Mid May update

Had a very good nature day yesterday and saw my first hobby. That was later in the morning. First thing, I decided to change my usual pattern of doing my exercises and some yoga and having breakfast before going out and took the dog for a walk just before 8am. Even that late I seemed to have the whole of the riverside meadow just off from the common to myself, or perhaps ourselves. There didn’t seem to be anything exciting around – for this walk – exciting includes the little egrets, that are around but not always seen, kingfishers, kestrels, buzzards, sparrowhawks, hearing cuckoos (rare), seeing kites (even more rare), or mammals such as deer (have never seen them on this walk though we know muntjacks are around, foxes or hares. But nevertheless, it is a lovely walk: a circular walk taking in the river and farmland takes around an hour, with the possibility of seeing the above. We often also see herons, which I love.

Yesterday I was reflecting about half way around that I hadn’t seen anything very exciting, but then thought about what I had seen. The river was quiet and beautiful, but low – we have had little rain. Mallards were swimming up and down and then a tern came along. Most summers we have a pair of terns on the river, and they are wonderful to watch. The number of swifts, swallows and house martins has fallen again this year I would say. Nevertheless there were some swallows around and the sky was full of the sound of skylarks. In spite of their decrease we have kept them here – not many – but some. Given this is an area close to a town and walked by many dogs and their owners, I’m so pleased that they are here and yesterday their song really did feel as if it filled the sky. I watched the bottom field for hares as they often forage here when the crop is young. Yesterday there were none, but I did see the pair of plover that is nesting – and I don’t remember having plover there before. One of the local birdwatchers said he had spotted them when the farmer was sowing and had been able to mark the spot so that it was avoided.

Unusually the rabbits were out and in the field. There is a very large population locally, but they are not usually spotted away from the burrow in these fields – not in the daytime anyway. As I was watching the plover a kestrel flew fast across the field having spotted something and dropped to the ground – a blaze of chestnut. I lost track of it then, but on the way back home, with the skylark song everywhere, I saw a buzzard circling overhead. It all reminded me that it is so worth keeping your eyes and ears open even wherever you are.

The reason for going out fairly early was that we had arranged to go got he BBOWT college lake nature reserve later, near Tring. I had never been, but know that it is a reserve created from and around old gravel pits, with chalk grassland and wetlands and a new visitor centre. We didn’t spend too long in the visitor centre as it was around 11 on us getting there, and decided to walk on the trail right around the reserve (only around 2 miles). There’s a good view from the visitor centre itself and the hide nearby, from where we could see redshank, oystercatcher, green plover and various ducks – none in great number. Apparently there were lapwing chicks, but we couldn’t see those. The sky was full of swifts and I wondered if there were nest boxes as there were no obvious nesting sites.

The woodland around the lake was full of birds – chaffinch, chiff-chaff and songs of birds I can’t identify. Sheep are kept to graze the pasture (see the photo) – which is think is poor, based on chalk, and thus good for many meadow plants and butterflies. There were what looked like spotted orchids that were not yet out, and a kestrel hunting down by the lake.

As we came back towards the visitor centre we saw a hobby. What a treat. Just the one, but we stood and watched its aerobatic flying for some time – twisting and diving, a bit like a giant swift. I read later that they can catch swifts – but the swifts it was flying amongst did not seem to be that bothered. Perhaps catching a swift is pretty unusual: after all they are very fast themselves. I’m really pleased to have finally seen one and to know what it is that I am looking for again – as we do have them around MK, too. And I think they are one of the most attractive of the birds of prey. That bright rusty orange patch near the tops of their legs. Wonderful.

Another frosty bright day

This morning seemed slightly less cold than yesterday but nevertheless was very icy and again bright and sunny. The usual crossing into the riverside meadow is harder to get across at the moment because of the flood water that has turned to ice and the field looks like a small nature reserve - with a large flock of canada and grey geese. I scanned the flock but could not see anything else, though there were herons - I think 4 - standing as though on guard, completely still whilst the geese were moving around busily grazing.

One of the kestrels was out hunting again and on the way back home I disturbed a snipe. I've seen snipe in the field a few times, usually in the field by the river - this time it was in the wet hollow in the first field, and I only had a glimpse of the zig zag flight as it took off.

We were also out this afternoon for around an hour and a half and had a good sighting of a kingfisher that flew along the river near the Newport end, and perched on several branches as it flew down the river.

Icy and sunny new year

With Jim gone down with a bug and me recovering from the same bug, we didn't manage the longer new year's day walk that we often do - but nevertheless Tys and I were out for around an hour in the morning and another hour in the evening and again today. It's very cold and icy - the river flooded its banks a few days ago and much of the lying water is now ice, like the patch that Tyse nearly slipped into in the photo.

