Last post on this blog

Well its goodbye to my Gateshead blog :( and hello to my new blog :) you can find it here reservoirbirder.blogspot.co.uk thanks for looking at my gateshead blog but i hope you enjoy my new one goodbye all from this blog

osprey at the reservoir

Past 2 days at derwent reservoir and surrounding area produced osprey fishing, 2 female black grouse, 5 pied flycatchers, 6+ cuckoo, tree pipit, 9 wigeon, 2 goosander, little ringed plover, 6 common sandpipers, 6 great crested grebes, many red grouse, common tern, grey wagtail and 2 dippers were the highlights. New blog coming soon "Reservoir Birder" cheers for the name dragonhunter it grew on me ;) lol sorry i couldn't produce an osprey for you on sunday but the pied flys, lrp and common tern were canny birds ;)

Exciting stuff :)

Didn't have time to do the normal rounds today as iv'e had to move some catering equipment to a new storage room ready for my move, so just had a look at a few sites around gateshead.
shibdon pond had: 2 shelduck, oystercatcher, teal, mallard, coot, moorhen, lbbgull and herring gull.
flash pool had: redshank and 2 mallard.
lamsley wm had: 2 mute swan, dunlin, lrp, lapwing, starling, redshank, moorhen, coot and swallow.
burdon moor was the best with: 4 wheatear, sedge warbler, swallow, skylark, mipit and lapwing.
Then called it a day early to wash the van.

Tree pipit singing

Had tree pipit today at slaley :) took a while to find it but as soon as it started to sing i was straight onto it, had a look around waskerley and other reservoirs today but not much about, weather was nice but the wind was keeping everything down.

Osprey at the reservoir

At last Osprey at derwent reservoir for me :) i have missed a few passing birds but caught up with one today as it was being mobbed by gulls near the hide, the bird was found yesterday according to the sightings board, other birds of interest today 2 cuckoo, 8 wigeon, 4 common sandpipers, 9 great crested grebes, garden warbler, 5 common buzzard, 2 kestrel and a sparrowhawk. shame the light was crap or i could have some cracking photos to post.

Osprey taking the plunge

strange pair

distant cuckoo

First common cuckoo

Plenty to see on today's rounds of the reservoir and derwent valley, had common cuckoo showing well at blanchland moor and found a new pond for some dragonflies :0 also here was a common crossbill and a roe deer, had the usual breeding waders around, golden plover, snipe, oystercatcher, common sandpiper, lapwing and redshank. red grouse were all over the moors but no ring ouzel and wheatear today :( pow hill had the couple of showy red squirrels and the usual redpolls and siskin, buzzards and kestrels and a single red kite were around the reservoir and the pair of wigeon is still about also new in was a singing garden warbler. The stars off the show had to be the 4 pied flycatchers and 2 wood warblers further down the derwent valley, great birds to watch as they sing from their perches :) last call was to the quarry pond near ebchester where i had little grebe which was another patch tick also here was 200+mallard, 2 tufted ducks, 3 teal, 4 moorhens and 200+ nesting sand martins at the sand bank, so new ticks for the patch today were: cuckoo, garden warbler, pied flycatcher, wood warbler and little grebe.

Few year ticks at shibdon

Shibdon pond had a mini fall today with common tern, sedge warbler and lesser whitethroat all new for the year with garden warbler, whitethroat and 2 gadwall here also. Next up was to view a possible new house :0 very nice indeed ;) only a few miles from derwent reservoir i couldn't resist a quick look around the reservoir, nothing new in so just took a few photos from around the reservoir.

many redshank along with other breeding waders in the area

view from ne corner of dam wall

view from se corner of dam wall

black grouse area

blanchland moor with reservoir in background

and behind me nightjar area :) :0