WWT Caerlaverock - part two - Yellowhammers, Barnacle Geese and the photography hide

Are you ready for part two ? Have you made your cuppa or poured yourself a wine ? Then lets get on with it....

 

When I was researching my stay at WWT Caerlaverock one of the things that really interested me was the daily Yellowhammer sightings on the website. Along with the Tree Sparrow this is another bird I don't see where I live, and another bird that I have never seen. I presumed I would have to sit and wait for hours in a hide to see one of these stunning little birds, but how wrong I was !!

 

 There's a regular flock of around fifteen birds that feed on the grassy verges along the short walk from the Wildlife Garden to the Peter Scott observatory. Over the last few days we realised people were throwing grain on the verges to encourage the Yellowhammers, and although they were quite flighty when people got too near, it didn't take them long to come back out. So as this is the first time I've seen these little stunners here is a complete overload of Yellowhammer photos.....

 

 

 

 

The Reed Bunting on the right seemed to be always mixing with the Yellowhammers and despite searching several times we could only ever find this one male Reed Bunting
 

Yellowhammer and House Sparrow

 

 

 

 

 

As mentioned in 'part one' of my blog posts, one of the other reasons to visit Caerlaverock at this time of year was to witness the spectacular Barnacle Geese gathering. It's estimated that at the moment there are around 5,000 of these pretty geese on the reserve and the surrounding fields. They breed mainly along the Norway coast and WWT Caerlaverock were one of the first to really research where they go after leaving the reserve. Below is a passage taken from the WWT website....

 

Today over 35,000 Svalbard barnacle geese winter on the Solway Firth, with thousands feeding at WWT's Caerlaverock Wetland Centre. Their story is one of an incredible recovery, since the dark days of the late 1940s, when no more than 300 remained.

Establishing WWT Caerlaverock in 1971 was instrumental in improving the fortunes of these geese as it provides an undisturbed refuge after their long migration from arctic Svalbard. The pasture and saltmarsh management carried out over the summer by the reserve staff creates ideal feeding conditions for the geese and the ongoing study of this species migration to and from Svalbard have revealed previously unknown details of the birds’ lives.

Using satellite transmitters, attached as backpacks to selected larger male birds using elasticised harnesses, we have uncovered the mystery of where the geese ‘disappear’ to for a two-week period on their northward spring migration, and identified the important pre-breeding sites they use after leaving Norway. We also charted the lethal effect of a strong Atlantic storm on two of the geese, witnessing one bird struggle with gale force winds for six days before reaching his destination and have been able to calculate the typical amount of energy or fat a goose needs to make the epic journey from the Solway to Svalbard.

Being able to monitor the timing of migration so accurately, and the speeds and heights at which the geese travel over land and sea has helped WWT assess the potential threat of wind farm developments both onshore and offshore along the Scottish and Norwegian coasts.

When they're on the ground they are generally known as a 'gaggle' of geese but when they are flying they are often referred to as a 'skein' or 'wedge' and to really confuse matters when a large group are on water they're collectively known as a 'plump' of geese. For Sue and I the noise when they geese took to the air made them 'haggling honks'. No matter where you were on the reserve, if a 'gaggle' were disturbed and started flying around you certainly knew about it. The noise was indescribable but it made for some fantastic photo opportunities.....

 

a 'gaggle' and 'skein'....

'gaggle'......

 

a 'skein' and 'wedge'....

Just three....

 

One afternoon we watched a large 'gaggle' and spotted amongst them ten Pink-footed geese. You can just see three of them in the photo above......

 

and two Pink-footed geese in this photo.....

 

A 'gaggle' with a 'plump'.....

 

One of the hides that we discovered on our last day of our stay was the little two/three man hide at the bottom of the Wildlife Garden. As with the bird feeding station along the Peter Scott trail, this hide has been well thought out and designed. At the front of the hide are the usual bird feeders but the layout has been specifically done for photographers who want the more aesthetically eye pleasing photos.....

 

 

The 'thing' in the middle is a man made reflection pool with mossy stones and twigs arranged at the back of it and the 'constructions' either side are made from tree branches with moss or lichen on them and arranged so the birds perch on them first before going to the nearest feeder.

 

We had a long wait for any of the birds to use the reflection pool, and my one and only photo below isn't that great, but it certainly shows how creative the pool can be....

 

 

and the following photos were taken from this morning whilst it was raining but showing how well the branch perches either side of the pool are used....

 

 

 

And it's not just the usual 'garden' birds that like this area. On Sunday I was in the hide when a Common Snipe suddenly flew in and landed on the ground. It was too quick for me to grab a photo though as it soon disappeared into the long grassy mounds behind the feeders.

 

But to end part two of my three part Caerlaverock blog, this morning from the same hide a Weasel suddenly appeared between some wood on the right hand side....

 

 

I only managed to grab two photos before the little critter 'crittered' away under the fence....

What a great finale to my four night stay..

 

So are you ready for the third and final part of my blog.......?

