Pipps Ford - 11/8 & 26/8

With August almost over, it was time to reflect on two trips to a local birding location, the mighty Pipps Ford. An area that contains an active and disactive quarry, as well as small lakes, grassland and woodland habitats that provide a good jumble of birds to see there. This is a site I visit a lot, one I know well, I have written a lot of previous blogs so feel free to peruse those as well.

One of the cows by Riverside Farm Pit

With birding in August the main focus is on migrating WADERS as they migrate from their breeding grounds to their wintering ones. This is the Autumn migration and Pipps Ford is usually good for enticing that family of birds to stop and feed along their migration routes. They feed on the mud around the Active Quarry, and less on the finished part. When I visited the Active Quarry in July there was a lot of mud, and promised good potential coming into this month. However realignment by bulldozers meant that the glorious wet mud on the Active Quarry has been destroyed, and disturbance from those machines have scared the rest away.

So the only WADERS present were a COMMON SANDPIPER on the 11/8 on the Active Quarry and 10 LAPWING on the finished part. Fairly slim pickings really, and a bit of a disappointment.

There was a pair of LITTLE GREBES on the disused quarry with young, whilst a juv GREAT CRESTED GREBE was a wanderer from the local pits. 

The Active Quarry

For some reason the finished part of the quarry is attractive to ROE DEER, and that was the case on 11/8 when a pair of them were again present, the male with his short, sharp antlers. Despite my efforts I disturbed them and they galloped off through a distant hedge. This species seems to be growing in number in the area having seen them at other local sites, but its yet to be seen whether this is a good thing or not.

Work on the Active Quarry

Most of the smaller quarries were fairly quiet. A flock of 16 GADWALL on Pippins Lake, was about all. In the surrounding trees there was a fledged GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKER, whilst a flock of GOLDFINCHES numbered more than 40 birds, the thistles on the heathy grassland supports lots of seed for them, and there was a flock of 20 LINNET on the finished quarry area. There was a KINGFISHER that flew across the Active Quarry, calling away, a brief shot of sapphire.

So a relatively uneventful time at one of my local sites. Well done if you've read this far, you show dedication. Sometimes you score, other times you don't. When there's no birds about it can make me feel a bit despondent, a bit empty, like I'm all alone in the world. Hopefully things will buck up and more birds shall be enticed to visit. As it is I will always be writing blogs about them.
 

Bawdesy - 20/8/2020

The Suffolk coast always has the ability to surprise, even to someone who knows it well. This was the case of Bawdsey. Today was my first visit to that place, an area just south of Hollesley. 

I came to Bawdy to look at the lagoons that lie just behind the sea wall. These bodies of water are four rectangular shaped reservoirs bordered by a luxurious growth of reeds. They are the haunt of breeding SWANS, TUFTED DUCK, COOT and LITTLE GREBE, families of which could be seen in various stages of life here. The rest of the landscape was low lying arable fields, reclaimed from the sea.

There really wasn't much else, no beach, a small area of scrub but that's it. So what has it got to recommend it? Well, because it has a great assortment of historical architecture. There are several pill boxes, gun placements and plenty more Second World War buildings. In the crumbling concrete SWALLOWS would swoop in and out, the perfect habitat for this civilised bird.

Further down the road lies Bawdsey Manor, a typical Victorian pile, which happens to be the place where radar was created. There isn't much here, there's a beach on the river Deben, but that was overly busy, populated by sea siders,  and provided views across to Felixstowe Ferry, which I visited a couple of weeks ago.

Two of the reservoirs

On the way back I had a look at Hollesley Marshes, but as usual the scrape was drained and there were few birds about, just some grazing sheep.

It's not the best time of year to really experience this area of the coast. This was a short visit to check the area out. Probably in conjunction to a visit to other places nearby, it might be worth a look, perhaps in winter. And that's it from this week.

Late Summer on the Local Patch

Ah, the glorious long days of late Summer, the rose tinted, sun filled times you remember for the rest of your life. Yes, every day was so sunny, life was so blissful, and may it never end. The fields turn golden as the wheat and barley come to fruit and are then harvested, its a bountiful time of year as well, an important time for the countryside.