Yesterday I thought there was very little around - though when I stopped and looked into the trees at the edge of the arable field in Bury meadow there was a large brown bird perched not far from the rooks. It was at quite a distance so difficult to tell exactly what it was but from its size in relation to the rooks think it must have been a buzzard (though I did wonder about a tawny owl as it looked quite squat - but checking on its size it seemed to be much too big for that). I also saw the kestrel hunting in the morning. Interestingly it always seems to hunt around the ungrazed, rougher grass. Then when I went out again in the afternoon a kesrel was perched in the hedgerow (difficult to tell from the photo - I might have got closer but the dog walkers in front disturbed it...)

We walked onto the bridge in Newport having left the field and the flooded area was quite extensive (see photo).

Today it is also very cold but not quite as cold as yesterday and again very bright. We walked round the bury common river walk again (though the path over the stile by the mill is not passable because of the floods). Disturbed an egret which flew off quite close -very beautiful. We stopped along the river and watched the finches in the trees on the other side. There is a small clearing that is at the edge of woodland and quite rich in birds (and full of rabbits). There were several tits including some long tailed tits. Twenty years ago we didn't see many of these at all here but they are quite common now though we haven't seen them in the garden recently. Whilst I was watching I also saw a treecreeper - and had quite a good view as it flew from tree to tree. The river had little life on it, just a couple of mallards - and also a little grebe which was very shy.

Upland birds and water birds

We spent the weekend in Conwy, which is a great place for seeing waders, (and buying Welsh books – from Llandudno and Caernarfon – see my forthcoming Welsh blog) as the estuary has quite extensive mudflats when the tide is out. I now know that oystercatchers do not stop feeding at night as we could see and hear them after dark, and I also watched one feeding this morning – and realised I had not done that before. This particular bird was finding mussels (which are plentiful in the harbour) and seemed to be dunking them in the water before prising out the mussel and eating it (it seemed to be almost slurping it up in its beak- think of a person eating spaghetti and you will be close). Other estuary inhabitants included many curlews, shelduck (see photo) and redshanks.

We later went to Caernarfon and walked along the Abershore towards the Foryd – which is now a nature reserve, although we didn't walk very far into what is now the reserve – hence we did not go to the hides. But there is quite good birdwatching just from the small road that runs along the shore: Caernarfon is opposite Anglesey so this is the far end of the Menai Straits with a number of sandbanks off the shore. There were large flocks of curlew, oyster catchers (nervous as usual), a couple of shelduck, brent geese, a small number of wigeon and redshank. I didn't notice any turnstones although there are often small flocks along this shore. It was a fairly grey and pretty windy and cold day. On bright days there is a good view of Snowdonia and Snowdon itself can be seen from this small road, but not on Saturday.

We later visited the RSPB reserve at Conwy although had rather little time as by then it was nearly 4 pm. It looked like a very good place to go back to – but annoyingly can only easily be accessed from the A55 – even though it is within walking distance of Conwy. We saw a couple of goldeneye ducks – other than that there were coots, lapwings and wigeon.

Walk round Conwy mountain
There is a lovely walk out of Conwy (around 6 miles) which goes up Conwy mountain and then returns by crossing the Sychnant pass and coming through a nature reserve and past a small upland lake then farmland and back through the town gate into Conwy. It was a beautiful day (St David's Day) and as usual around Conwy we saw a number of buzzards and ravens. We heard stonechats but did not see them – but did spend a long time watching a kestrel perched not very far away on a rock. The walk goes up to the ironage fort on Conwy montain (though we did not go that far today) and has wonderful views of both the estuary and the castle.

Toads and frogspawn-now on time

We met the chap in the photo at the top (can't see to get blogger to put the photo where I want it...) on our way back over the fields coming into Conwy. And I wondered whether there would be frogspawn in the garden pond on our return - but stupidly forgot to look until this morning when I was walking to the greenhouse to open the windows (yes it is early March but the lettuce and salad seedlings are coming up and so the greenhouse needs some air). And indeed we now have frogspawn. I have kept an eye on when the frogs spawn each year, and after the very cold weather in February they seem to have gone back to the beginning of March, although it doesn't vary enormously. Last year, however they spawned early after a mild period in Februar which was then followed by very cold icy weather and the pond froze and the spawn died. Apparently frogs only lay spawn once - so if this happens it is a BAD thing for frogs who are already in quite a lot of trouble :-(

Musings on what to record and a sitting fox

Cycled to work again today. This is a kind of phased return to cycling after an enforced gap of over 4 months after breaking my wrist. Given that a) it is hard work getting back into it and b) it is often icy at the moment and I don't want another fall, I am easing in gradually and not cycling in the dark any more.

