Tuesday 22 November 2016

The Great Northern Diver was still present in the harbour, also the Red-throated Diver and the Black-necked Grebe remained.

10 Waxwings briefly on the berries opposite The Spa pub on Victoria Road at 08.25, a drake Pintail flew over Seamer Carr and there were 100 Lapwings on Star Carr.

Great Northern Diver (with snack) - Scarborough Harbour - Andy Hood

Great Northern Diver - Scarborough Harbour - Steve Race

Monday 21 November 2016

Despite some pretty awful weather there were obviously a few people out looking this morning. A nice discovery today was an immature Great Northern Diver which showed well in the main harbour and particularly well to Steve Race’s camera. Also in the harbour was a Red-throated Diver, 2 Guillemots and the, now expected, Black-necked Grebe.

Waxwings were still posing well for photographers along North Leas Avenue where 38 were counted in the morning, also 12 were seen briefly opposite Tescos on Burniston Road but these could have been a splinter group from the North Leas group and finally 9 were seen in The Crescent at 13.00.

Seawatching at Long Nab today was fairly quiet but a few nice birds were seen including 26 Red-throated Diver, 4 Black-throated Diver, 2 Great Skuas and a Little Auk.

Red-throated Diver - Scarborough Harbour - Steve Race

Great Northern Diver - Scarborough Harbour - Steve Race

Sunday 20 November 2016

Seawatching highlights from Long Nab included 3 Scaup, a Great Northern Diver, a Mediterranean Gull and a Black Guillemot, all of which were flying north. 

Along North Leas Avenue there were up to 28 Waxwings that were still posing well for the photographers and 12 were seen in Victoria Road.

Waxwing - North Leas Avenue - Steve Race

Black-necked Grebe - Scarborough Harbour - Steve Race

Snowy (the albino Pheasant) - Snainton - Nick Addey

Saturday 19 November 2016

Waxwings featured yet again as the main species of interest with a very photogenic group on North Leas Avenue which started off at about 15 but had increased to more than 42 by the end of the day. 

Also a small group of 8 were seen in the trees outside the Sainsbury’s Local on Seamer Road during the afternoon.

At Crook Ness the Shore Larks were still present with a group of 13 being seen in the afternoon and in the fields around Long Nab about 80 Skylarks could be seen.

Elsewhere at Wykeham South Lake waterfowl included 117 Wigeon and 3 Goldeneye and also here a Little Egret, a pair of Stonechats and 3 Mistle Thrushes. 2 Water Rails and 2 Kingfishers were still present at the Open Air Theatre and the Black-necked Grebe looks set to spend the winter in Scarborough Harbour.

The Crowd - North Leas Avenue - Nick Addey

The Target - North Leas Avenue - Chris Bell

Shore Larks - Crook Ness - Nick Addey

Friday 18 November 2016

About 50 Waxwings were still present near the swimming pool in Pickering. At Wykeham South 
Lake there were 8 Whooper Swans and this evening a larger gull roost including approximately 900 Common Gulls, 340 Herring Gulls, 64 Greater Black-backed Gulls, 120 Black-headed Gulls and 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls. Finally 42 Whooper Swans were noted flying south over Dalby Forest in the morning.

Thursday 17 November 2016

There are still about 30 Waxwings in the Wreyfield Drive area of the Barrowcliffe estate and the flock of 80+ are still in Pickering by the swimming pool.

The Black-necked Grebe is still present in the harbour, a Chiffchaff was in a Scalby garden and 40 Pink-footed Geese flew south over the town at 7.25 am.

At Wykeham South Lake 7 Whooper Swans flew low to the south and there were 3 Goldeneye, 5 Great-crested Grebes and 63 Coot.

Wednesday 16 November 2016

30+ Waxwings were seen around the Green Lane / Barrowcliffe area but they were quite mobile and often splintered into smaller groups. The large gathering of 100+ at the swimming pool at Pickering remained for another day.