And that's what it feels from the beginning of this period, July, to its end mid August. Mid-August still feels like Summer but in wildlife terms its very much Autumn. By August birds have bred, flowers have flowered and butterflies have fluttered, and its very much an ending of a phase of the seasons. Face it summer's over.

Male LINNET

I do a lot of birding on the Patch. Several times a week I'm out looking for wildlife, armed with bins and a camera. Most of the times I see nothing, but then there are the days when everything clicks together and I get some decent shots which you see up here. Landscape shots are easy to take so I have more to choose from, whilst bird shots are difficult and I only have a few to choose from. Its amazing there is so much to photograph even in somewhere as unremarkable as the Local Patch.

On the Patch its great how a place that is situated on the out skirts of a large town can suddenly take you away from people so quickly, how I can end up miles away from any road, any din of civilisation, to be out in the natural quietness of nature all within a short walk.

GARDEN WARBLER with a bramble berry

As with all nature the weather plays a important part in how the season unfolds. This Summer has been a mixed bag, carrying on the weather from June. In July although I was expecting very hot days,in fact it couldn't be more different. There was a lot of rain, a lot of overcast days, mixed in with sun, very much unlike what it should be. And then came August. Under blistering sun the Patch was baked. In that August there was the hottest week ever recorded. Its hard to predict what the effects of this strange weather has on nature, there is no normal anymore.

This farmer is a crow killer

As Summer ends, the Local Patch tends to be fairly quiet for birds. The breeding season has come to a close and the movement of birds, which marks Autumn migration has yet to fully begin. At the moment most of the movement so far has been from local birds banding together soon after nesting.

Bird-wise, the highlight of this period is the successful raising of the BUZZARD brood. One bird is always on territory on the Suffolk Punch Field throughout the year, and their persistence has payed off and they have raised a family there. On 15/7 the calls of two chicks could be heard echoing round the field as they have left the nest but couldn't yet hunt on their own. Soon they will begin lives of their own, to find a nice wood in a field to live and raise their own broods. Such is the circle of life.

The local farmer is a First World War enthusiast, he has created some of his own bunkers, which have been used as a film set in the past.

GREEN WOODPECKERS have had a successful breeding season with a juvenile seen in the hedge of the Poppy Field, the bird has a grey head compared to the cream and red of the adults.

Giving the Poppy Field that name is a bit ironic because six years ago when the field was first brought out of arable production the whole area bloomed red with poppies, which was a beautiful sight. However the next year the farmer sprayed it and everything died, and nothing grew, just dead brown grass. It is only now just recovering.

The arable Second Field

Late Summer brings together the FINCH flocks, where local birds and their newly raised young band together for protection and to find food. The areas of set aside with their many thistle seeds provide adequate sanctuary. GOLDFINCHES and LINNETS are the main culprits travelling around the area looking for food.

Also of interest was a flock of 15 MISTLE THRUSHES in the Suffolk Punch Field which is a sign of a good breeding season locally.

YELLOWHAMMERS could be heard singing late into the season. There is no real need to do this except for their love of it, and provides some welcome distraction to me as I wander the Patch.

Juv GOLDFINCH (they lack the red face of the adults)

Of course on the Patch there is a lot of  records of other wildlife than just birds. One magical sighting on the 24/7 was of a female ROE DEER and fawn, in the old horse fields. They were only seen briefly as they moved quickly through the long grass, and then disappearing from view through the thick hedge. I was just able to get the record shot. Its amazing to think that this shy, humble animal is living only half a mile from the outskirts of Ipswich. Its great how quickly wildlife recovers away from humans, if we let it, how nature can easily come back to our countryside with just a little help.

Doe ROE DEER and fawn, Old Horse Fields

From mid July the flowers die off as the days become hotter and shorter. The First Field, left to go fallow, at the beginning of the period, was a riot of colour, full of thistles and hawkweed, common flowers, but so important to insects. The Buddleia bushes also came into flower, attracting many butterflies to them, by far the most common being PEACOCKS.

The Orchid Patch wasn't mown early this year so around twenty spikes of PYRAMMIDAL ORCHID flowered. This little patch, on the Second Field, is a sanctuary for meadow plants in an arable area, somewhere that needs to be looked after better than it currently is.

