Notice Board: the Honey-buzzard Season in Northumberland 2024 as it happens – Nick Rossiter

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The main aim in the new season is to write a book on Honey-buzzard, using my experience in British Isles, continental Europe and Africa, dating from 1993. Field work in 2023 in Northumberland will complement this task, filling in gaps and reinforcing findings. Further lengthy trips in mind abroad for 2023 are Georgia (Tbilisi, Batumi) in August/September and Kenya (Masai Mara) in December. Broad headings for book are: Motivation, Historical Records, Rediscovery in Britain, Migration Patterns, Arrival and Display, Breeding Activity, Habitat, Dispersal, Wintering Grounds, Four Identification Models, Value of Field Experience, Further Studies, Bibliography. The initial costs of publishing the book in hard copy, running to perhaps 250pp, are well within my means. Some supplementary material may be published online.

Highlights of Year from Honey-buzzard home page at http://nickrossiter.org.uk/hbweb/index.html:

Welcome to the new Notice Board, for 2024. Kenya and Georgia updates will continue to be applied under their historical dates in the 2023 Notice Board at 2023, and full accounts provided in due course.

December 20th: maximum 8C, minimum 5C, moderate W, sunny early-on, light rain midday, dry later. Had another hour in 4St, damp, good chat with RD who was on with me. Made favourite cafe4l where met favourite lass: she looked gr8, had 2 decent chats with extra c!! Much later made Dow4g4s with D/C (D/D are ill). We had nice wide-ranging chat. Funds finished week at -12k, not too bad seeing ftse was down 2.8% over same period. Over ytd +266k gross (10.9%) so right direction, not too bad in light of depressed commodity stocks, which are my main interest, typically down 20-45% ytd, but concentration on Falklands has paid off (so far!!) together with a move into US bonds at a time when the falls in commodity stocks were gathering pace. No time for birds of prey, hope to sort this 2moro. XXXX!!

December 19th: maximum 4C, minimum 0C, moderate W, sunny spells, dry, ground frost be evening. Had another hour in 4St – much more interesting than yesterday: 2 old flames, looking good!! Had good chat with RN, on with me. Had lunch and good chat at Tans with M. Much later made G4g4s with P/A/R, very busy, getting ready for the weekend, A/L on!! Paid Westall’s final bill of £6,290. aqotwf!! XXXX!!

December 18th: maximum 11C, minimum 4C, fresh and gusty W, sunny spells, mainly dry. Had a very bracing collection stint for R in 4St, on with PG. Temperatures not so bad but the gusty W wind made it feel perishing, didn’t take very much, think we should concentrate on warm stores more! On again 2moro after T4m4l with M. New stove is brilliant, uses about half the ovoids of last one, giving out more heat if anything; the new stoves are 83% efficient, producing far less fumes and pollution through various recycling mechanisms. So delighted can turn down storage and other electric heaters. Have run it fairly high today as no smell or curing issues. Resumed doing most work on desktop so had to copy a lot of files from laptop to desktop this evening. However, a bonus of recent heating problems is that love working in the dining room, with morning sun and views over the back garden so will keep that going. Hope to do Goshawk account tomorrow now established back on desktop, with Osprey soon after. Funds -13k wtd after slide in commodity stocks, likely to continue tomorrow after slide on US markets tonite after Fed reined back on interest rate cuts for 2025 (to 2 from 4). Will be at G4g4s 2moro evening and a late reveller: XXXX!!

December 17th: maximum 11C, minimum 10C, light SW becoming moderate, mainly cloudy. Multifuel stove was commissioned and certified midday by BC from Westall; installed in good working order, passing smoke test and others; tests and paperwork took a little over an hour. Running it in today with a bag of logs from the garage; will use another bag 2moro and then start introducing ovoids (smokeless anthracite), ramping up the output to full at 5KwH perhaps by Friday. Ordered 450kg of ovoids yesterday. Run-in is needed to enable paint to cure and for joints to harden without cracking. It looks great with the logs alight! Expect the bill 2moro!! So next job is replacing all 6 storage heaters for which awaiting estimate; this will be done in January I hope. Had quick brisk walk at dusk for some exercise. In 4St for an hour in each of next 3 days, collecting for local charities with R, starting 12 noon Wed and Fri, and 13:00 Thurs.

The first account for 2024 is for the Hobby. More details (in Hobby in Northumberland) of the Hobby breeding season for 2024 are available in Table 19

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Table 19: Breeding Data for Hobby in SW Northumberland by area in 2024

While the core area for Honey-buzzard, Devil’s Water and Tyne Valley W, remained priority for coverage, some forays further afield were made in 2024 to cover the growing Black Kite population and to do some habitat survey work in the upper South Tyne. Occupation in spring was promising with six sites occupied and display of 3 pairs noted at Towsbank (upper South Tyne), Wylam (Tyne Valley E) and W Slaley Forest (Devil’s Water). However it was a very wet summer and the species had become scarce by the fledging period with just one juvenile seen at the most regular site, Towsbank, in the upper South Tyne. Unlike in 2023 NR was present in the study area for the fledging period. A search made in the Bulletin of the Northumberland & Tyneside Bird Club (April-October 2024) added 1 site with in July “On 27th ... one was mobbed by Swallows at Barheugh (Slaggyford) on the same date (SJH).” NR did make 2 visits to this established site in the fledging period but no birds were seen. A search of BirdGuides provided no records for Northumberland, Durham or Cumbria. It appears that most pairs failed this year but the species is maintaining a presence.

December 16th: maximum 10C, minimum 8C, moderate SW, some weak sunshine, wind still significant. Today was one of the big R events of year, the Xmas dinner, held this year at the Beaumont. We had 52 paid-up and all attended. On top table we had 7 out of 9 people from the ‘Shire, including our vicar Rev Andrew Patterson, who attended with his wife Carol, said grace and gave the address. I arranged with the staff to serve all the food/coffee before we started the address and a quiz: this is preferred by most caterers now as they don’t have staff hanging around while we do our business! But the quiz organiser was indignant: no pleasing everyone. Whole evening went off very well: Andrew’s address was passionate as he is chaplain for the area, including Hexham Hospital, and clearly does much good work with he sick; he was listened to with rapt attention. I ruled out any club business, one or two frowns but nearly everyone happy. So another good club event and thumbs up to the Beaumont with their good food and friendly and efficient service. Managed to spin out dinner from 18:30-21:45 by which time off to the G4g4s with R/Rg/P/A and A/L on!! Promised stove certification 2moro! XXXX!!

December 15th: maximum 11C, minimum 9C, fresh SW, some weak sunshine, light rain showers, wind strong in the evening and overnight with many twigs and small branches on road, dunkelflaute over and we now have more wind power than we know what to do with. Final concert at GH (Sage) for the year with the Messiah, performed by RNS orchestra and chorus. Went in early, driving L to Callerton for Metro to GHD. We had lunch in the Brasserie – I had salmon as change from turkey, very nice. Concert was brilliant, so polished and full of tension, with the soloists all in good voice. We stayed for a drink afterwards with a few members of orchestra. Long day out, left house at 10:50, back at 20:10. Messiah lasted 2 hours 25 min with interval of 25 min. Still made G4g4s with A/P with E/L on!! Superb later with the fit one: lok2tmfo: XXXX!!

Had interesting insight into people’s ideas as L trotted out the standard left-wing diatribe against Israel. I found she assumed that all Wagner fans are anti-Semitic. I’m actually for Wagner and pro-Semite but against Bayreuth Festival, which through the antics of Wagner’s young second wife Cosima (daughter of the Hungarian composer Franz Liszt) and their children and grandchildren became a hotbed for Nazi support. The later generations revelled in Wagner’s powerful music as fuel for their ideology but Wagner was a revolutionary socialist, much closer to Marx than to right-wing philosophers. The issue is further clouded by Wagner’s complex parentage, his birth in the Jewish quarter of Leipzig, his tirades against contemporary Jewish composers such as Mendelssohn and Meyerbeer, and his close working relationships with Jewish musicians and conductors, for instance Parsifal was first conducted by Hermann Levi. Like the Ring, there is no simple message!

December 14th: maximum 7C, minimum 2C, light SW, sunny morning, cloudy later, dry, not dunkelflaute but wind power still below par, Sunset is 15:40 in Hexham now, at rock bottom, only gets better from here, starting on 19/12; mornings with sunrise 08:27 today in Hexham are still getting a bit darker until a bit after the solstice: it’s not symmetrical. By the New Year the afternoons will be moving out nicely, while the mornings stay gloomy a while longer. I’m like a bird: daylight controls my mood!! Started writing Hobby account for 2024, should publish 2moro. Took frail P to pantomime Jack and the Beanstalk, bit patchy, loved the TV reporter sketches but think they could have involved the audience more – no ‘behind you’ or ‘oh no you’re not’ for instance but enjoyed it and it kept the many kids there captivated! P was not impressed so my chauffeur service from his house door to the theatre, help around the theatre and back again was not as appreciated as it might have been! I had to park in the Wentworth where lucky to find a space. Certainly worth a second look: XXXX!! Gulls went top of NLS (football’s 6th tier) today: amazing feat! Out later to DoW4g4s with D/D/D/C for gr8 chat. 2moro it’s the Messiah at the GH in afternoon, G4g4s and out late!!

December 13th: maximum 6C, minimum 2C, light S, dull, dry, dunkelflaute continues, not a good period for the government to be introducing their renewable energy plans! Started preparing 2024 Hobby breeding report as all data now on BirdTrack database. Stove commissioning postponed until Monday; he did come up but I was at lunch and had warned him of that! Anyway got used to living in dining room now! Updated this board with some concert details that I’d kept but not added some of the information (work in progress). Did make lunch: she’s very beautiful, most tempting: XXXX!! Falklands oil continues to advance, finishing week +50k gross before 4k withdrawal for anticipated end of stove job. Navitas, the operator for the Falklands oilfield Sea Lion, have just made a contract for refit of a floating oil platform for Sea Lion, which would suggest they have everything in place to proceed to production, expected in 2027. I do have some shares in Navitas (TLV:NVPT), an Israeli company based in Tel Aviv, but main holding is in Rockhopper (LSE:RKH) of which hold over 3m shares, bought around 7.6p each, 0.5% of whole company; RKH has a 35% carried interest in Sea Lion and Navitas the major stake of 65%; 60% of my holding is in an ISA account so tax-free. RKH has also had a large award (€250m) by ICSID against the Italian government for withdrawal of permission for oil drilling off the Italian coast; this decision is currently under appeal by Italy, result imminent! Exciting times but nothing goes up in a straight line!! Incidentally have opened a new section on my shares spreadsheet, entitled Israeli Victory, to supersede the one entitled War in Middle East. I also have a significant ISA holding (over 100k value) in LSE:ENOG, Energean, a natural gas company, based in Tel Aviv, drilling in the Mediterranean and supplying Israel with much of its gas. You might think I don’t believe in net zero and you’d be right: it’s one of the biggest cons ever perpetrated, transferring money from the poor to billionaires, seeking to control our lives. Aldous Huxley anticipated such threats in his dystopian future; see https://www.bmartin.cc/pubs/01tnvs/tnvs00.html . I particularly like:

Huxley's critique of science and technology is a deep one. He sees them as having been developed to serve powerholders. In order to serve liberty and peace, science and technology must be redirected.

The obvious example is climate change, where many scientists do the state’s and billionaire’s bidding to maintain fear, while neglecting their ideal role as seeking the truth in very complex areas.

December 12th: maximum 4C, minimum 3C, light E, dull, dry, dunkelflaute – no wind, no sun, no renewable power, gas rules OK! S from STR came round to look at my 6 storage heaters, to prepare an estimate for their replacement by a modern WiFi-enabled storage system. That will be done in January, I hope. Still waiting for Westall to commission the log-burning system; bought some logs as better than ovoids for breaking system in. Made G4g4s with R/Rg/A/P 4 good chat with L on!! As stands +45k wtd but what will Falklands oil do in last day of the week. Completed Bywell 23/8 and complete backlog of records – gr8 news!!

December 11th: maximum 5C, minimum 2C, light N, dull, dry. Gr8 day, enjoying concert at Kirkharle with sombre and varied 5-movement Sibelius SQ; the Da Vinci SQ also played an arrangement by the Danish SQ and we sang Hark the Herald Angels Sing! Had large lunch with L there taking in 5 courses. In evening had dinner at Benton (near Four Lane Ends) at Turkish restaurant Lezzet, having soup and sea bass to augment the 5 earlier courses (where no soup or fish): gr8 chat and company: brought back lots of marvellous memories!! We did have a captivating chat on so many issues with a celebratory air over Israel’s victory. Drove to Callerton and got Metro to (wrong) station Longbenton. Had to thank Uber for getting me to restaurant, almost on time, having become lost in Longbenton back streets! xxxxx XXX!!! Don’t think stove has had its smoke test yet, still waiting for commissioning.

December 10th: maximum 5C, minimum 1C, light NE, dull, dry. Had good trip into Newcastle, making Festival fundraiser at UNN, my last employers! Sat next to Mike, enjoyable concert, particularly liked the Hahn. Made CT twice, before and after concert, old haunt, always like it in there! Added Teal and Canada Goose to December list with 5 drake Goosander E of Wylam. Surprisingly no Cormorant seen. Completed processing Stocksfield Mount 28/8, so just one sheet to do now, Bywell 23/8; must surely complete by Thursday. Funds +10k wtd. Think new stove/flue has had its smoke test, assume it’s passed; going to light it gently on Thursday, when S is coming to look at my storage heaters, including replacing 6 of them. 2Moro is very busy but looks a gr8 day: late morning concert at Kirkharle, Xmas dinner there with L, then back to HEX before out in evening for meal in Longbenton!! XXXX!!

December 9th: maximum 7C, minimum 2C, light N becoming light NE, light showers and spells of weak sunshine all day. Roofer came and did his best removing the old pot and installing flashing, giving a good finish; my builders then went off to get a shorter length of chimney for pushing through the roof; all fitted by mid-afternoon. R meeting went well, very positive, chaired it all without incident and plenty of enthusiasm. Completed Hexham NE 22/8, now onto last 2 sheets for Bywell area in late August, then done! 2Moro it’s an exciting concert at lunchtime, warm up for Festival!! Looking forward to it!! XXXX!!

December 8th: maximum 7C, minimum 3C, moderate N becoming light, light showers and spells of weak sunshine afternoon, after more heavy rain in morning. Completed Viewley 19/8, leaving 3 sheets to do. Next up is Hexham Tyne Green/NE on 22/8, completing Osprey for the year and containing some interesting large gull shots. Made Hexham Tyne Green from 14:55-16:30 where had 12 bird-types, including a GBBG ad, 6 Herring Gull (3 ad, 3 1w), a Common Gull ad, 64 Black-headed Gull (14/14 ad on partial count for ageing), a Goosander drake, 2 Grey Heron, 27 Mallard. Had a break at SB4c4t. Getting ready for big R meeting 2moro in last regular meeting of year with 2 new member inductions, a new President down the line, constitution, publicity, presentation of gratuity to hotel staff, plus regular talk and a raffle draw. G4g4s was gr8 with A/P and E/L on!! Missing someone this weekend: XXXX!!

December 7th: maximum 7C, minimum 3C, moderate SW becoming fresh NW, heavy driving rain all day, cool. Main event of day was first Xmas dinner at DoW with D/D/D/C, food was excellent, service good with C on, good chat, gr8 start to Xmas festivities. Did go for short local walk from 14:45-15:50, getting just 9 types of bird in the rough conditons. Did have 8 Redwing and 3 Fieldfare S today. Find a burst of exercise makes you feel a lot fitter. Completed Letah Wood 25/8, now working on Viewley 19/8. Secured travel insurance for Dubai trip for £65, significantly less than last trip, which was though longer. Did a lot of tidying up of files from laptop, my work-horse while waiting for fire to be installed, onto my desktop and external drives. Added 5 types of raptor from Ras al Khor to Dubai records, including 2 adult Bonelli’s Eagle, a Steppe Buzzard adult, a Black Kite juvenile, a Shikra, a Marsh Harrier; piccies from UAE now all checked against the Helm UAE book and copied also to desktop and external drives. XXXX!!

December 6th: maximum 7C, minimum 2C, light E becoming moderate SE later, sunny morning, cloudy with heavy rain later, fairly cool in spite of depression moving in. Builders had a problem in morning as supplied with wrong chimney clips so off to Team Valley to get the proper ones. But by close they had fitted the stove and the chimney, almost up to the roof, see piccie. On Monday they’ve got a roofer arriving to open the roof, put through the new chimney, put on a cowl and make joints weatherproof. Then can light it! And they’ll send the bill! Will be so pleased to reclaim living room. Think will leave replacement of all 6 storage heaters until after Xmas, enjoy a bit of stability! Have labelled the Letah Wood raptors 25/8 and uploaded cropped images to the server. Also almost completed analysis of Ras al Khor trip in Dubai 28/10, just need to add raptors after a final check; have added the seagulls – Steppe Gull (barabensis) and Slender-billed Gull. Funds did go off the boil but +28k on week, after new record Tuesday. Best part of day was lunch – fancied one is gorgeous: XXXX!!

December 5th: maximum 9C, minimum 2C, light SW becoming moderate SW later, sunny morning, cloudy with rain later, mild. Completed processing of Dotland 29/8. Now looking at Dubai records from late October again: all sorted with 34 species noted but Ras al Khor 28/10 still to do; have been through the piccies tonight, ready to finalise tomorrow. For Northumberland records now working on Letah Wood 25/8. Medium-sized suitcase arrived today from M&S; courier was a familiar attractive redhead JB!! Also Ag spoon arrived from London, very pleased with it. Builders did another full day, completing insulation of wall on first floor taking chimney to the roof. So maybe chimney and stove installed tomorrow. But suspect job is going into Monday next week, if only for roof-work. An electrician came today to move a cable not in the best of places. Falklands shares are going off the boil with some profit-taking as is to be expected. Had good lunch with M at T and good drinks at G4g4s with A/R. Aqotwf: XXXX!!

December 4th: maximum 8C, minimum 2C, light SW becoming moderate SW in evening, sunny morning, cloudy later, cool. Builders still attending, finished the 3 layers of boarding inside the chimney breast, extending up to ceiling of ground floor, now working on insulation on floor above; think stove and chimney will not be installed until Friday leaving roof work, where chimney goes through, until next Monday; can see why work is quite expensive (cost 8k+VAT, of which paid 3.2k as deposit): quality and safety of installation is high. Had D/N until now, 2moro it’s N/P. Cannot wait for finished result. Shall I order some fuel (ovoids)? Some apologies circulating in R today after last nite’s row – good to see! On 1/12 paid Festival 2.5k as 1st of 2 instalments. Bought 2 trefid Ag spoons tonite on Ebay auction, a pair, William III (1700). Completed adding West Dipton 29/8 to BirdTrack, now on 29/8 Dotland. After this one, have just 5 record sheets to do to catch up on everything. Feeling so caged in by being present for builders that had a stretch from the house at 20:00 for 30 min out in the dark and driving rain: quite enjoyable and relaxing! It’s really dark out here so carried a torch. Shall be going out for lunches next two days for some relief!! Also G4g4s 2moro with late stint afters!! XXXX!!

December 3rd: maximum 4C, minimum -1C, light SW, weak sunshine, early frost, cool. In morning completed a few docs after completing the processing of all 2023 records as below. Also processed piccies from West Dipton 29/8. Builders arrived for a second day, still working on insulation board (3 layers) at the back of the new stove, all looking good but not finished yet. Had R Cncl meeting at 17:00 in Cnt in the Snug, with me presiding. Quite a bad tempered meeting with 2 members fiercely at loggerheads over who should lead a team that bestows honours; well, can see some motivation there for bias! Ended with one standing down fuming! Interestingly one, who came out on top, wants to follow the US R model of $1,000 donation gets you there, the other wants more personal commitment, particularly outside R; might be an outcome that suits me as don’t think my contribution to arts funding counts for much in Hexham R. Funds are +50k wtd, mainly on the Falklands news! Had light relief in evening, going to concert at Hexham Abbey RNS with our superb clarinettist Cristina showing off her skills in 2 concertos: Vivaldi’s clarinet concerto 1 and his Air for Chalumeau!! Programme was suitably light, with five items arranged by the Danish SQ, plus Sibelius’ impromptu and other pieces by Corelli, Svendsen and Nielsen. Abbey was full and whole evening passed off well, complete with 2 mulled wines. XXXX!!

Summary for Kenya: 119 of 119 species from 260 records, 4 complete lists, 15 places (as of 3/12/2024)

From Honey-buzzard home page: 3rd December 2024: Updated 2023 running summary with totals from Georgia (autumn) and Kenya (winter).

Georgia (23/8-13/9): Tbilisi, Kutaisi, Batumi, nearly 10k (9,620) recorded, 3 possible breeding sites. 12/9 Batumi city centre, 370 birds S (coasting) from 12:10-17:30 in poor weather. 9/9 Batumi city centre, in foul weather from 12:50-18:50, 1,236 birds coasting to avoid poor visibility inland (80% juvenile, 1,212 S, 24 SW). 8/9 Sakhalvasho from 13:30 to 17:00 in poor weather, 70 birds S, adult male in territory. 6/9 Sakhalvasho from 14:45 to 17:20 3,200 flew S (50 juvenile) classical soar-glide. 5/9 Sakhalvasho from 14:15 to 17:10 4,800 flew S, all adult as far as could see; typical kettle and glide strategy. 4/9 Batumi Botanical Gardens, very close-up views of a Honey-buzzard adult female at 15:52, coming down into the trees for the night. 3/9 Batumi Botanical Gardens, 9 appeared over the top of the Gardens (1 14:38, 1 14:47, 6 14:58, 1 15:09), the singles in the lower levels of the mist gliding S, the 4 (out of 6) going higher from local trees, showing display typical of family groups. 2/9 Batumi city centre, an adult at 15:13 floating very high-up over Batumi moving S. 27/8 Tbilisi Botanical Gardens a female at 14:20 overhead. 26/8 Mtskheta, 2 adult coming out of trees to N of the Cathedral at 12:23 in agitated fashion; looked like a pair in breeding territory.

Kenya (10/12-28/12): Nairobi, Masai Mara, Mombasa, was provisionally none but extensive footage was analysed revealing single males out hunting in the Mara at Aitong on 16/12 at 16:45 and a balloon centre on 18/12 at 07:44.

December 2nd: maximum 8C, minimum 3C, light NW, mainly cloudy, occasional rain, heavy just before dawn. Completed Kenya 2023, pleased with that, masses of material to go through in 2.5 weeks stay; just a bit of tidying up to do before publishing the report. R meal went well, good attendance and good spirit with very interesting talk by JD on John Martin, a famous artist born in Haydon Bridge. Main event of day was builders turning up, doing the base board and struts at the back of the fireplace; will be so relieved if they finish it this week. A Tawny Owl was calling at 18:00 outside. Falklands shares continue their advance! Finished at G4g4s with R/Rg/P/A for good chat with L/E on!! XXXX!!

December 1st: maximum 12C, minimum 5C, light SW, sunny after early rain, mild. Had a Pied Wagtail on the roof in the mild weather. Tested all 46 Lion links worked; still got to index the remaining 25 or so piccies for 15/12. So not quite there yet! Did make G4g4s with A/R/P 4 good chat with L/E on!! No clear run later on but did have a scintillating session: lok2tmfo: she’s gorgeous: XXXX!! 2moro hope builders turn up: R at Cnt at lunchtime: G much later!! Funds finished +34k last week after 5k withdrawals: 2.5k for credit cards and 2.5k for Festival donation.

November 30th: maximum 13C, minimum 11C, moderate S, some brightness, mild. Did make Scotland for an exciting day of a Samling Artist Programme in Masterclass at Marchmont Hall, near Duns. We had some great singing, particularly by Andrea Manuel, soprano, with Liszt’s Oh! Quand je dors, and Hector Bloggs with Rossini’s Largo al factorum, from the Barber of Seville. Apart from one class out of the six, where the master spent too much time on his own ideas, the others went very well in the true spirit of the venture, with the experts transferring some of their skills to their students. Had great cake tea there. Trains were OK, except for cancellation of Cross-Country 17:50 from Berwick to Newcastle on which we had an advance single. We snook onto the next LNER, without incident, getting back into Hexham at expected time! Went with L, good company! Had 15 Whooper Swan at Fenham Flats and a 1w Cormorant at Berwick, plus 6 Herring Gull and 4 Carrion Crow at Marchmont. A Little Egret was at Newburn at 10:20. Indexed all 46 Lion piccies from Mara in late drive on 15/12. 2moro it’s a walk out, followed much later by G4g4s and out late with the beautiful one!! XXXX!!

November 29th: maximum 10C, minimum 9C, light S, sunny spells, mild. In library in afternoon made gr8 progress on wrapping up outstanding records, finishing Hexham NE 9/8 completely and labelling, resizing and uploading remainder of piccies for Mara 15/12, so close to completing Kenya 2023. Next up is indexing Mara 15/12 and processing West Dipton 29/12, after which just 5 sheets left unprocessed. Completion of processing is important because can then finalise trip reports for Georgia and Kenya 2023 and accounts for the various raptors in the study area in 2024. Out with D/D/D/C at DoW in evening for good chat. We’re having Xmas dinner there next Saturday. Lunch was brilliant: she’s very s.xy!! Funds +36k on week at least, still need to sort final totals; Falklands oil looks as if it’s going ahead! 2Moro it’s trip to Duns in Scottish Borders with L for Samling masterclass. XXXX!!

November 28th: maximum 4C, minimum -3C, light SE, sunny morning, cloudier afternoon. Completed 10/8 at Towsbank, now onto 9/8 Hexham NE, which will not take long, wrapping up 1st half of August. Also labelling 15/12 Mara to completely finish Kenya; have now done the Cape Buffalo section in the evening drive, leaving the marvellous Lion to do to finish. Made Dipton Mill 4m4l with M/R/S for very nourishing food and a pint of Whapweasel: good company and food! Did make G4g4s with R/Rg/P/A 4 good company. But needed early nite!! XXXX!! 2moro will be in library in afternoon to do some work while cleaner S in, and will be seeing D/D/D/C at DoW in evening.

November 27th: maximum 4C, minimum -4C, light W, light showers, mainly cloudy, becoming colder in evening with clear skies. Preparing Towsbank 10/8 with labelling but no cropping or uploads yet; might get that done tomorrow. After this have just 8 sheets to do, all in August, to complete 2024 processing for the study area. Have been reading the UAE bird book – it’s very well researched, indeed ground breaking in its treatment of large gulls. Bought a Ag hash spoon, 40cm long, rattail London 1719 from Rosebery’s by online bidding. Feeling a bit jaded, lack of proper heating is a real pain, let’s hope Westall turn up next week. I dislike November at the best of times, so dark and nature’s at a very low ebb! Seeing M at Dipton Mill for lunch 2moro and should make G4g4s but will not be staying out late. XXXX!!

November 26th: maximum 7C, minimum -1C, light SW, mild daytime, becoming colder in evening with clear skies. Great achievement today was completing Haltwhistle 10/8 with its masses of piccies of the Black Kite and Honey buzzard. This analysis added 1 to Black Kite juvenile fledged and a new Honey-buzzard site for season with presumed young in nest, so well worth it. Next up is rest of 10/8 in the upper South Tyne, b4 getting back to finishing Mara, Kenya, 15/12, and sorting out final Dubai list now book Birds of the United Arab Emirates has arrived. Have identified the brother of my ancestor John Rosseter in Wexford in 17th century, that is Patrick Rosseter, as a Catholic priest in Wexford serving for 50 years, classified as a Popish priest and much persecuted. That’s 2 Catholic priests in this family, the other, Michael, becoming Bishop of Ferns, Wexford. My ancestor started off owning a lot of land in Wexford, centred on Rathmacknee, but forfeited it after the rebellion against Cromwell failed. After the Treaty of Limerick in 1690, which hammered the Catholics, the family moved to Tiverton in Devon but still seemed to have a lot of assets! Had early supper at Buongiorno (good day!) in Back Street, Hexham, with M/S/W. We had good chat prior to making Hexham Abbey for a concert in Hexham Music Society series by Laura van der Heijden (cello) and Jâms Coleman (piano). Quite an eclectic programme with pieces by Lili Boulanger (remembered from the Festival, here Reflets was played), Fauré, Debussy, Britten, Price, Korngold and Franck. Particularly liked Britten’s Sonata for Cello and Piano in C major and Franck’s Violin Sonata in A major (arranged for cello!). Paid first instalment on tax for 2023-24; they’ve adjusted my PAYE code for this year to reflect my gift aided donations, some 14k last year, so might get a rebate there. Funds +2k on wtd; Falklands oil is looking more promising by the day! XXXX!!

November 25th: maximum 11C, minimum 3C, moderate SW, mild daytime, becoming cooler as Bert passes. R was very busy, with interesting speaker on power supplies (JD) and good attendance (35). Did masses of work on Haltwhistle 10/8, doing most of indexing, just some resizes to do; it’s worth optimising the piccies from this trip as so much action for Black Kite and Honey-buzzard was recorded. Out to G4g4s with good turnout: A/R/P/Rg/L: captivated by tmlo. Funds made new record today, beating level from May 2024 b4 slump in commodity stocks. 2Moro it’s Italian restaurant in Back Street for supper with some mates from Northumbria b4 concert in the Abbey. XXXX!!

November 24th: maximum 10C, minimum 8C, moderate SW becoming fresh SW by evening, mild. Had 2 Common Buzzard today, first of the month, one at Peth Foot while having breakfast at 09:00, other at Mowden Hall at 12:30 on drive to Callerton Parkway, to catch Metro to Gateshead and then walk to Glasshouse. Had 2 LTT at Callerton. Got there early for lunch with L/S/M b4 mega concert with 315 performers – 215 chorus, 100 orchestra. Very impressive performance of Tippet’s masterpiece, great that the NE can put on such performances; all 3 levels of Sage were packed. Stayed with L/S/M for drink afterwards to let the crowds disperse. Then came home before out again to G4g4s where met R/P/D 4 good chat with L on!! XXXX!!

November 23rd: maximum 12C, minimum -1C, moderate SE becoming light SW, slight frost early hours, heavy driving snow in morning from 06:00-10:00, accumulating 5cm, then rapid thaw. No sun. Windchill -7C around 08:00 as wind increased with temperature still around freezing. Remarkable rise in temperature midday from 1C to 7C in 3 hours. Went for walk at 15:30 seeing a Lesser Redpoll, 11 Redwing, 80 Common Gull, 3 Blackbird, usual Corvids, getting 14 bird-types in all. D got stuck in the weather in the Lake District on way to Liverpool, and had to retreat. Understandably had had enough by time he got back so no DoW tonight. Morning was absolutely foul but rapid thaw and out to W to shop at 19:00 for some bread, milk, fruit. Had 6 Winter Moth by Letah Wood and another 8 at Loughbrow – looked quite incongruous over the residual snow but they always hatch after 1st cold spell. Published some artist profiles (images + biographies in pdf) for the webpages of the music festival coming up this winter; pleased to be having lunch with director on 9/12; she’s a brilliant violinist! Tomorrow going to a Child of Our Time by Tippett at the Sage in the afternoon; it’s a profound work motivated by the horrors of Kristallnacht, as the Jews came under increasingly heavy persecution in Germany. Should meet a few fellow partners there! I sponsor the lead viola MG. Out to G4g4s later and may be tempted to stay out late: XXXX!!

November 22nd: maximum 3C, minimum -2C, light W, sunny, dry. Windchill slightly reduced at -4C in evening. Tomorrow morning looks a little hazardous as storm Bert arrives! Had a good day: favourite lunch: favourite lass: looking gr8!! Did some work in afternoon on Mara 15/12 middle part of day in between game drives; almost sorted this except BirdTrack down for maintenance so couldn’t add 3 records, including 2 nice raptors. Found a new Irish source – Virtual Treasury – which lists vital historical records, now destroyed by the fire at the Irish Public Record Office in Dublin 1922, but still can be useful, just from the headings and particularly so for Catholic families. So am having a look at this. Started processing Haltwhistle 10/8 but lots of piccies to get through. Best week for funds this year at +40k, with £ falling ($ assets rise in £ terms), Canadian metal explorer producing promising survey, Israeli gas stocks up on Iran looking cowed, Uranium stocks soaring on links to power hungry data centres and uncertain Russian supplies, oil production in Falklands getting closer, and even North Sea oil stocks (yielding 20% per annum) coming off the bottom on feelings that Labour’s energy policy is nuts! Thinking of replacing all 6 storage heaters now as they’re all out of date and it makes a better job; got someone from Newburn interested who recently modernised my boards. So theoretically could have no heating in the house at all for a few days! XXXX!!

November 21st: maximum 2C, minimum -2C, moderate W, sunny, dry. Severe windchill again -7C by late evening. In back garden at 16:15, male Sparrowhawk attacking copse hiding 2 Tree Sparrow and a Blackbird, which all escaped. Made T4m4l with M 4 good chat; had cheese omelette and 2 filter coffee; not bad! Again worked hard on records: labelling Haltwhistle 10/8 where Black Kite, Honey Buzzard and Common Buzzard all seen in brief visit. Also resized 15/12 early morning drive, uploaded to server and indexed so this part complete. Funds are +23k wtd and much good news (rise in American uranium stocks, moves towards oil production in Falklands) still not reflected much in prices IMHO. Ordered book Birds of the UAE for my next trip, £40 from NHBS. Made G4g4s with P/R/Rg and L/M on. Took P back: he’s very frail, not sure he should be coming out; very worried about his change in taste. Late night was gr8: melted the frost: XXXX!!

November 20th: maximum 2C, minimum -4C, moderate NW, sunny, dry. Bitter windchill -10c overnight 20/21, think this is coldest night of this spell. Spending £20 a day on electricity according to smart meter but keeping warm in dining room, bathroom and bedroom! Living room, where multi-fuel stove normally is, is freezing. Westall have finally redone the spec, added £800+vat and said work will be done from 2/12 to 6/12; accepted. Looking better, think they now see their way to finishing and they know I’ll pay quickly. Completed Warden 7/8 in all respects; indexed some more 15/12 Mara, indeed all of morning drive from 06:30 to 09:30. Next up is 10/8 Haltwhistle, when had great views of a Black Kite family party; after this just 9 sheets to analyse to finish the season. Might then complete Dubai analysing the Ras al Khor trip on 28/10. Returning to Dubai for Xmas – whole family will be there! Today had lunch at Muro – not bad, had tasty tuna and spinach panini (not a melt) plus Americano; cost £13, service was good and friendly but overall not good enough to be my favourite cafe!! Went for walk around Sele, hearing 2 Nuthatch in total of 12 bird-types. 2Moro it’s T4m4l and much later G4g4s, out late!! XXXX!! Recent records include a Badger at Letah Wood and a Barn Owl at Ordley on 18/11.

November 19th: maximum 2C, minimum -2C, moderate NW, sunny spells, dry. Very cold day, spending a fortune on electricity as no wood burner yet. Westall are promising some action tomorrow in specification after threatening them with termination by Default. What a mess! Going ahead with storage heaters, getting some quotes. Lot of record processing today: started on Mara Kenya 15/12, labelled all of Warden 7/8 and added to BirdTrack Bywell 19/7. Also added info on Ursula Rosseter’s affair on WikiTree. Will she thank me for it! Did get out to B4rw4s, meeting LtP there 4 good chat! Funds +12k wtd on continued strength of Canadian explorer CTM, of which I’m selling a few. XXXX!!

November 18th: maximum 2C, minimum -3C, light S, sunny morning, then overcast, dry. Had a Tawny Owl at Ordley at 00:15, a 1w Kestrel at Houtley at 11:45 and a Barn Owl at Ordley at 23:50. Busy day with R, chairing a packed lunchtime at Cnt and then down to HYI (Hexham Youth Initiative) at 16:30 for their award ceremony, presenting a cup and framed certificate to LW for being a * in the initiative. Was very impressed with HYI and their obvious motivation of young people. Much later made G4g4s with all the gang and L on!! About to serve ‘Termination by Default’ on Westall: what a shambles they are and such poor communicators. Completed indexing Bywell 19/7, including many Black Kite juvenile piccies; will add to BirdTrack 2moro. May be out 2moro in evening: XXXX!!

November 17th: maximum 5C, minimum -1C, moderate W becoming light, sunny spells, dry. Rivers quite low now. On Tyne E of bridge in Hexham had 1 Smew (redhead), 2 Goosander (redhead), 1 Cormorant 1w, 1 Grey Heron, a GBBG 1w, all around 15:30; nice to see the Smew on the river, first seen for a while. Did make Hexham Abbey for reception to celebrate Hexham Abbey Music and Arts Festival success; will continue next year. Also made SB4c4t while cleaner S in. Labelled Bywell 19/7, last visit in July this year. Wrote to my Dutch correspondent on Ursula Rosseter and her wicked ways; it appears that Ursula’s child from the affair was a Catholic who went on to marry his niece, who was of the puritan calling still! Made G4g4s with R/P 4 good chat! Late nite call with the gorgeous one was ecstatic: lok2tmfo: XXXX!!

Two late Black Kite records from early November in BirdGuides:

12:45 04/11 Black Kite Norfolk Great Yarmouth 12:30 one drifted east over waste ground south of A47/Pasteur Road roundabout

12:24 01/11 Black Kite Pembrokeshire Pembroke 11:15 one circled over Holyland Woods with Red Kite

Total number of records was 413 for Honey-buzzard and 171 for Black Kite in 2024.

November 16th: maximum 8C, minimum 0C, moderate W, sunny morning, cloudy afternoon with rain arriving. Gritting lorries out tonight. Very productive day, completing male side of Rosseters in The Hague, Holland (lute and violin makers) in 17th century on WikiTree, leaving the temptress Ursula Rosseter to do, who seems to have been involved in a number of scandals! Don’t know how the puritans handled that! A correspondent from Holland claims she is a descendant of her affair! Also completed processing Mara Kenya 14/12, leaving just one day to go for Kenya (and 2023). 2moro it’s wine reception at Hexham Abbey late morning to acknowledge support from R and its members for their music festival. Then cleaner S in afternoon and much later G4g4s and out late! XXXX!! Had a Greenfinch, 2 Linnet and 9 Herring Gull (6 ad, 3 1w) in quick walk around Ordley. Met D/D later for good chat with C on; we’ve booked Xmas dinner at DoW on 7/12. Mammals on trip included a Brown Rat and a dead Rabbit at Newton, 2 Roe Deer on the road at Loughbrow and a Barn Owl at Newbiggin.

November 15th: maximum 11C, minimum 4C, moderate SW, cloudy, dry daytime. Good progress on records today, finishing Hexham NE 15/7 and Ordley 19/7, and progressing last 1/3 of Masai 14/12. Had a singing Dipper and a Grey Wagtail on quick walk through Sele. Completed self-assessment income tax return for 2023/24, some to pay by 31/1. Finally caught up with funds in last 2 weeks: gain of 15k on the period, against the flow on good report from a Canadian mine explorer. Lunch had its interesting moments: never should have sat there: discreetness maintained!! Hope she’s not going to go too soon: she’s gorgeous: XXXX!!

November 14th: maximum 8C, minimum 5C, light W, patchy mist morning, sunny, dry. Mundane start to day with W delivery at 10:00. Did make T4m4l at 12:00. Started on Hexham NE 15/7, one of 2 outstanding visits for July. Secured AP as vicar to bless R Xmas dinner at Beaumont on 16/12. He’s CoE from the ‘Shire, second preference was a Catholic from StW. Abbey have held sway for quite a while, time for a change. Made G4g4s with R/Rg/A and L on!! By far best of day was later: she’s gorgeous and sensuous: lok2tmfo: XXXX!!

November 13th: maximum 10C, minimum 7C, light W, sunny, dry. Went for walk late afternoon around Ordley, getting 19 bird-types, not bad! Species seen included 357 Common Gull (169 ad, 3 1w, 185 unaged) moving S to Derwent Reservoir to roost, 6 Long-tailed Tit, 3 Bullfinch, 12 Blackbird, 1 Mistle Thrush, 3 Redwing, 2 Wren. Main trip of day was to QH where saw Watch House, a scary play about ghostly events at Tynemouth, overlooking the Black Middens. Just 3 actors did all the parts but quite convincing and had a chat with the older guy who’d played the sinister grandfather in the Beaumont later; they’d been touring in the SW, Dorset in particular, and had really enjoyed it down there. Also had chat with short P there. Have joined QH as an Ambassador for £80 a year: think it needs supporting! You get 10% off drinks in theatre bar! Bottom of Elv is lively!! Going into plan B on heating: replacing 3 old storage heaters, particularly increasing power of one in living room; also ordered new electric fire from Amazon for £80, arriving 2moro; have asked Stovax more about installation requirements for the stove I’ve got: Huntingdon 31 Multi-fuel. Also 2moro it’s T4m4l with M, G4g4s and out late: XXXX!!

November 12th: maximum 10C, minimum 2C, light W, sunny, dry. On flowering ivy, many tiny midges, 1 large black fly. A Goldcrest was feeding in the garden. Compiled 29/10 Jemeriah, including the 3 types of sparrow; 2/3 of way through 14/12 safari Mara. Made good progress on compiling Rosseters in Holland in WikiTree with just Philip R 1632-1708 to do now; they settled in The Hague as musical instrument makers (violin and lute). Not out today. Should be in Hexham tomorrow midday and in evening for play. XXXX!!

November 11th: maximum 10C, minimum 2C, light W, sunny, dry. Main event of day was two R business meetings, which I chaired: lively and we went up to our time limit at 14:00 so plenty to discuss. Stayed on a bit for chat with admin team, then home. Started processing 14/12 day 1 of safari, out from Nairobi, and restarted Rosseters in Holland in 17th century, the musicians. Made G4g4s with the full gang A/R/Rg/P with E/L on!! Nothing planned 2moro but never know what will happen!! lok2tmfo XXXX!! Also had 25 Fieldfare at Ordley, feeding on haws, at 12:00.

November 10th: maximum 12C, minimum 3C, moderate W, mainly dull, few bright spells, occasional drizzle. Did lay wreath on behalf of R at Cenotaph on Sele at their morning service; quite sombre befittingly and well-attended by participants and onlookers; R play a significant role in the event. Got out in afternoon for stroll at Tyne Green and visit to nearby C4c4t, while S in. Had 11 bird-types, including a Cormorant 1w, 3 adult Herring Gull, 95 Black-headed Gull, 12 Common Gull (11 ad , 1 1w), 28 Mallard. Also had 50 Redwing in a single flock at Ordley, feeding on haws, at 12:30, plus 2 Bullfinch. A dead badger was at Letah Wood by side of road.

Cleaner is disgusted with Westall, leaving my lovely house as a shoddy shambles! Did complete Masai 17/12 in all respects, including piccies and bird-record data entry. Next up is day of arrival at Masai camp 14/12. Much later made G4g4s where P/R/A out and E/L on 4 good chat. Later still needed some adaption for satisfaction: success!! she’s gorgeous: XXXX!!

November 9th: maximum 11C, minimum 4C, light W, dull, drizzle evening. Wrote formal complaint by email to JP Westall in morning on safety and progress; they left a really dangerous large hole (for the chimney) open on the first floor gallery with a fireplace below; if my cleaner or I had fallen into it, we could have been severely injured; it’s like falling into a pothole. Progress on stove is derisory, no can-do spirit. They are the worst building firm I’ve ever had the misfortune to employ. So at present living room is uninhabitable with all furniture including tv sidelined and no heating. I’m living in the dining room where have some heating and usable furniture still. Collected for British Legion in afternoon at Tesco; always like collecting there, a warm and generous response. In evening met D/D at DoW4g4s and gr8 chat. Did some more indexing on 17/12 Masai, just the leopard to do now. 2moro it’s Cenotaph in morning, walk in afternoon on Tyne Green while cleaner in and G4g4s with mates and late-out!! XXXX!!

November 8th: maximum 12C, minimum 10C, light E, sunny spells, dry. Busy day. Into Lit&Phil in NCL to hear Brundibar’s first fundraising event; artistic director had kindly reserved a ticket for me. Had an hour’s concert of good music, confirming my sponsorship, then good chats with fellow supporters, b4 coming home on 14:56 after 2 trains around 14:30 both cancelled. Just got back in time 2 c the fancied one!! Not long after at QH for more G&S with the Pirates of Penzance by HASS, which also sponsor. The band, starring CA on piano, was brilliant but for the leading duo, the lass was forcing her voice a little and the lad was a little subdued; the head of the pirates did well. The chorus were brilliant in both singing and actions. Met some old friends there and really enjoyed the evening. Next 2 days, no concerts, but remembrance weekend involves collecting at Tesco on Saturday afternoon and laying a wreath on the war memorial on Sunday. XXXX!!

November 7th: maximum 12C, minimum 9C, light S, sunny, dry. Checked the flowering ivy on my roadside at 14:00 and there was a Red Admiral butterfly, 10 honey bee and a few black flies but no wasps. In the trees had a Nuthatch. Made T4m4l with M 4 good chat. Another (grander) meal at Pani’s with L at 17:00 in High Bridge, NCL, b4 going to TR to see Ruddigore, a Gilbert & Sullivan opera. It’s a comedy with many dark hereditary forces, weighing on a village in Cornwall. Loved the group singing by the lasses and the patter of the leads: don’t know how they do it so quickly. The lead roles were very well played. We had another reception with Opera North in the interval, a new development, they’ve only done opening night before. Finished at 22:00 (3 hours) so into V&C4g4s (nitecap!). Back on last train. Ended with the beautiful one: shall sleep well tonite: she’s gorgeous: lok2tmfo!! This is a mad week for concerts and have 2 2moro at 13:00 in Lit & Phil, NCL, where organiser has got me a ticket and at 19:00 in QH with Pirates of Penzance (more G&S!). Hope to get back to HEX by 15:15 in afternoon. XXXX!!

November 6th: maximum 15C, minimum 6C, light S, dull, dry. Made dentistry in Corbridge for private treatment at 09:50; hygienist was worried about my gums, gave me tooth picks to push plaque away; dentist found no issues with teeth, so not too bad. Rushed off to Sele for flu jab, delivered within 30 secs of arriving! Caught 17:16 HEX-NCL, making TR just in time for reception at 18:15; good to meet up with the ON team again; had 2 more receptions, one in each interval, but saving has to be balanced against the £190 I donate to them each month! Opera Midsummer Night’s Dream was typical Britten: quite faithful to the Shakespeare story but quite a lot of experimental harmonics with Act 2 showing men behaving badly (dark side of the play) and Act 3 being quite funny at times, almost slapstick humour! Very much enjoyed it, a substantive offering.; finished at 22:15 Came back on last train, which will also do tomorrow. Tomorrow is Ruddigore, having dinner before with L at Pani’s in High Bridge Street. Hoping for some action with the beautiful one later: XXXX!!