WWT Caerlaverock - part one - discovering the reserve, Tree Sparrows and Whooper Swans

I'm just back from a four night stay at WWT Caerlaverock (link to their website here) and can honestly say I did not want to leave. It's the only WWT reserve that has accommodation on site, which means you can walk around the reserve even when it's closed to the general public. And I certainly think some of the other WWT sites should consider doing the same thing.

 

 The accommodation was a large cottage with a huge kitchen and lounge. The beds were incredibly comfortable and I shared a twin room with Sue, my fellow Cranford Park birder mate. The view from our window was over Folly Pond, and we had some great views of Whooper Swans coming in to roost every early evening.

 

I've seen so much and taken so many photos, that I've had to write up three blog posts (including this one). I've also learnt some new things from the incredibly knowledgeable staff at the centre. So did I enjoy my stay ? That's a big fat 'yes'. Only one tiny downside was the very iffy wifi connection and phone signal, but with so much to see at Caerlaverock who wants to go on the internet anyway.

 

Our first day was spent just exploring.....and there was plenty to explore...

 

 

There is a brilliantly designed bird feeding station along the Peter Scott trail. I have tried to capture it in my photo below, but it doesn't really do it justice......

 

 

The feeders are behind the 'fence' on the left hand side. The way the slats are positioned means you can sit on the benches or stand to see the birds, and get good photos and views either way. Because the slats are there, the birds don't always see you so disturbance to them is minimum. All the photos below are taken through the slats whilst I was sitting on one of the benches...

 

Goldfinch

Greenfinch

Coal Tit

Robin

 

Blue Tit

 And a first for me, the gorgeous Tree Sparrow.....

 

 

 

 

 

 Where I live there are no Tree Sparrows so I was really chuffed to see my first ones with such great views. These little loveys are in serious decline across much of the UK.

 

The most prolific bird at the feeders, and practically everywhere on the reserve, was the Chaffinch but as they are so photogenic I didn't really mind.....

 

 

 

There were also two Water Rails resident around the Peter Scott trail but although I caught three glimpses of one of them I didn't manage to photograph it, though Sue did get lucky as one walked across a path.

 

Wrens were both very vocal and easily seen all over the reserve. This one below was singing it's little head off outside the Peter Scott Observatory......

 

 

and I caught this little one playing peek-a-boo by the Campbell hide....

 

There were several Song Thrushes around too, including this photogenic beauty outside the Wildlife Garden hide....

 

 

 In the Wildlife Garden itself there's a great bug hotel too....

 

 

On investigating the site we found there are nine main hides including the Farmhouse tower, which would have been enough for anyone really, but also dotted all over the site are seventeen little hides which you can just about squeeze four people in. This is one of them below....

 

The photo below is of the walk up one of the 'avenues'. Goldcrests and Treecreepers were almost guaranteed sightings along both of the 'avenues'...

 

Below is the heated Peter Scott observatory viewed from one of the little hides along the Peter Scott trail....

 

 

The huge hide in the photo below is the Avenue Tower.....

 

 

From there we not only saw the thousands of Barnacle Geese one morning but also a Roe deer meandering along...

 

 

The Barnacle Geese were obviously one of the main reasons for visiting at this time of year, but more about them in my second blog post. So just for a taster, below is a photo of a huge skein of them heading towards the Solway Firth.....

 

The Whooper Swans were another reason to visit at this time of year. Many of them have already departed for Iceland, some 800 miles away, but there were still good numbers of them on the reserve and in the neighbouring fields. The best places to see them (if they weren't flying overhead) was from the Peter Scott Observatory. At the moment the staff and volunteers are still feeding them outside the observatory twice a day but that will stop in a couple of weeks time.

 

You can never take too many photos of a Whooper Swan. They are so elegant, beautiful and incredibly loud !

 

 

 

 

The Mute Swan behind these two Whoopers doesn't look particularly happy.....

 

 

Just a random shot of a Mute to show that they too are rather splendid....

 

Sue and I were obviously a little spoilt when it came to Whooper Swans as every late afternoon and early evening several would fly in and land on the Folly Pond in front of our accommodation. And as we found out yesterday afternoon, the volunteers who put out the peanuts and honey for the Badgers (more about them in 'part three' of my blog posts) also throw out some more grain for the swans and ducks. We got some cracking views of the Whoopers 'greeting' each other after landing on the pond.....

 

 

 

There is obviously more on the reserve than Whooper Swans, Barnacle Geese, Tree Sparrows and Badgers. From the little hide overlooking the Teal Pond I found two Little Grebes. One of them below had just caught a fish and as I took my photo, it's mate emerged from the water in front of it.....

 

I see plenty of these where I live but it's still nice to see one...

 

 

One of the 'great experiences' Sue and I had during our stay was when a large 'herd' of around 60 Curlew landed in a farmers field which is overlooked by one of the smaller hides along the Peter Scott trail. They were so close it was lovely to really appreciate their wonderful plumage....

 

 

 

 

So that's the end of part one. Go and put the kettle on, or pour yourself a glass of wine and ready yourself for part two.......