The Dartford Warbler and Other Birds

Feb 18/15 Forest of Dean and Pittville Park Cheltenham, Gloucestershire UK.

Today was the day to go after the Dartford Warbler. On the way I stopped off at the Speech House in the heart of the Forest of Dean. The following three shots were taken from the car window at a place where park visitors leave seed for the wild birds. By choosing a good vantage point I was able to photograph with dark shadows in the background. I had to underexpose a little in manual mode.

Speech House/ Forest of Dean

Chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs)

Nuthatch (Sitta europaea)

Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos)

New Fancy View/ Forest of Dean

Common Buzzard (Buteo Buteo)

As a child growing up in the Wye Valley I never once saw a Common Buzzard. There was a decline of food as the rabbit population had been decimated by Myxomatosis

There was so little food the buzzards were even forced to turn over cow dung in search of insects. Their numbers crashed until the rabbit population finally recovered.

The Common Buzzard has now rebounded and can be seen in many parts of the UK. I also was lucky enough to see a pair of Goshawk at New Fancy View, one of the best viewpoints in the Forest of Dean,

Pittville Park Cheltenham 

As I have mentioned this was not a birding holiday but the temptation to try for the Dartford Warbler was too strong. Pittville Park Cheltenham is a passive park with much activity but in one corner a wildflower patch of about an acre has been seeded. It has been there a few years and has matured and has reseeded itself. There were three Stonechat and a dozen Linnets present and one very lost Dartford Warbler. Fortunately the winter has been mild and the sunniest ever recorded, all good news for the diminutive warbler normally found in the southernmost parts of the UK.

Dartford Warbler (Sylvia undata)

Stonechat (Saxicola torquatus)

Stonechat

Well this is the last post from the UK but not the last bird I saw. I took a quick walk around Parkend before leaving and finally had a good views of a Hawfinch. It was the perfect way to end the trip.

I would like to thank Gary Thoburn and Vic Savery for their helpful contributions and suggestions and without their encouragement my trip would not have been so enjoyable.
Also the Gloster Birder website which is an invaluable guide to visitors like myself

Technical details
I brought a Nikon D7100 with battery pack. It never ran out as either the camera battery or the battery pack kicked in when one was exhausted. I bought a Tamron 150mm-600mm lens in the summer for trips like these when photography would be secondary consideration.
I brought a flash, remote controller and monopod but never used them. I dressed as I would for Vancouver and was never cold or wet. I found UK birders and photographers very helpful and willing to help the hapless visitor like myself. Overall I am very happy with my visit and look forward to returning soon.

"It's never too late to start birding"

John Gordon

Langley/Cloverdale
British Columbia
Canada

Birding/ On the Spur of the Moment

Feb 1 2015 Lydney Harbour/Cannop Ponds Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire UK Sunny 4c

I hadn't planned on birding but when asked to run my brother to catch the train to Gloucester I grasped at the opportunity. I threw the camera on the passenger side seat and off I went. As soon as I saw him off I went down to nearby Lydney Harbour where an interesting trail weaves itself along the bank of the Severn Estuary. The rise and fall of tides of the Severn Estuary is second only to the Canada's Bay of Fundy. There were few birds around. It was here I photographed what is probably the UK's most common small gull, the Black-headed Gull.

Adult winter Black-headed Gull (Chroicocephalus ridibundus)

Then it was back home with a slight detour via Cannop Ponds.

I had photographed there in the spring so winter birding might turn up something a little different if only in plumage.

Blue Tit (Parus caeruleus)

The Blue Tit lays 7-14 white brown spotted eggs in a moss and feathered lined tree hole.

Tufted Duck (Aythya fuligula)

Unlike in Vancouver where a Tufted Duck is a rare occurrence Cannop Ponds had four pairs. Tufted Duck are a year round resident in the UK and quite common. Ranging from Iceland, northern Europe and North Africa.

Male (foreground) and female Mandarin (Aix galericulata)

Introduced to the UK from China Mandarin Ducks are now an official/introduced bird in the UK. It nests in tree holes.

Grey Wagtail (Montacilla Cinerea)

I haven't birded very much in the UK so at first I thought this was a Yellow Wagtail, it isn't, they only occur in the UK's summer. 

Cormorant (Phalacrocorax Carbo)

In North America this bird is called Great Cormorant, also found along the east coast of the Americas and Greenland.

This unplanned birding session brightened up my day. Later in the day a flock of Long-tailed Tits and Redwings passed by the kitchen window. By the time I grabbed my camera they were gone.

"It's never too late to start birding"

John Gordon