November 5th: maximum 11C, minimum 7C, light S, dull, dry. Up early to get car in for annual service at BSM at 08:30. Received a list of fairly minor defects by 10:00 and actioned through SMS facility most of them for repair. Work went onto 16:30 when decided to visit them to pay and secure vehicle for drive home; cost was £400, not too bad if nothing else goes wrong; have last payment on loan deal for the car from Lloyds this month; took out deal in late 2020 when interest rates were really low during Covid, having car delivered from Darlington! Spent most of day in QHL, working on R and bird records. Have completed Beaufront 11/6 and got into final stages of labelling the afternoon drive on 17/12/23 in Kenya. Looked at Jumeirah 29/10 and think I’ve got a Dead Sea Sparrow, quite a rarity in Dubai, as third sparrow type, adding to House and Spanish. Got car back at 16:45 just in time for R Council meeting at Cnt4g4t, where chaired a very lively meeting from 17:00-18:15. Lunch was extremely motivating as were 2 other occasions: she knows what turns me on!!! XXXX!! 2moro it’s dental hygienist at 10:00, dentist at 10:40, Sele for flu jab at 11:25. Then Opera North’s Midsummer Night’s Dream by Britten at Theatre Royal, with receptions for patrons at 6:15 and in interval. Some might prefer the dentist to the opera!! Opera continues on Thursday with ON’s Ruddigore and on Friday evening am going to HASS’s Pirates of Penzance (or Whitley Bay!) at QH, again as patron. Friday lunchtime, should be attending Brundibar’s fund-raising concert at Lit & Phil, NCL, but it’s sold out so in a quandary!

November 4th: maximum 11C, minimum 7C, light SE, dull, dry. A busy day clearing out downstairs desk, partly with aim of finding spare car key, but no success there; eventually found in safe and it works fine! Did find many old cards and photos of great interest. Good talk at lunchtime at R by Dave George of NCL uni agriculture. Had delivery of groceries from R at 17:00. Made G4g4s with R/Rg/P 4 good chat! 2moro it’s car service all day with: R Cncl at 17:00 with me in chair. Not out later. Last night was really gr8: lok2tmfo: XXXX!! Had a Barn Owl at Ordley at 00:15.

November 3rd: maximum 13C, minimum 8C, light E, dull, dry. Recovered a lot from cold shock yesterday but did have heating on high. Encouraged by preliminary results from donations yesterday. By 09:00 this morning we had taken 13.5k + 0.5k gift aid, with some money still coming in. Using JustGiving, QR codes and a card reader has boosted takings but we still took about 9.8k in cash. It’s a much better result than last year. Had 10 Redwing at Ordley at 12:30. Did masses of work in dining room, compiling Viewley 14/6 bird records, and updating some Dubai records after looking at books and web sites. Next up is Beaufront 11/6 and that clears June. Also cleared desk of masses of papers and went through the lot, discarding 90% but found some goodies such as drawings by granddaughters, some family piccies and some concert programmes. Xmas will see son and I back in Dubai, joined by my son-in-law’s sister T and her son R, T obviously being Iranian as well. Later all set to go out at 21:30 and fob key would not trigger car door opening; spent 30 min on web before realising how you take part of door handle off to reveal key slot; so did this and getting in set off car alarm! Putting key into ignition stopped alarm: hope neighbours aren’t too bothered! So made G4g4s at 22:50, ordered usual quart and drank it quickly. Gr8 to meet mates A/R/P again! Later ecstasy with tmfo: making up for lost time: she’s so s.xy!! lok2tmfo: XXXX!! 2moro it’s R again at Cnt4m4l, where officiating again! Car is being serviced at BSM, HEX, on Tuesday, so will be in QH4work!

November 2nd: maximum 11C, minimum 7C, light E, dull, occasional drizzle. Up at 03:45, off to Airport at 04:05, there at 04:50, gate at 06:00, take off 07:25, slept straight away for 2.5 hours, arrive early 10:50, after flight of 7 hour 25 min, fetch car out of long-stay, drive to Waitrose in HEX for some groceries, home by 12:20. Hoped that building work would be finished but not so: everything demolished and prepared but nothing installed yet. So main living space not habitable, moved into dining room, quite a big catch-up on various R activities, bird records and finances. Funds are +3k on past 2 weeks. Made bandstand at 17:00 to help with fireworks collection. My team were given a quiet corner, Cockshaw. We quickly moved to the Sele entrance where masses of people coming in, particularly as the mountain rescue helpers there were called out on an event near Bardon Mill. Helped collect takings together and then left for home at 20:15, feeling cold with contrast from Dubai. Display had been brilliant, ending with a great flourish. Got to bed at 23:45, a long day, looking forward to tomorrow.

November 1st: maximum 32C, minimum 27C, light N, sunny all day, dry. Getting a bit more acclimatised, did a walk midday from 11:00-13:00 to Club House, where had an Americano and croissant as a break. Had usual species in abundance but also saw 3 Chiffchaff in the lush vegetation of the Estates; these are probably of the menbieri subspecies, breeding in Iran, with tristis not being established as the main form in UAE British Birds. Also had in 12 bird-types an Indian Roller, a pair of Hoopoe, plus 4 small butterflies: Veined Tip Colotis vesta. Main event of day was the concert at Dubai Opera of Vivaldi’s violin concerto and Vivaldi’s Four Seasons in an arrangement by Max Richter. Daughter and I went to that. Concert hall was packed and it was very civilised and glamorous, obviously an event to be seen at! The star was violinist Anastasiya Petryshak, from Ukraine, playing solo in the violin concerto and lead in the Four Seasons. The orchestra was the Kyiv Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra, under Dmitry Yablonsky. So an all-Ukraine performance. Dubai is full of Russians and there were certainly quite a few in the audience tonight: they do after all share the same musical heritage, including Prokofiev, who was born in Donetsk. The enthusiastic audience clapped after everything, even pauses, but the performers kept smiling, and did two encores. It’s good to see Dubai encompassing European music in this way. We had a quick meal before in an Indian restaurant close to the theatre and afterwards we explored Dubai’s glamorous nearby water-front, including the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa at 828m. Below this building is a lake full of fountains, which all come on in a synchronised ‘dance’ on each hour! We got taxis there and back; driving in the City Centre is not for the faint-hearted. Dubai is hedonism personified!! To bed early at home as up at 03:45 for 07:25 flight DXB-NCL tomorrow!! XXXX!!

October 31st: maximum 32C, minimum 26C, light NE, sunny all day, dry. Halloween today, celebrated in style on Jumeirah Golf Estates, amazed how many of the families here are English; I went out twice on the golf buggy, with son-in-law and daughter driving, in turn. Very friendly atmosphere! Granddaughters got massive haul of sweets. With so many young families around here, what I read into this is how many well-off people have already left high-tax UK for low-tax Dubai. Cannot see any lessening of the flow after yesterday’s move in a tax-and-spend budget towards a record 44% of GDP being taken in tax, mostly from the top 10%. Earlier daughter and I had a good breakfast at the Club House; I had Halloumi toast, very tasty. Carried on processing 17/12 Masai. Not out in the field today. 2moro daughter and I are going to concert in evening at Dubai Opera; straight to bed after that as flight home DXB to NCL at 07:25 on 2/11. Have fireworks collection by R that evening: looking forward to seeing everyone again: XXXX!!

October 30th: maximum 32C, minimum 28C, light SW, sunny all day, dry. Went with daughter to Museum of the Future, an amazing futuristic site, near the Dubai Trade Center. It has several levels, including space travel, maintaining health of our biosphere (Heal Foundation of India), maintaining human health, particularly avoiding depression, transport evolution, all set in 2071. Thought provoking with solar energy dominating the future that far ahead, even in an oil-rich state. Cost a little to get in as only Pioneer tickets available – £175 for the 2 of us: I paid! Had usual walk to Club House at ttime from 17:00-18:50 where had a couple of g, seeing a male Spanish Sparrow, a Grey Heron, a Hoopoe and picking up an extra Little Owl at dusk at 18:25; got close-ups of Common Myna, Laughing Dove, Grey Francolin. The World Golf tournament is 2 weeks away and preparations are now intense. XXXX!!

October 29th: maximum 32C, minimum 27C, moderate NW, sunny all day, dry. Out at 15:30 for leisurely walk to the club house of Jumeirah, seeing masses of birds on the course as they’ve seeded some bald areas! Saw three sparrow-types: 80 House Sparrow, 2 Spanish Sparrow, 1 male Dead Sea Sparrow, last-named a rarity in Dubai. Star bird was a female Sparrowhawk hunting along the end of the fairway: masses of prey available today! Saw 3 Hoopoe including a pair displaying, 30 Common Myna, 4 Grey Francolin, 8 Collared Dove, 8 White-eared Bulbul. Total was 9 bird-types, not everything counted. Made club house at 17:30 where had a couple of draught Guinness: £27 for the two; they were very friendly! Good social evening with family. XXXX!

October 28th: maximum 32C, minimum 28C, moderate NW, sunny all day, dry. After morning at the ranch, catching up on 17/12 records from Masai Mara, doing some indexing, went out in afternoon to Ras al Khor a wildlife reserve in Dubai on the main creek. Went to Flamingo hide no 2 (there are 3 hides) at 16:00-17:30, from which could see around 1,500 Greater Flamingo, against a backdrop of skyscrapers. Went on own using Uber both ways, costing £55 for the two journeys from the Golf Estates; it was 45 min in each direction. Also here had 5 types of bird of prey, including 2 Bonelli's Eagle (both adult, one pale head, 1 dark head), 1 Steppe Buzzard (in heavy moult, seen twice, adult), 1 Black Kite (very uniform dark plumage, not in moult, juvenile), a Western Marsh Harrier and a Shikra. Other birds included 3 Red-wattled Lapwing (an agitated pair), 2 White Stork, 4 Cattle Egret, a Great White Egret, 2 Grey Heron, 2 White Wagtail, in total of 21 bird-types. At Dubai Trade Center, on way, at 15:15 had 2 Pale Crag Martin, flying high-up around the tops of skyscrapers. So good trip out. Back in time for supper and good chat with family. Earlier in Jumeirah Golf Estates had 3 Grey Francolin on an old piece of desert. Lok2tmfo: XXXX!

October 27th: maximum 33C, minimum 29C, light NW, sunny all day, dry. Dubai is now 4 hours ahead of UK, after UK comes off summer time. Stayed on the estates today, walking up to the Club House from 12:00-13:00 for coffee and again in evening from 17:30-18:30 for drink (yes, a g) and supper at an Italian restaurant there. All the residents think this weather is marvellous: I’d agree except in midday when the sun is really scorching. Wish the tmfo were here: XXXX!!

Had 10 bird-types at noon, including some good photo studies: 16 Rock Dove (photo), 2 Collared Dove (photo), 7 Laughing Dove (photo), 2 Hoopoe (photo), 4 Ring-necked Parakeet, 5 House Crow, 4 White-eared Bulbul (photo), 4 Common Myna (photo), 8 House Sparrow (photo), plus an Asian Desert Warbler (subsong from acacia, somewhat like a Willow Warbler). Added 3 more types in evening: 1 Black Francolin, 2 Little Owl (a pair), a singing Song Thrush. In quiet spell in afternoon labelled remaining half of slides from 17/12 Masai Mara, resized them all for this day and uploaded them to the web server.

October 26th: maximum 33C, minimum 28C, light NW, sunny all day, dry. Some major surprises today on the Honey-buzzard front! We had a UAE-style lunch at Meridien Hotel, near the marina; I had a tuna-dish (real fish) with seaweed and swede – very tasty. Cost was 700 AED for 6 of us (£130), not that bad really, my turn next at an Italian close to our villa. Back to the ranch at ttime and daughter and I took dog Dexter for a walk from 17:00-18:00, still warm but not so searing with the sun going down at 17:42 (rising 06:23). There’s a big golf tournament at Jumeirah in mid-November, part of the World DP tour, and marquees and other buildings are being rapidly assembled. Swimming pool almost completed, outside lights installed and landscapers arrive on Monday. Son left this evening, back to London, good to see him again. Music rehearsals later, with younger granddaughter on piano grade 1 and older one on violin grade 2. XXXX!

Had a detour towards airport at 14:00 seeing 4 Little Egret, 12 Rock Dove, 3 Laughing Dove. At the Meridien near the marina from 14:30-16:30 had 4 Ring-necked Parakeet, 4 Indian House Crow; on drive back at Al Thanyah had an adult Socotra Cormorant and a Crested Honey-buzzard (eastern type) over the waterways there; the raptor at 16:35 was climbing when first seen, before coming back quickly again, so presumably disturbed; it was large and long-winged so presumably orientalis race breeding in Siberia. Have some more to add, including another Crested Honey-buzzard at Jemeriah which may well have been the one seen earlier again. Here’s some background to an amazing increase in records for the eastern Honey-buzzard in Arabia:

Oriental Honey-buzzard: The species appears to be regularly wintering in small numbers (perhaps 75–100 birds) (35) in Arabian Peninsula, with records available from: Iran (36, 37), Jordan, Kuwait (38), Lebanon (39), Oman (by 2013, 124 records in Sept–May, with perhaps up to 30 wintering per year, since first in May 1996) (40, 41), Qatar (42), Saudi Arabia (now regular in winter, with three summer records) (43, 44, 45), NE Turkey (46), Yemen (including Socotra) (35) and United Arab Emirates (minimum of c. 20 each winter, occasional in summer) (35). There are also records of apparent hybrids with P. apivorus available from several Middle Eastern countries (35). Numbers 35-46 are references. Birds of the World (2020, last updated 2016).

Crested Honey Buzzard: Uncommon passage migrant & winter visitor, but apparently increasing and sometimes recorded in mid-summer. Best sites are on Abu Dhabi Island where several birds are wintering every year, particularly Mushrif Palace Gardens and the surrounding gardens. Another reliable site in Dubai during winter is Mushrif National Park. Watch for raptors at the large car-park located at 25.214628N , 55.450181E; it is best to visit mid-morning. This species has also proven to be semi-regular at Hamraniyah Fields in the far north and in the greater Dubai area, in Al Ain it seems Ain al-Fayda has a few wintering birds; it also winters in some years in the plantations on Sila'a Peninsula in the far west. UAE birding Key sites.

Recent status and occurrence of Crested Honey Buzzards Pernis ptilorhynchus in the Arabian peninsula, with emphasis on Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates An attempt to correct for this overall increase in observer effort, Figure 3 illustrates the total number of bird-days recorded for the species annually from 2005 (data for all species for previous years has not yet been fully computerised) to 2013, expressed as percentage of all records in the UAE bird database. Figure 3 confirms that the marked increase in records of CHB in the UAE since 2005 appears genuine and is not an artefact of observer activity. As well as increasing markedly in numbers, CHB is now widely recorded across the UAE. ResearchGate

Here’s report of late afternoon walk: 5 Black Francolin, 12 Rock Dove, 7 Collared Dove, 10 Laughing Dove, 1 Western Reef Heron, 1 Grey Heron, 1 Song Thrush singing at dusk, 1 Crested Honey Buzzard (orientalis, Pernis ptilorhynchus orientalis), not far from where one seen earlier. At 17:00 a long- and broad-winged, large, Honey-buzzard of eastern type, was flying to E at moderate height in smooth glide with occasional flaps, mobbed by some House Crow. Presumed the same bird). 50 Ring-necked Parakeet, 7 House Crow, 6 White-eared Bulbul, 1 White-spectacled Bulbul, 26 Common Myna, 1 Graceful Prinia. Up to 21 species now.

October 25th: maximum 34C, minimum 29C, light NW, sunny all day, dry. Did some pottering around in morning, looking at daughter’s mansion in the Jumeirah Golf Estates, in final stages of makeover with swimming pool opening next week; it’s worth some $5m. Dubai is the opposite of the UK: the former is in massive expansion in all respects, while the latter is in steady decline, driven by a net-zero death-wish, a subject which has never been debated properly in the House of Commons. We went on a formal desert trip in the evening, to the desert reserve in the SE of the county, approaching Oman. Our guide Duncan, from South Africa, was very good with the chat, the driving and the culture. We saw the three deer types: Oryx (back from brink of extinction), Arabian Antelope, Sand Antelope. Also included was falconry (with a Lanner, not counted!), a 4-course meal in a Bedouin-style tent, star gazing directed by Duncan. A brilliant trip, which we all enjoyed from 15:00-22:20, driving some 70km in each direction. No wind-mills in the UAE as they do not want them to kill their revered falcons and other raptors. But they are building large solar farms. Abu Dhabi, part of UAE, is a massive oil and gas producer, leaving Dubai to do the tourist and business side.

Birds in the desert included a Great Grey Shrike, perched on a bush, 4 Slender-billed Gull 1w, at a watering hole, a Hoopoe, 70 Laughing Dove, 2 Collared Dove, 1 Rock Dove, 10 White-eared Bulbul, 90 House Sparrow, 1 Striolated Bunting, 2 Streaked Scrub Warbler, 1 Northern Wheatear male, 11 types in all. On the way at a world-class camel racing centre near Le Hemaira, we had 5 Common Myna, 3 Laughing Dove, 1 Indian Roller. Earlier in Jumeirah Golf Estates we had in the midday heat 2 Collared Dove, 6 Common Myna, 1 Hoopoe, 1 Laughing Dove, 8 White-eared Bulbul, 1 Barn Swallow, 22 Rock Dove, 1 Indian Roller (carrying a large flying insect), 1 Indian House Crow. So 15 species on day. XXXX!

October 24th: maximum 15C, minimum 10C, light S, sunny spells, dry. Now in DXB at 02:30 (25/10) after flight of 7 hours 15 min; met by daughter who lives here so settling in now. In terms of UK time it’s 3 hours ahead! XXXX!! Flight here was interesting route in that went just to S of Gaza and Aqaba, avoiding Israel and Palestine, moving over Jordan and Saudi in the home straight. We should have gone over north of Lebanon, Syria and Iraq but presumably worries persist over this area. Good send off from NCL with single Short-eared Owl and Common Buzzard about.

October 23rd: maximum 14C, minimum 7C, light S, sunny spells, dry. Had good lunch out, including chat with A! Westall did come round in morning and we agreed on plan for new multi-fuel stove and flue to be installed next week. Spent much of day closing down and finalising current activities. So busy but not too much to show!! Here’s piccie of yours truly at the gala dinner. Last nite was very good in all respects. XXXX!! You can view gallery of dinner here: Gala Dinner Gallery | The Glasshouse

October 22nd: maximum 13C, minimum 7C, moderate W, sunny all day, dry. Did take stuff down to recycling centre. Main event of day was trip to Glasshouse in Gateshead for gala dinner, very posh, wore black tie! Dinner was free and was to celebrate 20 years at the Glasshouse. We had masses of music, a 2-course dinner, plenty of wine and champagne: quite an evening – went with L. Dinner was for their generous supporters and we’re expected to put our hands in our pockets next year in a major fund-raising effort. Came back on last train and couldn’t resist saying goodbye to tmfo: she’s gorgeous: XXXX!! Not sure what’s happening tomorrow – depends on Westall, but do hope to get into HEX.

October 21st: maximum 13C, minimum 7C, moderate SW, sunny all day, dry. Swept up some hedge cuttings and prepared load of electricals for recycling centre tomorrow. R at Cnt4m4l went well, plenty of updates from team leaders and good talk from chief executive of a hospice. Made G4g4s with A/R/Rg for good chat. 2moro it's gala dinner in evening at GH in Gateshead, dressing up in black tie! So satisfying last nite: XXXX!!

October 20th: maximum 14C, minimum 9C, SW gale, some sunny intervals, heavy squalls. A wild day in all respects!! Had good lunch at Broad Chare on Quayside with L, having a medium rw, shoulder of lamb and a pear dessert. Then to GH4con with Samling Institute, based in Hexham, presenting their younger students in a variety of pieces, and giving us a reception at the end. L drove me home and got back at 17:45 after a good day out. Made G4g4s with P/A/R 4 good chat with L on!! Wild day ended in gr8 style: tmfo is brill: lok2tmfo!! Funds were +12k last week, mainly on improved prospects for Uranium. Have booked Xmas in Dubai, going out for the week at cost of £950 from NCL for family reunion. XXXX!!

October 19th: maximum 13C, minimum 4C, light W, sunny all day, mild. Finished hedge-cutting of leylandii with steps out and all long cutting equipment employed, gr8 to finish it. Some gardening tasks left but have broken back of it for this year. Did manage a bit of work on bird records, completing processing of 9/9 Stocksfield and therefore of all September records. Up to date in October so now back to June, labelling 14/6 today from Viewley. Today had a Speckled Wood butterfly out in the sunshine at home and the noisy Common Buzzard again out over my field. Two Brown Rat were at Newton on the way to DoW4g4s 4 good chat with D/D/D/C. 2moro out for lunch with L, followed by Samling concert at the GH in afternoon. Later will be at G4g4s and out late!! XXXX!

October 18th: maximum 14C, minimum 7C, moderate SW, sunny morning, cloudier afternoon, rain late-on, mild. She’s looking gr8: tmfo is very inspirational!! Did more hedge cutting on leylandii in afternoon, leaving just crown to do now, for which will get the steps out. Made Sage for concert, going in by train and meeting partners for meal beforehand. Concert by Sinfonia of London was very impressive, featuring Shostakovich’s dark and brooding cello concerto with Sheku Kanneh-Mason as incredible soloist, and Rachmaninov Symphony 1. Really enjoyed it, had a rw with other partners and then found last train had been cancelled; they did put on a bus taking 30 min longer but at least got back! Funds had a fair week, details to follow. At Ordley had 3 Fieldfare dropping out of the sky and a vocal adult Common Buzzard. At Hexham station had 26 vocal Common Gull and 2 Greenfinch. At Bywell had an adult Mute Swan on the pond at Merryshields. XXXX!!

October 17th: maximum 15C, minimum 6C, light SW, sunny all day, few cloudy spells, mild. Got out the high-hedge cutter today and scalped the top of the beech hedge in my front entrance; beech hedge now all done so it’s leylandii next, which is 4m high! Does make you fit! While out in the garden from 15:00-17:00 had a Goosander redhead SW, 30 Redwing SE, a Kestrel 1w hunting my field, an increase in Blackbird numbers and in their argumentativeness in my field, flock of 200 Common Gull , nearly all adult, moving S to Derwent Reservoir to roost: many signs of autumn migration from Scandinavia. At Hexham S at 13:30 had c30 wasps on flowering ivy with some hover flies. At Ordley at 00:15 had a Barn Owl sitting on a fence and 3 rabbit. Met M at T4m4l 4 good chat. Later P was too frail to come out so made G4g4s with A/Rg and L on!! Day ended sensuously: tmfo is very, very s.xy: lok2tmfo: XXXX!!

October 16th: maximum 14C, minimum 10C, light SE, heavy rain most of day, lighter in afternoon, mild. As expected a foul day weather-wise. Called in by hairdressers early as cancellations had left a big gap: obliged, good cut and chat by Jd!! Got pretty wet but some exercise was welcome. Did a lot of work on bird records from September, completing 11/9 including the amazing visit to Towsbank, and making good progress on last outstanding list for September of 9/9 in Bywell area. Had a mobile Song Thrush up Elvaston and a Common Buzzard flying over Ordley in the rain. Have 2 unprocessed visits for June and 2 for July, which will be given priority once finish 9/9. Tidied up downstairs bedroom where the water dripped, no lasting damage! 2moro it’s T4m4l with M and G4g4s, taking frail P, so will be late!! XXXX! Funds are +1k wtd with Uranium a star as nuclear power looks likely to be adopted by more and more data centres for their AI needs.

October 15th: maximum 11C, minimum 10C, light SE, dull all day, becoming milder. Another busy hedge-cutting day, getting stuck into the main beech and leylandii hedges in the front; masses of leaves all over the place; not done the tops yet, need the steps and extra-long trimmer blade for that, probably Thursday when sun comes out again! Processed most of Towsbank 11/9 visit with its remarkable 8 types of raptor; should complete 2moro morning. While out gardening had a Red Kite 1w circling slowly overhead and 12 Greylag Goose S. Did get out in evening to Cnt4g4s with M 4 good chat. SH. Having hair-cut with Jd at JG at ttime 2moro. XXXX!

October 14th: maximum 11C, minimum 1C, light E, sunny all day, dry, cool. R went well at Cnt, good atmosphere, plenty of business conducted. Did some energetic hedge trimming in afternoon cutting shrubs overlooking neighbour’s and having a first cut on some of the bigger hedges. Hope to do more tomorrow. Processed Parson Shields 11/9. In field noted 6 Blue Tit, 4 Coal Tit, 2 Long-tailed Tit in a tit flock plus a Common Buzzard ad calling at Peth Foot and a late Red Admiral butterfly in the garden. Much later made G4g4s with A/R/Rg/P 4 good chat with L on!! lok2tmfo: XXXX!

October 13th: maximum 7C, minimum 2C, light SE, few weak sunny intervals, mainly dull, dry, cold. Did make Tyne Green from 15:40-17:40 while cleaner S was busy at home for walk and leisure at SB4c4t! Had video chat with son at 18:00 for an hour; next chat will be shortly after he arrives in Dubai a week ahead of me. Paid £500 to Hexham Abbey Festival of The Arts as donation for their recent festival. Had a Jay and a Bullfinch at Ordley at 12:00; at Tyne Green in total of 12 bird-types had 70 Black-headed Gull, 50 Mallard, 2 Grey Heron, 2 Cormorant (ad, 1w), 2 adult Herring Gull, a Swallow (last named most remarkable, being quite late). Funds finished last 2 weeks +20k before 2.1k withdrawal for balance of plumbing to Westall. China continues to disappoint in terms of reflation so expected recovery in natural resource stocks is going rather slowly! So last week funds declined 13k after 33k rise the week before. Did make G4g4s with P/R/A and E on, for good chat! I get kicks everytime I see her: gr8 relief tonite: tmfo it is: XXXX! 2moro it’s R at Cnt4m4l

October 12th: maximum 11C, minimum 0C, moderate W daytime, sunny morning, heavy rain early afternoon, then sunny again. Did do 2 jobs around the house and garden: cleaning and oiling the grass mower before putting away for the winter; clearing a high-up gutter in front of house of grass deposits which are threatening to block it. Latter did not do from ladder but by opening a roof-light and running a walking stick in the gutter through the grass until it was dislodged and then leaning over and pulling it all out: job done! Did quite a lot of work processing records, on birds for Warden 3/9 and on the Arts Festival in January as well as finding another child for Philip R, making his total of 11 children, of which only one appeared to die young. 2moro hope to get a walk in, a visit to Tyne Green, G4g4s, staying out late!! XXXX!

From BirdGuides since 30/9, Black Kite are still lingering and Honey-buzzard emigration is down to a trickle. Note the 1st Honey-buzzard record for Cape Verde on island Sal.

14:57 11/10 Black Kite Isles of Scilly St Mary's one flew east over Peninnis Head

14:48 11/10 Black Kite Cork Cape Clear one

14:45 11/10 Black Kite Isles of Scilly St Mary's 14:40 one flew high south-east over Trenoweth

14:34 11/10 Black Kite Isles of Scilly St Agnes one flew south over The Turks Head early afternoon

16:17 07/10 European Honey Buzzard Devon Heathfield 06/10 one flew south yesterday

11:07 07/10 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Winterton Dunes NNR one flew over viewed from North Dunes

14:55 06/10 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Winterton-on-Sea one flew north over low woods

13:28 05/10 European Honey Buzzard East Yorkshire Easington 13:26 one flew west over Seaside Road

15:23 02/10 European Honey Buzzard Sal Sal juvenile; first record for Cape Verde

18:10 01/10 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Burnham Overy 18:06 one flew over

11:27 01/10 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Hengistbury Head one flew south mid-morning

October 11th: maximum 11C, minimum 5C, light W, sunny spells, some cloud, dry. Had a Mistle Thrush and 6 Pied Wagtail at Ordley at 18:00. Met D/D at DoW4g4s for good catch-up. Did some energetic gardening late afternoon demolishing with the hedge-trimmer the ivy near the house wall and cutting back the bramble on the verge. Added bird records from 1/9 Hexham Tyne Green, Capheaton 2/10 and Otter estuary 8/10 plus some casual records. Lunch was very stimulating: she’s stunning: XXXX! Made R meeting at 14:40, a little late, to discuss fund raising; we’ve received some recent sizeable donations from people related to Rugby Club, all very promising.

October 10th: maximum 11C, minimum 2C, light W, sunny intervals, dry, ground frost on car at 22:00; did see the vivid Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) from Loughbrow on way to pub at 22:00 and again to a lesser extent on way home from Ordley at 00:10 (11/10). Day started with good breakfast at BW b4 catching Metro to NCL and getting train to HEX. Caught up with a few tasks but not too much done today. Man came to service intruder alarm – no issues. Made T4s4l with M 4 good chat and G4g4s with R/A/Rg and L on to catch-up on recent events!! Plenty of excitement later: lok2tmfo: so fanciable: XXXX!! On roadside, just after spot where watched the Aurora, at 00:15, had a Roe Deer so good that I was going slowly!

October 9th: maximum 17C, minimum 8C, light W, cloudy at times but some sun, dry. This morning we went for walk on Aylesbeare Common from 11:40-12:55, a classical lowland heath in East Devon. We managed 7 bird-types, with Stonechat (8 birds) and Robin (6) the commonest. Also had 4 Chaffinch, a Linnet, 2 Chiffchaff and 2 Crow. Star bird was one Dartford Warbler, seen flitting low-down from one bush to another in brief flight. Back for lunch in Sidmouth, been a marvellous trip seeing many relations again. Then caught 15:15 Honiton to Exeter St Davids before setting off at 16:27 on long trek with change at Birmingham to Newcastle, which made at 22:19, 4 min late. LNER trains were complete chaos again, glad didn’t go through London. On train indexed ½ piccies for Kenya 17/12 last year and added 10 children to WikiTree for Philip Rosseter the lutenist and musician (1568-1623): he was obviously a busy man! Had 15 Cattle Egret in one flock near Bridgwater – first time I’ve seen them in UK and a Kestrel just past Bristol. Near Honiton had a total of 3 Common Buzzard and a Small White. At BW Kent in Jesmond overnight after brief visit to VctCmt for a couple of g. Back home 2moro morning and later G4g4s and the beautiful one!! XXXX!

October 8th: maximum 18C, minimum 12C, moderate to fresh SE, heavy rain showers all day, except for afternoon. Morning was dreadful weather-wise with rain lashing down on onshore wind. We had a coffee in Sidmouth then had a bracing walk along the Esplanade with very rough seas, waves up to 2m, seeing 4 Turnstone but nothing offshore. We then set out to Budleigh Salterton, to the mouth of the Otter from 12:00-14:30, where a massive development of the estuary for wildlife has taken place with the demolition of an embankment and the consequent widening of the estuary with pathways all around and clumps of reeds and young trees, mainly hawthorn, alder, sallow and oak. We were very lucky starting our walk just as the weather relented and did the loop around the lower estuary in 2 hours without getting wet. 29 types of bird were seen, including 3 Greenshank, 10 Ringed Plover, 9 Redshank, 3 Oystercatcher, 10 Curlew, 3 Little Egret, a Grey Heron, 23 Mallard, 1 Teal, 2 Wigeon, 10 Canada Goose, 4 Greylag Goose, one Kestrel, 52 GBBG (46 ad, 6 1w), 2 Raven, 1 Skylark. Further up the estuary some Beaver have been released. Went for evening meal at the Blue Ball pub, Exeter, where we met 6 relatives: 2 nephews and their partners, 2 grand-nephews. All very convivial and enjoyed by all. Looking forward to return: XXXX!

October 7th: maximum 18C, minimum 13C, light S, sunny morning, cloudier later. Big sis and I had morning walk in Pitshanger Park where some 8 Ring-necked Parakeet and 8 Magpie plus a Small White. Then via Elizabeth Line to Tottenham Court Road and Northern to Waterloo to catch 14:20 SW Trains to Exeter, getting off at Honiton at 17:25, where met by younger sister. Back to her place for supper with heavy Devon rain setting in. Seeing my nephews 2moro in a gathering of 8 for dinner in Exeter. Back very late Wednesday but staying in Jesmond overnight. XXXX!

October 6th: maximum 16C, minimum 12C, light SE, cloudy, mild. We made Osterley Park for a walk and lunch from 12:30-14:30: always enjoy this NT property: nice lakes and a feeling of being out in the country when you’re really surrounded by motorways and an airport! Plenty of birds there: 27 types, including 2 types new for the year for me: Shoveler (2), Egyptian Goose (23), plus a Kingfisher but no raptors in dull conditions. Also had 35 Greylag Goose, 9 Coot, 7 Tufted Duck, 2 Great Crested Grebe, 4 Cormorant (2 ad, 2 1w), a Gadwall, a Grey Heron, 5 Mute Swan (2 ad, 3 1w), 5 Moorhen, 4 House Martin, 48 Ring-necked Parakeet, plus 4 Grey Squirrel. Getting ready for trip to Devon tomorrow. Missing Sunday nite out with the gorgeous one: XXXX!

October 5th: maximum 18C, minimum 12C, light SE, sunny and warm. Good breakfast at Osborne then Uber back to station for trek S. Not an easy journey. CrossCountry had overbooked their train to DON so far more passengers than seats; I sat in a seat reserved from York but we were running quite late by then and were asked to transfer to another Grand Central train from York. This I did but had to sit on suitcase for 2 hours as we ambled around the broken section between Doncaster and Grantham through the Lincolnshire countryside. Saw quite a few birds of prey: a Honey-buzzard juvenile up at 12:44 with masses of Corvids at Bolton Percy, North Yorkshire, 3 Red Kite (at Haxey on South Yorks/Lincs border; at Sleaford N; at Spalding), a Marsh Harrier 1w at Deeping St Nicholas at 13:54, a Kestrel at Spalding. Also had a Little Egret at Newton Aycliffe. Finally reaching Peterborough I sneaked into a just-vacated 1st class seat to finish in style. We actually got into KGX at 14:55 just 9 min later than booked on original journey. So much congestion everywhere, blame LNER the main carrier on the East Coast line for running a reduced service, when customer demand had not reduced. Why do they use the track works as an excuse for a day off? Then Circle Line to Farringdon and Elizabeth Line (so fast through central London) to Ealing West where met by big sis. We had gr8 catch-up! Visualising the fancied one: XXXX!

October 4th: maximum 16C, minimum 9C, light S, sunny morning cloudy later. Plumber declared old shower a poor project but did find some isolating taps which enable me to cut it off while thinking about a refit in due course, not top priority! So leak has stopped and drying out area below. Keener on improving heating at the moment, including new stove set for end October and 3 new storage heaters in due course, maybe in November. Lead plumber and I get on well: we agreed that a poor plumber surrounds his work with isolating taps! Made Osborne Hotel at ttime and set out for GH4con: excellent music with Mozart (Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, PC20) and Bach (Brandenburg 5, PC 5) and good company with fellow partners. Made Br4g4s (Bridge) and then got Uber back to hotel, had already done 12k steps today. Funds +33k on week on rising oil prices. Did have a delicious lunch: she’s stunning: XXXX!

October 3rd: maximum 13C, minimum 5C, light SE, sunny, feeling much warmer in the sunshine. Did a lot of trimming on verge, clearing it of bramble and ivy, took almost 2 hours. Had some interesting birds in garden: a Nuthatch, a Jay, 2 Common Buzzard to S, a calling Chiffchaff, a very young Blackbird. A Red Admiral was in Hexham. Made T4m4l with M 4 good chat. Did some shopping at W. Out to G4g4s with R/Rg/A/P 4 lively chat, with L on!! Next up was tmfo: s.xy: XXXX! 2moro hope plumber comes early, then out for lunch, check-in to hotel and GH4con. Funds are +27k on soaring oil price wtd! Had a hedgehog at Hackwood and a badger at Letah Wood.

October 2nd: maximum 13C, minimum 4C, moderate NE, sunny, cool. Up to Kirkharle for lunchtime concert by Adam Wood (trumpet) and Celia Bouch (harp). Quite a novel sound but very pleasing as we do not often hear such a combination. They played 11 pieces with diverse composers, including Saint-Saens (Le Cygne), R Strauss (Morgen!), Donizetti, Debussy. The last named had 2 pieces, not surprisingly. Met CR there. On way up had 6 Swallow S at Stagshaw and a Common Buzzard at Thorngrafton. Then went to nearby Capheaton to stare at the ducks, plenty of Tufted (25 birds), and the grebes, 2 Little Grebe, with 8 Mute Swan (7 ad, 1 1w), 12 Teal, 10 Gadwall, in total of 17 species. Got back to Hexham at 17:00. Not out tonite. Booked train journeys NCL-KGX, WAT-HON, HON-NCL and hotel stays in Jesmond, each side of the trip. Decided the one remaining storage heater, not to fire up, is kaput. Anyway, it’s too small for the large living room so am going to replace it and the 2 oldest heaters (still working but no facility to run at peak times), in the next phase of work, which will start shortly. 2moro should be Tans4l and G4g4s, staying out late!! XXXX!

October 1st: maximum 12C, minimum 8C, light NE, gloomy day, light rain all day, cool. Pretty hectic day: today was a little hectic: funeral of a notable R member from 11:30-14:00 in Corbridge with wake at Rugby Club; R Council meeting, which I chair, from 17:00-18:15 at County; concert in Queens Hall from 19:30-22:00. Stayed for meal in County as no time to get home and back. Concert was good with RNS sending 11 players, of which 8 played Schubert’s octet, with KH violin 1 and CM clarinet the stars; We also had Box’s Nonet and Debussy’s sonata for flute, viols and harp. SH after concert! Just a trip to Kirkharle 2moro for the last of their lunchtime concerts. After concert on Friday night at GH, off to see my sisters for a few days in Ealing and Sidmouth. Funds +16k wtd as China rally continues. XXXX!

0th: maximum 12C, minimum 9C, light N, gloomy day, drizzle, cool. Chaired R meeting with new local MP Joe Morris as our guest: a very interesting meeting, managed to steer clear of entrenched postilions! Very sad news was the failure of our concert at Tynedale RFC on 11/10, just too few tickets sold and need to avoid risk if we attempt to go ahead; quite a problem for the Club’s finances, which we’re discussing tomorrow at Cncl meeting at Cnt4g4t. Finished processing records for 6/9 Hexham, involving 7 Honey-buzzard and 2 Black Kite. Problems in house renovation came to a head today, but feeling more positive by evening as have found a switch which I think controls the 3 Dimplex storage heaters and a leak in the old shower room, due to the higher water pressure, have tracked down to cold water pipe by the shower head; Westall coming on Friday morning to do the repair. Made G4g4s with R/A/P for good chat and L on!! 2moro is a funeral of a Rotarian PJ, the Cncl meeting at 17:00 and QH4con with RNS kicking the season off for HMS; not out late: XXXX!

Here’s recent BirdGuides reports since 24/9 showing steady flow of juveniles mainly in S for Honey-buzzard and a few Black Kite in Wexford and Wiltshire:

20:27 28/09 Black Kite Wexford Tacumshin 15:00 again at East End

14:22 28/09 Black Kite Wexford Sigginstown 14:22 still circling high north of Lingstown

10:15 28/09 Black Kite Wexford Sigginstown still west of Lingstown

09:03 28/09 Black Kite Wexford Sigginstown still towards Butlerstown

16:14 27/09 Black Kite Wexford Broadway one flew west over road c 2km to north towards Killinick

12:34 27/09 Black Kite Wexford Sigginstown 11:38 again soaring over Linzietown

09:59 27/09 Black Kite Wexford Tacumshin still; viewed from Lingstown looking towards stubble fields near White Hole

19:10 26/09 Black Kite Wiltshire Kington St Michael 17:10 probable flew west of A350

13:11 26/09 Black Kite Wexford Tacumshin flew past White Hole

11:07 26/09 Black Kite Wexford Tacumshin one perched at Lingstown although distant

13:03 30/09 European Honey Buzzard Cornwall Falmouth 12:08 one flew west over sea off Castle Beach

07:20 29/09 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Breydon Water RSPB 28/09 one flew over yesterday; also Spotted Redshank still

20:22 28/09 European Honey Buzzard East Yorkshire Kilnsea one flew in off the sea and continued inland

13:09 28/09 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Beachy Head 11:15 juvenile flew south

11:18 27/09 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Studland Bay 09:25 two flew out to sea

10:20 27/09 European Honey Buzzard Cambridgeshire Milton CP 10:05 one flew east

09:49 27/09 European Honey Buzzard Kent Langdon Cliffs NT 09:09 one flew out to sea at Langdon Hole

21:50 26/09 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Swanage 11:23 one flew out to sea this morning

September 29th: maximum 12C, minimum 8C, light E, dry, cloudy, cool. Festival at Hexham Abbey closed this evening with lots of chanting by the Marian Consort, including some songs from when the Abbey was Catholic, before the reformation! Abbey was full, all very polished in atmosphere and in performance. Then made G4g4s where met R/A, P too frail to come out. Cut 3 bales of grass at home, finishing back completely. Ended with the * tmfo: XXXX!

September 28th: maximum 11C, minimum 6C, light W, dry, sunny periods, cool. Back on train this morning, CrossCountry on time again. Was a good night away. Mowed 5 more bales of grass on path into field and path into orchard. Then another concert at Hexham Abbey with the Creation by Haydn; I was right in front row next to the soloists, one of whom was the soprano Ana Fernandez who I remember well from Samling. It was a great performance by the Festival Chorus and Orchestra and the 3 soloists. Final night of Festival is 2moro at the Abbey with the candlelit concert, followed by G4g4s and out late!! XXXX! A Kestrel was up in the air at Hurworth, S of Darlington at 12:00.

September 27th: maximum 11C, minimum 5C, moderate NW, dry, cool. Attended cello solo at Abbey with Pes doing amazing work on two Bach pieces, plus a section on the lost Sycamore tree on Hadrian’s Wall with a poem and a piece Pes had written himself. The Festival is certainly very creative and happy to support it. Had a ticket for evening’s concert there but instead went to Opera North’s opening night of the season with the Magic Flute by Mozart. As a silver patron of the company had a free ticket in the dress circle and 3 receptions, start, middle and end! But I do support them quite significantly (approaching £200 a month). It was a very polished performance with the adults and the numerous children all putting on the style. Grand Theatre was full. Rolled out of theatre the 200m to the Ibis Styles hotel for a good night’s sleep. Funds finished the week +8k, tide seems to be turning with natural resources and have switched back from bonds to mining stocks with some enthusiasm. Lunch earlier had been delicious!! XXXX! Had 8 Redwing (first of autumn) and 2 Mute Swan adult in Merryshields area at 14:34. A Goshawk adult female was at Letah Wood at 11:30.

September 26th: maximum 10C, minimum 6C, moderate NE, heavy rain until lunchtime then dull with wind increasing, very cool but did just avoid sub 10C. Start of Hexham Abbey Festival with schools doing 1350 by Fiona Lander, celebrating 1350 years of history for the Abbey: very impressed with this creative approach, involving mass Hexham/Corbridge choirs! Later had jazz group, an evening with Jo Harrop and Friends, very easy on the ear, and great reception. Did make G4g4s to meet A/Rg with L on!!. XXXX!

September 25th: maximum 10C, minimum 7C, light E, misty in morning, bit brighter midday, steady rain later, very cool. 2moro’s forecast is for 9C max, if so the sub 10C max is 3-4 weeks earlier than usual. Did some grass cutting midday before the rain, 5 bales, completing area by pony shelters. Just 2 grass paths to do then onto autumnal hedge trimming. A quiet day, processing Viewley 12/9, doing some family tree work on the lutenists and various R tasks. Had chat on FB video with son – good to keep in touch! A very busy few days beckon with Hexham Abbey Music Festival and Opera North opening night. Have mid-morning concert tomorrow with schools singing and jazz event, which I’m sponsoring, in the evening at 20:00, followed by late nite!! Then on Friday have concert at 13:00 at Abbey and opening night for Opera North at Leeds at 18:30, travelling down by train and staying overnight; so might be cafe at noon on Friday. Abbey Festival continues with further concerts on Saturday and Sunday nights. XXXX!

Here’s recent BirdGuides reports since 20/9 showing steady flow of juveniles mainly in S for Honey-buzzard and a few Black Kite in the far N and extreme SW. Do some Black Kite go N in initial reverse migration?

16:34 22/09 Black Kite Orkney Loth, Sanday 16:30 flew south towards Stronsay

16:23 22/09 Black Kite Orkney Loth, Sanday 16:22 still flying south over quarry

15:56 22/09 Black Kite Orkney Loth, Sanday 15:54 one flew over Hillfield towards Loth

15:25 22/09 Black Kite Orkney North Ronaldsay one flew south

12:22 22/09 Black Kite Shetland Fair Isle one flew high east over Burkle

08:18 22/09 Black Kite Shetland Geosetter, Mainland one drfting south this morning; also 2 Yellow-browed Warblers

15:40 21/09 Black Kite Cornwall Skewjack 15:30 one flew east

13:42 21/09 Black Kite Shetland Hillwell, Mainland again in flight towards Brow Loch

12:51 21/09 Black Kite Shetland Hillwell, Mainland 12:50 one flew north

12:35 21/09 Black Kite Shetland Loch of Huesbreck, Mainland 12:35 landed nearby

12:31 21/09 Black Kite Shetland Toab, Mainland one flew south

14:32 24/09 European Honey Buzzard Surrey Capel 14:08 one flew north

09:47 24/09 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Abbotsbury Swannery one flew down The Fleet

09:26 24/09 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Lodmoor RSPB one flew north-east

14:44 23/09 European Honey Buzzard Hertfordshire Baldock 14:43 dark-morph juvenile flew south

21:13 22/09 European Honey Buzzard East Yorkshire Flamborough Head 13:10 juvenile flew east over North Marsh; also 4 Red-breasted Flycatchers, 27 Yellow-browed Warblers, 4 Pied Flycatchers and 1st-winter Caspian Gull

17:27 22/09 European Honey Buzzard Isle of Wight Ventnor 08:26 17/09 one flew over Whitwell Road and out to sea on Tuesday

16:45 22/09 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Portland one; also Pied Flycatcher, Black Redstart and Short-eared Owl

13:22 22/09 European Honey Buzzard Kent Samphire Hoe CP adult female flew over

13:06 22/09 European Honey Buzzard Aberdeenshire Cruden Bay13:04 one arrived in off the sea early afternoon then headed north

11:52 22/09 European Honey Buzzard Kent Cliffe Pools RSPB two arrived high over Thames then back north-east

10:40 21/09 European Honey Buzzard Hampshire Fleet Pond 10:00 one flew south-east

08:12 21/09 European Honey Buzzard Dorset East Fleet one flew south-east over Tidmoor.

