St Michael and All Angels Parish Church Hughenden Valley, Buckinghamshire

Friday 25th July, as I was in High Wycombe I looked for some where different for my lunchtime walk, finding http://www.hughendenparishchurch.org.uk/.
St Michael and All Angels is of course associated with Hughenden Manor, the home of Benjamin Disraeli, who is buried at the Church. I had a walk around some of the parkland and then around and in the church.

Peregrine on old 3M building Bracknell

This morning work took me to Bracknell, and before I headed of to High Wycombe, I parked up in the Waitrose car park. Where I looked over the old 3M building until I located a Peregrine high up.

Yellow-legged Gull at Little Marlow GP

Lunchtime on the 24th July, I took myself to Little Marlow GP, I added Yellow-legged Gull for the year list.

2014 Year List = 204

Lesser Blacked-backed Gull High Wycombe

This morning (Thursday 24th July 2014) an adult Lesser Black-backed Gull landed on the roof opposite where I was working in High Wycombe

RSPB Bempton Cliffs

Thursday 17th July, and I had been sent up to Lincoln for a call, which I completed without any problems, and as I had not seen a Puffin this year I drove up to Bempton Cliffs for the afternoon. If you have not been here, then all I can say is "go". I saw the following, Fulmar, Shag, Gannet, Pheasant, Herring gull, Great Black-backed gull, Kittiwake, Guillemot, Razorbill, Puffin, Feral pigeon, Woodpigeon, Swallow, Meadow pipit, Pied wagtail, Dunnock, Blackbird, Whitethroat, Jackdaw, Tree sparrow & Goldfinch.

2014 Year List = 203

"Great Knot! Marty!"

"Great Knot! Marty!" Two life ticks in one day. On the morning of Tuesday 15th July, I headed to Egdeware for a call, the part ordered for the desktop, could not be found, this turned out not to be a problem, as I fixed the desktop with no parts required. No more calls in, so I headed up to Breydon water for the Great Knot. I crossed over the Breydon bridge and parked in the recreation grounds car park. Only a couple of cars in the car park, so I walked to the sea wall, no birders to be seen, so I call LGRE and he said to cross over the bridge and park in the ASDA car park, and walk across to the hide to view the high tide roost. I returned to the car park and two cars came in with more birders, one of these had a local birder who had seen the Great Knot the day before. So I joined him, he was staying on this side of the bridge and was going to wait for the water level to drop, and for the roosting birds to fly out on to the first mud to be exposed. From where we were I could see across to the hide and the gathered birders who were looking at the roost, as I had about an hour, before the water level dropped, I walked across the bridge to join them. Going through the roost the birds that I noted were Cormorant, Little egret, Shelduck, Oystercatcher, Avocet, Lapwing, Dunlin, Curlew, Black-tailed godwit, Redshank, Black-headed gull, Lesser Black-backed gull, Herring gull, Great Black-backed gull and Common tern, but No Great Knot. So I returned to the other side as the water level had started to drop, to join the much smaller number of birders and waited. As soon as the mud became exposed it was covered in birds, we went through the birds until one of the other birders found the GREAT KNOT. It was distant but good scope views could be had as I watched it feeding with some Redshanks and then on its own. As the Collared Pratincole was still at Minsmere I left and near to the car was a Wren.

I arrived at Minsmere and found that the best place to view the Collared Pratincole was from the East Hide over looking the scrape. I entered to east hide and the upper level was full so I set up in the lower level, and found that the Pratincole was on one of the far islands and out of view. After a while a lot of birds went up, and the call went out that the Pratincole was in with them, they soon settled again and the Pratincole was again out of sight, I did not manage to see it. So as I waited I scanned the scape seeing the following: Cormorant, Grey heron, Shelduck, Teal, Mallard, Moorhen, Coot, Oystercatcher, Avocet, Lapwing, Dunlin, Ruff, Black-tailed godwit, Redshank, Common sandpiper, Turnstone, Mediterranean gull, Little gull, Black-headed gull, Lesser Black-backed gull, Herring gull, Great Black-backed gull, Sandwich tern, Common tern, Woodpigeon, Sand martin, Pied wagtail, Magpie, Starling and Goldfinch. There was a report that the Pratincole could be viewed from the North hide, so some of the birders left, I stayed and waited, and was rewarded with good views of it in flight as it flew around the scrape, it dropped down behind the reeds and lost to view. Soon after it was spotted again and it landed in full view and managed to get a look through a scope, but it was soon of to it favourite island and again out of sight, so I headed home with two life ticks.

2014 Year List = 202

Hurley Berkshire

Thursday 10th July and I was working near Hurley Berkshire, so at lunchtime took my Fujifilm SL1000 out, so I could learn more about it. I did see a kingfisher as it flew along the cutting near the lock.