The Juvenile Birder

A Cumbrian Specialty! We arrived at Smardale Gill NNR at around 8:00am in hopes of seeing a rare butterfly. We were told by a butterfly enthusiast, last week, that he saw lots of them a few days ago just before the viaduct, so we made our way there. Along the way, we met a man who told us he had seen two just across the viaduct, and that it needed to be sunnier in order for the butterflies to emerge before the viaduct. Once we got across the viaduct, I spotted a Meadow Brown and a Silver Y moth, before spotting a dark butterfly nectaring on some knapweed. It was indeed our target butterfly of the day, the Scotch Argus ! At first, it was flying high up the bank with its wings always closed, however, after a bit of waiting, it decided to come down and started fluttering between our feet, sometimes landing on our shoes! It also landed a few times right in front of us with its wings wide open. We think it was a female as it was large and had big, vibrant orange spots.  Suddenly, I spot...

Dapper Drakes! After a 4 hour drive, we arrived at RSPB Vane Farm at around 9:00am, spotting a Fox when we were stopping for petrol at our local ASDA along the way! We were with Kristian and Carl and our target bird was a rare Bufflehead. We made our way along the Loch Leven Heritage Trail until we arrived at a sandy beach with a fence. We met some other birders, including Brook, who pointed out the Bufflehead , which was quite distant, but clearly distinguishable amongst the  Goldeneye which it was with. It continued to dive while we were there, making it hard to get a record shot, but it was a great bird to see in the UK. Satisfied with our views, we made our way back to the visitor centre to look for the resident Red Squirrels. Once we had arrived at the visitor centre, we saw that a Red Squirrel was on a feeder that was being filmed by a live camera. We asked a warden for directions to the feeder, and immediately set off. As soon as we arrived at the feeder, we spotte...

Cumbria Crack! We arrived at Sizergh Castle at first light in hopes of seeing Hawfinches. We parked on the left side of the car park, and walked over to the veranda. There were a number of birders lined up. We approached them and met Joe and Steve, who kindly pointed out two showy male Hawfinches  less than 40m away. We also saw a female Hawfinch. I managed to get a record shot of both of them, before heading over to the River Kent for Dipper.  Image from @RobsBirding, not same bird We arrived at the River Kent at 8:00am.  As soon as we arrived, we set up the scope along the bank of the river, since the bridge was shut, and on the first scan, I managed to the see the Dipper  bathing, however I wasn't quick enough for a photo. We stayed for an hour, seeing the Dipper  a few more times, however I wasn't quick enough for a record shot. Satisfied with our views and eager for a lifer, we set off on the hunt for the reported Richard's Pipit.  We arrived in Ulvers...

 Birds Soaring & Sailing! Image from James B, (same bird, but taken on different date) We arrived at Duncombe Park at 12:30pm in hopes of seeing a Black Kite. When we arrived, someone mentioned that the bird hadn't been seen for a bit, last being seen dropping down behind some trees. However, Steve (the person we were talking to) mentioned that he wasn't ticking it with the views he got, as with the views he had he couldn't confirm it, but the guys who got in on the scope said it was it. After waiting for a few minutes, we saw a few Red Kites , Buzzards  and Kestrels when suddenly (at around 1:00am) someone shouted that they had the Black Kite above the treeline, in front of a cloud. I scanned in the direction he was describing and saw it. It was quite distant so I couldn't get it in my camera, however you were able to see the dark shape in the sky with a naked eye. A kind birder got it in their scope and let me take a look at the majestic raptor. I watched as it so...

It Had to be Done! We arrived at Sizergh Castle at 7:00am for a photo shoot for the National Trust with my mentor Rob and a photographer, Paul. We met Rob, for the first time, a year ago, when we were seeking a Hawfinch tick at Sizergh. He helped us then and has been my mentor since.   We parked on the left side of the car park and walked to the veranda of the café where the Hawfinches regularly show from March to the beginning of May. We waited for a bit before spotting a  Hawfinch in a tree, followed by four more (two males and two females) on the ground feeding, on the seed behind a mound, at the back of the car park. Then, the photographer named Paul arrived and started taking some pictures of me and Rob, while we watched the Hawfinches. We then went birding to a nearby wetland and saw some Little Grebes  as well as a mixed flock of Gadwall , Wigeon and Mallard . After the photographer, Paul, took some more photos, we ended up going back to the car park and sai...

