The Natural Stone's Green Year List

Little Owl and Green Wood

2012-01-27T13:55:00.000Z

Went down to Ferry Meadows this lunchtime insearch of reported Water Rail and Little Owl. The rail wasn't showing but the Little Owl was in the top of its favourite oak by the archery area. The Green Woodpecker was near the visitor centre and was a very late addition to the year list for this species.

69 Little Owl
70 Green Woodpecker

Song Thrush

2012-01-26T08:04:00.000Z

Surprising omission but this is the first I've noticed this year, singing near home at dawn.

68 Song Thrush

Several additions

2012-01-25T18:53:00.000Z

A male Blackcap on treetops oppsite my office was the first ever in winter here.

62 Blackcap

Also took my first ride this year east along the Nene today. Added Gadwall and Redshank at North Bank Sewage Works and Pheasant, Shelduck and Meadow Pipit at Bradley Fen.

63 Gadwall
64 Redshank
65 Pheasant
66 Shelduck
67 Meadow Pipit

Mediterranean Gull

2012-01-24T13:50:00.001Z

A first-winter found by Matt Webb at this site near the city centre. Also an office tick!

61 Mediterranean Gull

Golden Plover

2012-01-21T15:58:00.002Z

17 passing the house along the Northants side of the Nene Valley this morning.

60 Golden Plover

Iceland Gull

2012-01-17T13:24:00.000Z

Found yesterday by Josh Jones, this bird was luckily right at the front of the resting flock on the field opposite Dogsthorpe Tip this lunchtime. It soon flew off onto the tip and I didn't see it again.

59 Iceland Gull

Coal Tit, Goldcrest & Grey Wagtail

2012-01-16T13:32:00.003Z

A short wander up to the Cemetery from work this lunchtime netted me three more ticks. The Grey Wagtail was unexpected flying over Broadway; I've not seen any in the town for ages.

56 Coal Tit
57 Goldcrest
58 Grey Wagtail

Mistle Thrush

2012-01-14T15:05:00.000Z

In Elton today.

55 Mistle Thrush

Ducks

2012-01-13T13:42:00.002Z

Headed to Ferry Meadows again lunchtime. Got as far as Lynch this time and this has a few ducks. The 'pecker was calling from Bluebell Wood and Skylarks were passing over the valley on my return journey.

50 Great Spotted Woodpecker
51 Pochard
52 Teal
53 Shoveler
54 Skylark

Tawny Owl

2012-01-10T08:02:00.000Z

Much hooting keeping the family awake last night.

49 Tawny Owl

Kestrel

2012-01-07T10:25:00.002Z

All seen from car so far this year so this one at home is a BIGBY.

48 Kestrel

Ferry Meadows

2012-01-06T18:40:00.003Z

A highly successful first cycle down the the meadows with many birds performing very well.

European White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons albifrons, adult

Greylag Anser anser

Canada Goose Branta canadensis

Mute Swan Cygnus olor

Mallard Anas platyrhynchos

Coot Fulica atra

33 Sparrowhawk
34 Long-tailed Tit
35 Little Grebe
36 Mallard
37 Tufted Duck
38 Canada Goose
39 Greylag
40 White-fronted Goose
41 Great Crested Grebe
42 Coot
43 Moorhen
44 Goosander
45 Grey Heron
46 Nuthatch

Then back at the office in the afternoon a couple of gulls flew north to add to the days tally.

47 Great Black-backed Gull

Common Gull

2012-01-04T22:15:00.000Z

First day back at work. Common Gull is very common here but not at home so was the only addition.

32 Common Gull

The second

2012-01-02T19:18:00.000Z

21 Stock Dove
22 Lapwing
23 Mute Swan
24 Cormorant
25 Tree Sparrow
26 Common Buzzard
27 Feral Pigeon
28 Wren
29 Herring Gull
30 Great Tit
31 Pied Wagtail

2012 underway

2012-01-01T08:50:00.003Z

1 Starling
2 House Sparrow
3 Collared Dove
4 Blue Tit
5 Red Kite
6 Woodpigeon
7 Jackdaw
8 Blackbird
9 Black-headed Gull
10 Goldfinch
11 Chaffinch
12 Lesser Black-backed Gull
13 Rook
14 Greenfinch
15 Magpie
16 Carrion Crow
17 Fieldfare
18 Redwing
19 Dunnock
20 Robin

White-fronted Goose

2011-11-18T08:45:00.000Z

Relocated this bird on the way into work this morning west of the Nene near Ferry Meadows. It had been found and reported the previous day.

155 White-fronted Goose

European White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons albifrons

Canon EOS500D 70-300mm IS USM

Slavonian Grebes

2011-11-11T13:49:00.001Z

A brilliant find by Paul Taylor (again!) at Beeby's BP. I'd cycled to Ferry Meadows at lunchtime to see if an earlier reported Crossbill had lingered at the pines in Bluebell Wood. No luck there before I got the call and there was just time to hare across to where Paul had waited (beyond the call of duty) with his scope.

Great views of 2 of these rare grebes. The first time I've seen more than one in the area.

154 Slavonian Grebe

Smew

2011-11-11T08:51:00.000Z

It was great to find a redhead Smew at Ferry Meadows this morning but a real shame it didn't stick around. It showed for just a minute or two in the south bay of Gunwade Lake before flying off high to the east. Smew is now seriously scarce in the Peterborough area; this was my first in the area for 4 years!

Like the Grey Phal, this was an all-time BIGBY tick taking my total to 184 I think.

153 Smew

Grey Phalarope

2011-11-09T11:36:00.001Z

A welcome find this morning.

152 Grey Phalarope

Grey Phalarope Phalaropus fulicarius

Canon EOS 500D 70-300mm IS USM

Hen Harrier

2011-10-14T20:00:00.000+01:00

Remarkable sighting this morning at Ferry Meadows while watching the hoards of thrushes passing. A female flew west at 07:55.