07:32 21/09 European Honey Buzzard Isle of Wight St Catherine's Point 07:10 juvenile flew out to sea

September 24th: maximum 13C, minimum 6C, light NW, misty in morning, sunny midday, rain again ttime, cool. Plumbing job is finished: water pressure is high across all parts of house and can now use both showers! Cost is about 4k of which already paid 1.6k as deposit. Out later to celebrate!! Funds +5k wtd on China’s stimulus. Processed Ordley 21/9. Made B4s4rw with P, all very stylish. Something else to celebrate: seen the brill result: she’s beautiful: lok2tmfo: XXXX!! Long lie-in 2moro!!

September 23rd: maximum 12C, minimum 9C, light N, misty in morning, persistent heavy rain as day wore on, cool. Plumbing job is going well by half-time with cold water already pressurised and downstairs shower working. New cylinder to be installed 2moro for hot water; it’s quite a job getting it upstairs, not done yet, though pipework all done. It’s another full day 2moro. Had busy time at R with visit from another club, Consett. Talk was by JD on Foundation, very sound. Processed Prudhoe S 13/9. Did get out in evening to meet the lads at G4g4s. Let’s hope the plumbing is finished tomorrow. If so out later: XXXX!

September 22nd: maximum 14C, minimum 10C, light NE, misty in morning, dry afternoon but visibility poor and no sunshine. Did make GH4m4l at Brasserie and enjoy gr8 concert there in afternoon with L, with Liverpool Phil. The concert started with Wagner’s prelude to Lohengrin Act 3, a wild music looking forward to Elsa’s marriage to Lohengrin, but it doesn’t turn out so well: that’s opera for you!! The concerto was Brahms 2 PC, a lyrical piece with some aggressive moments, perfectly suited to pianist Jaeden Izik-Dzurko, who the previous evening had won the Leeds International Piano Competition. The Liverpool Phil had played along in each of the 5 finalists’ concertos so quite a challenging week for them but they seemed to be exhilarated. Domingo Hindoyan is a marvellous conductor and quite witty: on entering the restaurant for lunch, he was told by the waitress: “mind, you have to finish by 3pm” to which he said: “yes, I know, I’m playing!”. Tchaikovsky 5 was a perfect piece to show off his skills along with those of the orchestra. It is an emotionally-charged piece with sad moments (mv 2) and much effervescence (mv 1, 4). When I was young, Tchaikovsky was regarded as somewhat shallow, a totally inappropriate description of his later symphonies. Early to bed! XXXX!

September 21st: maximum 14C, minimum 11C, light NE, misty with drizzle in morning, dry afternoon but visibility poor and no sunshine. Continued sorting masses of paper in spare room, all examined with about half discarded and the rest partially sorted on content; it’s a long overdue exercise. Have finished for the time being the Wexford lot on WikiTree, having got back to 1514. Am now going to extend the life-story of the musicians from Philip Rosseter through to his descendants who moved to Holland, where they no doubt felt at home with the Oranges; at least one became a violin maker. Did get out for a local walk from 17:10-18:30, seeing a dark-phase juvenile Honey-buzzard on the fields around Lee, putting up the large flocks of Corvids from time to time. This will be taken as a migrant from Scotland slowly making its way to Africa; it is expected that the 2 locally bred Honey-buzzard will have left by now. Bird-types totalled 16 with 470 Rook, 320 Jackdaw (both pre-roost), 7 Swallow S, 70 Common Gull, 1 Chiffchaff. 2moro it’s lunch at Brasserie in Sage, followed by concert there, with L. Not out in evening this Sunday: still getting ready for builder’s arrival early on Monday morning; someone might also be knackered, I know I’d be: good luck!! Expect to be out on Tuesday to celebrate end of plumbing work. XXXX!

September 20th: maximum 14C, minimum 11C, light NE, misty with drizzle. Quite murky today so no outside work. Had delicious lunch out. Then some work in Library until 17:30. Processed Wylam 14/9, started processing piccies from Prudhoe Dukeshagg 13/9. Adding some info on Rosseters in Rathmacknee and Slevoy in Wexford in the 16th century. Funds finished week +7k after poor day for markets today – triple witching if you’re superstitious but it’s really the expiry of many types of contracts! Most attractive tmfo: XXXX!

Here’s recent BirdGuides reports since 9/9 showing widespread, steady flow of juveniles for Honey-buzzard, particularly in last 2 days, and 2 well-spaced Black Kite:

19:14 20/09 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Blakeney Point 11:50 juvenile flew in off the sea at The Watch House then continued south

12:59 20/09 European Honey Buzzard Lincolnshire Gibraltar Point NNR 12:45 two juveniles at Plantation then flew south-west along edge of The Wash with a Common Buzzard

12:27 20/09 European Honey Buzzard Lincolnshire Gibraltar Point NNR 11:58 one flew south-east over old saltmarsh

10:22 20/09 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Beachy Head 09:28 juvenile flew low east

08:37 20/09 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Walsey Hills NOA 08:32 one flew south over North Foreland wood and continued inland

07:01 20/09 European Honey Buzzard Durham Whitburn 06:51 juvenile reported flying low to south-east over private garden

19:16 19/09 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Titchwell RSPB17:45 17/09 one flew north-east

16:35 19/09 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Norwich 15:20 one flew low south-east over Mousehold Heath

15:26 19/09 European Honey Buzzard Lincolnshire Gibraltar Point NNR one flew over Fenland Lagoon

10:27 19/09 European Honey Buzzard East Yorkshire Southfield Reservoir 10:25 dark morph flew SSE

22:33 18/09 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Arne RSPB 17/09 one flew over yesterday

12:59 18/09 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Quendale, Mainland one

19:19 17/09 European Honey Buzzard Devon Babbacombe 19:17 one flew low west

14:58 16/09 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Toab, Mainland one flew over

07:30 15/09 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Portland 14/09 one flew south over East Weares yesterday; also 9 Balearic Shearwaters flew past the Bill

15:19 14/09 European Honey Buzzard Cleveland Saltholme RSPB 15:14 juvenile flew north-west from Phil Stead Hide

14:16 14/09 European Honey Buzzard Northumberland Morpeth one flew south over Abbey Mill

14:37 13/09 European Honey Buzzard Kent Dungeness NNR one this morning

14:33 13/09 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Titchwell RSPB 14:25 two flew in-off the sea then continued east

09:42 13/09 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Beachy Head 09:36 one flew to sea then U-turned

18:31 12/09 European Honey Buzzard Fife Anstruther juvenile in private garden then taken into care

09:20 12/09 European Honey Buzzard Suffolk Falkenham 09:17 one flew north over River Deben at Falkenham Marshes towards Redhouse Farm

19:44 10/09 European Honey Buzzard Lincolnshire Gibraltar Point NNR probable flew west from East Dunes; also Short-eared Owl at back of Mere

11:17 20/09 Black Kite Cornwall Porthgwarra 10:30 one high over Arden-Sawah Farm towards Land's End

16:02 18/09 Black Kite Shetland Hillwell, Mainland 15:32 again flew south just west of Hillwell

14:34 18/09 Black Kite Shetland Loch of Hillwell, Mainland 14:30 still in flight although mobile

13:44 18/09 Black Kite Shetland Hillwell, Mainland 13:42 still in flight towards Brow Loch

12:39 18/09 Black Kite Shetland Quendale, Mainland 12:37 still towards rifle range although mobile

12:20 18/09 Black Kite Shetland Fitful Head, Mainland 12:19 still over top ridge viewed from Garth's Ness

12:02 18/09 Black Kite Shetland Quendale, Mainland 12:01 one circling

September 19th: maximum 16C, minimum 11C, light E, sunny after misty start, dry. We had good site meeting at the Rugby Club, all looking very positive for our charity concert. Then to Tans to meet M 4 good chat. Then back home to continue cleaning out external water valve housing, mowing grass (another 5 bales) and clearing out spare room. First and 3rd tasks are for pressurised cylinder being fitted next week. A Southern Hawker dragonfly was in my garden at 17:00. Pleased at interest rate cut by US yesterday, funds are +10k wtd. New smart meter does work, handling Economy 7 and the ALCS (switch to overnight heaters) perfectly. Had a juvenile Kestrel at Hexham Loughbrow and 2 Speckled Wood and a Peacock butterflies at Ordley. G4g4s was a little sparse: just A/Rg/me but we had good chat with L on!! Close to day was ecstatic: she’s got the rhythm: lok2tmfo: XXXX!!! Had a Badger across the road at Letah Wood at 00:15 (20/9). Earlier at Ordley had a Speckled Wood and a Peacock butterflies plus 2 Siskin in flight.

September 18th: maximum 17C, minimum 8C, light E, sunny all day, dry. Meter men came today and after some tests fitted a new meter, which seems to be working (their words!). Carried on clearing spare room; ordered some solvent for adhesive remover on a few cork tiles on the wall. Meter men just finished in time for me to get over to L’s for her to drive me to Kirkharle where we had lunch and went to a folk concert. Had 13 Swallow, 10 House Martin and 2 Chiffchaff at Kirkharle. Got home mid-afternoon in time for another 5 bales of grass-cutting. Started catching up on backlog of site visits, starting with Thornbrough 15/9. Visiting Tynedale Rugby Club at 10:30 2moro to look at concert venue, then Tans 4l with M, and much later G4g4s, staying late!! XXX

September 17th: maximum 19C, minimum 4C, light SW, sunny all day, dry. Did much clearing of spare room but a lot more to do. Also cut 5 bales of grass some general catch-up on after main season ends. Met M at Cnt4g4t so not out late. 2moro it’s smart meter replacement and trip to Kirkharle with L for folk concert. XXX

September 16th: maximum 16C, minimum 5C, light SW, sunny all day, dry. Main event of day was R with talk by BP from the ‘Shire on organic gardening – very interesting. Much later made G4g4s with R/A/P/Rg and L on!! No fieldwork today, Westall are coming next Mon/Tues to fit the new high-pressure cylinder, which is gr8 news. So clearing spare room, which holds current immersion heater (40 years old) to make it look better: sorting masses of old manuscripts from family history research and throwing out things not used for ages; will actually be quite productive. Slept so well last night, so satisfying: lok2tmfo: XXX!!

September 15th: maximum 17C, minimum 4C, light W, rain midday up to ttime, then sunny periods for evening; weather forecast was perfect forecasting clearance at 16:00 so was out the door at that point. End of formal breeding season for Honey-buzzard records today: from now difficult to say whether a juvenile was bred there or is a migrant from the Scottish population, all a bit arbitrary but there has to be a cut-off point. Will continue to survey but at a less intense pace. Today made Thornbrough again, from 16:30-17:35. This was a new site for Honey-buzzard in the display season and today confirmed breeding with a single dark-phase juvenile battling 30 Rook in the treetops of a copse at 16:40 1  2  3 (14140). So that’s marvellous, a new confirmed site for Tyne Valley W. Also had a Black Kite juvenile at Tofts Hill (to E) at 17:02, lifting off the wood and going high to S, suspect this bird was starting its trek! So a good day. Total of 16 species included 21 Linnet, 2 Skylark, 1 Chiffchaff, 22 Common Gull, plus a Green-veined White butterfly. Made SB4c4t to celebrate and then back home. Today produced summaries for Georgia 2023 below and another progress report on season, also below. Started clearing room with immersion heater in, to make the building work easier. Later made G4g4s with A/R/P and L/M on!! Even later, session with tmfo: she’s scintillating and sensuous: XXXX!!! 2moro it’s R at Cnt4m4l.

15/09/24: Black Kite juveniles are still lingering in some natal areas. 41 Honey-buzzard adult (25 male, 16 female) have been noted at 31 occupied sites with 41+ young at 26 sites, adults have left along with some juveniles but some are still foraging in their territories. Hobby have raised 1+ young at one site, Towsbank, on 11/9 with no young seen at 5 others occupied earlier. An adult Goshawk male was at one site, Towsbank, on 11/9 but no young seen. Eight types of raptor were at Towsbank on 11/9.

Here’s summaries for Georgia visit from 23/8 to 13/9 2023 for bird records and for butterfly records. Birds comprised 95 species from 265 records, 22 complete lists, 27 places. Butterflies comprised 13 species from 3 places. The report of the whole visit is being compiled.

September 14th: maximum 16C, minimum 12C, moderate SW, sunny periods, dry, sunny spells, cloudy coming over from W in afternoon. Did make Wylam bridge over the Tyne from 14:35-16:20 securing objectives of seeing Honey-buzzard juveniles from the Wylam E site with a dark juvenile well to E seen at 14:45 1 and a pale juvenile over the mound at 15:33 2  3 (14138). Also had a Sparrowhawk juvenile female to W at 14:40 and 3 Common Buzzard (ad, 2 juv) over the mound near the end at 15:56. The Atlantic Grey Seal was there: it actually seemed to want me to photograph it, grunting and putting on a good show 1  2  3! In total of 20 bird-types also had 61 Swallow (40 S), 8 House Martin, 3 Curlew SW, a Grey Wagtail, 5 Cormorant (4 ad, 1 juv), a LBBG juvenile, a redhead Goosander. Butterflies comprised a Small White and a Speckled Wood. Caught 16:18 WYL-NCL and walked across High-Level Bridge to GlassHouse where had supper with S/M/L, followed by reception for supporters at 18:30 for an hour. Concert was a Mozart PC, which was a bit like a lullaby. Second half was Mendelssohn's Midsummer Night’s Dream, the fuller version, lasting 58 min with a chorus, a narrator (Puck), 2 soprano and the orchestra, including very welcome return of EG as flautist! This was fantastic with beautiful horn and flute passages, often understated in design, beautiful shimmering first violins and of course the lively wedding march. Came out with stronger feelings that Wagner was more influenced by Mendelssohn than Beethoven, and his vitriolic attacks on Mendelssohn acted as a cover for his borrowing of Felix’s material. Lohengrin in particular, even complete with its own bridal march (Here Comes the Bride), is almost a successor to Midsummer Night’s Dream and it’s fitting that our next concert on Sunday 22/9 starts with the rampant prelude to Act 3 of Wagner’s Lohengrin! Here’s a recording. After concert called in at Bridge for a nitecap b4 catching 22:39 NCL-WYL and driving back home. Weather might clear tomorrow late-on when will be out checking another site and closing the breeding season. Should make G4g4s and be out late!! XXX

September 13th: maximum 13C, minimum 5C, light W, sunny periods, dry. D reported 20 Pink-footed Goose W over Ovington at 13:00. Lunch was gr8 with the sleek look!! Then off to Prudhoe Dukeshagg, from 15:30-16:50, the marvellous wild habitat S of the town off Moor Road. At 15:42 had a dark-phase Honey-buzzard coming off the wood to the E and climbing high as it moved towards its natal area 1  2  3  4  5  6  7 (14136). Had a Common Buzzard adult calling with one unaged to S. Two Kestrel juvenile hunted to N and SW. A Barn Owl was hunting actively over the Woodland Trust field from 16:35 to when I left 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8. Arguably the most interesting bird was a kite, gliding E to W at moderate height, actively mobbed by 2 Jackdaw; this adult showed characteristics of both Red Kite and Black Kite, one of the hybrids when mixed pairings occurred here in the early stages of colonisation by Black Kite 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  16. Of other birds highlights in total of 21 species were a Woodlark N, 4 Skylark, 99 Swallow (96 S), 20 House Martin (16 S), 2 Siskin (1 S), 2 Jay. Major event of day was completing the compilation of the Georgia records and photographs from last August and September (almost 3 weeks); total for trip is now 94 species of bird, including 19 types of raptor. This day is the anniversary of my delayed return from Batumi, Georgia, on 13/9/2023 so highly appropriate. The report is essentially already in NB 2023 but will need to extract the details and add a summary. Current season ends in 2 days time for breeding records so Sunday is a day of transition! Funds were -3k on week gross but -7k net with 4k withdrawn for my younger granddaughter’s birthday coming up soon: she’ll be 8, being celebrated in Dubai where my son-in-law is a commodity trader with a hedge fund! She’s very beautiful: XXX.

September 12th: maximum 11C, minimum 2C, light W, sunny periods, few light showers. Did make T4m4l with M 4 good catch-up! Then out to Viewley from 15:40-17:00, another site where Hobby displayed earlier. But no sign of them today, even though large raptors were floating over the area, which normally rouses Hobby to mob them. No Black Kite either so they’ve left. Did though have a Honey-buzzard juvenile, darker than the one present in August so another 2 reared in the ‘Shire; this bird came in off the moors to S, floating back into its natal area at 16:00 1  2  3 (14134). Also had 2 Red Kite juvenile to E (15:52) and S (16:13), confirming they’re doing well in moorland areas. Also had 3 Common Buzzard (adult, 2 juvenile) floating over the area aggressively. In total of 15 bird-types also had 10 Swallow, 2 Linnet, 1 Jay plus a Green-veined White. At home had some birds in the garden: 8 Long-tailed tit, 4 Coal Tit, 2 Nuthatch, 4 Pheasant (fledged), 1 Chiffchaff. Did make G4g4s with Rg/R/A 4 gr8 chat with L on!! Best part of day was in the twilight zone: what a * she is: lok2tmfo: XXXX!!! An estimated 20 Pink-footed Goose were flying W at 23:50 at Hexham SW. A Tawny Owl was calling at Ordley at 00:10.

September 11th: maximum 12C, minimum 4C, moderate NW with strong gusts, sunny intervals, heavy showers. Did get out to the upper South Tyne, doing the round of the magic triangle W to Haltwhistle, S to Eals and Barhaugh, E to Whitfield Moor and the ‘Shire. It was fairly wild but the sunshine kept the chill off. And the raptors loved the wind; worth saying that they need thermals or wind to get lift and this far N wind is often the more usual option so they’re expert at using it to their advantage. Was at Towsbank by 12:55 and left Whitfield Moor at 17:30 so busy time. It’s certainly one of the best days I’ve ever had in Northumberland for raptors, with 8 species at Towsbank in 2 hour 15 min: Common Buzzard, Kestrel, Red Kite, Honey-buzzard, Black Kite, Hen Harrier, Goshawk, Hobby. Note the last two: great to find them still present in the study area. The summer visitors (3 of the types) will be leaving soon. At other sites visited (Parson Shields, Barhaugh, Whitfield Moor) no additional types but plenty of raptors at the first two. Took 84 piccies, have been through them twice. 2moro it’s T4m4l with M with maybe a trip to Viewley later and much later it’s G4g4s and passion!! This week it’s DoW4g4s on Friday as Glasshouse concert season starts on Saturday with reception for patrons. Lots of music coming up in the next few weeks to replace the departing raptors!! Funds are -4k wtd; it was worse yesterday! XXX

At Hexham High Wood, a Common Buzzard juvenile was seen at 12:30. At Towsbank from 12:55-15:10 had 2 Honey-buzzard, a ruddy phase juvenile up over nesting-wood at 14:02 1 and a dark phase juvenile up over the moor at 13:05 and 13:18 2  3  4; at 14:26 the dark bird was up with a male juvenile Hobby high above the wood 5 (14114). A Black Kite juvenile was up over the moor at 13:05 and 13:17 1  2  3. A Red Kite juvenile was up over the moor at 13:10 1  2  3 with an adult further W at 14:27. An adult female Goshawk was up high over the wood at 14:26 1. Two Kestrel juvenile were seen and 6 Common Buzzard (2 ad, 4 juv). A juvenile Hen Harrier flew S at ground level at 14:50 1  2  3  4  5  6. Total here was 18 bird-types, also including a LBBG ad S, 4 Meadow Pipit, 25 Swallow (8 birds locally fledged, 17 to S), a Grey Partridge. At Snope Burn, visible from Towsbank viewpoint, had a Kestrel juvenile at 13:20, a Red Kite adult and juvenile at 13:56, a Common Buzzard juvenile at 15:08. At Parson Shields from 15:19-15:50 had a dark-phase Honey-buzzard juvenile up, hanging in the stiff breeze, at 15:23 and 15:39-15:40 1  2  3  4  5  6  7 (14115). A Black Kite juvenile was behaving similarly almost throughout 1  2. Also here, in total of 8 bird-types recorded, had a Common Buzzard juvenile up high, hanging in wind, 7 Swallow S, a Stock Dove, 2 Mallard. At Barhaugh Hall from 16:00-17:05 had a dark-phase Honey-buzzard juvenile at 16:07 and from 16:26-16:30, feeding in a nearby copse with frequent flights to change its position slightly 1  2; piccies of the copse are here 3  4  5  6 (14133). Three Common Buzzard were up to SE (2 ad, juv), 29 Swallow moved S and 8 House Martin E, with 4 further Swallow around breeding sites still. 166 Jackdaw were seen, including a flock of 130. Ten bird-types were noted here. At Whitfield Moor from 17:15-17:30 had just 2 species: a Meadow Pipit and a Woodpigeon. At Stublick at 18:00 had a Brown Hare.

So grand total for day is: Common Buzzard 12 (4 ad, 8 juv), Red Kite 4 (2 ad, 2 juv), Honey-buzzard 4 (all juv), Kestrel 3 (all juv), Black Kite 2 (both juv), Hen Harrier 1 (juv), Goshawk 1 (ad f), Hobby 1 (juv m).That’s 28 raptors of the 8 types. Best site: 8 types of raptor recorded in amazing visit to Towsbank: a deciduous woodland on old mine workings, adjacent to heather moorland, run as a grouse moor.

September 10th: maximum 14C, minimum 5C, fresh NW, early rain, sunny later but very windy. Too wild for a trip to the exposed upper South Tyne, postponed to tomorrow. Did a lot of catching up with R duties today as well as handling music invitations plus half-way through processing penultimate batch for Batumi for 6/9/2023. Not out in evening or 2moro evening but will be on Thursday!! Invited as guest to gala dinner at the Glasshouse (Sage) on 22/10 to celebrate 20 years of the building – should be good! Did do some grass cutting today, collecting 5 bales pretty quickly at the back! XXX

September 9th: maximum 15C, minimum 10C, moderate W, murky morning, sunny intervals in afternoon, light rain in evening. R meeting was fairly chaotic: bookings were not complete, serving was late. I’m doing a good job in my role of President: laying tables, showing how to use Google Forms, clearing tables, demonstrating how to use Android to book tickets, cloakroom attendant (left behind coats). We did though have a very good speaker Simon Frith on the Mercury prize, for inventive contemporary composition by a UK composer, and I did make sure he got full time for his talk by bringing forward the club business to when we were waiting to be served. Dashed off afterwards as weather improving from day and a half of murk with a moderate W breeze picking up: perfect conditions for raptors. And so it proved: made Stocksfield Mount from 15:00-16:35 with 7 Honey-buzzard juvenile seen (1 at Stocksfield Burn at 15:13 1 (new site, habitat 2  3, 14111), 2 at Eltringham from 15:22-15:46 1  2  3 (14110), 2 at Whittle Dene at 15:24, 15:41 and 15:56 1  2  3 (14108), 2 at Bywell Cottagebank (1 at 15:38 1  2  3  4  5, 1 at 15:50, 14109). Stocksfield Burn is a new Honey-buzzard site, to S of Guessburn, including Hindley, and is also a new Black Kite site as below. Black Kite juveniles are still around in strength with total of 5 seen (2 at Stocksfield Burn at 15:13 1, 2 at Eltringham from 15:22-15:46, thought to be birds bred elsewhere 1  2  3  4, 1 at Bywell Cottagebank at 15:38 1  2). Also had 4 Common Buzzard up at Eltringham (2 ad, 2 juv) and 2 at the Mount itself (ad, juv). So total of 18 raptors seen of 3 types: not bad! But no Hobby seen at all so have to record Bywell Cottagebank as a failed site, joining Hexham NE and probably Thornbrough. Had 15 bird-types from the Mount, including 9 Swallow (3 S, 5 W, 1 E), 13 House Martin (6 E, 7 W), 2 Sand Martin W, 4 Goldfinch S. Insects comprised 6 Speckled Wood, 4 Southern Hawker. Had 17 bird-types overall. Sites still to revisit are Towsbank, Wylam E, Viewley. Hope to visit upper South Tyne tomorrow as there’s also a recent report of a Hobby from Barhaugh area in the N&TBC bulletin for July with a Goshawk in the South Tyne in the same bulletin. Hobby and Goshawk appear to be the major losers in the current season, the first because of the weather and low numbers of small birds, the second because of persecution. The clear winner is the Black Kite, obviously thriving in the study area, even in a cool summer. The Honey-buzzard sails on through everything as usual with another very successful season. Did make G4g4s with P/R/Rg/A for good chat with L on!! Gr8 memories linger: XXX.

Latest from BirdGuides shows strong passage of Honey-buzzard from 7/9-8/9 with none today:

21:45 08/09 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Sheringham 13:59 one flew east; also Pomarine Skua flew east at 09:37, 2 Black Terns and Caspian Gull

17:55 08/09 European Honey Buzzard Cambridgeshire Wilburton 17:30 pale morph flew east towards Stretham

17:20 08/09 European Honey Buzzard East Yorkshire Grimston 17:14 juvenile flew south

16:15 08/09 European Honey Buzzard East Yorkshire Spurn YWT 16:09 pale morph flew south over the Humber shore off Canal

11:24 08/09 European Honey Buzzard Lincolnshire Gibraltar Point NNR 07/09 two juveniles yesterday

10:49 08/09 European Honey Buzzard Kent Dungeness NNR one flew over

08:06 08/09 European Honey Buzzard Lincolnshire Gibraltar Point NNR juvenile still near visitor centre

22:25 07/09 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Steyning 11:00 possible flew over

18:50 07/09 European Honey Buzzard Jersey St Lawrence one flew east over Mont Felard

12:40 07/09 European Honey Buzzard Lincolnshire Gibraltar Point NNR 12:35 still in North Building area; viewable from Wash Viewpoint

09:03 07/09 European Honey Buzzard Lincolnshire Gibraltar Point NNR one from Wash Viewpoint

07:11 07/09 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Titchwell RSPB 07:04 one flew over west

14:48 06/09 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Titchwell RSPB 11:55 dark-morph juvenile flew west over Thornham Point

14:48 06/09 European Honey Buzzard Kent Cliftonville 14:35 dark-morph juvenile flew south

11:07 06/09 European Honey Buzzard Guernsey Pleinmont 08:03 one flew north over main car park

13:39 05/09 European Honey Buzzard Fife Eden Estuary one flew south; also Little Stint and Spotted Redshank

11:27 05/09 European Honey Buzzard Cumbria Barrow-in-Furness one flew over nearby

September 8th: maximum 18C, minimum 10C, light NE, misty morning, heavy rain from noon to late afternoon, misty later before heavy rain again. Only fieldwork was standing by Tyne from 17:30-18:00 at Tyne Green, Hexham, where had a flock of 7 redhead Goosander, 2 adult Cormorant, 40 Mallard, 1 Chiffchaff. This was after SB4c4t. Caught up a lot on records, particularly on Batumi 6/9/23 where within sight of the end, a major landmark as completes Georgia analysis. Also processed Towsbank 24/8 to complete that trip to the upper South Tyne. Next up is 10/8 upper South Tyne where had lots of good piccies but no time to process them as straight off to Oxford. Later out to G4g4s with the lads and L on!! Coming from Devon, I’m fairly waterproof! tmfo is exactly that: coming to like her: my favourite *: XXXX!!! 2moro it’s R at Cnt4l with me in the chair!

September 7th: maximum 22C, minimum 14C, light NE, misty morning, brighter in afternoon but no real sunshine until ttime. Did make Dipton Wood on road to S of it from 14:40-16:30; there was an accident which closed the road near the Traveller’s Rest and traffic was very heavy on diversions near Todburn for about an hour; thought I might start directing traffic! Anyway the Honey-buzzard were not put off: had 2 juveniles up at 15:23-15:24 with a mass of Corvids 1  2 (14130) near Juliet’s Wood, presumed from the Dipton Wood site as this is a popular feeding area for birds from there; so this is an increase from presumed fledged to 2 juveniles fledged. Over March Burn had a pale juvenile up at 15:37 circling over the Burn to S 1  2 (14131); no other birds seen in extended watch so rated this as precisely one juvenile raised. Had 14 bird-types at Dipton Wood, including 5 Swallow, 4 Lapwing, plus a Large White and a Common Darter. At Steel Pond at 16:40 heard an agitated adult Common Buzzard plus a juvenile Moorhen, 30 Goldfinch, 14 Swallow. So this completes the survey for Honey-buzzard in the core of the study area in Tyne Valley W/Hexhamshire. Think will now look for Hobby broods, which of course will also pick up additional information for the other raptors, starting at Towsbank in upper South Tyne. Weather tomorrow is problematical but cleaner is coming 2moro afternoon so will be in the field. Will be out to G4g4s and around later: XXX!!

Latest summary on home page:

07/09/24: Black Kite juveniles are lingering in many natal areas. 41 Honey-buzzard adult (25 male, 16 female) have been noted at 28 occupied sites with 30+ young at 19 sites, many adults have left, juveniles are foraging in their territories. No Hobby young seen yet and Goshawk have not been sighted recently. Harris’s Hawk probably bred in West Dipton Burn where adult and juvenile seen in late August.

September 6th: maximum 21C, minimum 14C, light NE, misty morning and again from late afternoon, hazy sunshine in afternoon. A good afternoon for raptors after the poor day yesterday and the misty morning to follow. At last cracked the Hexham Honey-buzzard, seeing 7 Honey-buzzard juvenile in all, during visit from 14:55-16:40. The first was a dark juvenile up briefly to W for 30 seconds over Tyne Green on S side of Tyne at 15:03.The second juvenile of visit was over Hexham SW at 15:07, towards High Wood, in the distance 1 (14126) but a paler bird than that seen on 3/9 so 2 young fledged here: it’s a marvellous wood habitat-wise with many wild areas; at 15:22 3 further birds were up here together: adult male high up, female and weak-flying juvenile below. Next up at 15:30 was a juvenile much closer up briefly over the Tyne over the W end of Hermitage; that makes 2 juveniles fledged at Tyne Green. The seventh bird for visit was a brown juvenile, up over Hexham NE on N side of Tyne at 15:50 1  2 (14125); this bird was up for 2 minutes, giving best views of the afternoon; so this site is 1+. In all cases the birds were restlessly foraging, coming up above the canopy briefly, then going back to the ground for a quick feed, presumably on various insects and grubs, with wasp nests a bonus if they find one. Black Kite are still present and fairly obvious: had a juvenile up at Hexham NE at 15:50, 16:07 and 16:20 1  2  3, and another juvenile gliding to N of Hermitage (Tyne Green site) at 16:28 4. A female Sparrowhawk (unaged) was up over Hexham SW at 15:30. Total for bird-types was 15, including a Grey Heron and a Chiffchaff. Butterflies were fairly plentiful, after a miserable season: 8 Red Admiral, 5 Peacock, 7 Small White, 3 Speckled Wood, 1 Large White. I changed my tactic today, starting at Wentworth CP, walking down to the Tyne at Tyne Green, going E through the arch, then back again; had good views over 3 sites most of the time this way. Earlier had very tasty lunch in enjoyable surroundings. Have persuaded E.ON to send an engineer to check my smart meter on 18/9 and try to make it more responsive, including changing the mode to Economy 7. Funds finished the week -11k after another week marred by sharp decline in natural resource stocks (and everything else), counterbalanced to some extent by a rise in bonds as it’s becoming obvious that interest rates are too high. Bought 2 Ag Hanoverian tablespoons NCL 1746 and 1747 for total of £316 in Finial sale. Think it’s Dipton Wood tomorrow afternoon with DoW in evening with the gang. Suspect this last week’s setup might be better for the beautiful one though don’t want to get too predictable!! XXX

September 5th: maximum 15C, minimum 13C, light NE, dull all day with persistent light rain, a miserable day by all accounts! Made Kirkharle for lunch with L b4 concert by flautist Clare Crinson and pianist Alison Gill, including works by Amy Beach (Romance), Cesar Franck (Flute sonata in A major), and Pierre Sancan (Sonatine for flute and piano). All very tuneful, particularly the Beach item but preferred the Franck sonata: he’s a very underrated composer. It was a good day out. Later made G4g4s with P/A/Rg, taking and returning frail P. lok2tmfo: a brilliant end to day: she’s very s.xy: XXXX!!! 2moro will be out for lunch as usual. 2 Oystercatcher flew W of Hexham SW late-on and a Tawny Owl was calling at Ordley.

September 4th: maximum 15C, minimum 10C, light E, sunny intervals all day, dry. Another bright day weather-wise. Went out to Thornbrough from 12:45-14:15 where had a Black Kite juvenile peering over a wood to NW at 13:03 and 13:20 and showing well as it flew into its nest site area in wood to SW at 13:23 1. Common Buzzard were all around, having 4 birds locally (2 ad + 2 juv) and a juvenile towards Newton. Honey-buzzard gave a surprise from Shilford: a family group of female and 2 juvenile soaring high into the sky at 13:11, the female well above, the 2 juvenile together below – flying practice for going to Africa! Think the female left the scene – bye kids! The adults can be very bossy, calling the young out of the trees to fly but it’s essential for getting the young fit for the long journey, starting in about 2 weeks. The male may already be on his way – they leave first, as soon as the young are fully fledged. The males bring much food in when the female is sitting on eggs and when the young are too small to leave in the nest unattended. The smaller creamier juvenile had been seen on 31/8, the other not seen before. That's the 8th definite brood of 2 this season. A juvenile male Sparrowhawk 1 brought the total of raptor species to 5. Did not see any local Honey-buzzard; this is a new site so anything can happen! Nor did I see any Osprey to the W so maybe they’ve all gone. Total of 14 bird-types included 19 Linnet, 10 Swallow. It’s Kirkharle tomorrow for the concert series with L so a good break tomorrow. Have 3 sites which are occupied but no juveniles seen yet above the canopy so they take priority: Dipton Wood, Hexham Tyne Green, Beaufront S. Getting there! Another rocky week for natural resource stocks so -6k wtd but switch into bonds, which are rising as recession risks increase, is keeping losses down. G4g4s 2moro taking the so-frail P! XXX

Latest from BirdGuides shows Black Kite matching Honey-buzzard:

17:47 04/09 European Honey Buzzard Isle of Wight Shanklin Down one flew over late morning

11:03 03/09 European Honey Buzzard East Yorkshire Spurn YWT 10:58 one flew south over Humber

10:18 04/09 Black Kite Kent St Margaret's at Cliffe 10:06 one overhead

19:29 03/09 Black Kite Kent St Margaret's at Cliffe 17:04 one flew north over Bockhill Farm

15:11 03/09 Black Kite Cork Cape Clear one again

September 3rd: maximum 16C, minimum 8C, light W, sunny all day, dry. Grand day! Out to Warden to check on a number of sites from 11:55-14:00. Plenty of raptors up in the air after 2 bad weather days. Really good for Honey-buzzard with a female and juvenile up over Allerwash at 12:29 with female high above juvenile (14122), a juvenile up over Greenshaw Plain at 13:10 1 (14120) with another one heard calling, a male and a juvenile up over Hexham High Wood at 13:29. So that’s young found at 15 sites now with inferred presence at another 4. Two Black Kite were up over Warden Hill on arrival at 12:05, one going very high and probably the bird seen at Hexham High Wood later at 13:30; the one lower down was seen several times foraging in the Warden Hill area particularly at 13:10 1  2  3  4  5  6  7. Common Buzzard were conspicuous with a total of 8 present (2 ad, 2 juv at Greenshaw Plain; same at Warden). 20 types of bird at Warden included 30 Swallow, 15 House Martin, 2 Chiffchaff, a Stock Dove and a Jay. A Golden-ringed Dragonfly was at Warden 1. Butterflies comprised 11 Speckled Wood, 6 Small White, 1 Red Admiral, 1 Green-veined White. A Brown Hare was also noted. Then into Hexham to drop off 2 posters for our music festival. Made Snug in Cnt4t4tg for R Cncl meeting, with me in the chair. Quite hard work but we got through a lot of positive business in an hour. Not out later, feeling like a rest and may not be favoured day!! XXX

September 2nd: maximum 18C, minimum 9C, moderate W, dull morning and afternoon, foggy up to early afternoon on hills. No fieldwork today as poor weather and usual R commitments at lunchtime. We’re holding a charity concert at Tynedale Rugby Club on 11/10 and we’re already getting good support! Made G4g4s with P/R/C and L on!! 2moro weather improves so back out in field around lunchtime but have R Cncl at Cnt at 17:00 so cannot be out for full afternoon! Will be out later!! XXX!!

Latest from BirdGuides with single Black Kite in Scotland and Ireland and steady passage of Honey-buzzard mainly from the south coast:

18:02 02/09 Black Kite Cork Cape Clear one over the lake and the Bill this afternoon (2nd island record)

18:55 01/09 Black Kite Perth & Kinross Dunning one reportedly flew south-west near Dunning

17:07 02/09 European Honey Buzzard Kent Foreness Point one flew west between 10:45 and 12:00

12:59 02/09 European Honey Buzzard Isle of Wight Luccombe 11:45 one flew low west along Bonchurch Down

22:00 01/09 European Honey Buzzard Cornwall Restronguet Creek juvenile flew over

19:10 01/09 European Honey Buzzard Cornwall St Buryan one flew over this afternoon

16:40 01/09 European Honey Buzzard Kent Elmley NNR 16:28 possible reported over viewing screen; reserve open from 09:00-17:00 Sunday-Thursday only (ME12 3RW; entry £8)

16:13 01/09 European Honey Buzzard Suffolk Orford one flew east over St Bartholomew's Church

12:58 01/09 European Honey Buzzard Essex Langenhoe Marsh 12:40 two then flew north-east

12:07 01/09 European Honey Buzzard Kent Stodmarsh NNR 08:25 adult male flew over Marsh Hide

11:38 01/09 European Honey Buzzard Isle of Wight Luccombe 10:50 one flew over Luccombe Down

11:34 01/09 European Honey Buzzard Kent Elmley NNR 11:30 juvenile flew over Spit End

11:02 01/09 European Honey Buzzard Kent Dungeness NNR 10:58 two flew over old lighthouse towards ARC/Long Pits

September 1st: maximum 16C, minimum 13C, light E, dull morning, light rain afternoon, heavy rain at times in evening, followed by fog. Cleaner S arrived in afternoon. Out to Tyne Green in Hexham for walk from 15:15-17:30, looking at the 2 nearby Honey-buzzard sites but in dull conditions, none seen, indeed no raptors seen at all, not too surprising! Made C4c4t at Bridge End for a break. Highlight was 2 Caspian Gull adults on the Tyne at 15:30, showing yellow legs, long thin bill, slightly darker mantle than Herring Gull and long white tongue on P10 1  2  3  4  5  6  7. Also in total of 16 species had a LBBG adult flying SW, 21 Herring Gull (19 ad, 2 juv), 5 Black-headed Gull (all adult, 1 flying W). A few emails exchanged with E.ON over my smart meter, which is not transmitting readings and has slipped out of Economy 7 mode; the meter is set up for ALCS (auxiliary load control switch) with 5 cables, one to drive the off-peak storage and water heating so hopefully resolvable. Funds are -2k on week, another small loss but have minimised these by switch from natural resources to bonds; now very gradually reversing this as expect inflation to persist to some extent. Made G4g4s but was on my own as P’s taxi failed to come and the other 2 dipped as well; still L was on!! Next move was the best I’ve done for a while: lok2tmfo: very beautiful she is: XXXX!!

August 31st: maximum 17C, minimum 9C, moderate E, sunny all day, hazy. Visibility not so good today so not good for piccies but settled weather. Did make major attack on remaining sites today, going to Eastwood Common/Healey from 12:00-14:15 and Shilford from 14:15-15:20. This effort added 4 sites to those found occupied in the fledging season, but only at Prospect Hill/Farnley did have a good display with a juvenile up at 12:07, 3 birds (adult male, adult female, juvenile) up at 12:10 high-up together and at 13:45 the adult male off from wood to W of Prospect Hill and soaring high and moving S, so yes, Africa here I come! At Dipton Wood main a male was up over the site at moderate altitude at 12:25, before moving off to S on migration, but no other birds seen. At the local site, March Burn, a very agitated Crow went in to a spruce stand and kept up the calls for several minutes, before two series of Honey-buzzard juvenile chicken calls were heard. At Shilford at 14:45 masses of Corvids got up in the air, mostly Jackdaw (280), and a subsidiary group of Jackdaw (30) was observed with a juvenile Honey-buzzard being mobbed at its head. At Bywell Cottagebank at 15:00 the weaker juvenile Honey-buzzard was noted soaring low-down. So 4 Honey-buzzard juvenile noted but it’s clear what a difficult species this is to survey. Black Kite are much easier as they’re so conspicuous on site at all stages of the breeding cycle. Today had one juvenile Black Kite hunting low-down at Broomley at 14:16 so the younger birds are lingering; think the adults have almost completely dispersed. The end of the season is in sight!! Total for bird-types at Eastwood Common was 16, including 22 Swallow S, 4 Linnet, 1 Chiffchaff, plus a dragonfly Common Darter and 6 types of butterfly: 9 Small White, 6 Large White, 3 Peacock and single Comma, Speckled Wood, Green-veined White. 13 types of bird were recorded at Shilford, including 10 Swallow and 354 Jackdaw. 2moro will be by the Tyne at Hexham in the afternoon looking for juvenile Honey-buzzard at 2 sites known to be very recently occupied by adult birds. Met D/D/D/C at DoW4g4s 4 good chat! XXX

Latest summary from home page:

31/08/24: Black Kite adults have dispersed but juveniles are still in natal areas in many cases. 41 Honey-buzzard adult (25 male, 16 female) have been noted at 27 occupied sites with 22+ young at 16 sites, adults beginning to leave and juveniles becoming stronger-flying. Osprey last seen on 26/8. No Hobby young seen yet and Goshawk have not been sighted recently. Red Kite away from moorland areas are inconspicuous.

And last records from BirdGuides for the month:

10:56 31/08 Black Kite West Sussex Pagham Harbour LNR probable flew north over egret roost at Pagham Banks (50.7727, -0.7644)

22:15 31/08 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Cissbury Ring one flew south early afternoon

11:18 31/08 European Honey Buzzard Anglesey Holyhead juvenile circled over Holyhead Mountain then flew south-west

August 30th: maximum 17C, minimum 5C, light W, sunny all day. Did collect R posters for concert at Tynedale Rugby Club in October from Matfen at 14:30. Decided to stay E so drove to Whittle Dene S Reservoirs to have a change from the usual routine. Was there from 14:45-15:45 seeing 19 species of bird, including 4 Great Crested Grebe (2 adult 1, 2 juvenile 2), 5 Greylag Goose, 2 Grey Heron, 215 Swallow (including this c200 on wires 1), 30 House Martin, 8 Sand Martin, 27 Lapwing, 4 Curlew, a Common Buzzard adult calling at 15:12, plus 2 Peacock and a Large White. Went on to Wylam road bridge from 15:55-17:25 where had a juvenile Honey-buzzard at 16:25 flying over the Tyne from the Wylam Horsley site. Also had a Kingfisher above the bridge with a fish 1 and without fish 2, a Little Egret (in distance towards Newburn), 7 Goosander including 4 redheads on stones below bridge (with Common Sandpiper 1) and 3 redheads flying upstream over bridge, 2 Common Sandpiper, a Moorhen adult, 3 Cormorant adult 1, 2 Grey Heron, 70 Lapwing, in total of 25 bird species, with 6 Small White and 2 Large White. Earlier at 14:00 a juvenile Long-eared Owl was calling from the wooded area on S side of Wentworth car-park in Hexham, taking raptor total to 11 since 22/8. An adult Common Buzzard was calling at 13:00 at Ordley. At dusk around 20:00 at Ordley had 4 Chiffchaff, presumed 'new' birds as local breeders not seen for a few days, and an adult Roe Deer in my wild field, where they’ve bred for at least the last 3 years, raising 2 fawns in the past summer. She’s very motivating: knows what turns me on!! XXX. 2moro it’s back to business in Tyne Valley W going to Eastwood Common/March Burn with Prospect Hill, Dipton Wood and Kellas, all in view. Will be at DoW later. Here’s latest from BirdGuides showing a slowdown in the pace:

18:28 30/08 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Hastings 17:00 one flew low north-west over Mount Pleasant

16:42 30/08 European Honey Buzzard Jersey Jersey Airport 16:35 one flew over runway

15:02 30/08 European Honey Buzzard Berkshire Crowthorne 14:15 one flew north

13:48 30/08 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Mill Hill 12:30 probable dark morph drifted over

12:19 30/08 European Honey Buzzard Jersey Noirmont Point 12:16 one flew north

10:18 30/08 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Portland 10:15 one flew north over Crown Estate Field

August 29th: maximum 17C, minimum 8C, moderate W, cloudier midday but fine later. Busy day doing 2 site visits in Hexhamshire, one to Dotland before lunch from 12:40-13:45, the other to West Dipton Burn (far W) from 15:55-17:20. Had success at both in terms of Honey-buzzard juveniles, with 2 seen at Dotland at 12:58 and 13:23 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 up hanging over a wood (14076) and 1 at West Dipton, though had abandoned latter and walking back to car when it popped up from 17:01-17:02 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15 along with a male (14077); think I was too close to the breeding area so they were lying low! Two Black Kite juvenile were seen at both Dotland NW from 12:46 to 12:55 and 13:26 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8, and West Dipton SE at 16:20 1 so suspect they’re the same birds, being bred at Peth Foot and dispersing a little to the W but suspect they’ll breed at Dotland next year! At Whitley Chapel at 13:32 had 3 Red Kite, an adult up to W, a juvenile calling from W and a juvenile flying to S. At Steel Pond at 13:50 had 3 Teal. At Ordley had single Comma, Peacock and Speckled Wood butterflies at 15:00. At West Dipton had 3 Sparrowhawk (ad male at 16:47, juv male at 16:29 1  2, juv female at 16:47 3  4) in a shelter belt and an adult male Kestrel diving into the burn to the N at 16:17. At Dotland/Whitley Chapel, had 13 bird-types including 26 Swallow (fledged), 7 House Martin (fledged), 4 Goldcrest, plus a Green-veined White. Had 15 Linnet, 2 Greenfinch, 3 Stock Dove, 2 calling Chiffchaff, at West Dotland, plus a Small White, a dead rabbit and a mole. So no Common Buzzard but still 5 types of raptor for the day (12 birds). Made G4g4s with Rg/P, taking P back – he’s very frail, took a while. mqotwf!! Had a Roe Deer fawn on the road at Hexham Loughbrow at 21:45; gave it plenty of time to get off road after collision with one 2 years ago. 2moro will be early out as need to get to Matfen by 14:30 to pick up some posters for an R event. Then may go on to Wylam area. XXX

Here’s latest from BirdGuides showing more records from yesterday and some new ones:

18:31 29/08 European Honey Buzzard North Yorkshire Grassington 13:55 24/08 one flew over

17:05 29/08 European Honey Buzzard London Richmond Park 11:40 juvenile flew south-west

14:29 29/08 European Honey Buzzard Cambridgeshire Cambourne 14:00 one flew east [misidentified, deleted later by observer]

12:16 29/08 European Honey Buzzard Nottinghamshire Idle Valley NR 12:10 one lingering over Chainbridge Meadow then flew south

10:54 29/08 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Hastings CP 09:05 adult flew low west over North's Seat

08:56 29/08 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Bexhill 08:10 two flew west over Galley Hill

08:12 29/08 European Honey Buzzard Kent Samphire Hoe CP 28/08 juvenile flew over yesterday

07:44 29/08 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Church Norton one flew out from near hide and headed towards North Wall

August 28th: maximum 20C, minimum 10C, light SW, dull midday but brighter and warmer afternoon. Made Stocksfield Mount from 15:30-16:50 with weather on an improving trend as midday cloud dispersed. Had 2 Honey-buzzard juvenile up at Bywell Cottagebank soon after arrival from 15:53-15:59 1  2 (14073) and nearby close-up had a Common Buzzard juvenile over the Mount. Main action was over Eltringham where had a family party of 4 Honey-buzzard in display from 15:53-16:27 (male 3  4, female 5  6, 2 juvenile 7  8  9  10  11 (14074)) plus a Common Buzzard juvenile, a juvenile Black Kite at 16:27 1 (wandering bird presumably) and a female Sparrowhawk juvenile at 16:18, up with the male Honey-buzzard 1. So that’s very good news from Eltringham for this year’s breeding season in the Tyne Valley for Honey-buzzard. Total for trip was 6 Honey-buzzard, 2 Common Buzzard, a Black Kite, a Sparrowhawk. So 10 raptors of 4 types. For all bird-types had 15 including 10 Swallow (6 S), 2 LBBG ad S, 2 House Martin, plus a dragonfly, a Southern Hawker. Butterflies comprised 7 Small White, 2 Peacock, a Speckled Wood, 2 Large White, a Green-veined White. Total number of raptor-types from 22/8-28/8 is an amazing 10: Honey-buzzard, Black Kite, Red Kite, Hen Harrier, Common Buzzard, Kestrel, Barn Owl, Tawny Owl, Sparrowhawk, Harris’s Hawk. Started 6/9 Batumi watchpoint, labelling about 1/5 of the piccies: it’s a start! Had a lot of ‘phone calls on the R web site and Google form facilities; I’m still acting as technical adviser! Not out tonite but should be 2moro: XXX!!