Nocturnal Scarcities and Dipper! We arrived at a spot on the River Kent just off of Nannypie Lane at about 7:00pm. We had a pin by Rob and first took a footpath towards the river bank where we saw all the typical river birds: Goosanders,  Grey Wagtail, Common Sandpipers and Grey Herons. This made me feel more confident that Dippers were around. We continued along the road which then came to an end and there was a gate leading to a footbridge which was shaky and high above the river. Although it was quite nerve-racking, we braved it out. We got superb views of the river birds with a Kingfisher even flying down river as it shot into a tree. Just then, a small songbird landed on a rock and started to preen. I looked through my binoculars to ID it but to my frustration, some people were walking on the bridge, causing it to rock and therefore not have a steady look. Luckily, as they walked off, the bird was still there and, to my delight, it was what I thought it was... A DIPPER! While ...

  Terns! We arrived at 4:00pm after a trip to Foulshaw Moss CWT. We first got some info on where the hide was and headed straight there. Just a few minutes on arrival, I spotted some ducks on the water. I took a close look with my binoculars and managed to pick up a male Eider and a Great Crested Grebe. We continued down the coastal path that leads to the hide, enjoying panoramic views of the sea, wheatears as they flew from rock to rock and the comical sounds of Eiders. We then saw a tern dive down and catch a fish. I examined its beak and identified it as a Sandwich Tern, a life tick. We arrived at the hide. We met someone called Rachael who showed us a colony of Little Terns, another life tick. She then showed us a Ringed Plover on a nest as well as two others that were fairly close. Common Gulls and Black-Headed Gulls patrolled the predator fence surrounding the island as the occasional Red-Breasted Mergansers appeared within the hoards of Eider. Overall, a good day w...

  Owls and Summer Wildlife! (pic taken from webcam) We first visited RSPB Leighton Moss (for location, click 'Bats and Rare Ducks') at 6:00am with nothing in mind. We went to the Grisedale, Causeway and Lower Hide without seeing much. We then went past Lower Hide where we saw a Tawny Owl (year tick). We also saw some swifts (another year tick) at 7:00am on the Causeway. After a quick stop to the saltmarsh where we saw Bar-Tailed Godwits and Mediterranean Gulls, we headed to Foulshaw Moss CWT (location pinned to blog). We went straight towards the Osprey platform, keeping an eye on the boardwalk for lizards and adders as we walked on. We managed to catch a glimpse of an Osprey through a scope as it popped its head out of the nest from time to time, although it was quite a distance away. We continued along the boardwalk when suddenly I came to a halt. Without noticing, I was standing right besides a Common Lizard. We both stood still until the lizard dropped down. We then scanned...

 Rare Finches! We arrived at 7:30am in hopes of seeing a rare, large finch, that I've never witnessed before. We went towards the viewing deck in front of the café, where we met a ranger named Rob. We were in luck as he said he did Hawfinch watches here at Sizergh castle. We could hear the Hawfinches, yet couldn't see them. A few minutes later, Rob let us look through his scope, pointed at a male Hawfinch feeding underneath a Hornbeam Tree. It continued to feed on the seeds and then flew off. A first for me. He then showed us a female just behind a small bump feeding. Their beaks were phenomenal, such a unique looking bird. Eurasian Nuthatches, Song Thrushes, European Greenfinches and Great Tits were also around. He then pointed the scope at another two males and one female in a tree until they flew off. The Hawfinches were stunning and in abundance. Rob could see my love for birding and it was obvious we needed guidance. He agreed to be my mentor and gave us his email . He als...