Monday 2 January 2017

Bombycilla Garrulus And North Cave Bits.....Saturday 31st December 2016.

Another good forecast today saw me heading over to my home town at Hessle to try and attempt to get some images of the Waxwings that have been present at Sainsbury's and later visit North Cave Wetlands,the following is how the day unfolded.
 As mentioned above it was Sainsbury's at Hessle were i visited first and as i drove along the road past the store i could see the Waxwing flock perched in their favourite Ash tree,with expectant photographers below.
 I got wrapped up warm and then headed over to attempt to get some images.I find these birds such frustrating photographic subjects as it is usually a flurry of activity all at once with them and you have to try and pic your subject bird carefully before they all disappear again,but what a great sight to see,in a flurry of gold,buff and burgundy.
 The flock showed typically well though and they are certainly a crowd pleaser.Today there were at least 45 birds present which was a nice sized flock and they came and went visiting several clumps of ornamental Rowans,which they were steadily stripping of berries.I just love their bell like contact call,a certain sign there are birds present and a great way to pick them up in flight in the autumn as they arrive on our shores.
 Also present in the same area of trees were at least 10 Blackbirds,which included a stunning,partially albino male and also a lovely Song Thrush which showed exceptionally well for this usually shy species,both species taking advantage of the berry crop on offer.
 After getting my fill of images of these beautiful Scandinavian visitors i decided to travel over to North Cave Wetlands to see what was about on this cracking reserve.
 After having a quick drink and scoff i was off and exploring the reserve,my first stop was East Hide and the area was covered in Teal which was great to see and i tried my best to find a Green-winger in amongst them,but to no avail.A few waders were present also and included at least 10 Snipe,9 Redshank and the stars of the visit so far,2 male Ruff.All of a sudden the Teal scattered and it wasn't long before the culprit was found,a stunning female Sparrowhawk was watched as she had her morning bath on the edge of the lake allowing some great views of this lovely bird.
 I then carried on my walk stopping at the Maize Field Feeders to see what was in amongst the commoner species and today 1 male Brambling and a single Marsh Tit were the highlights.The Brambling was very shy and stayed perched in the trees at the back of the feeders,but the Marsh tit was typically showy,both species being very welcome additions to the days sightings.
 The remainder of the reserve was pretty quiet apart from the hide overlooking Village Lake were the local 'Lag' flock were typically noisy,but i couldn't find any other species present in amongst the flock.
 So today was another enjoyable day out and it was great to see the Waxwing flock.
Waxwings,Hessle.


Waxwing,Hessle.

Waxwings,Hessle.

Waxwing,Hessle.

Waxwing,Hessle.

Waxwing,Hessle.

Waxwing,Hessle.

Waxwing,Hessle.

Female Blackbird,Hessle.

Partial Albino Male Blackbird,Hessle.

Song Thrush,Hessle.

Song Thrush,Hessle.

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