Train trip: Bridlington ten puffins

I had planned to walk the headland from Bempton to Bridlington and had my train tickets, had checked tides and the forecast promised a day of sunshine. What a surprise to wake up to dark sky and snow. I took the train and planned a completely different trip, involving ticking all the Puffins Galore in Bridlington. It ended up being more or less the same distance (22 k including the walk from home to the station), but a very pleasant trip. The sky remained dark and brooding with occasional flurries, but they were brief and there was barely any wind, so it wasn't as cold as I expected.

Hull Paragon just before leaving for Bridlington.

At least three Pied Wagtails fed in the pavements in Bridlington.

I walked to the harbour by the Gypsey Race park. No Kingfisher this time, but I added a few common birds to the harbour list, including Robin. I walked on the harbour walls, watching the birds feed on the beach and the harbour mud, the tide almost low.

A piping Oystercatcher and a Herring Gull checking some seafood.

A young Herring Gull long calling, it takes a long time to perfect this beautiful call.

Sanderlings feeding by Herring Gulls on the tideline.

19 Purple Sandpipers and some Turnstones feeding on the exposed rocks by the outer wall.

A feeding frenzy of Cormorants and gulls.

Two adult Great Black-backed Gulls were on the beach.

An immature GBBG was feeding on a dead fish.

One of the Sanderlings fed on the rocks for a bit.

A pair of Herring Gulls on the harbour wall.

A Turnstone on the harbour wall. Nice to take a photo at eye level with it.

Oystercatcher. It was feeding on worms.

Menacing snow clouds on south beach.

The harbour at low tide.

A beautifully marked lone Ringed Plover fed in the harbour.

My first harbour Robin!

Limpets and Purple Sandpiper on the north wall.

A Carrion Crow plundering a bag of maltesers.

A Herring Gull came along and took posession of the bag, but it didn't really like the maltesers.

The two crows worked together to get at them around the gull.

When the gull chased one away, the other stole a malteser.

One of my favourite Puffins Galore today depicting the cliffs. Not sure about the monarch butterfly though!

After lunch at a local, I headed inland. I had never visited the old town at Bridlington and there were the last three puffins galore. 

Priory church, impressive at the top of a hill.

Dead Bod and the Humber Bridge feature in the last of the 10 Puffins Galore of Bridlington.

A great, impromptu day out. Few days out at Brid that I don't enjoy.

 

A walk to Corinthians Way in January

 

A sharp, frosty morning, I had to run some errands in town, so I decide to walk to Corinthians Way, by the Humber. I realise the tide is quite low, and I'm curious to see what's feeding on the mudflats just south of Scott Street bridge. I'm glad I checked, as I see my first Curlew north of North Bridge, and three Redshank too. Two Dunlin are with a Redshank south of the bridge, Dunlin being new for the year. 

Curlew North of North Bridge.

A sleeping Redshank, or is it?

The light is gorgeous, and I try some interesting photography by Victoria Pier.

A Curlew arrives noisily, and it keeps calling and walking by the Deep.

The Half Tide Basin.

The Half-tide Basin pays dividends, as there is a gull roost, and more excitingly, a large flock of Dunlin, frantically feeding by the tideline with a Curlew and a Redshank. 

Dunlin.

Dunlin flock.

Dunlin.

Another Curlew by the Siemens factory.

The mud puddles by Corinthians way were frozen

The beach by Corinthians Way.

A Woodpigeon stops to drink.

This gull had an unusual head.

The roost of Redshank assembling 2 h before high tide by the Arctic Corsair.

Low tide at the River Hull by the old town in December

The cold frosty days are over. Today it was hard to believe it was below 0°C yesterday morning. It was 12°C and I felt overdressed in my winter coat as I walked to town. No hat or gloves were needed. It was low tide at 8:40 and I was curious to see which waders were feeding on the River Hull in the same stretch that I did last week for the Wetland Bird Survey core count. From North Bridge, 20 Dunlin fed on the muddy banks of the river in small groups. The same pattern was repeated all the way to Myton Bridge. While the Redshank were dotted along the river, some noisily squabbling, claiming their stretch of mud, the smaller Dunlins were more sociable in pairs, trios or sixes, sometimes near a Redshank. I found the Black-tailed Godwit feeding just north of Scale Lane Br. The noise of heavy traffic in the background didn't seem to disturb the waders. Partly hidden behind a buddleia, I took photos of this Dunlin, which was feeding by the Buoy Shed. In the top shot you can see the open tip of its bill. These are likely to belong to the alpina race, from Scandinavia and Siberia. It is windier as I approach the choppy latte Humber, it feels very sheltered in the river.

Dunlin.

Black-tailed Godwit.

Redshank.

Dunlin north of North Bridge.

The fact that Dunlin and Black-tailed Godwit are using the river and staying around indicates they are finding good food supplies. Just watching them for a little while shows how much food they are encountering too, as they probe and pick and clearly swallow. Is the river becoming more suitable for wader food sources? 

December WeBS count at the River Hull

The last Wetland Bird Survey of the year, morning high tide at the River Hull. It is very frosty and it is a picturesque walk to Scott Street Bridge, the sun shining weakly amongts the clouds, trees, bushes and grass dusted in ice crystals. 

Near Liddle Street Park

The first surprise of the day is a little grebe, that flies towards Drypool Bridge, new species for the survey.

Little Grebe.

I'm very pleased that the Black-tailed Godwit is staying, another new species for the survey.

It is not a very high tide, and three Redshank are already feeding around the mudflats, one of them following the Curlew, which is also feeding.

Redshank taking ragworm to the water.

The Curlew paused briefly for a photo.

Another surprise, a Dunlin with the Redshank roost at the sea wall by The Deep.

This Robin sat on the frosty railing opposite The Deep. 

And last, but not least, I was finally rewarded in my scan of the gulls atop Princes Quay with a Mediterranean Gull, is it the same that has visited in previous years? Could be, but this one had a metal ring, too distant to read. This makes species number 102 for the Local Big Year, and probably will be the final species. A Woodcock flying over Queens Gardens was also nice.

Ringed Mediterranean Gull with Black-headed Gull.