February Car Trip

Hello

The next club car trip is planned for Sunday 21st February 2016. The plan is to spend a day down in the Forest of Dean and Symonds Yat in Gloucestershire, a particularly good area to look for rare or scarce forest wildlife which could include Goshawk, Peregrine, Hawfinch, Crossbill, Mandarin Duck and even Wild Boar. On a sunny day we could expect to see early emerging wildlife including Adders. In the event of poor weather which would reduce our chances of seeing the best of the forest, it is likely that we would divert to the Wildfowl and Wetlands reserve at Slimbridge.

Should you wish to partake, please email me on birdingallthetime@gmail.com and advise whether you are prepared to drive and take other members.

Thank-you

Neil McMahon

Peregrine

Crossbill

Mandarin Duck

Bird Club Photographic Competition

Wednesday, 3rd February will be the much anticipated members photographic competition. There are lots of photos so a prompt start will be needed. The format will be similar to previous evenings with all the entries shown in each category. However we shall show the winners of each category twice to allow the members to decide which is the overall winner on the night. That photographer will be the first to receive the Graham Soden Trophy, set up in memory of Graham.

It promises to be a good evening with some great photos and lots of friendly (I hope) banter.

AGM

The club's AGM will be held on 2nd March. The AGM itself should not take very long and the major part of the evening will be a talk by Bob Bullock on Northamptonshire's birds.

However the AGM is the time when the committee is elected. If you wish to stand for the committee you should let an existing committee member know by the start of the meeting. All the existing committee are willing to continue but some fresh faces would be welcome.

Bird Club car trip to Frampton 24th Jan

The following is an account by Robin Gossage on a successful Northants Bird Club car trip to Frampton in Lincolnshire:-

Getting settled in the back of Bob Gill's car, we (Bob, Mark, Wend and myself), set off for Frampton, a different venue and breaking tradition for the car trip at this time of year.

Typically we arrived almost before we’d set off in Bob's time machine and at 8 o’clock we pulled into the car park and by way of a greeting a BARN OWL sauntered around it, a great start but the light was poor as it remained so all day and so no pix were had. Just as we were about to leave the car park we were joined by our intrepid companion Richard Barford, who had travelled up on his own.

As we strolled across to the centre, a few passerines were on show, namely TREE SPARROW, GREENFINCH, REED BUNTING and the like. Moving on, a CETTI’S WARBLER provided some excitement for the locals! Then it was our turn to become excited with the appearance of a PEREGRINE FALCON  on the deck, one of two or three seen during the day. A Hobby-like raptor came into view - a female MERLIN - and we watching her scythe through and over the reed beds and scrape. Brilliant and then she perched on a fence post………………right back next to the visitors centre. As we rushed back for hopeful shots, off she went again, this time landing on a post on the next planet, as my highly enlarged shot testifies.

Speaking to a local if you arrive just before light you may well see a party of WHOOPERS departing from their roosting site.

Reaching the barrage and looking over the marsh several distant MARSH HARRIERS vied for viewing. Walking a little further and a female SPARROWHAWK shot over the top and followed the fencing, always at low level but eventually also perching on a remote fence post somewhere in Outer Mongolia.

We made our way slowly back visiting one hide on the way, seeing most of the usual suspects including BLACK TAILED GODWITS. Having tuckered up, we stretched our legs to two hides in the middle of the reserve.Here we found a small number of PINTAIL - a smashing duck in the male form. Also a very distant drake SCAUP. 

Making our way back to the barrage again, Bob picked up a beautiful male HEN HARRIER, flying very near a MARSH HARRIER, the difference in size and structure was most apparent.

Back to reception for a nice hot cuppa when suddenly the earlier BARN OWL came into view, again the light was very poor at that time of day for pix and as everyone knows I never take a pic in poor light?

We were home by 5.30pm.  My thanks to Bob Gill for his excellent driving services and for his and Mark's good company. Also a special mention to intrepid Richard for coming on his own and his good company.

THANKS 

Robin.

Goldfinch

Greenfinches

Tree Sparrows

Female Merlin

Yellowhammer

Drake Pintail

Drake Scaup

Photo Competition 2016

The dealine for entries is fast approaching. It is the Bird Club meeting of Wednesday 6th January.

Please, please, please read and follow the rules. I am still receiving images over 1.5Mb in size (up to 6.6Mb so far), I have had a domestic animal entered under "mammals", several photos sent with no details of subject or location and others entered into the wrong category and an entry from someone who is not a member of the club.

Setting up the competition is very time consuming and I do not need to have to follow up on these. If your photo is not in the competition on the night, don't blame me.

Indoor Meeting 6th Jan

Hello

Our next indoor meeting will be on Wednesday 6th January 2016 when we will be entertained by visiting speaker Chris Ward who will present on a birding and photographic trip to the sunshine state of Florida, U.S.A. Just the ticket and a tonic from the high winds and rain of this weird British 'winter'!

Members and non-members alike are welcome and the meeting will commence at 7.30pm at our usual venue of The Fishing Lodge, Pitsford Reservoir, Brixworth Road, Holcot NN6 9SJ. Hot drinks and biscuits will be available from arrival and we very much welcome you to the first meeting of 2016!

Neil McMahon

Tawny Owl