The Lincolnshire Bird Club

As a few Lincolnshire Spotted Flycatcher reports are now being posted, I thought I would revisit sites where in previous years I have had Spotted Flycatchers nesting or passing through in spring.

I have visited 7 sites ('general' details below) since Sun 15 May.....some of them have previously been labelled as 'traditional' - :

1. Linwood Warren - further to Dave Worrell's post of 14 May of 2 Sp Flys. I spent an hour " just inside the main entrance" on 15 May but there was nothing to report (NTR). Presumably, they had moved on or certainly away from the main entrance area. However, they could still be in Linwood Warren and may even return to the entrance area or close by.....as in 2010, and Stuart B. will remember our scouring the area for them last year, without success, though.
2. Riseholme College - 2 visits to last year's frequented areas (as per Ian Birch) but NTR. Hopefully Ian will report them any day now....I think they appeared about 24 May last year.
3. Stow - where I found them nesting in 2009 and 2010 but NTR.
4. Willingham-by-Stow - NTR.
5. Aubourn - NTR.
6. Waddington village - passing through one/two years - NTR.
7. Doddington Hall Farm Shop rear garden area - where I found them nesting in 2009 and 2010 but NTR.
(All sites have previously appeared on Lincs Bird reports).

So, seven recent visits on which I must have seen dozens of Hirundines, Swifts, Finches, Blackbirds, etc. but no Sp Flys, although I did have House Sparrows flycatching and Starlings flycatching..... Hopefully, I'm probably a little early for the main arrival wave, for yesterday, 19 May, 36 Sp Flys were reported at Portland (Dorset) and 20+ on Lundy (Devon), with perhaps some of those heading for Lincs. I'll try those 7 sites (and others) again towards the end of the month and into June.

So far this Spring there have been 4 reports of Lincs Sp Flys on BirdGuides/LBC :

14 May - Barton-upon-Humber (Baysgarth Park) - 1
14 May - Linwood Warren - 2, but I failed to relocate them on 15 May
14 May - Fulbeck - nesting pair
15 May - Messingham Reserve (Plantation) - 2, but Chris Grimshaw failed to relocate them on 18
May.

We may well get reports soon from traditional sites :
Ian Birch - Riseholme
Ian Misselbrook - Rippingale
Brian Eke - RAF, Waddington.

Otherwise, have any other LBC members connected with Sp Flys in Lincs so far this Spring ?
I shall certainly be keeping a sharp lookout for further Sp Fly reports on the web over the next few weeks.


Freddy

Freddy.

So far, no sign at RAF Waddington!!
I am on day's this weekend and will be looking at the usual haunts and will report.

Brian.

Had one this morning at Far Ings, around the Hotel grounds. It was very restless and wouldn't spend long in a tree before it moved to another. It soon headed off west.

There were 2 very vocal Spotted Flycatchers in Dunsby this week, hopefully they will soon find partners. Most years we have at least 3 pairs.
Hugh Dorrington

Pair in a private garden adjacent to the A46 at Osgodby since 22/5/2011

Thanks, Hugh, for enabling me to connect with a pair of Sp Flys in Dunsby today.

Freddy

4 weeks after posting my earlier comments re Spotted Flycatchers in Lincolnshire 2011 (20th May), I can now report that I have since connected with the species 5 times in Lincs :

25 May - Dunsby village (near Bourne)......... pair
28 May - Doddington Hall (near Lincoln)....... bird collecting nesting material
9 June - Wellingore Hall (near Lincoln).........bird possibly in nest area 'shadowing' a Squirrel
11 June - Riseholme College (near Lincoln)....bird in nesting area
14 June - Fulletby (near Horncastle)............adults feeding 4 young in nest.

Thanks again to those LBC birders who have shared their sightings with me...... just as I have shared mine with others.

Freddy

Update : 30 June

Since my last update on 18 June and through the kind cooperation of several Lincolnshire birders, I have been fortunate enough to personally record 6 more Spotted Flycatcher sightings :

19 June - MSQ Messingham...Sp Fly part of an active bird-wave
21 June - Willingham-by Stow Churchyard...flycatching; clearly nesting in a neighbouring garden
24 June - Woodhall Spa... nesting in creeper against house wall
24 June...Edlington Hall (near Horncastle)...adult feeding young bird in garden
25 June - Brampton (S of Gainsborough)...nesting in trellis against house wall
29 June - North Kelsey Moor (near Caistor)...nesting in pear tree against wall (4 chicks)

These bring my total 2011 sightings to..... 11. I have now visited c.35 Lincs sites (many several times), specifically targeting Spotted Flycatchers.

Freddy

Since my last update on 30 June, a spate of Sp Fly reports has appeared on the LBC Bird Reports website. A high success rate was achieved by my rapidly and systematically following up those reports, on some occasions after having been given additional location details. As the stakeouts were all nesting locations, success was more or less guaranteed, given sufficient patience to wait around as necessary until the adult birds were seen.

Thanks are due to the initiators of the original reports and, as a result of their initial sightings, I have been fortunate to personally record 11 more Spotted Flycatcher sightings since 30 June to bring my total up to 22....all of which have been at different sites. All my sightings with follow-up notes have been recorded on LBC Bird Reports.

