Autumn Migration at Spurn

Last month, I was lucky enough to spend a week birding at Spurn Bird Observatory, Yorkshire, on the North East coast. After visiting in September (click HERE to see my previous Spurn blog post), I was hooked and keen to go again in peak migration season.

Spurn Bird Observatory's recording area stretches from Easington, right down the the far end of the point, and is well known among birders for having a very impressive list of rarities. Spurn is also known for receiving huge numbers of commoner migrants during peak passage period. I was lucky to have timed my visit just right as the weather conditions that week were near-enough perfect; overcast, light rain and easterly wind.

I've included this photo of a Goldcrest first as they were one of the highlights of the trip, which were arriving throughout the week. They were absolutely everywhere, even in the pub car park! Wherever I walked Goldcrests were flitting around and calling all around - very special to see.

It is unbelievable to think that a bird weighing no more than a 20p crosses the North Sea from Scandinavia, a journey which might take over a day. 

The Goldcrest total for the week was 682 birds.

My absolute highlight of the trip though was watching birds arriving in off the sea, mainly Redwing and Fieldfare, but also occasionally Blackbird, Song Thrush and Goldcrest, all coming across from Scandinavia. Some arrived quite high, flying strongly and directly, high above the waves, while others faltered, clipping the top of the waves, and just made it onto land.

This Redwing struggled through, just missing the water as it neared the shore. It just managed to land on the shore a few meters away from me, absolutely exhausted. It sat there for the next minute or so, before picking itself up and flying off. Its legs were very weak for a while and it couldn't walk - after having them tucked up for the past day probably whilst flying.

The thrush totals for the week included 7,000 Fieldfare, 5,326 Redwing and 1,204 Blackbird.

Another exhausted migrant was this Brambling which was feeding in the short grassland around the Warren area. 

Recently, I've been learning how to age birds using moult patterns. 

This Brambling's greater coverts show a moult limit - the two small white tipped feathers at the end of the line of the orange feathers. 

These white feathers are from its old juvenile plumage with the orange ones being its new, adult feathers. This means it can be aged as a 1st calendar year bird (1CY). It will have fledged somewhere in Northern Europe, possibly Scandinavia, and is spending its first Winter in Britain. Its unlikely it has ever seen a human before!

The Brambling total for the week was 369.

There was a huge influx of Mealy Redpoll during the week with over 100 logged - in most years Spurn only get a handful. They often travelled in small flocks, flitting through the hedgerows which were laden with Hawthorn berries. This one was part of a group of 6 which were working their way along the Canal Zone hedgerows.

Mealy Redpoll is very similar to the much commoner Lesser Redpoll but after a while I started to get my eye in a managed to pick them out. They have a much more 'frosty' face, paler rump and back, and a clean, white wingbar on the greater coverts. 

I had been walking down the point and was nearing the Chalk Bank area when I bumped into Tom, one of the Autumn residential volunteers, who said that he'd just seen a pale looking redpoll in the flock in front of me. The flock was very mobile and I quickly took a photo of it before the all moved on again. Happily, it turned out to be what we had hoped - a Coues's Arctic Redpoll, a vagrant from Northern Europe, usually found mixing with other species of redpoll.

The identification of Arctic Redpoll is a tricky one, but luckily all the key features were very visible on this bird. Its overall pale appearance combined with a small bill and small bright red cap made for a distinctive looking bird. The main ID features though are the pale, unmarked undertail coverts and a large, pale, un-streaked rump.

I had headed back from the point after watching the Arctic Redpoll, and was just setting up for a vismig (visible migration) session, when the news broke on the radio of a Swift species heading South over Easington. At this time of year any Swift species has the potential to be something very rare. A few minutes later it was radioed again that had been seen over Kilnsea Wetlands - it was heading straight for me. Then, it appeared, distantly at first, but was soon flying around quite close, giving some good views. 

After some deliberation, its identification was decided on as a Pallid Swift, a vagrant from Southern Europe. 