Elsewhere 110 Pink-footed Geese flew south over Scalby Mills mid-afternoon and there are now two Water Rails at the reed bed behind the Open Air Theatre.

 

Waxwings - Pickering - Chris Bell

Tuesday 15 November 2016

Waxwings were again a big attraction with 35 on Green Lane in Scarborough and just outside 

the area there were over a hundred in the vicinity of the swimming pool at Pickering.
 
Meanwhile news from other sites in Scarborough included 82 Oystercatchers, 52 Redshank, 30 Turnstone, 20 Ringed Plover, 7 Curlew, Bar-tailed Godwit and Dunlin in Jackson’s Bay; 167 Wigeon at Scalby Mills; 40 Purple Sandpipers at the harbour; Kingfisher and Water Rail at the Open Air Theatre: 2 Stonechats on Cayton Bay and one on North Bay and groups of 95 and 130 Pink-footed Geese flew south over North Bay in the morning.

Finally today at Potter Brompton Carr 9 Whooper Swans flew west, and also 44 Lapwing, Redshank, Snipe, 180 Teal, 24 Wigeon and Brambling were recorded.

Waxwing - Pickering - Steve Race

Monday 14 November 2016

More Waxwings were seen today with a group of 10 on the corner of Oxcliff and Wreyfield Drive this afternoon. At Long Nab there were 7+ Lapland Buntings and a Brambling and another Brambling flew south over the town centre.

At Wykeham South Lake there were 5 Pochard, 4 Gadwall, 4 Dunlin, 750+ Fieldfare and in the gull roost in the evening approximately 450 Black-headed Gulls, 320 Common Gulls, 80 Herring Gulls, 38 Greater Black-backed Gulls and 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls.

Waxwing - Oxcliff/Wreyfield Drive - Dave Mansell

Sunday 13 November 2016

The highlight of the day was a Short-toed Lark found by Nick Addey among approximately 120 Skylarks in a field to the north of the Long Nab obs. Unfortunately, despite extensive searching this highly mobile bird was not relocated after its original discovery. The mobile flock of Shore Larks had reached a new high of 21 birds, which is a record number since the 28 at Scalby Mills on 13 February 1975, in a stubble field to the west of the Crook Ness car park. There were 9+ Lapland Buntings at Long Nab and two single Snow Buntings flew over to the south at the obs.

Waxwings seem to be on the increase with 2 around the Seamer Road park and ride, 12 on Stony Lane in Scalby and just outside the area there are now about 110 in Pickering.

Other species of interest today included 380 Pink-footed Geese south at Long Nab plus an Eider and 3 Red-throated Divers at the same location, the Black-necked Grebe remained in the harbour, there was a Water Rail at the Open Air Theatre and the Great Grey Shrike remained at May Moss in Langdale Forest.

Saturday 12 November 2016

There were good numbers of Blackbirds around the town this morning, evidence of a new arrival overnight. A Short-eared Owl was seen by Chris McNaghten coming in off the sea during the late morning at Cornelian Bay and at Johnson’s Marsh there were 7 Grey Herons, 24 Teal and 30 Wigeon.

Friday 11 November 2016

The main highlight of the day was the continued presence of the stunning male Eastern Black Redstart found by Chris Bull on Monday. Five Whooper Swans flew south over Scalby late in the afternoon and just outside the area there were 35 Waxwings by the swimming pool in Pickering. 

 

Eastern Black Redstart - Cayton Bay - John Harwood

Waxwing - Pickering - Graham Sigsworth

Thursday 10 November 2016

This was the second consecutive day with only a few things being reported. A Waxwing was seen at Seamer Station, there were 7 Mediterranean Gulls at Holbeck, the Black-necked Grebe remained in the harbour and at Potter Brompton Carr a female Pintail, about 220 Teal, a Shoveler, 20 Wigeon, 9 Snipe and a Dunlin.

