Bakewell Bird Study Group visit to Middleton Moor – Saturday 22 September 2018, 09.30 to 13.00

Summary

After a very wet Friday we were blessed with a dry spell for our visit to Middleton Moor. The sun peeped through occasionally and the light improved towards the end of our circuit of the lagoons.

Middleton Moor is a site with a mixture of habitat, including open water, shallow scrapes, scrub, woodland and moorland edge. There is a small hide overlooking the main lagoon.

For much of the walk there were Meadow Pipits to be seen in flocks of varying sizes, mostly flying south but some feeding in a field. A few late swallows passed over too. We had good views of a Wheatear and a Kestrel, both with the help of Ken’s scope.

Members participating: 7

Bird list (27 species seen and/or heard)

Grey Heron	Redshank	Chiffchaff
Teal	Black-headed Gull	Magpie
Mallard	Lesser black-backed Gull	Jackdaw
Tufted Duck	Woodpigeon	Rook
Sparrow Hawk	Skylark	Carrion Crow
Buzzard	Swallow	Starling
Kestrel	Meadow Pipit	Chaffinch
Pheasant	Robin
Coot	Wheatear
Golden Plover	Song Thrush

Bakewell Bird Study Group’s New Season 2018/19

Many of our birds will have had a difficult time this summer, especially those newly fledged youngsters, coping with the record breaking temperatures and dry conditions we have all been experiencing. Only time will tell what effect it has had on them. It is good that a great many of us feed the birds in our gardens, helpfully putting out both food and water.

Are there times you wish you could identify some of the less common birds that visit or when hearing one singing hidden from view amongst foliage have wished you could tell what it is from its song? The Blackcap shown in our photograph is one of those birds that is often heard but not often identified. Or maybe you regularly walk in the countryside observing the birds as you go and can identify most of them, or are already a seasoned birder.

Whatever the depth of your knowledge Bakewell Bird Study Group is sure to have something in their programme to interest you.

On the second Monday evening of each month from September through April members and interested visitors meet at the Friends Meeting House off Matlock Street in Bakewell for presentations on bird related subjects. These are given by invited individuals, experts in their fields, accompanied by beautiful photography.
Walks and trips are organised throughout the year to interesting locations, sometimes coastal, where the more experienced members will assist with identification of both birds and birdsong.

Our autumn programme of meetings commences at 7.30 on Monday September 10th with Nigel Slater giving a talk on Bird Migration. Nigel gave us a very entertaining and informative talk in 2017 and he is back by public demand. He will explain how birds know where they are going when they haven’t been there before and how they find their way. He looks at record breakers and the recent developments in technology which allow individual birds to be monitored continuously even when in Africa. Not to be missed!

Why not come to our first meeting and join the group? It’s only £15 per annum and for that you get seven talks and a similar number of outdoor walks. Alternatively it’s £3.00 on the door for non-members. Meetings are listed in the Peak Advertiser and at Bakewell Tourist Information Office or visit the BBSG web site at www.bakewellbirdstudygroup.org.uk or call 07768 928432.

Carr Vale trip 23rd September 2017

The Bakewell bird study group magic held as usual with the weather with no rain during the trip. The lighting was not best for identification but persistence paid off and we identified a total of 44 species.

This outing was a car share trip and although attendance wasn’t high it turned out to be a very pleasurable morning with plenty of activity in the trees and bushes on route. It was heard said “If only they would stand still for a minute I might be able identify them!”

The varied habitats in the Carr vale reserve make for a wide variety of birds as it is a mixture of open water, marsh, wet and dry grassland, scrub and trees. It was generally felt however that there should have been more waders down on the lake at this time of the year so a little mystery there.

All in all a great trip. Many thanks to Dorothy for organising the trip and to Stuart for passing on his special skills at identification.

The bird list is as follows:-

Great Crested Grebe, Cormorant, Grey Heron, Mute Swan, Greylag, Canada Goose, Wigeon, Gadwall, Mallard, Shoveler, Tufted Duck, Buzzard, Pheasant, Moorhen, Coot, Lapwing, B.H. Gull, L.B.B.Gull, Herring Gull, Stock Dove, Woodpigeon, Collared Dove, Swallow, Meadow Pipit, Pied Wagtail, Wren, Dunnock, Robin, Blackbird, Chiffchaff, Goldcrest, Long-tailed Tit, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Jay, Magpie, Jackdaw, Carrion crow, Starling, Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Goldfinch, Linnet, Bullfinch. Total 44 Species

Bakewell Bird Study Group’s New Season 2017-18

Do you feed the birds in your garden, listen to their songs and sometimes wish you knew the names of some of the less common ones that visit? Perhaps you enjoy walking in the countryside, observing the birds as you go and can identify most of them, or are already a seasoned birder.

