The Start of October

 

Goldcrest (c) Bark

I did not get down to the moor at all last weekend, the rain was monsoon like on both Saturday and Sunday. I spoke to a farmer at Noke and she said she recorded 90 millimetres of rain between Friday and Monday. When I finally did make it down there at the beginning of last week the transformation brought about by the storm was extraordinary. 

After the storm (c) Tom N-L

From the top of the hill one could see that most of the MOD fields were flooded as were many of the lower lying sheep fields at Noke. An Otmoor regular found to his cost just how deep the waters were on the way out to the Pill, from whence he had to cut short his visit and go home and change into dry clothes!

Little Grebes (c) Tom N-L

On the reserve itself scrapes have filled up and at the second screen the extensive mud around the margins has mostly disappeared.

A still Sunday morning (c) Bark

The stormy weather of the end of September and the beginning of October has hastened the onset of full autumn migration and altered the suite of birds to be found on the moor. This last weekend was dry but still windy on Saturday however Sunday was one of the most perfect still sunny autumn days.

Gadwall and Wigeon (c) Bark

At the first screen there were many more ducks to be seen and the Wigeon flock has risen to over two hundred more significant was the steep increase in Teal. They were out in the middle of Big Otmoor and we estimated that there were at least four hundred there.

Shoveller (c) Tom N-L

Shoveller numbers too have increased and there are still lots of courting Gadwall present. On Sunday there were four Pochard amongst the Mallard and the two Pintail were still out there on Saturday. We did have a small flock of ten or twelve Pintail flying over on Saturday.

Goldies over (c) Bark

Golden Plovers are being seen more regularly with small parties passing over but not yet roosting out on Big Otmoor as they will do as the winter progresses. Lapwings too are once again being seen in loose flocks.

Redpoll (c) Iain Wright

We had several little groups of Siskins over on Saturday and on Sunday our first Redwings were seen. We heard that there had been some Redpolls spotted up near July’s Meadow and when we went to look, we found sixteen of them feeding in the dry weeds beside the path. Sadly, we failed to get any pictures as they were very flighty, but fortunately another visitor managed to get a shot of one of them. There was no record of Redpoll on the reserve at all last year and It is good to see them back. Another Otmoor regular found two Rock Pipits out at the second screen, on the island that has by now almost disappeared.

Rock Pipit (c) Jeremy Dexter

The other new bird to add to the yearlist was a Jack Snipe flushed by one of the RSPB staff out on Ashgrave. This was another bird that failed to be seen last year and our list now stands at a respectable one hundred and forty-six species.

Dark Buzzard (c) JR         Kestrel (c) Bark

As the Starling roost starts to build up and the large flocks of Lapwings and Golden Plovers arrive, so we find an increase in the number of raptors that we see. This weekend we saw at least two different Marsh Harriers, Kestrels and Sparrowhawks. Excitingly on Sunday afternoon, the first Hen Harrier of the season was reported hunting over Greenaway’s. On Saturday morning we saw an aerial duel between a Peregrine and a Red Kite.

Peregrine and Red Kite (c) Iain Wright

The Peregrine had taken a real dislike to the Kite and made a number of furious passes at it, seemingly cheered on by a party of Jackdaws that contributed a lot of “chakking” noises but stayed well clear. On Sunday we had a very dark morph Buzzard over, the regular Buzzards that we see tend to have much more white and pale colours in their breasts.

Cranes with ring detail (c) Bark

We have massive numbers of feral geese on and around the moor at the moment and they occasionally move en masse, this is a very noisy business as they all call as they fly and despite their being not properly wild it makes for a very spectacular sight. I heard such a cacophony start up on Sunday morning and heard another sound amongst the braying of the geese. It was bugling and sure enough I confirmed it when later I found two Cranes. They were in very long dry grass and as far as I could tell only one of them was ringed, its’ colour rings identify it as male called “Wiz” that attempted to breed this year in Somerset.

