A Bright Start, then...

On Tuesday we started with waders on the seashore.  These included Purple Sandpiper, Turnstones, Redshank and Oystercatcher.  There were also Common Gulls, Black-headed Gulls and Carrion Crows.  We then drove to Bempton for a dose of birds of the rocky cliffs.  We were very lucky to see a single early-returning Puffin on the sea.  We also observed a raft of Gulls, but it was only when a larger bird flew over them, and they answered with a din, that we knew that they were Kittiwakes  There were more Guillemots and Razorbills on the cliff, which had joined the larger numbers of Gannets and Fulmars.  A walk along the cliff top resulted in several singing Skylarks, and Tree Sparrows abounded near the RSPB buildings.
Gannet
 Fulmars
 Shag
 Skylark
 Ditto
On Wednesday we were able to travel outside of our native East Yorkshire.  In the early morning it was good to see Nuthatches around the feeding station, plus a Willow Tit and a male Bullfinch.  A Goosander was at the first screen, plus some Teal, and it was possible to observe the Heronry and many Cormorants on nests.  A walk through the wooded area resulted in a Great Spotted Woodpecker, and the morning group found a pair of Mistle Thrushes.  A walk up a slope resulted in a Little Grebe in the pool below us on both sessions, and a couple of species of Gull.  In the afternoon some volunteers disturbed a wisp of Snipe, which flew round the pond several times before they eventually disappeared into a reedbed.    
 Nuthatch
Ditto
 Long-tailed Tit
 Reed Bunting
 Robin
Great Spotted Woodpecker (c) 2018 Tony Robinson
Great Spotted Woodpecker
Mistle Thrush (c) 2018 Aileen Urquhart

 A Wisp of Snipe
 Ditto
 Buzzard
Later, we travelled to another section of the reserve, to enjoy waders and wildfowl including: Little Egret, Goldeneye, Pochard, Oystercatcher, Teal, Great Crested Grebe, but no sign of the promised Great White Egret.  We were watching a soaring Sparrowhawk when it started to call at the approach of a pair of Red Kites.  Some more raptors were spotted flying among the wires which proved to be a pair of Peregrines.  Later, we saw them land on an apparent nest, and in the afternoon we saw one of them flying with a large piece of avian prey.
Heron (c) 2018 Aileen Urquhart
 Ditto
Little Egret
Oystercatcher (c) 2018 Aileen Urquhart
Reed Bunting (c) 2018 Aileen Urquhart
Sparrowhawk (c) 2018 Aileen Urquhart
Sparrowhawk (c) 2018 Tony Robinson
 Peregrine (c) 2018 Tony Robinson
 Ditto
 Ditto
Peregrine and prey
 Ditto
 Ditto

Digiscoped Video of Peregrine (c) 2018 Chris Lawson 

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