So this morning was pretty cold but bright, with some icy patches (but they were small, luckily and easily avoidable) and as I cycled up Tongwell Lane I noticed a kestrel perched and mused about whether to write a blog entry about it. It strikes me that if 'diary' type postings like this are to be helpful in tracking changes over time, we should also record more common events. We tend not to notice that, say, we haven't seen sparrows, for quite a while. For example, I'm pretty sure I have heard fewer and fewer cuckoos each year recently - but as I haven't documented it I can't be sure. But there is some balance to be struck. Can't be recording every pigeon and magpie (though the world does seem to be more full of both, now I think of it). And a subjective element. As I really like kestrels (and other birds of prey) and enjoy watching them, I will tend to make a note when I see them.

Cycling this route takes me past Willen Lake, and this morning as I turned on to the redway along the lake I saw what at first might have been a dog sitting in the middle of the redway just about 15 yards ahead of me. Quite quickly I realised it was a fox (this was about 8.25, I guess), but it was very laid back; assessed that I probably posed no immediate danger (yes I know that's a bit anthromorphic) and slowly walked into the hedge. But what really fascinated me was that 10 yards the other side of the hedge a woman was walking a dog off the lead which imagine had not got any notion that a fox was there or would have given chase, and just before I saw the fox, I passed a dalmation nosing around - again seemingly oblivious. I have had foxes do this 'casual' walk away from me before, though I have to say if you have a dog with you they are usually not quite so casual. But it was a good thing to see on a cold morning when my feet were freezing.

The lake also gives the opportunity to see lapwings. Not that these are unusual either, but, they are a declining species, and one I particularly love as I associate them with the fields not far from home in North Wales where they were very common at that time (quite a long time ago, I guess). The species I most associate with the rather marshy land close to the sea near where I lived is the curlew, and sadly that is also in decline, and I rarely see them in MK. (In fact I don't think I ever have). But I'm pleased to see I saw and heard loads when I was back in Caernarfon the October before last, along the Foryd Bay (now a nature reserve) and also whimbrel.

Owls and foxes

The idea of this blog is to record some of my (mainly) local wildlife sightings - which are usually when I am walking the dog - or occasionally cycling. But I may also comment on anything interesting seen elsewhere, away from home - or even mundane..........

2009 has got off to a good start. On a circular walk on New Year's Day which takes in the Linford Gravel pits not too far away from my house http://www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/hanson_centre/home.asp Jim and I decided to stop and see if we could see one of the barn owls that are often sighted there. This was around 11am but Barn owls are often seen in the daytime, sometimes when the days are short as in winter and also when they need a lot of food to feed their young. No sooner had we said this than we spotted a barn owl flying low over the grass, hunting, and stopping to perch, every so often. See barn owl photos (not mine - next time perhaps! on http://www.birdguides.com/pictures/default.asp?f=189138 Just as we were watching the owl perched on a post, Jim asked me what the movement was below - was it a cat jumping? It turned out it was a fox, and both posed beautifully: the owl on the post and the fox below - not that we had a camera with us. On the next leg of the walk we also saw the little egrets that nest nearby. I looked up barn owl habitat when we got back and it turns out they need grass that contains litter - i.e. dead grass that builds up above the soil, thus creating ideal conditions for voles, which are their favourite prey. Grazed land and arable land is not good for voles - though farmers may strips near the edges. And owls need a considerable acerage of such land to hunt. But the land around the old gravel pits has been managed with nature in mind - and this seems to be working well.

I returned to the site yesterday afternoon around 3 - and again the owl was hunting. But I was in for another treat - flying just behind it was another owl, and talking to someone who was there taking photographs and also birdwatching, revealed that it was a short eared owl and that there are around 3 of them that are sighted there. Indeed we had seen a number of people with binocuolars and telescopes a few weeks back and wondered whhe at they were watching. I have seen short eared owls (I think!) years ago, in the peak district on the moors, but never round here. The guides suggest that they look very similar to long eared owls but the latter never hunt during the day. It was certainly a very attractive bird.

And to crown the day there was a third owl event, but this time not a sighting but a hearing. We have not had tawny owls around here for many years, but I heard some in the distance on Christmas night, and last night, heard them again much nearer.

It turns out that the tawny owls I heard are probably those nesting in a garden of a house on Wolverton Road, just round the corner from our house - I was talking to a fellow dog walker today on the common who has a house there with many mature trees and he told me that owls used the nesting boxes he put up for the first time last year.

I saw another fox today - walking through the stubble field beyond the common. I stopped to watch and even saw it hunting - jumping up and pouncing, though too far away to see if it caught anything. It was a very handsome russet colour with some yellowish patches on it. Also saw a flock of lapwings (flying overhead), herons and a kestrel.