Job Seekers, only to find out during the interviewing process that the position was for a financial manager. I've had no experience in anything financial at the time, I didn't even have my GCSE Maths! Yet Job Seekers sent me on that interview, for the sake of ticking a few boxes on a sheet of paper. Never again. 

Anyway, I just wanted to point out the importance of mental health issues and if you think you're experiencing some of your own, seek help. It's far more important than a few numbers in the bank account as this stays with you your entire life. 

Gavin Vella Naturalist

For now, the business is going to run under 'Gavin Vella Naturalist'. While i'll be selling physical products like Photography and Sound Recording, I'll also be offering my services for all sorts of training, from Wildlife ID, Bird/Song ID, Photography, Sound Recording and general wildlife guide tours. 
I've already started training, my first session being for GWT which was an introductory course into Sound Recording. Getting that first one out of the way has really helped build my confidence and the feedback I got was also really helpful. 

Keep an eye on this space, I'll be making my prices available soon and my one off signed prints will be located HERE once I've sorted the stock.

For now I'll leave you with some Winter wonderland pictures from south sebastopo's stretch of the brecon & mon Canal. 

Patching

Spent a lot of time close to home this weekend. Even walked around Cwmbran Boating Lake which is especially busy on the weekends which I generally try to avoid. Glad I visited though as I did record a Marsh Tit on arrival and had a great time watching early spring behaviour coming from the waterfowl / Great Spotted Woodpeckers that have already lined up a few nesting holes ready for spring. 

Last night I gave my second ever talk, this time at Gwent Ornithological Society' AGM meeting. Still not a massive fan of talking in front of people but it was received well with some very good questions at the end which proved they were listening lol. On a serious note, my talk was on Mimicry in birds, something that is a difficult topic to talk about considering how much mimicry happens day-to-day. 

Today also saw a small flock of Waxwing at Morrisons Carpark in Cwmbran! Finally starting to get some local sightings. They weren't showing very well though due to the activity there, they seemed a bit shy compared to the urban sightings I've had so far. 

Old Man Photography

For those expecting photos of old men, sorry to disappoint you. The only old man today was the person taking the photos, or at-least, that is how I feel currently with back problems. Despite that I tried my best today with good friend Ian Howells. Spent more time in the car today driving around to different locations but I'll let you decide if the results paid off. I'm pretty happy with some of the photos from today with some decent light for a change. 

Store Improvements

You may have noticed (probably not) but I've removed the store from the menu bar. Nobody  ever visited that page because for quite sometime, the only product in there was a used teleconverter that I've never used... This is all about to change however, and in the not so distant future (once Paypal sort themselves out) I'll have lots of merchandise for you to purchase. I'm in the process of creating my own small business and with it, partnering up with some of my local printers. If you like Mugs, Pillows, Canvas', Aluminium Prints, Keychains, Clocks ect, they'l all be available soon! I'm so excited to see how this goes and move forward. 

On the wildlife front, everyone seems to be going mad, with Waxing sightings popping up everywhere in South Wales. I personally haven't had any time to get see them yet but hopefully will find some time this weekend so I can show you what all the fuss is about. Waxwing' are winter migrants to this country and only ever come down this far when the Berry crop in Scandinavia runs out or isn't enough to sustain them through the winter. They arrive mostly down the East coast and have been sighted in England / Scotland in the last couple months but finally, they've started to turn up in Wales which is a huge treat, as they really are stunning little Birds, very exotic looking. 

For now, you'll have to enjoy these two photos from work. 

Winter Robin using car to warm up. 

Winter moon over Brecon

Work Goals

Geez! I'm absolutely shattered, the last couple weeks have been flat out in the lead up till Christmas with two assessments back to back. First, my B+E Trailer test which I was chuffed to pass and also I had my Chainsaw / Crosscutting assessment today, after a weeks crash course in Mid-Wales (Rhayadar) last week, which I also passed!. Fabulous part of Wales mind you! Red Kites everywhere, also saw a lot of Crossbill while felling with a Great Grey Shrike deep in the woodland too. Both physically and mentally draining however so ready for a 'relax' this Christmas. Doubt that'l happen but who knows! 

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If you're following my flicker page  you'll see that I have been uploading a few pictures this month. I've started a winter feeding station at a remote location with a pop up hide set up, in the hope to get some of the more common species. I've noticed that wildlife photographers tend to neglect the common species of bird because either they find them boring or don't find them a challenge to photograph. I for one know how difficult it can be to get decent, natural images of these species so I'm going to try this winter to get some in the bag that I'm happy with. Here are a few so far.