151 Hen Harrier

Brambling

2011-10-13T08:38:00.000+01:00

With winds going around to the east the migrants were flooding through Ferry Meadows this morning. Among the many Redwing, Fieldfare, Skylark and others giong through a party of 4 Brambling went wheezing past.

150 Brambling

Mandarin

2011-10-09T19:34:00.000+01:00

A female or immature flying along the river between Elton Bridge and the lock as we walked around this evening.

149 Mandarin

Raven

2011-10-02T22:24:00.001+01:00

Thanks to Karen's excellent hearing and then noticing the birds I've now seen two Ravens from the garden.

148 Raven

Manx Shearwater

2011-09-09T22:17:00.003+01:00

What an extraordinary morning. I'd checked Orton BP and Beeby's #3 and was just approaching #1 pit when Steve rang to say he had a Sabine's Gull on Crown Lakes. I was there like a shot but it still wasn't quick enough for this bird that has eluded me once before by minutes. It must have flown second before I arrived and further searching was unsuccessful. While scanning passing gulls I did pick up a flyover Ruff though which I was surprised to discover was new for the year.

146 Ruff

I then headed on to work stopping briefly at CEGB to check some gulls there. I couldn't believe when I saw a Manx Shearwater circling just to the south. It drifted off south but wasn't picked up by anyone else. A bizarre encounter.

147 Manx Shearwater

Redstart

2011-09-08T22:19:00.002+01:00

Ferry Meadows again. An excellent combination of 2 Whinchats a Stonechat and a Redstart, all along the railway line west of the river seen on the way home from work. With a Spotted Flycatcher in the trees south of Gunwade Lake this morning that's a good selection of migrants.

145 Redstart

Whinchat

2011-09-02T20:19:00.001+01:00

Must have cycled straight past this this morning. Only looked briefly at the ditch where Don found it just west of the river bridge along the Nene Valley Railway at Ferry Meadows.

144 Whinchat

Wood Warbler, Ferry Meadows

2011-08-19T08:36:00.001+01:00

Found by Matt Webb this morning near Lynch Bridge while I was stood next to him. Fabulous views of this really bright individual.

143 Wood Warbler

Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix

Stonechat and Wood Sandpiper

2011-08-15T20:06:00.000+01:00

Checked the Castor Mill area on the way in this morning and there was a young juvenile Stonechat there. While watching this I got a message about a Redstart at Ferry Meadows. Apart from a fleeting glimpse that failed to perform but at lunchtime I belted up to Maxey and back picking up one of the recent Wood Sands in the process.

141 Stonechat
142 Wood Sandpiper

Yellow-legged Gull

2011-07-15T19:12:00.000+01:00

A rather dull tick but another addition to the cyc-list.

140 Yellow-legged Gull

Peregrine

2011-07-01T20:10:00.000+01:00

The pair of Peregrines that have bred in Peterborough for the past few years abandoned their usual nest site and the new one has only just been found. I came in past the top secret location this morning and saw at least two well-grown young in the nest.

139 Peregrine

I was 152 during the sumer hiatus last year so the autumn is going to have to be spectacular to get anywhere near last years total.

Spotted Flycatcher

2011-06-23T20:30:00.000+01:00

Well it's been ages since I've managed to add anything to the yearlist and harder to find the energy or motivation as a result. However I eventually connected with the regular breeding Spotted Flycatchers at Elton church today.

138 Spotted Flycatcher

Turtle Dove

2011-05-06T08:49:00.000+01:00

Flying through Orton BP this morning.

137 Turtle Dove

Swift

2011-05-01T22:22:00.002+01:00

A walk to Yarwell and Nassington produced a single Swift heading north.

136 Swift

Five from the birdrace

2011-04-30T09:48:00.003+01:00

Added during the Biking birdrace yesterday. Barwits were at Maxey and Beeby's, the Turnstone was at Beeby's and found just before we got there by Paul Taylor. We found the Greenshank after making an unscheduled stop at the formerly productive Serpentine Lake. Blackbush provided the bunting and the Cranes are again on the Nene Washes this year.

131 Bar-tailed Godwit
132 Greenshank
133 Turnstone
134 Corn Bunting
135 Crane

Biking birdrace

2011-04-30T08:49:00.004+01:00

Nick Mudge, Mike Weedon and I met at 04:00 at Castor Hanglands to begin our epic tour of the Peterborough area. We had last year's total of 110 in our sights but with an iffy weather forecast threatening rain and guaranteeing strong northerly winds we were not too hopeful.

As it turned out it was a great day with some real highlights. The first was at 04:40 when Mike's headtorch alighted on a Badger right next to us. At 06:20, still at Castor Hanglands but this time in the light, a Tawny Owl flew across right in front of us below head height. Other highs were Arctic Terns at Ferry Meadows, 2 Bar-tailed Godwits at Maxey and another at Beeby's, Greenshank at Hampton and Turnstone at Beeby's.

We were also met by Karen at lunchtime and Jill in the evening with hot food and drink, which were excellent and also helped to keep up spirits.

Castor Hanglands
001 03:55 Nightingale
002 04:04 Grasshopper Warbler
003 04:14 Moorhen
004 04:32 Tawny Owl
005 04:41 Pheasant
006 04:51 Robin
007 04:52 Song Thrush
008 04:58 Woodpigeon
009 04:59 Blackbird
010 05:00 Cuckoo
011 05:02 Blackcap
012 05:03 Wren
013 05:06 Carrion Crow
014 05:09 Lesser Whitethroat
015 05:11 Whitethroat
016 05:11 Great Tit
017 05:13 Garden Warbler
018 05:16 Chiffchaff
019 05:27 Blue Tit
020 05:35 Treecreeper
021 05:46 Goldcrest
022 05:53 Willow Warbler
023 05:56 Jackdaw
024 05:58 Common Buzzard
025 06:00 Bullfinch
026 06:05 Greylag
027 06:07 Coal Tit
028 06:09 Long-tailed Tit
029 06:09 Jay
030 06:35 Magpie
031 06:40 Green Woodpecker
032 06:49 Marsh Tit

So, having spent nearly three hours here it was time to move on without having seen Nuthatch or Great Spotted Woodpecker; birds that could prove very difficult elsewhere. We had, however, connected with many other targets, and having Goldcrest, Coal and Marsh Tits meant a trip to Southey Wood would not be necessary.