From BirdGuides, many Honey-buzzard started their epic return journey to Africa today from southern England via the south coast with 8 at Beachy Head and maybe total of 17 birds, including 2 juvenile. Think birds in the north are still on site but males will be off soon, where broods are solidly on the wing.

18:27 28/08 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Blofield Heath 12:00 two flew south over All Saints Hemblington Church

15:00 28/08 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Hastings 11:55 adult male flew north over Mount Pleasant

14:16 28/08 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Beachy Head eight flew over by 14:00

13:25 28/08 European Honey Buzzard Kent Langdon Cliffs NT juvenile flew in off the sea at Langdon Hole and continued west

13:02 28/08 European Honey Buzzard Buckinghamshire Beaconsfield 12:20 one flew south of Great Beard's Wood

12:17 28/08 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Beachy Head 12:10 two females flew east

11:52 28/08 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Hollingbury 11:42 one flew east

11:52 28/08 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Hastings 11:50 juvenile flew east over West Hill

10:45 28/08 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Beachy Head 10:25 five flew over

10:30 28/08 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Upper Sheringham 10:27 one flew south-east over Sheringham Park NT

09:26 28/08 European Honey Buzzard Kent Sandwich Bay 08:45 female flushed and flew towards Sandwich Bay Bird Observatory

August 27th: maximum 18C, minimum 12C, moderate SW, dull day with light rain. No fieldwork today, catching up with various tasks. Highlight was completing 5/9 Batumi raptor watchpoint piccies, all added to NB 2023. This leaves one day to go 6/9 which hope to complete before the year is out (that is by 6/9/24!). Also compiled yesterday’s records in full. Made B4rw4s with P. aqotwf XXX. 2moro with better weather hope to get a bit more fieldwork in!

From BirdGuides, a Black Kite put in a good showing in Leinster, right in the middle of the ancestral home of the Rossiters in County Wexford:

10:04 27/08 Black Kite East Sussex Brighton 09:40 probable flew east over Waterhall Valley

13:05 21/08 Black Kite Wexford Sigginstown 08:45 one north-west of Sigginstown Castle

12:59 20/08 Black Kite Wexford Tacumshin still; also 2 adult Curlew Sandpipers, Wood Sandpiper and 1st-summer Little Gull

10:37 19/08 Black Kite Wexford Tacumshin 10:15 still at Forgotten Corner

11:44 18/08 Black Kite Wexford Tacumshin 11:40 again from Forgotten Corner then flew west towards Lingstown

13:18 17/08 Black Kite Wexford Tacumshin 13:17 still north-west of Forgotten Corner then flew west towards Lingstown

12:55 17/08 Black Kite Wexford Tacumshin one at Lingstown

10:17 16/08 Black Kite Somerset Shapwick Heath NNR 10:05 one flew south over Decoy Hide

Honey-buzzard well reported with some post-fledging movements in the south:

27/08 21:08 West Sussex : European Honey Buzzard, Ferring one flew east over Highdown (13:20)

13:58 27/08 European Honey Buzzard London Rainham Marshes RSPB male flew over this morning

11:02 27/08 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Beachy Head 10:20 three flew across from Friston Forest

16:18 26/08 European Honey Buzzard Kent Brookland 14:25 one flew over Salter's Lane

07:17 24/08 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Wyke Regis 23/08 one flew over yesterday

07:16 24/08 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Winterborne Stickland 23/08 one flew over yesterday

07:16 24/08 European Honey Buzzard Gloucestershire Nailsworth 14:55 23/08 one flew west over A46 towards Kingscote yesterday

11:40 22/08 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Woodbastwick 11:31 pale-morph adult flew east over Ferry Road

14:51 21/08 European Honey Buzzard Guernsey Rocquaine Bay one flew in off the sea at Fort Grey and continued east

15:44 18/08 European Honey Buzzard South Yorkshire Cannon Hall CP one flew low south-east over Deffer Wood

10:10 18/08 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Woolbeding Common 10:07 four from viewpoint; park only in NT car park at Older Hill (GU29 9RR) and view from ridgeline west of NT car park. Do not block driveways [is this a family party of 2 adult + 2 juveniles?]

15:01 17/08 European Honey Buzzard Cornwall Kenneggy Cove 16/08 one circled over Lower Kenneggy between 13:15 and 13:45 yesterday

12:00 17/08 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Swanton Novers watchpoint 10:25 one circled high over watchpoint on Fulmodeston Road then flew north; view only from the watchpoint, do not park along the road and do not enter the woods or surrounding agricultural land

11:59 16/08 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Cissbury Ring one flew north-east

14:57 15/08 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Black Down NT 14/08 one yesterday

08:13 15/08 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Surlingham Broad 14/08 one flew over Surlingham yesterday

16:15 14/08 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Hickling Broad NWT 13:20 one flew over visitor centre car park; also Wood Sandpiper and 2 Garganey still on Brendan's Marsh

15:46 14/08 European Honey Buzzard Kent South Foreland female flew west over Fox Hill Down

14:18 14/08 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Great Yarmouth 14:12 one flew east over Acle Straight

12:58 14/08 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Ranworth Broad 12:10 pale-morph adult male reportedly circled high east

August 26th: maximum 17C, minimum 11C, light SW, sunny morning, cloudy later, dry. A busy day cutting 5 bales of grass from back in the morning, visiting Swallowship from 15:15-17:10 for birdlife, attending Phelps at Fifty closing organ concert at Hexham Abbey, played by James Lancelot, and making G4g4s with A/R/Rg/P with L on!!The concert was very good, with pieces by JS Bach (2), Schnizer, Brahms, Franck, Parry and Jehan Alain. The life of Alain was productive but tragic as he was killed in WW2 in France by German gunfire. His piece Litanies was fantastic, so powerful and moving. Franck’s piece Choral No. 1 was also an exceptionally good item. Stayed for a bit of bubbly with the Hexham Abbey crowd to celebrate the end of the series – a very good evening! Swallowship was hard work after the visibility of the birds in the previous few days. The wind had dropped and there was little sunshine by late afternoon. Did though have a juvenile Honey-buzzard flying into site from E at 16:13 1  2  3  4  5 (14070), another juvenile calling earlier from the nest site at 16:07 with an adult (presumed male) calling in the same general area at 16:10. So that’s another 2 (young) for the ‘Shire. An adult Common Buzzard was also calling from the Devil’s Water area and an Osprey was over the Tyne at 15:50. Total of 17 bird-types included 3 Swift E, 2 House Martin W, 5 Bullfinch (fledged), 13 Coal Tit, 3 Mistle Thrush, 1 Willow Warbler calling. At Ordley at 13:00, 2 adult Common Buzzard were soaring, 2 Nuthatch were calling and a Peacock butterfly was seen. At Steel Pond at 14:50, 6 Teal were seen 1  2, with 3 Mallard, 5 Linnet, 7 Swallow, 2 Goldfinch. Should be out tomorrow: XXX

August 25th: maximum 15C, minimum 11C, moderate SW, humid, showery with light rain not the deluge forecast. The heavy rain forecast did not materialise so finally got out from 15:25-16:50 to Letah Wood, near my house. In the sunny intervals it was all action with 3 Honey-buzzard seen (female 1  2, 2 juvenile 3  4  5  6  7  8  9) to W showing well (14067), 3 Common Buzzard (juvenile calling to W, adult and juvenile flying over Letah Wood), a Black Kite juvenile up towards the racecourse 1 and most bizarrely a Harris’s Hawk adult 1 with a juvenile 2  3, much paler than the adult. Don’t think they’ve arrived from Arizona; they’re a popular captive hawk so have presumably escaped. Have also had Harris’s Hawk in the same wood in 2008 and 2020 so there’s some affinity here. But breeding in the wild in the UK is surely exceptional! Had 22 bird-types including 30 House Martin, 20 Swallow (fledged), 25 Goldfinch, 4 Spotted Flycatcher (fledged), 4 Long-tailed tit, 8 Coal Tit, 1 Jay, plus a Grey Squirrel. Did go down to SB but they had a plumbing emergency and were closing so back to Ordley where had 2 Honey-buzzard juvenile up low-down at 17:20 1 (14069) and 2 Tawny Owl calling at 21:00. Pretty amazing afternoon out really! Have documented most of yesterday, just Towsbank to do. 2moro it’s organ recital at Hexham Abbey early evening and out to G4g4s later. XXX

Here’s summary of season to date from home page:

25/08/24: 34 Black Kite adult have been noted at 18 sites, fledging 26+ young, dispersal is now in progress. 41 Honey-buzzard adult (25 male, 16 female) have been noted at 26 sites with 10+ young at 7 sites, just starting to fly above the canopy. 2 Osprey adult have raised 1+ young at their site overlooking the Tyne near Hexham. No Hobby young seen yet and Goshawk have not been sighted recently. Red Kite have strongholds in the Derwent, parts of Hexhamshire and the upper South Tyne.

August 24th: maximum 17C, minimum 8C, moderate SW, some rain overnight, sunny periods, fresh winds continuing, particularly in exposed areas. Did the golden triangle today of Ordley to Alston to Haltwhistle to Hexham from 13:15-18:40 on the road. First stop was Whitfield Moor (on the top, couldn’t open car door initially with the wind!), then Gilderdale Bridge and Williamston N and Towsbank, each for an hour. At Whitfield Moor had 2 juvenile Hen Harrier and a Kestrel hunting over the moors in the wild weather. At Gilderdale Bridge had 2 Common Buzzard juvenile (out hunting over Kirkside and to N), 2 Kestrel juvenile (out hunting over Kirkside and to N), a Red Kite (an adult floating high over Gilderdale), in more sheltered conditions. Vowed Williamston N from Lintley where had a train 1 with raptors a Red Kite juvenile at Williamston 1  2  3, 2 Red Kite juvenile SE of Barhaugh 4  5, a Kestrel juvenile at Williamston, 3 Common Buzzard juvenile (1 Williamston, 2 Barhaugh), a Black Kite juvenile SE of Barhaugh at 16:22 1  2 and 16:36 3  4. At Towsbank had a juvenile Honey-buzzard hanging over its natal territory 1  2 (14068), a Common Buzzard juvenile, a Black Kite juvenile coming off the moor at 17:28 1  2  3, a Kestrel juvenile at 17:24, a Red Kite adult at 17:18 + another adult at Snope Burn at 17:59 1  2. So provisional totals for 6 types of raptor: 6 Red Kite, 6 Common Buzzard, 5 Kestrel, 2 Hen Harrier, 2 Black Kite, 1 Honey-buzzard, so 22 raptors seen. An excellent afternoon out, confirming Black Kite breeding at Williamston N and Honey-buzzard breeding at Towsbank, for the two key species. The Red Kite is well established along the whole of the upper South Tyne and strong winds don’t bother it. The Hen Harrier may have been locally bred: I don’t have any inside information. What else could I have seen? Hobby, should be fledged now, and Sparrowhawk, but very satisfied with today’s result. Feel like I’ve been out in a boat! Made DoW4g4s with D/D/D/C for gr8 chat with C on!! Had 2 Jay at Ordley when going to pub and a Badger at Letah Wood on way back at 23:30. 2moro will catch up with data entry in morning; cleaner S arrives in afternoon so may be at SB by the Bridge in the rain! XXX

Some more detail: at Whitfield Moor from 13:50-14:50 had just 4 bird-types, with 9 Woodpigeon and a Stock Dove to add to the raptors but had 2 Peacock and a Green-veined White, the most butterflies seen all afternoon. At Gilderdale Bridge/Kirkside, had total of 16 bird-types, including a Raven, a Swift, 15 Swallow, 10 Siskin, 6 Coal Tit, 2 Goldcrest, plus a Small White butterfly. At Williamston N from 15:55-17:00 had total of 13 bird-types, including a flock of 9 Stock Dove, 4 Long-tailed Tit, 2 Grey Heron, 14 Swallow, plus a dead Hedgehog on road. At Towsbank from 17:05-18:10 had total of 14 bird-types, including 2 Stock Dove, 5 Swallow (fledged). Total for trip was 26 bird-types.

August 23rd: maximum 16C, minimum 9C, fresh W becoming moderate SW, rain overnight, sunny periods, strong winds with storm Lillian. Pretty wild morning but started calming down in afternoon and early evening made Bywell from 17:55-19:05. Don’t normally get out this late but today it paid off as the raptors came out to enjoy the not-so-strong breeze. Had 4 Honey-buzzard: a strong-flying juvenile with the female and a weak-flying juvenile with the male (they must know what they’re doing but the males tend to be rougher so the weaker-flying bird is going to be put through its paces!). The two at Tofts Hill (male, juvenile) at 18:26-18:36 are shown here 1  2 and the juvenile at Cottagebank at 17:59 and 18:38, with the female at 17:59, is here 3 (with Common Buzzard juvenile) 4 (14066). Had three Black Kite, a juvenile over W of Peepy at 18:09, up briefly over a field, and then to S at 18:10 1, with another juvenile at Tofts Hill at 18:16 2, and yet another at Cottagebank at 18:38 4. A Red Kite juvenile was up over Tofts Hill briefly at 18:26 1. Had 3 Common Buzzard, all juvenile, 1 at Cottagebank, 1 to S of Peepy, 1 to NE. So that’s 10 birds of 4 types in an hour, not bad! Counted 93 Swallow – everywhere! Also had 9 Common Gull adult feeding, 3 LBBG adult, 8 Goldfinch, 4 House Martin. Total for trip was 19 bird-types. No butterflies. Earlier at Ordley at 13:45 had 2 Common Gull adult W, plus a Speckled Wood and 2 Small White. Have paid Westall 4.7k deposit on 12k building works. Funds were -6k this week after withdrawal of 5k to fund the works. Made QHC4s4ll for normal enjoyable treat. XXX

August 22nd: maximum 17C, minimum 10C, moderate SW, rain in morning, drier afternoon with a little sunshine, rain in late evening. Did meet M belatedly at T4m4l. Neighbour D unearthed the external water stopcocks for both our properties in the area I cleared yesterday: brilliant. Made Hexham Tyne Green in afternoon from 14:30-16:40, seeing a single Black Kite juvenile up briefly over W site at 14:45 1, single Honey-buzzard male up briefly over both W (15:02 and 15:43) and E (15:26) 1 (14064) sites, and a juvenile Osprey up over Tyne over E area at 15:14 1. So no prolonged views in the moderate breeze but still quite a good haul with clearly Honey-buzzard fledging at both sites (Hermitage and Beaufront). Total of 17 bird-types included 32 Herring Gull (28 ad, 1 2s, 3 juv fledged locally), 6 LBBG (4 ad, 2 juv, fledged locally), 65 Mallard, 6 Long-tailed Tit, 1 Chiffchaff, 1 Swallow S. Butterflies comprised 2 Large White, 1 Small White, 1 Peacock. One mammal was seen a Brown Rat. W delivery arrived at 20:00, £98. Had a Barn Owl at 21:50 at Ordley with a Common Gull ad W there earlier. Out to G4g4s with A/R/P 4 gr8 chat with L on!! Brilliant end to day with the sensuous tmfo!!! XXXX 2moro it’s QHC4s4l and trip out in afternoon.

August 21st: maximum 16C, minimum 13C, moderate to fresh SW, sunny early-on, dull most of day, rain in evening. Did some more heavy gardening, clearing another area of the front verge looking for the mains external stopcock. No luck yet but will be a lot easier for the plumbing team to find it with the vegetation cleared. No fieldwork today, quite windy and cloudy, better days will come! Blood test results back quickly and cholesterol is now normal, so no action needed! Delighted to hear from my friend on the continent!! 2moro might be at lunch at Tans with M, then down to Tyne Green for a check on the raptors. It will be QHC on Friday. Later it’s G4g4s, think I’m taking/returning the frail P, which makes me run so late. XXX

WikiTree have a weekly feature on number of degrees (clicks on the family tree) that you are from a collection of well-knowns. Normally I’m miles from them but today’s was famous redheads and quite a few close matches, with most interesting 22 degrees from Catherine of Aragón, via Habsburg, Marie Medici, Charles II, 4 generations of Sarsfield in Dublin including Patrick, 3 generations of Rosseter in Wexford including Thomas (Patrick Sarsfield and Thomas Rosseter were both members of the Wild Geese, a rebellious militia of Catholic gentry and their men who left Ireland after the Orange massacres, see Irish Times), Rossiter of Devon and Somerset. Mary Queen of Scots, another redhead, is just 19 degrees from me with a more direct connection to the same Irish. Whatever, you could say that we’ve tended to be on the wrong side of history!

August 20th: maximum 17C, minimum 9C, moderate to fresh SW, sunny periods, heavy rain shower in evening. Stayed at home today after all the travelling of the past week and also needed to study the local Honey-buzzard site. Breeze was too strong for much bird activity but did have juvenile Honey-buzzard squeals from the nest site at 16:45 and at 17:00 a juvenile Black Kite soaring over the woodland 1 brought an adult (male) Honey-buzzard anxiety call from the valley. Think this kite is a second bird to be reared at this site as weaker flying. So Ordley is a 1+ for the Honey-buzzard at the moment, joining Viewley from yesterday, and a 2 for Black Kite. Also in total of 13 bird-types had 17 Swallow W, 3 calling Chiffchaff and 12 Mallard. Butterflies comprised 2 Speckled Wood, 2 Meadow Brown, 2 Peacock. Did some gardening in front, cutting grass, tidying up brambles and mowing verge on roadside, looking for water mains valve but no luck yet! Have accepted formally 12k tender from Westall for plumbing and stove work. Funds were +2k last week after 3k withdrawal. On wtd down 2k. Made B4s4rw, where met Ps. Gr8 rendezvous with the beautiful, sensuous mfo: XXX!!

August 19th: maximum 18C, minimum 12C, moderate S, sunny early-on, increasing cloud, heavy showers by evening. Two big R meetings: with Tynedale RFC to discuss our music festival at 10 and club business meeting, chaired by me, at 12:30 to discuss what’s happening this year. Both very positive. Managed to get a trip to Viewley in, mid-afternoon from 15:10-16:15, to check for raptors at this exciting place: 3 Honey-buzzard (male out hunting at 15:33 1  2  3  4  5  6, female out hunting at 15:52 7  8, juvenile up briefly over the nest site at 15:47 (piccie nest site only 9) (14063) ), 2 Black Kite juvenile up from 15:22-15:29 1  2  3  4  5  6, 2 Red Kite up at 15:17 together (adult, juvenile), 2 Common Buzzard juvenile. The 11 bird-types here included 32 Swallow (9 in family parties, 23 S),1 Chiffchaff, 3 Stock Dove. From 16:15-16:20 had 2 Chiffchaff in my garden, plus 13 Mallard, a Teal, 4 Moorhen (ad, 3 juv) and 4 Snipe at Steel Pond. Did make G again with P/R/A/Rg 4 another good chat with L on!! 2moro have a routine blood test at 09:20 at Sele. Expecting action later XXX

August 18th: maximum 24C, minimum 11C, light NW, sunny spells, dry. Had marvellous walk to Welwyn N where made a good raptor discovery. Red Kite were very common with 10 seen (6 adult 1  2  3  4, 4 juvenile 5  6  7  8). A Common Buzzard juvenile was also noted. Highlight was a female Honey-buzzard gliding quickly over the rough area to N at 12:24 1 (14065). Birds totalled 8 types from 12:00-15:00. Butterflies were 4 Green-veined White, 3 Small White, 1 Red Admiral, 1 Small Tortoiseshell. We then had substantial lunch at White Horse in Welwyn. Then Uber to Stevenage for train to Peterborough and then on to Newcastle and Hexham; got back on last train at 21:00 from NCL. Had a Marsh Harrier before Peterborough: no age or gender; quartering a cereal field near Wood Walton, and a Red Kite adult over Peterborough. Didn’t go straight home, made G to see P/R/A 4 good catch-up where L on!!

August 17th: maximum 22C, minimum 12C, light N, sunny, dry. A good day out in London, making South Kensington for trip to bird exhibition at Natural History Museum showing connections with dinosaurs both before the mass extinction 64m years ago and following it. Then we had a meal back in SKen before making the Albert Hall for the concert. We had really good seats in the Founders area, in front row overlooking front of promenaders and the orchestra. Concert was 84 min without a break: Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem, not a triumphant piece but a sorrowful one reflecting the cost of wars in terms of human lives and suffering. Britten was a pacifist and he draws heavily on the poets of WW1 such as Wilfred Owen. Altogether a very moving performance by 3 choirs and the London Symphony Orchestra under Antonio Pappano as conductor with 3 soloists. 2moro I’m coming home!! XXX

August 16th: maximum 23C, minimum 11C, light W, sunny, dry. Attended ANPA for a bit but then off at 13:31 to Paddington, getting through leisurely to WGC at 15:56 via KGX where got taxi to son’s place in Welwyn. We went for a meal at Rodi, a good Greek restaurant in Welwyn, spending £114 including service charge. Bought rail ticket back to NCL for Sunday evening (£58 from Stevenage). So into London 2moro for bird exhibition at NHM, meal and War Requiem by Britten in the Proms at the Albert Hall (we’re sitting down!). Today had 4 Red Kite from Oxford-Slough to add to 2 earlier in week at Bicester. XXX

August 15th: maximum 23C, minimum 14C, light SW, dull, light rain showers. Chaired both morning and afternoon sessions today, bit testing as cannot go to sleep! Enjoyed it though: requires both computing skills to manage the equipment with Zoom addition, and people skills, handling nervous speakers! After our AGM, when re-elected to steering Group (surprise!) we all went to a nearby Lebanese restaurant Al-Shami, for some good chat, meze and rw! Conference finishes 2moro. Hoping for walk out birdwatching in long lunch-break. Late afternoon it’s Oxford to Paddington to KGX to Welwyn GC to Welwyn to stay with son. On my way back slowly! Next week will be back to normal!! XXX

August 14th: maximum 21C, minimum 14C, light W, dull, light rain showers. Great trip to Bletchley Park, base for the codebreakers in world war 2. Based on work by some Polish cryptanalysts, Alan Turing developed early techniques with machines to decipher German coded signals, enabling important victories to be obtained in the Desert War, the Battle of Britain, the Battle of the Atlantic and D-day, besides a general improvement in ally effectiveness. By 1944 the Colossus, the world’s first electronic computer, was decoding thousands of messages each day. By the end of the war 9k staff were employed there, 75% of whom were women (largest contingent WRNS), running the computers, handling the translations and punching the codes obtained. Alan Turing (1912-1954), probably the greatest mind in the UK of the last century, laid the foundations both theoretically and practically for the modern digital revolution. We went back to Barbara’s house for a spot of wine, then onto the Plough Inn at Wolvercote for supper. Had 2 Red Kite juveniles at Bicester. I’m chairing tomorrow morning’s session! XXX

August 13th: maximum 26C, minimum 16C, light SW, sunny, dry, warm. Another busy day at conference from 10:00-17:30. Then we made Andalus restaurant again for dinner. 2Moro it’s trip to Bletchley. Woke up dreaming of someone: XXX.

Latest news from BirdGuides includes continuing records of Black Kite and some early exodus by Honey-buzzard, presumably failed breeders.

15:52 07/08 Black Kite Kent Worth Marsh RSPB one flew east

07:39 02/08 Black Kite Devon Aveton Gifford one reported over Bridge End

14:57 01/08 Black Kite Devon Aveton Gifford 14:00 one flew south-east

13:28 01/08 Black Kite Anglesey Lanerch-y-medd 11:30 possible over Tyddyn Farm

19:08 13/08 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Swineham GPs 19:07 one flew over Piddle Valley

12:35 12/08 European Honey Buzzard North Yorkshire Long Nab, Burniston 12:20 one flew south

20:37 11/08 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Attlebridge 19:20 one flew north over Old Hall Farm

12:21 10/08 European Honey Buzzard Jersey St Ouen's village 11:44 two flew west over Raptor Ridge at Rue de Grantez

11:59 10/08 European Honey Buzzard Oxfordshire Stanton Harcourt 11:04 possible flew south over Dix Pit

11:38 10/08 European Honey Buzzard Kent Harbledown 11:36 one flew north over Upper Harbledown

10:59 10/08 European Honey Buzzard Kent Kingsdown 10:45 one flew west

12:55 09/08 European Honey Buzzard Suffolk Minsmere RSPB 12:50 one flew south over levels and towards Sizewell

20:40 08/08 European Honey Buzzard Suffolk Minsmere RSPB 10:30 one flew over South Levels then headed out to sea and lost to view

16:59 05/08 European Honey Buzzard Kent Foreness Point 15:55 one flew low west

15:07 04/08 European Honey Buzzard Essex Brightlingsea 14:42 one flew south-west over River Colne

08:22 03/08 European Honey Buzzard Devon Honiton 08:05 ale flew south-east

20:40 02/08 European Honey Buzzard Devon Sidmouth 07:30 one flew in off sea then continued north-west

12:33 02/08 European Honey Buzzard Kent Dungeness NNR 12:04 one flew over Observatory towards Arc Pit at Dungeness RSPB

16:04 01/08 European Honey Buzzard Northumberland Otterburn 15:55 one flew ESE over Redesdale

August 12th: maximum 31C, minimum 12C, light S, sunny, dry, hot. August 12th: maximum 31C, minimum 12C, light S, sunny, dry, hot. Gave talk at 12 noon for 60 min, went well with plenty of questions at the end. Here’s a pdf of the presentation. So can enjoy the rest of the conference now! This goes on to Friday afternoon with trip to Bletchley Park on Wednesday to see the museum for the war-time code cracking led by Alan Turing. Eight of us went for dinner at the El Andalus, a Spanish restaurant near the conference venue in St Giles. We had loads of tapas. We being an international gathering of 4 Americans, 1 Dane, 2 from Liverpool, 1 from Newcastle. XXX

August 11th: maximum 29C, minimum 17C, light SE, sunny, dry, much calmer and hotter down here. Down to Oxford on 12:40 from NCL, arriving there about 18:14. Quite hot down here. Didn’t see any raptors on way down: they like a breeze as well as sunshine. Walked into City Centre, staying at Turl Mitre, cleanly a summer spin-off by Lincoln College but quite reasonable at £540 for 5 nights although no breakfast. Had a couple of g and a pizza pepperoni at the Plough Inn, right in the centre. Then a nice hot shower, getting relaxed for 2moro. Spent 4 years at Oxford as a research fellow in early IR systems, like Google, so quite a bit of nostalgia. Last visit was to a brilliant music festival, interspersed with science lectures!! Have completed labelling piccies for 5/9/2023 Batumi; now just need to index them, leaving one day to do 6/9 where 176 images from the world-famous Georgian watchpoint. Here’s summary to 10/8: from home page

10/08/24: Black Kite have had a fantastic season with 21+ young raised at 13 sites so far. Honey-buzzard are becoming more conspicuous as fledging nears with 11 sites now found to be occupied in the rearing phase. Osprey have raised 1+ young at their site overlooking the Tyne near Hexham.

So wish me luck for 2moro at 12 noon! XXX

August 10th: maximum 20C, minimum 8C, moderate W, sunny, dry, breezy. Bit of a lie-in but out to upper South Tyne in afternoon; breeze was a little on the strong side at Towsbank but the raptors loved it, getting from 14:50-16:35 5 types: 4 Black Kite (2 pairs of ad + juv 1  2, as described for Osprey yesterday, mainly on N side at 14:57), 2 Red Kite (ad, juv 1  2  3 on S side at 15:37), 3 Kestrel (ad male 1  2, 2 juv 3  4  5, on moorland), 1 Honey-buzzard (male up on N side hanging over moor at 14:57 1  2 (14061b) ), 8 Common Buzzard (ad + juv Parson Shields at 16:00, ad + 2 juv to S, ad + 2 juv moorland 1  2  3). Also in total of 18 bird-types had a Raven over the moor at 16:10 1, 14 Swallow (fledged), 1 Swift S, 1 LBBG juv W, 1 Stock Dove, 3 Linnet, single broods of Pheasant (2 chicks) and Red Grouse (3 juv). Getting piccies was a challenge as birds were moving very fast but light was excellent. Had 3 hardy Green-veined White on the edge of the moor at Towsbank. Wondered whether to do any more but decided to pop into Bellister area, near Haltwhistle, from 17:00-17:30 where had a pair of adult Honey-buzzard with female appearing first, followed by male, both anxious at the Black Kite display, presumably near where their own young were perched: male: 1  2  3  4  5  6, female: 7  8  9 (14062), a juvenile Common Buzzard in with the fray 1 and amazing views and great piccies of a family group of 4 Black Kite (ad + 3 juv, cropped 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  16  17  18, resized 19  20  21  22  23  24  25  26  27  28  29) in full display at low level behind some trees for shelter, with habitat 30  31; this is another mode of post-fledging where almost the whole family group keeps together in excited behaviour. At ANPA all next week, talking at 12 on Monday in Oxford. Then it’s a weekend in London with son at Welwyn and a prom. Amazing tonight that D/D and myself were joined by D/C at the DoW: the first time in 4 years that they’ve been to a pub; we had good chat; C was on!! Will miss someone: XXX.

August 9th: maximum 19C, minimum 11C, fresh W, sunny, dry, windy. Electrician finished at 12:30 after labelling and testing all circuits: everything passed! So now need to pay STR £1,322 for the work, probably over weekend. So quickly into lunch at Hexham, where had a very good tuna sandwich and coffee, served by the beautiful one!! Then to Jewson to choose a stove, turned out to be a Huntingdon 30 for £1,695 (to be ordered by Westall) and quickly received a quote from Westall for the plumbing and stove works, coming to 12k including VAT, with the stove taking up about 2/3 of it. Stove has 5-year guarantee, is 36 inches deep, tapestry black door, 82.7% efficient, 5 inches flue above. Likely to accept but need to transfer some funds next week from share account to make the deposit. Second best event of day was my field trip to Anick from 14:20-16:45 to look for Osprey. Conditions were fairly wild but did have a Common Buzzard juvenile calling at 15:12, a Black Kite juvenile up briefly at 15:40, and, best of all, 2 Osprey, a juvenile out to hunt over Tyne downstream 1, followed shortly after by an adult, all from 15:40-15:45. So fledging confirmed for second year running on the Tyne! There could be more young: raptor parents often split up and take one young each to train, if say 2 young were raised. Also had a GBBG adult 1, a flock of 185 Lapwing on a stubble field, 11 Common Gull adult SW, 12 Black-headed Gull SW, 57 Starling (flock on stubble), 12 Herring Gull (6 ad, 6 locally-fledged juvenile), 5 LBBG adult. Total was 21 bird-types for trip. Butterflies comprised 8 Small White, 3 Meadow Brown, 1 Large White, 1 Green-veined White, 1 Comma. Funds were down 6k in another tumultuous week for equities; bonds retrieved some losses; still a very defensive portfolio with 740k in bonds, c31% of total. XXX

August 8th: maximum 18C, minimum 11C, moderate SW, bright morning, cloudy afternoon, rain in evening, cool. Had a Holly Blue on the ivy in the morning. Very hard work by Irish electrician Carl today, making the complete changeover from fuses to trips, with much tidying up of the board, and no teething problems (suspect-circuits are more liable to trip than blow a fuse as the trips pick up leakages better). He’s coming back tomorrow morning to do some checks and labelling, which will take a while. So stuck in all day today; could have got out in morning for a bit of fieldwork, but it’s nice making the property safer and more up-to-date. Just about completed Oxford presentation but plenty of scope for more reading on long train journey to Oxford on Sunday. Made G4g4s with L on!! Fetched and took back the frail P. Did visit another exciting venue but aqotwf as suspected!! So 2moro all depends on when electrics completed!! But do hope to get out in the afternoon to Jewson to choose a stove and Hexham NE to check for Osprey fledging. XXX

August 7th: maximum 18C, minimum 11C, moderate SW, some sunshine, mainly cloudy, dry, cool. Two electricians from STR arrived at 09:00 and worked out a solution for the boards, to be done tomorrow (full day). Today they sorted out the earth and connected the towel rail to the mains circuit, rather than using a power plug. Westall arrived at 13:30. Think the new stove is going to involve a re-doing of the 40 year-old chimney, brackets for chimney and the insulation material at the back of the stove, so quite a big job but had expected that; plumbing job is being given a final costing by them, no developments today. They did take away my large satellite dish, formerly used for WiFi, for scrap; I’d undone the dish on my daughter’s orders! The base of the satellite set-up is not movable without a pneumatic drill (masses of concrete). So house to myself after 14:30, enabling me to make Warden from 16:40-18:10 where had 3 Black Kite (ad, 2 juv earlier at distance from 16:57-17:25 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8, later closer in play with Rook at 18:00 9  10, habitat 11), 2 Honey-buzzard (male Hexham High Wood through top of trees over site 1 at 17:19 (14061a), female up high over Allerwash at 16:56 2  3 (14061)), 3 Common Buzzard (all juv, Greenshaw Plain), 1 Kestrel (ad male), plus lots of Hirundine (32 Swallow (some fledged), 11 Sand Martin, 8 House Martin) and Mallard, including a late brood of 3 large young. Also had a Grey Heron flying E, a Moorhen, a Chiffchaff, an LBBG adult, 3 Oystercatcher. Total for trip was 16 bird-types. Insects comprised a Southern Hawker dragonfly, and single Meadow Brown and Small White butterflies. Did lots of work in morning on laptop on ANPA paper to be given in Oxford next Monday in a 1-hour slot. Another go tomorrow morning should see it almost finished. Laptop is so useful when power is off. WiFi goes off but can use ‘pho ne on Vodafone network for the Internet, which works well in the ‘Shire. Nice glow today: XXX.

August 6th: maximum 20C, minimum 11C, moderate W, very sunny, humid, dry. Did have haircut at JG with the chatty Jd: £25.50, including tip. After lunch from 13:30-16:40 went for walk with family, they went on a bit further, I heard an incredible scream, younger granddaughter had tripped and fallen into an ant’s nest (Wood Ant I believe – pretty terrifying) but she survived! Had female Honey-buzzard up twice over nest site at 14:16 and 16:30, peering down below, so fledging is imminent 1  2  3  4 (14060). A Black Kite juvenile came over the valley as well at 14:18. We had a fawn Roe Deer at Peth Foot: I had another later at Loughbrow in my headlights. In total of 13 bird-types also had 3 Chiffchaff, a Jay, 4 Long-tailed Tit, a Common Gull ad W. Butterflies comprised 8 Small white, 4 Large White, 3 Green-veined White, 4 Meadow Brown, a Comma, a Small Tortoiseshell, plus a Southern Hawker dragonfly. So they left at 16:30 for NCL Airport to go to London (Ealing) via LHR for a week to visit my son-in-law’s sister. Then it’s back to Dubai and its 45C! I chaired the R Cncl meeting from 17:00-18:15 at the Cnt; quite a lot of business but all went positively. Much later inspiration indeed with tmfo: the climax to the day XXX. 2moro having electric boards switched from fuses to trips and another visit from Westall, mainly on the stove I think. Had a small group of Pink-footed Goose, maybe 8 birds, moving SW over Hexham SW at 23:30.

August 5th: maximum 22C, minimum 14C, moderate SW, some sunshine, quite muggy, dry. In Houtley area, had 2 Common Buzzard up together (ad, juv, Letah Wood), 15 Swallow (fledged), 1 Collared Dove. Chaired R meeting at Cnt4m4l so quite busy: went well! Family went to Life in NCL. We all went to DoW4m4s, 5 of us: very good meal, enjoyed by all and of course friendly ambience with C on, cost £140 with 12 tip!! 2moro have haircut at 09:30 with Jd at JG. Then it’s Cncl meeting for R which I chair at Cnt4g4t. They’re off in evening, with BA from NCL-LHR. So return to routine is imminent. We’ve had a gr8 time.

August 4th: maximum 18C, minimum 14C, moderate W, bright morning, dull later with showers in evening. Bit of ferrying round in morning. In afternoon got some spare time and went out to Allendale SW from 15:25-16:55 where heard juvenile Black Kite calls to S at 15:46 and to N at 15:46 and 16:30; an adult Black Kite sat on an elevated perch to S at 15:55 1. Also had a post-breeding flock of 240 Golden Plover, 2 calling Curlew, 16 Stock Dove (flock of 13), a perched Kestrel juvenile at 15:27. Total was 12 bird-types with 2 calling Curlew a late-season bonus. . Mammals included 2 Brown Hare, 20 mole hung out dead on a wire, 1 rabbit killed on road. At Nubbock on way home had a male Kestrel hunting high at 17:10. A Stoat was seen at Yellow Rigg and 2 Brown Hare at Allendale SW. We were reunited a bit later and ended up at the Black Bull in Corbridge for a late dinner. 2moro final meal is treat by me at DoW after R at lunchtime.

August 3rd: maximum 19C, minimum 10C, moderate W, bright sunshine, dry, slightly cool edge. No seaside, went to Twice Brewed4m4l, then Vindolanda for walk around this marvellous site and the museum. I paid £57 for our admission to the Roman camp, not cheap, but it all goes to a charitable trust and it is very interesting, looking around this northern outpost of the Roman Empire. I particularly like the well-preserved shoes, 2k years old, and the writing tablets from the same period, all world-famous for the graphic information they transmit. Son leaves 2moro lunchtime and daughter’s family Tuesday evening, when normal service will resume!!

August 2nd: maximum 23C, minimum 11C, light SW, bright sunshine, rain showers evening. At 14:40 4 Common Gull adult flew W at Hexham Station. A busy day with family. We had dinner at Zyka, Indian restaurant in HEX; very good food, £202 for the 6 of us, with yours truly footing the bill after son-in-law paid last night. Funds were -13k in this week’s rout: not good but rescued by bonds which rose as yields declined as recession looms; bonds are now 699k in value. If I’d stayed in the mining stocks and not bought bonds would have lost an extra 100k. Might be off to the seaside tomorrow!

August 1st: maximum 21C, minimum 9C, light SW, bright sunshine, warm, dry. Busy morning sorting various things in preparation for arrival of daughter’s family; they landed on time at 12:05 and made Ordley at 14:15 in hire car; great to see them all again; daughter and I visited solicitors NP late afternoon to sign some documents. Made Cnt4m4s early evening. They all went to bed early as up since about 02:00 our time. Had to get some extra bedding from T, where there was a pleasant surprise!! I’ve caught up on a bit of summary information.

From home page:

31/07/24: for Black Kite synchronised fledging around 19/7-21/7 with 13 young and 11 adult seen at 9 sites in 2nd half of month. Honey-buzzard as usual maintain a low profile in rearing phase with just 10 birds (8 male, 2 female) seen at 8 sites since 17/6.

Catch-up on records from BirdGuides: Black Kite a robust showing with 3/5 in NE England; Honey-buzzard good numbers away from well-reported breeding sites with numbers rising from 26/7 (maybe failed breeders):

14:57 01/08 Black Kite Devon Aveton Gifford 14:00 one flew south-east

13:28 01/08 Black Kite Anglesey Llanerch-y-medd 11:30 possible over Tyddyn Farm

10:24 26/07 Black Kite Lincolnshire Butterwick Low 25/07 unconfirmed report of one yesterday

10:26 25/07 Black Kite Cleveland Greatham Creek 08:30 possible flew west from moving car

09:43 24/07 Black Kite Northumberland Grindon Lough one circled over plantations just north-east of lough then flew north

14:29 24/07 Osprey Northumberland Grindon Lough one flew high north over Housesteads car park

16:04 01/08 European Honey Buzzard Northumberland Otterburn 15:55 one flew ESE over Redesdale

21:23 31/07 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Langham one flew south-east over The Cornfield

17:55 31/07 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Gulberwick, Mainland one reported flying over

07:10 31/07 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Strumpshaw Fen RSPB 30/07 one flew over yesterday

18:31 29/07 European Honey Buzzard Jersey Red Houses 18:14 one flew over

16:19 29/07 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Honing 15:37 one flew south-west

11:26 29/07 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Woolbeding Common 11:17 four again from viewpoint; park only in NT car park at Older Hill (GU29 9RR) and view from ridgeline west of NT car park. Do not block driveways

19:47 28/07 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Alner's Gorse one flew over

10:23 27/07 European Honey Buzzard Derbyshire Carsington Water one flew west

10:11 27/07 European Honey Buzzard Cambridgeshire Over 10:05 adult flew east

21:00 26/07 European Honey Buzzard Kent Walmer 13:30 one flew over south

14:55 26/07 European Honey Buzzard Somerset Burtle possible flew west

15:29 24/07 European Honey Buzzard Kent Langdon Cliffs NT 14:30 one flew high out to sea over HM Coastguard radar and transmission tower

17:16 23/07 European Honey Buzzard Outer Hebrides Malacleit, N Uist 14:30 one flew north over Malaclate

16:12 21/07 European Honey Buzzard North Yorkshire Upper Poppleton one flew over towards Acomb this afternoon

17:40 20/07 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Ludham Bridge 16:10 one flew north-east over River Ant

12:46 20/07 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Cley next the Sea 12:40 one flew east

11:09 20/07 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Pensthorpe Waterfowl Park 11:04 two flew east towards Sennowe Park

10:53 20/07 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Pensthorpe Waterfowl Park one flew over

15:49 19/07 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Gulberwick, Mainland one flew south over Black Gaet towards Scalloway

12:13 18/07 European Honey Buzzard Kent Samphire Hoe CP three flew south-west early afternoon

11:34 18/07 European Honey Buzzard Kent Langdon Cliffs NT11:33 one flew inland over Langdon Hole

July 31st: maximum 21C, minimum 13C, light E, hazy sunshine much of day, brighter at start and finish. Westall came round at 10 and stayed for an hour and a half discussing options. Plumbing is easier than thought, replacing whole tank/heater system with a slim-line mains pressure tank. Stove is more complicated than thought as modern standards are strict so will be new stove, steel chimney, brackets and backing board. So plan is to do plumbing first and stove second. Mainly still catching up on domestic duties today. Have processed all records up to yesterday, except for 4 sheets so can give running summary to 31/7 tomorrow. Looking forward to daughter’s family of 4 arriving from Dubai into NCL tomorrow, staying until next Tuesday. Son is joining us from Friday to Sunday so busy reunion will be soon underway.

July 30th: maximum 21C, minimum 9C, light to moderate W, bright day, sunny, dry. Not the heat of further S but very pleasant. Very busy day getting place ready for family reunion. Did make Hexham Tyne Green late afternoon from 17:20-18:35 where had 3 Black Kite (ad, 2 juv) flying together at 18:08 to SE to feed from eastern site at Hexham with 1 Rook 1  2. Not out later as still getting place ready!

July 29th: maximum 21C, minimum 10C, light S, bright day, sunny, dry. R meeting went well, not just the 2 new members’ ceremonies but the talk by HexhamTV by PW was well received. Bathroom is finished with towel rail connected and door hanged again. The door didn’t fit quite right so got my electric plane out and trimmed a bit off to get it to close: going to put new door handles on. Not much rest: Westall arrive on Wednesday morning to advise on water pressure/heating and have electrical fuse to trips as ready-to-go job. Not much to report wildlife-wise: a Comma and Small Tortoiseshell at Ordley at 11:30, a Common Buzzard juvenile at Letah Wood at 14:30, and 2 Brown Hare (1 Ordley, 1 Letah) on trip out. Did make G4g4s with L on!!

