Comings and goings at Napton

Napton, with its small reservoir and locally significant hill, has proven itself over many years to be the most productive part of my patch for migrating birds.

The reservoir in particular acts as a magnet for new arrivals, as well as those gathering to leave or  simply passing through on their way to somewhere else. 

My two April visits, while contrasting in conditions, both lived up to this billing.

A low single figure temperature and biting NE wind made my first trip, on 2 April, a demanding one. Fortunately, it was immediately apparent that some early summer visitors hadn't been deterred. 

A flock of 50+ hirundines swooped low over and around the water, mainly Swallows with a handful of Sand Martins and at least one House Martin.

Three Chiffchaffs sang out around the reservoir, these having been back in the area for a good couple of weeks (this year's first being on 14 March at Leam Valley reserve).  

Perhaps best of all, in a patch not noted for its wading birds, was a Common Sandpiper (or possibly two), bobbing and darting from bank to bank as it made its way around the margins.

A fortnight later (14 April) and it was all change. The weather was transformed to warmth and calm, and the hirundines no longer swarmed across the water (having no doubt dispersed in pairs to their local breeding territories). 

In their place, at least two Willow Warblers had arrived. This was a welcome surprise, since I don't hear the beautiful call of this bird anywhere near enough on my patch, it's numbers having declined markedly in the 20 or so years I've been here.

Another bird which should be much more common than it is is the Yellow Wagtail. Decades ago this would have been a reasonably reliable summer sighting across Warwickshire's farmland, but the few that we have left now are best spotted during spring and autumn migration in hotspots like Napton and (especially) nearby Draycote reservoirs. A single bird running along the bank here was enough to remind me why these sparkling little yellow and green gems are such a favourite of mine. 

The final sign of the twice-yearly wonder that is bird migration came not in the form of a new arrival but as preparations for a mass departure. As if from nowhere 100+ Common Gulls descended on the reservoir, wheeling over the water in a tight ball for 10 minutes before heading off. These are birds which have overwintered inland (perhaps on this very site) and are now on their way back to the coast for summer breeding - almost certainly the last of the patch's winter visitors to begin this return trip.

Aside from the comings and goings of migration there have been plenty more sights and sounds to enjoy at Napton in early April: a Red Kite soaring eastwards to avoid the attentions of mobbing Jackdaws; three pairs of elegantly courting Great Crested Grebes; a small flock of Meadow Pipits; pairs of Grey Heron and Cormorant; and handsome male Reed Buntings in and around the reservoir's substantial reed bed.

200 birds or bust!

A UK life list of 213 species is a pretty meagre return for the number of years I have been birding (albeit probably a fair reflection of my stop-start commitment and general lack of expertise).

OK, so there are some good birds on the list: rarities (like Ring-necked Duck); beauties (like drake Smew); lurkers (Jack Snipe); creatures of the night (Nightjar) and childhood ambitions (Great Grey Shrike).

But with no new birds added since a Black-necked Grebe at Napton Reservoir in 2012, my life list had become distinctly moribund and in urgent need of some fresh impetus.

It was this realisation that led directly to a sudden decision to aim for the not inconsiderable number of 200 species during 2018. The target, inspired by a regular feature in Birdwatching magazine, seems to me improbable if not absurd; but that really isn't the point. The point is that I needed a kick up the arse to get out and bird more often, and this seemed as good a kick as any.

And the early report is that while I'm sure I'm already miles short of the target, I'm absolutely loving the attempt.

First up was Draycote Reservoir in early January for one of the long-staying Hawfinches (already seen over the Xmas holiday period, but needed again for this 2018 list), plus Tree Sparrow (sadly a bird that is all too easy to miss out on these days).

Next was Middleton Lakes RSPB - two consecutive Sunday trips offering up goodies including Red Kite, Pintail, Stonechat, Water Rail and Great White Egret - the latter my first lifer for more than five years!

(214 species and counting...)

A family walk along the Oxford Canal at Wormleighton turned up a Brambling (well pleased with that one, my first for many years), and a lunchtime stroll near my office revealed a pair of Mandarin drakes hidden in a lakeside creek.


Even some increased effort in garden feeding came up trumps as I spotted on the feeders my first Blackcap of the year (a now semi-regular female), plus my first ever garden Lesser Redpoll.

Five weeks in and I've recorded 73 birds - not a huge number, but many more than I would normally have noted by now. And, much more importantly, I've already enjoyed a dozen or more very special moments as a result of the challenge: from the GWE lifer to the self-found Brambling; from the rush of an unexpected Red Kite to the discovery of a community of Brown Hares within a mile of my house (and the repeated pleasure of visiting them whenever I can find a free half-hour).