BROWN ARGUS

With the flower and bird season ending attention turns to BUTTERFLIES which are most common in July. On a nice calm, sunny day, even arable places like the Patch can attract these beautiful insects. The best find was a small colony of BROWN ARGUS in the Poppy Field. Despite its name and appearance its actually a relative of the blue butterfly family. Its not that common, but not rare and this is my first record for the Patch.

 

One day whilst out photographing the Patch I took a picture of a tractor ploughing a field. When the driver saw me he stopped and got out. I was thinking to myself 'oh god, here we go' thinking as per usual the farmer had taken offence of me taking pictures of him. When he came over to me he was actually really friendly, gave me his number and asked me to text him the photos. He then allowed me to get closer views of him ploughing the field. A nice little situation that came from a little ramble.

Hedge in the fallow First Field, good for FINCHES and the local SPARROWS.

So ends another period of the year, when nature comes and goes to the rhythm of the seasons. Sure, nothing much really happens on a place like the Local Patch no massive changes in the wildlife, just subtle differences. In the end its just a load of fields, with a few hedgerows and some trees, not much to really experience nature in. But its my place, I know every corner of the Patch, and as my life changes so I mark the changes on the Patch as well. Nature is awesome.

Ramsholt Lodge Marshes - 13/8/2020

Under a blistering August heatwave, I made my way to somewhere new for me, broadening my horizons at Ramsholt Lodge Marshes. The place has appeared recently on all the local birding websites, mainly as a place to see SPOONBILLS, among other birds, so I decided it was time for me to have a look at this mysterious place.

The place can be called out of the way, it involved driving down a lot of country roads, single tracked and striking through lovely little villages. Yet somehow Ramsholt still managed to be near Woodbridge a kind of topsy turvy nature that's typical of the Suffolk countryside.

I pitched up at Ramsholt, walked down to the river and took the place in. The place mainly exists as a jetty for boats along the Deben, with the craft moored in number along the river. The only other attraction and the only building there was a pub which has top notch views out along the river to enjoy a pint with. Ramsholt is a nice picturesque place, without the hordes of tourists that fill up the more accessible places of Suffolk.

As I have said I don't know the area at all but I had a reasonable idea where the birds were, using the OS map to chart the route. On the map it looked to be in a lowland area full of blue ditches. Getting to this place involved walking along the river wall, and out on its stretches it was mid tide, revealing a nice sliver of mud. There were lots of BLACK TAILED GODWITS and REDSHANK feeding on the mud and one careful observation caught a WHIMBREL, a bird that's like a small curlew, with a black eye stripe and a bent rather than curved bill, a lovely sight to behold. 

The path led its way next to reedbeds and through trees and finally broke onto to the marshes. First impressions were of how full of birds it was. The marshes seem to be a deceptively simple habitat, shallow water bordered by reedbeds, yet it was full of birds. It was only August yet the site was heaving.

The birds I came specifically for, the SPOONBILLS were present but they numbered only two birds. Spoonies are white heron-shaped birds with their aptly named spoon shaped bill. They are an exotic bird but becoming more common, they have started to nest in this country, though not yet in Suffolk. They are an iconic species, one every nature lover wants to see. 

One of the SPOONBILLS was an adult with a black bill with a yellow tip, and the other was an old juv with a grey bill. They mainly slept or sieved through the water and they always stayed together. There were lots of LITTLE EGRETS about, around the same height as the spoonies. Once upon a time little egrets were considered as exotic as a spoonie, but now they are seen as run of the mill birds you see everywhere. It is difficult to guess if spoonies will become like that, whether I will see them along the river in Ipswich. Imagine what a sight that would be!

There were plenty more birds to see. The most common were the REDSHANK and GODWITS from the estuary, but there were lots of other WADERS, and large numbers of DUCKS of all sorts and species meaning birding was challenging and exciting, something I haven't experienced for some time. Its been a while since I have seen an assortment of birds like this, I mean this was busier than Minsmere, which says a lot. 

There were plenty of WADERS present. There were around 15 GREENSHANK, several GREEN SANDPIPER, some AVOCETS, a small flock of RINGED PLOVER, and singles of a chestnut RUFF, and, best of all, a tiny LITTLE STINT, which can be hard to see in mid August. 

BLACK TAILED GODWITS, nicely coloured bronze in their summer plumage

There were plenty of small birds about, darting in and out of the bordering reedbeds. They were mainly WARBLERS and BUNTINGS the usual skulkers of this habitat. Best of the lot was a female WHINCHAT perched on bushes along the river wall, a bird of the size and shape of the commoner stonechat, but has a distinctive white eye stripe.

