22/2/2015: Shame on me!

22/2/2015

I promise..... I have been out and about bird watching but have been very remiss in keeping up my blog! Since my last entry I've been out and about on some fifteen occasions. A trip to Welney via The Denver Sluices produced a very nice Goosander but sadly no Rough Legged Buzzard. In fact despite a number of trip to Welney and a slow drive around Black Horse Fen no sign of the RLB. So I ventured over to Holme Fen where one has been in residence for the last couple of months. My trip resulted a no show and a stone from a passing tractor hitting my telescope lens a scratching it! Thankfully it has had no discernible impact.

Prior to Christmas a Great Grey Shrike was reported at Tubney Fen. This was the first since 1950's so I spent a couple of days scouring the area but with no joy. No further reports until recently when it was reported half a mile down the road towards Swaffham Prior on Whitway Drove. On a very rainy late afternoon I finally tracked it down looking somewhat dejected sitting in a bush in the pouring rain. 

Being close to the road, I was able to sit in the car and watched the shrike for 15 mins or so. Sadly I did not have my digiscope equipment with me but was able to capture a few grainy handheld shots through the lens of my small fieldscope. Not brilliant but a adequate record of this sighting.

Half term saw us doing a really nice walk around Salthouse, Norfolk. nothing major in terms of birds but a very enjoyable walk that took us inland as well as along the marshes.

During a recent visit to Welney I was able to record the rings on a number of Black tailed Godwit. These I sent to Dr Jenny Gill at the UEA who is part of a team that have been monitoring the movement of Icelandic Black Tailed Godwit for the last few years. She responded really quickly and was able to provide me with a wonderful insight into the birds seen such as the following:

LR-R//W

07.09.98	Holbeach, the Wash estuary, Lincolnshire, E England
23.04.00	Ouse Washes, Cambridgeshire, E England
14.08.00	Snettisham, the Wash estuary, Norfolk, E England
26.02.01	Swavesey, Cambridgeshire, E England
09.04.01	Swavesey, Cambridgeshire, E England
12.04.01	Swavesey, Cambridgeshire, E England
16.04.01	Swavesey, Cambridgeshire, E England
18.04.01	Swavesey, Cambridgeshire, E England
18.07.01	Svarfaðardalur, Eyjafjarðarsýsla, N Iceland
28.01.02	Ouse Washes, Cambridgeshire, E England
23.01.05	Nene Washes, Cambridgeshire, E England
06.03.05	Ouse Washes, Cambridgeshire, E England
20.10.05	Freiston, the Wash estuary, Lincolnshire, E England
11.03.06	Welney, Ouse Washes, Norfolk, E England
03.03.07	Fen Drayton, Cambridgeshire, E England
10.03.07	Paxton Pits, Cambridgeshire, E England
12.03.07	Fen Drayton, Cambridgeshire, E England
14.03.07	Fen Drayton, Cambridgeshire, E England
06.04.07	Welney, Ouse Washes, Norfolk, E England
16.12.07	Breydon Water, Norfolk, E England
02.01.10	Needingworth, Cambridgeshire, E England
28.03.10	Welney, Ouse Washes, Norfolk, E England
03.02.11	Welney, Ouse Washes, Norfolk, E England
12.02.11	Welney, Ouse Washes, Norfolk, E England
20.02.11	Welney, Ouse Washes, Norfolk, E England
07.11.11	Welney, Ouse Washes, Norfolk, E England
20.11.11	Welney, Ouse Washes, Norfolk, E England
11.04.12	Ouse Washes, Cambridgeshire, E England
06.07.12	Cley, Norfolk, E England
07.07.12	Cley, Norfolk, E England
08.07.12	Cley, Norfolk, E England
09.07.12	Cley, Norfolk, E England
12.01.13	Mare Fen, Swavesey, Cambridgeshire, E England
01.04.13	Nene Washes, Cambridgeshire, E England
22.09.13	Freiston, the Wash estuary, Lincolnshire, E England
29.12.13	Needingworth, Cambridgeshire, E England
27.10.13	Welney, Ouse Washes, Norfolk, E England
20.11.14	Welney, Ouse Washes, Norfolk, E England
19.12.14	Welney, Ouse Washes, Norfolk, E England
19.02.15	Welney, Ouse Washes, Norfolk, E England

and very interestingly for someone with Irish roots:

R-OR//W

12.08.06	Holbeach, the Wash estuary, Lincolnshire, E England
02.10.08	Clonakilty, Co. Cork, S Ireland
07.03.09	Clonakilty, Co. Cork, S Ireland
27.09.09	Clonakilty, Co. Cork, S Ireland
18.04.13	Caldy Wildfowl Collection, Wirral, Merseyside, NW England
19.04.13	Caldy Wildfowl Collection, Wirral, Merseyside, NW England
20.04.13	Caldy Wildfowl Collection, Wirral, Merseyside, NW England
21.04.13	Caldy Wildfowl Collection, Wirral, Merseyside, NW England
22.04.13	Caldy Wildfowl Collection, Wirral, Merseyside, NW England
23.04.13	Caldy Wildfowl Collection, Wirral, Merseyside, NW England
24.04.13	Caldy Wildfowl Collection, Wirral, Merseyside, NW England
25.04.13	Caldy Wildfowl Collection, Wirral, Merseyside, NW England
26.04.13	Caldy Wildfowl Collection, Wirral, Merseyside, NW England
27.04.13	Caldy Wildfowl Collection, Wirral, Merseyside, NW England
11.08.13	Frampton Marsh, the Wash estuary, Lincolnshire, E England
23.08.13	Frampton Marsh, the Wash estuary, Lincolnshire, E England
29.10.13	Clonakilty, Co. Cork, S Ireland
17.12.13	Clonakilty, Co. Cork, S Ireland
19.02.15	Welney, Ouse Washes, Norfolk, E England

This is an interesting record as this one has not previously been seen on the Washes - unfortunately we don't have any sightings of it from Ireland this winter, so we don't know if it went there this year. 

Inspired by the results she kindly provided I returned today to Welney to see if I could get some more sightings. However all the BTG were settled on the far side of the Washes and refused to move. Oh well there will be another day!