Like the Arctic Redpoll the ID of Pallid Swift can be quite a challenge and can usually only be done through photos. Luckily, it was a very overcast day so there wasn't any contrasting sunlight to obscure the plumage features. 

Some of the key features include pale fringes to the wing feathers with a much darker 'saddle', a dark 'mask' around the eyes and blunt wingtips, all of which are viewable in this photo. My other photos show the other ID features, including mottled underparts, pale inner primaries and a blunt tail. 

We watched it flying around for quite a while, until it flew off slowly South.

Hawfinches were present throughout the week, though I only managed to see a couple. This adult came 'in off' the Humber, calling, before dropping down into the hedgerow at the back of the Canal Scrape. It is most likely a bird from Northern Europe, or perhaps from Scotland.

Another nice bird to see around the Canal Scrape area was this beautiful Short-eared Owl, freshly arrived from Northern Europe. It will most likely continue its journey south, down to a costal marsh somewhere in Southern Britain. 

Movements on the sea were pretty quiet on the whole, though there was a bit of Teal, Wigeon and Common Scoter passage, as well as the occasional Dark-bellied Brent Goose, Shag, Arctic Skua or Red-throated Diver. A male Goldeneye heading South on one morning's seawatch was rather nice. 

Most seawatching and vismig is done from the Numpties Watchpoint at the Warren which has a great view of all points of the compass. 

I didn't see an awful lot going through during the week from here though, apart from a Lapland Bunting and a really nice Woodlark.

Whilst seawatching one morning, I saw a white tail flash disappear over the edge of the sea bank - a 1CY Wheatear. Probably fresh in-off the sea from Northern Europe, heading South to Africa. They're not often seen this late in the Autumn.

After another morning's seawatching session at Numpties Watchpoint, I was walking along the track back to the observatory when I flushed a Woodcock, which stayed flying longer than they often do - normally they burst up from under your feet and zoom off, not sticking around for long at all!

I think its plumage is absolutely beautiful; perfectly adapted for camouflaging  itself on a woodland floor, their nesting habitat. 

It was a very rainy day and I was twiddling my thumbs back at the observatory. Then, the news came of a Waxwing at the Warren! Me and the Autumn residential volunteers rushed out in the pouring rain and arrived at the Warren to see a very soggy Waxwing perched in a tiny pine tree. We watched it for ages as it moved around the hedges, feeding on Hawthorn berries, before it flew off North, giving its distinctive trilling call as it went.

Waxwings are an irruption species in Britain, meaning that they come in varying numbers each year. Often, when the berry crop is poor or the weather is bad in Scandinavia, they'll arrive in larger numbers. Its looking like this year might be a good year for them over here...we'll have to wait and see!

20 minutes drive away from Spurn was Stone Creek, an area of farmland with good numbers of raptors. There had also been a Rough-legged Buzzard seen there the past couple of days which I was keen to see.

What was lovely to see were 3 Hen Harrier, quartering the set-aside grassland, showing how invaluable this type of farmland is for the species. They've most likely come from Northern Europe, or perhaps Scotland, and will probably spend the rest of the Winter in the area. 

After a little while of waiting, the Rough-legged Buzzard appeared. They employ a very unique an interesting feeding technique, as they hover just like a Kestrel would. I've included a video above which will hopefully show it feeding. (the moving dots at the back are migrating Fieldfares!)

Rough-legged Buzzard is a very rare migrant from Scandinavia, with around 50 birds turning up every Winter, usually on the East Coast.

Rough-legged Buzzard is really quite a different bird from Common Buzzard, with a large, dark belly patch, dark carpal patches (underside of the wing joint), broad white tail base and pale primary bases.

I watched it for ages as it hunted the field, sometimes giving rather nice views too.

It was an absolutely fantastic trip - brilliant to meet lots of other like-minded birders and, of course, see some rather good birds! Other species I saw not mentioned here included Dusky Warbler, Long-eared Owl, Merlin, Crossbill, Greenshank, Marsh Harrier, Water Rail, Pink-footed Goose, Pale-bellied Brent Goose and a very late Willow Warbler. 

Hopefully I'll be able to return again soon.