Spurn Migrants

After some promising winds earlier in the week I found myself heading for Spurn this morning.I knew that conditions recently have not been conducive to a mega day but thought I would check it out all the same.

I started with a walk around the canal bushes and found plenty of common migrants including whitethroat, chief chaff willow warbler a pair of swifts and reed warbler.

It was here a confiding roe deer peered out of the bushes almost oblivious to my presence.

On canal script itself there were 3 dunlin and two redshanks but nothing more interesting.

I then went to Crown and Anchor car park and again nothing major.

My final stop was Sammy's Point and it was here where the best birds were.Whinchat and wheatear feeding side by side in the first paddock, 2 buzzards overhead and a pair of spotted flycatchers in the end paddock bushes.

Quite a selection of waders were present on the mud as the tide ebbed but nothing startling.

All in all a lovely morning nothing startling but a real sense of Autumn in the air and a high level of expectation for the forthcoming weeks.

Tophill Kings

I hoped to capture the force of Hurricane Bertha yesterday, but after a somewhat disappointing trip to Filey Brigg (it was literally a damp squib!) i thought the day was written off.

However mid afternoon some sunlight began to appear, Tophill is only 15mins down the road so given that it had been raining all day I thought that the kingfishers might use this lull as an opportunity to feed.

When I got there there was no wind, but crucially no kingfishers! after a while one appeared, then another.For the next hour they put on a stunning show-I was the only one in the hide and they were diving regularly and at times coming on to the closest perch , quite often in good light.

Still lots of room for improvement on flight shots but the light and colors made for some nice photographic opportunities yesterday.

At about 6pm the wind and rain picked up and it was time to hurry back to the car.

Hornsea Mere

I had a trip out to Hornsea Mere last night in the hope of getting some shots of little gulls. I did not hold out too much hope though as recent reports suggested they were present in low single figures!

Upon arrival there were 2 on the jetties and in the time it took to set up the camera they flew out to the centre of the mere to feed.

There wasn't much else happening around the jetties so I headed off to Kirkhome Point.There were a few hirundines about as well as a few juvenile pied wagtails.On the point there were 2 common sandpipers.

I wandered back and could see a grey heron fishing on the eastern bank and groups of cormorants were flying in from the sea.

Just as I was about to give up 3 little gulls came back on to the jetties and preened for about half an hour.

No where near as spectacular as pervious years but nice all the same to catch up with this diminutive gull.