Newsletter No. 54 May 2016

Transcription

1 Newsletter No. 54 May 2016 Welcome to the May Edition of Egret, the start to this year s migration and breeding season seem to be all over the place obviously influenced by the very changeable weather we have been experiencing. My own personal year list got off to a reasonable start, redstart, blackcap, lesser whitethroat and last week I had three cracking ring ouzels. At the January indoor meeting, Nick was presented with the book by Mark Avery as a memento and token of thanks from the Group for his hard work and commitment as our Group Leader over the past 15 years. In recognition of this, Nick has been made Honorary President. The new Committee is settling in very well and our committee meetings seem to be running smoothly with a very positive atmosphere. Sue's sales table is going very strong and we have been involved in three outdoor events so far. It is pleasing to see several new faces at our indoor and outdoor meetings, but we can't sit back and relax, we need to increase our membership even further. I am starting to arrange the 2016/2017 outdoor programme at the moment and would welcome any ideas of places which you would like to visit. One last thing at a recent committee meeting we wondered if it would be worth running a social/quiz evening in December so please could you let me know what you think at one of our Indoor meetings. I look forward to seeing you all at our meetings. STOP PRESS. I have arranged a half day trip to the Knepp Estate on 1 st June. The estate is very well known for its turtle doves and nightingales and in 2015 won several top conservation awards. Further details will be given at our next indoor meeting. STOP PRESS. I have arranged a nightjar evening on 7 th June, further details at our next Indoor meeting. With regards Shaun Taylor Group Leader

2 DATES FOR YOUR DIARY INDOOR MEETINGS The indoor meetings are to be held at East Court Mansion. The talks start at 8 pm, so could we kindly request that you arrive approx 10 minutes earlier, so that we are all settled before the talk begins The last indoor meeting of the current season June 29 th A Woodland Year Follow the Seasons to Discover Birds, Butterflies and Mysterious Creatures of the Night Simon Ginnaw OUTDOOR MEETINGS Full details of the outdoor meetings are on the last page. May 29 th Stodmarsh June 1 st Knepp Estate details at May Indoor meeting June 7 th Nightjar walk details at May Indoor meeting GETTING EGRET TO OUR MEMBERS As most of you will know, your thrice-yearly Newsletter is usually available at two of our monthly indoor meetings February and April, the third being posted to all members in August to give notice of our AGM in September. Members attending either or both of the meetings mentioned are asked to take their copy from the box at the entrance, but what may be less well-known is that some members are able to hand-deliver some extra copies to their non-attending near-neighbours. If you are able to do this, it does save a substantial amount of postage, especially with the new postal rates, and thus allows us to offer enhanced support to the many RSPB projects in process. See if you can help, even if it is only one or two copies in addition to your own. If the envelope is still in the box at the end of the meeting then that member was not there and you can be a Good Samaritan! We also offer a paperless newsletter for those who do not want a paper copy. Please contact me on my new address if you would like to be added to the list for ed newsletters. Please do not choose this option and then print at home, we are happy to supply a paper copy if that is what you prefer. New address: christine.1holly@btinternet.com Egret articles and suggestions can also be sent to my address, or by pen and paper and find me at an indoor meeting. VACANCY FOR NEWSLETTER EDITOR & FUNDRAISING & EXTERNAL EVENTS IF YOU WOULD LIKE FURTHER INFORMATION, OR ARE INTERESTED IN JOINING OUR COMMITTEE, PLEASE SPEAK TO SHAUN TAYLOR * WATCH OUT * FOR THE SALES TABLE AT FUTURE INDOOR MEETINGS

3 Reports of Recent Outdoor Group Meetings Group Trip to Poole Harbour and Brownsea Island - 16th February 2016 On Tuesday 16 th February, twenty four of us made the long trip down to Poole on a very bright frosty morning, assembling on the quay side and wondering what the day would bring. After obtaining coffee and bacon rolls from a nearby establishment we wandered over to the quayside waiting to board the good ship "Maiden of the Harbour". Binoculars at the ready, we saw in the harbour a great northern diver swimming amongst the cormorants. After leaving the quayside we headed for the islands to the west of the harbour with good views of red-breasted mergansers, shags and a great crested grebe. However, owing to low water, we had to turn back and make our way along the west and south of Brownsea Island, with more views of great northern divers and black-necked grebes. On the shoreline shelduck, curlew and oystercatchers were all seen. Busby - RSPB Images We landed at the jetty on Brownsea Island which is now owned by the National Trust, except for Brownsea Castle which is part of the John Lewis Partnership group. The Nature Reserve is run by the Dorset Wildlife Trust. Our first visit to the Low Hide produced red squirrels, for which the island is famous, spoonbills, pintail ducks and bar-tailed godwits. Continuing on to Mac Hide we saw avocets, redshank, spotted redshank and a greenshank, also more cormorants, wigeon, teal, grey herons and shoveler. Passing a house called the Villa, we spotted blue, great and coal tits on a feeder. We went on to the Lake Hide which was quiet apart from a tufted duck and on returning passed the Villa where a red squirrel was attacking the feeder without disturbing the birds which were still there. Another visit to the Low Hide revealed a couple of snipe and a Mediterranean gull. A golden pheasant was also seen during a visit to the south shore area of the Island. During the trip back to the harbour we drifted for 5 minutes to try for a sighting of the black guillemot, but even with a few dozen binoculars scanning the sea it remained elusive. Common gulls were present. Total 51 species. (please see website for complete listing) Also seen during the visit: Peacocks Red Squirrels, Brown Rat Report by Mark Roberts Langman RSPB Images

