My Top Five Birds of 2021

All this Covid stuff has made a lot of us take stock of our lives and what we do, and me no less than anybody else. In particular I’ve been reviewing my bird photos for some of the time and I’ve realised that I’ve got some decent shots of most common UK birds - so I’ve asked myself, ‘Do I really need any more of the same species?’

I’ve never understood why some photographers get on the annual seasonal bandwagon of having to shoot the same birds in the same location at the same time of each and every year - I mean, how many Owl, Kingfisher, Puffin, Kite, Gannet, Black Grouse, Snow Bunting, Osprey and even White-tailed Eagle shots do you really need? And then they flood the internet with countless similar images which are pretty much the same as everyone elses. Madness, and it happens every year. 

Surely less is more here and one good image is better than countless similar ones where you couldn’t decide which one was best. After a couple of shots most people scroll on or turn off.  I’ll hold my hands up and say that in the past I’ve done it too, but not any more. From now on I’ll be mainly photographing UK birds of which I’ve got no decent shots, which generally will mean seabirds and rarities. I’m not saying that I’ll never shoot one of the aforementioned species ever again, but I won’t be on the annual cycle going from one species to another (which often includes otters, deer, hares, foxes and badgers) getting even more shots to add to a library stuffed full of similar ones.

So if you’re wondering why I’ve not been posting much recently and you may have even noticed that I’ve left a lot of Facebook groups, there’s the reason. Perhaps not everyone will agree but I’m happy with my decision.

Anyway, reviewing my bird photos from this year (what else is there to do on these gloomy late December days?) here are my Top Five birds of 2021. Considering I didn't go out much this year and there were two or three months where I didn't take a single bird photograph, I'm pleased with these rarities which were all Lifers for me.

Black-browed Albatross - Bempton Cliffs RSPB, East Yorkshire

Belted Kingfisher - Roach Bridge, Lancashire

White-tailed Lapwing - Blacktoft Sands RSPB, West Yorkshire

Elegant Tern - Cemlyn Bay, Anglesey

Long-toed Stint - St. Aidan's RSPB, West Yorkshire

Elegant Tern at Cemlyn Bay on Anglesey

I spent a very frustrating eight hours trying to photograph this rare bird yesterday due the light, the vegetation and distance it was away. Most of my photos are destined for the bin except for a few record shots like this one - the main problem being the very bright light during midday and afternoon (yes, I should have known better to get there early) coupled with the heat haze generated by the good weather. Conditions got a bit better as the day progressed and the sun moved round and my best shots were actually taken between 7 and 8pm when it became overcast. Still not great though.

On the other hand, it was a fabulous day with good weather in a stunning location. The shingle beach, the clear water and the noise of the terns all combined to make it very memorable. The Elegant Tern seemed to be displaying at times and was quite aggressive to the Sandwich Terns amongst which it was sitting. They have been known to mate with these birds abroad. 

Every now and then the whole colony (including Arctic, Common and Sandwich Terns as well as Black-headed Gulls and the odd Oystercatcher) would take to the air en masse making a truly spectacular scene. Usually this was the result of a Peregrine Falcon patrolling the air space and indeed I witnessed a Peregrine take small birds out of the air on two occasions.

There was also a regular flow of birds going out into the bay, catching sand eels and returning, flying right over your head as they did. Young birds gathered on the shingle along the shoreline, some being fed by parents, others being chased out to sea by them as they enouraged the to fly or catch fish. In the late evening, the youngster seems to gather in a large group along the water's edge and would periodically all fly out low over the sea together in a flock - magical!

If you've never been to Cemlyn Bay you should get there sometime - June and July are best for the Terns but its a fabulous place at any time. And there's still time yet this year!

A Lovely Trip Down Memory Lane

Recent reports of a Savi's Warbler on Anglesey have had me wanting to go for a couple of weeks now and today was to be the day that I decided to look for this little bird, as it would have been a lifer for me. However, you may be wondering about the title - the reason for it is that we had a caravan on Anglesey for about ten years and it's where our kids grew up, being the only place we used to go in the holidays.

The story of our caravan is a long one which I won't repeat in much detail here except for the fact that we though we'd have it for life, because the (mad) little old lady who owned the site didn't seem to bother with the rules about how long caravans can stay on a site.  She also said she'd never sell up, until one day she did and everything changed.  

She was bought out by the Talacre Beach Caravan Company (similar to Haven) for a good few million pounds due to the amount and location of the land, who then proceeded to increase the site fees and force people to upgrade their caravans or leave as they were turning it into an upmarket country-club type facility with a golf course, swimming pool, bistro and other such yuppie delights.  Not for us, even if we could have afforded it, so we left - in a huff!  It's called Plas Coch which is near Plas Newydd just in case are you wanted to know.

