10/02/11
As i have said many Many MANY times before, patch biridng can sometimes be really awsome!
There are just some days when everything is good in the world of patch birding!
I have had many days like that over the last couple of years!
Class of Red-Throated Diver Whooper Swan, Smew, Dipper, Goldeneye and Waxwings spring to mind, a list of birds that isnt too bad for any midlands site where they arnt regualar!
However, sometimes, a bird that may be common just down the road may be an insane rarity elsewhere, and that is a huge thing about patch working! Shenstone Birder just on the other side of Stourport has a range of Farmland birds on his patch, and i dont have any, even Linnet is quite uncommon! And our patches are only a few miles apart!
Anyway, Ive gone off on a tangent here.
The reason for my waffling!
Drake SHELDUCK!
Insane patch first!
Ive seen litterally thousands of these birds in my birding 'career' but one on my patch, that has very little open water is just totally bizzare!
However, i have a theiry!
As can be seen within my photo's/video's, the thin layer of patchy snow seems to resemble a partially, shallowly flooded field, habitat that Shelduck feed in, and as this stunning duck flew over it saw this 'habitat' and decided to land!
Another patch first that i wasnt expecting!
Any Duck besides Mallards, Goosanders and Mandarins are a huge patch rarity, so the 'run' of ducks ive had in the last few years is quite an unexpected turn up!
It always seems that this cold snowy weather brings something good to the patch!
There was a flock of 8 Goosander on the river (2 drk)
Also, a large flock of Redwings were showing well!
Back in the garden there was the usual flock of Finches, 5 Siskin, 2 Lesser Redpoll, but i also had a landed first in the garden, when a female PIED WAGTAIL decided to land on the patio briefly before being flushed by a Blackbird!
On 11/02/12 the Finch flock had again increased.
8 LESSER REDPOLL (5m) was a substancial increase and there was still 5 Siskin (2m). 6 Chaffinch, 15c Goldfinch and a single male Greenfinch!
MB
3 comments:
Nice one with the Shelduck, Craig. I`ve only got one patch record, despite them breeding a few hundred metres away.
I can understand your excitement at the Shelduck Craig...its all relative when you watch a local patch. It would be a first and mega at Captains pool/Shenstone!!!
Well, that more extreme than my 'common nearby' quote, the closest breeding Shelduck to my patch are like 10 miles (that i know of), but a few hundred metres, wow, dont you get flyovers?
Jase, its the same for both our patches, ducks are hard to come by as both our patches lack a large area of open water.
Good luck for your Shenstone Shelduck then :P
MB
Post a Comment