Whatever the depth of your knowledge, if you appreciate and enjoy the richness of the birdlife around us, then Bakewell Bird Study Group is sure to have something in their programme of meetings to interest you.

On the second Monday evening of each month from September through April members and interested visitors meet at the Friends Meeting House, the group’s regular venue, for interesting presentations on bird related subjects. These are given by invited individuals, experts in their fields, accompanied by beautiful photography.

Walks and trips are organised throughout the year to interesting locations, sometimes coastal, where the more experienced members will assist with identification of both birds and birdsong.

Our autumn programme of meetings commences on Monday 11^th September at 7.30 pm, with a presentation by local naturalist Paul Bingham, ‘Namibia and Its Wildlife’, which concentrates on spectacular landscapes and wildlife. Although mostly desert, the variety of landscapes and wildlife makes this one of Africa’s most impressive countries. A 3,500km drive visits deserts, the world’s highest sand dunes (350m high), the spectacular Skeleton coast before returning inland through rugged landscapes to Etosha, one of Africa’s most famous national parks rich in mammals and birds. Our photo shows a rather scary looking Secretary Bird. Future presentations this season will include Alaska, Norfolk, Varanger Fiord and Shetland with a talk on water voles in Derbyshire thrown in for good measure.

Meetings are listed in the Peak Advertiser and at Bakewell Tourist Information Office or visit the BBSG web site or call 07768 928432.

Kestrel Chicks

Photograph of a brood of Kestrel chicks in a box made by Brian and put up by him only last year at his Lincolnshire reserve.

Photograph subject to owners Copyright, reproduced here with permission.

Bempton Trip 10th June 2017

We all met up at Slack’s coach garage at the appointed time and it was nice to see a very near full coachload! The weather wasn’t the best with rain and wind forecast but clearing later in the day.

The journey was smooth and steady with a brief stop at a service station and took approximately 2 ½ hrs. The first bird we saw even before we got off the bus was a surprise, A cockatiel! Obviously someone’s pet that had escaped and found its way there.
The weather as it now seems usual for our trips defied all the odds and remained mainly dry and the wind was actually warm and not at all unpleasant. We left the visitors centre and made our way en mass around the cliff tops. We had a very good 5 hrs to study the cliffs including a stop for lunch and saw 30 different species in total. We don’t expect many at such a site so that was actually quite an impressive number. Stuart was on fine form as ever pointing out different birds and providing specialist knowledge for example correcting myself when I spotted a couple of pigeons tucked in a crack and told me they were actually rock doves and explained that they mated with ordinary pigeons and there were now very few true rock doves left.

The journey home was a mirror image of the journey out and ended at Slack’s garage in unfortunately a downpour!

All in all another great trip out so I am sure all those who attended will join me in thanking Dorothy for her time and effort in making the day a memorable one.

Bird list: Fulmar, Gannet, Cormorant, Grey Partridge, Pheasant, Herring Gull, G B B Gull, Kittiwake, Guillemot, Razorbill, Puffin, Rock Dove, Stock Dove, Woodpigeon, Skylark, Sand Martin, Swallow, House Martin, Meadow Pipit, Dunnock, Blackbird, Sedge Warbler, Whitethroat, Jackdaw, Carrion Crow, Tree Sparrow, Goldfinch, Linnet, Reed Bunting, Corn Bunting, Common Crane, Cockateil.

Frampton Marsh 22nd October 2016

The day started a bit cold and misty and due to good planning everyone was picked up and whisked uneventfully to Frampton in around 2 ½ hrs.

While everyone was sorting out their coats and footwear the keen ones were already setting up their scopes and spotting in the field next to the car park, calling out to Dorothy to note down what they were seeing.

The RSPB site at Frampton is a large coastal wetland reserve with a large reed bed and fresh water scrapes. There is a visitor centre where you can buy snacks and hot and cold drinks and chat to the RSPB guides and find out “what’s about”.