Anyway, having the caravan here meant we got to know Anglesey very well and we'd often call it our second home.  Driving along the A55 Expressway through the tunnels at Conwy, Penmaenbach and Pen-y-Clip brought back a lot of memories and especially the one where our family game was to award 1000 points for the first person to spot Puffin Island from the Expressway - it wasn't really hard to spot it unless it was nightime or raining, but remembering to say it out loud was what caught our children out, so I nearly always won!

Crossing Britannia Bridge sent a little chill up my spine and I was back at the start of the new millennium as I looked out at the Menai Straits, the Marquess of Anglesey's Column with his statue on top and the statue of Nelson at water level.  I could also see Plas Newydd which wasn't far from Plas Coch and had to stop myself coming off the first exit after the bridge which would have taken me in that direction.

Instead I stayed on the A55 for a few junctions until I reached the one for Gaerwen.  I drove through remembering the Stermat supermarket and the shoe shop where we'd bought Robert some wellies and the onto Pentre Berw and Cors Ddyga Nature Reserve just past the village on the left.

Along with a few other people I spent a couple of hours trying to get a clear view of the distant Savi's Warbler in some reeds and gorse on this part of Malltraeth Marsh but although we could all hear it sounding like a low-pitched Grasshopper Warbler from time to time, I never got anything other than a small flitting object which could have been almost anything.  It didn't help that there were Reed Buntings, Reed Warblers and Sedge Warblers about and I think the only shots I got were of a distant hazy Sedge Warbler as it perched up on Gorse bush.  Very disappointing.

So I decided to put Plan B into action, which was pretty much foolproof at this time of year - visit Cemlyn Bay to see the Tern colonies there.  To get to Cemlyn I travelled up many more of the roads we used to use in our trips around Anglesey - if only I'd been a birder back in those days!  When I passed the Jam Factory I knew I was nearly at Cemlyn Bay and I thought to myself, the next time Sarah and I come here we really should stop for Tea and Scones!

The three main types of sea Tern here are Sandwich Tern, Arctic Tern and Common Term and all three were seen quite easily today as they flew over the shingle beach from the lagoon where they nest to the sea where they feed on Sand Eels.  They seemed to be going a little further than the bay to fish today and were quite difficult to pick up on their return journey as they fly so quickly calling all the way.

So the birds didn't disappoint here but I spent more time chatting to a couple of people than taking photographs, so I decided to cut the conversation short and head for a barn just up the road where a Little Owl is known to frequent. I found the barn quite easily but the Owls were nowhere to be seen.  I did manage a couple of shots of this Common Buzzard though.

And finally Plan C was to visit the Little Tern colony at Gronant Dunes near Prestatyn on the way home.  As it only just being past midsummer and a sunny day with few clouds, I knew I'd be able to stay out with some light until at least eight o'clock, so it was worth having a look in spite of it being a bit late in the season with many chicks having fledged.

The Little Tern colony is firstly fenced and then roped off with plenty of notices to avoid the public disturbing these ground nesting birds and there is usually a warden on duty during the day.  However, at gone 7:45pm I wasn't sure if someone would still be there, but there was.  Now I always obey all the rules so I kept away from the fences and ropes and headed for a patch of beach where some of the Terns were bathing.  There were plenty of Ringed Plover about peeping away as I made my way down the beach and I managed to get a couple of flight shots of fledgling Little Terns.

I didn't really get to within a 100 metres of the Terns when most of them took off as if spooked by something.  I couldn't see any large Gulls or birds of prey, but I didn't think it was due my presence either, so why they flew I really don't know.  But when I looked over at the hide I could see some looking at me through binoculars.  I retreated from my position taking shots as I went and thought nothing more of it.

Juvenile Little Tern photo here ...

When I got back to the new gazebo structure at the end of the boardwalk before it rises to the viewing platform which overlooks the dunes, I sat down to chimp some of my shots.  As I was doing this I noticed two Police officers walking down the boardwalk towards me.

'That's a big lens', one said. 'Yes', I answered, 'You need it for small birds like these' (my standard response to this statement which so often gets made when photographers are out birding.). 'You heard any shooting?' he asked. 'No', I replied. 'We've been called out due to a report of shooting being heard', he went on. 'Well not by me', I said, 'except shooting photographs', I smirked. After asking me the way, they headed off in the direction of the hides and soon met up with a girl coming back from one, who stopped and chatted. I guessed she was one of the wardens and the person who had been looking at me.

All the time I was wondering, "Does she think my camera and lens is a gun and that I was firing at the birds and perhaps that's why they took off" - and so she called the Police, surely not.  But I was the only one on the beach at the time so I was puzzled all the while I walked back to my car.  The Officers had also returned along the same route so I stopped and asked them if she thought that I was shooting at the birds.  One of them said that she'd reported the shooting after hearing loud clicking noises near the Terns, but the Ifficer said that as soon as he saw me he thought it was probably just my camera - I really didn't think it was that loud!

So we had a slight laugh and that was the end of it. It didn't spoil my mini-trip down memory lane - how I wish it was still 2005 and me and my kids were still young.