I walked to the river Hull for the Wetland Bird Survey monthly count early this morning. High tide was at 6:50am. It was mild and calm. I imagined all the counters around the Humber heading to their sites, relieved that the rain had stopped, just in time!
I get to Scott Street Bridge, the start of the transect. Mist clouds the top of the Reckitt chimney tower. There is little around bird-wise, a few plaintive calls from juvenile gulls and a starling, singing from a Christmas decoration atop a high building, a star, there year round. I scan the flood defences downstream, nothing.
By Wilcolmlee, I walk around the little cemetery behind the Charterhouse. Someone has pitched a large tent on the grass. I cross North Bridge easily, no traffic this time on a Sunday.
High tide looking downstream from North Bridge.
Two Cormorants fly upriver and decide to land on a chimney. There is a bit of a squabble and a croaking call, as the first cormorant landing refused to share its chimney pot, so the second had to fly around and land in the other one. Cormorants like social distancing.
As I watched the Cormorants, a Mallard dropped in a dry dock just opposite which I hadn't noticed before. I made a plan to investigate if the dry docks could be viewed from High Street.
The rusty lockgates of a dry dock.
I count the roost of Black-headed gulls on the roof of the Royal Mail depot at St Peter St: 44.
House Martins fly over. I reach Drypool bridge and turn back to High Street to check the three dry docks on the west bank of the river. They are visible enough, so will include in my monthly walk. They are not dry as the locks are not watertight, water streaming in. In the central lock, a brood of tiny ducklings feed on the water like peeping whirligigs. As I return I hear a strange song coming from a tree at High Street. Then, I recognise the song, it is a Willow Warbler, it's song sounding more like a half baked melody. Migration does happen everywhere!
Ducklings in the dry dock at the North End Shipyard where Arctic Corsair is going. At low tide the basin probably mostly empties and, hopefully, the ducklings will have a dry spot to huddle or be brooded by their mother.
Juvenile Woodpigeon.
Record shot of the Willow Warbler.
I return to the footpath by the river. More ducklings peeping, this time two well grown ones.
Peeping ducklings.
Herring gull juvenile and magpie.
I scan the usual Redshank roost spot: not there. I scan the salt marsh, looking for the Redshank roost, nothing. There are more Mallards than usual today, though, I count 28. One of them is preening near Scale Lane bridge, the Sea Aster in bloom giving it a lovely blackdrop.
I get to the Deep thinking that maybe the Redshank last month were passing. When I walk on Half-penny bridge, I spot them. The Redshank are roosting by The Deep on the sea wall, 18 of them. I realise that the footpath around the Deep has closed for a few weeks due to refurbishments, so the Redshank have no disturbance. It does show how flexible Redshank are choosing their roost site.
18 Redshank roosting on sea wall.
They are surprisingly camouflaged!
The survey is finished and I walk around the Deep. When I return is an hour and a half after high tide and some of the Redshanks are stirring and starting to feed.
I go towards the Marina and then across town and Queen's gardens.
The Spurn lighthouse invaded by the 'Kraken' installation.
Another mallard family in the Princes Quay dock, just one duckling left.
One of the two young Mistle thrush with parent at Queens Gardens.
I'm very pleased to be able to read ring on 4 cy (correction, 3cy) Herring Gull at Ferensway, feeding with feral pigeons, UK ringed, GV11636, reported to EURING. Unfortunately, it flies away before I can take a photo of the bird. UPDATE: got a reply: This bird was ringed by Spurn B.o. as age nestling, sex unknown on 25-Jul-2018 08:40:00 at Patrington, East Riding of Yorkshire, UK
As I walk back by a school near Spring Bank I hear a bullfinch calling. I whistle back and the bird flies closer, looking at me. It's a juvenile Bullfinch.
Juvenile Bullfinch.
I cross Spring Bank. A large raptor is soaring over. Too dark for a buzzard, a Marsh Harrier? I take a photo, zoom in, it's a Marsh Harrier! It soars higher and higher until it disappears in the mist A Marsh Harrier flying over the Polar Bear is a great way to end a morning or urban birding.
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