4 Rye Harbour and Pett Level 28 th February 2016 Twelve of us met in the car park at Rye Harbour Nature Reserve where we were greeted by a bitterly cold and gusting wind! Undeterred we went up the path and immediately saw a dunnock to start the day's count. We saw few other hedgerow birds, apart from a blackbird, on the walk up to the first pools on the right where we saw redshank, wigeon, oystercatcher, shelduck, coot, moorhen, blackheaded gull and numerous herring gulls doing their best to crack open mussels by dropping them onto the gravel paths below. Cormorants flew overhead on their way out to sea and a cold looking reed bunting looked at us with disdain. A stock dove flew overhead. We walked on up to the small visitor centre and looked over the pools again seeing avocet, tufted duck, great black-backed gull, a couple of pintail ducks and little grebe. The first hide produced more of the same plus a good few ringed plovers as well as grey plover. We strolled on to the beach in the hope of seeing some sanderling, but we were out of luck. The only birds on the beach were rooks and carrion crow! Despite strong winds we did a brief sea watch but saw little of note. We walked down the path towards the other hides. The area is mainly gravel with sparse vegetation so we were surprised to see three greenfinches on the ground with little by way of cover. We saw and heard meadow pipit, skylark and also caught a brief glimpse of a wheatear. From the hide we saw shoveler, teal, starling, gadwall, turnstone, mallard, dunlin, lapwing and pied wagtail. The third hide failed to produce anything new to add to our list. We walked out to the new pool and saw a charm of goldfinch in the teasel bushes and also saw a little egret on the far side of the pool. A further stride to the long pool produced great crested grebe. On the way back to the car park a few of us saw a beautiful peregrine falcon over the water and a collared dove on the telephone lines as we neared Rye Harbour village. Powell RSPB Images After lunch the group moved on to Pett Level, which if anything felt even colder than Rye Harbour! Soon after we parked up however we had good views of a glossy ibis amongst around 250 curlews. Also present was a smaller bird, which caused much debate and reference to guide books to determine its identity. Eventually we agreed that it was a ruff. A marsh harrier was briefly seen in the distance and in the fields were mute swan, greylag and Canada geese. We were also treated to what can only be described as a "murmuration of coot". Around 300 birds took to the sky together to fly into the nearby pool. Quite a sight! Our final stop was further along the road in the direction of Pett Village to walk along the beach towards the cliffs in the hope of seeing fulmar and kittiwake. We did not see either but were fortunate enough to see a group of common scoter bobbing on the tide and a great crested grebe flying out towards the horizon. All in all another great day out with the group. Around 50 species were seen. Jen & Chris Griffin

5 Titchfield Haven - March 2016 Seven of us, including newcomers Elizabeth and Mark from Cowden, made the long journey to Titchfield Haven in Hampshire where we were rewarded with a great day's birding, involving 67 species. Bird of the day for most of us was the eider. We had distant views on the sea to the west of the visitor centre at the start but at the end of our visit these were eclipsed by superb close views just outside the centre. The group of 12 included 8 drakes and was less than 100 metres away - stunning! A great northern diver, a small flock of Brent geese, a small flock of sanderling and a group of common scoter provided the support cast on the sea. On the reserve, at least 5 Mediterranean gulls were seen at close quarters - much to the delight of all of us. Superb close views of 3 snipe also added to the excitement. The 50+ black-tailed godwits, the pair of barnacle geese, the 25+ avocets and the marsh harriers were the pick of the remaining birds seen on the Reserve. Despite the grey skies and low temperatures we had a lovely time - so much so that we had to be asked to leave the reserve as they had closed some 15 minutes earlier! (67 Species seen see website for full listing) Bob Hastings Pulborough Brooks & The Burgh 17th April 2016 A cracking morning at Pulborough Brooks produced a species count in excess of 60. Weather conditions were ideal with sunshine and no wind. 14 of us made the trip and we were rewarded with some excellent birding. The star attraction was the American wigeon that has been around for some time. We met up with it at Hanger View where it showed really well, both in and out of the water. Everyone had time to pick out this rare bird. Bird of the morning, however, had to be the lesser whitethroat that we saw earlier, near the Winpenny Hide. Thanks to Elizabeth and Mark, who had seen the bird much earlier, we targeted this area and, after some careful observation, Patrick called us back to the entrance to the hide where we enjoyed superb views. Surprisingly, the nightingale took backstage with only fleeting views along "adder alley". A "kettle" of buzzards drew our attention. The Burgh Most people relocated to the Burgh for the afternoon session where they were rewarded with some fine birding. The species count was pushed beyond the 70 mark. The usual suspects were seen with red and grey partridges, red kites, corn bunting, yellow hammer, common gulls and wheatear all present. A couple of ravens were heard. A lovely cuckoo was seen. Yet another enjoyable outing! - Thanks Shaun. Bob Hastings