On the way to Ben Johnson Pit:
033 07:02 Skylark
034 07:02 Rook
035 07:02 Chaffinch

Ben Johnson Pit
036 07:05 Lesser Black-backed Gull
037 07:07 Stock Dove
038 07:08 Linnet
039 07:09 Goldfinch
040 07:02 Sedge Warbler
041 07:11 Feral Pigeon

Willow Brook Farm
042 07:16 Greenfinch
043 07:16 House Sparrow
044 07:17 Swallow

Swaddywell NR
045 07:18 Dunnock
046 07:20 Red-legged Partridge
047 07:22 Black-headed Gull
048 07:30 Mallard
049 07:32 Reed Warbler
050 07:32 Reed Bunting
051 07:39 Starling

Helpston
052 07:53 Yellowhammer

Bainton GP
053 07:56 Mute Swan
054 08:17 Coot
055 08:21 House Martin
056 08:21 Sand Martin

Maxey GP
057 08:41 Grey Heron
058 08:41 Yellow Wagtail
059 08:45 Little Egret
060 08:45 Kestrel
061 08:47 Shelduck
062 08:47 Pied Wagtail
063 08:51 Common Tern
064 08:51 Oystercatcher
065 08:51 Gadwall
066 08:51 Little Ringed Plover
067 08:57 Lapwing
068 09:00 Meadow Pipit
069 09:02 Redshank
070 09:07 Great Crested Grebe
071 09:07 Little Grebe
072 09:07 Tufted Duck
073 09:12 Cormorant
074 09:22 Cetti's Warbler
075 09:35 Green Sandpiper
076 09:35 Bar-tailed Godwit
077 09:35 Teal
078 09:38 Ringed Plover
079 10:20 Wheatear

Nine Bridges
080 10:40 Sparrowhawk

Glinton
081 10:49 Collared Dove

Milton Park
082 11:20 Mistle Thrush
083 11:23 Nuthatch

Ferry Meadows
084 11:50 Arctic Tern
085 12:31 Canada Goose

Orton Mere
086 13:00 Grey Wagtail

Hampton
087 13:19 Greenshank
088 13:22 Common Sandpiper

Beeby's BP
089 13:34 Turnstone

Orton BP
090 14:03 Hobby
091 14:07 Marsh Harrier
092 14:20 Herring Gull

King's Dyke NR
093 15:59 Pochard

Blackbush Drove
094 16:24 Corn Bunting

Eldernell
095 17:00 Crane
096 17:38 Barn Owl
097 17:39 Tree Sparrow
098 17:48 Shoveler
099 17:57 Great Spotted Woodpecker

Nene Washes Central Drove
100 18:22 Snipe
101 18:30 Black-tailed Godwit
102 18:32 Garganey
103 18:48 Wigeon
104 18:53 Whooper Swan
105 18:57 Great Black-backed Gull
106 19:18 Red Kite
107 19:36 Common Gull

The cold biting northerly intensified on the washes and by dusk we were very cold and headed back towards Peterborough splitting up at the Town Bridge at 21:43. We had cycled just over 90km in the 17 hours and 45 minutes of the race, spending about 6 and a half hours of that in the saddle.

It was disappointing to miss some resident birds, like Kingfisher and Little Owl and it would have been nice to have connected with an early Swift but on the whole this was a very respectable list with some quality birds showing for us.

The winning GPOG birdrace team on the following days got 111 and was the only team to beat us, proving again you do not need to be in a car to amass a good day list.

In addition we recorded Badger, Muntjac, Fallow Deer, Roe Deer, Hare, Rabbit, Pipistrelle, Orange-tip, Green-veined White, Brown Argus, Speckled Wood, Red Admiral, Treble-bar sp., Large Red Damselfly and Four-spotted Chaser.

Grey Partridge

2011-04-28T08:58:00.000+01:00

Astonishingly good record this morning at Castor Mill with a pair of Grey Partridges on the farm track off Mill Lane. Sightings of this species are very scarce away from fenland.

130 Grey Partridge

Tern again

2011-04-27T12:38:00.003+01:00

I was heading out Marholm way this morning checking out a route for Friday's biking birdrace when I got a text from Matt calling me back to Ferry Meadows. Two terns in two days. Nice!

129 Black Tern

Black Tern Chlidonias niger

Arctic Tern

2011-04-26T18:28:00.000+01:00

One this evening on Gunwade Lake on the way home from work.

128 Arctic Tern

Cuckoo and Nightingale

2011-04-26T12:26:00.001+01:00

Had a Cuckoo yesterday at Old Sulehay but this was the first by bike this morning at Orton BP where a Nightingale was also singing.

126 Cuckoo
127 Nightingale

Hobby

2011-04-25T09:22:00.001+01:00

Not had a lot of success cycling out every morning over the Easter break so stayed in this morning and watched from the house. Rewarded with a Hobby cruising north.

125 Hobby

Three ticks

2011-04-22T11:29:00.000+01:00

Black Terns have been at Ferry Meadows for the past couple of days but the two there this morning had moved on by the time I got there. Still, three Common Sandpipers on the shores of Gunwade and a few warblers bumped the list up.

122 Lesser Whitethroat
123 Garden Warbler
124 Common Sandpiper

Ring Ouzel

2011-04-14T22:32:00.002+01:00

Another elusive Ring Ouzel was found this morning, this time by Matt Webb at Ferry Meadows. I had come in via the brick pits but nipped out to Ferry Meadows at lunchtime and it was almost the first bird I saw on arriving at the grassy slope near Ferry Bridge. The bird soon flew off and proved difficult for the rest of the day. A bit of luck after missing the one at Caldecote the other day.