July 28th: maximum 23C, minimum 10C, light W, bright day, sunny, dry. At Ordley had 5 types of butterfly: 1 Small Tortoiseshell, 1 Meadow Brown, 2 Small White, 1 Large White, plus a Humming-bird Hawk-moth. Did make recycling centre to drop off stuff, mainly electrical goods; men were very helpful there. Then into Throckley for a walk from 12:55-13:55, finding one Black Kite juvenile up at 13:25 1  2  3 (marvellous!) and an adult from 13:31-13:42 4  5  6  7 plus a Common Buzzard family group (ad +2 juv). Total here was 14 bird-types, including 150 Black-headed Gull, 110 Herring Gull, 13 House Martin, 8 Swallow, 1 Swift. Butterflies included a Peacock and 3 Small Tortoiseshell. Then to Callerton Parkway where caught metro to GHD, walked to GH and had marvellous chamber concert of early music Flow, My Tears – Elegies and Atonement in H2. More to follow ...Had tea there with M, then back to CP and drove to Prestwick Carr where looked for more kite for about an hour from 17:15-18:20 – didn’t see any but, in 14 bird-types, had a calling Willow Warbler, 10 Linnet, 9 Swallow, plus 4 Green-veined White and a Small White. Did though have an adult Black Kite gliding over a field, to N of A69 at Thornbrough at 18:35. Made G4g4s with A/R: no P, he’s very frail, hardly able to climb steps. L was on!! Another big day for R 2moro with 2 new members being processed! XXX

July 27th: maximum 17C, minimum 10C, light NW, bright day, mostly sunny. Joiner didn’t turn up – seems very elusive – hung door myself lightly so doesn’t damage anything – you have to have privacy in a bathroom! But needs a bit of joinery to make door fit properly as a tile is proud to the frame. Did a lot of clearing up, moving last surplus material to shed, and restoring daughter’s room to normal. Have a major trip to recycling centre tomorrow with various debris! Did make DoW4g4s with D/D 4 gr8 chat; we were thrown out at 22:30 as business so quiet. So went in search for Nightjar: at Eastwood Common (none, 22:50), Dipton Wood S (1 loud guik, 23:10), Dipton Wood main (1 flying across road into site, 23:30), Dipton Wood N (none, 23:40). Also had a Tawny Owl calling at Dipton Wood S, 2 Tawny Owl juveniles calling at Dipton Wood main, a Tawny Owl calling at Ordley. Only mammal was a Hedgehog at Ordley. So 2 Nightjar sites confirmed and 3 Tawny Owl sites. Much more to catch up on from yesterday … 2moro it’s another concert at GH in afternoon in Proms, preceded by fieldwork at Throckley. Funds were -3k last week. Should make G4g4s. XXX

July 26th: maximum 18C, minimum 9C, moderate W, quite cloudy after bright start. Very busy day: 12k+ steps by end. Proms concert at GH was brilliant with Sibelius VC and Dvořák 8: more to follow ...R meeting went well at Copthorne with Hexham praised for our increasing membership trend. Lunch had its attractions: she’s very motivating!! Did some fieldwork at Wylam mid-afternoon from 15:00-16:20 but no kite seen. Did have 2 Common Buzzard (juvenile up at 15:45 and 15:58, joined by adult at 15:58) plus a Common Sandpiper, 2 Dipper, 1 Mute Swan adult, 1 Common Gull adult W, 9 Sand Martin, in total of 19 bird-types, plus a Green-veined White and 2 Small White. Must get to bed … XXX

July 25th: maximum 19C, minimum 10C, moderate W, dull until evening, cooler. A Black Kite juvenile was seen flying low-down into a copse of trees c300m from the nest site, at Ordley at 17:16. Bathroom looks complete 9a  9b but still a little finishing required: door-wise, towel rail-wise, water pressure for shower. Added bird records from yesterday. Black Kite fledging success is remarkable: synchronised, early compared to previous years, productive; from 19-25 July have fledging at 7 sites: 3x2 and 4x1+, giving 10+ young raised at 7 sites, with one more site occupied in this period; so 8/18 sites checked positively from 19-25 July; 2moro will try to make Wylam on way into NCL for R District meeting for Presidents at 17:30 in Copthorne and prom concert, Sibelius VC, at 19:30. Have withdrawn from Skype session with N/D at 10 to get organised for rest of day; will have lunch in HEX. Today had good chat with M at T4m4l and with A/P at G4g4s; sensuous later: lok2tmfo: she’s inspiring!!

July 24th: maximum 22C, minimum 14C, light S, bright sunshine in morning becoming hazy as day wore on, warm. Coming back along the A69 a juvenile Black Kite was flying W to E at 17:30 from the W site in Hexham N. Main event today was going to lunchtime concert at Kirkharle in their summer series with solo performance by Gareth Davies-Jones on 5 different guitars. He’s a north-country folk singer but his content was very varied with one of his themes, combining the history of NE Ireland, NE Scotland and NE England; he also had quite a lot on mining and to his credit had done a lot of research at the Mining Institute in Neville Street, Newcastle. So all very good: loved the concert, had tuna sandwich for lunch and bought 3 of his CDs in a package for £20. Then off to nearby Capheaton where there’s a large lake for birdwatching, before driving back to Hexham. At Capheaton had 2 juvenile Common Buzzard on the wing, plus many waterbirds: 17 Canada Goose (13 ad and 4 juv), 6 Mute Swan (all ad), 8 Gadwall (4 young raised by 2 pairs), 1 Mallard, 1 Pochard (first for year, drake), 6 Tufted Duck (female with 4 medium young, plus a male), 4 Moorhen (no young in view), 6 Coot (no young in view), 1 Little Grebe (trilling). Total was 18 bird-types. At Kirkharle had 15 bird-types, including 7 Tree Sparrow (fledged), 4 Linnet (fledged). No bathroom work today but have received a quote of £1.32k for sorting out my electricity boards (converting them from fuses to trips), which is essential for further work on the house so will accept quickly. 2moro it’s T4m4l with M and G4g4s with P/A with need to take the frail P home, delaying me a bit!! XXX

July 23rd: maximum 20C, minimum 10C, light E, cloudy morning, sunny afternoon and evening, warmer. Exciting day!! Lazy morning, noting flying juvenile Common Buzzard (2 ad, 2 juv altogether), 3 Chiffchaff and 3 Nuthatch at home, plus butterflies: 13 Meadow Brown, 4 Ringlet, 2 Small White, 1 Large White. Later in day made Prudhoe Dukeshagg from 16:20-18:05 where action very slow, getting one squawk from a Common Buzzard juvenile at 17:28 to E and a Black Kite juvenile up at 17:42 to W 1. The Black Kite have fledged earlier this year, obviously adapting to the northern climate. The butterflies at this Woodland Trust site were brilliant: an Essex Skipper 1  2  3, new for me anywhere and very rare in Northumberland, plus: 5 Small Skipper, 1 Large Skipper, 2 Green-veined White, 6 Small White, 7 Large White, 4 Ringlet, 26 Meadow Brown, and another suspected Marbled White; that’s 8-9 types with no Nymphalidae. Total was just 14 bird-types, including 3 Chiffchaff, 4 Swallow, 1 Siskin, 2 Song Thrush. A Roe Deer was barking from within a wood. 2 Tawny Owl were calling in Hexham SW much later when an Oystercatcher was calling overhead. Did make rendezvous with the beautiful one: she’s so exciting!!! XXX 2moro it’s concert at Kirkharle at 13:30, coupled with visit to Capheaton Lake.

July 22nd: maximum 18C, minimum 12C, light W, dull for most of day, heavy rain late evening. Sealing completed in bathroom with Connor working over lunchtime, when out to R where presiding over our meeting for lunch. Pretty busy time, resolving International team leadership, keeping our Forms-based lunch ordering on track, chairing meeting, inducting new member, chairing speaker from Hexham Hospital. But all went well!! Joiner came and ordered new part to complete refitting of door on Thursday. Westall very efficient with appointment with project manager set for Wednesday week, one day before daughter’s family arrives from Dubai to stay for 6 days. Progressed 5/6/2023 in Georgia but not finished yet; completed 21/7 at Thornbrough. Took family history back to 1515 with a Thomas Rosseter in Wexford. Did make G4g4s with A/R/P/R (one extra!) for good chat! 2moro should be more relaxing!! XXX

July 21st: maximum 17C, minimum 11C, light W, bright early then rather overcast, dry in daytime, cooler. Contacted Westall about 3 outstanding problems with house: 1) water pressure, old immersion heater; 2) damaged wood/coal burning stove; 3) electric board is fused rather than tripped. So hope they can help here. Cleaner came today and made front porch immaculate, marvellous restoration. Plumber Connor returns tomorrow morning to do sealing of all joins on shower and floor. Made Waitrose in morning for a little shopping, then up to Racecourse to check visibility of sites: definitely better for the Black Kite site but none up today in brief visit. In afternoon made Starbucks4c4t followed by trip to Thornbrough from 15:50-17:10. Raptors were not flying today but did have 2 Black Kite juveniles in woods near where I parked. One was surrounded by 4 Crow on a prominent perch to E from 16:00-16:05 1  2  3, the other called once from a nearby wood to N at 17:05. In total of 17 bird-types had 7 Yellowhammer, 21 House Sparrow, 8 Swallow, 5 Linnet, 5 Mistle Thrush (fledged), 2 Chiffchaff, 7 Common Gull ad to S. Butterflies comprised 2 Meadow Brown, 1 Red Admiral, 1 Ringlet. Earlier at Ordley had 11 Common Gull ad to SW and a Red Admiral. In Hexham noted 2 Oystercatcher. Resumed work on WikiTree on Irish ancestors in 1640s in Wexford with updates on the Civil War, where the Rosseters (led by Capt. Thomas) were on the losing side as Catholics against the puritan Cromwell. Did make G4g4s, fetching frail P and taking him home. L was on!! The fanciable one might have 2 visits this week: XXX!!

July 20th: maximum 21C, minimum 9C, light W, very comfortable day, increasing cloud during late morning and afternoon but no rain until evening. Did masses of gardening, restoring path at back of house, cutting back ivy, mowing 5 loads of grass from area by pony shelters. Also clearing up daughter’s room from builder's materials. Did get out from 12:40-13:50 to single-track road near water installation overlooking Acomb and Tyne Valley to N and West Dipton Burn in the ‘Shire to S, E of Racecourse, part of Hexham SW tetrad. Good views to West Dipton and had family group of 4 Black Kite (2 ad, 2 juv) 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8 up to W twice at 12:55 and 13:32 with again a male Honey-buzzard above them at 12:56 and 13:21 1 (14050) so mass Black Kite fledging now. Saw the Osprey soaring over its nest site to NE on other side of Tyne Valley at 13:39 moving slowly S towards the Tyne 1. A Common Buzzard juvenile was by the side of the road at Loughbrow at 13:49. In 19 bird-types in Hexham SW area had 2 Chiffchaff, 12 Swift, 4 Swallow, 1 Sand Martin S, 2 Common Gull adult SW, 1 Oystercatcher. Earlier at Ordley had a male Honey-buzzard with alarm calls at 7:05 interrupting my sleep! Also here a Black Kite adult was over the house late morning at 11:44 1 and an adult Common Buzzard soared off its nest site. Other birds noted were 3 Nuthatch, 4 Mistle Thrush, 2 Chiffchaff, 5 Common Gull adult to SW. Butterflies were of 6 types: 9 Ringlet, 2 Meadow Brown, 2 Small White, single Small Skipper, Large White, Speckled Wood. A frog was hopping across road in rain at Newton after leaving pub. A Tawny Owl was calling at Dipton Wood main at 23:15. Made DoW4g4s to meet D/D for great chat! XXX!!

July 19th: maximum 24C, minimum 13C, moderate S, beautiful day, very warm, dry. A few highlights today: gr8 lunch, first Black Kite young fledged, first Common Buzzard young fledged, a male Honey-buzzard seen, remaining rubbish from bathroom refit removed from grass outside front door to tip. Also moved myself spare materials to the garden shed to tidy things up a bit. Lunch was very tasty!! Went to Bywell for ttime from 15:10-16:35, getting 4 types of raptor in the sunny, breezy conditions. Black Kite starred from 15:19-16:11 with 4 birds up over Cottagebank unaged 1  2; adult 3  4  5  6  7; juvenile 8  9   10  11  12  13  14  15  16  17; ad + juv 18  19 juv with Common Buzzard adult 20 (2 ad, 2 juv), 3 over a new site Tofts Hill at 15:38 and 16:06 unaged 21; adult 22; juv 23  24 (2 ad, 1 juv) and an adult over Peepy at 15:41 22. A male Honey-buzzard, presumed from Cottagebank, was up over Bywell N at 15:28 1  2 (14048); noticed before how, when other aggressive raptors around as in Africa, the males float high above them, presumably for their own safety; the heavier females stand their ground more. Common Buzzard comprised 3 at Peepy (1 ad, 2 juv), 4 at Cottagebank (2 ad, 2 juv), 2 to N of Cottagebank (2 ad): total 9. A pair of Kestrel were out hunting energetically. So 20 raptors of 4 types: amazing! No Red Kite seen: are they hanging on here as Black Kite move in to dominate? Quite a few Common Gull on the return journey from Norway today, with 17 SW at Ordley around 13:20 (13 ad, 4 1s), and 16 S at Bywell around 16:00 (15 ad, 1 1s). At Bywell also had, in 16 bird-types, 15 Swallow, 9 Swift, 7 Mistle Thrush (fledged), 5 Oystercatcher (fledged). At Ordley had 2 agitated Common Buzzard (fledging imminent), 4 Sand Martin SW, 1+ Swift nest ongoing. Butterflies at Ordley were 10 Meadow Brown, 3 Ringlet, 2 Small White, 1 Large White. At Bywell had 3 Small White, 2 Ringlet, 1 Large White, 1 Meadow Brown. XXX!! Funds -4k on week, not too bad in deflationary markets. Remaining bathroom jobs scheduled for Monday.

July 18th: maximum 21C, minimum 11C, light SW, murky most of day, occasional showers. Well bathroom job by InHouse completed today, except for a few finishes: sealant around room, large old appliances still to be taken away, door to be re-hanged, towel rail needs to be connected; final cost 10.05k. So that’s marvellous. Water pressure leaves a bit to be desired, as most water supply is governed by header tank position. Going to get Westall in to have a look at it as well as into the replacement of the wood-burning stove and the updating of the electricity boards to trips (RCD); could be 5-6k there in cost. Made T4m4l with M for light relief, followed by an expressive and forceful organ recital at Hexham Abbey by Ian Roberts, including Vivaldi’s concerto in A minor and Josef Rheinberger’s organ sonata no.3 (pastoral). . Making progress on Batumi 5/9, indexing piccies of the Honey-buzzard stream and kettles. Last builder left at 21:00, made G4g4s with A/R/P 4 good chat with L on!! Late sensation with the beautiful tmfo: XXX!!

July 17th: maximum 21C, minimum 12C, light W, sunny most of day, cloudy midday, dry. Pretty hectic day on bathroom front with fittings installed to some extent and electricity supply to power shower and lights secured. So here’s latest piccie. 2moro is completion day with waste connection to sink, shower sides installed, towel rail fitted and a few missing covering patches fitted; the downstairs loo works already, might save a few trips into the garden!! Paid them half the remaining balance of 1k. Think I had a Marbled White butterfly in my field; couldn’t get a photograph, will look out 2moro. Did have 4 Meadow Brown, 6 Ringlet and a Small Skipper there though. Hope to escape to T4m4l with M followed by organ recital at the Abbey. Funds are -3k wtd, continuing softer trend of last few weeks; have about £662k in bonds as expecting a soft patch for equities as interest rates are held up higher for longer than is necessary. Attended R District session on Zoom on encouraging corporate membership. Yesterday attended a community meeting at NBS on behalf of R in respect of the same issue. Going to bed early; one more day then will have house back!!

From home page, latest summary for season:

16/07/24: mid-season lull: Black Kite overall with 30 birds at 17 sites, since 8/6 6 sites found to be occupied by 9 birds; Honey-buzzard overall with 39 birds at 25 sites, since 17/6 7 sites found to be occupied by 9 birds; Hobby have settled to breed with 9 birds at 6 sites; Osprey are ongoing; 4 Goshawk have been seen at 3 sites; 26 Red Kite have been seen at 21 sites.

Latest news from BirdGuides: a further rush of Honey-buzzard on 13/7 and 2 Black Kite records, showing limited passage.

11:13 15/07 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Ashdown Forest two again from Llama Park viewpoint; use Long car park (RH18 5JN) and walk to view from Llama Park viewpoint (51.0642, 0.0366). Please keep to public footpath

10:54 14/07 European Honey Buzzard Derbyshire Ogston Reservoir adult flew south late morning

10:38 14/07 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Ashdown Forest 10:30 two from Llama Park viewpoint

15:29 13/07 European Honey Buzzard Kent Kingsdown 15:20 one flew over Kingsdown Cliffs towards Dover

11:59 13/07 European Honey Buzzard Kent Walmer 11:56 one flew north over Lower Walmer

10:51 13/07 European Honey Buzzard Kent Sandwich Bay 10:25 one flew north over observatory

10:28 13/07 European Honey Buzzard Kent Sholden 10:25 one flew north

08:42 13/07 European Honey Buzzard Kent St Margaret's at Cliffe 08:38 one flew north over Bockhill Farm viewed from monument

17:02 16/07 Black Kite Dublin Dundrum 15:40 one flew north

12:09 15/07 Black Kite Kent Snodland 11:30 one flew east

July 16th: maximum 19C, minimum 10C, light W, humid, warm, not much clear sunshine, rain showers at ttime. Building work continues with ceiling and floor fixed today. 2moro the fittings will start to be installed. Did do some grass cutting, getting another 5 bales cropped. Had as many as 16 Ringlet in field and on edges, plus a Small White, a Meadow Brown and a Painted Lady during the day, last on buddleia. Have family parties of Robin, Chiffchaff and Magpie in garden, with a Blue Tit calling today, first for a while. Highlight of day was a Lunar Hornet Clearwing moth on a sallow bush in the garden, looks like a hornet/large wasp but without the thin waist of hymenoptera; the first I’ve ever seen. A juvenile Kestrel was at Houtley at 21:00. Made Cnt4g4s with M. All quiet on the western front!! Am finding the rhythm of life with the builders quite a challenge; up at 08:00 to get them started each day when get to bed late still is making me a wee bit irritable!!

July 15th: maximum 20C, minimum 12C, light W, much brighter and warmer as winds go W, dry except for shower late-on. Tied up with R from 12:00-14:00 with presiding over lunch and business and then attended Admin team meeting from 14:15-15:15 at NBS. Had to get out after that and drove to Tyne Green where from 15:45-17:00 had 3 Honey-buzzard (2 males interacting to N, one from each site, at 16:26 1, a single male from 15:58-16:26 2  3  4  5  6  7  8 and a female on the E site from 16:37-16:38 9  10  11  12  13  14  15  16  17  18  19 (14046); 2 Black Kite (interacting from each site, Hermitage and Hexham NE, at 15:58 1), an Osprey moving very slowly SE to fish from the nest site at 16:33 1, a Hobby female gliding through trees to N, moving E at 16:35. So Honey-buzzard, Black Kite and Osprey all progressing at full strength and a new site for Hobby this year, but one that has been occupied in past. So well worth the effort. Had 23 bird-types overall, including a Common Gull 1s W, 5 LBBG (4 ad, 1 1s), 22 Black-headed Gull (14 ad, 8 juv), 3 Chiffchaff (fledged), 12 Swift, a Grey Heron, 4 Oystercatcher, 4 Goldfinch. Butterflies comprised a Red Admiral and a Meadow Brown. No building action today but plumber due at 08:30 2moro to do some final fittings. Had 2 fawn Roe Deer in my field this evening with one also seen yesterday evening plus a Hedgehog today; they breed each summer now there. Made G4g4s for relaxation with A/P/R and L on!! 2moro hope to do some grass cutting and get out for some fieldwork, maybe looking for attractions in the evening. XX

July 14th: maximum 15C, minimum 11C, light NW, little rain early on, very dull, cool. Tilers arrived at 08:00 from Wallsend and did the grouting of their handiwork; finished at 11:00 so place to myself for rest of day; next up is ceiling covering including new lights and floor covering. So bathroom is now grouted! Completed Kenya 16/12 and added bird records for that day, giving running total for trip of 107 of 107 species from 209 records, 4 complete lists, 15 places. 19 species of raptor. There are 3 days to process: 13/12, 14/12 and 17/12; the last is next one lined up for Kenya but am going back to Georgia where have 2 days to process, to do 5/9 Sakhalvasho, near the raptor watchpoint, which started on today. Also processed 12/7 Throckley N. Did comment on a DT article Sky News slashes freelance budgets as viewing figures slump (telegraph.co.uk):

Sky News have come very close at times to openly supporting Hamas, acting effectively as their propaganda tool. Israel has had a very unfair portrayal on Sky News. [got 26 likes as of 23:58 and 28 by next morning]

Made Cnt4g4s with P/A/R 4 good chat; people streaming home at 22:00 after the game finished, which did watch at home until 21:55; such a shame but thought Spain just deserved it. 2moro it’s Cnt again for R lunch over which presiding in my new role. XX

July 13th: maximum 13C, minimum 10C, light N, light rain all day, becoming heavier in evening, very cool. Tilers arrived at 7:30 and finished at 16:00 having completed tiling every wall with hexagonals on one and large tiles on the others; so room is now tiled; tomorrow they return at 08:00 for removing pegs and grouting; job is on time in spite of the additional boarding; 18/7-19/7 is anticipated completion time. Did get on with some records, while workers were in and weather was too bad for gardening, processing 26/6 Thornbrough completely and making great progress on 16/12 Kenya. Had good break at DoW4g4s with D/D. Will be going out to Dubai late October/early November to stay with daughter’s family; 2 Oriental Honey-buzzard called in recently at Jumeriah Golf Estates where they live, treating it as an oasis! XX

July 12th: maximum 15C, minimum 9C, light N, dull morning, brighter afternoon, dry. Did day 2 of grass-cutting in back doing another 5 bales, basically clearing long grass but leaving orchids, sedges and meadowland flowers. Made QHC4s4l – very tasty and quite chatty! Then back home to check on house and drive into Throckley N where looked for raptors from 16:00-17:00 in this unlikely hot spot. Drove to Callerton Parkway for Metro into Gateshead, to walk to Glasshouse where retrieved my quilt coat, taken away by someone by mistake there in June but returned. Paid the GH £944 for my packages of concerts for the next season, all to be held eventually in my Google Wallet. Concert was by Hexham-based Samling Singers Academy, showcasing some recent student additions in a series of short songs with no applause allowed in between them to keep things on the short side. We did give them rousing applause at the end though for a very entertaining concert. J worked on bathroom as his workers off sick and boarding is completed so tiling can start tomorrow. Another electrician came round and again didn’t like absence of RTD (system anticipates shorts and trips). But he’s agreed to do the work using the existing wiring and will give me a quote for putting RTD into my boards (c1k); think it needs doing. Bathroom is now boarded. Using AVS4YOU produced 6-minute video on Masai welcome and dancing from 16/12/23. Walked 11.1k steps today, feeling fit. So what about the raptors at Throckley: first class with single Black Kite 1 circling a Common Buzzard at 16:06, a Honey-buzzard male moving slowly N in the distance at 16:10 and 16:34 1  2  3 (13042), a Kestrel adult male out hovering at 16:40, all new for year. The Black Kite move closer to Newcastle! Birds numbered 17 types, including the four of raptor, plus 2 Stock Dove, 1 Common Gull ad SW, 8 Swallow (fledged), 1 Robin juvenile, 130 Starling (flocks 120,10). Also a Narrow-bordered Five-spot Burnet on the wing, plus single Ringlet and Meadow Brown. Thought the brighter afternoon might be a lead-in to better weather over weekend but it appears not. Funds +3k on week after more withdrawals for building work. Gain on year to date is 97k gross but withdrawals are around 50k for family, charities, buildings and Ag. Expect more investments in own house as this is tax efficient. XX

July 11th: maximum 15C, minimum 9C, light N, dull, dry. Still preoccupied with bathroom as boarding installed in most of it; a little boarding remains to be done, scheduled for tomorrow, Connor has worked so hard. Did make T4m4l with M 4 good chat and G4g4s with P/R and L on!! Interested in career of Ollie Watkins, last night’s hero against Netherlands. Born in Torquay, recruited to Exeter’s Youth Academy (League 2 then) and farmed out to Weston-Super-Mare (Conference South) in last chance saloon. He scored freely and was bought up by Brentford and more recently Aston Villa. As a Devonian from between Torquay and Exeter (Teignmouth), quite proud of his roots but his fate at times hung by a thread. What a marvellous outcome though! 2moro hope to get away from the builders for QHC4s4l and much later GH4con with Samling. XX

Latest news from BirdGuides: a rush of Honey-buzzard today in better weather in the S, including a spectacular arrival at Langdon Cliffs, Kent, of 4 birds, moving W. All quiet for Black Kite as they sit!

Black Kite: none

Osprey: locally none

21:11 11/07 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Hengistbury Head one flew low over Wick this morning

14:28 11/07 European Honey Buzzard Suffolk Eastbridge one flew south mid-morning

12:07 11/07 European Honey Buzzard Kent Langdon Cliffs NT flew off from rocks at base of cliffs late morning and continued west

11:29 11/07 European Honey Buzzard Kent Langdon Cliffs NT 11:28 a third individual flew in off the sea then landed on rocks at base of cliffs

11:21 11/07 European Honey Buzzard Kent Langdon Cliffs NT 11:15 second bird flew in off the sea then west towards Dover Harbour

11:11 11/07 European Honey Buzzard Kent Langdon Cliffs NT 11:09 one flew in off the sea then west towards Dover Harbour

10:22 10/07 European Honey Buzzard Lancashire Leighton Moss RSPB 10:10 still from Sky Tower

10:20 10/07 European Honey Buzzard Lancashire Leighton Moss RSPB 10:00 one flew south over Causeway Hide

10:19 10/07 European Honey Buzzard West Yorkshire St Aidan's RSPB (Swillington Ings) 09:20 one flew east

20:55 08/07 European Honey Buzzard West Yorkshire Wakefield 20:50 probable west of Kirkthorpe

16:11 08/07 European Honey Buzzard Northumberland Hartside 13:40 female east of Hartside over hill north of River Breamish

08:04 05/07 European Honey Buzzard Fife North Queensferry 07:25 one flew south over Firth of Forth

19:58 04/07 European Honey Buzzard Essex Friday Wood one

10:08 04/07 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Woolbeding Common at least three showing well; park only in NT car park at Older Hill (GU29 9RR) and view from ridgeline west of NT car park. Do not block driveways

July 10th: maximum 15C, minimum 10C, light E, very wet all day, this summer shaping up to be the worst for a number of years, next sun is forecast for Sunday afternoon (14/7)! Frame completed for bathroom today on rhs as go in, so all framed now; next step is tomorrow fitting plasterboard with tiling on Saturday and Sunday; Friday is a rest day for them! Highlight of day was SQ concert at Kirkharle from 13:30; drove there and had lunch b4 the music. Programme was very well judged: a Fantasia for Solo Violin (Telemann), SQ by Haydn ‘Emperor’, SQ 1 by Mendelssohn. Enjoyed it all but particularly loved the Telemann, mv2 in the Emperor SQ and the shimmering Mendelssohn. Delighted to meet someone very young and her lovely mum: did bring back memories!! The Emperor SQ mv 2 is sublime music, listen to this by Veridis Quartet; it gives many variations on the hymn Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser “Deutschlandlied” composed by Haydn in 1796; today many people would recognise Deutschlandlied as the German national anthem. The first verse was banned after the second world war because of its association with German hegemony and German atrocities against the Jews. Really enjoyed the concert: I’ve got a season ticket for the series. Expect to be at Tans 2moro with M and QHC the next day.

Called in at Colt Crag Reservoir on way home from 15:40-16:50 in poor weather. Plenty to see: 16 types of bird: 87 Canada Goose big flock 70 + 4 ad scattered around + 2 broods (2 ad + 3 juv) (2 ad + 6 juv), 3 Greylag Goose, 4 Gadwall family group of female and 3 juvenile (new for year), 1 Mallard, 1 Pheasant, 6 Woodpigeon, 2 Curlew, 2 Little Egret, 3 Grey Heron, 2 Rook, 2 Carrion Crow, 1 Swallow, 4 Chiffchaff, 1 Song Thrush, 3 Blackbird, 8 Lesser Redpoll, plus a dead mole on the track.

July 9th: maximum 13C, minimum 12C, light NE, heavy rain most of day, cool again. Here’s some piccies on bathroom today: old one mostly outside on front grass 1  2, gutted bathroom being refitted 3  4. Sparky came round today and said he would not fit any new electrics back to the box as needed work on box costing £600; however he will fit into existing sockets so no problem there. He said if I wanted to charge an EV at home, it would cost over 1k just to refit the box before paying for the charger. He also said most rural properties don’t make the modern urban standards but they’re all different – idiosyncratic! Net Zero is totally unrealistic: they’d love to get rid of our wood burners: just watch Ed Milliband!! Anyway work progresses with new copper pipelines fitted today for the new appliances. Had appointment at local Newcastle BS at 10:00 discussing corporate membership of R; we’re planning to collaborate more with the building society under their communities scheme. Looking forward to concert at Kirkharle 2moro at late lunchtime!! Going to Samling on Friday at GH. 2nite was very special: the beautiful and exciting tmfo!! Funds -2k wtd, playing a very defensive hand, moving steadily sale proceeds into US and € bonds.

Completed Kenya 18/12 in all respects. Running total for Kenya trip is: 99 of 99 species from 192 records, 4 complete lists, 15 places, with 19 raptors so far. Still to process 14/12-17/12 at Mara Fairmont; 16/12 Masai village and randy elephant is up next!

July 8th: maximum 17C, minimum 11C, light SQ, bright morning, dull later with some showers, warmer. Well building work has started on the main bathroom on time; good progress made in clearing the room but as suspected some plasterboards are not up to it so more work needed there and on floor below bath; extra £550 is quote which paid already as cannot have job left in limbo. Do have an upstairs bathroom but it’s smaller scale. Made Hexham GC for our employee award do – all went marvellously with plenty of warm ceremony and everyone enjoying themselves. Made G4g4s taking frail P down and back; L was on!! Indexed about ½ the entries for Kenya for 18/12/2023 and progressed rapidly my ANPA presentation for Oxford in mid-August. 2moro sees temptations of a powerful sort!! At home had a singing Chiffchaff, plus 4 Ringlet, 1 Meadow Brown, 1 Red Admiral.

July 7th: maximum 15C, minimum 9C, moderate W, bright morning, dull later with some showers, cool. Concentrating on records today, doing 18/12 Kenya Balloon trip over the Mara with daughter; have indexed and resized all the piccies for this day and uploaded them to the server but still need to index them on NB2023. Major plus point: have found a Honey-buzzard and a few other raptors around the waterhole which we visited in between landing and having a champagne breakfast. Also have an African Cuckoo-Hawk, a close relative of the Honey-buzzard, alarm calling at the Fairmont Lodge, where we stayed for 5 days by the Mara River. Booked up hotel in Oxford for mid-August for ANPA conference for 5 nights. Not out today until 21:45 when off to G4g4s with L on!! Fitter/plumber Connor arrives 2moro at 08:30 to start the big job. Have R Young Employee at 05:45 for 06:30 dinner at Hexham GC which presiding over; later it’s G4g4s.

July 6th: maximum 15C, minimum 9C, moderate W, bright morning, dull later with frequent showers, cool. Caught up on a lot of records today, completing all July records and finishing 1/6 a great day out on Eastwood Common, near Healey; just 3 sheets left for June now. Met D/D at DoW4g4s for great chat in Newton; D’s photographing for 10km race in NCL 2moro. We finished at 22:45 so I did a quick detour back through Healey, getting a Long-eared Owl hunting on the roadside plus a Brown Hare at Broomleyfell, another Brown Hare at Eastwood Common, a pair of Tawny Owl calling at Dipton Wood N. It was a bit windy and cool for Nightjar – none heard today. Earlier around 20:00 had a brood of Pheasant by side of road at Ordley and a family party of 6 Mistle Thrush at Letah Wood. Still have haunting memories of tmfo!! 2moro have groceries arriving from W at 12, then hope to get out, b4 clearing bathroom and G4g4s.

July 5th: maximum 15C, minimum 9C, moderate W, almost dry, bright sunshine becoming veiled in late afternoon, cool. Bathroom fittings arrived on time at 10:00, filled up the whole of the ground-floor bedroom, fitters arrive Monday. Met M at T4m4l for good chat. Then masses of gardening in front with mower and hedge trimmer, restoring some order. Out to Harwood Shield for walk and birds from 16:40-18:10, getting plenty of moorland birds, such as Curlew, Snipe and Meadow Pipit, with 2 Red Kite: 1 over Riddlehamhope on watershed between Devil’s Water and Beldon Burn at 17:15, another flying low-down right over the farmhouse at Harwood Shield at 17:56 1, and 3 Kestrel: a female out over the moors with 2 juveniles in training mode 1  2. A Barn Owl was out hunting in daylight at 17:45, looking ghostly white against the green grass 1  2. On the moors had 19 species of bird, including 6 Red Grouse (2 adult and 1 female with 3 large chicks), 4 Stock Dove, 5 Oystercatcher, 9 Curlew (fledged young), 1 Snipe, 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull adult, 1 Grey Heron, 6 Swallow (fledged), 2 House Martin, 8 Meadow Pipit, plus 1 Rabbit and 2 Brown Hare. At Steel Pond at 18:30 had 42 Lapwing, a Golden Plover, 2 Snipe, 3 Teal, 1 Oystercatcher, 4 Pied Wagtail (fledged), 2 Song Thrush (fledged). Earlier at Ordley at 12:00 had an adult male Kestrel out hunting towards Linnels, a singing Chiffchaff and a Goldfinch at 12:00. Very energetic day: 11k steps. Relaxed at home afterwards!! Funds were unchanged on week with rise in Falklands oil stocks outweighed by falls in other energy stocks and in bonds.

July 4th: maximum 13C, minimum 9C, fresh W, very gusty, heavy rain showers, bright sunshine in between, very cool. Made Dalton in the ‘Shire from 17:20-18:35, very bracing. Had 13 types in all: 1 Pheasant, 3 Stock Dove, 16 Woodpigeon, 1 Collared Dove, 60 Lapwing post-breeding flock, 17 Curlew post-breeding flock, 8 Jackdaw, 12 Rook, 3 Carrion Crow, 2 Swallow, 1 Blackbird, 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull adult, 1 Red Kite up in wild conditions to see off a wandering LBBG. Last 2 at Rowley Burn, a little to S. Also a Hedgehog out in daylight feeding. Tmfo is certainly that: very motivating in all respects: see you next tuesday!! Did get some work done in QHL, looking at Whitehead’s view on nature. Did make G4g4s, bringing in and taking back the frail P; on final exit at 23:45 lots of people around from High School and people watching election results. Stayed up myself to 03:30 watching the results. 2moro bathroom fittings for makeover being delivered at 10:00 (installation next week) and T4m4l with M at 12:00. Cleaner S arrives at 17:00 when could be out looking for more kite!

July 3rd: maximum 14C, minimum 8C, moderate W, rain overnight, few showers later, some bright spells; on sharp borderline between wet west and drier east in late afternoon but very cool. Feeling brighter today with easing of R pressures. Did have another peek out, going to Whitley Chapel from 16:10-17:20. Here had 3 raptors, all in Dotland S area, including a Red Kite flying into cover to NW of me at 16:20, a Common Buzzard calling at same time in same area and getting up briefly, also seen later up briefly at 16:56, a male Honey-buzzard repeatedly up to the W/NW of me from 16:38-16:53, out on a foraging trip 1 (14040). Near the end at 17:03 a Black Kite arrived from the E (Ordley S site) and proceeded to hunt over the area to E of me, giving good views with light behind 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11. The breeze made conditions difficult for small birds but did note 6 Dunnock in the hedges, including fledged young. Gull passage was interesting with 4 Common Gull (3 ad, 1 1s) and 9 Black-headed Gull (9 ad), all moving SW into the strong breeze; the adults are likely to be failed breeders from Norway – early return. On way back stopped at Steel Pond at 17:30 where had 6 waterbirds: 2 Mallard, 1 Teal 1  2, 1 Moorhen juvenile, 2 Oystercatcher, 12 Lapwing, some fledged young, 1 Snipe 1, in habitat. In front garden at 17:45 a Chiffchaff was calling. Butterflies in the garden included 2 Meadow Brown, 1 Ringlet, 1 Speckled Wood. Compiled some records from June in the morning. 2moro it’s lunch in town at QHC4s4l and much later G4g4s!! Will spend some time at QHL, working on ANPA paper, but will get out to another Red Kite site in the ‘Shire around ttime. On Friday M returns and meeting him at Tans.

Latest summary of breeding season to date is given below:

30/06/24: Black Kite may have young now with 29 birds at 16 sites; Honey-buzzard are sitting tight with 36 birds at 24 sites; Hobby have settled to breed with 8 birds at 5 sites; Osprey presumed ongoing; 4 Goshawk have been seen at 3 sites; 21 Red Kite have been seen at 17 sites, becoming more visible now with young in nest. From Honey-buzzard Home Page

July 2nd: maximum 16C, minimum 9C, moderate W, dull, rain at times. Made Lilswood Grange area of the ‘Shire from 13:20-14:45 in poor conditions but not too bad in results, getting 15 bird-types including 2 Red Grouse, 1 Red Kite flying slowly to S low-down at 13:56 in drizzle, 1 Common Buzzard out hunting at 14:45, 1 Kestrel juvenile hovering at 14:22, 6 Coal Tit, 4 Swallow, 1 Meadow Pipit. Going to do more visits this week in the poor weather to the ‘Shire, looking particularly for kites, of either sort! Spent quite a lot of day getting organised for my first Council meeting as chair; we met in the Cnt from 17:30-18:20 in the Snug, reserved for us free of charge; all went well, very good atmosphere. M away so not out again, feeling a bit stressed to be honest in this handover period. Caught up on 12/6 June records from Ordley, leaving 4 sheets to do from June. Booked up a season ticket for 6 concerts at Kirkharle: good quality and a lot easier travel than to Gateshead.

July 1st: maximum 16C, minimum 10C, moderate SW, dull, rain at times, brighter evening. Added below the running order and cast for the most impressive performance of Wagner’s Ring in Budapest. Was duly inaugurated as President – all went well with competent speeches and choreography by outgoing P and myself, very good atmosphere. We also gave £150 gratuity to the staff at the Cnt, which was very well received. A bit more time to catch-up in afternoon on other matters with finances (-3k over last 2 weeks) and bird records (27/6 Pithouse and 28/6 night-visit to Dipton). Did make G4g4s with A/P/R with L on!! 2moro yet more R business chairing Council meeting in Cnt at 17:30. Not clear what’s happening later!!

From BirdGuides, recent sightings show slow-down in Honey-buzzard records away from well-known watchpoints but a few Black Kite still in view:

13:10 30/06 Black Kite Aberdeenshire Huntly one at a private site nearby this morning [114th record this year]

07:46 28/06 Black Kite South Yorkshire Redmires Reservoirs probable flew south-west

10:39 27/06 Black Kite Gloucestershire Brockworth 10:00 one reported over houses off Green Street

09:57 01/07 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Strumpshaw Fen RSPB 09:10 one this morning [173rd record this year]

12:42 28/06 European Honey Buzzard Staffordshire Belvide Reservoir (permit only) one circled over between 12:20 and 12:30 then lost to view

12:22 27/06 European Honey Buzzard Kent Foreness Point 09:20 two flew west (singles at 09:05 and 09:20)

20:07 25/06 European Honey Buzzard Cleveland Skelton 13:50 one flew south-west over New Skelton

Here’s the players in the Ring at Budapest.

20–23 June 2024

BUDAPEST WAGNER DAYS

Wagner: Der Ring des Nibelungen

Artistic director and conductor:

Ádám Fischer

Featuring:

Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra

20 June 2024 / 6 pm

Preliminary Evening

Das Rheingold

Music drama in four scenes

Wotan: Johan Reuter / Donner: Zsolt Haja

Froh: Dániel Pataky / Loge: Christian Franz

Fricka: Atala Schöck / Freia: Lilla Horti

Erda: Erika Gál / Alberich: Johen Schmeckenbecher

Mime: Jürgen Sacher / Fasolt: Tijl Faveyts

Fafner: Jongmin Park / Woglinde: Orsolya Sáfár

Wellgunde: Gabriella Fodor / Flosshilde: Zsófia Kálnay

Dancers: Zoltán Csere, Laura Fehér, János Feledi, Ádám Frigy, István Horváth, Zoltán Katonka,

Krisztián Kelemen, Richárd Kovács, Katalin Stáry, Brigitta Tóth, Milán Újvári, Dalma Wéninger

Child dancer: Milos Katonka

21 June 2024 / 4 pm

First Day

Die Walküre

Music drama in three acts

Siegmund: Magnus Vigilius / Hunding: Jongmin Park

Wotan: Johan Reuter / Sieglinde: Karine Babajanyan

Brünnhilde: Iréne Theorin / Fricka: Atala Schöck

Gerhilde: Zita Váradi / Ortlinde: Beatrix Fodor

Waltraute: Gabriella Fodor / Schwertleite: Szilvia Szilágyi

Helmwige: Adrienn Miksch / Siegrune: Éva Várhelyi

Grimgerde: Erika Gál / Rossweisse: Zsófia Kálnay

Dancers: Zoltán Csere, Laura Fehér, János Feledi, Ádám Frigy, István Horváth, Zoltán Katonka,

Krisztián Kelemen, Richárd Kovács, Noémi Siklósy, Katalin Stáry, Brigitta Tóth, Milán Újvári,

Dalma Wéninger

22 June 2024 / 4 pm

Second Day

Siegfried

Music drama in three acts

Siegfried: Stefan Vinke / Mime: Jürgen Sacher

The Wanderer (Wotan): Johan Reuter / Alberich: Jochen Schmeckenbecher

Fafner: Jongmin Park / Erda: Erika Gál

Brünnhilde: Magdalena Anna Hofmann / The Wood Bird: Eszter Zemlényi

Dancers: Zoltán Csere, Laura Fehér, János Feledi, Ádám Frigy, Zoltán Katonka, Krisztián

Kelemen, Richárd Kovács, Katalin Stáry, Brigitta Tóth, Milán Újvári, Dalma Wéninger

23 June 2024 / 4 pm

Third Day

Götterdämmerung

Music drama in three acts

Siegfried: Stefan Vinke / Gunther: Birger Radde

Alberich: Jochen Schmeckenbecher / Hagen: Johan Schinkler

Brünnhilde: Iréne Theorin / Gutrune: Lilla Horti

Waltraute: Dorottya Láng / First Norn: Erika Gál

Second Norn: Judit Németh / Third Norn: Andrea Brassói-Jőrös

Woglinde: Orsolya Sáfár / Wellgunde: Gabriella Fodor

Flosshilde: Zsófia Kálnay

Featuring: Hungarian Radio Choir (choirmaster: Zoltán Pad), Budapest Studio Choir

(choirmaster: Kálmán Strausz)

Dancers: Zoltán Csere, Laura Fehér, János Feledi, Ádám Frigy, Zoltán Katonka, Krisztián

Kelemen, Richárd Kovács, Katalin Stáry, Brigitta Tóth, Milán Újvári, Dalma Wéninger

Child dancer: Milos Katonka

June 30th: maximum 15C, minimum 10C, light W, dull most of day, becoming brighter in evening. Down to Hardwick Hall, Sedgefield, for R District garden party; very friendly, not snooty and met good range of people from different clubs such as Morpeth and Darlington. As down there with Hardwick Hall lake in area, decided to give it a good check over before leaving from 16:40-17:40. Had 22 species here, including 147 Canada Goose (some young), 9 Mute Swan (brood of 5 young). 22 Mallard (some young), 17 Domestic Mallard (some young), 7 Tufted Duck, 6 Moorhen (some young), 20 Coot (some young), 2 Little Grebe, 3 Sand Martin, 8 Swallow, 3 House Martin, 1 Chiffchaff (singing), 2 Sedge Warbler (singing), 1 Blackcap (singing). On way back stopped at Wallish Walls from 18:30-19:30 getting in 17 bird-types a Red Kite (at 18:40 one flew over Carterway Heads carrying a mouse, confirming breeding), an anxious Common Buzzard, a 1s Common Gull, an ad LBBG, 45 Greylag Goose flock on nearby field to N, 2 Curlew, 2 Lapwing, 1 Skylark. Had a Redstart just SE of Slaley as final record of day. So after this week’s fieldwork, the Derwent is a stronghold for Red Kite and the Tyne Valley a stronghold for Black Kite. Used Google Maps as satnav in Bishop Auckland area to navigate across from the A68 to Sedgefield, worked very well. 2moro become President of local R (52 members) with handover ceremony!

June 29th: maximum 16C, minimum 9C, light SW, dull most of day with light rain in afternoon, becoming brighter in evening. Typical quiet Saturday, catching up with records as poor weather for raptors. Processed interesting gull piccies and counts from Kellas on 27/6 and also the raptor piccies from Slaley Forest E/Pithouse. No longer doing meal bookings so some relief there but become President of Hexham R on Monday, more a figurehead coordinating position. Made DoW4g4s with D/D for usual good chat with C on! Then as fine evening did a quick trip around Dipton Wood from 23:10-24:00 getting at Prospect Hill a Brown Hare; at Dipton Wood main a churring Nightjar, a calling Tawny Owl; at Dipton Wood S a churring Nightjar, a calling Tawny Owl; at Dipton Wood N a Roe Deer; at Lamb Shield a Brown Hare. On Thursday night at 23:55 had a Fox at Loughbrow. 2moro it’s garden party at Hardwick Hall, Sedgefield, for R in NE District, from 13:30-16:30, where going in new role; will stop off in Derwent to do a bit of birdwatching. Should still make G4g4s much later!

June 28th: maximum 14C, minimum 8C, fresh SW in morning moderating in afternoon, mostly dry, few heavy showers. Winds were so gusty around 08:30 that we had a power cut in the ‘Shire, starting at 08:47 and going on for 6 hours; initial restoration by 10:30 due presumably to a fallen tree was put quickly forward to 15:00 as more serious damage found, with actual restoration around 14:40; a very unusual event for midsummer but there are a lot of shaky diseased ash trees around, even if many are showing signs of recovery. Didn’t make NCL as bit disorganised at home but decided to make a day of it at QHL from 12:15-17:10 to work on ANPA paper for mid-August, with good break at QHC4s4l where gasping for a hot drink, having 2 cups of strong coffee. Found lots of citations to Whitehead and Artificial Life so think my plan for the paper is clear, unifying last year’s presentation with the coming one. Had ANPA steering group at 18:30 for one hour after which updated website with new logo and a mission statement. At 20:00 had Teams meeting with 2 other Rtn talking over my meal booking duties; lasted 30 min in which we covered a number of features of the Forms system, including the direct use of the Responses pie-charts and the Google sheet for submitting to the Cnt. So a busy day! Did have a few interesting birds around Hexham station at 17:24: a Common Buzzard flying over Station area, mobbed by Oystercatcher and 4 Lesser Black-backed Gull ad, plus a Swift entering a nest.

