Durham Bird Club's Castle Lake Nature Reserve

Tuesday 29 December 2015

Tuesday 29th December 2015

Sightings today with thanks to John Olley and Joe Hughes;

Castle Lake - 23 Redshank, 5 Corn Bunting singing, 1500 Lapwing, 30 Golden Plover, 5 Buzzard, 130 Pink-footed Geese over north-west, 380 Wigeon, 300 Teal, 10 Shoveler and 2 Goldeneye.

Monday 28 December 2015

Monday 28th December 2015

Today's sightings included the following;

Castle Lake - 1 Shelduck, 1m2f Pintail, 10+ Shoveler, 1m1f Goldeneye, 5 Snipe, 20 Redshank, 5 Great Black-backed Gull over south.

River Stell/A1 Flashes - 3 Little Grebe, 1 Little Egret, 6 Grey Heron, 1 Kestrel, c200 Black-headed Gull, 1 Great Black-backed Gull over south, 30 Pied Wagtail (my highest winter count), 1 Meadow Pipit and 4 Linnet.

Low Hardwick - 3 Barnacle Geese (pictured below), 1 Common Buzzard, 50+ Curlew and 4 Reed Bunting.



Stoneybeck Lake - 31 Canada Geese, 37 Coot, 5 Gadwall, 4 Shelduck, 1 Kestrel, 1 Common Buzzard and another 2 Great Black-backed Gull through south.

A fairly new interpretation board makes interesting reading;

Saturday 26 December 2015

Saturday 26th December 2015

Sightings from Boxing Day morning.

Stoneybeck Lake - 1 Shelduck, the hybrid Gadwall x Tufted Duck is now here, 1 Kestrel and 22 Curlew. (2 Black Swan's reported here on Christmas day morning with thanks to John Hunter).

Castle Lake - 2 Mute Swan, 3 Shelduck, 8 Tufted Duck (numbers slowly building), 1 male Goldeneye, 1 Grey Heron, 1 Snipe and 16 Redshank.

A1 Flashes - severely flooded with the footpath along the River Stell only just passable, 4 Little Grebe, 1 Grey Heron and 8 Pied Wagtail.

Low Hardwick - also flooded, 130 Greylag Geese, 50+ Canada Geese, 3 Barnacle Geese (first reported at Stoneybeck on Wednesday), 50+ Wigeon, 200+ Golden Plover, 300+ Lapwing, 50+ Curlew, 3 Pied Wagtail and 2 Meadow Pipit.

Wednesday 23 December 2015

Wednesday 23rd December 2015

Sightings from yesterday and today with thanks to John Olley.

Tuesday 22nd December 2015
Stoneybeck Lake - 1 Peregrine, 124 Pink-footed Geese, 80 Greylag Geese, 106 Canada Geese, 70 Teal, 80 Mallard, 44 Gadwall, 50 Coot, 100 Lapwing, 30 Curlew, 2 Mute Swan.

Wednesday 23rd December 2015
Castle Lake - 320 Wigeon, 120 Teal, 14 Shoveler, 5 Shelduck, 120 Mallard, 48 Gadwall, 2 Goldeneye, 950 Lapwing, 12 Redshank, 21 Curlew, 5 Great Black-backed Gull through, 30 Goldfinch, 800 Jackdaw, 4 Skylark, 5 Linnet and 6 Meadow Pipit.

Sunday 20 December 2015

Sunday 20th December 2015

Sightings from this morning, no fog, no ice, sunny, lots of water and some good birds.

Stoneybeck Lake - looking back to its best, 1 Mute Swan, 1 Whooper Swan, 100 Pink-footed Geese flew in from the south mid-morning, 50+ Greylag Geese, 50+ Canada Geese, various numbers of Wigeon, Gadwall, Mallard, Teal & Coot, 5 Tufted Duck, 5 Grey Partridge, 1 female Kestrel, 20+ Lapwing, 1 Curlew, c120 Fieldfare, 10 Goldfinch and 2 Bullfinch.

Castle Lake - 3 Shelduck, 1 female Pintail, 2 female Goldeneye, 4+ Shoveler, the Gadwall x Tufted Duck hybrid was back again, 2 Cormorant, 30 Golden Plover, 91 Curlew, 18 Redshank and 12 Stock Dove.

A1 Flashes - 15 Curlew.

Distant Whooper Swan on Stoneybeck Lake this morning.

(I make it) exactly 100 Pink-footed Geese on final approach for landing at Stoneybeck.

Monday 14 December 2015

Monday 14th December 2015

Despite the persistent thick fog, some birds were seen (or heard) today.

Castle Lake - fog too thick to see the lake!, 1 Fieldfare and 2 Mistle Thrush.

River Stell/A1 Flashes - 2 Little Grebe, 5 Redshank, 1 Green Sandpiper and a Kingfisher.

Low Hardwick - 16 Mallard, Skylark over, 20+ Blackbird, 20+ Redwing, a Chiffchaff was heard calling on and off for an hour but despite a search it wasn't seen and 2 Bullfinch.

Fishburn Lake - 2 Goldcrest, 1 Treecreeper and 4 Siskin.

One of the Goldcrest was quite confiding but still too active to get a decent photo.

Alan's Pool - Unfortunately another dead Mute Swan (3rd or 4th this year, no obvious signs of cause), c15 Wigeon and 3+ Reed Bunting.

Friday 11 December 2015

Wednesday 9th December 2015

Catching up with sightings from Wednesday with thanks to John Olley and Joe Hughes;

Castle Lake - 600 Teal, 300 Wigeon, 10 Shoveler, 3 Shelduck, 9 Redshank, 250 Lapwing, 30 Curlew and 40 Golden Plover.

Thursday 3 December 2015

Thursday 3rd December 2015

This morning's sightings;

Castle Lake - 1 Shelduck, 7 Shoveler, c300 Teal, 5 Cormorant, 1 Grey Heron, 1 Sparrowhawk, c200 Golden Plover, 5 Snipe, 16 Redshank and 10 Meadow Pipit.

Stoneybeck Lake - 1 Mute Swan, 19 Gadwall and 100 Lapwing.

Tuesday 1 December 2015

Tuesday 1st December 2015

Sightings today with thanks to Joe Hughes;

Castle Lake - water levels steadily rising, 30 Golden Plover, 50 Curlew, 1 Snipe, 3 Redshank, 12 Long-tailed Tit's, 1 Grey Wagtail and 1 Great Black-backed Gull.