So will I reach 200? Probably not, though you never know. But will I enjoy getting there (or not)? Just about guaranteed I'd say.

Bird of the month: Great White Egret (Ardea alba) - a magnificent bird, essentially a white version of our familiar Grey Heron (similar size, shape and movement). Far scarcer than the now familiar Little Egret, the GWE winters in the UK in modest - albeit slowly growing - numbers.

Spring into summer: four months in one post

Ah, the catch-up post – the tax demand of the blogosphere. No one wants to read it, few enjoy it when they do, and the longer you put it off, the worse it gets.

However, for the sake of keeping my own notes up to date (and remember that The Hornet’s Nest serves above all as my birding diary), I’m afraid that a short review of recent months is required.

Clearly disillusioned by my autumn dips (most notably on the Bearded Tits at Napton Reservour) my notebook suggests I took off all of December and January.

February saw a resumption though, with Draycote to the fore: drake Smew, Great Northern Diver, Greater Scaup, and a stunningly low fly-by of 200+ Golden Plover were among the highlights.

A country tick (photo by Jez)

March featured the miracle of a county tick. As I drove to work near Norton Lindsey one morning, the usual drag of being stuck behind a tractor was considerably alleviated by the sight of a Red Kite drifting slowly across my windscreen from left to right.

It’s taken years for me to finally connect with one of these beauties inside the county boundaries, and would you believe that not two weeks later I ran into another, this time while out cycling near Napton (and that only because I took a turn down the wrong lane for 200 yards).

By April and May I was back in full birding swing (in so far as I ever am these days).

An early April trip to Brandon Marsh threw up joys aplenty: 2 Black-tailed Godwit, 2 Little Egret, a male & female Pintail, my first Willow Warbler of the year, Redshank, Oystercatcher and a pair of Shelduck.

Spotted Flycatcher (photo: sebastien bertru) 

Just a few days later I enjoyed a magical evening at Napton Reservoir where hundreds of newly arrived hirundines swept low over the water and surrounding fields. 75% Swallows, 20% Sand Martins and 5% House Martins - plus great views of a Lesser Whitethroat and a beautiful White Wagtail.

I was all over May; I smashed it out of the park ;-) Yellow Wagtail at Napton Res (admittedly that was while I was dipping on a Redstart, but hey ho),  Common Sandpiper and Little Ringed Plover at Brandon, Red-legged Partridge as I cycled near Offchurch, and a beautiful (and very early) family of Spotted Flycatchers at another favourite local destination – the patch had truly come alive.

Two special trips bring this marathon catch-up to a conclusion.

In mid-May, J and I took our first (and much overdue) trip to Upton Warren in Worcestershire. We went principally to see the Avocets which are encouraged to breed there by the unusual brackish inland waters. But there was so much more besides. Ringed and Little Ringed Plover, Common Sandpiper, Little Egrets, great views of a Water Rail just in front of the tiny book hide and – this the crowning glory – three Black Terns feeding relentlessly over the larger of the waters, a small part of a widespread national fall.

By June we were in Devon, where a trip to Yarner Wood is always an absolute must. No Redstarts on this occasion, but I did connect with a female Pied Flycatcher and enjoyed the closest possible views of a brilliant yellow-and-white Wood Warbler.

Eurasian Golden Plover (photo: Sue)

Ancient oak woodland is in short supply in Warwickshire, but so (as you might have noticed) is coastline. That made Dawlish Warren at the mouth of Devon’s River Exe pretty hard to beat.

We were there for a family beach day, and found the nature reserve by chance. Something of a result all around, since at the end of a great beach + funfair day we took the opportunity to walk across to the main hide, finding as we went plenty of Stonechat, Linnets, a score or more of Oystercatchers, 2 Bar-tailed Godwits, 2 Whimbrel (my first for some years), Ringed Plover, Dunlin, Great Black-backed Gulls and, most surprisingly of all, a Golden Plover in virtually full breeding plumage – an unusual bird in these parts at any time of year, and in these colours a first for me.

Full circle then from February’s fly-by of winter-plumaged plover, and a gloriously bright conclusion to four months of episodic but enjoyable birding.

Bird of the season: Almost impossible to call, but I’m going for Spotted Flycatcher (Muscicapa striapa): admittedly one of the more common of the birds recorded in this post, but much declined in recent years. As a patch-birder at heart, finding a successful brood in the heart of my patch probably brings me more pleasure than any number of exotic rarities elsewhere (although as a county tick the Red Kite's were both a bit special, and that breeding-plumage Golden Plover did lift the heart more than a little).