June 27th: maximum 16C, minimum 11C, moderate to fresh SW, mostly dry, few sunny intervals, occasional light rain. Met M at Tans4m4l 4 good chat! Then out to top of watershed overlooking Derwent Reservoir for walk at Pithouse Fell for an hour. Had a Honey-buzzard male over E end of Slaley Forest, hanging briefly in breeze, a regular site but new for year. Inspired by 3 Red Kite seen at 3 sites: Slaley Forest E 1  2  3  4  5  6, Pithouse Fell S, Millshield 7. Also had at least 2 Kestrel up at Slaley Forest E, including a male and a juvenile 1  2, and another Kestrel juvenile over Pithouse Fell S 3, so 3 birds in all. Total was 11 species here, including 20 Curlew and 5 Lapwing, both with fledged young, and 2 agitated Oystercatcher; also had a singing Skylark, a Meadow Pipit and 6 roaming Swift. Found a large field S of Kellas from 15:20-16:00 being ploughed with masses of gulls present, totalling c700 of 6 types: mostly Black-headed Gull (660, with 3 juvenile seen), good numbers of LBBG at 30 (16 ad, 8 2s, 6 1s), 20 Common Gull (2 2s, 18 1s 1), 2 Herring Gull (2s, 1s), an Atlantic Yellow-legged Gull (2s with short legs, darkish mantle, domed head, stubby stout bill with marked gonys angle, slightly smaller than LBBG 2), 3 Caspian Gull (3s 3, 1s 4   5  6  7, juv 8, all large, long legs, attenuated, pencil bill), so plenty of interest there. Also on this field had 120 Lapwing, 4 Oystercatcher, 36 Carrion Crow. So another great day in the field, bit more indulgent tomorrow with QHC4s4l, then into GH in NCL to collect coat (returned after someone took it by accident at year-end concert) and pay my concert subscription for next year (c£950). Looking forward to it!! Made G4g4s with the lads with A and L on!!

June 26th: maximum 22C, minimum 14C, moderate E, dry and sunny all day. Still catching up from break with large shopping order arriving from W and various R matters. Hay fever season (from grass pollen) is getting under way with maddening itching eyes and sneezing. Today at Ordley at 12:00 had 3 Ringlet and 1 Large Skipper butterflies, latter on the Common Spotted Orchid both together; at 17:40 had an angry Common Buzzard calling from just SE of the house; at 22:15 (dusk) had a Honey-buzzard with a series of 4 wailing calls, given only at the nest so breeding confirmed! At 15:40 at Steel Pond on way to Corbridge had again a pair of Little Grebe, 17 Lapwing including fledged young, 25 Mallard, a female Tufted Duck, a Moorhen, a Meadow Pipit, 2 Pied Wagtail, in total of 9 types. Main purpose of day was a trip to Thornbrough from 16:10-17:15, near the A69, where studying Black Kite colonisation. Quite an amazing visit, finding a new site for Honey-buzzard with a male up in interaction at 16:54 with a Black Kite and a Red Kite 1 (14036), 2 Black Kite were seen altogether with piccies on their own from 16:23-16:54 1  2  3  4, the Red Kite, a male Hobby in a dive at 16:23, all in near perfect conditions for raptors with strong sunshine and a moderate breeze. All the raptors appeared to be using the same wood, with a move S from last year for the Black Kite. This is a strong agricultural area but there is an increasing amount of mature woodland and diverse habitat into the edge of Corbridge on its N side and further W towards Sandhoe. In total of 27 bird-types also had a Stock Dove, 2 agitated Oystercatcher, 2 singing Skylark, single singing Grasshopper Warbler and Lesser Whitethroat, 2 Whitethroat (1 singing), 5 Linnet, 3 Yellowhammer. Butterflies were of 5 types: 3 Meadow Brown, 2 Ringlet, 2 Small White, single Green-veined White, Large White. 2moro it’s T4m4l with M, G4g4s and next day it’s QHC4s4l!!

June 25th: maximum 21C, minimum 14C, light E, dull, a little drizzle at times. No fieldwork, plenty to do at home, including updating the London page with a breeding record from 2022 on a pers comm at London. A new type of orchid for garden has appeared; will check it out tomorrow but have taken a couple of piccies in case it’s eaten overnight: it’s a Common Spotted Orchid, in back garden alongside 5 Northern Marsh Orchid. Total of Northern Marsh Orchid is now 13. Did meet M at Cnt4g4s 4 good chat! Lots of people out with the football. She’s beautiful: lok2tmfo: xxxxx XXX!!! Had a Barn Owl near Letah Wood at 23:45 as drove home.

Plenty of records on BirdGuides since last update. The Hexham Osprey are likely to move around quite considerably. Black Kite may well be breeding in Cornwall and possibly also in Derbyshire. Honey-buzzard records, excluding those from watchpoints, show considerable movement still.

12:02 24/06 Osprey Northumberland Whittle Dene Reservoirs 11:58 one then flew west

17:05 22/06 Osprey Northumberland Sweethope Lough one

13:50 17/06 Osprey Northumberland Whittle Dene Reservoirs 12:30 one over western reservoir then flew high west

11:55 17/06 Osprey Northumberland Horsley 08:10 one flew over A69

15:06 25/06 Black Kite Derbyshire Loscoe Dam possible adult again

16:54 24/06 Black Kite Suffolk St James South Elmham one flew over east

18:00 23/06 Black Kite Derbyshire Loscoe Dam adult flew east over Loscoe early morning

15:04 21/06 Black Kite Cornwall Hayle 20/06 one yesterday

15:07 20/06 Black Kite Cornwall St Buryan 13:27 one drifted north-east with Red Kites

12:16 20/06 Black Kite Cornwall Ludgvan 16:00 19/06 one flew west yesterday

14:39 19/06 Black Kite Cornwall Goldsithney one over fields between here and Marazion

09:50 19/06 Black Kite Cornwall Connor Downs 09:40 one flew south-west towards Hayle

14:48 18/06 Black Kite Somerset Nailsea 14:42 one flew over

15:31 25/06 European Honey Buzzard Suffolk Ramsholt 15:22 one reported flying over onion fields

13:12 24/06 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Skaw, Whalsay one

12:24 24/06 European Honey Buzzard Orkney North Ronaldsay one flew south towards Sanday

19:57 23/06 European Honey Buzzard Cork Galley Head one flew over this afternoon

17:06 23/06 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Sandwick, Mainland 17:06 circling over Stove

17:04 23/06 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Sandwick, Mainland 16:46 one flew south over Setter

12:44 23/06 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Boddam, Mainland one flew north-west over Dalsetter

11:03 22/06 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Ellister, Mainland 10:50 flew off high to south

10:46 22/06 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Ellister, Mainland one by road to Maywick

16:23 21/06 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Poole Harbour one flew over

15:35 20/06 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk South Walsham one drifted south over Panxworth

17:21 18/06 European Honey Buzzard Kent Hythe 17:15 one flew north-west

09:16 17/06 European Honey Buzzard Kent North Foreland 09:14 flew off inland over Broadstairs

08:58 17/06 European Honey Buzzard Kent North Foreland 08:54 one in field below lighthouse

17:38 16/06 European Honey Buzzard West Yorkshire Wetherby 09:12 adult (probably female) flew low south-east towards A168 this morning

June 24th: maximum 25C, minimum 17C, light W, sunny and bright. Main time appeared to be in AMS where in Cafe Flor near gate D2 for healthy late lunch with take-off 17:30 for NCL!! At BUD tense long queue for check-in as although no checked-in bags, like all such passengers, we could only get our boarding passes this way. Had taxi to the airport in BUD, cost £30 for about 30 min. So mostly smooth with KLM though flight to NCL one-hour late taking off. Collected car, drove to W 4 little shopping then back home, fairly late at 19:00 where got home sorted. Not out tonite! Did look for highlights of Siegfried finale on web and there are some but best recent posting is the whole act: Wagner - Siegfried | act 3 | Radio Filharmonisch Orkest o.l.v. Karina Canellakis | ZaterdagMatinee: Clay Hilley (Siegfried – tenor), Daniela Köhler (Brünnhilde – sopraan), Iain Paterson (Wanderer – bas-bariton), Judit Kutasi (Erda - mezzosopaan). It’s a superb production with Canellakis excelling as maestro. Running time 1 hour 22 min, sung in German with English subtitles. NPO Klassiek. Back to the raptors tomorrow! Should see M in evening and be ready for finale!!

Bird list for Hungary: 19 of 19 species from 27 records, 1 complete lists, 2 places. Raptors comprised 2 Black Kite at 2 site son the Danube.

June 23rd: maximum 28C minimum 20C, light NW, cloudy morning, brighter afternoon, dry, much less humid, fresher. So the final part Götterdämmerung was performed from 16:00 to 22:35 at Müpa in Budapest. Act 1 has a prelude, totalling 2 hours. Is it the crowning glory or an anticlimax? Well certainly not the latter but to my mind the end of the Siegfried opera with the love duet between Siegfried and Brünnhilde is the top inspiration to be taken from this Ring performance. What an ecstatic moment that was! Götterdämmerung is a complex opera, even by Wagner's standards. It shows all the hallmarks of what the Victorians called manic depressive with long brooding passages interspersed by tremendous climaxes. Quite a few of the top German composers could be classified this way. These days we call it bipolar and Wagner would probably have been put on drugs and lost the creative and energetic bouts such people have.

Highlights were many including the passionate farewell of Siegfried from Brünnhilde as he goes on his adventures; the brooding thoughts of Hagen as he contemplates victory over the Völsung; the brooding vows of death to Siegfried by Hagen, Hunding and Brünnhilde as he is thought to have deceived them, the brilliant end to Act 2 with the 2 marriages finally taking place (probably the best ending to any Act in the Ring); the Rhinemaidens' final appeal to Siegfried to return to them the Ring; the funeral march for Siegfried; the immolation (death, setting oneself on fire) with Brünnhilde jumping into the funeral pyre of Siegfried and returning the Ring to the Rhinemaidens as flood waters from the Rhine cover the area.

So who won? The Nibelung make a determined bid for the gold by drugging Siegfried and marrying him to Gutrune. Brünnhilde, married again to Gunther her brother, is outraged and swears for his death on Hagen's spear. Siegfried on a hunting trip, under an antidote drug, reveals his 'treachery’ and is killed by Hagen. But Brünnhilde has in the meantime learnt of Hagen's plans from the Rhinemaidens and seizes the ring from Siegfried's body. By returning the Ring to the Rhinemaidens she takes the curse off the Ring, which has additionally struck Siegfried in this part. The gods, who have been waiting for their end since Siegfried broke Wotan's (Wanderer’s) spear in Siegfried Act 3, perish as Valhalla is set on fire under Brünnhilde’s closing commands. The Völsung inherit the Earth - the human beings. So ends the Norse saga! Applause for 15 minutes and Adam Fisher maestro brought the whole orchestra on stage, to deservedly share in it. We had lunch at Baalbek restaurant, excellent food and service, had lamb chops, lovely location along the Danube; son paid.

June 22nd: maximum 28C minimum 21C, light NW, thunderstorms with heavy rain at start of day, sunny midday then overcast again, very humid. Today was Siegfried with highlights of the forging of Notung the sword by Siegfried; the fight between the dragon Fafner and Siegfried (won by our hero, giving him the ring, tarnhelm and gold); the woodbird singing to Siegfried of who he must be wary of and the beautiful lady on the rock; the breaking through the fire on the rock by our hero and the orgasmic love affair between Siegfried and Brünnhilde, rounding off the night’s performance with an ecstatic duet. All very joyful but Siegfried now wears the accursed ring and the Nibelungen continue to plot. We finished tonight at 22:13 having started at 16:00 so 13 min longer than Walküre. A core feature of the Siegfried opera is the movement from dark to light over the 4 hours, from Mime’s cave to a forest clearing to the high rock, and in human terms from despair to joy. Further the last act was written 10 years later than the first and it shows: the whole musical experience goes up a level. The orchestra were sparkling today with the many horn/brass passages all played well; one Wagner horn played the horn passage tempting the dragon to come out, on stage, and the anvil striker from the forging scene was also on stage, a nice touch. There’s plenty of refreshments outside by the Danube and inside the theatre in the lengthy intervals. Subtitles are given in German (as sung), Hungarian and English. Atmosphere is great as we go into the last part on Sunday night, Götterdämmerung. Had a prowling Black Kite over the Danube this evening at Müpa at 19:00. This is 3km from the suspension bridge so a second site. Puts you in the mood!!

June 21st: maximum 33C minimum 23C, light SE, bright sunshine all day, high cloud moving in in evening. Today was Die Walküre, probably the most popular part of the cycle generally with its highlights of the wild love affair between the Völsung twins Sieglinde and Siegmund (yes brother and sister!), The Ride of the Valkyries (sung by the 9 Valkyrie warrior-maidens minus Brünnhilde) as Brünnhilde attempts to escape from her father Wotan after disobeying his instructions at the battle between Siegmund and Hunding, the fire music as Brünnhilde is punished by being put to sleep on a rock surrounded by fire to be woken by a free hero – destined to be Siegfried, the child conceived in last night’s passion by Sieglinde! The performance was leisurely with intervals of about 60 min between the 3 Acts, which totalled 3 hours 50 min in running time. Again a capacity audience and a very enthusiastic one, giving a fantastic ovation at the end including the traditional eastern European slow handclap to round off the applause. We had lunch at Baalbek, a Lebanese restaurant on the side of the Danube: very good food, lovely service, son paid! Back to Italian tomorrow for lunch and it’s part III Siegfried, the Völsung hero who reforges the sword Notung, slays the dragon Fafner and the treacherous Nibelung Mime and seizes the gold, including the ring and the tarnhelm. However, his biggest challenge is yet to come: the seduction of Brünnhilde after releasing her from the fire on the rock! Power and love are the driving forces of the Ring. My favourite part of the Ring is the last part, Götterdämmerung: the Twilight of the Gods, as we see that absolute power corrupts and that its contradictions inevitably lead to its downfall. It’s also written in Wagner’s later post-harmonic style. The last part of Siegfried and Götterdämmerung were composed some 15 years after the earlier parts and are Grand Opera of the highest order. Got a Bolt taxi back to flat. Shall be back for Tuesday!!

It’s well known that Hitler was a great fan of The Ring. As some of his lieutenants noted, his judgment could not have been worse from the perspective of the Third Reich. Wagner was a socialist revolutionary, taking part in the Dresden uprising. Das Rheingold is readily interpreted as inspired by Marx/Engels. Moreover Götterdämmerung foretells the collapse of the Third Reich as absolute power corrupts.

A few birds were noted from the Elisabeth suspension bridge across the Danube at 13:00: 2 Crag Martin, 5 House Martin, 1 Alpine Swift. Later at Müpa at 18:00 had 3 White Wagtail, a Grey Heron, a Collared Dove and a Serin.

June 20th: maximum 31C minimum 21C, light E, hazy sunshine all day, dry. Today was Das Rheingold, the first part of the tetralogy of The Ring (composed c1852-c1872 by Richard Wagner, the German composer), at Müpa, from 18:05-20:45 in 4 scenes without a break. Brilliant performance, hitting all the high powered climaxes with great drama. This opera is very much about power struggles with strong Marx/Engels overtones. The rich, the gods, do not have the money to pay their middle-class builders (the giants) for their new palace Valhalla so rob the poor (the Nibelung) to settle their debts, to avoid Freia the goddess of youth and beauty, being taken in ransom by the giants; Freia keeps the gods immortal by feeding them golden apples each day. The Nibelung’s temporary wealth comes from the forswearing of love, an act not anticipated as possible by the Rhinemaidens, the original guardians. The great climax at the end sees the gods entering Valhalla in triumph but from the Rhine below the Rhinemaidens wail for the return of their treasure. The 100-strong orchestra conducted by Adam Fisher comprised almost half brass and woodwind including 8 Wagner Horns, an instrument developed by Wagner from the tuba. Great reception by the capacity audience. If tonight was about power, tomorrow with Walküre is about wild love and tenderness, all in the context of the warrior maidens, the Valkyries, including their Ride. We have 2 intervals in this, with 3 acts 60-90 min each. We had lunch mid-afternoon at Trattoria Toscana; very tasty and filling (£75). I has a walk at 13:00 onto one of the bridges over the Danube for some sight-seeing and birdwatching. We got a Bolt taxi back from the theatre to our flat (£10).

Not neglecter the birds but not so many in a busy city centre. These were mainly spotted from the Elisabeth suspension bridge (Erzsébet hid) across the Danube linking Buda and Pest from 12:00-1400: 1 Black Kite perched on dome to E as viewed from suspension bridge 1  2, 14 Swift, 42 Feral Pigeon, 3 Woodpigeon, 3 Black-headed Gull (adults 2 W, 1 E), 1 Caspian Gull (adult W), 1 Grey Heron, 3 Magpie, 5 Hooded Crow, 2 Swallow, 3 House Sparrow, 2 Greenfinch. Total 12 types, a few were from Müpa.

June 19th: maximum 33C minimum 23C, light W, sunny all day, dry. Had a Common Buzzard at Newcastle Airport at 09:30, 5 Carrion Crow and 2 Herring Gull at Schipol at 12:15 and 6 Feral Pigeon, 5 Hooded Crow and a displaying Collared Dove at Budapest Airport (Ferihegy). So we’re into Hooded Crow territory this far E. Had a Black Redstart male in city centre where son and I have a swish apartment in the centre Summer Street Seven. Journey went smoothly just 15 min late into BUD after change at AMS and got taxi for €40 into centre. Had Italian meal at Framtid just around the corner from our flat, cost 30k HUF (£65). for the two of us. Son had arrived 30 min before me from Bratislava (Slovak) by train. So tomorrow the real action starts with Rheingold at 18:00 at Müpa with meal in a restaurant before at 15:30.

Good news from my major holding in RKH: LSE RNS

Satisfaction of Precent Conditions for the Ombrina Mare Monetisation Transaction

Rockhopper Exploration plc is pleased to provide the following update in relation to the monetisation of its Ombrina Mare Arbitration Award (the "Transaction") announced on 20 December 2023.

All required precedent conditions to the Transaction have now been satisfied. Under the terms of the Transaction, the Tranche 1 payment is due within 5 business days. Further updates will be provided in due course.

June 18th: maximum 14C minimum 9C, light E, cloudy with heavy showers. Busy day with R, two meetings: 10am to discuss forthcoming music festival at Tynedale Rugby Club with their manager CL, our President and Treasurer: think it’s going ahead. Later Council meeting at 17:30 confirmed we’re going ahead with event on October 11tz at Corbridge. Took ages getting ready for trip and tying up loose ends. But went straight from meeting to Hilton at NCL, where had a meal, early night and up at 06:00 for breakfast and 09:30 NCL-AMS with follow on AMS-BUD. Funds +10k wtd on better feeling for oil stocks. Had a male Sparrowhawk hunting low through my field at 12:00.

June 17th: maximum 16C minimum 10C, light SW, sunny intervals, one cloudburst at 11:45 at Ordley as drove into R. R meeting went well, hard work as usual data projector and meal booking system but training enthusiastic successors in the running of Google Forms. Did do a bit of birdwatching at Ordley late afternoon from 17:00-18:00 and have photographed a pair of Honey-buzzard, male at 17:43 1 and female at 17:51 2 (14030). Also had a Grey Heron and 6 Swift, breeding in neighbour’s eaves. Made G4g4s with A/P, taking P in in my car as R away; pouring with rain as fetched him; dry when took him home. L was in top form: very seductive!! Straight home as 2 major R meetings 2moro and off in evening: will miss someone until 25/6 at nite!!

June 16th: maximum 14C minimum 10C, moderate W, sunny morning, rain later. Had great breakfast at hotel, Northumbria Grill, before catching a packed 10:55 train back to HEX. No raptors seen today but did see plenty of fledged Chiffchaff and Wren in my garden and field, as well as 6 Swift breeding in neighbour’s house in the eaves. Did some heavy cutting back of foliage by back gate: privacy is fine but for security better to keep view open from road to the patio doors. Later it’s G4g4s where get thrown out at 23:30! Completed processing of Walpole-Bond’s account of Honey-buzzard in historical times in Sussex with comparison with Northumberland; see Sussex. Started processing of balloon day at Mara in Kenya on 18/12/23. Made G4g4s for gr8 chat with R/A/P with J on!! Afters was gr8: lok2tfmo: xxx XXX!! 2moro it’s Cnt4m4l with R and G4g4s; getting ready for trip!!

Summary update from home page for study area:

16/06/24: Black Kite have settled down to breed with 28 birds at 16 sites; Honey-buzzard have settled down to breed with 34 birds at 22 sites; Hobby still displaying with 7 birds at 4 sites; Osprey pair ongoing at their one site; 4 Goshawk have been seen at 3 sites; 16 Red Kite have been seen at 12 sites.

June 15th: maximum 13C minimum 8C, light W, sunny spells but also some showers. Finished working on piccies from yesterday; an incredible 6+ types. Later than hoped into NCL but did check into hotel in Jesmond before making GH at 18:50 in time for cheese sandwich and rw before opening bars of Dvořák's cello concerto with Steven Isserlis as soloist and DS as conductor. It's a lovely piece neglected of late but the soloist is a mind unto himself so was a little disjointed at times. Overall effect was good and masses of applause and an encore but the purists had a few doubts! Evidently it was a lot better than the rehearsal! In the second half we had a new piece with composer present - Between Trees by Kristine Tjøgersen - which had some interesting sound effects, followed by Schumann 1 'Spring' which was interesting but not that moving, although plenty of virtuoso sections so the orchestra like playing it! Then it was reception at 21:30 at GH for supporters where we were told they needed to raise £20m starting in December over a number of years, mainly for the estate, and not just from the classical side. Chatted to loads of people and left at 23:50, taking Metro and walk back to hotel, where slept soundly! Funds -17k gross and -21k net after withdrawal of 4k for son’s bday. Sell-off may continue in risk assets but have moved substantial amounts to bonds and cash.

Latest from BirdGuides, showing inward migration almost over for Honey-buzzard and Black Kite. But note no obvious emigration for the Kite, which would happen if our arrivals were overshoots. The Osprey at Broomley may well be a bird from the Hexham site.

14:14 14/06 European Honey Buzzard Derbyshire Ogston Reservoir 13/06 one reported yesterday

13:59 12/06 European Honey Buzzard Suffolk Rushbrooke one flew west mid-afternoon

15:47 11/06 European Honey Buzzard Derbyshire Buxton 15:25 female flew north

11:25 11/06 Black Kite Suffolk Mildenhall one flew south-west over RAF Mildenhall late morning

07:12 11/06 Osprey Northumberland Broomley 10/06 one on telegraph pole yesterday evening

June 14th: maximum 14C minimum 6C, moderate SW, dull morning with some rain, around ttime weather dramatically improved with strong sunshine and a moderate breeze: perfect for raptors. Had 90 min chat with N/D on Skype in morning. Made QHC4s4l: she’s so fit!! Stayed on at QHL where did some more work, comparing ALife to AI, until 16:45. Then drove out in ‘Shire to last Honey-buzzard site in core area to be checked in display period – Viewley on edge of Slaley Forest from 17:05-18:15. Perfect weather and 7 types of raptor seen, including Honey-buzzard pair (male up hunting from 17:24-17:26, female seen briefly lifting off tree-tops in site at 17:26 1  2  3  4  5 with habitat 6 (14129), Black Kite pair (frequently from 17:14-18:06, mostly one up but pair seen briefly 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13), a Black Kite x Red Kite hybrid at 18:02 gliding through site at low altitude (structurally more like a Red Kite but dark plumage) 14, Kestrel pair (adult female hunting), an agitated Goshawk adult female up 3 times from 17:42-17:50 1  2  3, Common Buzzard single hunting, Hobby (pair up displaying, female at 17:29, male at 17:45 1  2). Other features in total of 27 bird-types were a Caspian Gull adult flying over the edge of the moorland 1  2  3  4, a post-breeding flock of 25 Curlew on a field 1  2  3  4  5, a Lapwing chick with adult, a Grey Heron, a singing Willow Warbler. Then DoW4g4s with D/D for good chat with S/C on! Stopped at Dipton Wood N on way back from 23:00-23:30 where had 2 Tawny Owl, 2 Woodcock, a Barn Owl and a Roe Deer but no Nightjar. Desperately busy next few days – Sunday hope 4 tmfo!! Son I think is in Slovenia now – gave him 4k for his bday by bank transfer and an e-card with a reggae band singing Happy Bday! 2moro hope to get out somewhere at lunchtime b4 going into NCL 4 concert and hotel. It’s closing concert of RNS 4 season at GH with party afterwards for supporters!! I’m a principal partner contributing 2.5k a year + gift-aid and supporting lead viola MG.

June 13th: maximum 14C minimum 9C, light SW, sunny intervals in morning, dull afternoon, rain later, still cool in spite of wind change. Had a Small White in garden and late on had a Barn Owl at Ordley and a Badger at Letah Wood. Made T4m4l with M 4 good chat. Partial processing done of Hexham 2/6. Spent a lot of day trying to understand Labour’s policy on North Sea oil; looks a dire energy policy, probably best to buy a diesel-powered generator! Didn’t do a lot for my shares: hope the SNP and the unions do some fightback economically and that Reform cut back Labour’s likely majority through attracting the working class. What looks good ideologically from a north London mansion might not be so good to the man or woman in the street! Personally think a Labour government would be a disaster but want to see the Conservatives annihilated. Did make G4g4s: L was in good form!! 2moro it’s QHC4s4l and DoW4g4s with D/D. Hope for some stimulating company!!

June 12th: maximum 13C minimum 7C, light NE, sunny intervals in morning, dull afternoon, almost dry, still cool. A relaxing day at home. Did some energetic grass-cutting, doing the path into the middle of the rough field and the path into the orchard, both important to keep access to the whole area. Completed processing 21/5 Letah Wood, so all May records done now, leaving just 4 sheets to do for June so now the display season is ending in 3 days, should have more spare time soon! Need to check one site in the ‘Shire, maybe Friday late afternoon. Have some interesting records from today at Ordley, including a Grey Heron 1, a Red Kite 1  2  3, a Black Kite 1 and a Honey-buzzard male 1  2  3 (14028), all out foraging to S from 17:22-17:29. A walker said he’d seen a pair of Red Kite last Sunday (9/6) in the paddock by the Devil’s Water, close to where I’ve seen them from the house. Today main records from 17:00-18:30 with 24 bird-types noted, including 2 Swift, 2 Curlew, 2 Sand Martin. Managed to get a reasonably-priced room in Jesmond at last for Saturday, so can stay over after the RNS close of season for celebration at the GH (Sage). Got Kent at £63. Also booked up next Tuesday nite at Hilton at NCL Airport with some parking added while I’m away for around £208 total, with Holiday Extras. 2moro it’s T4m4l with M and G4g4s! lok2tgrf xxx XXXXX

June 11th: maximum 11C minimum 7C, light W, sunny intervals in morning, dull afterwards with spells of light rain throughout day, cold, electric fire on most of day. Had neat hair cut by the effervescent Jd at JG, cost 25.50 with 5 tip. Then out to Beaufront S from 11:00-12:55 for check on the only site in Tyne Valley W where not found any Honey-buzzard yet. Just 2 Common Buzzard seen in first hour but then walked a little more to E and had a purple patch around 12:00-12:05 with an Osprey perched in tall tree by A69 taking off slowly and going to fish on the Tyne off Widehaugh 1  2. At the same time a Black Kite was hunting over the area 1  2  3  4, a male Honey-buzzard was circling intent on feeding 1 (14027), a Common Buzzard (no. 3) was looking imperious! An adult Caspian Gull flew W 1. Rain then started so visit timed luckily. Mission accomplished! Had 33 bird-types in all, including a Garden Warbler, 2 Whitethroat, 4 Chiffchaff (fledged young), 6 Swift, 7 LBBG adult, 40 Linnet, 5 Swallow, 4 Greenfinch. Completed processing of 7/6 Dipton Mill/ West Dipton. Funds are -4k wtd, much less a fall than if I’d continued to hold the mining heavyweights. Made Cnt4g4s with M 4 good chat! Nitecap was gr8: tmfo is a turn-on: she knows how to capture my memories: xxx XXXXX!!!

June 10th: maximum 12C minimum 6C, moderate NW, sunny intervals throughout day, cool again, heavy showers. R dominated day, occupied for over 3 hours from 12:00-15:15, with organising lunch up to 12:45, chairing Assembly up to 14:00, then training members in using Google Forms for club admin, including meal booking; last is very much in my interest as need to transfer the duties before becoming President on 1/7. Club is in good fettle. Processed 29/5 Bywell so backlog of data sheets is just 4 now. Did make G4g4s but quiet! 2moro it’s hair cut with Jd at JG at 10:30, out to Hexham NE for fieldwork; much later will meet M at Cnt4g4s, followed by tmfo!!

Latest from BirdGuides with Black Kite continuing to arrive:

15:13 07/06 European Honey Buzzard Isles of Scilly St Martin's possible reported high over Higher Town towards Little Arthur

10:27 07/06 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Helendale, Mainland 10:20 one drifted over high to north

08:05 06/06 European Honey Buzzard Devon Dartmeet one at Dunnabridge

21:03 06/06 Black Kite Cornwall St Austell 03/06 two reported over Gover Valley on Monday

15:52 06/06 Black Kite Norfolk Surlingham Broad 15:40 one flew west over Surlingham as viewed from Brundall

15:13 06/06 Black Kite Kent Dungeness RSPB one reported this morning

09:56 06/06 Black Kite Kent Dungeness NNR 09:42 one circling over fishing boats then flew north over The Pilot Inn

June 9th: maximum 14C minimum 7C, moderate NW, sunny intervals throughout day, cool again but wind dropped a bit. Catching up with gardening, mowing the verge and grass paths, place does look more kempt but keeping the wild areas intact. Have 12 Northern Marsh Orchid in back grass 1   2  3  4  5  6 . Pleased to hear a Garden Warbler singing from the hedge in my field. Processed some more of Honey-buzzard account in Walpole-Bond’s book of 1938. Sussex has many parallels with Northumberland in Honey-buzzard trends so well worth comparing the two. Fieldwork-wise none today with just 2 sites in the core study area to cover in the next week before the main display period finishes. 2moro is big R day with Club Assembly at Cnt, looking forward to the next year with me in the chair. After that will be feeling more relaxed!! Did make G4g4s with A/P/R where J/L on!! A Barn Owl was at Ordley at 23:55.

June 8th: maximum 13C minimum 8C, fresh W, sunny most of day, few clouds, but pretty cool again when out in the field. Did some grass cutting at lunchtime, doing patio and area next to wild field. Then out to Dipton Wood main part; had a detour to get into the southern half but made it in the end; walked from 15:45-18:05. The breeze kept birds low but still managed a good total of 18 bird-types, including a Woodlark perching high and then retreating into lower vegetation among Sitka Spruce and heather 1, 8 Common Crossbill, 3 Willow Warbler, 2 Bullfinch, 11 Linnet, 4 Meadow Pipit, and best of all a male Honey-buzzard coming out of a stand of pine at 16:57 and going out to SW to forage 1 (14020). Earlier at 12 noon at Ordley had a Black Kite flying fast over house from W to E scattering a number of birds, including a Mallard and several Corvids. Later went out to DoW4g4s 4 good chat with D/D. Did 11k steps today so getting fitter. 2moro more of the same but G4g4s at the end!

Summary update from home page for study area:

07/06/24: Black Kite settling down to breed with 26 birds at 15 sites; Honey-buzzard settling down to breed with 30 birds at 19 sites; Hobby still displaying with 5 birds at 3 sites; Osprey pair settled at their one site; 3 Goshawk have been seen at 2 sites; 16 Red Kite have been seen at 12 sites.

Think may well close Black Kite display phase on 7/6 so today’s at Ordley is first of rearing phase. Will keep display phase for Honey-buzzard and Hobby open for another week.

June 7th: maximum 13C minimum 8C, fresh W, sunny early morning, cloudy with heavy rain in afternoon, brighter again later. Another punishing day for fieldwork. Abandoned the morning stint as heavy rain started to move in. But on exiting library at 16:30 called in at Dipton Mill from 16:55-17:55. Didn’t expect much but benefited greatly from an altercation between a pair of Black Kite 1  2  3  4 and a male Honey-buzzard at the pine wood to E of racecourse from 17:11-17:16 and at 17:34 1  2  3 (14025). The Black Kite are clearly in territory here and the male Honey-buzzard is likely to be breeding in the valley to SW on the West Dipton Burn. No other Black Kite seen so removed for the moment breeding status from the Letah Wood and Dukeshouse sites, leaving this one as the sole territory in the area. A Common Buzzard came out of a nearby wood and perched at the top of a tree 1  2. Total for visit was 19 bird-types including 2 Siskin, a singing Skylark, 4 Curlew, a Stock Dove. Did make QHC4s4l, glad I did, attractive she is, like Freia in the Ring Cycle, with leitmotif . Spent some time in QHL afterwards, writing first 8 slides for my talk at ANPA in Oxford in August on Artificial Life. Catching up on processing records with just 2 visits for May and 3 for June to register. Funds -21k on week losing a bit more than last week’s gain. Getting a bit fed up with volatility and have sold plenty of equities leaving 193k in cash after putting 159k into $ and € bonds. Think equities are a little frothy!

June 6th: maximum 12C minimum 7C, moderate W, sunny morning, cloudier later with light showers. Made T4m4l with M 4 good chat, followed by organ recital at Hexham Abbey by Peter Locke, which was packed with French pieces, all very enjoyable. We heard pieces by Nicolas de Grigny (Verbum Supernum), Charles Tournemire (Plein Jeu-Fugue), Henri Mulet (Fantasie Paraphrase), Maurice Durufle (Campanelle). Did do some fieldwork in difficult conditions from 15:45-17:25 at Dotland. At 16:48 had a Black Kite up over a Scots Pine plantation to SE of the Racecourse, still in the Dipton Mill square; not sure what is actually happening in the West Dipton Burn with the Black Kite – singles seen at 3 locations so far but this plantation is a classical site. At 16:59 a Honey-buzzard male was seen coming off the pasture to SW and moving off further SW, so looks like the Dotland bird foraging. A Lesser Whitethroat was singing very scratchily from the lane where I was standing. 26 bird-types also included 2 Curlew, 2 Skylark, 1 Willow Warbler, 5 Linnet, 4 Yellowhammer. 5 Brown Hare were also seen. Made G4g4s with R/A/P 4 gr8 chat. 2moro it’s chat with N/D on Skype, some quick fieldwork, QHC4s4ll and some more fieldwork at ttime; need to complete coverage of remaining sites in the core area.

June 5th: maximum 11C minimum 5C, moderate to fresh W, sunny intervals, heavy showers, too fresh for raptors. After 10k steps yesterday, a quiet day today with no fieldwork. Completed processing of 27/5 Towsbank and cropped piccies from yesterday at Wylam. Had chat with son on FB video: he’s leaving tomorrow evening for grand tour of Europe, starting in Paris; we’re meeting in Budapest on 19/6 for Wagner’s Ring Cycle (complete, in 4 days, 16 hours of opera!). Launched Festival web pages for 2025. 2moro more active meeting M at T4m4l followed by organ recital at Hexham Abbey. Should do a raptor site at ttime and much later it’s G4g4s!

Latest from BirdGuides with Black Kite continuing to arrive:

10:24 04/06 Black Kite Kent Stodmarsh NNR 10:24 one flew over lake towards Westbere

21:21 03/06 Black Kite Kent North Foreland one flew north mid-morning

16:01 03/06 Black Kite Cornwall St Columb Major 16:00 one flew west over Trekenning

12:37 03/06 Black Kite Kent Broadstairs one flew north-east

11:42 03/06 Black Kite Kent Kingsdown 09:15 one flew north over golf course

12:49 02/06 Black Kite Kent Dungeness NNR 12:36 still over power station

12:09 02/06 Black Kite Kent Dungeness NNR 12:07 one flew inland over New Lighthouse

07:07 03/06 Osprey Durham Hurworth Burn Reservoir 22:30 02/06 still yesterday evening

07:06 02/06 Osprey Durham Derwent Reservoir 01/06 two yesterday

11:58 05/06 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Ashdown Forest 10:45 one again; use Long car park (RH18 5JN) and walk to view from Llama Park viewpoint (51.0642, 0.0366). Please keep to public footpath

08:43 05/06 European Honey Buzzard Northumberland Cambois probable flew north

21:39 04/06 European Honey Buzzard Cornwall Sennen Cove 14:00 two reported east of cycle track

17:57 04/06 European Honey Buzzard Kent Foreness Point 13:35 one flew WSW

13:23 03/06 European Honey Buzzard Denbighshire Chirk 13:18 one flew north to east of A5

22:07 02/06 European Honey Buzzard Cornwall Drift Reservoir possible flew over

12:50 02/06 European Honey Buzzard Kent Teynham 12:15 one flew high south-east

11:16 02/06 European Honey Buzzard Northumberland Newcastle upon Tyne female circled over Walker Riverside Park between 10:30 and 10:40 then flew north

June 4th: maximum 14C minimum 6C, moderate to fresh W, wet midday, drier and brighter later but quite fresh. Busy morning, driving to WYL, then train in to NCL, where met 9 other Rs for walk around old Newcastle led by guide Gill S. She was very good, very entertaining, quick with the chat, lots of knowledge. She wouldn’t accept any money but liked us collecting £10 a head for R charity, which we did, raising £80 to date. We had late lunch at the back of St Nicholas Church (now Newcastle Cathedral). Reason for parking at Wylam was to do some birdwatching before and after trip in. So from 10:00-10:10 had a pair of Hobby displaying over Wylam E and 2 Mute Swan adult flying upstream low-down. Then from 15:15-16:45 had a male Honey-buzzard up at 15:45, with a female up at 16:25, both to E of Bridge 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9 (8 with Black Kite) (14016). This last female was up with an agitated Black Kite 1  2  3 so the exciting news is that the Black Kite have colonised this far E. A female Sparrowhawk flew under the bridge on the prowl. Total of 21 bird-types included 20 Sand Martin, 4 House Martin, 6 Swift, 2 Chiffchaff, 1 Blackcap, 2 Cormorant (ad, 1s). An Atlantic Grey Seal was in the water 1  2 on the E side of the bridge, c10m downstream – amazing sight! Plenty else to report but a very good day all round. Bad day for commodities on markets so looks as if world-wide recession is coming with the US sliding at last and China continuing depressed. Did a third wave of selling raising 99k with proceeds going into bonds. Funds -16k wtd but exposure to risky assets much reduced. More shadowy but thrilling tonite!! Will catch up on web pages 2moro – hers and mine!! Think M will be back on Thursday and should be at G4g4s; might make QHC4s4l on Friday!

June 3rd: maximum 18C minimum 11C, moderate W, dry, sunny spells. After rather gruelling session at R, with other senior officials taking a back seat or excusing themselves, made Wallish Walls from16:20-17:50 getting 24 bird-types, including an adult female Kestrel flying into clump of spruce trees, 16 Greylag Goose, 2 Curlew, 2 Oystercatcher, 1 Lapwing, 4 Siskin, 4 LBBG adult, 14 Linnet, 2 Skylark. Was looking for kites but none seen: Red because presumably sitting tight, Black because not here yet! Am going to check Throckley area tomorrow for check on E edge of Black Kite range. Did make G4g4s with A/R; P failed driving test after his 2 strokes; L was on!! We had good chat!! Long morning in old Newcastle 2moro with R walk led by GS!

June 2nd: maximum 18C, minimum 11C, moderate W, dry, bright sunshine in morning becoming sunny spells in afternoon. Good weather for raptors. Did make Hexham Tyne Green from 15:50-18:10 with walk upstream a bit, followed by watch from E side of bridge by fish pass, then over bridge to SB4c4t, followed by another vigil from bridge. Established that there are now 2 Black Kite pairs on fringes of Hexham, one at Hermitage, the other at Hexham NE 1  2  3  4  5 from 17:32-17:36: amazing development, both pairs easy to see and quite active. Also had a Red Kite up over back of Hermitage with the pair of Black Kite from 16:03-16:08 (see 6  7  8  9  10, 6 with Red Kite), a female Honey-buzzard flying into the Hermitage area from the E quite low down at 16:15 1 (14014), and a Common Buzzard up at Hexham NE at 17:36 1, irritated by the Black Kite display. So a gr8 afternoon! This Pied Wagtail, one of four, showed well by the Tyne 1. Other birds included 8 Sand Martin, 9 Swallow, 2 House Martin, 1 Swift, 10 Blackbird including fledged young. Made G4g4s much later to meet A/R/B/D 4 gr8 chat! 2moro it’s R4l at Cnt!! Need to visit Derwent area to see whether Black Kite have colonised there as well in spite of the entrenched Red Kite population; could also look out for the odd Osprey and Honey-buzzard! Submitted abstract for ANPA 2024 at Oxford mid-August:

Artificial Life

Nick Rossiter

Computer and Information Sciences

Northumbria University, Newcastle NE1 8ST, UK

Corresponding Author's email: nick.rossiter1@btinternet.com

http://www.nickrossiter.org.uk/process/

While artificial intelligence is perceived as a major advance in machine research, less attention has been paid to artificial life, an attempt to create a life-form from computers and robots. There are difficulties in that there is no universal acceptance of what constitutes life or indeed a fundamental definition of biological organisms. There is certainly the need to employ a wider view of what constitutes life from a universal viewpoint than from the Earth alone. This requires a philosophical method that can provide universal constructions. In this presentation, we will build on the metabiology developed at ANPA in 2023, again starting from the works of Rosen and Whitehead. The aim is to provide a universal categorical framework for artificial life, studying phenomena such as birth, life, evolution and death.

June 1st: maximum 15C, minimum 8C, light NE, dry, very sunny afternoon and evening after bit more cloud in the morning; such a clear night with very strong glow to the N, always find that inspiring! At home heard alarm calls from the local male Honey-buzzard at Ordley at 14:13. Also here had 2 agitated Oystercatcher, with butterflies: 2 Orange-tip (pair), 1 Peacock, 1 Large White. Then out to Eastwood Common, Healey, from 14:35-17:10 for walk on the heath in the brilliant weather. Had great views of Dipton Wood where can see the healthy re-growth following large-scale clear-felling 1  2  3, suitable for Woodlark, Nightjar and Honey-buzzard. Also could see Prospect Hill where a male Honey-buzzard was up at 14:59 floating over wood near mobile mast. At 17:12 on drive back had the female Honey-buzzard at Prospect Hill, mobbed by a Carrion Crow. Had a pair of Honey-buzzard up over March Burn, with female up from 15:50-15:51, female and male from 16:40-16:41 and male again at 16:53 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  16  17  18  19  20 (14017). A Kestrel male was hunting over the common at 15:25 1 and a Common Buzzard was calling at 14:57. In distance at Minsteracres W at 16:41 had a male Honey-buzzard interacting with a Red Kite 1 and a Crow (14018). Total for day was 5 Honey-buzzard at 3 sites for trip out and 6 Honey-buzzard at 4 sites if you include the home bird. Had 23 bird species, including 2 Oystercatcher, 1 Lapwing, 2 Curlew, 7 Willow Warbler, 2 Whitethroat, 3 Song Thrush, 2 Meadow Pipit, 1 Tree Pipit (carrying food), 9 Chaffinch, 18 Linnet. Butterflies comprised a Small Heath 1, a Large White, an Orange-tip male. Also had 3 Brown Hare on the common. Had dinner at DoW in Newton with D/D 4 David’s birthday celebration: we had very good chat! Cost was £47 each, including tip. Am going to have to catch up on some other tasks 2moro morning but will be out in afternoon as cleaner S arrives, perhaps to Tyne Green. Back at G4g4s in evening! R resumes on Monday with lunch and on Tuesday with organised walk around old Newcastle.

Latest news from BirdGuides, showing more Osprey around locally:

08:38 31/05 Black Kite East Sussex Pett Level one briefly then flew west with three Red Kites

11:41 31/05 Osprey Northumberland Slaley Forest 11:33 one in dead tree

07:10 01/06 Osprey Durham Hurworth Burn Reservoir 07:09 still

17:58 01/06 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Ferrybridge one sat on Chesil Beach this evening

09:43 01/06 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Woolbeding Common 09:41 three; view from ridgeline west of NT car park (GU29 9RR)

08:54 01/06 European Honey Buzzard Lincolnshire Freiston Shore RSPB one flew over

18:05 31/05 European Honey Buzzard Nottinghamshire Welbeck watchpoint 17:59 male (wing damaged individual) again; park carefully on grass verge along Limetree Avenue and view from watchpoint at 53.2430, -1.1326

07:22 31/05 European Honey Buzzard Herefordshire Ledbury 17:00 27/05 one flew south-east over private garden on Monday

21:13 30/05 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Strumpshaw Fen RSPB 29/05 male flew over yesterday

11:23 30/05 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Fitful Head, Mainland one drifted high to NNW late morning and lost to view

11:02 30/05 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Scatness, Mainland 10:59 one in flight

10:48 30/05 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Sumburgh, Mainland 10:45 flew north over Sumburgh Bay towards Scatness

May 31st: maximum 15C, minimum 9C, light N, dry, misty morning but brighter afternoon with sun breaking through most of the time. Did make Dipton Wood N from 15:00-17:05 and scored with the local Honey-buzzard. At 15:10 heard a Honey-buzzard alarm call and there was the male gliding behind some trees to W of the clearing. He was seen again at 16:22, high in the sky, coming down fairly quickly 1  2  3  4  5  6 (14015). Also had a Common Buzzard hunting over the area at 15:28. No Black Kite so do wonder whether they’ve moved upstream to West Dipton. Also in total of 20 bird-types had a truculent male Stonechat 1, 4 Crossbill including family group of 3 birds, 8 singing Willow Warbler, 5 Chiffchaff, 1 singing Whitethroat, 7 Linnet, 2 Meadow Pipit, 2 agitated Lapwing. Butterflies included 2 Green Hairstreak on bilberry and a Small White. There were masses of micros on the gorse and heather and the Wood Ant have built a number of very active nests. Here’s summary of results so far, from home page:

31/05/24: Black Kite largely arrived with 23 birds at 14 sites; Honey-buzzard still arriving with 20 birds at 12 sites (12 male, 8 female); Hobby still arriving with 3 birds at 2 sites;  Osprey pair settled at their one site; 3 Goshawk have been seen at 2 sites; 15 Red Kite have been seen at 11 sites.

Earlier met N/D on Skype for usual Friday morning chat. Did think hard about ANPA at Oxford; decided on title of Artificial Life and have drafted an abstract, to submit tomorrow after sleeping on it. Have been invited to a conference at Costa Rica in Universal Logic series; also need to do some revisions on Whitehead Critical paper, and resurrect the Logic and Love thread for a paper for a special issue on the subject by Universal Logic. So could be quite busy in next few months. Funds are +15k, close to record, with Falklands hopes progressing. Israeli company Navitas have issued an update, which implies they’ve ordered an FPSO (Floating Production Storage and Offloading) vessel for Sea Lion but there’s some debate over the Google translate from the Hebrew!!

May 30th: maximum 14C, minimum 9C, moderate N, heavy rain overnight, dull and grey in daytime, sun coming out in evening too late for raptors, felt cool. So not out to Dipton Wood, maybe tomorrow afternoon; the extent to which North Sea cloud and murk extends W is very difficult to predict. Added some piccies from upper South Tyne on 27/8 and indexed some more. Did some more grass cutting on long grass near the soakaways. Did make G4g4s where met A/R/P 4 good chat with L on!! Trying to think of topic for talk at ANPA in August at Oxford: this is becoming urgent, could do AI in category theory, looking for a philosophical coherent approach. Will need to balance time there with daughter’s arrival from Dubai with my 2 granddaughters! Morning was exciting!!

