Monday 28 December 2020

Hornsea

Male Goldeneye

After a false start sans optics at Barmston thanks to a reshuffle in the car to accommodate Christmas presents and children I didnt fancy braving the hordes of dog walkers again so I went to Hornsea Mere. With Kirkholme Point closed, there were only a handful of folks in the fields on the south side. What was present was a delightful adult male Long-tailed Duck

Male Long-tailed Duck

Two hundred Greylags flew in from the south and I could hear a Pink-footed Goose amongst them and after a couple of minutes of checking, two emerged from the flock next to Swan Island. I was starting to get chilly but the main prize continued to evade me. The drake Smew appeared amongst Goldeneye on the far bank, tucked in tight to the reeds. Views from Kirkholme Point would have been exceptional but from another km to the south it was a touch distant.

Yup, thats a Smew if you squint.

I moved on to the clifftop at the north end of Hornsea by the sailing club. A few Red-throated Divers were the sum total but it has some serious height compared to other nearby locations. Interesting! Upon heading home I found at least 4,000 Pink-footed Geese in fields between Skirlington and Skipsea. There were undulations on the fields so a full count wasnt possible but 5,800 were counted heading north over Hornsea Mere early doors. I failed to pick anything different from amongst them but the sun wasnt in my favour. 

No comments:

How birds and brains become mutually exclusive

Record, share and compare with BUBO Listing at www.bubo.org