Beddington Farm - A dip then some glory!

The forecast was for a northerly blow which would make life slightly uncomfortable on the corner but it had to be done having missed the Hawfinch yesterday. There was hardly any movement of birds compared with the previous day but this wind has a habit of producing something on or over the Farm.

I was joined by Nick who took me to a place which is even higher than Kojak’s corner some twenty foot in fact! Brambling, Lesser Redpoll, Siskin, Meadow Pipit and a few pigeons were noted before Nick made his way to cover the SE corner and the landfill.

Swifty was the last entrant through the gates and with him came the rain and a subsequent dash to the hide for cover. A group of corvids are strategically positioned on a high tree at the NW end of the lake. They are very quick to defend the Farm from intruders making our life easy to spot raptors that get drawn within the boundary line.

 On this occasion it was a Short Eared Owl which had to fend off the mob as it made its way south.

Within the confines of the incinerator another group of corvids had been set to work but we could not see the centre of their attention. A few moments later Nick announced a Raven being heavily mobbed over the landfill site. I took a short dash back up the slope and pictures were secured of this Beddington rarity. With so many Raven now nesting in Surrey we would expect to see more of this species visiting the landfill, but this is not the case as this was the first record of the year!

The Raven was more hardy than most species ducking and diving its way through its smaller cousins and even looked as though it had seen off the opposition at one point. Then another obstacle was put in front of it. Mind the chimneys!! The late JA (five years missing in action) always said to us try and get a feature of the Farm into your pics so that there can be no doubt as to the validity of it. Well this obstacle is hard to miss these days!! 

I have now beaten my highest species year tally at Beddington Farm with time to spare to break my own record! Woo Hoo!

Beddington Farm / Surrey VC - Rarity Double Whammy!!

The day started out at Beddington Farm on my corner with Frank counting passage migrants with the vein hope that we might get sight of a Hawfinch or even hear a Yellow Browed Warbler!

The Farm did not have the latter species but a local Wallington garden did with the bird appearing for a second day. It was potentially too dangerous to abandon the Farm when this news broke having seen this species in Surrey Vice County in the past. I arranged a visit after the Farm vigil had finished arriving early afternoon.

I spent around three hours attempting to photograph a rather secretive and lethargic Yellow Browed Warbler which favoured trees in a neighbouring garden. 

The bird called intermittently just to let the two observers know it was still in the vicinity. I guess now I have the pictures I will be writing the species account for the records committee. A good photo always makes life easy though!

The vizmig at the Farm was also productive with a stream of 1400 Wood Pigeon and an almost annoying 721 Parakeet heading S/SW. Chaffinch were also seen in numbers along with Meadow Pipit, Skylark, Linnet, and Buzzard. The bird of the morning a Great White Egret was seen as a result of the pigeon count as Frank and I had our eyes constantly on the skies. This bird passed over the corner high S (which is some sixty foot higher than any other point of the Farm) which meant it probably would not have been seen from the hide. I am not sure if we will be using this vantage point come December!

The days double whammy was complete. No new species for me but great migrants passing through an inland county. Woo Hoo!!

Beddington Farm - Back to Blighty!

I returned to England late last week and was surprised how mild and potentially stormy it was. This could be a good opportunity for a Surrey Vice County (SVC) tick having missed a couple while I was away in the form of Black Crowned Night Heron, and White Stork. I was living in Paraguay when the Farm Storks appeared.

This Autumn I had not missed anything of the same magnitude at Beddington Farm. There had been reports of movements of Hawfinch in Surrey and from Steve Gale in the Ewell area. As the crow flies the Farm is not far away from his patch. The Farm is not known for attracting this species but having missed a bird in the Storm tanks a couple of years ago it was time for a stake-out. A fly-over bird was more likely so my corner and the hide were to be the points to maximise the viewing.

Thus far there have been no Hawfinch and the highlight so far is a Redshank that came in today as a result of a downpour. I put my hand to some phone scoping without the aid of a safety net and turned out a slightly shaky image.

Little Egret, Water Rail, Skylark and flyover Cormorant were the best on offer today. The numbers of duck are on the up with Mallard, Pochard, Teal, Shoveler, Gadwall, and Wigeon all present. Snipe are secreted about the islands with only a couple visible usually when they are flushed by a Heron.

There is stormy weather forecast for later on this week which means eyes cannot be taken off the Farm just in-case that late October MEGA decides to grace us with its presence!

Costa Rica - Ciao Arenal Lodge!

