Treading more Boards.

Another boardwalk trail that I like to wander is located at the Riverside Country Park just over a 30 minute drive from home. The start of my leisurely stroll takes me a short distance alongside the River Wey Navigation where I watched a Common Buzzard being harried by Crows before stepping onto the first stretch of boards leading over stagnant water in a small woodland.

Depending on the time of day and the wind direction the road noise from the adjacent A3 can be quite overpowering so the ears have to work a bit harder to pick out the calls of the resident birds.

On this occasion it was the usual suspects; Robin, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Wren, Song Thrush plus the intermittent song of a Blackcap. 

As I walked towards the main lake I saw a number of male Orange Tip butterflies patrolling the grassland but non of them stopped for a photo call!

The main lake didn't hold much of interest just Coot, Canada Geese, Mallard and Moorhen so I turned onto the main boardwalk that crosses the marsh and immediately picked up the scratchy sounds of a Sedge Warbler, typically hidden from view, and parked myself on one of the highly carved seats.

A little time here enabled a few distant shots of a male Reed Bunting (below) singing while endeavouring to maintain its balance on a flimsy perch in the gusty breeze.

One arm of the boardwalk leads into the damp woodland where there is a curved screen with portholes overlooking a small area of open water. Unsurprisingly parts of the hide screen have already been vandalised plus there was recent evidence of a fire on the floor!
You can view an article in The Guildford Dragon News which has images of the original boardwalk and hide construction completed in May 2013 at at exorbitant cost of £210,000 but at least it means you don't have to wear waders to cross the marsh!

A Mute Swan (above) drifted in and then out of view followed shortly after by Mrs Mallard with seven youngsters in tow who spent some minutes paddling in and out of the shadows beneath the boardwalk.

Following the boardwalk again past clumps of Marsh Marigold towards the Wey Navigation I logged a lot more very active Orange Tips, plus one Peacock butterfly before crossing the bridge to sit awhile at Stoke Lock and watch the peacefully slow activity on the waterway.  

A Grey Wagtail was extremely busy catching and carrying insects to a nearby nest. Retracing my steps I listened to Chiffchaff and Common Whitethroat while being serenaded by a Robin.

Linking to:
Good Fences
Saturday's Critters

Boardwalk Birding.

On Tuesday I made another visit to Thursley Common in the hope of catching up with the over-wintering Great Grey Shrike. After an unsuccessful  two hour search around 'Shrike Hill' under an overcast sky and a strong westerly wind with very little avian activity apart from a noisy Carrion Crow and disturbing two Woodlark I returned to the car for a rest.
After a while the clouds gave way to afternoon sunshine so I decided to have another search and eventually added this species to my year list but unfortunately it never got close enough to the lens!

On my return journey along the boardwalk a male Stonechat (above) obliged the lens by perching in a bare Birch and then a brief sighting of a Dartford Warbler as it headed for deep cover in the Gorse just before a female Reed Bunting (below) also made use of the flowering Gorse for a perch as the wind ruffled her feathers.

On Friday under a much calmer, sunny sky I visited Riverside Country Park, on the outskirts of Guildford where I logged Cormorant, Mute Swan, Mallard, Wigeon, Gadwall, Tufted Duck, Coot, Lapwing, Kestrel, Green Woodpecker, Blackbird, Robin, Starling, Crow, Magpie, Jay, Jackdaw, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Goldfinch, Chaffinch, Reed Bunting, Treecreeper, Wren, Collared Dove, Woodpigeon and added Grey Wagtail plus Cetti's Warbler to my County year list.

An immature Mute Swan (above) changing into its adult plumage flying up the Wey Navigation and (below) a male Reed Bunting seen singing from its flimsy perch as I slowly wandered across the boardwalk.

Wishing everyone, wherever you are, a glorious wildlife watching weekend.  FAB.

Linking to Saturday's Critters hosted by Eileen.

Visit to Warnham L.N.R.

On Monday morning with no obvious threat of rain I decided to pay a return visit to Warnham L.N.R. Beneath the dull overcast sky the pond hosted hundreds of noisy Black-headed Gulls and a few Herring Gulls with three perched on the tern raft.

A small flotilla of Tufted Ducks drifted past the hide. After scanning around and spotting Moorhen, Coot, Cormorant fishing, Mallard lazing around and a Grey Heron carrying nesting material I headed to the hide overlooking the various feeders to check out the activity.