Just outside the area 35 Waxwings were seen on Littledale in Pickering.

Waxwing - Eastfield Industrial Estate 8/10/16 - Steve Wignill

Wednesday 9 November 2016

Seemingly very few people were out today or birds of interest were thin on the ground as very little was reported in the area. A single Waxwing was in Crossgates today, at Taylor Way there were 2 Redshank, 10 Snipe, 5 Jack Snipe, a Chiffchaff, 40 Blackbirds and 25 Redwings and nearby on Seamer Tip pool there were 7 Wigeon. Just outside our recording area the group of Waxwings by the Pickering Recreational Centre had increased to 45 birds.

Tuesday 8 November 2016

The Eastern Black Redstart was still present at the southern end of Cayton Bay but spent much of its time high up on the cliff face and only occasionally came down to the beach. When it did come down it wasn’t there long before getting chased off by a Robin. Also today a few Waxwings were noted at various locations, 3 flew north over Cayton Bay at 07.50, 5 were in Falcon Avenue at Crossgates but had increased to 7 and relocated to Greenfinch Close by 09.20 and finally 10 were seen on Wareham Road on the Eastfield Industrial Estate. Seawatching from Long Nab produced quite a variety of species including Black-throated Diver, Great Northern Diver, 2 Pintail, Pochard, 60 Eiders, Velvet Scoter, Red-breasted Merganser, Goosander, 5 Little Gulls and a Little Auk. Also in the area were a Jack Snipe and 12 Snow Buntings in the stubble field north of the hut. At Wykeham South Lake a Long-tailed Duck was a surprise and there was also 5 Pochard, Goldeneye, Redshank and 2 Dunlin. Finally the Black-necked Grebe remained in Scarborough Harbour and 10 Mediterranean Gulls were seen with 9 at their favoured spot at Holbeck and one at Scalby Mills.

Eastern Black Redstart - Cayton Bay - John Harwood

Eastern Black Redstart - Cayton Bay - John Harwood

The Crowd - Nick Addey

Monday 7 November 2016

The biggest surprise of the day was the discovery of an Eastern Black Redstart by Chris Bull, who fortunately managed to get a couple of photographs, at the southern end of Cayton Bay. Another unexpected visitor today was a Cory’s Shearwater which was seen flying north off Long Nab at 08.05, also Dark-bellied Brent Goose, Eider, 3 Velvet Scoter, 58 Red-throated Diver, Great Northern Diver, 34 Little Gulls, 3 Pomarine Skuas and 14 Little Auks. The first Waxwing flock in our area this year was seen on Foresters Court, where 24 birds were seen before being spooked by a Peregrine at 13.50 and flying off north. On the limits of our recording area another 20+ Waxwings were seen in Recreation Road in Pickering, these birds were actually outside our area but could be seen from the boundary. Another group of about 30 birds were also seen today in Pickering. The Black-necked Grebe was still in the harbour and 13 Goosander were off Scalby Mills at dusk. Finally a Little Auk recovered from Flamborough was brought to the Sea Life Centre by Mark Thomas, let's hope it returns to full health.

Eastern Black Redstart - Cayton Bay - Chris Bull

Eastern Black Redstart - Cayton Bay - Chris Bull

 

 

Little Auk - Mark Thomas

Sunday 6 November 2016

Today’s sightings started early this morning with a juvenile Glaucous Gull flying north along the clifftop at Long Nab at 06.53. Meanwhile at Marine Drive a Little Auk went north at 07.44. Back at Long Nab seawatching produced an Eider, 2 Long-tailed Ducks, 7 Goldeneye, 4 Red-throated Divers, 2 Great Northern Divers, 10 Sooty Shearwaters, a Manx Shearwater, 26 Bonxies, a Pomarine Skua, an Arctic Skua and 2 Little Auks. Nearby at Crook Ness 6+ Shore Larks were still present in the field to the south of the car park. Johnson’s Marsh held 51 Teal, 14 Wigeon and a Redshank and in the harbour the Black-necked Grebe was joined by 2 Red-throated Divers and 2 Guillemots.

