Bloody tinternet!

Moving house certainly can be stressful but having to do without an internet connection for almost a month, courtesy of Landlord trying to help but Sky 'rules' meaning he's only made things worse, haven't helped! Who'd have thought I'd be grateful to McDonald's and their free wifi?

Anyway.... struugling to post for the next couple of weeks but here's a decent Redshank shot from the other day. Phil Stead hide, which I reckon is going to give some great shots as wader passage really kicks in.

Nailed a Sedgy at last.....

Been trying to get a good shot of Sedge Warbler for a few days now, with a bit of success. However, early this morning I finally reckon I nailed one. There's a new breed of twitcher in Teesmouth these days, armed with cameras. Any mention of where you photograph a showy bird and there's a crowd there in no time. Not sure I approve, especially when it's territorial birds and there's also accidental disturbance to resident birds already breeding... I reckon the Dormans Pool Stonechats have gone BECAUSE of the showy Gropper in the same area :(

Anyway, I'm not posting locations anymore to minimize the impact.

Nightingale

Singing Nightingales are few and far between this far north so the male at Cowpen Bewley Woodland Park is certainly a treat. Singing its heart out for its third day today, can't help but feel it's all in vain. Crosses to the north side of the beck sometimes, making it Hartlepool's 2nd ever, following an autumn bird over 25 years ago.... told you it was rare.... Well outnumbered by Sprossers!!

Added this pic of Garden Warbler this morning to my Cleveland collection. Over 50 species in there now and all but three taken with my new camera since last August. Some other nice pics there... check it out on my Facebook gallery.

Gropper at last!

With all and sundry getting shots of the Grasshopper Warblers at Dormans Pool, some of which are brilliant, the temptation to join the throng and get my own pic has been difficult to resist. However, the disturbance caused there has put me off more than a little and so I was determined to find my own obliging individual, a plan which finally payed off this morning when this little beauty posed for me in Hargreave's Quarry...

This was the pic I'd been after for a while so was chuffed to get a chance at last.

Yesterday, news was leaked of a Hoopoe which had been visiting a farmyard for the previous three days. A quick dash to the site was rewarded with this shot, in poor light but not too bad really...

New RSPB hide faces the right way scoop!

The new Phil Stead Memorial Hide was finally opened yesterday after what seems an age of procrastination over signing insurance / lease documents.

At 23k, it seems a lot of cash to pay for a portacabin stuck on a concrete plinth but is actually very nice when you get in and, the biggest surprise of all, it points the right way! All other hides on the reserve point south / east.... directly into the sun!!

Looking out onto the 'Bottom Tank' is also a bonus as the water levels can be controlled welll here (given some rain) so should prove perfect for wader watching and photography.

Two Avocets were the first birds to visit yesterday, albeit briefly, as the 'newness' of the hide attracted lots of visitors = disturbance.

Stayed just long enough for a couple of shots......

Finally caught up with Garganey.

This is perhaps the worst photo I'll ever upload on here but it was my third attempt to add this Drake Garganey to my year list...... that's my excuse anyway!

The marshes seemed full of common migrants today, with Yellow Wags, Reed, Sedge and Grasshopper Warblers all over the place. Whitethroats are finally in and what maybe a new / different Cetti's sang from Hargreaves Quarry.

Still dipping on Marsh Harrier though..... maybe tomorrow :-)

Springtime... yeah!

Spring must finally have arrived..... Four species of warbler seen now, Swallow on the year list and Whimbrel overhead this evening.

Love it when the warblers arrive. Willow singing on Long Drag today makes you believe spring migration is really here and, who knows, a rarity might even be on the horizon.

Watched chiffys having a territorial battle too. So distracted by each other they completely ignored me, my camera and even the dog charging about didn't stop them....