Lots of colourful Goldfinch using the feeders.

A female Great Spotted Woodpecker made a couple of appearances to obtain a snack from holes drilled into an old tree trunk that had been filled with fat.

A male Reed Bunting taking advantage of the seed larder.

In addition to this male Chaffinch I also watched Blue, Coal, Great and Long-tailed Tits, Nuthatch, Dunnock, Bullfinch, Magpie, Pheasant, Moorhen, Blackbird, Robin plus Wren and Treecreeper elsewhere on the reserve. Fortunately the clouds dispersed and the sun eventually shined so after two hours plus I have a few images in reserve for future posts. FAB.

Linking to WILD BIRD WEDNESDAY hosted by Stewart.

Stroll at Dungeness RSPB on Monday.

On Sunday we travelled into Kent to meet up with friends that we hadn't seen for nearly two years. After a cup of coffee and a chat I acted as the taxi driver we headed southwards to Dungeness RSPB for a walk. As expected the water levels were still exceptionally high and not a vast array of species on the water but we did log Little and Great Crested Grebes, Coot, Mallard, Teal, Shoveler, Tufted plus numerous Cormorants carrying nest building material into a patch of trees with just their upper branches above the water line on Burrows Pit.

 

We decided not to stop at the next two hides and continued around the reserve searching the scrub and listening for any indication of bird movements but there was very little seen or heard except Cetti's Warbler, Wren, Blackbird, Robin, Chaffinch, Linnet, Dunnock and Reed Warbler with two Oystercatchers on the shingle ridge. Seven Shelduck flew overhead followed shortly after by a single Little Egret.

Reed Bunting (Male).

Reed Bunting (Male).

Just before entering the hide overlooking Burrows Pit we heard a Bittern booming while at least three Sedge Warblers were singing from amongst the nearby bramble bushes and once inside we added views of a male and female Marsh Harrier, Common Buzzard, Shelduck, Gadwall, Pochard, Lapwing, Mute Swan, Greylag and Canada Geese, Grey Heron plus one lonely Swallow. Before continuing our stroll I spent a while outside the hide trying to get some shots of the Sedge Warblers.

Sedge Warbler

Singing Sedge Warbler

Click this link to review a few more images and its song on my other blog, FABirding.

Butterflies seen included Peacock, Brimstone, Orange Tip and Small Tortoiseshell.

A very tatty Small Tortoiseshell

On the mound overlooking the extensive reed beds we again heard the Bittern booming and I had a brief sighting of a Bearded Reedling. Further along two Shepherds were checking their flock to ensure that the new lambs were healthy.

An enjoyable stroll was capped off by an excellent meal provided by our friends and a review of my memory card on their wide screen TV.  ..... FAB.

Linking to WILD BIRD WEDNESDAY.

UK Tribute for WBW.

As a tribute to Stewart who has so ably hosted Wild Bird Wednesday for the past year I thought I would share some images from my blog archives of just a few UK species I'm sure he was well acquainted with before he travelled down-under.

 Skylark.

 Blue Tits.

 Robin.

 Chaffinch.

Little Grebe.

Great Crested Grebe.

Reed Bunting.

Congratulations on the 1st Anniversary of Wild Bird Wednesday and long may we continue to appreciate all the species shared from around the globe. If you haven't previously participated why not click the above link and join in.   FAB.

Singing in the wind.

I don't know why any bird would pick such an unstable perch to announce its presence on such a blustery day but this male Reed Bunting (Emberiza schoeniclus) continued to sing with brief silent interludes for over 10 minutes whilst rocking back and forth.

To listen to its song with the sounds of Wren and Reed Warbler in the background just as I did during a visit to RSPB Lakenheath, exactly a week ago, please click on the recording below.

Its conservation status was classified as RED following a rapid decline of more than 50% from the mid 1970's to the mid 1980's but with evidence of some recovery in numbers it was moved to the AMBER list in 2009. Because of its association with wetland breeding habitats (reedbed and riverine scrub), it has been informally known in the past as the 'water sparrow'. 

Interesting fact: Over 50% of Reed Bunting chicks are not fathered by the pair male but are the result of an adulterous liaison, the highest recorded rate of any bird.  

Wishing everyone a wonderful wildlife watching weekend. FAB.

Linking to Feathers on Friday and I'D-Rather-B-Birdin'.

