The Lincolnshire Bird Club

This has been a very interesting discussion but sadly more heat than light. Where is the data from ringers which should show the comparative extent to which scarce migrants have declined on different parts of the east coast. I suspect there are plenty of migrant birds in the buckthorn and ringing data should show it. If you take the lincs coast as a whole there still seems to be a good diversity of scrub and grass habitats.

I've always felt the shadow effect of Norfolk to the east and east yorks to the north east has a big impact on migrants in Lincs. Birds coming from the north and east need to be following a specific vector to end up on the Lincs coast. I wonder if there have been weather related changes in autumn winds that have reduced the frequency of wind vectors that favour migrants landing in Lincs? Any meteorologist birders who can answer that one?

Hi Phil.
I bet this subject has been debated more than once here and I'm sure we would all like to understand better why Linc's is the poor relation in the migrant & rarity stakes.
As you suggest Phil data from constant effort ringing sites on the Linc's coast should provide an insight into if, when and how long this percieved decline has been going on.

As for the habitat. I'm pretty sure tired wet and windblown migrant don't care what species of bush they land in but if it lands at Thedlethorpe in buckthorn, then its unlikely to be recorded in a birders notebook.

Are we in the shadows of Spurn and Norfolk?
On an east wind when Spurn has a fall of migrants, one would think Donna nook and the area immediately south of it would get its share but doesn't.
despite it being only a short distance accross the Humber.

_________________
Regards.
Del.

To err is human. To really louse things up takes a computer

Hi Derick, I wonder to what extent and from what distance, migrating passerines can detect the nearest land. Because spurn is further north and east than Donna Nook, the further out they can detect Spurn, the greater the shadow effect will be for Donna Nook. Also is this effect across all bird families or mainly passerines. For instance we seem to do ok for waterfowl and waders.

How many birders actively check the coastal bushes of Lincs? Not many. More coverage would clearly mean more passerines and thus rarities found.
Take Donna Nook for example, the Spurn area held 7 Icterine Warblers on bank holiday monday, 2 Icterines were found at the opposite ends of Donna the same day, one at Quad 3 and there was another at Pyes Hall.
How many birders actively checked Donna Nook that day? Only 3 that I am aware of - Steve Lorand at Quad 3 and Geoff Williams and myself Stonebridge to Pyes.
More birders covering the area throughout that day is likely to have produced further notable species. 2 Icterines at the opposite ends of Donna so probably a good chance there was at least one or two more Icterines inbetween.
I'll be the first to admit it is hard birding the Lincs coast, lots of time and effort for little reward, especially with the large areas of dense cover (especially sea buckthorn), but while many birds and rarities will pass through undetected, higher numbers would be found through better coverage.


regards

Chris

In answer to Phil's question regarding ringing data. Over the years I've caught lots of common migrants and some rare ones such as Greenish Warbler, Olive-backed Pipit, several Red-breasted Flycatchers, Icterines etc in the Buckthorne and Hawthorn scrub on Seacroft Golf Course (including an Icterine on my very first visit in May 1977). Alas no more. A few years ago the Golf Club ripped out 10 hectares of scrub under instruction from English Nature (and just as Nightingale got established as a breeding bird!). This was to encourage the regeneration of dune-land plants, but this area has 50 years of organic debris from scrub degeneration and is no longer sandy for the plants they want to encourage. The result after several years now.........is a good showing of rank grass, poppies and nettles............and NO BIRDS. This is nothing short of vandalism by English Nature in my opinion and must surely be in contravention of the European Birds Directive.