Great Black-backed Gull - over stormy sea - Nick Addey

Saturday 5 November 2016

More seawatching today from both Long Nab and Marine Drive and the combined totals included a Little Auk north at 07.14, 2 Sooty Shearwaters, 10 Pomarine Skuas and 10 Bonxies. A Waxwing flew over Hovingham Drive in the morning. At Wykeham South Lake today 4 Pochard, 4 Gadwall, 5 Goldeneyes, 18 Tufted Ducks, 83 Coots, 18 Golden Plover flew over and there was a large mixed flock of Fieldfares and Redwings. The Black-necked Grebe was still in the present in Scarborough harbour in the afternoon and must be one of the most popular photographic subjects at the moment, bring on the Waxwings.

Black-necked Grebe - Scarborough Harbour - Nick Addey

Friday 4 November 2016

At Crook Ness in the morning there was a Blackcap in the gully and 5 Shore Larks reappeared in the field to the south but in the afternoon the Shore Larks had increased to 12. At Wykeham South Lake the big surprise was a juvenile female Goshawk but the supporting cast of 2 Goldeneye, 21 Tufted Ducks, 36 Coots and 25 Yellowhammers were more expected.

Thursday 3 November 2016

Today seawatching for a short period off Marine Drive produced 10 Common Scoter feeding close in shore and a Red-throated Diver. The first Waxwing of the season was seen flying southwest over Peasholm at 08.15 and about 15 Swans of unknown species flew over the town at 07.58. The Black-necked Grebe remained in the harbour, there were 3 Mediterranean Gulls at Holbeck and just before high tide 60+ Wigeon were at Scalby Mills. 2 Whooper Swans flew south at Wykeham South Lake and there were also 10 Goldeneye, 18 Wigeon and 40 Fieldfare here, nearby at Snainton Lane there were 85 Fieldfares, a Redwing and a Brambling. Last but not least at Potter Brompton Carr there were 5 Snipe, 14 Wigeon, 28 Teal and 4 Crossbills.

Black-necked Grebe - Scarborough Harbour - Nick Addey

Wednesday 2 November 2016

Seawatching from Long Nab produced a distant Egret, which was probably a Great White, 3 Manx Shearwaters, 2 Long-tailed Ducks, 17 Goldeneye, 2 Pale-bellied Brent Geese, 2 Purple Sandpipers, 1 Pomarine Skua, 1 Arctic Skua, 15 Bonxies, an adult Mediterranean Gull and an Arctic Tern. Nearby in the stubble fields to the North of the obs there were 6 Lapland Buntings, but further south at Crook Ness it was negative news on the Shore Larks.

Elsewhere the Black-necked Grebe was still in the harbour and 44 Purple Sandpipers roosted at the same location. Wykeham Lake hosted 4 Whooper Swans, a drake Goosander, a Little Egret and 6 more Whoopers flew over to the East. At Seamer Tip pool there were 2 Whooper Swans. Also reported were 2 Snow Buntings at Jugger Howe Moor, a Peregrine at Burn Howe Moor, 2 rather late Swallows at Scalby Nab and at Seamer Road Mere a Lithuanian ringed Black-headed Gull, 1 Little Grebe, 2 Kingfishers and 2 Crossbills.

Redwing - Long Nab - Nick Addey

Tuesday 1 November 2016

At Crook Ness there was a Blackcap and the 8 Shore Larks remained in the field to the south. Meanwhile seawatching at Long Nab produced a Black-throated Diver, 2 Great Northern Divers, 46 Red-throated Divers, a Scaup, 7 Goldeneye, 9 Eider, a Pomarine Skua, 5 Bonxies and 17 Little Gulls.

4 drake Eider - Long Nab - Nick Addey