121 Ring Ouzel

Warblers

2011-04-14T08:51:00.000+01:00

The first Reed Warbler for the area was singing this morning at Orton BP and a Grasshopper Warbler sang and showed briefly there.

119 Reed Warbler
120 Grasshopper Warbler

Avocet

2011-04-11T19:34:00.000+01:00

The first cloak and dagger bird of the year. As this is a pair I won't say where they were but I was actually looking, unsuccessfully, for another scarce breeding bird when I chanced upon these.

118 Avocet

Garganey and Yellow Wagtail

2011-04-10T10:16:00.002+01:00

Did the long ride out to the Central Drove of the Nene Washes for the second time this year this morning. Four hours on the road with little to show for it really. A Muntjac was by the road at the Billing Brook and there were 3 Roe Deer on the Low Wash. A plumose Little Egret was on the High Wash and there were oodles of Black-tailed Godwits, many displaying, but no passage waders.

The year ticks both came from the Central Drove.

116 Garganey
117 Yellow Wagtail

Egyptian Goose

2011-04-08T17:47:00.000+01:00

Decided to take a ride out to the High Wash this lunchtime. The reward was this Egyptian Goose - not the most exciting bird but difficult to catch up with locally.

Whitethroat and Marsh Harrier were other additions and a party of 4 noisy Buzzards over the sewage works were entertaining.

113 Whitethroat
114 Egyptian Goose
115 Marsh Harrier

Egyptian Goose Alopochen aegyptiacus

Common Buzzards Buteo buteo

Canon EOS 500D EF 70-300mm f4-5.6 IS USM

Iceland Gull

2011-04-06T17:28:00.000+01:00

The lastest in an impressive list of scarcities seen from my office window. I'd been keeping a watch on the sky out of the corner of my eye from my desk on the offchance of a raptor passing as the conditions felt right and noticed a trickle of gulls passing. Following a couple with bins revealed one to be startlingly pale and have fully white wings. Although quite high, views with bins were good, if limited to the underside. Structurally it was not too dissimilar from the Lesser Black-backed Gull it was following, perhaps a bit smaller and with a smallish bill, so Glaucous Gull was out of the question. It was just possible it was an albino Herring or Lesser Black-backed but really the odds are on it being an adult or pale 2nd or 3rd calendar year Iceland Gull. This is a classic time for one to turn up in this area so basically I'm having it!

112 Iceland Gull

Common Tern & Sedge Warbler

2011-04-06T09:34:00.002+01:00

With persistent strong southwesterlies over the past couple of days providing little in the way of good birds and the prospect of a long hard cycle home I've not been on the bike since last week. In the meantime Common Terns and Sedge Warblers have arrived at Ferry Meadows so I picked those up on the way in this morning.

110 Common Tern
111 Sedge Warbler

Willow Warbler

2011-04-02T19:01:00.002+01:00

Not exactly how I expected to get the first this year but a silent bird in our birch trees at home showed very well first thing this morning.

109 Willow Warbler

Wheatear and Little Ringed Plover

2011-03-30T09:26:00.002+01:00

Struggled in via Orton and Beeby's BP and picked up Wheatear at the first and Little Ringed Plover at the second.

107 Wheatear
108 Little Ringed Plover

Swallow

2011-03-29T11:35:00.001+01:00

2 this morning with about 30 Sand Martins on Gunwade Lake.

106 Swallow

Rock Pipit

2011-03-28T09:51:00.000+01:00

Found this bird in the traditional location on the rocky shore of Gunwade Lake this morning.

105 Rock Pipit

Rock Pipit Anthus petrosus

Canon EOS 500D EF 70-300mm IS USM

Little Gull and House Martin

2011-03-25T11:41:00.006Z

Three adult winter Little Gulls were an excellent find for Mike Weedon this morning on Gunwade Lake at Ferry Meadows. While watching them a party of 6 Sand Martins and a rather early House Martin dropped in briefly.

103 Little Gull
104 House Martin

Little Gull Hydrocoloeus minutus, adult winter

Canon EOS 500D EF 70-300mm IS USM

Sand Martin

2011-03-14T13:26:00.001Z

Went looking for a party of Waxwings reported at the Town Bridge but no luck. The two Sand Martins seen there earlier in the day were around however.

102 Sand Martin

Five ticks

2011-03-14T11:09:00.004Z

A long ride this morning to the end of the central drove on the Nene Washes. The main target, Water Pipit (a species I failed to see last year), performed OK but there was no sign of any of the other good birds on offer there at the moment.

97 Chiffchaff
98 Oystercatcher
99 Black-tailed Godwit
100 Dunlin
101 Water Pipit

Lesser Spotted Woodpecker

2011-03-12T10:51:00.000Z

My first ride to Castor Hanglands this year was successful with a corking male drumming close by within half an hour of arriving. It soon moved on however and there was no further sign for the next half hour.

96 Lesser Spotted Woodpecker

Ringed Plover

2011-03-08T14:09:00.001Z

Although the star of the show this morning was a fabulous Stoat in Ermine at Orton BP I did get one year tick at Beeby's BP.

95 Ringed Plover

Bittern

2011-03-04T16:35:00.000Z

Two ticks today. One expected the other less so. I'm sure I've had the odd Linnet already this year but coming across a flock of 50 put them firmly on the list. It was a big surprise to see a Bittern feeding out in the open in front of me just afterwards.

93 Linnet
94 Bittern

Little Owl

2011-02-24T09:38:00.002Z

At last! Seems I'd been looking in the wrong place for the one at Ferry Meadows. Right tree, wrong bit. Still should have noticed it before though. My only excuse is incompetence.

92 Little Owl

Little Egret

2011-02-16T15:32:00.003Z

Rode to Newborough Fen this lunchtime to be greeted with the lowest diversity of birds I can remember seeing here. Targets would be Grey Partridge (didn't even see a Red-leg), Corn Bunting (no buntings at all), Stonechat (nope) and Little Egret (no herons at all). The hotspot along Drain Road failed to even produce Grey Wagtail or Green Sandpiper. However on leaving there was a Little Egret feeding distantly in the Car Dyke south of Gunthorpe Road.

