Common Crane - Middleton Moor

 An exciting day at Middleton with good numbers of common migrants but the star bird was a Common Crane which we believe is just the third record for the site.

It usual for the gulls to spook periodically often for no apparent reason but I always check the sky incase a raptor has scared them. This happened yesterday and I looked up to see a Coomon Crane no more than 100m above me. It did a nice fly past then started to circle, quickly gaining height until it was just visible with the naked eye then drifted off south. A fantastic sight and as breeding numbers continue to increase in Norfolk and Linconlshire, reported as 87 pairs last year, it may become a commoner site.

Common Crane

Other birds seen included both Yellow and White Wagtail (the Continental counterpart of our Pied) and Garden Warbler as well as Wheatears and Common Redstart that have been around for several days.

White and Yellow Wagtails

Finally I found a 1st winter Caspian Gull amongst the gulls which still number about 60 Lesser Black-backed and up to 100 Common.

Caspian Gull - first winter

Middleton Moor Update

I've been a little slow to post recent sightings so here's a short update,

Hen Harrier

Adult female on 16th and 26th November

Hen Harrier

Jack Snipe

One on 16th November

Caspian Gull

Adult on 10th November

Caspian Gull - adult

Caspian Gull x European Herring Gull

One on 8th November

Pochard 

Two on 4th November, increased to 4 on 10th November

Common Pochard 2 male, 2 female

Black-tailed Godwit

One on 29th October

Black-tailed Godwit

The only other birds of note were 3 Little Egret on the flooded fields just north of Rowsley on 16th November and a Brambling flock on Bent Lane which has increased to over 100 birds.

The Cetti's Warbler is still at Middleton having survived the colder weather.

Caspian Gull and first Curlew - Middleton Moor

 A 3rd winter Caspian Gull hybrid type joined the Common and Lesser Black-backed Gulls at Middleton Moor this morning, the first I have seen this year and there was a lone Curlew which hopefully marks the start of Spring. 

Although it will be another month or so before we are likely to see migrants arriving from the Continent.

The Caspian Gull wasn't a classic long-thin-billed and flat fore headed bird indicating that it has some Herring Gull in its ancestry.

Caspian Gull - 3rd winter

Eurasian Curlew

First Brambling of the autumn

I saw my first Brambling of the autumn on Monday (14th ) at Middleton Moor but since then I have seen several more. After a day of rain on Wednesday there was a large movement of Redwing over Beeley Moor on Thursday with over 3,000 birds counted in the morning and with them were several Brambling as well as small groups of Lesser Redpoll, which have been scarce recently. This morning I had three more Brambling on Bent Lane whilst looking for a Ring Ouzel which had been seen there yesterday, unfortunately it was misty so the photos are not the best. 

Brambling male and female

I called in at Middleton Moor yesterday afternoon and was pleased to find an adult Caspian Gull in with about 420 Lesser Black-backed Gulls and two adult Yellow-legged Gulls.

Caspian Gull - adult

I've been hoping for a Yellow-browed Warbler following a large influx on the coast and then birds being widely reported inland with 1 or perhaps 2 at Carsington Water and one near Ogston, but no look so far. Although birds are probably still filtering inland with an incredible 7 having been trapped at a ringing site in Rutland to the south of us here.

Caspian Gull - Upperloads

 It seems to be all gulls at the moment with another Caspian Gull today in a ploughed field on Syda Lane,

The field was proving quite an attraction as there were also around 40 Lesser Black-backed, 3 Herring and a Common Gull plus a nice party of 67 Golden Plover and around 40 Lapwing.

It's possible that th Caspian Gull is the same bird that I saw in Darley Dale last week I guess.

There were several hundred Fieldfare on the moor and the first signs of Woodpigeons on the move with over 1000 birds counted flying SW.

Caspian Gull

I picked up some more news on the Great Northern Diver reported at Chatsworth, what must surely have been the same bird was phptographed on the Derwent in Belper yesterday. So it had almost certainly drifted down river through Darley Dale and Matlock. An amazing record.

Caspian Gull - Darley Dale

 As usual the flood waters between Darley Dale and Darley Bridge at Four Lane Ends have attracted large numbers of gulls this week. I've spent several hours checking through them each day this week but apart from one or two Herring and up to a dozen Common Gulls I hadn't managed to find anything else until this morning when I picked out an adult Caspian Gull.

Caspian Gull - adult

The number of gulls on the flooded fields were fairly static until this morning with around 500 Lesser Black-backed and 600 Black-headed but there were more birds this morning with 700-800 Lesser Black-backed and i estimated over 1000 Black-headed.

Lesser Black-backed and Black-headed Gulls on the flooded fields

The water level is steadily falling so without further rain the fields may dry out in the next couple of days.

A female Eurasian Teal has been resident in the Whitworth for about 10 days now, it's the first I can recall there.

I had a Northern Wheatear on the moor on the 17th October which I suspect will be my last. 

Northern Wheatear - female

There have been several sightings of Hen Harriers on the moor with both 'ringtails' (females or immatures) and an adult male so hopefully they will remain for the winter.

I was away for the big Redwing arrival on 9th October when several thousand were seen over Beeley Moor and 21k were counted over Ogston. There are still good numbers of Redwings around with plenty of Fieldfare and upto a dozen Brambling have been seen.