There was no circular footpath so I had to retread the trail back along the same route beside the Deben to Ramsholt.

REED BUNTING

As with everything it always helps to visit somewhere new, to strikeout on fresh paths, to deviate from the usual. Thats how you find new birds. But it also helps to know a place to know where to see certain birds so in the end there's a need to strike a balance. I must say I was very impressed by what I saw today at Rsmsholt. This is a private reserve, created by someone who obviously cares for wildlife. They have created a top notch place, which could possibly be the best place to bird in Suffolk at the moment. The sheer number of birds for this time of year was fantastic and it won't be long before I go back again. Suffolk, as always, holds many surprises for the birder.

GULL-BILLED TERN at Alton Water - 6/8/2020

I don't often go twitching, but a report of a rare bird at Alton Water was too good to miss. Yes that's Alton Water, a place where its often difficult to find a coot, where I have spent many a windy rainy birdless day (most of which I don't bother blogging about). 

The bird I was looking for was a GULL-BILLED TERN, a rare bird to Suffolk, with maybe 15 previous records, and with only four or five recorded in the country every year, a bird which was most definitely a lifer for me, and for the other people I met at the twitch today. I was working for the first couple of days it was present, before a free Thursday allowed me to race down to the reservoir, and eventually catch up with it.

When I turned up there was a small gathering of birdwatchers and they guided me to where the bird was about. This was the Water Outfall, a large structure sticking out into the water, on the dam side of the reservoir. The area had a large flock of COMMON TERNS feeding, with many resting on the building's railings before flying off again. Every so often one yacht would pass underneath the structure and disturb the birds to which there would be loud groans from the assembled birders.

Eventually the bird was found in flight before it flew to the outfall building where it sat beneath a colourful poster thanking the NHS for their help in the covid-19 crisis. 

Having got my eye in, it appeared at first glance, if I wasn't paying attention, the bird could be mistaken for a sandwich tern, biggish with a black bill. However the bird had an all black bill, without the yellow tip of the sandwich, and lacked the sandwich tern's crest. When the bird had alighted it had long black legs which made it significantly taller than the surrounding common terns. It had a thick black beak, and it had a very muscular neck, which was more out of shape with the rest of its body. In flight the bird had black edges to the tips of its wing along the outer primaries which was distinctive compared to the neighbouring common terns. 

Having appreciated the tern my mind turned to the other bird life on the reservoir. Unfortunately there wasn't much else about, this area, the Dam, is very disturbed by water sports, and so wasn't really bird friendly. There was a tame flock of EGYPTIAN GEESE present, dosing away on the concrete sides as many people walked by.

So with this in mind I decided to have a look at the rest of the reservoir. The Larchwood car park (on the southern side) was closed, so I moved north to Lemon Hill car park near the causeway. The hides usually have the odd migrant WADER in front of them, but with the wet summer there was very little mud available and so there was only two COMMON SANDPIPERS present. There were still lots of COMMON TERNS about as usual providing a lot of noise you can hear way before you get to the hides. There were still some birds looking after chicks, terns nest quite late, well after most of the other birds have finished. After that visit I decided to give it a rest, there didn't seem much on the tail end of the reservoir.

                             

There you go, birdwatching holds many surprises. Days of fruitless searching can all be alleviated by just one beautiful bird, and one of the joys, and yet one of the downfalls of twitching, is that you don't have to search too hard for the bird. Alton Water is one of those local places which I will visit time and again, just because its there, just because I enjoy bird watching, even when there's nothing to see. I promise myself as long as I keep birdwatching I too will find that rarity which takes local birding to a new high. 

Minsmere in Lockdown - 4/8/2020

With the strange times we currently live in, one where I've miss the way of life that existed before the virus spread to this country from the far reaches of Asia. The  place I missed most of all was Minsmere, both the reserve and the many birds I saw there. As lockdown eased, the chances of revisiting the greatest bird reserve in the country become a possibility, and so it was finally time to pay a visit, five months on from when I was last there.

