Trip reports
Fieldtrip - Saltholme 19th September 2009
Hooded Merganser - image found on internet, sadly not one of ours!
Tuesday, 17 November 2009
We spent the first couple of hours of the fieldtrip walking in bright sunshine and clear blue skies, around the headland at Hartlepool. Members logged: Oystercatcher, Curlew, Great-crested Grebe, feral pigeon, House Sparrow, Starling, Redshank, Pied Wagtail, Rock Pipit, Chaffinch, Cormorant, Shag, Turnstone and Herring, Black-headed & Great Black-backed Gull.
Some members saw a pod of Porpoises far out to sea. Other members were so excited by this that they tried to make a dolphin out of a large piece of wood !!
On returning to the bus for impromptu refreshments members fed back reports of Gannet, Guillemot, Eider Duck and Greenshank . Whilst chomping on my sarnies I caught sight of a Sparrowhawk flying across the rooftops harrying the Herring Gulls.
A short journey by bus led us to the RSPB reserve at Saltholme where we were greeted by large flocks of Goldfinch. It was also pleasing to see the Swallows were still around.
From the main Visitor Centre we noted: Pied Wagtail, female Tufted Duck, Coot, Lapwing and Meadow Pipit on the main lake, along with reports that there was a Hooded Merganser around.*
Walking around the reserve we logged: Pheasant, Moorhen, House Martin, Greenfinch, Curlew, Little Egret, Crow, Redshank, Blackbird, Stonechat, Songthrush, Heron, Kestrel, Mallard, Tufted Duck, Scaup, Teal, Pochard, Gadwall, Garganey, Shoveller, Shelduck, Pintail, Wigeon, Buzzard, Great Crested Grebe, Little Grebe, Greylag and Canada Geese, Linnet, Greenshank, Snipe and Mute Swan.
The Saltholme Pools Hide produced the best sightings of the day with a large flock of Golden Plover and three Ruff. Some of us were lucky to catch sight of a female Peregrine Falcon sitting on a fencepost at the far side of the Pool.
The afternoon started to cloud over. There was also a cloud of disappointment as we found that the cafe closed at 3.50 so there was no tea after our walk. In summary, it was a very pleasant day out and we agreed that, once the reserve was established, a return trip could deliver an even greater variety of birds.
Harold Dobson
*that Hooded Merganser!
Members who participated on the fieldtrip to Saltholme in September will I think remember that we were on the look out for a Hooded Merganser on the pool near to the reserve centre. I remember at least two of our members, and maybe more had a good sighting of it. It kept disappearing every time I was near to the pool in question. I was fortunate enough to be back at Saltholme the following weekend for a meeting and I managed a good sighting of this elusive bird from the conference room window, even if I did hold the meeting up for a little time in my determination to find it! It wasn't a lifer as I have seen several on their home ground in North America, but it was a new one for my UK list which for a known 'twitcher' like me is always a welcome addition.
Now, when what is a rare waterfowl appears on any pool the cries tend to always go up amongst birders about it being an escaped bird. In fact I have done a little research into this particular bird and it wasn't difficult to find out the following information. I understand it had arrived at Saltholme the morning after the tip of a hurricane from North America had touched the UK. The bird wasn't ringed, kept its distance from humans and refused to be fed and wasn't wing clipped. The most clinching evidence in support of it being a wild bird is that it had an abnormality of the right leg, exactly the same as a Hooded Merganser that had been photographed at Tayport, Fife last year and this bird has been accepted by the BBRC as a wild bird. It is generally believed to be the one and the same bird. On to my UK list it goes!
Brian Moorhead
Bird List
Great Crested Grebe
Little Grebe
Gannet
Cormorant
Shag
Little Egret (3)
Grey Heron
Mute Swan
Greylag geese
Canada Geese
Shelduck
Mallard
Gadwall
Pintail
Shoveller
Wigeon
Teal
Garganey
Pochard
Tufted Duck
Hooded Merganser
Peregrine Falcon
Sparrowhawk
Kestrel
Pheasant
Moorhen
Coot
Oystercatcher
Golden Plover
Lapwing
Knot
Turnstone
Dunlin
Redshank
Greenshank
Curlew
Snipe
Ruff
Black Headed Gull
Herring Gull
Greater Black Backed Gull
Guillemot
Feral Pigeon
Wood Pigeon
Collared Dove
Swallow
House Martin
Rock Pipit
Pied Wagtail
Stonechat
Song Thrush
Blackbird
Magpie
Jackdaw
Rook
Carrion Crow
Starling
House Sparrow
Linnet
Goldfinch
Greenfinch 62 Species
Harbour Porpoise
Seal species
Brown Hare
Common Darter Dragonfly
Common Hawker
Southern Hawker