91 Little Egret

Lesser Black-backed

2011-02-10T09:39:00.001Z

Dull but a tick.

90 Lesser Black-backed Gull

Redshank

2011-02-01T13:59:00.002Z

Took a ride to the tip today, which was total free of gulls but did have a Red Kite flying nearby. So decided to return via the north Bank. 7 Redshank and a Green Sandpiper at the Sewage Works was about all I had to show for it.

89 Redshank

Treecreeper

2011-01-29T11:18:00.001Z

Already heard some distant probable calls this year but the birds were performing well at Bedford Purlieus this morning putting them firmly on the list. Also good views of Nuthatch and singing Marsh Tits but Lesser Spot again elusive.

88 Treecreeper

Tawny Owl

2011-01-24T19:28:00.000Z

A bird hooting in Lynch Wood this evening on my ride home.

87 Tawny Owl

Kingfisher

2011-01-24T15:58:00.000Z

These are very thin on the ground at the moment and this might only be the second one reported in the Peterborough area so far this year. Anyway it was nice to see at Castor Mill on the ride into work this morning.

86 Kingfisher

Blackcap

2011-01-23T15:56:00.000Z

I very nearly didn't see this bird. Karen spotted a male fly though and then saw it again feeding under one of the feeders. I finally caught sight of it in the holly tree.

85 Blackcap

Cryptic ticks

2011-01-22T19:46:00.001Z

Took a ride out to Thornhaugh Quarry where the numbers of Snipe and Woodcock were low but one each of Woodcock and Jack Snipe and 8 Snipe provided a couple of ticks. A ride into Bedford Purlieus gained Marsh Tit but it was cruel that a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker called later when I returned by car with Karen.

82 Woodcock
83 Jack Snipe
84 Marsh Tit

Five more

2011-01-21T13:46:00.002Z

My first cycle this year along the North Bank and it was depressing to see the North Bank road open again to through traffic. Why drivers feel the need to take it so dangerously I really don't know. Anyway the sewage farm provided the first two ticks and North Fen the rest.

77 Green Sandpiper
78 Grey Wagtail
79 Bewick's Swan
80 Whooper Swan
81 Golden Plover

Barn Owl and Red-legged Partridge

2011-01-20T17:00:00.002Z

A rather muddy cycle in this morning via Orton BP. The Barn Owl was hunting just SE of Haddon and the partridges on the mound at OBP.

75 Barn Owl
76 Red-legged Partridge

Cetti's Warbler & Water Rail

2011-01-19T09:14:00.002Z

Went to Bradley Fen at dawn this morning hoping for Bittern and/or Bearded Tit. Neither showed but walking past the reedbed a Cetti's Warbler fired off a song right next to me and boy are they loud! Water Rail were calling and I also had a couple of Roe Deer and a Common Buzzard.

73 Cetti's Warbler
74 Water Rail

Four more

2011-01-18T09:50:00.003Z

A couple of Meadow Pipits at Castor Mill this morning followed by a Shelduck and a Snipe on the reserve at Ferry Meadows. The Goldcrest was calling along Thorpe Road.

69 Meadow Pipit
70 Shelduck
71 Snipe
72 Goldcrest

Buntings, etc.

2011-01-14T09:53:00.002Z

Cycled in to work via Orton BP this morning for the first time this year. On the way picked up Yellowhammer and Pheasant and soon had Reed Bunting at OBP. A lone drake Red-crested Pochard was the only new addition among the good numbers of wildfowl.

65 Yellowhammer
66 Pheasant
67 Reed Bunting
68 Red-crested Pochard

Mealy Redpoll

2011-01-13T09:26:00.002Z

I had just ticked Don and Matt off on the year list and while we were chatting by Lynch Lake a small flock of Redpolls landed in a young birch next to us. The first bird I looked at was a big pale thing. Nice! This is one I didn't get last year.

64 Mealy Redpoll

Green Wood and Nuthatch

2011-01-10T09:22:00.001Z

A couple of Green Woodpeckers seen on the cycle in this morning and a vocal, showy Nuthatch in Bluebell Wood. I apparently missed a pair of Red-crested Pocherd by not going via Gunwade though.

62 Green Woodpecker
63 Nuthatch

Lapwing & Stock Dove

2011-01-09T11:01:00.002Z

From the garden this morning.

60 Lapwing
61 Stock Dove

Common Buzzard

2011-01-08T10:53:00.000Z

Close encounters with Red Kite and Grey Heron in the garden this morning but the Buzzard that flew by was the next tick.

59 Common Buzzard

Bullfinch and rain

2011-01-07T20:00:00.000Z

One of those rare days when it rained going into work and coming home. Of course it managed to stay largely dry in between. Spent most of the ride home cursing the weather.

Several Bullfinches on the way in were the only addition for the day.

58 Bullfinch

Sparrowhawk

2011-01-05T11:42:00.001Z

From the comfort of my desk at work. The first of many year ticks from here I hope.

57 Sparrowhawk

Waxwings and Goosander

2011-01-04T14:08:00.003Z

A good start to the year with a lunchtime bike ride to north Werrington netting a flock of 110+ Waxwings and a party of 11 Goosander.

54 Waxwing
55 Shoveler
56 Goosander

2011 underway

2011-01-04T10:19:00.003Z

So here goes again. The first three days of the year have been spent in Elton, the biggest surprise being a Goldeneye on the river, although a flock of Wigeon going north were unusual here. Lesser Redpoll in the garden were also good.