Mediterranean Gull and Common Shelduck - two new birds for the Darley Dale area

 Whilst the flooding causes major disruption and worse for those whose properties are directly affected it also creates new temporary habitat for wildlife. The area between Darley Dale and Darley Bridge at Four Lane Ends has flooded many times over the years and can attract large numbers of gulls.

Today the flooded area attracted a Common Shelduck, a bird that presumably flies up and down the valley occasionally, as they occur reasonably regularly at Middleton Moor. But this is the first record I'm aware of for the Darley Dale area.

Whilst looking through the gulls I passed over a bird with a jet black hood and pale silvery wings, an adult Mediterranean Gull and another new bird for the area. 

Interestingly, Simon recorded the first Mediterranean Gull of the year at Carsington Water yesterday and there must be a reasonable chance that this is the same bird.

He also had a 2nd winter Caspian Gull and Yellow-legged Gull amongst the 100 Herring Gulls, 40 Lesser Black-backed Gulls, 20 Common Gulls and 150 Black-headed Gulls this afternoon.

Mediterranean Gull - adult in breeding plumage

Common Shelduck in the rain

A Curlew flew over whilst I was watching the gulls which is my first of the year here.

Who knows what birds might drop in if we had a permanent wetland.

Flooding at Four Lane Ends

New Year - highlights so far

I got off to a reasonable start on the 1st with the Little Egret still present at Harthill Pond, Youlgrave, where there were also 3 Goosander, and a Water Rail giving its squealing call by the River Wye just south of Bakewell. It was very windy on the moors and I struggled to find either Stonechat or Reed Bunting but a flock of 339 Lapwing on Screetham Lane was a record count and I had 18 Yellowhammer in the same area.

A group of 18 Herring Gulls at the stables on Longside Road above Holymoorside was another record count and included a first winter bird that looked like a Herring Gull x Caspian Gull hybrid with pale head and rather long bill, sloping forehead, barring on the scapulars and clean white base to the tail.

First winter Herring Gull left and presumed hybrid Herring x Caspian Gull (right)

I didn't do much yesterday but added some of the commoner birds like Bullfinch and Great Spotted Woodpecker plus another 2 drake Goosander close to Chatsworth which I saw again today.

Goosander - drakes

Today's highlight was a pair of Gadwall on Emperor Lake, I had a pair there last spring and wondered if they might be attempting to breed but never saw them after the spring but I'm guessing that this may be the same pair.

Gadwall - pair

There were at least 8 Teal and 4 Mandarin, the latter have now largely disappeared from the area now but will start to return to the rivers in the next couple of months.

I'm still missing a few common birds but have recorded 66 species on the first 3 days of the year, I made it to 80 in December so thats a reasonable target.

With ongoing travel issues associated with COVID and concern over the impact of travel on global warming there are more birdwatchers adopting local patches. This is the 8km (5 mile) radius from Darley Dale where I do most of my birdwatching.

But, I still do a few trips further afield, some of which I include on here and I made it to Carsington on the 31st December to see the Red-necked Grebe which is still there today.

Red-necked Grebe

Caspian Gull - Elton Common

 I check the Elton Common area for gulls fairly regularly but, even when the gulls are about, it's very hit and miss whether you can find them as they move around a lot. This afternoon I was about to give up when a saw a small group of Common Gulls landing in a distant field. Fortunately I was able to drive a little closer and counted 28 Common, 3 Lesser Black-backs and a very white-headed bird that looked like an adult Caspian Gull.

I took some rather distant photos and was able to confirm the key features of Caspian, un-streaked white head (the head of Herring Gull is heavily streaked in winter), flat forehead, rather long narrow bill, small dark eye and slender body with protruding breast. 

They are also longer legged than Herring but this is difficult to see when walking in grass.

Single birds are recorded fairly regular in the autumn at both Ogston and Carsington and this bird will presumably roost at the latter but it's only the second I've seen in the Darley Dale area.

In the very strong wind the birds were constantly moving and quickly went out of view.

Caspian Gull - adult

Caspian Gull new for the Darley Dale area

The recent heavy rains have caused flooding in some of the fields bordering the river Derwent and the Wye. Simon has been checking the area by Four Lane Ends opposite Milner 4x4 between Darley Dale and Darley Bridge today and found a 1st winter Caspian Gull. 
This area has always been good for gulls when high river levels cause flooding in the field but no one can remember seeing so many large gulls on the fields. Today there were at least 300 large gulls, mainly Lesser Black-backed but with many Herring also plus at least two 1st winter Great Black-backed Gulls which are the first I can recall seeing locally.
Inevitably the gulls are fairly distant so a telescope is needed to view them. Periodically they take to the air with much calling which I can here from my house!

The Caspian Gull is a scarce visitor to Derbyshire with around 50 records per year and mainly at the larger bodies of water where gulls roost during the winter months such as Ogston, Pools Brook and Carsington.

Caspian Gull 1st winter (centre bird on two upper photos and left hand bird on lower)

Identification of Caspian Gull is as much based on structure as it is on plumage features. Compared to Herring Gull it is longer legged, smaller headed and longer winged giving it a more elegant appearance. The bill is also generally longer and slimmer. In 1st winter plumage the head is white and the mantle generally looks paler the 1st winter Herring also the greater coverts are less spangled often looking darker than those of Herring.

Great Black-backed Gull 1st winter

Simon also thought he had seen an adult Caspian Gull so there could be other birds of interest amongst this flock. A great local find in any case and well picked out amongst the very similar Herring and Lesser Black-backed Gulls.