6 Minsmere May 2016 Twenty one members of the Group met at Godstone Pond for the annual coach trip to Minsmere with East Surrey Group on a bright, sunny morning with the promise of a warm day ahead of us. We made good time on the journey despite part of the A12 being closed due to a road traffic accident and then a road closure close to our destination which proved challenging for our driver, Chris. Busby RSPB Images After the usual comfort break we assembled overlooking the sand martin bank where there seemed to be many more pairs than in previous years. We decided to go in search of the stone curlews from the viewpoint leading to the North Wall. A single bird was spotted without too much difficulty. We were surrounded by the songs of Cettis warbler, had great views of sedge and reed warbler and our first sighting of many of bearded tits. Whilst watching these beautiful creatures a member shouted bittern which flew directly over our heads and promptly dropped down into the reed bed in front of us, and perched on top of the reeds for several minutes stretching its neck upwards in true bittern fashion!! We had a quick sea watch, although there was little activity other than a couple of common terns feeding off shore. A visit was made to the East Hide overlooking the scrape where the usual avocets were seen together with other waders, a couple of Mediterranean gulls, sandwich and little terns. Lunch was taken on the usual grass bank south of the Sluice after an unsuccessful search for a wood sandpiper which we had been told was on the edge of the reed bed. Suitably refreshed we made our way towards the South Hide where we had views of a lovely grey plover in summer plumage with its fabulous black belly. Langman RSPB Images A visit to Island Mere hide produced more superb views of bearded tits, further views of marsh harriers both male and female gliding over the reed bed and our first sighting of hobby. A visit to Bittern Hide produced another fleeting view of a bittern dropping into the reeds in the distance. A walk up the road whilst waiting to board the coach home resulted in the song of a nightingale seen by a few, but remaining skulking to most members and four of us had views of a garden warbler and a family of long tailed tits. Everyone had had a superb day where we managed to tick off most of our target species, producing a bird list of 72 species for the day. Roll on next year!! Nick Walker

7 Website: St Mary the Virgin School Wildlife Explorers In the News Mrs Rowberry Our school group has been doing environmental activities to get their RSPB Bronze Wildlife Action Award. One activity is to get into print and tell others how much fun you can have investigating the environment. We even litter picked as another activity to Clean for the Queen. Some of our group have reported what they have done and seen so far : Eleanor Sloane Church yards are full of wildlife : I saw an earthworm, a ladybird, a butterfly and a bumble bee. Felix, Edward Fulham and Devon Our team made a log pile house for the community garden. It will be a home for millipedes, woodlice and other minibeasts. Scarlett We have walked round the churchyard planning things and designing our nature trail. We will get visitors to look at the graves and see the birds, butterflies and wasps. Seren Some minibeasts need a pile of leaves for their home. We put leaves and water into a tray to make another wildlife home in the community garden. Kirsty To make a home for birds in the community garden we put up bird houses. Yasmin I worked in a team with other Explorers to help make a bird feeder. We pushed apples, for birds to eat, into holes in a log and hung it in a tree for all birds that visit. Brooke We have been birdwatching, especially for the Big Garden Birdwatch. We recorded some of these birds:- Sparrows, Crows and Blackbirds. Tia Our Churchyard Nature Trail is awesome! We have just made it ready, with number posts, to be opened in June 2016.

8 OUTINGS FOR THE EAST GRINSTEAD RSPB LOCAL GROUP 2015/16 Please contact Shaun Taylor on hours beforehand to confirm if you wish to go, and also if you require a lift. This will help to gauge numbers and avoid disappointment if the response is poor and the event cancelled without you knowing. Please also check the website for notification of any changes to events. All day field trips - packed lunch required 29th MAY STODMARSH ENGLISH NNR (Sunday) Meet in the car park at am, Grid Ref. TR A picturesque reserve spreading out over the north Kent plain within the Stour valley, and bordered on one side by the River Great Stour. Main habitat is an internationally-important mixture of reed beds, fens, ditches, wet grassland and open water. Likely bird species include: Hobby, Marsh Harrier, Bearded Reedling, Turtle Dove & Cuckoo 1st June KNEPP ESTATE, WEST GRINSTEAD NEAR HORSHAM (Wednesday) Knepp Estate is very well known for its turtle doves and nightingales. In 2015 it won several top conservation awards. Details of this outing will be available at the May indoor meeting. 7th June NIGHTJAR WALK Details of this outing will be available at the May indoor meeting. Committee: Hon. President: Nick Walker Group Leader: Shaun Taylor Treasurer: Bob Hastings Indoor Meetings: Lesley Berry Membership: Maureen Caulkett: Newsletter: Christine French Website: Chris Griffin Pin Badges and Refreshments: Terris Bacon Publicity: Mark Roberts Minutes Secretary & Sales: Susan Dennis Wildlife Explorers: Hilary Rowberry (Outdoor Meetings Shaun Taylor ) The RSPB speaks out for birds and wildlife, tackling the problems that threaten our environment.