1st Jan
1 Great Cormorant
2 Eurasian Wigeon
3 Mallard
4 Red Kite
5 Black-headed Gull
6 Common Gull
7 Woodpigeon
8 Collared Dove
9 Pied Wagtail
10 Wren
11 Dunnock
12 Robin
13 Blackbird
14 Fieldfare
15 Redwing
16 Mistle Thrush
17 Long-tailed Tit
18 Coal Tit
19 Blue Tit
20 Great Tit
21 Jackdaw
22 Rook
23 Carrion Crow
24 Starling
25 House Sparrow
26 Chaffinch
27 Goldfinch
28 Lesser Redpoll

2nd Jan
29 Goldeneye
30 Kestrel
31 Moorhen
32 Herring Gull
33 Great Spotted Woodpecker
34 Skylark
35 Magpie
36 Tree Sparrow
37 Greenfinch

3rd Jan
38 Great Black-backed Gull
39 Song Thrush

4th Jan (first day back cycling to work)
40 Little Grebe
41 Great Crested Grebe
42 Grey Heron
43 Mute Swan
44 Greylag Goose
45 Canada Goose
46 Gadwall
47 Teal
48 Pochard
49 Tufted Duck
50 Coot
51 Feral Pigeon
52 Jay
53 Siskin

163 at the finish

2011-01-01T10:17:00.000Z

Despite a bit of effort on the 31st I was unable to add any more to the year list and it finishes on 163. A huge improvement on last year.

Stonechat and Goosander

2010-11-15T12:42:00.002Z

I went birding with Gary Prescott this morning and although we saw little of note on the Nene Washes I did get a couple of ticks after we went our separate ways. I'd been surprised not to see any Stonechats on the Central Drove but as I was heading up to the Dog in a Doublet Gary called me to say he had some Stonechats at the other end of the Town Fifty. I was able to scope these although in the end I saw another two further back along the river along North Bank.

A real bonus however was the Goosander just off the bridge. These are rather scarce on the Nene and this the only species I'd seen only by car this year so it was particularly good to get that one.

162 Stonechat
163 Goosander

The Biking Birder

2010-11-15T12:31:00.005Z

Well it was excellent to be able to meet up with Gary yesterday and offer him somewhere to stay. Gary's epic journey around the UK visiting every RSPB and WWT reserve, not to mention a fair few ECO Schools, continues through Cambridgeshire and I was able to join him for the ride to the Nene Washes this morning.

There were not that many birds on show and nothing to add to Gary's 242 species total (chasing the record of 251) but it was a fabulous morning; icy cold and still with a cracking sunrise.

Keep going Gary and good luck:
http://bikingbirder2010.blogspot.com/

Short-eared Owl

2010-11-12T16:00:00.002Z

Waxwing in the morning, Short-eared Owl in the afternoon. Crikey!

I'd been talking to Charlie Kitchin (Nene Washes RSPB warden) recently about the lack of Short-eared Owls on the Nene Washes so far this winter and was starting to contemplate a long ride out to the Deeping High Bank, where they are more reliable. That will no longer be necessary thanks to an astonishing stroke of luck this afternoon.

Sitting at my desk I picked up a distant group of four high-flying birds heading towards me high in the one small patch of sky I can see from here. When I put my bins on them I was astonished to see one was an owl. I scrabbled to get a scope but by that time it was getting closer and too high so I stayed on it with bins and watched as it passed directly over the office heading WNW shadowed by three Carrion Crows. It stayed fairly high but was clearly a Short-eared Owl, the pale belly and solid black primary tips being obvious with bins.

161 Short-eared Owl

Waxwing

2010-11-12T10:12:00.002Z

An excellent office tick and hopefully the first of many more to come in this invasion year.

160 Waxwing

Waxwing Bombycilla garrulus

Digiscoped with Canon Powershot A640 and Leica APO77 x20

Gannets

2010-10-12T15:41:00.004+01:00

Four of them!

I took a bike ride out to Bradley Fen this lunchtime but long before I got there I noticed four juvenile Gannets were circling low over me as I biked across the Frank Perkins viaduct. They headed off over Fletton and I rang Mike Weedon over at Lynchwood to get him to put the news out.

Ten minutes later I had a call from him to say they had just flown past his office heading west over the East of England Showground. At that moment I had a Crane flying over me. This drifted off over Stanground where it gained height and headed off west. Sure enough ten minutes later Mike had this go over the office too! Unknown to us at the time Matt Webb had seen the same bird from Ferry Meadows.

I'd seen one Gannet earlier this autumn from the car but this was the first 'green' sighting. This was taking the same route and was seen by Steve Dudley flying over the town bridge five minutes before I saw it crossing Nene Parkway and heading over Orton Mere.

159 Gannet

Rock Pipit

2010-10-08T21:21:00.002+01:00

Two ticks in a day! Matt Webb found two Rockits on the rocky shore of Gunwade Lake at Ferry Meadows. One showed very well as I cycled past on the way home but I'm sure two more flew off. So perhaps there were three!?

158 Rock Pipit

Lapland Bunting

2010-10-08T16:59:00.002+01:00

A long-awaited PBC tick and another top bird for the North Bank. For the full account see here.

157 Lapland Bunting

Cattle Egret

2010-09-23T16:39:00.003+01:00

Well it took a couple of goes but the long-staying, and often elusive, Cattle Egret is in the bag. Tried the long ride out yesterday morning but there was no sign and it got rather foggy. With the north bank road closed to through traffic it makes a lunchtime trip feasible so I headed out there today and saw it at close quarters a few minutes before it headed off in to the distance.

With Crane there and Black Terns at Ferry Meadows this morning I think it counts as a good birding day.

156 Cattle Egret

Kittiwake

2010-09-16T15:50:00.001+01:00

A timely message from Chris Park at lunchtime had me tearing back to Ferry Meadows to see only my second ever Kittiwake in the PBC area.

155 Kittiwake

Osprey

2010-09-16T09:46:00.002+01:00

A glance out of the office window this morning revealed two gulls passing by. Except that one was a Herring Gull mobbing the other, which was an Osprey. A lucky break indeed and the 7th species of raptor from my office window.

154 Osprey

Shag

2010-08-18T13:28:00.001+01:00

It's been a long time since the last addition to the list but Don Gardener found this bird yesterday on Overton Lake at Ferry Meadows. It was still there this morning when I biked into work.

With Gannet and Pied Flycatcher being seen by others I hope this isn't the last addition to the list this year!