May 29th: maximum 16C, minimum 11C, moderate W, rain in morning, brighter later. Brightening up coincided brilliantly with the 4 o’clock soar! So out to Stocksfield Mount, where 5 Honey-buzzard sites in view, from 16:10-18:05. A great afternoon with 6 raptor species revelling in the fresh conditions with a moderate W breeze in strong sunshine. Black Kite were seen at 2 sites: one in rapid glide at Styford at 16:15, one high-up over Bywell Cottagebank at 16:46. Red Kite were also seen twice: one up near the Mount moving S towards the nest site in a large Stocksfield garden at 16:19; another up towards Bywell Castle at 17:20 with a male Honey-buzzard, presumed from the Shilford site 1. A single Kestrel (unsexed) was hunting at Bywell Cottagebank at 16:49, close to a Common Buzzard. Common Buzzard were seen twice: one at Cottagebank hunting at 16:49, the other up close to the Mount at 17:20. Honey-buzzard were seen at 3 sites: at Cottagebank a female was gliding over the site at 16:24 and a pair were displaying at 16:46 and 17:20 1 (14009); at Shilford a pair were floating over the canopy quite low-down at 16:57 2  3  4 (14010); at Eltringham a pair were up from 17:03-17:08 with the male up briefly at 17:26 (14011). A male Hobby was up with the male Honey-buzzard at Cottagebank at 16:46. So that’s 14 birds of 6 types of raptor! Also here in total of 23 bird-types had a Grey Heron, 4 LBBG adult, a singing Garden Warbler and a singing Blackcap, 4 agitated/singing Chiffchaff, 2 Bullfinch, plus an Orange-tip butterfly. Ash trees are recovering well from the dieback: let’s hope the disease doesn’t have a resurgence as summer progresses. Not out tonite: last nite was very thrilling: lok2tmfo!! Funds +3k wtd; cash reduced a little to 117k through investment in US treasury bonds to remove some risk but am continuing to take profits. As approach half-year, gain ytd is 105k gross (+4.3%). Hoping for better in rest of year as major Falklands oil investments come towards fruition. But resilient inflation is causing headwinds in other areas. Have supported the Hexham Abbey Festival for £500 (+gift aid) this year for the first time, pleased to see I’m in the publicity material. I am a patron of Hexham-based HASS but otherwise mainly support outside Hexham: RNS at the GH (Sage), Opera North in Leeds and the Brundibár Arts Festival in Newcastle, to commemorate music and arts of the Holocaust period. I do the web site for Brundibár. Did catch up with a few tasks in morning: some grass cutting by the old stables and fitting new front windscreen wipers which arrived by Evri today; latter was a quick job, thought it would take longer, usually does when compared to times they quote! Think I’ll go to Dipton Wood 2moro; much later will be at G4g4s!! lok2tgrf: xxxxx XXX

On BirdGuides, masses of Honey-buzzard records with obvious duplicates removed. Black Kite continue to be seen and the fairly local Osprey remains:

11:01 29/05 Osprey Durham Hurworth Burn Reservoir 11:00 [sighting 5 here]

16:56 29/05 Black Kite Lincolnshire Frampton Marsh RSPB 12:21 one reportedly flew high west [sighting 89 for ytd]

13:47 29/05 Black Kite Suffolk Aldeburgh 13:45 one circled over Aldeburgh Golf Club then drifted west

12:21 29/05 Black Kite Suffolk Snape 11:50 one flew east over Snape Warren

17:02 29/05 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Quendale, Mainland two at east end of Fitful Head [sighting 97 for ytd]

16:55 29/05 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Quendale, Mainland one perched on ground near rifle range

16:22 29/05 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Hillwell, Mainland one flew low west towards Fitful Head and appeared to land

15:29 29/05 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Woolbeding Common two mid-afternoon; view from ridgeline west of NT car park (GU29 9RR)

13:13 29/05 European Honey Buzzard Aberdeenshire Rattray Head one flew high west

12:43 29/05 European Honey Buzzard Nottinghamshire Welbeck watchpoint 12:38 one again; park carefully on grass verge along Limetree Avenue and view from watchpoint at 53.2430, -1.1326

11:38 29/05 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Necton 11:34 one flew west over Ivy Todd

11:18 29/05 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Bardister, Mainland 11:13 one flew south-east

11:10 29/05 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Sullom Voe, Mainland 11:07 one flew south over Calbeck Ness

14:25 28/05 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Loch of Papil, Yell one showing well on post in Papil Bay

12:06 28/05 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Kelling 11:00 one drifted south over The Pheasant Hotel

07:44 28/05 European Honey Buzzard East Yorkshire Spurn YWT 07:31 one flew south from The Warren

17:56 27/05 European Honey Buzzard Derbyshire Loscoe Dam 16:50 one flew high north-west

17:46 27/05 European Honey Buzzard Worcestershire Abberley 14:00 possible drifted east over Whitley Court

15:28 27/05 European Honey Buzzard Nottinghamshire Welbeck watchpoint 14:00 second individual showed well briefly (wing damaged individual); park carefully on grass verge along Limetree Avenue and view from watchpoint at 53.2430, -1.1326

07:46 27/05 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Uyeasound, Unst 26/05 female flew over yesterday

13:46 26/05 European Honey Buzzard Hertfordshire Cooper's Green GPs probable flew north over Cromer Hyde Farm

13:17 26/05 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Unst 11:00 female around south-west of island

12:25 26/05 European Honey Buzzard Kent Worth Marsh RSPB one flew north-west early afternoon

12:19 26/05 European Honey Buzzard Kent Langdon Cliffs NT 12:18 one flew west over Langdon Hole

11:44 26/05 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Ashdown Forest 11:27 one again; use Long car park (RH18 5JN) and walk to view from Llama Park viewpoint (51.0642, 0.0366). Please keep to public footpath

11:10 26/05 European Honey Buzzard Bedfordshire Rookery Pits one flew south-east

10:48 26/05 European Honey Buzzard Cheshire Burton Mere Wetlands RSPB 10:45 one flew north pursued by Common Buzzard from Marsh Covert Hide

May 28th: maximum 14C, minimum 11C, light SW, dry start, heavy rain midday, clearer by evening. Made QHC4s4l (very tasty tuna) and Cnt4t to meet E to discuss next year’s meal arrangements – all very amicable. Completed indexing Prudhoe piccies. Made B4rw4s for change in evening. Started on re-compilation of my Work of Wallis 1769 published by Northumberland & Tyneside Bird Club in their bulletins in the 1990s as a precursor to the major article on Wallis for Natural History Society of Northumbria; fortunately kept the originals, in TeX format so can produce a pdf using pdflatex in MikTeX. Better weather 2moro so may be out in field again.

May 27th: maximum 14C, minimum 5C, light W, few showers in morning, then improved with strong sunshine by 13:00 in Hexham area and 17:00 in Towsbank area. A great raptor day as clearing weather after a very grotty spell gets them up in the air for hunting and display. At Ordley had purple patch at 12:20 with 2 Black Kite up in display over wood to extreme SE of tetrad 1  2  3  4 so they’ve moved a little S, perhaps 1km, to get more space from other raptors, in fact think they’ve swapped sites with Red Kite. So the site at West Dipton appears to be a genuine new one. Also had a Common Buzzard up 1 in the air in response to a male Honey-buzzard up over his territory 1  2 (14004) so maybe female Honey-buzzard is sitting already but the Black Kite are not. Butterflies comprised a Red Admiral and an Orange-tip male. Stopped at Steel Pond, in Ordley tetrad, to top up my water birds for May at 15:10: 4 Tufted Duck (2 pairs), 4 Mallard, 2 Moorhen, 11 Canada Goose (6 large young), 1 Little Grebe, 1 Coot, 4 House Martin nesting, a singing Willow Warbler. At Greenshaw Plain on way there at 15:40 had what might have been a pair of Black Kite and there was a lot of turmoil on way back at 18:30, where a Grey Heron was seen; further study needed. At Towsbank and on adjacent moors amazingly active birdlife as bad weather cleared. Plenty of raptors here and on sites to N and S as well as many waders and passerines. Visit here was from 16:00-18:10 with details to follow but can say that Black Kite was the undoubted star with a pair up 1  2  3  4, interacting strongly over edge of moor with Common Buzzard (4 up), a pair of Honey-buzzard (14004), a male Kestrel (hunting) and a Red Kite. Also had, in amazing total of 36 bird-types: 2 Red-legged Partridge, 6 Swift, a calling Cuckoo, 8 Oystercatcher, 13 Lapwing (last 2 with young), 5 Curlew, 1 Snipe, 6 LBBG (5 ad, 1 1s), 1 Garden Warbler, 22 Starling, 5 Pied Wagtail, 1 Meadow Pipit, 1 Tree Pipit , 7 Goldfinch. Further at Parson Shields to the S of Towsbank in the upper South Tyne from 16:52-16:54 had a pair of Black Kite in display in contention with a male Honey-buzzard (14005) and a Common Buzzard 1  2  3  4  5  6  7. At 17:13 a pair of Honey-buzzard were up S of Lambley with a female there at 17:16 1  2 (14006). Another Red Kite was up W of the Snope Burn. 23 Rabbit were at Towsbank, with 2 Orange-tip. Did make G4g4s with A/R/P and met F there! 2Moro it’s wet again; will be at QHC4s4l and Cnt4g4t to discuss R arrangements for next year.

Day total: 44 of 44 species from 57 records, 1 complete lists, 7 places. Raptors: 6 Honey-buzzard at 4 sites, 2 Red Kite at 2 sites, 6 Black Kite at 3 sites, 6 Common Buzzard at 3 sites, 1 Kestrel at one site. Total 21 raptors of 5 types.

May 26th: maximum 14C, minimum 10C, light SE, heavy rain much of day in pulses on overcast skies, sunny interlude at 17:00. In the sunny interlude got outside and saw 4 Lapwing NE, 2 Swift in neighbour’s eaves, 2 Stock Dove at nest site, a Common Gull 1s. But no Black Kite locally; think they might have moved to nearby West Dipton Burn where saw one last week. Caught up with lots of records, just 3 record sheets outstanding. Very encouraging news from Sussex of their strongly-rising trends in Honey-buzzard population and in greater openness, below. I readily found breeding Honey-buzzard in Sussex and discussed its potential, see my Honey-buzzard in Sussex. Must take the history further back in Sussex, I do have the relevant antiquarian volume. Also on Countryfile on BBC1 tonight they showed a track along the Camel Estuary in Cornwall at Dunmere, where I found Honey-buzzard: habitat still looks superb. See my Honey-buzzard in Cornwall

From Sussex Ornithological Society HONEY-BUZZARDS AND GOSHAWKS IN SUSSEX

Following extensive consultation, including with the RSPB Crime Monitoring Unit, the Rare Breeding Birds Panel, neighbouring ornithological societies and our membership, the Sussex Ornithological Society (SOS) decided in 2022 that the time had come to be more open about some of the sites in the county where there is a chance of seeing Honey-buzzards and Goshawks in areas where they may breed.

For Goshawk, the decision was reasonably straightforward as the species is now doing well in Sussex, with 50-60 pairs breeding annually and the population probably still increasing. Honey-buzzards are much less numerous, but Sussex has perhaps the largest population of any county in the UK, with 20 pairs found in 2023. Three viewpoints for the species have been made public in counties with many fewer pairs and an assessment of risk concluded that some sites and viewpoints in Sussex could also be made public, subject to meeting certain criteria.

The just published ‘Where to Watch birds in Surrey and Sussex’ by Matt Phelps and Ed Stubbs includes a number of sites and viewpoints for both species in Sussex. Those for Honey-buzzard in particular do not provide guaranteed sightings, in part because of the species’ often cryptic behaviour, but also because sites are not necessarily occupied every year. The sites chosen are a mix of more reliable ones and those for which more records are needed: something that the SOS hopes that the new book will encourage.

The SOS has asked the Bird News Services only to publish inland sightings of Honey-buzzards where these are from the sites and viewpoints mentioned in the book.

Mark Mallalieu

Chair, Scientific Committee, Sussex Ornithological Society

16 February 2024

Further info on BirdGuides: European Honey Buzzard sites to be made public in Sussex

Increasing in Sussex

Mr Mallalieu continued: "The national survey in 2020 and 2021 was the incentive to find out more and this increased effort continued in 2022 and 2023. In 2023, we found 20 pairs – almost three times the highest previous annual total. Amazingly, some 60 adults were seen in breeding habitats over the summer, hinting at additional undiscovered pairs.

"Is this increase real or just a result of better coverage? The short answer is that we just don't know. But given the numbers of honey buzzards seen flying in off the sea in Kent in the middle of the breeding season, it is possible that younger birds that cannot find territories on the Continent are coming to Britain. Not all pairs breed. For example, in 2023 there were 14 breeding pairs out of the total of 20 pairs, while some of the other adults detected were definitely unpaired. In Sussex, these unpaired birds are usually males.

"The new Where to Watch Birds in Surrey and Sussex guide includes a number of viewpoints for European Honey Buzzard (and Eurasian Goshawk) in Sussex. Those for honey buzzard in particular do not provide guaranteed sightings, in part because of the species' often cryptic behaviour, but also because sites are not necessarily occupied every year. The sites chosen are a mix of more reliable ones and those for which more records are needed: something that SOS hopes that the new book will encourage. The book provides advice on seeing these birds and my illustrated talk here may also be useful."

May 25th: maximum 14C minimum 9C, light SE, bright morning, more overcast in afternoon. Made Warden in afternoon from 14:20-16:30. A single Black Kite was up a few times over the hill before a pair appeared at 15:20 1  2  4  5  6  7  8 drifting E with a Common Buzzard 9 eyeing them up. A female Kestrel was up twice at 14:40 and 15:00, including an altercation with a Black Kite which also intercepted LBBG and Corvids. Also here had a singing Grasshopper Warbler, a Nuthatch in the trees, 7 Swift, 2 singing Garden Warbler, 7 agitated Oystercatcher, 4 Tree Sparrow. Total was 32 bird-types. Butterflies included 2 Green-veined White, a Peacock and a male Orange-tip. So around 19 Black Kite at 12 sites is the running total with only Towsbank to confirm for this year, which visiting on Monday. Had 3 Honey-buzzard sites in view and at last at 16:04 had a male up at Hexham Westwood where the Rooks looked quite disturbed. Made DoW4g4s with D/D 4 gr8 chat with C on!! About to return to piccies for Kenya 18/12, balloon day, giving Georgia a break. Funds were -13k last week; I sold a lot myself as looks like profits should be taken and portfolios rebalanced towards more defensiveness; so now132k in cash!

Records from BirdGuides in last 2 days show strong Honey-buzzard migration, an overshooting Black Kite and a fairly local Osprey:

20:00 25/05 European Honey Buzzard Jersey Noirmont Point one [62nd record for year]

18:33 25/05 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Baltasound, Unst female flew south-west this evening

18:23 25/05 European Honey Buzzard Kent Worth Marsh RSPB 11:30 one flew south-west over Great Wood

15:08 25/05 European Honey Buzzard Nottinghamshire Welbeck watchpoint two; park carefully on grass verge along Limetree Avenue and view from watchpoint at 53.2430, -1.1326

13:23 25/05 European Honey Buzzard South Yorkshire Thorne 24/05 one flew east yesterday

12:34 25/05 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Ashdown Forest one; use Long car park (RH18 5JN) and walk to view from Llama Park viewpoint (51.0642, 0.0366). Please keep to public footpath

11:52 25/05 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Belmont, Unst female on rock

09:08 25/05 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Woolbeding Common 08:50 one again; view from ridgeline west of NT car park (GU29 9RR)

20:17 24/05 European Honey Buzzard Orkney Westray male roosted at Pierowall this evening

12:42 24/05 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Sandwick, Mainland 12:34 one flew north over Setter

12:41 24/05 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Leebitten, Mainland 12:24 one flew ESE

12:06 24/05 European Honey Buzzard Suffolk Minsmere RSPB 10:45 one flew south-east

09:03 24/05 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Woolbeding Common 09:01 two; view from ridgeline west of NT car park (GU29 9RR)

11:09 25/05 Osprey Durham Hurworth Burn Reservoir again

10:18 25/05 Black Kite Outer Hebrides Traigh Mhor, Barra 10:00 still over dunes near Barra Airport [86th record for year]

11:56 24/05 Black Kite Outer Hebrides Traigh Mhor, Barra 11:50 still over Barra Airport

08:43 24/05 Black Kite Outer Hebrides Traigh Mhor, Barra still near Barra Airport

May 24th: maximum 12C, minimum 10C, light W brighter afternoon, dull and wet morning. Exciting RNS concert … Christina M gave a solo performance of Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto: very composed and brilliantly played in a stunning red costume!! Great reception from audience. Conductor was the effervescent Nil Venditti, who jigged a little and was very supportive of the soloist. Beethoven 1 was a revelation, a stirring mv 3 and showing lots of the potential for later. We also heard Stravinsky’s Danses concertantes and Say’s Chamber Symphony, which had some marvellous rhythms! So great concert. Arrived early for preview of the next season 2024/25, rehearsal and tea! Stayed late for a chat with some partners. The new season 2024/2025 is more popular than the last with Shostakovitch 5, Mahler 5, Tchaikovsky 5, many piano works including Rach 3, and a Glassworks! All very promising!! Went in and out by train.

May 23rd: maximum 12C, minimum 10C, moderate N, heavy rain showers, including a cloudburst at lunchtime, quite cold. No fieldwork. A busy day: T4m4el with M followed by organ recital at Hexham Abbey by Mark Brafield, including: a Vivaldi concerto transcribed by Bach, two Romanian Folk Dances by Bartók, a modern piece by Margaretha Christina de Jong, Himmelreich by Bőhm, Allegro Symphony by Vierne. Very varied and moving programme. Then home in the flood before The Pitmen Poets at QH with D/D: folky type music but with heavy dose of militancy from the mining communities; enjoyed the music and their resilience. Finally we all went to G4g4s where met A/R for great chat with L on!!

Amazing Black Kite records from Cornwall continue on BirdGuides, looks like some birds drifted to W on E winds; also number of Scottish records:

18:38 23/05 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Ashdown Forest 10:30 two; use Long car park (RH18 5JN) and walk to view from Llama Park viewpoint (51.0642, 0.0366). Please keep to public footpath

11:29 23/05 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Woolbeding Common 11:20 one again; view from ridge-line west of NT car park (GU29 9RR)

09:05 22/05 European Honey Buzzard Shetland Sound, Mainland one flew over Longland

12:52 21/05 European Honey Buzzard Surrey Thursley Common one flew NNE

12:13 21/05 European Honey Buzzard Cambridgeshire Castor Hanglands one flew high east

21:45 23/05 Black Kite Fife North Queensferry 07:59 probable flew north over Firth of Forth

19:15 23/05 Black Kite Outer Hebrides Ardveenish, Barra 19:00 again flew over road towards Traigh Eais

15:07 23/05 Black Kite Outer Hebrides Traigh Mhor, Barra 14:37 again over hillside south of Barra Airport

13:04 22/05 Black Kite Outer Hebrides Traigh Mhor, Barra 11:00 one just west of Barra Airport then flew towards Aird Mhor

19:25 21/05 Black Kite Cornwall St Just 15:00 possible flew over

19:25 21/05 Black Kite Cornwall Crows-an-Wra one flew over

14:59 21/05 Black Kite Cornwall Mullion 13:50 two following plough in field south of Meaver Road at 50.0219, -5.2228 with 18+ Red Kites

12:57 21/05 Black Kite Cornwall Ponsanooth one at Burnthouse low over field at 50.1854, -5.1293 with 4 Red Kites then drifted north-west

May 22nd: maximum 12C, minimum 10C, moderate N, heavy rain from 10:00 well into evening, a foul day, quite cold. No fieldwork. Another R meeting at 10:00 for discussion on major fundraising event: a musical evening at Tynedale Rugby Club at Corbridge in the autumn. Rain had one bonus: completed processing 9/9 at Batumi in Georgia where had 3,712 raptors of 12 species pass my apartment in Batumi City Centre during a monsoon; always have a rain-proof balcony! BirdTrack down so cannot update the records there; full details are on last year’s Notice Board. Broadband collapsed in evening, thought it was a general issue but after 3 hours decided to look at connections and found a loose one so sorted now. Not out tonight!

May 21st: maximum 15C, minimum 12C, light E, misty morning with a few showers, brighter in afternoon. Out from 15:00-16:30 to West Dipton where had the male Honey-buzzard flying in at 15:13 ??? followed by him sky dancing from 15:59-16:05 ???, with him eventually ascending out of sight, and one glimpse of his mate below in the trees, plus a dive by her, both from 15:46-15:56 1  2  3 (14003) where 2 Common Buzzard were agitated at 15:41 1. A Black Kite was seen briefly at the start of the visit at 15:13 and later from 15:56-15:59 1  2  3, challenging other raptors: a new site or maybe a move from Dukeshouse! Also in total of 20 bird-types had 2 singing Pied Flycatcher, a Great Spotted Woodpecker, a singing Curlew, single singing Chiffchaff, Blackcap and Song Thrush. Had R council meeting early evening where taking more prominent role as my term as President approaches. Then went to Hexham Golf Club to secure an evening booking for R. Much later made QHC4s4l where S looked good!! Went to Cnt4g4s with M. Later was pretty sensational!! Funds are roughly level-pegging having created new record yesterday.

May 20th: maximum 14C, minimum 6C, light E, much cooler today and misty as sun did not get out until 17:00, dry. R talk “AI: Friend or Foe” went very well, pitched about right level and received well by members; here’s pdf. Made G4g4s with R/A/P 4 good chat. Processed last of volume raptors for 9/9 Batumi; next on to tail-end of movement, will still take 2-3 days. Quiet day 2moro except for QHC4s4l and Cnt4g4s. In study area Black Kite up to 16 birds at 10 sites and Honey-buzzard to 5 birds at 3 sites.

Amazing Black Kite records from Cornwall on BirdGuides, looks like some birds drifted to W on E winds:

20:11 20/05 Black Kite Cornwall Trethewey four flew over

20:00 20/05 Black Kite Cornwall Porthgwarra 11:45 one

17:18 20/05 Black Kite Cornwall Land's End two over

17:17 20/05 Black Kite Cornwall Hayle one flew south-east over Ventonleague

14:16 20/05 Black Kite Cornwall St Buryan 13:30 two flew over

13:06 20/05 Black Kite Cornwall Polgigga two flew east: one at 12:35 and one at 12:50

13:00 20/05 Black Kite Cornwall Penzance 11:35 one flew over

20:02 20/05 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Norwich 17:35 one flew east over Whitlingham Hall

09:16 20/05 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Woolbeding Common 19/05 one yesterday; view from ridge-line west of NT car park (GU29 9RR)

08:38 20/05 European Honey Buzzard Surrey Whitmoor Common 08:35 one flew high west towards Worplesdon

May 19th: maximum 17C, minimum 9C, light E, murky from North Sea in the ‘Shire so went W to Allendale from 15:00-16:40, only a few miles but complete change in weather with continuous sunshine as move away from the North Sea, dry. Again visited Allendale SW but this time was further up on moorland edge and caught up with the Black Kite with a pair out hunting on arrival, one perched at the top of a tree for a while 1  2, all round 15:21. A major bonus was seeing a male Honey-buzzard soaring at 15:36 from Catton square (Allendale NW), mobbed by a Curlew. This is a missing link in the Honey-buzzard survey with a gap here over many years. It looks as if the gap is now being filled, thanks to increasing tree and scrub cover and incomers who will not tolerate the antics of game estates past. In total of 21 bird-types had 2 singing Redstart from a marvellous mixed wood, a Wheatear on a stone wall, 11 Curlew, 8 Lapwing with young, 3 Willow Warbler, 1 Whitethroat, 1 Skylark. Mammals included 4 Rabbit and 2 Brown Hare. Butterflies comprised 2 Green-veined White, a male Orange-tip and a Peacock. Another 8k steps today, including some from grass cutting. Made G4g4s with A/P/R 4 good chat with L and J on!! Talk on AI tomorrow: wish me luck!!

Plenty more Honey-buzzard on BirdGuides in the last two days, plus 2 more Black Kite:

20:48 19/05 Black Kite Cornwall Praa Sands one flew west this afternoon

12:49 18/05 Black Kite Hertfordshire Weston 12:47 possible reportedly flew over

21:34 19/05 European Honey Buzzard Cumbria New Hutton 16:45 18/05 one flew north yesterday

17:45 19/05 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Church Knowle 17:40 one drifted east

13:40 19/05 European Honey Buzzard Lincolnshire Baston & Langtoft Pits one flew east early afternoon

13:29 19/05 European Honey Buzzard Cheshire Fiddler's Ferry NR (permit only) wholly unconfirmed report of one this afternoon

11:26 19/05 European Honey Buzzard Kent St Margaret's at Cliffe one flew north over Bockhill Farm late morning

19:07 18/05 European Honey Buzzard East Sussex Ashdown Forest one this afternoon; use Long car park (RH18 5JN) and walk to view from Llama Park viewpoint (51.0642, 0.0366). Please keep to public footpath

17:25 18/05 European Honey Buzzard Greater Manchester Manchester Airport 17:23 probable flew west

12:59 18/05 European Honey Buzzard Surrey Capel 12:49 one flew north-west

12:58 18/05 European Honey Buzzard Hertfordshire Slip End possible flew over

12:27 18/05 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Strumpshaw Fen RSPB 12:15 one from Reception Hide

11:09 18/05 European Honey Buzzard North Yorkshire Wykeham Forest 10:50 one from raptor viewpoint; from A170 at Wykeham take minor road north to Details Highwood Brow for 6.4km to T-junction then left for 500m to car park at 54.2861, -0.5637

10:15 18/05 European Honey Buzzard Glamorgan Reynoldston 17/05 male flew low north over fields near Knelston and appeared to roost in trees at South Hall yesterday evening

May 18th: maximum 18C, minimum 7C, light NE, sunny all day after early mist, hot sunshine, dry. Had long day out, making Allendale SW from 12:40-14:05 checking on the move by the pair of Black Kite to there; had a pair soaring in distance to N from my watchpoint, which was not ideal as too low in the valley. Also had a pair of Kestrel in active hunting mode here over moorland edge. Further sightings were 10 displaying Curlew, 6 Lapwing with probable nests, 3 Meadow Pipit, and a Red Admiral. Then out to Staward S for quick visit from 14:15-14:40 where had a Raven and 2 Kestrel, singles at S and N, plus a displaying Curlew. Picked up lunch from Spar at Alston, then out to Kirkside from 15:30-17:00 for Honey-buzzard habitat research. Had 2 Stonechat sites here (male, pair), a calling Common Buzzard and a Green Hairstreak butterfly on bilberry. Other birds, in total of 15 types, were 4 singing Curlew, 2 Skylark. Met new occupant of house there who’d bought it from the Williams family, late friends of late wife: very interesting chat! Total for trip to SW was 32 bird-types and 5 butterfly-types: Orange-tip (4 sites), Green-veined White, Small White, Green Hairstreak, Red Admiral. Made DoW4g4s 4 gr8 chat with D/D. Had Barn Owl at Dilston at 23:00 and Tawny Owl at Dipton Wood N at 23:30. Plenty of exercise – 9k steps.

May 17th: maximum 17C, minimum 10C, light E, murky morning and early afternoon, brighter later, dry. Not out today, concentrated on catching up with records, including last Saturday’s marathon and analysing yesterday’s piccies. Completed habitat analysis for Upper Barhaugh Burn (fieldwork last Saturday) and set up Kirkside for habitat fieldwork 2moro. Batumi taking a back seat today but finish of 9/9 within reach. Funds had a volatile week, finishing +1k having made new peak on Tuesday; today was good, commodities becoming brighter. After trip out tomorrow to Allen and Alston area will be at DoW4g4s with D/D in evening!

Plenty of Honey-buzzard on BirdGuides today but no Black Kite:

18:48 17/05 European Honey Buzzard Kent Cliftonville 12:55 one flew north-west along Dane Valley

15:17 17/05 European Honey Buzzard Gloucestershire Leighterton 13:20 probable flew over A46

11:27 17/05 European Honey Buzzard Kent Worth 11:20 one flew north

10:22 17/05 European Honey Buzzard Kent South Foreland 10:20 one circling over valley from Lighthouse Down

09:59 17/05 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Stanpit Marsh one flew high north-east

09:41 17/05 European Honey Buzzard Kent St Margaret's at Cliffe 09:33 one flew north over Bockhill Farm viewed from Lighthouse Down

May 16th: maximum 18C, minimum 10C, light NE, murky morning, then sunny afternoon, almost dry. Made T4m4l with M 4 good chat, bouncing some of my AI talk off him. Then out to Prudhoe Dukeshagg from 14:45-16:15 as sun came out. Very exciting trip: had Common Buzzard calling from the trees at 3 sites, indicating they’re worried about intruders plus a Common Buzzard soaring over Hyons Wood to W. Then a male Hone-buzzard appeared over his nest site, soaring a bit before moving E to a ridge where he hanged for a while 1  2  3, being joined by a Black Kite 1  2  3, both looking below for prey, all from 15:09-15:13. Then at 15:16 another Black Kite was seen arriving high from the SW, joined in the air by the one just seen hunting; so looks like the pair was completed today 1  2  3  4  5  6  7. A male Kestrel came over the open field from its nest to S. A colossal adult female Goshawk was hunting over ridge to E at 15:35. The pair of Honey-buzzard briefly displayed at 15:39, the large female much larger than the thin male, maybe a bit emaciated after the migration; the female might have arrived back earlier and got fed-up 4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12 (14002). The female Honey-buzzard also circled a Black Kite 13. The most exciting bird was at 15:44 as thought a Red Kite was flying from W to E, quite low down. Took some piccies 1  2  3  4 and these showed indeed a Red Kite in structure with long tail with pronounced fork and in plumage with a white tail; but this bird had dark underwings like a Black Kite with pale patch at base of primaries, uniform dark upperwings and no rufous anywhere; looks like a Red Kite x Black Kite hybrid from earlier mixed pairing here; will enter it under Red Kite as superficially looked more like this species; not sure if it’s breeding in area; it didn’t look paired with the current Black Kite inhabitants. So on this basis had 11 birds of 6 types of raptor here! Total for bird-types was 23, including 2 Swift, 3 singing Willow Warbler, 2 singing Blackcap, a singing Garden Warbler, 3 Skylark, 1 singing Whitethroat. Butterflies were of 3 types: 2 Speckled Wood, 1 Peacock, 1 Large White. Out in evening to G4g4s with R back to join A and me; C/J were also out so good gathering, particularly with L on!

This means we now have 14 Black Kite at 9 sites, including Ponteland from BirdGuides, plus 4 Honey-buzzard at 2 sites.

May 15th: maximum 16C, minimum 10C, light E, murky, mainly dry. No fieldwork. Relaxing before more active spell likely from tomorrow afternoon when weather improves. Compiled another 11 piccies from Batumi 9/9; one more session will complete the main movement; can then wrap up the day with one more session, then just 2 days to go at the raptor watch point; think will do the Kenya balloon day before these 2 days to keep Kenya in my mind! Very sad to see the troubles in Georgia; people there were worried about the foreign agent bill being brought back again; our hotel in Tbilisi was just 200m from the Parliament up the hill, in the street where the police mass; some of the police violence has been disgusting, hauling people out of the crowd and beating them up. InHouse practical surveyor came round to look at the plumbing and electrics. Decided that power shower will have to be limited to 8Kw on wiring constraints. But no significant changes. He suggested I get a Megaflo water heater to replace the immersion heater. 2Moro it’s T4m4l with M and G4g4s.

More migrant raptors from BirdGuides:

18:19 15/05 Black Kite Oxfordshire Otmoor RSPB probable reported

07:08 15/05 Black Kite Nottinghamshire Newstead & Annesley CP 06:55 one flew low east towards Newstead Abbey

17:38 15/05 European Honey Buzzard Dorset Weymouth 17:33 one flew south over Greenhill Bowling Club

17:04 15/05 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Woolbeding Common 16:45 one; view from ridge-line west of NT car park (GU29 9RR)

16:42 15/05 European Honey Buzzard Northamptonshire Islip 16:20 one flew over

May 14th: maximum 16C, minimum 11C, light E, muggy, no sun, much cooler, few bursts of heavy rain. No fieldwork. Made QHC4s4l, very nice: gr8 to have S on!! Completed writing talk for R on AI: Friend or Foe, hasn’t taken long but been thinking about it for a while. Made some progress on Batumi 9/9 advancing coverage of movement by 2 minutes! Still some way to go! Made HRT4st4s and TAN4g4s with M 4 good chat: many pubs close early now, think it will be back to the CNT next week! Funds +1k wtd. Good bird record, may be new site for county:

08:48 14/05 Black Kite Northumberland Ponteland probable circling low over North Road at Smallburn Lodge then lost to view

May 13th: maximum 20C, minimum 12C, light E, warm but mainly cloudy, moderate rain in early hours faded by dawn. R officiating went well, no problems, my talk in a week’s time on AI! Relaxed at Ordley after the busy time, seeing around 1600 a Jay, 6 Chiffchaff, a Woodlark SE over edge of field to N of me, 2 Curlew calling, 3 displaying Lapwing, 2 singing Wren, 2 singing Song Thrush but no raptors. Made G4g4s with A 4 good chat, P not out. Quiet day 2moro, just QHC4c4l!!

More records from BirdGuides, another local Osprey, plenty of Black Kite, Honey-buzzard a little slow:

11:50 12/05 Osprey Northumberland Whittle Dene Reservoirs 10:45 one flew south over northern reservoir

11:46 13/05 Black Kite Suffolk Minsmere RSPB 10:54 one flew north over work centre

09:50 12/05 Black Kite Norfolk North Walsham 09:40 probable flew east

20:11 11/05 Black Kite Flintshire Holywell one reported along A5026 near Milwr

20:33 10/05 Black Kite Cornwall Praa Sands 06:50 one reportedly flew east

10:15 10/05 Black Kite Orkney St Mary's, Mainland 10:13 one flew south over Loch of Ayre

16:07 09/05 Black Kite Shetland Fair Isle one flew south over mast

07:11 09/05 Black Kite Cornwall Bude 14:30 08/05 one reportedly flew west over Poughill yesterday afternoon

13:22 13/05 European Honey Buzzard Wiltshire Old Sarum 13:11 one flew north-east

15:24 12/05 European Honey Buzzard South Yorkshire Wombwell 14:30 one flew north

09:51 12/05 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Hickling Broad NWT 09:45 one flew east over Brendan's Marsh

18:03 10/05 European Honey Buzzard Alderney Alderney one; also 3 Blue-headed Wagtails and Black Redstart

07:01 10/05 European Honey Buzzard West Sussex Waltham Brooks SWT 05:55 one flew over

May 12th: maximum 20C, minimum 11C, light E, warm and sunny in morning, hazy afternoon, heavy rain late evening into midnight. Had a lazy morning after yesterday’s busy circuit! Saw 2 Green-veined White in the garden. Cleaner came in afternoon so had to be out: made Hexham from 14:45-17:00 for look at Tyne and to N of Tyne, where had a pair of Black Kite floating over their territory at regular intervals, including at 15:16 1  2. Had a Woodlark over the Tyne at medium height moving SE and an interesting large, yellow, flighty and strong-flying leaf warbler in trees on S side of Tyne, thought to be a Wood Warbler. A Grey Heron was close 1. Other birds, in total of 29 types, included 3 Oystercatcher, 4 Swift, a female Goosander in territory, 6 Sand Martin, a singing Blackcap, an agitated Chiffchaff. Butterflies comprised 4 Orange-tip and 3 Speckled Wood. Took rest at C4c4t. Much later made G4g4s with A/P; took P along, heavy rain made collection fun, needed a very large umbrella! Embarrassed in regular review of Spam folder to find email from the * on 21/4: impressive and lovely piccies from Brussels!! 2Moro am acting President at R for first time!

May 11th: maximum 21C, minimum 10C, light SE, warm and sunny. A day of escape and relaxation: went on a 57-mile drive from home to Alston to Haltwhistle to Hexham, effectively visiting the Allen and upper South Tyne, in beautiful weather. Did no less than four 1-hour stops for (relatively) complete counts of birds plus one shorter visit. Added 4 species to year list: Wheatear, Cuckoo, Hobby, House Martin. Four types of raptor in all: much more to follow. Had a dead Hedgehog on the road at Snape. At Cupola Bridge had good selection of riverine species: a Dipper emerging from nest, a displaying Common Sandpiper, a Grey Wagtail, a Mallard with 3 small ducklings, plus a displaying Common Buzzard. At Ouston in Whitfield Moor from 12:49-13:50 had 11 types of bird including 6 Curlew, 2 Lapwing, 2 Kestrel, a Common Buzzard, a Wheatear, 3 singing Willow Warbler, 6 Meadow Pipit, a Skylark, plus a Small White and a Green Tiger Beetle in the heather. Got lunch from garage in Alston, then onto Gilderdale Bridge from 14:1-15:15 where had 12 species including a pair of Red Kite (one above wood to SW, the other hunting at low altitude along the burn to W), 4 Common Buzzard (3 over bridge at Gilderdale and 1 over Kirkside Wood), 4 Curlew, 2 Lapwing, 2 Oystercatcher, a singing Willow Warbler, plus 2 Green-veined White and an Orange-tip. Next up was Barhaugh Hall from 15:10-16:10 where had good views over Barhaugh Burn for habitat survey. 17 bird-types here included a calling Cuckoo, 4 Curlew, 2 Lapwing, a Redshank, single singing Blackcap and Willow Warbler and 2 agitated Chiffchaff, plus an Orange-tip. Final stop was Towsbank from 16:12-17:20 where had 20 bird-types: 10 displaying Oystercatcher, 7 displaying Lapwing, a pair of displaying Hobby, 4 House Martin N, single singing Garden Warbler and Willow Warbler, a drumming Great Spotted Woodpecker, plus 4 types of butterfly: 8 Orange-tip and single Comma, Small Tortoiseshell, Green-veined White. On way back had single anxious Common Buzzard at 2 sites in Park Village area at 17:25 and a female Kestrel hovering at Langley Deanraw at 17:50. Made DoW4g4s with D/D for usual great chat with S on!! Funds had a good week, +22k by end.

Total for day was 31 species from 51 records: raptors 8 Common Buzzard at 4 sites, 3 Kestrel at 2 sites, 2 Red Kite, 2 Hobby; waders: 14 Curlew, 12 Oystercatcher, 11 Lapwing, 1 Redshank, 1 Common Sandpiper. Butterflies: 13 Orange-tip, 3 Green-veined White, single Small White, Small Tortoiseshell, Comma. A good early spring day!

May 10th: maximum 20C, minimum 10C, light SW, warm and sunny. A Small Tortoiseshell was in Hexham QHC. Highlight of day was visit to GH for RNS performance of Brahms 1 with Jess Gillam playing two saxophone numbers (one an encore, the other Glazunov’s Sax Concerto). Met some partners for meal before and for drink afterwards, highly sociable. Very much enjoyed concert, conductor was Chloé van Soeterstède, who did a commanding job in Brahms 1. The starting piece was Concert Overture by Elfrida Andrée. Bemused by debate over Israel’s participation in the Eurovision Song Concert. I agreed with this comment in one of the DT’s articles, criticising Israel’s inclusion, and gave it a like:

Sarah Kramer 2 DAYS AGO Shame on you if you can't see how twisted this is and how brave this young woman is being in a very intimidating situation: 'one almost felt sorry for the 20-year-old from Tel Aviv'...

ALMOST?? 5000 people show up to protest your inclusion in the competition, the entire audience boos you and all because this very young woman comes from a country that suffered a pogrom at the hands of terrorists and is now fighting a war they didn't start and didn't want, to try and prevent the terrorists from repeating the massacre. 17 REPLIES 432 like, 5 unlike.

The tele-voting by the public showed a lot of support for Israel, winning in 15 countries including the UK. Suspect outside our elites there’s much more support for Israel than is being reported.

May 9th: maximum 18C, minimum 9C, light W, hazy sunshine in afternoon, warm. Compiled another 5 piccies of Batumi 9/9. Met M at T4m4l before making Hexham Abbey for an organ recital, this time by Willow Northeald, assistant organist at the Abbey. He played Bach’s Pièce d’orgue, Franck’s Prière, Naji Hakim’s Variations on two themes. The first two were very powerful organ pieces, played with majesty! The last was more varied in style, more experimental, which seems to be a feature of the last piece in these recitals. We enjoyed the recital, it’s a good feature for Hexham Abbey. Then back to Sele GP where discussed lipids with pharmacist; didn’t want to up stains to 80mg so we eventually agreed on ezetimibe, a drug which blocks absorption of cholesterol in the gut; that starts next week. Made Haltwhistle from 16:00-17:20 getting a Black Kite and 2 Common Buzzard over the wood to W of North Wood at 17:00. Another Swift was seen along with 2 singing Garden Warbler (as well as one singing at Ordley). In total of 25 bird-types had 6 Sand Martin, 3 singing Willow Warbler, 16 Starling fetching food for young, an Oystercatcher, 2 Lapwing and a Curlew. Much later made G4g4s with A; P was too weak to come out. We had good chat! 2Moro it’s QHC4s4l and concert at GH in evening, with Brahms 1 and soloist Jess Gillam before in first half.

May 8th: maximum 16C, minimum 10C, light W, humid, first day out without coat for ages - spring?, hazy sunshine afternoon, warm. Working hard on Batumi 9/9 as it’s so relevant to UK migration; completed another row of 8 piccies but going to take some time; got 82 piccies to process still out of 142 originally. It will definitely be worth it! Am putting vital document files on OneDrive rather than doing the backup myself, so have 50GB being synchronised. Am managing piccies myself still. Did get blood test results. All normal (blood itself, liver, salts) except for serum non-hd lipids (cholesterol), which is lower at 2.9 but still not down to target of 2.64 so appointment at 14:40 tomorrow at GPs – may get statins increased again - cardiovascular health is vital! Visited InHouse in between walks to survey Hexham NE again; shown CAD for new bathroom, very impressive, cost a bit more than 9k, paid 1k deposit on credit card with bank transfer on Friday of 4k for fittings, will not be finished until mid-July as some parts coming from Germany on special order. So what about the birds: 3 Black Kite (1 gliding at Dukes House, 2 at Hexham NE gliding together towards bridge), 1 Red Kite (soaring, further to W), 1 Kestrel (male at Anick Grange), 3 Common Buzzard (as singles from towards Bridge to Beaufront), plus a singing Sedge Warbler, first Swift (to W), 3 singing Blackcap, 4 Stock Dove, 3 Chiffchaff, 1 singing Whitethroat, in total of 26 bird-types. Also had a Brown Hare and 4 Orange-tip. Had 2 Common Buzzard soaring at Letah Wood at 14:00.

Interesting fishing trip from BirdGuides:

19:03 08/05 Osprey Northumberland Stocksfield 18:45 one flew south over New Ridley Road [From Tyne at Hexham to Derwent Reservoir]

May 7th: maximum 14C, minimum 8C, light SE, murky morning becoming brighter in afternoon, dry. Out at Ordley from 15:30-16:30 as sunshine grew stronger. Had 3 Swallow, 2 Curlew around the house. More dramatic bang on cue for the 4 o’clock soar with a pair of Black Kite up briefly, joined quickly by a male Honey-buzzard who went off to SW, where he was joined by a female Honey-buzzard (14002). A Common Buzzard was calling at 16:00. So both the birds at home site have now found a mate; that's great, plenty of action all summer, and can move on to check other sites. Star action was an adult male Sparrowhawk diving into the side of the orchard, sending birds scattering in all directions; think he missed but a Blackbird had a very narrow escape! Had a few more butterflies: 3 Orange-tip male, a Peacock and a Speckled Wood at Ordley, and another Orange-tip male at Hexham. Made Sele GP at 17:10 for health check – weight, height, blood test, pulse, blood pressure; bit more than I was led to believe and urine sample needed in a day or two. Second go at blood pressure produced 135-60, normal, after higher first go; pulse was 79, bmi was 29 but did have shoes and clothes on; current thinking is that for my age group a bit of extra weight is not harmful as it can provide a reserve in case of illness and of course weight loss is associated with the dreaded C; so await the blood tests now. Made Cnt4g4s with M 4 good chat! Funds are +11k wtd, close to high.

Recent arrivals from BirdGuides:

18:11 06/05 Black Kite Greater Manchester Doffcocker Lodge LNR17:00 one flew west

10:07 04/05 Black Kite Kent North Foreland 09:50 one flew inland over lighthouse

19:48 07/05 European Honey Buzzard Herefordshire Bromyard 14:00 one flew over A44 east of Bromyard

19:33 07/05 European Honey Buzzard Hampshire Havant one flew over mid-afternoon

13:21 07/05 European Honey Buzzard Northamptonshire Islip 12:55 one flew high north-east

11:22 07/05 European Honey Buzzard Pembrokeshire Dinas Cross 17:00 06/05 one flew west along coast path at Garn Gelli yesterday

17:02 05/05 European Honey Buzzard Pembrokeshire St David's one reported over Trecenny Farm this morning

10:17 05/05 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Sheringham one west of golf course then flew towards Sheringham Park mid-morning

18:47 04/05 European Honey Buzzard Caithness Dounreay two flew inland at Balmore

May 6th: maximum 14C, minimum 9C, light NE, dull, few showers, slightly milder, sun came out for 5 min followed immediately by heavy rain shower. Did get out around the sunny spell but raptors were obviously not impressed (rightly!). Had 6 Black-headed Gull N, 3 Goldfinch, 1 Magpie, 1 singing Collared Dove, to add to yesterday’s local birds. Spent a lot of time on Batumi 9/9, getting all sorted up to start of the big movement, leaving just the big movement to document now. Took P to G4g4s to meet A; we had good chat! Have booked up Wednesday afternoon to meet J at InHouse to view CAD for bathroom and presumably seal the deal. Daughter and family, all 4 of them, are arriving on August 1st from Dubai: will be very pleased to see them. Chatted to son on FB Video for 50 min – he’s planned a European trip through France, Italy, Slovenia, Czech, Slovak, Austria, ending at Budapest in time for us to meet for Wagner’s 4-day Ring. Evidently Weinberg is catching on in London with 4 sq at the Wigmore soon; well done to the Festival for early promotion of this composer.