We spent the first 1/2hr in the visitor centre before moving out to scan the reed beds. There are 3 good hides which we availed ourselves of and some of the high lights were sighting a Jack Snipe and a Long Billed Dowicher also a great aerial display by a flock of Finches late in the afternoon.

A few laughs were had over the light hearted argument as to whether a particular group of Godwits we were looking at were black tailed or bar tailed or indeed a mixture of the two!

The weather held out and a very pleasant sunny day was enjoyed with 52 different species being recorded by Dorothy.

A well deserved thank you goes to Dorothy for her organisational skills and to Stuart Slack who as ever called out the different species and pointed us all at their locations.

Species Seen:

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WILLINGTON 17th SEPTEMBER 2016

Our first outdoor visit of the season was to Willington Gravel Pits, a former sand and gravel quarry situated in the Trent Valley. A Derbyshire Wildlife Trust site that has a variety of habitats and so a haven for wildlife.

The day was fine though a little muddy underfoot in places due to rain the day before but still an easily accessible site with several good viewing platforms and a relatively new hide at the end of the lane.

Perhaps not as many waders around that we had hoped to see but still an interesting day with a couple of warblers still around and nice to see the usually elusive Water Rail.

The full list of birds seen…….

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Swift Boxes Update

Last month we posted about our new nest boxes for Swifts in the Bakewell Church Tower.

Swifts returned to Bakewell dead on schedule, May 9th, and we almost managed to get our swift boxes ready in time, just a couple of days late. Mike was recovering from his holiday in Germany so this time it was the aforesaid John Boyle, myself and my friend Jack from Sheffield who climbed the stairs and ladder into the belfry. Angela was in Cyprus sunning herself so – no coffee.

While John finished converting the circular holes in the shutters into slots of the designated width (22mm) Jack and I assembled the electrical equipment which makes the swift noises. This consists of a 12v amplifier of the type used on motor cycles, a 240v/12v power adaptor and a pair of speakers or “tweeters”. The amplifier is fitted with an SD card slot, the type you put in your camera, whereas our swift calls had been recorded onto a CD given to us at Tanya Hoare’s swift talk by Andrew and Barbara Wager of Thorpe and I’m very grateful for their help. I cajoled a friend who has a computer with both a disc drive and an SD card slot to transfer the swift calls onto the card then I set it all up in my living room beforehand – and it worked! And all for under £50.

We sited the amplifier adjacent to one of the boxes on the N window and fixed one of the speakers inside (photo). We threaded the speaker cable through the bottom of the box and secured them to the terminals at the back of the amp. Needless to say this is a rather simplified account of what actually happened, in actuality more time was spent discussing methodology, looking for lost screws and avoiding accidents. Then there were the ear piercing bongs every quarter of an hour although it seemed like every 5 minutes: time definitely goes faster in a bell tower (cf Einstein). The second speaker was fitted inside another box on the NW window. All that was needed now was to set the times on the plug socket timer when the calls would play, we chose 7 to 8am and 8 to 9pm.
As we descended into the sunlight swifts were circling the bell tower and we dared to think that they might use the boxes this year….So if you are in Bakewell on a summer evening stroll up to the church and listen to the swifts.

Brian Shaw May 2016

Swift Nest Boxes – April 2016

On April 21st five intrepid climbers scaled the fifty-seven steps up to the ringing chamber of All Saints’ Bakewell church, carrying twelve boxes which Brian Shaw and Mike Nelms had made, to entice our visiting swifts to set up home.

John Boyle, bell-ringer and winder of the church clock, led the way for Brian and Mike to scale a ladder, go through a trap door and emerge into the bell chamber. They spent the next two hours erecting the boxes. The photo shows four in place, with the back slid open to show the entrance hole to the outside world.

Pauline Boyle, the Tower Captain, welcomed us and made sure we knew the safety procedures for working in the tower, and I? I provided the coffee!

The recording of the swifts calls is now being assembled. This will be fitted soon and will play for an hour, morning and evening, from May to July. Young swifts will cruise round to suss out suitable desirable residences for the future, so the boxes may not be used for two or three years.

I am so pleased that the Bird Study Group has adopted this as a project and thank Brian and Mike for giving their time and energy to make it happen. And we thank the church for welcoming their feathered friends. Let’s just hope the swifts aren’t too choosy!

Angela Bird. April 2016.

Please see our update on the swift boxes from May 2016