153 Shag

Turnstone

2010-05-27T16:13:00.002+01:00

Another one of Weedon's wonderful waders successfully twitched and proof that Maxey can be done in a lunchtime. One hour there and back today using a combination of a more direct route and some hard pedalling.

152 Turnstone

Wood Sandpiper

2010-05-26T16:55:00.003+01:00

A rarity indeed! Not so much the bird as successfully twitching a Weedon Wader. It was a hard ride to get to Maxey and still make it into work and in the end I was a little late due to a 20 minute wait at Woodcroft level crossing.

151 Wood Sandpiper

Grey Plover 150

2010-05-25T23:00:00.001+01:00

I had a feeling Beeby's BP might attract a good wader this year and the repeated checking finally paid off this morning.

150 Grey Plover

Grey Plover Pluvialis squatarola

Deflated

2010-05-19T11:26:00.004+01:00

I'm going to have a bit of a moan. This isn't just because I had my front tyre go down three times this morning, although that hasn't helped my mood. First a thorn caused a puncture, which was easily fixed. Then the rubber split at the base of the valve as I was pumping it up. Fortunately I carry a spare tube and with that on I set off for work only to find it had a slow puncture so I had to keep stopping to pump it up.

I am actually a bit sick of missing loads of birds. But surely I've seen loads too? Yes but even then the effort required has been far greater than it needed to be.

1. Little Gull. There have been only two in the area this year. The first was found at Ferry Meadows just after I'd left after finding the 2 Little Terns - more of those later. I'd been up really early and had a right soaking so I wasn't going back. Then yesterday I come in via Orton BP, seeing very little, only to find a Little Gull is there later in the day. So I go home that way and of course it has gone.

2. Spotted Redshank. I made many early trips down the Central Drove plus an evening visit on the birdrace while a bird was present but for some reason it didn't show.

3. Whimbrel. I have a terrible record with Whimbrel. This year I've made just one pre-work trip to Maxey GP so far and a Whimbrel turns up there the following morning. Grrr!

4. Egyptian Goose. Seen one morning at Ferry Meadows but no sign when I searched at lunchtime. Then seen several more times but no luck for me on multiple passes through the area.

5. Little Tern. Ok, at the end of a truly awful early ride morning dipping on Bar-tailed Godwit and Spotted Redshank that had been present late the previous evening on the washes, I get thoroughly soaked and end up finding 2 Little Terns at Ferry Meadows on the way home. Lucky you might think. No. On 14th May Matt found another which I see easily on the way home from work that day. OK it was nice to find the two but as far as the year list goes that day was a total wipeout.

6. Lesser Spotted Woodpecker. Another year when it took me 6 trips to locate the species. I gave up after three goes at Old Sulehay and went for the showy birds at Castor Hanglands and even then I had to do the long ride three times before succeeding.

7. Whinchat. I decide to go home via one reported at Serpentine BP, which turns out to be a nightmare of a ride, involving getting lost in Orton Malborne, struggling with the bike over obstructions to gain access to the site and flogging it hard to get home at a reasonable time afterwards. Then I get a call that there is one at Castor Mill which would have been a much easier ride home. Of course I have since seen one easily on the birdrace. Another wasted effort!

OK, so Spotshank, Whimbrel and Little Gull could yet fall but it is not proving easy. Roll on the 150 and more positive thinking.

Spotted Flycatcher

2010-05-16T16:11:00.000+01:00

A walk via the river from home produced a good selection of warblers plus a Spotted Flycatcher along Duck Street in the garden of Berry Leas.

149 Spotted Flycatcher

Another world record

2010-05-06T09:43:00.000+01:00

With easterlies forecast I couldn't resist a ride to the Nene Washes this morning. A good decision as it turned out. I saw everything we saw on the birdrace minus Greenshank but plus Dunlin, Ruff and 2 winter plumaged Knot that flew over me heading east.

148 Knot

This beats my total for last year so setting another world record for birds seen in the Peterborough area in a year by foot or bike. I think I've seen all 148 in the county of Cambridgeshire as well. Now to hit the 150 mark.

A new world record - 110

2010-05-04T12:27:00.013+01:00

This might go on a bit!

Yesterday Mike Weedon and I attempted a 24 hour birdrace by bicycle. We had a number of targets.

90 = My best day total so far
94 = The lowest scoring team on the GPOG birdrace (17:00-17:00 1-2 May) this year
100 = An obvious target
105 = Mike's solo effort last year
107 = The only other time this has been done the team of 4 got 107 in a national county birdrace competition.
111 = The winning team in the GPOG race this year.

Could we beat any or all of these?

I left home at 02:50 and cycled the 11km to Castor Hanglands in 40 minutes to meet Mike where we kicked things off.

Castor Hanglands
001 03:35 Nightingale
002 03:49 Grasshopper warbler
003 04:25 Tawny Owl
004 04:32 Mallard
005 04:34 Woodpigeon
006 04:35 Carrion Crow
007 04:36 Mandarin - heard calling close by the ponds near the entrance
008 04:37 Moorhen
009 04:39 Robin
010 04:39 Blackbird
011 04:41 Song Thrush
012 04:43 Pheasant
013 04:53 Lesser Whitethroat
014 04:55 Wren
015 05:02 Lesser Black-backed Gull
016 05:03 Whitethroat
017 05:03 Blackcap
018 05:03 Cuckoo
019 05:06 Garden Warbler
020 05:06 Willow Warbler - later seen mating
021 05:08 Chiffchaff
022 05:10 Coal Tit
023 05:16 Blue Tit
024 05:17 Great Tit
025 05:18 Treecreeper
026 05:25 Green Woodpecker
027 05:33 Rook
028 05:41 Dunnock
029 05:48 Chaffinch
030 06:06 Kestrel
031 06:08 Bullfinch
032 06:11 Greylag
033 06:23 Magpie

So having spent nearly three hours here without seeing Marsh Tit, Goldcrest, Nuthatch or Jay it was time to move on. As we cycled north past the wood a Mandarin flew across the road from the NE corner.