May 5th: maximum 13C, minimum 10C, light W, dull, few light showers, cool. Did first mowing of year: cutting dock-infested area by back door and all of front grass; test for hand-pushed rotary mower and me: we both went at it without a pause! Took full bird list in garden – 18 types – just one raptor a Common Buzzard perched in a fir tree, the rarer ones did not fly in dull conditions; also had 2 displaying Lapwing, 1 singing Curlew, 4 Greylag Goose, 2 Chiffchaff, 4 Goldcrest, 1 Mistle Thrush, 4 Tree Sparrow. Started 9/9 Batumi, doing the top row of piccies, including a video clip of the monsoon, put on Vimeo; also added verbatim accounts from Batumi raptor watch-points. Made G4g4s with A, so busy, great to see, with many lasses out.

May 4th: maximum 13C, minimum 10C, light S, dull, dry after some heavy rain overnight, a few glimpses of the sun, felt cool. In a slightly brighter interlude at 15:00 went outside to watch the Devil’s Water and quickly saw a Black Kite coming out of a pine wood to S, interacting a little with other raptors with display and then went out hunting to W 1  2  3. The local Red Kite pair have moved a little N to takeover last year’s Black Kite site and the Black Kite are forced S to last year’s Red Kite location; good to see the Red Kite holding their own. So that maintains 9 Black Kite at 7 sites. No sign of local Honey-buzzard yet at nesting site: the Crows are very relaxed; when the Honey-buzzard return the Crows sit on the tops of the trees cursing them. However, did have a male Honey-buzzard up with the Black Kite in the area to the S 1  2  3 (14001) so that is a very exciting development. Two Common Buzzard were also up here 1. So the season is now getting well under way!!

Completed processing the major raptor movement day of 12/9 at Batumi; using 2400x1800 resize for speckly migration shots, reduces size of file without significantly losing quality; on landscapes now use 1200x900 resize. Next up of 3 days left is 9/9 Batumi, the biggest day for passage on the coast and an experience showing that Honey-buzzard movement goes to the coast when the weather deteriorates. Wrapping up R teams with notices out to people over final queries; no meeting on Monday as bank holiday. Garden and field is becoming a haven for animals: a Brown Hare probably breeding in my field regularly grazes the back grass (very good at lawn-cutting!), a Grey Squirrel was close to house, local rabbit numbers total at least 7 and there are a few mole hills. Funds were -1k on week.

May 3rd: maximum 14C, minimum 8C, light NE, dull, dry, a few glimpses of the sun, slightly warmer. Watching election results coming in up until 03:30. So missed Skype chat with N/D as not up to 11; did invite them to the pub but they didn’t come; think it’s time to stop shielding! Made R&C4m4l with M/A/A (old Northumbria mates!); we had good reunion over tasty lunch and glass of rw. At 14:30 J from InHouse came round and measured up bathroom with discussion on features; next stage is a CAD mock-up and quote, end of next week, c10k for my ambitions! Then out to Warden for check on Black Kite site; for first time this year, drew a blank with no Black Kite seen. Did have a Common Buzzard carrying prey into Greenshaw Plain. New species for year were Common Sandpiper (pair) and Willow Warbler (3 singing); also in total of 26 species had a pair of Goosander, a sitting Oystercatcher, a Grey Heron, 2 Blackcap, a Grey Wagtail, plus an Orange-tip. Earlier at Steel Pond at 14:15 had a Coot (amazingly, first for year) and a Moorhen. Back home for a bit, then out to DoW4g4s with D/D for gr8 catch-up and good chat with S!! So a busy day. Tomorrow is much quieter!

Here are recent Black Kite and Honey-buzzard records from BirdGuides:

15:43 03/05 Black Kite Kent Deal one reported over Sandown

12:50 02/05 Black Kite Buckinghamshire New Bradwell possible flew south-east over Bancroft this morning

14:21 01/05 Black Kite Carmarthen Pembrey CP one flew east up Burry Inlet off Pembrey Burrows

14:16 01/05 Black Kite Carmarthen Pembrey CP possible flew east up estuary off Pembrey Burrows

13:57 02/05 European Honey Buzzard Norfolk Blakeney Freshmarsh one flew west this afternoon

10:12 02/05 European Honey Buzzard Anglesey Cors Ddyga RSPB male flew west mid-morning

May 2nd: maximum 13C, minimum 6C, light NE, dull, dry, feeling cool again. Very few insects around. Refreshing morning!! Caught up on some piccies from April, just about caught up now. Leisurely afternoon doing some reading of recent literature. Out to G4g4s with A 4 good chat with L on!! Both Barn Owl and Tawny Owl on return at 00:05 next day. Bit worried about taking P when it’s busy as he’s quite frail.

May 1st: maximum 15C, minimum 7C, light SE, sunny intervals but basically misty. Routine 6-monthly visit to dentist in Corbridge today: hygienist for 25 min from 11:30 and dentist for 15 min from 12:00: all good fun – no problems! While over there decided to visit Thornbrough until 13:25, another Black Kite site. Here had none in flight but a single Black Kite was perched on a bare branch near the top of a tree for 8 min from 12:40-12:53 1, rather quiet as if recovering from migration; 3 birds have been seen this way now. This makes 7 sites occupied by 9 birds. I wonder which gender returns first. In total of 21 bird-types had 3 singing Skylark, 2 singing Whitethroat, a singing Blackcap, a Chiffchaff, 2 Grey Partridge, 5 Yellowhammer, 12 Goldfinch, 3 singing Song Thrush, 1 Swallow NE. Visited InHouse in Hexham to see about renewing my bathroom; a salesman is coming out on Friday at 14:30 to measure up and give estimates. Current bathroom could do with updating. Trying to restore some refreshing to NB but plagued by loads of stale pages; recent problem has been servers blocking requests for refresh; will persevere as it’s important!! lok2tgrf: xxx XXXXXX

April 30th: maximum 15C, minimum 8C, moderate SE, cloudy and breezy morning, sunny afternoon and evening, at last feeling warmer. Made QHC4s4l where gr8 to see S again!! Then off to Styford, where very good Black Kite showing with a pair displaying over last year’s wood 1 (first duo this season 1  2  3) and a pair displaying in distance over Bywell N 1  2. 3 Common Buzzard were seen, not happy with new arrivals, including one perched on a branch for 10 min 1  2  3  4. Also in total of 22 bird-types had 3 Swallow (pair, 1 E), a Grey Heron, 4 Oystercatcher, 4 Lapwing, 2 Stock Dove, 2 Blackcap singing, a displaying Lesser Redpoll, 2 singing Song Thrush, plus 2 rabbit (1 dead, 1 live) and 2 butterflies: a Small White, a Peacock. Made Cnt4g4s with M 4 good chat. Had a Barn Owl at Ordley on way home. Funds are +1k wtd after being +10k yesterday.

So we finish the month in the study area with 8 Black Kite at 6 sites, marvellous restatement of their colonisation. Recent reports on BirdGuides are:

13:15 30/04 Black Kite Nottinghamshire Hoveringham 09:55 one reportedly circled over River Trent at Ferry Farm Park then flew north towards Epperstone

10:19 30/04 Black Kite Nottinghamshire Hoveringham 09:55 one reported at Ferry Farm Park

21:27 29/04 Black Kite Avon High Littleton possible flew over

18:00 29/04 Black Kite Dorset Bloxworth 10:20 possible reported over A35

10:19 30/04 European Honey Buzzard Wiltshire Firsdown 10:10 one flew over A30

April 29th: maximum 11C, minimum 8C, moderate S, cloudy and breezy, not feeling as mild as predicted. Much active work on R: taking money for high attendance of 35, demonstrating Google Form system to a few members, having a meeting at my house in evening to discuss teams for next year, when I’m President; indeed 5 hours on R during day 12:00-15:00 and 17:00-19:00. Made G4g4s with A/P for light relief but ferrying P is not easy post-stroke. L/A were on!!

April 28th: maximum 8C, minimum 5C, moderate NW, steady rain up to lunchtime, brighter from ttime. Big rise in temperatures forecast tomorrow morning from 7C to 12C as winds go from W (fetch from NW) to S (deep fetch). Made Dipton Wood N tip from 17:20-18:50 as sun came out. Exciting at 17:53 as a Black Kite came powering over, going N down into Devil’s Water valley and not seen again; suspect this is a returning bird to the Dukes Wood site just finishing his northward trek; suspect they are more tired than Honey-buzzard after their migration so the new arrival will take it easy for a few days. Also in total of 14 bird-types had a Common Crossbill male 1, an agitated Bullfinch, 3 calling Chiffchaff, a Linnet, a pair of Siskin, a displaying Meadow Pipit, an anxious Long-tailed Tit 1. No Green Hairstreak yet! An Osprey was over the pine wood on the opposite side of the valley at Hexham NE at 17:57 1. On way back at Steel Pond had a Little Grebe, a pair of Tufted Duck, 4 displaying Mallard, a Moorhen, a Teal. Made G4g4s again giving lift to P to meet A. New barmaid C is very smart. But L is my favourite!! Almost completed Sakhalvasho (Batumi) 8/9 in Georgia, just need to index a few more piccies; will then have 4 more days to do, all spectacular migration.

From BirdGuides some more Black Kite

15:00 28/04 Black Kite Cornwall Penzance 14:56 possible circling gradually east over Causewayhead

13:44 27/04 Black Kite Norfolk Forncett St Peter 13:41 probable flew high north over farmland

11:41 27/04 Black Kite Wexford Lady's Island Lake 23/04 one photographed on Tuesday

20:13 26/04 Black Kite Outer Hebrides South Dell, Lewis still perched at south-west side of Druim Fraoich late evening

19:40 26/04 Black Kite Outer Hebrides South Dell, Lewis one flew north-east between coastline and road this evening

10:39 25/04 Black Kite Isles of Scilly St Mary's 10:26 again flew over Kitty Down towards Normandy [last record of the Scilly bird after many reports]

and the first Honey-buzzard:

07:00 27/04 European Honey Buzzard Hampshire Acres Down 10:00 26/04 adult yesterday morning; also Hawfinch still

and some Osprey, the latter 48 min after I had one flying W at Hexham NE, presumably turning up North Tyne to Hallington and onwards.

14/04 11:22 Northumberland : Osprey, Acomb flew towards River Tyne (11:19)

24/04 17:48 Northumberland : Osprey, Hallington Reservoirs one flew north-east (17:45)

April 27th: maximum 9C, minimum 3C, light NE, mainly sunny, early frost. Had good lie-in after exertions of past few weeks. Went in on train with M and later came back with him. We both walked the HLB in both directions. The kick-off time at the Sage was 3pm, same as Newcastle United who thrashed Sheffield United 5-1. So city and travel was very busy. Met some partners M/S/T/L for late lunch. Concert was all Mozart with 2 PC played by AH in the first half and a symphony (Prague) in the second half. Found the 2 PC very restful, glad I came, and the symphony rousing. More to follow … Much later made DoW4g4s with D/D for gr8 chat.

April 26th: maximum 7C, minimum -1C, light N, cloudy morning, some sunshine later, cool out of the sun, frost early-on. Made the Big Sing by Hexham Amateur Stage Society at Hexham High School; lots of familiar show items all sung with great gusto, including Rodgers & Hammerstein, Wicked Choral Highlights, Chicago, Miss Saigon, Showboat, Jersey Boys, King and I, Hairspray and Mamma Mia! They held the event in the school rather than at QH as the QH’s charges have gone up. May need to up my modest grant as patron to help a bit more. HASS are doing the Pirates of Penzance in November at the QH, subtitled Workie Tickets of Whitley Bay! Funds were +11k this week and sit just below high. Do hold some AAL so benefiting here from takeover approach by BHP. Thinking of moving my web site nickrossiter.org.uk from BT to Namecheap. I’m Finding BT are very inefficient and not up to date with latest techniques like SSL and TSL; they’re also much more expensive; Namecheap have just launched a Stellar range of packages including unmetered disk space on SSD. 2moro into Sage for Angela Hewitt on the piano in the afternoon.

Following on from the Reformation Symphony performance last Friday, where I was amazed to hear in mv 1 a very close correspondence to Wagner’s Parsifal main theme, here’s two quotes on the resemblance. But Mendelssohn wrote his piece in 1830 and Wagner his in c1875 so there’s no doubt who came first. It is a nasty trick by Wagner to rubbish someone’s work as in his treatise on Mendelssohn and then use the criticised work for your own purposes. This tactic is all too common in peer review in all walks of life today.

Listen out for Mendelssohn's premonition of Wagner's Parsifal in the first movement of the Reformation Symphony, numbered as 5: both make use of the so-called Dresden Amen (a 19th century Saxon church melody and cadence), and I think you'll be shocked – if you know your Wagner but not your Mendelssohn – at how closely Mendelssohn's string scoring of the theme resembles Wagner's harmonisation and treatment of the melody in his last opera. For all his splenetic, toxic criticism, Wagner knew how much he owed Mendelssohn: he privately admitted to his wife in 1879 that, decades earlier, he had nicked some of Mendelssohn's Calm Sea and Prosperous Overture for his incidental music to Theodor Apel's play Columbus. Guardian recordings

 Finally, we’re destined to hear the Dresden Amen differently than Mendelssohn did; it’s used in later music as well, most notably Wagner’s Parsifal and the Finale of Mahler’s 1st symphony.  It's hard to know what to do with that information.  To my ear, the Dresden Amen’s appearance in the works of an anti-semitic composer, Wagner (both Mendelssohn and Mahler were Jewish by blood), and in that of one of the last figures (Mahler) to cling to the Romantic style that Mendelssohn helped create, gives its use a poignancy that the "Reformation" symphony’s composer could not have anticipated.  As triumphant as the work is, we know that history had a more complex fate in store for such ostensibly straightforward celebrations. MICHAEL LEWANSKI, CONDUCTOR

In Wagner’s defence (See Wikipedia, which also has a short audio clip of the Amen) it could be said that the Dresden Amen was widely known and since he lived in Dresden for a while, it would have been naturally in his repertoire. The original composer of The Dresden Amen was Johann Gottlieb Naumann (1741–1801) for use in the Royal Chapel in Dresden. Such was its popularity that it spread to other churches, both Catholic and Lutheran, in Saxony. So Mendelssohn was not the originator.

The theme was also used by Richard Wagner, most notably in his last opera, Parsifal. Wagner was a Kapellmeister in Dresden from 1842 to 1849, but he would probably have learnt the motif as a boy attending church in Dresden. It was incorporated into one of his earliest operas, Das Liebesverbot, and also appears in the third act of Tannhäuser.

Anton Bruckner used the Dresden amen in several motets (Christus factus est WAB 11, Virga Jesse WAB 52 and Vexilla regis WAB 51),[1] the finale of his Fifth Symphony and the adagio of his last symphony, the Ninth, while Gustav Mahler incorporated it into the last movement of his first symphony, "Titan". Manuel de Falla quoted from it in his incidental music for Calderón de la Barca's El gran teatro del mundo.

April 25th: maximum 7C, minimum 1C, light N, cloudy morning, some sunshine later, cool out of the sun. Today had smart meter installed by E.ON, based on 4G, needed to ensure economy 7 continues after signal 2G is switched off next year. Didn’t take long to install as had new meter put in recently; will see how it goes! Made T4m4l with M; we then went to an organ recital at Hexham Abbey, which was stirring, played by Robert Poyser, Director of Music at Beverley Minster. He played pieces by Lefebure-Wely, Vierne, Yon, JS Bach, Buxtehude, plus an impressive improvisation. Had chat with son on FB video at ttime and then off to G4g4s with A; was going to take frail P but he cancelled 30 min before collection as feeling poorly. Not too much else done today except organising R teams for next year which is very time consuming.

April 24th: maximum 9C, minimum 3C, light NW, cloudy morning, sunny afternoon, cool but better in the sun. Had 3 Osprey at NE Hexham, 2 displaying (a tight pair often up in the air) plus 1 coming from the E and moving decisively W at 16:57. A Black Kite joined in the fun, often soaring with the Osprey. Also up were a male Kestrel and a total of 4 Common Buzzard were seen at 3 sites. Not a bad day! Also in total of 23 bird-type had 2 Swallow, a Collared Dove, 2 singing Blackcap, a Linnet. Black Kite found at 4 sites ytd. No Hobby or Honey-buzzard yet. Funds are +11k wtd after shading a bit since Monday’s rise.

April 23rd: maximum 9C, minimum 2C, light N, a few sunny spells, mainly cloudy. A good social day, making QHC4s4l with the fit S on, and MR turning up from R – very smart! Later met M at Cnt4g4s 4 good chat. Did though find time to make Prudhoe Dukeshagg late afternoon 16:10-17:35 and did find another Black Kite, the third for this season, perched at the top of a fir tree for some while around 16:30, just like the one at Ordley on Saturday. It might be a trait of theirs to survey the territory while a little knackered from the migration. This bird did get up in the air for a little glide and float around. Other raptors were 2 Common Buzzard (one up over Black Kite site patrolling, another up hunting over field to W) and a Red Kite soaring towards Hyons Wood. Had 16 bird-types in all, plus a Kestrel male hunting at Styford E. At Letah Wood at 18:15 saw a Brown Hare and 3 Yellowhammer. Piccies to follow tomorrow. So 3 single birds at 3 sites in survey to date.

Here’s the Black Kite piccies from today 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8.

A few more Black Kite nationally [BirdGuides]:

18:50 23/04 Black Kite Isles of Scilly St Mary's one flew over Lower Moors towards Longstone [11 further reports from Scilly on 24/4 and 25/4 up to 10:39]

17:59 23/04 Black Kite Norfolk Horning 13:45 one reported in field north of Norwich Road then flew off

20:52 21/04 Black Kite Dorset Ringstead Bay one reported this morning

April 22nd: maximum 10C, minimum 4C, light NE, very gloomy, occasional rain interspersed by long spells of drizzle, felt cold. Busy day at R, setting up projector and sorting a few problems with speaker’s Mac, acting as front of house, chatting up a couple of waitresses, eating my meal, chairing Admin Team meeting, indeed there from 12:05-14:55. Sorted out Black Kite piccies as below from Ordley 20/4 and added them to BirdTrack. Completed processing Batumi 4/8, next up is 8/9 at the raptor migration point. Did make G4g4s where g back on, thanks to L sorting out the gas pressures!! Had 4 rabbit and a hedgehog at Ordley on way back from pub. Funds at new record today, more than recovering last week’s loss.

April 21st: maximum 7C, minimum 5C, light N, sunny morning, then cloudy for rest of day, feeling cool. A rather raw day. Stayed home, did have an adult male Sparrowhawk flying low-down over nearby field and a Great Spotted Woodpecker drumming to S. Worked hard on Batumi Botanical Gardens records, completing 3/9 and labelling 4/9; do feel Honey-buzzard did breed near the Gardens. Also sorted out financial issues for portfolio, registering a 15k decline last week, during the worst week for 6 months in global equities, after worries the Iran-Israel conflict was escalating. Back to R 2moro. Made G4ncl-br4s with g off and replaced by Newcastle Brown for me; had good chat with R/A with L on!! Added final Dorset records to BirdTrack.

April 20th: maximum 9C, minimum 2C, moderate NW, sunny morning, then cloudy, sunny again by tt almost dry. Had 2nd Black Kite of season, one sitting in a larch tree from 14:30-14:50 (latter time, still there) in the middle of its territory at Ordley, clearly just arrived back and a little knackered as it sat there with a Red Kite and a pair of Common Buzzard circling overhead! Have got a decent set of piccies, showing its white head and slight fork in tail when perched! Had a good day, staying local and doing an extended walk around garden and field, building up a local list of 26 species, after all the recent travelling. Also had waders --- 2 displaying Lapwing, single Oystercatcher and Curlew – plus singing Nuthatch, Mistle Thrush and migrants – 2 Swallow N and 1 Sand Martin N. Numbers of Chiffchaff have reached 4 = 2 pairs with much singing and calling. Converted the Festival site to secure status with https protocol; will raise its esteem! Made DoW4g4s with D/D 4 gr8 catch-up. Detected major and very welcome change on Sky News in Gaza-Israel conflict. Last week it was non-stop pro-Hamas propaganda. Now much more balanced again, even in favour of Israel, after the Iranian intended bombardment of Israel and the obvious hate (anti-Semitism) shown by the Palestinian marchers towards Jews.

Here’s the Black Kite piccies from today 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8.

April 19th: maximum 9C, minimum 2C, moderate N, few heavy showers, some sunny spells. Checked out from Wrea Head after 2 days b&b+dinner, cost £388 including a few bevvies! Given lift to SCA station by our President! Then back on train via York to NCL and HEX. Notice loads of orchestral players, complete with small instruments in my carriage: yes it was the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment on their way to the Sage to perform later that day, where I would be in the audience. Got home at 14:00 and out again to Wylam late afternoon for a scan from Wylam Bridge: on arrival had a Red Kite floating over Wylam village on E side – pleased with that! In total of 17 bird-types had a pair of Goosander downstream, 4 Sand Martin, 2 Bullfinch, 4 Siskin,. 1 Grey Heron, 2 LBBG ad, 1 GBBG 1s. They charge for parking at Wylam Station now so plenty of space there. Then in on train to NCL and walk across HLB to Sage, where had enjoyable tea and chat with some of the partners. Concert was all Mendelssohn – S5, S3, and PC2. They were so expressive and incisive, and my feelings towards the composer have changed for the better. More to follow … Made Br4g4s for old time’s sake! Then last train to WYL and home!

Another Black Kite:

07:01 19/04 Black Kite East Sussex Sheepcote Valley 12:30 18/04 one reported flying east to west early afternoon yesterday [18/4]

April 18th: maximum 10C, minimum 7C, light W, dry cloudy morning, rain later. After breakfast went for walk around local village Scalby, seeing 3 Common Buzzard at 2 sites and a displaying female Sparrowhawk. Total was 30 bird-types including 2 Nuthatch, a drumming Great Spotted Woodpecker, 2 singing Song Thrush, a Coal Tit, a Sand Martin N, a singing Blackcap, 3 Chiffchaff, a Canada Goose by a pond with a Moorhen. We’re on the edge of the North Yorks National Park so can see the pine forest and woods close to Wykeham, the well-established Honey-buzzard site. Evening was very sociable, getting on very well with some key R members.

April 17th: maximum 10C, minimum 3C, moderate N, heavy squalls, some sunshine. No peace! Off to Scarborough via NCL and York at lunchtime for R jolly! Staying in Wrea Head Hotel, a very nice venue on N edge of Scarborough. Trains went well and took taxi to hotel from station at Scarborough. We had introductory group meeting at 18:15, dinner at 19:00, and nitecap at 22:00. All very sociable.

April 16th: maximum 10C, minimum 1C, light W, sunny, cool. Plenty of pressures on this one day between visits but out from 16:00-17:05 at Bywell and did have a Black Kite at 16:21 gliding behind wood to NE – marvellous sight, maybe indicating that the influx noted in the south below from 13/4-14/4 can lead to birds reaching us about 2 days later. Also had 6 Common Buzzard at 4 sites and a soaring male Sparrowhawk. 2 Swallow flew N. On way back at 17:20 had an Osprey floating through the trees at NE Hexham. An Orange-tip male was at Houtley at 15:30. Went to Cnt4g4s with M – gr8 chat! Also made QHC4s4l but heroine S not back yet from her Guernsey triumph!! Delighted to hear of new arrival!! Love creative/energetic women!! Did participate in Lawrence auction in morning in Somerset and bought over Auctionet an Exeter 1707 Ag dognose spoon for £400 hammer price; they had a few technical difficulties delaying sale twice!

April 15th: maximum 9C, minimum 2C, light NW, sunny, cool. Long trek back from Lyme Regis, Dorset, to Hexham. Left Lyme Regis at 10:00, big sis drove me back to Ealing, where had afternoon tea before going by Elizabeth Line to Tottenham Court Road, Northern to Euston and brisk walk to KGX where caught the fast 19:00 to Edinburgh, reaching NCL after just 2 stops at York and Darlington, but then had to wait for last train to HEX after quickie in Vic&Cmt. Got home at 23:50.To bed at 02:00 after getting washing on and long soak in bath! Did get some work on Batumi 3/9 on train, doing indexing of most piccies.

Another Black Kite, in Ireland:

17:11 16/04 Black Kite Waterford Drumcannon 16:55 one flew high east over R685

April 14th: maximum 12C, minimum 9C, light SW, veiled sunshine much of day. Big family reunion at Dunkeswell today in Devon with 2 nephews and families and we 3 siblings. Was a very good do. We had lunch and I had a walk around Richard’s wood that he has purchased, amazing business-skills! Did discuss family history of the Friends with sisters. My younger sister said that after my father died my mother used to meet 2 men in Teignmouth, jewellers from Golders Green, who were Jews. She said they were my father’s relations. Time to follow up Vera Friend on Ancestry, whose daughter VK is 2nd cousin to me on DNA and is recorded as having DNA associated with Ashkenazi Jews. Back home 2moro. Plenty of Black Kite, including Channel islands:

18:53 14/04 Black Kite Jersey Câtillon de Haut 18:51 one this evening

15:00 14/04 Black Kite Guernsey Vingtaine de l'Epine one flew south from Ronez towards Saumarez Park mid-afternoon

09:19 14/04 Black Kite Guernsey Colin Best NR 07:42 one flew over

16:52 15/04 Black Kite West Sussex Cissbury Ring 13/04 one reported on Saturday [13/4]

19:19 13/04 Black Kite North Yorkshire Boroughbridge possible circled over

13:56 13/04 Black Kite East Sussex Brede Levels 13:50 one flew low over A28 bridge over River Brede

12:52 13/04 Black Kite Cambridgeshire Stretham one flew east

12:15 13/04 Black Kite Guernsey St Martin's 11:44 one flew west over Fermain

16:03 12/04 Black Kite East Sussex Eastbourne 11:30 one flew over Meads

09:30 10/04 Black Kite Nottinghamshire Epperstone 17:30 09/04

April 13th: maximum 15C, minimum 8C, light to moderate W, dry, cooler from late afternoon as cold front moves through. Completed processing Batumi 2/9 and 7/9, next up is Batumi Botanical Gardens 3/9, starting on Honey-buzzard in the area. Nice spring weather this morning encouraged 5 Common Buzzard to display over high ground between Lyme Regis and Charmouth, around Lyme Regis Golf Club. Also had a Tawny Owl calling at our cottage in the evening. We had lunch at the Pilot Boat, sea bass again, with Richard and Anthony (R’s son) joining the three of us. We had a good time and are meeting again tomorrow!

April 12th: maximum 15C, minimum 10C, light SW, dry, sunny often with very high thin cloud, sea almost calm. A brilliant spring day with fantastic raptor sightings, totalling about 12 Common Buzzard, 2 Sparrowhawk (male and female displaying at Abbotsbury), 2 Marsh Harrier (pair displaying at the Swannery), 1 Kestrel, 1 Hobby (female moving E with 2 Swallow for company at Fleet), as restless birds and new arrivals were very conspicuous. First Swallow were seen (2 birds). We had tour further E to Abbotsbury: the subtropical gardens, the Chesil Beach at Fleet, and the Swannery. We bought a day ticket for the two main sites online and had lunch at the gardens. It was a great day out with many good bird sightings, much more to follow. 21 species at Abbotsbury Subtropical included a Golden Pheasant, a Raven, a Jay, a singing Nuthatch, 4 Chiffchaff, 6 Blackcap. 15 species at Fleet included the Hobby E, 2 Swallow NE, a Raven and 2 Common Buzzard. 32 species at the Swannery included many waterbirds , new for the year: 2 Great Crested Grebe, 1 Scaup, 11 Common Tern, a Black Swan, 26 Shelduck, 8 Teal, plus the pair of displaying Marsh Harrier, a singing Cetti’s Warbler and a calling Ringed Plover. Around 600 Mute Swan were present – 500 non-breeding birds and 48 active nests, with 31 Tufted Duck, 12 Cormorant, a Little Egret, an Oystercatcher. Nephew Richard is coming round tomorrow to ours and on Sunday we have a big family reunion at R’s on Devon/Somerset border with 2 nephews’ families and us! Funds rising strongly this week at +37k on rise in commodities. Biden is not going to like this, expect a kick-back but they’ve already sold most of their Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which is required for security and not for price manipulation. Net zero is driving up copper prices, as copper is used in electrical wiring. Completed processing large number of piccies for 1/9 at Batumi. Next up is Batumi 2/9 and 7/9 before starting on the fascinating Botanical Gardens.

April 11th: maximum 13C, minimum 10C, moderate SW, dry but much cloud and mist with a few slightly brighter spells, sea a little rough on onshore winds. We went out to Burton Bradstock where a recent cliff fall had taken place (last weekend) and actually found some fossils (2 ammonite and a few others) near the fall – amazing; we took them back to our ranch! Had a pair of Peregrine on a nearby cliff and 4 Fulmar Petrel around the cliffs and on the sea, plus 6 Linnet, a Rock Pipit, a Kittiwake adult E, 2 LBBG 1w to E and a Sandwich Tern W. Then onto West Bay where had 11 Fulmar Petrel around cliffs to E, a Moorhen, a Cormorant adult, a Pied Wagtail. West Bay was used for various film ventures. All is going well, no issues! Very pleased to hear from someone!!!

April 10th: maximum 12C, minimum 11C, moderate S, heavy rain morning, then foggy as wind became light, sea moderate as wind turned onshore. We had leisurely morning then out in afternoon for walk along prom at Lyme Regis. Some seabirds: 20 dark-bellied Brent Goose in flock moving W, a redhead Red-breasted Merganser moving W, a Kittiwake adult fishing offshore, a Rock Pipit on sea-wall, a Sandwich Tern heard, a Cormorant on top of post in harbour, 2 LBBG ad and 2 GBBG ad, many more Herring Gull, perhaps 70, plus 2 Goldcrest in some bushes. We had late lunch at Pilot Boat, a good pub with dining area, nice staff, sea bass (beautifully cooked), not too expensive c£90 for 3, including drinks and few sundries at end. Much R business done today. Have labelled and resized Batumi 1/9 records; need to index them now.

April 9th: maximum 14C, minimum 5C, fresh NW, sunny spells, few light showers, sea very rough further out. On the Jurassic Coast today with sis at Charmouth and Lyme Regis, seeing hundreds of people looking for fossils, particularly at the former and mainly on the beach at low tide, not near the cliffs which are unstable and where you can be cut-off by the rising tide. Visited the amazing Visitor Centre at Charmouth with its display of local fossils and local people (not the same!). We had lunch at Cobb Hotel in Lyme Regis, very tasty f&c+mp, followed by stroll along prom near harbour. A wild day weather-wise but lots of people around, many taking their kids for outings during the holiday break. Birds included a Turnstone in the harbour at Lyme Regis (10 types in all) and a Cormorant at Lyme Regis (8 types in all). Must write to someone dear soon, must have happened!! Funds +10k wtd with commodities still strengthening as economies appear more robust; fall in interest rates now looking to be postponed a bit.

April 8th: maximum 14C, minimum 7C, light S, sunny spells, dry. Set off from Ealing for Lyme Regis at 11:30, not getting there until 17:00 via M25, M3, M27, A35, A31, A3052. Quite a lot of traffic, took a wrong turning near end of M27 with Google Maps satnav error! We’re getting ready for a big storm overnight here as Pierrick powers in. But outlook for rest of week not bad after next couple of days. On way down had 1-2 Red Kite at 8 sites, Common Buzzard at 1 and Kestrel at 1, with Ring-necked Parakeet in Ealing, and Greylag Goose and Collared Dove also noted. Our ranch is perched high-up giving great views of surrounding countryside but a little way from the sea, which is an easy drive. Younger sis already here so 3 of us had gr8 reunion, complete with ww and birthday cake. Brief visit to rooftop veranda yielded 6 displaying Greenfinch, 4 nesting Jackdaw, 4 nesting Herring Gull, 1 singing Collared Dove, 2 Woodpigeon.

April 7th: maximum 12C, minimum 5C, moderate SW, sunny spells, dry. Did make R do at Jesmond Dene House, quite posh, very nice atmosphere; it’s amazing how many circles she has: bridge, arts, RNS, Brundibár, and more! I was mentioned in her speech as keen supporter of RNS. Was a leisurely affair, going from 12:30-past 15:45 when had to leave to catch train NCL-KGX followed by tube to EAL to stay with big sis overnight. Got Uber to/from Jesmond Dene and Central Station.

April 6th: maximum 17C, minimum 7C, moderate to fresh SW cloudy morning, sunny wild afternoon, rain later. Finished processing Kenya 19/12 with running total:

86 of 86 species from 167 records, 4 complete lists, 13 places

That leaves 5 more safari days 14/12-18/12 to do. Back to Batumi now! At Ordley had 2 Sand Martin N at 14:30 and a Barn Owl and Tawny Owl at 23:10, on way back from pub, where had a great time with D/D. 2Moro it’s R Share’s birthday celebrations in Jesmond, followed by NCL-KGX-EAL.

April 5th: maximum 13C, minimum 4C, moderate SW, mainly dry, temperature shoot-up did happen after dawn as wind moved from SE to SW. Had hair-cut with the effervescent Jd at JG at 10, usual cost £20+5.50 tip. Then completed Mara at Fairmont 19/12, still need to do drive to plane strip ex-Mara. Made QHC4s4l where S in good form!! Major run coming up for her in Guernsey (marathon). Then drive to CAL, giving L a lift, on way to concert at GH, where Philharmonia playing an overture by Carl Nielson, the Helios Overture, Rach 2 PC (soloist Bruce Liu) and Sibelius 5; the Sibelius has a marvellous finale, played brilliantly tonight. Sat next to a Chinese lass (student) who was really impressed by it all, particularly the end of the Sibelius. Conductor was the dynamic Santtu-Matias Rouvali. Very stirring concert with lots of lovely brass in the Sibelius and Nielson and romance in the Rach. Funds finished week +4k after 0.8k withdrawal; TLS kept prices down right to the end.

April 4th: maximum 7C, minimum 3C, light E, mainly dry, very gloomy, cool. Ground is so wet outside. Had gr8 T4m4l with M/R, very good chat about AI, other computer issues. Had walk around Sele afterwards getting 17 bird-types, including 5 Lesser Black-backed Gull ad NE, 2 Nuthatch singing,1 Song Thrush singing, 1 Dipper on Cowgarth Burn on S edge of Sele (new species for year), 3 singing Chaffinch, 7 occupied Rook nests. I’ve liquidated my isa holding of US treasuries this week, putting proceeds into oil/mining stocks as inflation looks likely to get a new leg-up soon and it’s tax-loss selling (TLS) week as investors dump stocks they have losses on, to offset gains made elsewhere, giving the odd bargain! This finishes tomorrow, the end of the tax year. Between 07:00-08:00 temperature forecast now to rise 4C tomorrow (from 6 to 10) as wind changes from SE to SW : marvellous! Did make G4g4s with A/R/P 4 good chat; I fetched P as still frail and dropped him off home later, then Shell garage for petrol £56 and still time 2 c L!!

A relatively long-staying Black Kite in Notts:

03/04 12:30 Nottinghamshire : Black Kite, Langford Lowfields RSPB one at Phase 3 (12:27)

03/04 16:10 Nottinghamshire : Black Kite, Langford (village) one at Holme Lane late afternoon, plus 3 further sightings to 4/4

April 3rd: maximum 8C, minimum 3C, light NE, heavy rain morning, murk and light rain in afternoon and evening. Ground is so wet outside. No effort today to get out! Almost completed ½ of 19/12 exit from Mara, doing the final hours at the Fairmont Camp. Watched Titanic on Film 4 in evening; so sad but nice if you like seeing water out of control and the exposure of the horrific class divide on the boat between upper and steerage. Gloomy weather continues for one more day tomorrow but then spring, albeit wet, appears to arrive with temperature rising by 3C in an hour in morning of 5/4 as wind goes from E to SW.

April 2nd: maximum 8C, minimum 3C, light NE becoming light NW, wet morning, dull afternoon with drizzle from time to time. Have started my weather-hopping, choosing a part of the study area which appears to have the better weather when it’s grim out there. Today made Prudhoe S from 16:05-17:35 as looked to be slightly better to E both in forecast and in scanning the sky. Well it was dry with a little brightness, certainly better for the observer. Highlight was a male Goshawk picked up flying W towards Hyons Wood from Dukeshagg; the only other raptors were a Common Buzzard perched on the top of a tree to the SE and a Tawny Owl making a couple of calls. Migrants in flight included 3 LBBG ad to N, a Chaffinch E, 2 Skylark SW, but also had 25 Fieldfare in a tree, and 150 Common Gull flying in a large V back S to Derwent Reservoir. Had 5 singing Song Thrush, 4 singing Blackbird and 3 singing Robin, with 2 further local Skylark, a drumming Great Spotted Woodpecker and 3 Siskin. Total was 21 bird-types. South Park field was amazingly muddy but out in walking boots again so not too bad. Completed processing Batumi 10/9, finding a passing Osprey on the shots of the migration area! Now onto 19/12, drive out of safari area in Mara for flight out. Earlier made QHC4s4l to make up for last week’s absence: stimulating chat with S!! 3LBBG adult were at Hexham, circling as if rather lost in murk before heading off N, so probably significant LBBG passage to N today. Funds +5k wtd as commodities recover, particularly oil and copper. Started new directory Nikon 2024 to hold this year’s piccies. With a 4-way USB-A adapter, can attach up to 4 devices to the new PC.

April 1st: maximum 6C, minimum 3C, moderate NE, wet and very dull. Did have a moderate local walk from 19:15-20:00 as rain stopped but no real fieldwork; had 12 bird-types including 3 singing Song Thrush, 3 singing Robin, 4 singing Blackbird, a Bullfinch, a bubbling Curlew, 2 Stock Dove; did give new boots another outing, very comfortable. Completed processing Kutaisi 31/8 and Batumi 11/9. Next up is Batumi 10/9 and Kenya 19/12. Made G4g4s with R/A 4 good crack; gr8 2 c L/A!! On way there had a Hedgehog at Ordley and a Roe Deer at Newbiggin. Did do more work on Irish Rosseter in 1590s, looking at a wardship case, with a four-year old John R inheriting a fortune; his mother claimed him but thwarted under Feudal laws favouring male custody!

March 31st: maximum 12C, minimum 4C, moderate NE, sunny periods until late afternoon, almost dry, cool breeze, nice sunshine. Out in the study area, getting new season under way in earnest, following last weekend’s Osprey at Hexham. Today made Stocksfield Mount from 13:20-15:05 for good views over surrounding area, including Bywell. Good numbers of Common Buzzard and Red Kite in the sunshine on moderate cool breeze. Common Buzzard comprised 3 birds at Ovington, 2 birds at Bywell Cottagebank, Short Wood, Merryshields, 1 bird at Mowden Hall, Stocksfield Mount, so total 11 displaying adults at 6 sites. Red Kite comprised 2 birds at Ovington, Stocksfield (where pair nesting in trees in a large garden, rather like in Chilterns) and 1 bird at Merryshields, so total 5 displaying adults at 3 sites. No other raptors were seen; breeze was quite testing. Migrants seen were 45 Pink-footed Geese in a field, 15 Common Gull adult E down the Tyne, 1 Chaffinch E, 2 Herring Gull adult E. Total was 22 bird-types, including 2 singing Nuthatch, 2 singing Song Thrush, 2 Chiffchaff (1 singing), 1 Siskin. Also had 7 mole, 1 dead rabbit, plus 5 bumble bee. At Ordley at 13:00 had 2 Common Buzzard displaying and a Grey Heron moving N low-down. Made G4g4s with A/R, where pretty riotous as has become the custom for Easter Sunday. Very pleased to meet CA again and to have M on. On way back from pub at Letah Wood at 23:30 had 3 rabbit, a badger and a weasel. Completed Mombasa 26/12 and so all coastal records for Kenya. Next up is Kutaisi-Batumi on 31/8 from Georgia. Have 14/12-19/12 to do for Kenya, including the safari. Bigger chunk left for Georgia: 1/9-12/9 with the fantastic Batumi raptor passage on some days.

One more Black Kite on BirdGuides:

20:19 31/03 Black Kite London Hampstead Heath 09:40 one circled over Hampstead then flew north-east

March 30th: maximum 11C, minimum 1C, light S, sunny spells, almost dry. Bit of a recovery day. At Ordley had a pair of Common Buzzard up at Peth Foot, with singing Nuthatch and Chiffchaff. Had lovely stroll around garden and field in the sunshine; primroses in the orchard are the highlight. A few bumble bees are around in the sunshine and a few moths at night. Daughter’s family at last moving into their house in Dubai, not completed but habitable. Might get a visit there later in the year! Court case underway against their builder. Main task today was writing Plans for R Teams in Hexham for 2024/2025: mainly strengthening Admin Team after seeing the vast amount of work involved this year. Cool tonite, lit coal fire!

Two more Black Kite on BirdGuides making 6 for ytd:

17:36 30/03 Black Kite South Yorkshire Stainton 17:20 one flew east over Stainton Quarry this morning

09:25 30/03 Black Kite Bedfordshire Willington GPs 09:21 possible flew south

March 29th: maximum 10C, minimum 5C, light S, sunny spells, heavy showers afternoon. Up at 08:30, gr8 fried breakfast at hotel, Skype chat with N/D for 35 min, then 10:57 NCL-HEX; really pleased I’d stayed overnight to relax a little, was £60 well spent. Had 5 Goldeneye drake on Tyne – 3 at Farnley, 2 at Ryton, clearly an influx, plus 2 Common Buzzard displaying over Corbridge. At lunchtime out in garden with 1 Chiffchaff singing, an LBBG ad NE, 1 Common Buzzard displaying. Completed Mombasa NE 25/12 and Airport 26/12; just need to do Mombasa NE 26/12 now to complete the maritime part of trip. Son has had a brief trip to Madrid, seeing Weinberg’s opera the Passenger, which he said was absolutely brilliant. On Wednesday he was at Wigmore with Mahan Esfahani, the harpsichordist, another gr8 concert.. Donated £50 + gift aid (+£10 cash yesterday) to funeral fund in aid of Hospice at Home.

March 28th: maximum 9C, minimum 2C, moderate SW, heavy, driving rain in SW England, with west Wiltshire a stand out, with temperature down to 4C in squalls. Up at 06:00, then given lift to Devon by Julie, my niece, and her husband Matt. Weather was lovely at start as went down M3 into early parts of Wiltshire Downs, but soon changed to heavy, driving rain. Stopped for coffee at Costa and 2nd breakfast at Honiton Brightside with cafe serving black pudding as well as toasted avo, evidently after rich Cornwall property owners and heavy lorry drivers! Made East Devon Crematorium on time for sad funeral service of my brother in law David R. Sat next to my 2 sisters on front row. Event was lightened from doom-laden to more positive by my nephew Andrew, who was giving the eulogy, not being able to find his notes in his many pockets! Had very good chat to lots of relatives, in a very good turn-out, at Honiton Golf Club. Of course some of us are meeting again in Lyme Regis in April where my 2 sisters and I have booked a holiday cottage on airbnb, with relatives in Devon very welcome to visit us. Caught 15:55 HON-WAT with son; it was a little late on arrival but got much later (40 min) around Salisbury with appalling weather, including flooding. So had to re-book my train north from KGX from 20:00 to 21:00, by moving booking from 20:00 to 15/4 return from Dorset trip and booking a new ticket for 21:00; cost £10. Just re-booking in a panic for 21:00 would have cost £80 more! Got in at 00:30 29/3 where checked into usual hotel (pre-planned) and took a rw + some choc bars as a nitecap! Funds are +9k wtd, likely to be final figure as Good Friday 2moro. So a poignant day which, as funerals often do, brings families closer together.

Ticked off quite a few Red Kite sites as moved W through Surrey, Hampshire and Wiltshire: 9 birds at 8 sites, plus a Common Buzzard and a Kestrel, all recorded directly into BirdTrack via the app with automatic GPS for sites. Then the rain came in. The previous day, had 2 Red Kite at 2 sites in Cambridge area, logged from the train, plus Ring-necked Parakeet at Acton and Ealing Broadway.

March 27th: maximum 10C, minimum 7C, light SE, murk cleared, much brighter. Some interesting birds on the Tyne including at Wylam a Little Egret and 13 Goosander (10 drake, 3 redhead). Train to KGX ran to perfect time but then slow Elizabeth Line to EAL. Staying at big sis’, off W 2moro. Working on piccies 25/12 and 26/12 Mombasa.

March 26th: maximum 5C, minimum 3C, light NE, murky, heavy rain overnight, dull daytime, cold again with temperatures more appropriate for late November. Completed processing Mombasa 24/12, just 2 days to go here, then will do transit day Kutaisi to Batumi in Georgia. Also added some original sources to Col. Thomas Rosseter of Rathmacknee, Wexford, 11 generations from me in a straight line, who lost his property to the protestants after joining the Catholic army against Cromwell. Lots of contact with family members over funeral on Thursday, travelling down tomorrow for short break. Funds unchanged wtd.

March 25th: maximum 6C, minimum 5C, light SE, murky, light rain in morning becoming heavier by ttime, cold again. Main event of morning was trip to dentist (JG) in Corbridge to do more permanent repair (bonding) on upper right fractured tooth; temporary repair had held and bonding with resin was used to give a stronger repair; drilling was minor with water jet being mainly used to clean out loose fragments and decay; took 30 min and cost £96 (private) but care/quality was of high standard. Made R at 12:45 just as meeting started and speaker arrived; helped him to get started later and his talk on Northumberland National Park was well received. Work continues on Irish ancestry in 16/17 century, adding members Philip, Alexander and Walter Rosseter (that’s how the Irish lot generally spelt the name) to Margaret in the Slevoy branch in Co Wexford, who married my straight-line ancestor John Rosseter of Rathmacknee, Wexford, in c1608, who is 12 degrees (clicks, in this case generations) from me, as of course is Margaret. Made G4g4s with A/R 4 gr8 chat. Foggy on way home; had a Barn Owl and 3 Rabbit (1 road kill) at Ordley.

March 24th: maximum 10C, minimum 2C, light SE, sunny periods, coolish breeze but a lovely early spring day. What a contrast to the last 2 days. Reason we’ve started a new NB today is the exciting return of an Osprey to the Hexham NE site, overlooking the Tyne, being seen at 17:20 flap-flap-glide over the trees attended by all and sundry! It was a good afternoon with a Common Buzzard and a Red Kite up over hill to N at 15:39. Another summer migrant arriving was Sand Martin with 2 seen briefly over the Tyne. Also had a Grey Wagtail, a Pied Wagtail, 3 displaying Oystercatcher, 4 Goosander below bridge (3 male, 1 redhead), 1 Grey Heron, in total of 27 species. Pairs of Long-tailed Tit and Blue Tit were visiting probable nest sites. Made SB4c4t to complete break while cleaner S was working at home.

Recent relevant references: (more reading here)

Shaw, KD, McInerny, CJ, Little, A, Little, K, Nadin, JS, & Goater, R, An exceptional season at a central Scotland Honey-buzzard study area, Scottish Birds 37(1) 3-13 (2017).

Forsman, Dick, Separating Common Buzzard and European Honey-buzzard, at p.302, in: Flight Identification of Raptors of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East, Christopher Helm (2016).