Mike's Natural Musings: Humberston

Showing posts with label Humberston. Show all posts

Friday, 27 January 2023

Cleethorpes and Humberston Birding

As Brian and I pulled into the car park at Buck Beck, overlooking Cleethorpes Dunes, the tide was just on the turn. At 6.45m it wasn't the biggest tide but it was enough to bring the birds close enough for good birding. Our route took us along the promenade and then onto Anthony's Bank with views out over the estuary across to Spurn Point and the sea forts. At this point the tide was still too far in for birds to be able to feed but as it receded it freed up beach and mud for feeding once more. We walked beyond the yacht club to check for birds on Tetney Marsh and on the lagoons where we were delighted to find the local black swan. As we turned to head the sun came out and we were treated to some glorious light. Apart from the black swan, it was good to catch up with some species not seen yet this year: bar-tailed godwit, sanderling and little egret.

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Tuesday, 15 December 2020

Tetney Marshes

The car park at the Humber Mouth Yacht Club at the end of the Fitties was busy when we arrived at 10.00 am, but there were still places. It was pleasant waiting in the sun taking in the bird activity while we waited for Brian and Heather. Gulls, mainly black-headed, were plentiful as were mallard. A redshank was feeding busily in front of us and we could see several little egrets flying in and out of the creeks where they were feeding.

While the Heathers set off to walk along the beach Brian and I decided to walk along the sea wall to the tidal lock gates at the end of the Louth Canal. Walking along the high bank with good views over bothe the estuary and marsh and the inland fields it was good to see a large flock of brent geese feeding on the farmland. I was surprised at how confiding these usually very wary birds were. Presumably they are so used to people walking along the sea bank they are not seen as a threat. Over the marsh a large flock of lapwings was wheeling and settling and then seeming to panic and flying up again. I suspected a marauding peregrine but couldn't see it. Further along it was good to see two flocks of curlew numbering about 100 birds in total. Research by scientists from the RSPB, the British Trust for Ornithology and the Wildfowl and Wetland Trust in this country as well as others world wide have come to the conclusion that curlew species are seriously at risk: 7 of the 13 species are in danger of extinction and 2, the slender billed curlew and the eskimo curlew may already be so. Risks to curlew species world wide are many and various but in the UK curlews have seen a sharp decline due to long-term changes in countyside management, where - in addition to predation - eggs and chicks can be destroyed by farm equipment. Changes in farming practices can help curlew numbers to recover, the work being done by James Rebanks on his farm in the Lake District is a leading light in this area. (The English Pastoral, James Rebanks and @herdyshepherd1 on Twitter). We are lucky in our part of the world in that we still see good numbers of curlew as the Humber Estuary is one of their most important wintering grounds.

Back at the lagoon by the car park we had an excellent view of a male teal in wonderful light as well as a pair of stonechats posing beautifully. On the lagoon we enjoyed seeing 6 dabchicks or little grebes.

An excellent morning.

Wednesday, 7 October 2020

An excellent Afternoon on the Coast

It was a beautiful day today, warm and sunny with occasional clouds and becoming better as the afternoon wore on; temperatures of 14C. When we think of autumn colours we tend to think of trees but the saltmarsh plants were ablaze with golds and reds in the afternoon sun. I parked at Buck Bec intially and walked out to the tide line but things were quiet here, although I did find a very accommodating redshan which is unusual as they usually fly off noisily at the first sign of humans: the sentinel of the marsh. I could see through the binoculars that there was more activity up by Tentney Marshes so I moved location and was soon parked up by the Humber Mouth Yacht Club. Walking out onto the beach I could see loads of bird activitiy by the creek where Tetney Haven/

Louth Canal flows out to see. I was amazed to see that the creek had moved its channel yet again; it seems to do it over night. The tide was well out and it looked as though it would be possible to walk out to the Haile Sand Fort, although the creek would be in the way. Through the long lens the fort and Spurn lighthouse looked as though they were right next to each other without the 4 or 5 miles of estuary in between. on the flat, muddy beach there were several small mixed flocks of dunlin and ringed plover, the dunlin very confiding. By the creek were several gull species, cormorants, curlew, redshank, oystercatchers and brent geese. All very wary and I didn't get close enough to disturb them from their feeding as that time is crucial to them to built up the energy needed to survive.