12. 2 July - Linwood Warren (near Market Rasen)...nesting pair with eggs
13. 3 July - Hopland's Wood (near Alford)...pair high up in canopy, possibly with young
14. 3 July - South Thoresby (near Alford)...adult flycatching from stone pillar
15. 4 July - Woodhall Spa Hotel...pair flycatching over lawn
16. 5 July - Market Stainton Village Green...pair feeding recently ringed chicks in nest
17. 5 July - Thursby (near Lincoln)...adult on tennis court netting
18. 6 July - Swinhope (near Binbrook)...pair in Old Rectory garden
19. 6 July - Swinhope........................another adult in Copse nearby
20. 6 July - Farforth (near Burwell,off A16)...adult in paddock
21. 6 July - Oxcombe (near Farforth)...adult feeding young bird
22. 9 July - Tealby (near Market Rasen)...adult on garden fence opposite the Churchyard.

Freddy

have been remiss in not checking Baysgarth Park at Barton this spring so drove up this morning at 06:30 and the first sound I heard when opening the window was a calling Spotted Fly; the trees were alive with them! well a pair and at least 4 fledged juveniles but they were mobile and it is just possible that there were 2 broods -- will check again earlier before the poo machine people arrive this week -- also the Nuthatches still around but have they bred for the first time in Barton? again my fault for not checking earlier but a woman passing did point me to a Great Spot hole with a lot of noisy calling coming from it -- assuming that all woodpeckers would have fledged it appeared to be a cacophany of bats inside again must check at dusk -- too many things to do in too short a time -- photo of one of the juv Spot Flys in the album and lots more on my blog along with other recent juvenile birds -- http://pewit.blogspot.com/

Graham,
It's a terrific series of Spotted Flycatcher pictures on your blog and particularly so with their showing the plumage differences in adult/recently fledged juveniles.
I also liked the chiaroscuro effect in that photo of the adult.

Freddy

Freddy et al.

Finally caught up with the sfly's this evening at RAF Waddington. Not in the usual place but 2nd of the old areas, 3/4 adult flycatching low behind one of the hangars with them appearing to take food high into the canopy and coming back for more. I am on day's sat/sun next weekend so will try and get a better total.


Cheers

Brian.

Great news, Brian. You predicted something special would happen once the Airshow was over.
Looking forward to further developments.

Freddy

Update : 25 July

Since my last update on 9 July there have been additional reports of Spotted Flycatchers in Lincs including :

a. 10 July - Baysgarth Park nr. Barton...(Graham Catley)
(I went on 12 July but nothing to report)
b. 16 July - Dunsby nr. Bourne...(Hugh Dorrington)
c. 17 July - RAF Waddington...(Brian Eke/FJ)....after Brian's initial report on 10 July
d. 18 July - Canwick nr. Lincoln...(Andrew Vaughan)
e. 22 July - Nocton Wood House, Nocton...(David Cohen)
f. 23 July - MSQ, Messingham...(Steve Routledge).
In addition, in conversation with Dave Satterthwaite at the Lincoln Cathedral Peregrine Watchpoint yesterday (24 July), he told me that he had seen Sp Fly with young at Ruckland on 20 July and that 2 pairs have raised young at Snipe Dales Reserve (nr. Horncastle) this summer.

I followed up a., d. and e. above soon afterwards but drew a blank on each occasion. Dunsby (nr. Bourne) was an enjoyable revisit (22 July) where Hugh Dorrington showed me a nest with 4 chicks plus attendant adults. RAF Waddington ( nr. Lincoln) (17 July) with Brian Eke produced a bonanza of 5 breeding pairs each with from 1 to 4 fledged young.
My updated 2011 Lincs list now reads :

17 July - RAF Waddington :
Sighting :
23. - pair with 3 young
24. - pair with 1 young
25. - pair with 4 young
26. - pair with 1+ young
27. - pair with 1 young.

22 July - Dunsby (with Hugh Dorrington)
(1). - revisit - pair with chicks in nest believed to be the same pair as first seen on 25 May with Hugh ; ....my No. 1 sighting in Lincs 2011.

.......and for the record my latest Lincolnshire country churchyard 'blanks' ( hmnn, yes, why do I continue to visit, even revisit, them ?) have been :

6 July... 30. - Farforth nr.Burwell off A16..... nothing to report but Sp Fly in nearby paddock
20 July..31. - Washingborough nr. Lincoln
20 July.(23) : (revisit) - Harmston nr. Lincoln
22 July.(15) : (revisit) - Rippingale nr. Bourne
22 July..32. - Billingborough S of Sleaford
22 July..33. - Aswarby S of Sleaford
24 July..34. - Potterhanworth nr. Lincoln.
....and with Potterhanworth Churchyard being my 61st different (successful/'potential') Spotted Flycatcher 2011 site visit.

Freddy

The latest Riseholme pair of Spotted Flycatchers feeding chicks in the nest on Saturday 30th July brings my total number of believed completely different sightings of Sp Fly singletons/ pairs/ nesting pairs recorded so far in 2011 (with revisits not included) to exactly 30 :

28. 28 July - Owlet Plantation (N of Gainsborough)...adult feeding c.100 yards from Car Park
29. 28 July - Owlet Plantation...a 2nd bird flycatching and spending c.1 hour in/near Car Park
30. 30 July - Riseholme (near Lincoln)...2nd nest at Riseholme with pair feeding chicks.

All my sightings with follow-up notes have been reported on LBC Bird Reports.

Freddy