As the leaves are falling off the trees it is easier to spot the smaller birds that are foraging in the hedgerows such as Chiffchaffs, Goldcrests and Wrens.

Chiffy (c) Tom N-L    Goldcrest (c) Bark    Wren (c) JR

Along the track to the second screen there are adult and juvenile Hares that are becoming fairly confident around people and are offering some exceptional photo-opportunities. It is interesting that it often seems to happen like that, last year there was a Hare that would sometimes come too close to photograph!

Top two (c) JR      bottom (c) Bark

End of September

 

Cetti's Warbler (c) Bark

Autumn is coming up rapidly and the temperatures have taken a sharp dive. This weekend was very windy at the reserve and whenever the wind is in the east or the north there is less shelter available on the moor. The wind blows straight through the screens and straight into one’s face, wildfowl hunker down in the reedbed and around the edges while small passerines stay deep in cover.

Mallard coming in (c) Bark

As you might have gathered from that there were few highlights to report from the weekend. At the first screen amongst the Mallard, Shovellers and Gadwall there were seven Wigeon newly arrived. Just once or twice for the first time this season I heard their distinctive whistling calls, something that will soon merge into part of the familiar Otmoor winter soundscape.

Shoveller getting into fresh plumage (c) Bark

Many of the drake Gadwall are sporting their smart crisp grey breeding plumage, being one of the first duck species to come out of eclipse. The drakes are stretching their necks, bobbing and calling to attract and impress potential mates. Not too far behind them in terms of their moult are the Shovellers although they will probably need another month to achieve perfect colouring and tidiness.

Marsh Harrier over the reedbed (c) Bark

We only saw one Marsh Harrier over the reedbed, and we recognised it as the same moulting adult male that we have been watching over the past few weeks. A Bittern made a brief flight over the reeds relocating within the reedbed. Their appearances have been only sporadic over the last few months, but we assume that they have little need to move about much, as there are many secluded ditches and pools to feed at, within the reedbed complex.

Kestrel and Buzzard and corvid. (c) Bark

There are still a few warblers to be found if you have the patience to find and then go through a feeding flock. They include Sedge and Reed Warblers Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps.

Late Sedge Warbler (c) Stephen Kill

In the case of the latter two species they could be birds that are staying or arriving for the winter rather than late leavers. There are many Goldfinches on and around the reserve at the moment, feeding principally on the seeding thistles.

Chiffchaffs can look fat and dumpy and at other times quite long bodied (c) Bark

There are good numbers of juvenile birds amongst them suggesting that they have had a very successful breeding season. The Linnet flock is building up too and will doubtless get even bigger once we start the winter feeding programme beside the hide.

Cetti's (c) Bark

It is difficult to estimate just how many Cetti’s Warblers there are on and around the reserve. At least a dozen would be a conservative estimate. They are difficult to pin down as they are mobile but can be relied on in certain specific places. As well as their more strident territorial call they also have a more muttered sub-song almost as if they are talking to themselves or practicing what they are going to say when they shout. Twice yesterday I was lucky enough to see one sitting out and calling in the open, needless to say they didn’t show for long.

Great white Egrets (c) Paul Wyeth

Two Great White Egrets spent a little while feeding in front of the first screen last week and there have been four or five Grey Herons scattered over the whole area. The Great Whites are becoming much more regular visitors now that they are established in the county.

Fallow Deer (c) Tom N-L

With Yellow -browed Warblers being seen at Farmoor and trapped at Faringdon, perhaps they could become the one hundred and forty forth species to be recorded down there this year. They will be worth listening and looking out for.

Clouded Yellow (c) Stephen Kill

Mid September

Great White Egret in the mist (c) Dan Miller

We have had a couple of warm weeks, an Indian summer perhaps, but the week ahead looks as though it will get cooler and wetter.

