Viewing entries tagged
Wood Sandpiper

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.

Autumn Migration

I can’t help but feel the tension this time of year, as it’s a race for many bird species, to complete their breeding task and start to make their way south again for the winter. Some of my Nightjar are either during their second clutch, or are thinking about starting one, but they really want to get a move on, otherwise they risk the unpredictable weather of autumn. Pair number 1 are still roosting with their first clutch of chicks, but pair number 2 have finally kicked out the kids and look to be getting cosy again. I know this because she (Pebbles) is starting to roost with Rocky again at his favourite roost site, which I predict is where she is going to lay her second clutch. As a result he’s started to sing a little more, which has spurred on more territorial behaviour from neighbouring Male Midnight, who wasn’t on his usual log today. I suspect he’s on the edge of his territory, to make sure that Rocky doesn’t get any bright ideas and move in on his girl (which does happen quite often with Nightjar).

Their movements, roost site choices and behaviour all makes sense, the more you get to know these birds. Whilst it might appear random to us at first, there’s always a reason for their choice of roost and the more I’ve learned, the more I realise that their requirements are particular, but quite simple. So simple in-fact that there are things we can do, to ensure their breeding habitat stays in suitable condition, for as long as possible. It’s something I intend on discussing with NRW, Woodland Trust and any other land owners that happen to have breeding Nightjar, as their success rate is pretty low, at just 20%, but we can increase their chances that with some careful land management plans.

Nocmig

Finally, Autumn migration is picking up, and I’ve started to get more waders on my Nocmig recordings. I share this experience with close friend Craig Constance, who is also recording at his home, and despite living just a town away from each-other, we are both getting very different results so far. Just this week Craig has managed to get a Quail!, Green Sandpiper and a steady movement of Tree Pipit. Being on the canal, I seem to be getting quite a number of Common Sandpiper so far, but even with the canal, anything could happen, no matter where you live. Always expect the unexpected!

We’ve both been keeping our ears open for key species, Quail was one of the species that we hoped to pick up, so for Craig to get one already, was quite exciting! Wood Sandpiper was also on our list of species to look out for, and before peak has even arrived, there it was! My first Wood Sandpiper, and the classic call too, so no mistaking this for anything else. Who would have thought, over Sebastopol we’d be getting such a variety of species, some of which are quite the rarity. We usually get one or two on the coast, especially picked up at Goldcliff, and now I’ve heard one from my Garden, i’m eager to go and see one on the flesh, so I’m hoping we do find one soon. We do seem to be getting good numbers in the Uk this autumn so it’s just a matter of time.

There isn’t much left singing now, so I was particularly happy to hear two Male Greenfinch in full song on the Gwent Levels this week. Most certainly not a common sound anymore due to declining numbers. Such a pretty song too, which has been on my wish-list to record for quite some time.
The only birds that are still singing, are birds that are second (or third) clutching. You’ll probably notice that Wood Pigeons are quite vocal again too, and I’ve even seen some carrying twigs to build a second nest, or repair the first one.

The only other singers on the levels right now are random Wren’s, Cetti’s, Linnet and Goldfinch, but as you can hear below, the Linnets aren’t giving it their full effort anymore.

The Dawn chorus has been pretty poor the last couple of weeks and I’m not sure if it’s just the winter Robin song creeping in as autumn approaches, or whether it’s birds going for a second clutch, but either way, it’s nice to hear some birds singing in the morning again.

I’ll leave you with a few more photos, firstly of Midnight who’s still roosting on his favourite log. He’s the only Male that has stayed with the female throughout the entire incubation period, which I think is a reaction to the fact that they failed their first clutch due to predation. He’s keeping a close eye on her, and in doing so, gives her an early warning system should another predator come lurking. Two sets of eyes are better than one after-all.