Carsington Bird Club Educational Events Member Reports Miscellaneous News

BTO BREEDING BIRD SURVEY

The BTO’s Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) monitors the population changes of over 100 species across the UK through the efforts of volunteers who survey their randomly selected 1km square each spring. It is a great way to make your birdwatching count. The only requirement is that you are able to confidently identify the species you are likely to encounter in a given square by sight and sound.

The survey involves a recce visit to assess the habitat, and two early-morning spring visits to count all the birds that you see or hear while walking two 1km lines (transects) across the square, plus nest counts for any colonial species. You can optionally record any mammals that you come across, and visit the square later in the season to look for butterflies. Data can be entered to BBS-Online or paper copies can be returned for input by the BTO.

For BBS purposes, Derbyshire is divided into two regions, North and South. There are currently between 20 and 25 squares available in each region, covering a wide range of habitats. There is also one Waterways BBS stretch available, on the Barlow Brook south of Dronfield. You can find much more information online at https://www.bto.org/our-science/projects/breeding-bird-survey.

To see what squares are available in your area, click on ‘Taking part’, look for either Derbyshire (North) or Derbyshire (South) and you will see in which 10km squares there are squares available. You can register your interest online or contact me at simonroddis@yahoo.co.uk, and we’ll try to identify a square which will work for you.

The maps below show the available squares in each part of the county as at 16 December 2022.

Derbyshire North

Derbyshire South

An article by Simon Roddis.

Carsington Bird Club CBC Newsletters Events Features Member Reports Miscellaneous News

CBC Members Trip to Frampton Marsh RSPB Reserve – 3rd October 2021

A group of 9 members made the journey to the Frampton Marsh RSPB Reserve on the Lincolnshire coast on Sunday 3rd October.
 
This is always a popular destination and we went with the anticipation that anything can turn up at this time of year. 
 
On the way into the reserve a couple of our group were treated to a Tawny Owl perched on a gate post, and a single Marsh Harrier was seen from the car park by some. Continuing the birds of prey theme, 2-3 Kestrels were observed and a hunting Peregrine was an exciting addition to our list towards the end of the day.
 
As expected the numbers of wintering ducks and geese were starting to build up, with large counts of Wigeon and Teal, supported by smaller numbers of Shelduck, Shoveler and Gadwall. Dark-bellied Brent Geese, recently arrived from their breeding grounds in the Arctic regions of northern Scandinavia and Siberia, numbered well into the hundreds.
 
A variety of waders were recorded, including large numbers of Lapwing, 20-30 Black-tailed Godwits, a handful of Dunlin and Redshank and a couple of Ruff. A single Snipe put in a brief appearance before disappearing back into the reed-beds in typical fashion.
 
A group of 6 Spotted Redshank was a good find and this elegant wader provided us with a useful comparison of its shape and size with a nearby (Common) Redshank. Later on in the afternoon a pair of Avocets obligingly appeared in front of the visitor centre.
 
Common Redshank [rear], with Spotted Redshank in foreground

The weather was pretty kind to us, being  mostly sunny though quite blustery, and we enjoyed a good day with a total of 40 species seen by the group:

Canada Goose, Greylag Goose, Brent Goose, Mute Swan, Shelduck, Shoveler, Mallard, Gadwall, Wigeon, Teal, Moorhen, Little Grebe, Cormorant, Heron, Little Egret, Avocet, Lapwing, Dunlin, Ruff, Black-tailed Godwit, Snipe, Redshank, Spotted Redshank, Black-headed Gull, Herring Gull, Tawny Owl, Marsh Harrier, Kestrel, Peregrine Falcon, Carrion Crow, Magpie, Woodpigeon, Starling, Skylark, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Blue Tit, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Linnet
 
Brent Geese selection – from a flock of 200+ birds.
 
 
 
 
Carsington Bird Club Educational Features Member Reports Miscellaneous News

WARBLERS PUT ON A SHOW … OR MOST OF THEM!

A group of nine assembled at the Visitor Centre at 9am last Sunday (20 May) for the club’s Warbler Walk. As well as the lovely sunny weather, we also benefited from the expertise of Roger Carrington, one of the club’s most experienced recorders at Carsington Water, who led the walk and was able to pick up many of the species we saw simply from their songs and calls.

Setting off from the Visitor Centre towards Stones Island we soon encountered the scratchy song of a Whitethroat, which flew across the path on its song flight and perched obligingly at the top of a bush to give us good views.

Further on we heard the descending trill of a Willow Warbler, which again we managed to see very well as it flitted around the bushes. We then had the challenge of trying to differentiate between the song of a Garden Warbler and a Blackcap, but fortunately the bird obliged by showing itself as a Garden Warbler. We heard the same song a number of times moving around Stones Island before picking up faintly the song of a Sedge Warbler on the edge of Sailing Club Island.

It wasn’t just about warblers of course and as we were walking we did of course see and hear the songs and calls of many ‘non-warblers’ – birds such as Blackbird, Wren, Dunnock and Robin, and we had brief views of a Willow Tit.

Earlier in the morning two Turnstones had been spotted on Sailing Club Island, but had moved on by the time we had got there (shame – as three were seen there the following day!). The water itself was very calm and we saw a number of Mallard families with young chicks, as well as Gadwall, Tufted Duck and Great-Crested Grebes in pairs displaying to each other.

Moving off Stones Island, we walked along Wildlife Centre Creek where we were hoping to catch sight or sound of a Spotted Flycatcher or Lesser Whitethroat, both of which had been seen or heard in that area in the previous 24 hours … but they were not playing ball as we stared into the trees, eyes and ears primed.

Surprisingly it wasn’t until this point that we heard our first Chiffchaff, singing its name at the top of a tree by the path, and Roger strongly suspected we identified a Blackcap, though it remained heard but not seen! Finishing up at the Wildlife Centre we got good close-up views of the usual ducks, geese and gulls to be seen there, as well as a distant Little Grebe.

It was a pleasure to welcome some recently joined members of the club to our walk and we hope everyone who came along enjoyed themselves. A big thank you must go to Roger for all his advice in helping us to identify the warbler songs and calls, as well as passing on some of his tips on where to find the birds around the site.

That time of year – but definitely NOT a warbler!

The species seen during the walk (or, at least, those we could remember!) were: Whitethroat, Chiffchaff, Blackbird, Canada Goose, Great Tit, Robin, Wren, Cormorant, Black-headed Gull, Coot, Magpie, Grey Heron, Jackdaw, Chaffinch, Woodpigeon, Willow Warbler, Swallow, Mute Swan, Mallard, Long-tailed Tit, Carrion Crow, Garden Warbler, Gt Crested Grebe, Gadwall, Redshank, Willow Tit, Reed Bunting, Goldfinch, Sedge Warbler (heard), Blackcap (heard), Pied Wagtail, Blue Tit, House Martin, Oystercatcher, Lapwing, Greylag Goose and Little Grebe

Chris Lamb

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