It was a strange visit in many ways. With social distancing the hides were closed, as well as the visitor's centre, the cafe and its gorgeous scones. The closed hides were the most galling as the Scrape can really only be viewed from their protection. As it was I had to stand on the tallest part of the dunes craning to get a look of East Scrape, over the hide. I was still able to get views over the South Scrape from the public viewpoint which was the only lookout over the Scrape overall. As a result I missed a lot of East Scrape and all of West Scrape so my visit was in some respects limited. But this being Minsmere there was plenty to see and from now on I shall only focus on the positive points, like how good it was to walk the paths and take in breaths of clean, wild air again.

                         

The birdlife today was the standard stuff for early August, migrant WADERS and loafing DUCKS,  nothing much out of the ordinary. At this time of year the Scrape is allowed to drain off water, allowing mud to show, creating feeding habitat for birds passing through on their Autumn migration. I saw 11 SPOTTED REDSHANK, 1 RUFF, small flocks of DUNLIN and TURNSTONE, and the odd RINGED PLOVER and COMMON SANDPIPER, your standard fare. 

Over South Scrape there was a single SANDWICH TERN, a bird I haven't come into contact with this year due to the pandemic, and one COMMON TERN. The last SAND MARTINS of the summer kimmed over the scrape, with a few still feeding nestlings in the sandy walls of the old car park.

What was really surprising, having hit early August, is how lush everything looks. Usually by this time of year life has been decimated by the intense heat of the Summer, and so far this year, the dieoff which I associate with Autumn hasn't come about yet. The rains of this Summer has kept everything alive. The reeds were a sea of green with sprinkles of colourful MARSH MALLOWS and AGRIMONY, and the trees were still doing well, it looked healthy, more like Spring than late Summer.

On the beach I was only able to make contact with one pair of STONECHAT, but I saw a brief DARTFORD WARBLLER with them, as it goes when you see one you see the other, thousands of years of evolution from species coexisting next to each other.

As with the Scrape hides Island Mere was closed, and so the only view was from the distance, a hike up to the top of Whin Hill, from where I could observe a large flock of moulting duck, which were most likely GADWALL. 

A new path had been opened up through the woodland, one that trod its way though an area that is usually closed off. As is usual at this time of the year the trees were quiet for birds, where they are much more sneaky in this period. However in the open glades, the areas when sunlight is allowed to enter through the canopy, these areas were alive with DRAGONFLIES and BUTTERFLIES. It was good to see a usually closed off area, the woodlands are an often overlooked part of the reserve despite there being lots of it.

So ends a very quiet time on the hallowed grounds of Minsmere. As always there was something to see, and though this time of year is generally quiet anyway, there was enough to warrant a blog. I look forward to further lockdown easing so I can get back to doing more of my favourite pastime of birdwatching. The final results of the virus may mean that we never go back to what life was like before, I don't know, so if you're reading from the future don't judge me. Just go out and enjoy the countryside. 

Felixstowe Ferry - 31/7/2020

Situated on the mouth of the Deben estuary, Felixstowe Ferry is a charming ramshackle place. Placed in the country just north of the seaside town of Felixstowe, there is a short walk along a sea wall that cuts through beach on one side and a golf course on the other. This is not a place I visit often, I last came down here around eight years ago. However the place hasn't changed really, at least not majorly.

Almost like a shanty town, the charm of the place can also be its downfall. The place is a honey pot site, heaving with tourists. When the hordes descend it can be difficult to really appreciate such a place.

Today wasn't too busy, though, and numbers were manageable, so it was bearable and I was allowed to enjoy the place.

As you would expect bird numbers were fairly low. I was expecting some terns off shore but there were only a few loafing gulls. A pair of RINGED PLOVERS were on the beach, I think migrants rather than nesting birds.

On a vegetated area of beach there was a large flock of 70 LINNETS, there were loads, in numbers I'm not used to seeing. These are probably locally bred birds, flocking after the breeding season. The heathy area of the golf course and the remote farmland probably suits them well.

On the mudflats of the Deben there was a solitary BLACK TAILED GODWIT, among the loafing gulls, but that was it, a bit disappointing I guess.

Its difficult to talk about a place like this from a bird watcher's perspective, as its not really a birding place, more a touristy one. As someone who doesn't like crowds it can get a bit much. However beyond the Ferry there is a wild landscape of estuary and remote farmland so maybe its worth a look sometime in winter.