I spent my last day at Arenal Volcano Lodge being chased around by low cloud that was like a ghost one minute covering the area and then not a trace of cloud anywhere. This pushed alot of the birds up the slope and into the grounds of the Lodge.

On the grass area below the swimming pool was what I believe to be a moulting juvenile to adult Black-headed Grosbeak which showed a pink orange wash on the belly. This species winters in Southern Mexico. Sightings in Santa Rosa National Park and Monteverde have been recorded and with the recent storms I guess Arenal is not that far away.

As the morning brightened up birds began to sing or laugh in the case of two Laughing Falcons. Both took advantage of the top of a dead tree in the valley. Grey Headed Chachalaca was also on the move through the lower bushes and trees.

Hummingbirds were also active around the gardens with a Blue-throated Goldentail taking a short rest before continuing its nectar feast.

Costa Rica’s national bird the Clay-colored Robin also put in an appearance on the bird table along with Blue-Grey and Palm Tanagers.

The last stop in my trip was to be where I began at Hotel Bougainvillea. The journey by Interbus was good value for money and hassle free. The cab journey from the airport to the Hotel was in the thick of rush hour and should be avoided!

Costa Rica - Arenal Lodge after the storm!

The evening was certainly much livelier for my feathered friends. There were numerous seed eaters roaming the longer patches of grass. The regular flycatchers Kiskadee, Grey Headed, Social were busy in the gardens in front of the accommodation.

Other flycatchers were slightly more difficult to locate but generally gave good views after a bit of patience. I still have to identify a couple.

I believe this species is a Yellow Tyrannulet. Getting a shot of this bird was definitely a game of patience.

A Yellow throated Euphonia was far easier fayre posing nicely on a bush for the papperazzi!

A personal favourite of mine is the Passerini’s Tanager which is surprisingly shy even at the bird tables in from of the dining room. I hope to get some good shots of this species before I leave.

Crimson Collared Tanager showed well but at distance in the taller trees. The birds were in a small group but did not venture far in the mid section of the trees.

Keel Billed Toucan are heard regularly and one was seen at the top of a tree near the wedding area late on. Another species that gave good views was Band Backed Wren who was aggressive to any other species that dared to venture into their territory.

Costa Rica - Arenal Volcano - Un Gran Tormenta a Traves de Costa Rica!

A huge tropical storm has hit the majority of Costa Rica killing numerous people and destroying everything in its path but Tortuguero seemed to have escaped the devastation. By pure coincidence my time with Cano Palma had ended and my next stop was to be close to the disaster area at Arenal Volcano.

Hotel Arenal Lodge was my destination and I arrived late afternoon after a boat and minibus journey. The area had been hit by the storm but the damage was restricted to power and telephone lines. The location was perfect for birding in their extensive grounds and to take some time out by the pool before my journey back to San Jose and home.

The morning was a slow affair with the birds seemingly still hiding from the winds that had preceded me. I covered both trails with two raptures being the highlight at the watchpoint. The second bird was a White Hawk which gave distant views and non publishable pictures.

A walk through the Hummingbird garden produced Rufous tailed and Violet Headed Hummingbird. It was a game of patience to get pictures but there were plenty of subjects to choose from.

A Bananaquit was also spied skulking around the flowering plants.

I returned to my room and spent post lunch time birding from my balcony. Yellow Faced Grassquit were busy feeding on the grass directly in front of my viewpoint.

These birds were scattered by the arrival of a small group of Grey Headed Chachalaca who showed their rufous  in the primaries as they crashed into the bush.

What would the evening session bring?!

Costa Rica - Cano Palma - View from the Kitchen!

There was a storm overnight that saw an electricity failure in the local area. The rain was much lighter this morning and had me stood by the back door to the kitchen observing a mixed flock of warblers and flycatchers.

The task in hand was to photograph as many of the flock as possible which was tricky as the trees were covered in leaves and naturally the birds did not want to sit for long with so much competition in the vicinity.

The first puzzle of the hour long session was unsurprisingly a warbler that appeared to be in partial moult. The bird had extensive yellow on the underbelly with a white vent and black outer tail. The body was streaked black at the sides. After some consideration with the help of The Warbler guide I asked for opinions from the Facebook Neotropical Bird Club page. Verdict: Blackburnian Warbler.

Seen on the edge of the flock was, Cinnamon Becard and Northern Barred Woodcreeper. Red Eyed Vireo was busy feeding amongst the leaves oblivious to the other members of the flock.

A Lesser Greenlet put in a brief appearance before disappearing into the understory.

I still have a couple of flycatchers to identify but it always amazes me what can be seen whilst in the kitchen!