Penduline Tit

I was in Bristol for a few days over the weekend and with a bit of time to spare managed a quick trip to Gloucester to see the Penduline Tit. Although globally classed as being of "Least Concern" with an increasing population and large range, it is still a rare bird in the UK and always interesting to see. 

The bird was to be found at the Plock Court Wetland Nature Reserve just next to the A40/A38 roundabout. It was showing well when I arrived flying between a hedge backing onto the busy A40 and a small pool where it was feeding on the Reed Mace.

I picked a spot near a stand of Reed Mace and didn't have long to wait before it flew in to feed. A really stunning bird and giving some great views.

It is amazing how every birder now seems to carry a camera. It only seems like a few years ago when Dave and I would often be the only ones present trying to take pictures. There are advantages, in that I now no longer feel like a dose of the plague when I turn up on site but there are also disadvantages. This bird had a clear flight path between its hedge and feeding area. So where did some of the photographers go and stand to get the best shots? I am all for getting a good picture but you still need field craft and some empathy for the bird's struggle to survive.


We also had another curious observer. This Stonechat had probably never seen a Penduline Tit before and spent some time following it around.

As twitches go , it wasn't too bad. There were about a dozen present. On a bright and sunny Sunday morning I had expected more. I would have liked more pictures but we didn't stay long. Slimbridge was just down the road and I wanted to pay a quick visit there to see the  Red-breasted Goose.

Well, it was there although very distant on the Tack Piece. It looks good, it is free flying and with wild birds but I guess the default position has to be that it is an escapee from somewhere rather than a genuine wild bird.

Lots of other Ducks and Geese out on the peripheries of the site. A couple of year ticks but most too far away for a picture. Although this Bewick's Swan was worth recording.

I always have mixed feelings after a visit to Slimbridge. I support the work they do but it always feels a bit like a zoo with even the wild birds being a bit suspect. It gets more crowded every time I go there, which is good for fund raising but not so good for birding.

Red-breasted Goose

I picked up on the report posted on SOS of a Red-breasted Goose on Henfield Levels and with the sun shining this morning I went to take a look. It took a bit of searching but I eventually found it whilst viewing from the Downslink Path although it was very distant.  It was with a flock of about a dozen Greylags although I later found it in a mixed flock with Greylags and Canada Geese.

With mixed flock of Greylags and Canada Geese.

You will have to be very lucky if you want to get close to this bird. The Greylags make excellent guards. They start giving alarm calls if you get within about 100 metres of them and take flight if you approach any closer. There is good cover along the Downslink path but the river bank is very open and people walking along the bank were putting them to flight.

There was another Red-breasted Goose flying with Greylags reported in the same area in March last year. Perhaps it is making a return visit.

Yesterday we had another unusual Goose, a single Barnacle  on the Breech Pool at Pagham Harbour. This time associating with Brents.

Water Rails

Wednesday and with the sun shining and the snow melting we decided to head down to Farlington Marsh so that Dave could add the Red-breasted Goose and Spoonbill to his year list. We managed to spot the Spoonbill in the distance and we had great fun standing in the freezing cold and scanning a couple of thousand Brent geese but we saw no sign of the Red-breasted.

We decided to move on to Baffins Pond in Portsmouth to find some reported obliging Water Rails, with the intention of returning to the marsh later. Baffins Pond seemed a most unlikely place to find the Water Rails. Smallish pond with a couple of reed beds, a children's play area, traffic on three sides, and lots of people and dog walkers wandering about. Yet the Water Rails were there and very visible. At least three that we saw and possibly more.

Water Rail emerging from the reeds

and out in the open

Although using the reed beds for cover they made frequent appearances in the open and did not seem to be disturbed by people standing close by watching them. At one point a photographer lost his bean bag over the fence and climbed over into the reed bed to recover it, carrying out a bit of gardening to clear reeds obstructing his view on the way. Can't say that I was happy, that sort of thing gives photographers a bad name, and I thought we had seen the last of the birds, but two minutes later they were back out in the open.

Great pictures of a shy and skulking bird and far more satisfying than photographing the tame one at Pulborough Brooks.

Then on to Southsea Castle to see if we could improve on our Purple Sandpiper pictures. It is always difficult on the south coast, You need sunlight for the pictures but that invariably means that for sea birds and waders you are photographing into the sun. So a couple of reasonable pictures but nothing outstanding.

Purple Sandpiper

Braving the surf

Then back to Farlington Marsh and another circuit looking for the Red-breasted Goose. A Stonechat was a good find as it is the first I have seen this year.

Stonechat

This time we spotted the Red-breasted in the distance and were fortunate when the flock relocated and it ended up close to the footpath.

Red-breasted Goose

 
You would think that a red goose in a field of black geese would be easy to see. However, when it has its head down feeding, which is most of the time, it can be difficult to spot.

Often better to look for the two white wing bars when the heads are down.

In a small group of twenty birds it is not too difficult but when you have a couple of thousand spread out across the marsh it becomes a harder task. I have the greatest admiration for the birders we met there who were searching the flocks for a Black Brant and a Pale-bellied variety bird that had been reported as being there. It sounded like a long cold job.

Red-breasted Goose and Spoonbill

Rain and mist on Thursday but I still needed to see the Red-breasted Goose that I had missed on Tuesday so I headed over to Farlington Marshes early afternoon. I have been spending a lot of time in Hampshire lately, perhaps I should change the name of the blog.

It looked quite dull for taking pictures but fog and mist often give a soft even lighting and can give good picture opportunities as long as the subjects are not too far away.


I found the Red-breasted Goose after a short walk along the sea wall. I had good views through  the binoculars but then had trouble relocating it through the camera. It blends in really well with the Brents when it has its head down feeding. So a frustrating ten minutes until it stuck its head up again and I managed to get a couple of pictures.

Red-breasted Goose

A couple of Spoonbill had been reported on the marsh on the previous day and a helpful birder located them for me, asleep on the far side of the marsh. A distant view through a scope was useful but I was keen to get a picture so I hurried off in pursuit fearing that they would fly off before I got there. Sure enough before I had taken a few steps one took to the air and disappeared off high and in an easterly direction. I felt sure the other would follow but although it was active and moving around it stayed on the ground.

Spoonbill

The mist probably helped here as these shots would have been difficult to get in sunlight. Fabulous bird, pictures could have been a bit sharper though.

Back at the car park I spotted a raptor sitting in the tree with its back towards me. Useful in that it enables you to get closer but a bit frustrating when you see the pictures you have taken.

Buzzard - rear view

Buzzard flying - rear view

etc.

Still if it had been facing towards me I doubt that I would have got anywhere near it.