Thursday 15 April 2021

Dropping In On Grafham Water

Earlier this week my brother and I went for a stroll beside Grafham Water, a man-made reservoir a few miles north-west of home. It was built in the 1960s to provide water for the growing population of the area. Despite its artificial origins much of the shoreline now looks quite natural. In the mid 80s it was designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest and much of the surrounding woods and fields now form a nature reserve.



At this time of year it is a magnet for birds with many dropping in as they pass through on migration. And though you'd have to be very lucky to spot a passing Osprey or the White-Tailed Eagle that was seen there recently, there are usually a few more common migrants to be seen.



Like this White Wagtail, motacilla alba alba to give it its Latin name. We have the very closely related Pied Wagtail (motacilla alba yarrellii) here all year round, but the "White" continental cousins pass through every year on migration. You can tell them by their lighter grey backs and clear division between the grey back and the black head. At first glance our Pied Wagtails look very similar but with a more black-and-white appearance, as the name suggests. They also wag their tails a great deal, so it's a more helpful name than some birds are given.



Now you may have thought that the little Wagtail looked as though it was far from the nature reserves I'd mentioned. And you'd be dead right. Strange as it may seem the best place to find these migrant birds is along the concrete dam holding back the water, even with the constant stream of pedestrians wandering along the wide path and the presence of fishermen on boats and standing at the water's edge.



Ah, here's a Redshank - another well-named feathered friend, if you'll allow that the legs are actually more orange than red. It has a ring on its leg and if we could only read the number on it we might learn if it's resident at Grafham or just passing through on its way further north - either is a possibility. Although the setting looks a bit more natural with odd sticks that have been washed up here, our Redshank is also standing on concrete.



Here's a chap I hoped we might see, a Yellow Wagtail. Again a good name, except that there's also a Grey Wagtail and a rarer Citrine Wagtail that also look yellow. You only see Yellow Wagtails here as they travel through; they'd really prefer a pasture with cattle on it and lots of attendant insect life. As always there were other birds we'd hoped to see, but here's what we did encounter:

Blue Tit, Great Tit, Robin, Dunnock, Wren, Reed Bunting, Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler (heard), Pied Wagtail (and White Wagtail), Yellow Wagtail, Linnet, Blackcap, Blackbird, Song Thrush (heard), Great Crested Grebe, Redshank, Skylark, Swallow, Tufted Duck, Gadwall, Mallard, Mute Swan, Red Kite, Buzzard, Black-Headed Gull, Magpie, Goldfinch, Chaffinch, Canada Goose, Greylag Goose, Wood Pigeon, Jackdaw, Carrion Crow, Rook, Great Spotted Woodpecker (heard drumming), Shelduck, Cormorant.

*******

As that was a rather short post we can have some music. Some of you enjoyed the beautiful old Irish airs, played by Steve Cooney on the guitar, which I featured recently (it's playing now as I write this). But he also has a fine reputation as an accompanist to traditional dance music. So here he is whipping up quite a storm with that incredible fiddler, Martin Hayes.....



Come down off that table, now, and....

take care

.

20 comments:

  1. I really enjoyed the birds you highlighted, John. I’d never have met them otherwise.

    ReplyDelete
  2. So many different Wagtails! Love the music - my toes are still tapping! ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I'm not sure I'd have successfully differentiated the white wagtail from the pied. I should pay more attention.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thank you for introducing me to birds whose names I know but have never seen.

    ReplyDelete
  5. We used to have a resident pair of pied wagtails at the farm - I miss them. Liked the music. My favourite Irish Folk singer is Christy Moore (Ride On) - don't know whether he is still on the go, I haven't heard of him for ages.

    ReplyDelete
  6. It looks like a good spot to spend time in.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Birds are clever and adaptable. Our chickadees have learned that there will be moths on our west window screen at this time of year and every morning they come for a good protein breakfast.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hi John - lovely photos ... I used to love the wagtails we had regularly at home when I was growing up in Surrey. You certainly saw lots of birds during your trip and walk around Grafham Water - it is a beautiful part of the world. Stunning - thank you - Hilary

    ReplyDelete
  9. What a great list of birds spotted, your photos are wonderful:)

    ReplyDelete
  10. Love seeing the birds there. Your photos are beautiful. It is definitely migrating season here as well. So, there are many birds who manage to stop in our yard on their way north. What a treat it is to see them.
    Thank you for the music!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Those are some great close ups of birds. Nice of them to stay still for you. I find they move too quickly for me to capture them on a photo. By the way, spring is on hold here: it's snowing today!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Lovely photos of the birds!
    Wow! those talented musicians must be exhausted when they finish playing! That was amazing how they can play so quickly and for so long! Thanks, John.

    ReplyDelete
  13. I am very fond of wagtails and always look forward to seeing them when I am able to visit areas where they occur. We have but one pipit in Ontario, and no wagtails, so we are sorely lacking in members of the family Moticillidae.

    ReplyDelete
  14. I enjoy seeing your local birds, a few on your list which we have also. We also have a couple species who wag their tails but the habit did not make it into their names!

    ReplyDelete
  15. I would say that you had quite a good day! Love seeing the birds. Love the music, too.

    ReplyDelete
  16. You sure did see a lot of different birdlife. Birds soon find water storage areas, whether it is man made or natural. We have a willy wagtail its black and white. Never knew there were so many different kinds.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Nice walk at the waterfront. I’ve been amazed how many different species of birds you can identify. I’m interested in how common name is made. English “Wagtail” shows its behavior with tail while I don’t know why about Japanese “Sekirei”. White wagtail comes back to my part of the world in September.

    Yoko

    ReplyDelete
  18. An amazing list of bird sightings, Beautiful photos and the video is great.

    ReplyDelete
  19. What a great list of birds you have there. Awesome! Enjoy your day, hugs, Edna B.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for taking the time to comment. I'll try to answer any questions via a comment or e-mail within the next day or two (no hard questions, please!).