Alan

There has been a surprising silence about my comments about cattle ranching on the reserve. Am I right in believing that Saltfleetby Reserve has been seconded to the Lincolnshire's Coastal Grazing Marsh Project. Apparently a sum of £857,399 has been granted by the Heritage Lottery Fund for what is termed as a Landscape Partnerships Grant to regenerate the Lincolnshire Coastal Grazing Marshes launched in December 2011. My information tells me that there are three target areas: Burgh-le-Marsh, Saltfleetby-Theddlethorpe and Huttoft. It is interesting to note the partners in this scheme: Natural England, Environment Agency, Local Authorities, Internal Drainage Board, English Heritage and National Farmers' Union. There are more than a couple of rogues in that list and I find it difficult to say "protecting wildlife" and "National Farmers Union" in the same breath. So the cat is out of the bag - our Saltfleetby reserve IS being handed over to the farmer. It would also appear to explain why that large block of land south of what used to be the black tower has been cleared of all sea buckthorn and fenced in. It's not to attract birds but instead to attract cows! No wonder Natural England appear reluctant to say anything on the subject!
Anyone who is interested further go to the website www.wildlifetrusts.org/node/3232

Fancy that! Saltfleet-Thedlethorpe NNR a secret cattle ranch.
What a suprise NOT!

_________________
Regards.
Del.

To err is human. To really louse things up takes a computer

Were exactly is this £800,000+ ranch at Thedlethorpe Mike?
I'd really like to see what almost a million quid buys.

_________________
Regards.
Del.

To err is human. To really louse things up takes a computer

At Donna Nook, ringing has been undertaken by the Cleethorpes Ringing Group in the years 1963-1992 and by the Mid Lincs. Ringing Group since 1993. Generally, the same areas of bushes have been worked by both groups and although not directly comparable, annual ringing effort and the totals of birds caught have been reasonably constant. As expected, over fifty years, there have been considerable fluctuations. Most summer visitors have shown marked downward trends during the period and all of these species are dependent on the many deteriorating African wintering grounds. The only exceptions are Sedge Warbler, Common and Lesser Whitethroat. Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs are also ringed more frequently nowadays, but of course good numbers of these have wintering areas in Europe and around the Mediterranean.

One can be easily blind-sided by the use of superlatives in some of the migration reporting magazines and on bird-sites. However, I think that it is only natural to compare present day counts of migrants with those made in one’s formative years in birding. Afterall, what may have been high numbers in some of the older members’ youth would, I am sure, have been derided in some instances by earlier watchers such as Cordeaux and Caton Haigh.

Although the recent drift was most welcome, the numbers on the Lincolnshire coast were well down on those one would have recorded some years ago, and this cannot be wholly blamed on overgrown habitat. As has been stated earlier, not all species descend into the depths of vegetation, and during this latest movement, I found that even a short distance inland where habitat is relatively unchanged, there were few or no birds in some traditional migrant spots.

Club members sometimes decry the lack of summer sightings of certain species in the county, and some of these instances are clearly nationwide losses. For example, I recall James Fisher in the 1950s expressing his belief that the Tree Pipit was the commonest British bird at that time. I was not convinced that this was true, but nonetheless this gives a measure of just how abundant Tree Pipits were. I remember the species as being extremely numerous and practically everywhere in Scottish woodlands during the 1960s. On each of several subsequent visits there have seemed fewer present and this spring I encountered very few birds at all. Unfortunately, this downward trend is becoming applicable to a growing number of other species.

In many areas, dawn choruses are less pronounced than they used to be, and some habitats which would appear to be suitable for several species can contain practically nothing nowadays. These declines are not confined to birds either. Numbers of many insects have plummeted too. Only twenty or so years ago, one frequently drove at night through near-blizzards of moths. House flies are nowhere near as numerous as they once were, while the recent well-publicized collapse of bee populations are perhaps the most noticeable examples of insect calamities.

Returning to migrants, comparisons have been made between the results of counts at Spurn and on the Lincolnshire coast. Geographically, there are few similarities and I do not intend to delve deeply into this aspect. Usually there is not merely a straightforward case of an east to west influx of birds evenly along the east coast. Spurn’s situation on the south-east corner of Yorkshire is ideal for drawing in migrants that have made landfalls farther north along the coast as well as attracting birds moving from inland and along the north bank of the Humber. The peninsula forms a perfect bottleneck especially for those birds too tired or reluctant to attempt a sea or river crossing. Migration from Spurn is variable and complex and often not merely a short low flight to Lincolnshire. Constant observations by large numbers of birders drawn to such a hotspot and a very long census area also gives the huge advantages in terms of numbers recorded. Years ago, when observers at Spurn were far fewer, there were still much greater numbers of birds seen there than on the Lincolnshire coast and it was generally considered that Spurn had a shadowing influence especially for night migrants from the north-east which were also drawn in by the lighthouse.