Back in the dunes I checked the sea buckthorn as always and was delighted to find a female and two male stonechats. The lagoons on the marsh held a lot of gulls and a few little egrets.

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Black-headed Gull

Brent Geese

Black-headed Gull

Dunlin

Redshank

Ringed Plover

Stonechat, female

Stonechat, male

Tuesday, 25 August 2020

A Very Muddy Plodge on the Beach Looking for Sanderling.

It was a beautiful day yesterday (unlike today) so I decided to walk out to the tide line from Buck Beck car park to look for small waders, especially sanderling.

Cleethorpes was very busy when I arrived with a real holiday atmosphere, however, I did managed to get parked. Donning wellies, I headed out across the marsh towards the beach, but not before photographing a common darter in the dunes. I was amazed at how much the marsh has grown up in the relatively short time since I was here last. Where last winter it was bare mud with the occasional clump of samphire it is now covered with a rich saltmarsh flora with sea aster about to come into flower to succeed the sea lavender which is now gone over. As soon as I came out through the dunes onto the beach I could see that the tide was a long way out. When I got to the old wreck that I enjoy photographing and which often remains submerged, the tideline was still several hundreds of yards away and some creeks would need to be crossed. Wary of how quickly the tide can come in I opted to walk along the haven outflow and look for waders there. There were oystercatcher, redshank and ringed plovers, including juveniles as well as a bar-tailed godwit. I saw no sign of sanderling, though. Perhaps they were right on the tideline or maybe it is too early for them yet. I nearly came to grief, however, when I suddenly hit a very soft patch of mud and nearly lost my wellies. I suddenly became aware of how far out I was and what an expensive mistake it would have been to fall over with a small fortune in camera gear around my neck. Spurn point and the Humber forts looked spectacular in the bright sunlight and through the lens they looked close enough to touch.

Eventually I made it back safely to hard ground and wandered back through the dunes past the lagoon which often holds little egret; a common gull was the only bird today, though.

It felt like being on holiday on such a warm late summer day with large numbers of people and families enjoying a day at the seaside. It will only be a few short weeks, however, before it will be cold, bleak and empty down here. I can't wait.

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Common Darter

Black-headed Gull

Ringed Plover and Juvenile

Ringed Plovers

Bar-Tailed Godwit

Common Gull

Haile Sand Fort

Sunday, 26 April 2020

A Trip to the Seaside

It was a day for cycling to day and still keen to ride off road I harnessed up the Stumpy again and Heather and I set off across the Horsefield and on to Waltham from where we managed to follow a single track through superb woodland to Humberston Avenue. Here off road plans were thwarted by the building of a new housing estate so we continued along the avenue to get to Humberston and South Sea Lane which led us down to the Thorpe Park on the Fitties. Normally you would expect to have South Sea Lane to yourself but today it was like Picadilly Circus; in fact, probably busier. Turning south we headed along the bridleway backing the golf course until we could make directly for the sea bank overlooking Tetney Marshes where we paused for some refreshment. It was good to be able to gaze out over the marshes to the distant sea after so long with no coastal views. Skylarks were displaying and several little egrets were feeding in the pools and creeks. From the lake we rode through Thorpe Park and then along the front to Buck Beck car park which was surprisingly crowded!! Now our route took us along Buck Beck by the side of the country park. From the road we were able to make our way back through Weelsby Woods where we had good views of Jay, back across the Horsefield and home.

As it was a really warm evening and an overcast night forecast I set up the moth trap. When I opened it at 5.30 the next morning it had,in fact, been my best night so far with 10 individuals: two pugs that flew before I could identify or photograph them and 8 shuttle-shaped darts; 1 female and 7 males.
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