Autumn coming on (c) Bark

There has been more to see out at the screens. At the southern lagoon there are plenty of ducks just beginning to come out of eclipse plumage. Amongst the ducks there are two Pintail and we assume that they are the young birds that hatched and fledged on the moor this summer.

Pintail (c) Bark

Two Wigeon have been regular at the far end of the water and on Saturday this week we saw a very “scaupy” looking bird that we reluctantly agreed was probably a female Tufted Duck.

record shot of "Scaupy" Tufty 

Mandarin Ducks are still being seen here from time to time and they favour the area around and under the willow growing in the middle of the lagoon. There are slowly increasing numbers of Shovellers and Gadwall the drakes of the latter species already in smart fresh grey plumage. We have noticed over the last several weeks that at about ten-past eight in the morning there is a major influx of ducks flying in from the south east. They are obviously being flushed en masse from a pond or lake, perhaps even from a water feature on a golf course, it would be interesting to know from where. As well as the regular wildfowl there was a Great White Egret stalking through the shallows early on Monday morning appearing and disappearing in the mist.

Dawn at the first screen (c) Dan and Tricia Miller

At the northern lagoon there is now extensive mud and well over fifty Snipe can be found around the margins. They can take some finding as they match the stubble of the last reed-cut where their cryptic plumage hides them perfectly. Just occasionally they will feed out in the middle of the water where it is especially shallow.

Cryptic Snipe (c) Bark

A careful examination of the margins on the northern edge often reveals a Water Rail picking its way along the water’s edge before scuttling back into the reeds at the slightest hint of danger. Last week there were two Egyptian Geese on the mud-bank and they are the first to be recorded for over two years on the reserve.

Still some Reed Warblers about (c) Bark

I have been surprised by their absence as their numbers seem to have been steadily increasing throughout the county. Kingfishers are being seen regularly at both lagoons and along the ditches beside the bridleway. The work carried out last week to open up and clear out parts of the main ditch will create much better areas for the fish to use and also for the Kingfishers to hunt in.

Ubiquitous Red Kites (c) Bark

There were two Marsh Harriers hunting over the reedbeds and along the northern edge of Greenaway’s they appear to be male and female, the male is the moulting individual from several weeks ago and has now grown more primaries, the other is a female/juvenile type. There are still several Hobbies being seen.

Clouds of insects (c) Paul Wyeth

As the cold weather sets in and puts an end to the abundance of dragonflies and as the last of the hirundines depart, so the Hobbies too will head for warmer climes. Merlin will soon arrive and there is usually a period of a couple of weeks when they overlap on the moor.

Kestrels (c) Bark

Kestrels are very much in evidence over all the fields and appear to be successfully pursuing small mammals. Reports in the press suggest that Hen Harriers have had one of their most successful breeding years in England for a very long time.

Female/juvenile Marsh Harrier (c) Bark

As we would normally expect to see one or two of these exceptional raptors over wintering with us, perhaps this year we might see more? It is also getting towards the time when Short Eared Owls start to show up on and around the moor and we will be looking out for them from now onwards.

Take off at the second screen (c) Bark

Walking along the footpath to the south of the closes it is possible to hear and see the large mixed flocks of finches and Linnets that are beginning to exploit the specially sown wild bird seed crop. As the winter progresses, we will start to feed them beside the hide as we did last year so successfully.

Teazels linnets and Goldfinches (c) Bark

Up at July’s Meadow on Saturday we were pleased to find at least ten Clouded Yellow Butterflies. They were feeding on the Ragwort and flying rapidly and restlessly in the stiff breeze.

Clouded yellow July's Meadow (c) Bark

Watching them in flight with binoculars it was possible to see the contrasting black markings on the inside of their wings that are hidden when they are settled and their wings are closed.

Stonechat (c) Paul Wyeth and Whinchat (c) Bark

There was also a Stonechat on the fence beside the path to July’s and both Stonechat and Whinchat up near the farm at Noke.

Long tailed Tit (c) Bark