On the Lincolnshire coast, many migrants uninhibited by the confines of surrounding water can filter inland. For example, sometimes in autumn there can be large flocks of thrushes at a number of inland locations when hardly any have been recorded on the coast. As for observer coverage on the Lincolnshire coast, to my mind, finding one’s own birds in such remote settings “far from the madding crowd” is unbeatable.

I really enjoyed reading you comments Stephen thank you.

Sadly I'm one of the old guard you made passing reference too and I'm sure my thoughts on today's birding sites and bird movements is very coloured by my experiences from many years ago in both Linc's and on Spurn.

That said and bearing in mind that Spurn probably does shadow much of the Linc's coast. I would dearly love to see and experience fall conditions in Linc's with 3 or 4 birders per. 50 metres of habitat, eagerly watching for migrants from dawn to dusk.

In the meantime ill settle for some of that relaxing peace and quiet of the Linc's coast you spoke of Stephen.

_________________
Regards.
Del.

To err is human. To really louse things up takes a computer

[quote="Chris Atkin"]How many birders actively checked Donna Nook that day? Only 3 that I am aware of - Steve Lorand at Quad 3 and Geoff Williams and myself Stonebridge to Pyes. /quote] Oi!! I birded Donna on Monday

Presumably one other factor that could be considered in lack of birders / sightings on the Lincs coast compared to 30 - 40 years ago, is the greater ease of travel and communications. Presumably in the 60's & 70's most Lincs birders would stay local and if they were out for the day stayed in a reasonably small patch and gave it a really good going over. Whereas these days day trips to Norfolk, Yorkshire, Rutland, Derbyshire etc are easy and the lure of a pre-found rarity is better than spending hours thrashing the buckthorn to little success.

James

To endorse Stephen's excellent comment, ringing at Donna Nook has remained pretty constant for the past 20 years with a similar amount of effort each year. We haven't found a dramatic decline though some species are far less common. The average number of birds ringed per annum has been in excess of 1500 and Martin Sizer and the Mid Lincs RG have spent, on average, in excess of 40 ringing days throughout the year (not just Spring and Autumn). The habitat hasn't changed that much but what has been apparent over the years has been the virtual absence of bird watchers seen on the site whilst we've been there (Stephen accepted!). James has got it dead right - dedicated patch workers are a dying breed. The majority now appear to be electronic birders - waiting for their gadgets to tell them where other people have done the work and found the birds

Hi James.
We weren't still in horseback 30 years ago and the numbers birders visiting and preferring Spurn to Linc's when fall conditions prevailed, was of a similar order to what we see today.

_________________
Regards.
Del.

To err is human. To really louse things up takes a computer

I too was among that illustrious group of birders at Low Farm, Humberston in the 50' and 60's. Although we did pretty well there, even getting such birds as red breasted flycatcher and marsh warbler, brilliant in those days, I seem to remember it was Steve (Lorand) who realised that on some days what we were getting at Low Farm was small beer to the numbers appearing further south at Donna Nook. That was the main reason Low Farm observatory died.

Now I don't know how funds are used in LBC but I'm certain that Squire Caton Haigh of Grainsby (one of the UK's earliest pioneer ornithologists) wrote a book about bird migration on our east coast with species and numbers and how the weather affected falls etc. I think it was called "Birds of the Humber District" (I'm not sure on that) Sadly that book was never written but I wonder if the mss still exists? The Haighs still live in Grainsby. At the very least we might think of producing an e-Book?
Wouldn't it be an interesting read today?

Good idea Colin. If enough of us volunteered to copy/scan a dozen pages each. Sort it Colin.

_________________
Regards.
Del.

To err is human. To really louse things up takes a computer