The Early Bird

Time and tide wait for no man (origins?) so with the causeway at Holy Island open from 05:35 and first light about 45 minutes before, it was up and out and scope-out at 5:00am.

Chilly, breezy but clear and dry, time to scan the hundreds of constantly reshuffling Dunlin and Ringed Plover.  And scan again, and again, and again.  And then joined by 'Alan the Butcher' and his colleague, and then Eric Barnes and Woodhorn Birder, so now some co-ordinated scanning, all from the first lay-by on the right.

And then some spread-out scanning, with Alan et al moving to the second lay-by (just island-side of the white hut), and Messrs Barnes and Woodhorn in between.

And then, after about an hour, Eric announced he had the Kentish Plover nearer the second lay-by, right hand side, and voila, a peek through his scope and then a bit of focus on mine and second Lifer of the year.

Funny how the photos don't do the bird justice, in terms of how different it was from the RPs; paler, quicker, dumpier (cut off back end) and so it made picking it out far easier than I imagined and the previous hour of eliminating every RP one by one a wasted endeavour.  Still, older and wiser!

Moving to where Alan and Co. were, the White-rumped Sandpiper was there.  If I was year-listing, I would have got a wee tad more excited, but alas, no.

And calling in at WH, a Garden Warbler in the trees opposite the Fire Station entrance.  Bonus!

Throat Fine, a bit Red but Couldn't Swallow

At 5:30 am today, West H was bright, cold, breezy and dead.  Despite a half hour of wishful thinking, nothing to raise the heart rate nor temperature, other than perhaps a brief glimpse of the back of a Whinchat south of the main pool, just as it dropped into the reeded area.

Arcot was, well, as Arcot is at present, dead.  Even the Mute Swans left SW towards Big Waters' probable comparative excitement.

9:00 am and off the Newton-by-the-Sea as the Bluethroat had been seen twice and this would be a Lifer.  Parking the Mirthmobile near the Tin Church, I asked a bloke if it was showing still, and indeed it was.  First tick of the day, as the bloke was none other than the Stringer himself (We're not worthy!  We're not worthy!).

And then the ornithologically orgasmic experience that is the Lifer.  Unbeatable (say nowt to Mrs Liverbirder!)!!:

After the bird was spooked from the wall by two local equestrians, it went high and down into the corn field, a good few yards in from the ploughed strip, so off the Hauxley on the way home to see the Red-backed Shrike.  Bumping into Tim Dean and then Morgan, the bird's exact whereabouts were unknown, but then Alan Jack, Joe Dobison, Michael Frankis and another chap whose name is still a mystery pointed to where the bird was (across a field) and voila!

News from Mr Sometimes and his lieutenant indicated that the Red-rumped Swallows remain at Lynemouth, off south, but alas, despite the birding surveillance from two Dacks, a McLevy, and a few unknowns, nowt. 

Swift Threesome!

This title'll generate a few 'hits' on t'interweb, and some equally deflated chicken-chokers!

Happy days!

Anyways, call from the Guv'nor as I drove home from work that he had the Wessie H Cuckoo in his sights.  Bargain!  Then a text to say that after he had ticked it, he had mysteriously lost it!  Hmmmm, 'creative accounting' afoot me thought.  But no, within a few minutes of my arrival and the world's biggest frown, voila!

Digiscoped over 150 yards:

Home in time for tea, with lashings and lashings of ginger beer, another Guv'nor message, this time a Whinchat.  Off we go again, this time with my trusty hound in tow to 'bag' 100 for the patch for the year:

And added Swift for good measure as there was a fly eruption on the larger Flash and it was Swallow/House Martin/Swift frenzy!

Plenty of these about (any floraholics know what it is?):

And this egg, found stone cold along the side of a wet field, and left there.  Laid by?