Songsters and fliers.

Just a few random shots taken in the past week during my various wanderings.

 Blackbird starting the early morning chorus.

 Reed Bunting singing from its perch over the marsh.

 A very tired Sand Martin taking a well earned rest.

As today turns into tomorrow I will be driving north-westwards into Suffolk and then Norfolk to meet up with some fellow birders and hopefully see the dawn rise over a landscape full of wildlife.

  

Wishing everyone a glorious wildlife watching weekend. FAB.

More from Warnham LNR.

I didn't get any wildlife watching in yesterday as we were waiting on a plumber to call and repair our hot water system that failed last Sunday so as a follow up to my previous post about Warnham LNR, here are a few more images from my day out in Sussex.

 Magpie (Pica pica)

 Male Reed Bunting  (Emberzia schoenichus)

This species is a resident breeder occupying around 185,000 UK territories during the summer. Its main habitat being reedbeds and riverine scrub which was only a hop and skip away from this feeding station.

 Next up is the much stripier female Reed Bunting.

Titbit: Over 50% of Reed Bunting chicks are not fathered by the pair mate but result from an adulterous liaison .... probably the highest recorded of any bird!

Most of the Nuthatches (Sitta europaea ssp. caesia) that I normally see are high up in the woodland canopy so it was a pleasure to see this individual, however briefly, much closer to the lens even though it didn't want to sit still!   FAB.

Sunny Stour Valley Walk.

On Monday we drove south-eastwards into Kent to meet up with two more friends who were desperate for a relaxing day out birding as a break from their heavy work schedules.

The location was the Stour Valley and our day trek around Stodmarsh NNR which started from Grove Ferry where Anita and I listened to our first Nightingale of the day plus a distant calling Cuckoo that was to remain elusive despite Derek's optimism that it would perch close enough for a portrait photo! On our walk to The Ramp we also heard a single Turtle Dove, Cetti's Warbler, Chiffchaff plus Sedge and Reed Warblers. Mallard, Gadwall, Tufted Duck and Coot on the water with Common Terns noisily fishing and a male Marsh Harrier quartering the vast reed beds. Konik ponies are used to manage the damp pastures.

 Male Reed Bunting (Emberiza schoenichus).

A distant male Marsh Harrier quartering the reed beds.

During one of our many rest stops as we circumnavigated this reserve we also watched another pair of Marsh Harriers and a minimum of 12 Hobby hawking for insects but regrettably too far away for the lens. Swallow and House Martis were also logged plus a swimming Grass Snake.

 Common Whitethroat (Sylvia communis) singing its heart out.

 Cormorant.

Throughout our circuit we were constantly bombarded by the close explosive and repeated calls from a warbler that shouts out its own name 'cetti-cetti-cetti' from a nearby hidden perch within a dense thicket before immediately flying onto its next hidden hideaway. Fortunately on one occasion my camera was pointed at the right spot when this compact warbler, red-brown above with its distinctive pale supercilium and eye ring, perched for just a few moments to provide a record shot.

 Cetti's Warbler (Cettia cetti) pauses briefly before flying to its next hidden song perch.

Another species that likes to sing its repeated, jittery song interspersed with various whistling notes as it slowly climbs up its perch within the reed bed is the [European] Reed Warbler (Acrocephalus scripaceus). 

[Northern] Lapwing patrolling his territory on recently created pool where we also logged two Common Redshank but didn't find the Green Sandpipers or Little Ringed Plover that has apparently been seen about 40 minutes earlier. 

In the damp woodland a Robin was collecting a varied mixture of flies and caterpillars.

After a welcome cup of tea at the end of our walk we drove across country towards our friends home with a brief stop at the 1500 acre woodland at Kings Wood, Challock to view the impressive display of Bluebells. 

Unfortunately when I loaded the 17-85 lens the zoom had become locked at 70mm so this was the best I could produce under the circumstances. A visit to the specialist repair centre is going to be needed very soon to hopefully sort the problem out! Our day ended with a relaxing meal at a very quiet riverside pub plus a large glass of well earned amber liquid.    

I'll be heading to Stodmarsh again in 9 days time to go birding with another long-time friend so hopefully I'll manage to get some different species in front of the lens next time.   FAB.

For more images from around the world, hosted by Springman, please go to  

WORLD BIRD WEDNESDAY.