We then called in at Ben Johnson Pit where Wheatear and Whinchat had been reported recently then on to Swaddywell, where there had been a long-staying Ring Ouzel, via Willow Brook Farm on the offchance of Tree Sparrow also reported in the past few days. Unfortunately none of these targets appeared but the list ticked on.

Ben Johnson Pit
034 06:42 Turtle Dove - two flew over as we arrived
035 06:45 Black-headed Gull
036 06:49 Linnet
037 06:51 Skylark
038 06:51 Starling

Willow Brook Farm
039 06:53 Goldfinch
040 06:57 House Sparrow
041 06:57 Reed Bunting
042 06:58 Swallow
043 06:58 Yellowhammer
044 06:58 Jackdaw

Swaddywell Pit
045 07:08 Red-legged Partridge
046 07:08 Greenfinch
047 07:07 Reed Warbler
048 07:07 Stock Dove
049 07:19 Common Buzzard

Southey Wood
050 07:25 Mistle Thrush
051 07:25 Goldcrest
052 07:31 Long-tailed Tit

Hilly Wood
053 07:44 Jay - 2 into the wood across the road in front of us as we headed north.

Helpston
054 07:47 Grey Heron
055 07:52 Wheatear - the second really good bird of the day in a field by King's Street.

Bainton GP - with intruiging angler's tale of small brown hawks taking insects from the water surface for the past week.
056 07:56 Feral Pigeon
057 08:02 Common Tern
058 08:02 House Martin
059 08:02 Sand Martin
060 08:02 Great Crested Grebe
061 08:06 Swift
062 08:06 Coot
063 08:06 Sedge Warbler
064 08:09 Kingfisher
065 08:11 Cetti's Warbler
066 08:13 Mute Swan
067 08:13 Tufted Duck
068 08:17 Hobby

The cycle along the Maxey Cut failed to reveal Grey Wagtail, one that would continue to elude us all day, but did provide another Kingfisher sighting and a second Cetti's Warbler singing from the SW corner of the pits. Maxey also had 2 Wheatears.

Maxey GP
069 08:30 Shelduck
070 08:31 Pied Wagtail
071 08:37 Gadwall
072 08:42 Little Ringed Plover
073 08:48 Whinchat
074 08:54 Lapwing
075 09:00 Oystercatcher
076 09:10 Yellow Wagtail
077 09:15 Redshank
078 09:15 Little Grebe
079 09:18 Ringed Plover
080 09:29 Meadow Pipit
081 09:39 Common Sandpiper

Etton
082 09:45 Collared Dove

Woodcroft Crossing - while waiting ages for the gates
083 09:59 Cormorant

Marholm Church
084 10:22 Little Owl

Grimeshaw Wood
085 10:56 Great Spotted Woodpecker

We finally got to Ferry Meadows after being lashed by rain and hail storms in the howling, unrelenting northerly wind. We were met by Karen who had brought some hot food and drink and while we were stuffing this the Red-rumped Swallow was relocated by the hoards of birders on site. The Red Kite took a bit of a vigil looking west during a fine spell. The 4th Wheatear of the day was also trying to find some peace around Gunwade Lake.

Ferry Meadows
086 11:46 Canada Goose
087 12:06 Yellow-legged Gull
088 12:09 Red-rumped Swallow
089 13:03 Red Kite

A long ride now heading east along the Nene looking out for Grey Wagtail (unsuccessfully again) on the way. We also failed to find Corn Bunting at Padholme Pumping Station. It was just too windy for birds to be up. Yet another Kingfisher showed though calling along the river at Fitzwilliam Bridge.

North Bank Sewage Works
090 13:55 Great Black-backed Gull

King's Dyke NR
091 14:32 Pochard

We still needed Corn Bunting and I took a gamble to try King's Delph in an attempt to save us the daunting prospect of a ride down Blackbush. In the end it was to no avail and the return north along Blackbush into a wind so strong it stopped the bikes was made all the harder for being empty handed.

We refuelled in Whittlesey for the ride further east to Eldernell, where yet another Kingfisher showed.

Eldernell
092 16:15 Little Egret
093 16:19 Marsh Harrier
094 17:00 Tree Sparrow

Stopping again in Whittlesey on the way back to pick up a bit more food at a garage was a good idea.

Whittlesey
095 17:33 Sparrowhawk

Nene Washes Central Drove
096 17:48 Snipe
097 17:50 Common Gull
098 17:52 Black-tailed Godwit
099 17:59 Shoveler
100 18:08 Garganey
101 18:17 Whooper Swan
102 18:25 Wigeon
103 18:30 Teal
104 18:44 Greenshank
105 18:46 Pintail
106 19:18 Herring Gull

After an evening on the washes we turned for home, eventually parting company at the Town Bridge at 22:35 having done 97km together in 19 hours with 7 hours of cycling.

I then set off for home, passing a Fox at Orton Waterville, getting in at 23:10; 20 hours and 20 minutes after setting off.

With the addition of 4 sensitive breeding species that can't be mentioned above we saw an astonishing 110 species, a new record for a self-powered 24 hour total in Cambridgeshire and the PBC area, and only one short of the winning GPOG team in a car!

An amazing day. Tiring and frustrating at times, but very satisfying. We also recorded Rabbit, Hare, Hedgehog, Fox, Muntjac and astonishingly two Otters together!

The wind really hampered things and probably cost us Barn Owl and Corn Bunting but got us Red-rumped Swallow, which would surely have moved on in better weather. Other birds we could reasonably have expected to see were Marsh Tit, Nuthatch and Grey Wagtail plus a few waders that had been seen on the Nene Washes but didn't appear while we were there. So the total is beatable but I think we'll leave that for the next team. For now the record stands at 110!

Birdrace ticks

2010-05-03T23:30:00.000+01:00

The following additions during the big day take me to my total for last year of 147.

144 Tawny Owl
145 Mandarin
146 Tree Sparrow
147 Sensitive breeder