Holmebrook Valley Monthly update

Since the end of October there has been quite a few different birds turning up on the lake at Holmebrook Valley.

On the 31st of October there was a male Teal which was first found at the north east end of the lake. This is my first Teal at Holmebrook since October 2017 so I expecting one. The bird was very shy and didn't come in very close, but with some persistence I managed a very badly let shot of him. 

Male Teal

Also on the 31st I had my first Common Gull of this winter. Unfortunately it didn't stick around and left very quickly so I only managed a record flight shot.

Common Gull

On the 6th of November there was a lovely male Pochard on the lake which was a first for the site for me. With the him there was a female Tufted Duck and they spent most of the time I was there in the middle of the lake.

Pochard and Tufted Duck

Also on the 6th I managed to find not one, but two Water Rails in the reeds at the bottom end of the lake. Not only was this the best Water Rail count for the site, but also my first since the 11th of November 2017. The birds were being very vocal but one was only seen twice.

Water Rail record shot

At least one Water Rail has been present calling in the same area within the last week and was there again today.

One of the Mute Swan cygnets had disappeared on the 6th but I now know it was taken away by the RSPCA because of lead poisoning (See post HERE). Hopefully it will get well enough to be returned. 

Also seen on the 6th was a Herring Gull. These can be seen around Chesterfield sometimes, but are still infrequent on the lake at Holmebrook. The bird was with 5 Lesser Black-Backed Gulls and 69 Black-Headed Gulls.

Herring Gull 3cy

Lesser Black-Backed Gull 2cy

Away from birds, there was a Common Darter flying around the bottom end of the lake on the 6th, which is now my latest record of any species of dragonfly.

On the 8th I found an American Mink at the bottom end of the lake which at the time, I presumed was why the Mute Swan cygnet had disappeared. I have reported the Mink but have not seen it since.

Mink

Also on the 8th there were two Goosanders (Male and female).

Goosanders

Since the 8th not much else has appeared on the lake apart from all the Mute Swans yesterday (See post HERE). Both Great Crested Grebes are still on the lake and numbers of Moorhens, Coots and Mallards have stayed roughly the same. I have heard the Kingfisher a few times on the river but it has not yet moved onto the lake as it did last year.

Mute Swan mayhem!

Recently on the lake at Holmebrook Valley there have been 5 Mute Swans. Two 3s (born this year), one 5 (born last year) and 2 adults including a davic ringed male 089 from Treeton Dyke.

All 6 Swan on 23/10/18

One of the cygnets went missing around the 6th of November and I assumed it had been killed by either a dog or a Mink that I had seen round the lake. Today I found what really happened. Unfortunately it got lead poisoning and was taken in by the RSPCA. They have looked after he/she but I am unsure if they are going to return it back on the lake anytime soon.

All three of this years cygnets with there mum on 16/10/18

Yesterday morning someone reported 8 Mute Swans on the lake. They consisted of the normal Swans, two new adults and there cygnet. As you can imagine, our pair would not be happy with this and I presume the male 089 would have been very aggressive and they all got driven off. Later on they were found in the estate below the park on the road. The RSPCA were soon called. The male Swan was apparently covered in blood but this later was found to have come from a small cut which I presume 089 did while protecting his territory on the lake. This bird was taken first into care and will probably be released at Poolsbrook CP in Staveley. The cygnet and other adult bird flew off south later before the RSPCA came back and were not seen again.

This morning (17th) when I went to the park I noticed that the adult female had disappeared which is quite concerning. I checked the nearby Walton Dam but only the resident female "Polish" Mute Swan 462Y was there. I will update if I get anymore information and hopefully she will return.

"Polish" Mute Swan 462Y at Walton Dam

I would like to say thanks to my Aunty for all the information and keeping an eye on the female and cygnet to make sure they didn't get hit by any buses and cars. Also thanks to the RSPCA for helping and looking after the Swans.

Holmebrook Valley WeBS 13/10/18

Today was very windy and slightly damp but I still went down to Holmebrook Valley to do my first WeBS count. Water birds present on and around the lake were 46 Mallards, 7 Coots, 10 Moorhens, 1 Great-Crested Grebe, 1 Grey Heron, all 6 Mute Swans and 7 Black-Headed Gulls.

1cy Black-Headed Gull

Other birds seen around the lake today were 6+ Greenfinch, 7+ Long-Tailed Tits, 1 Goldcrest, 2 Redwing, 1 Sparrowhawk and lots of Carrion Crows.

All 6 Mute Swans an the lake

Autumn is coming!

I went down to Holmebrook Valley last Sunday and was happy to see my first Redwing flying over. I beat last years record by one day. Unfortunately as it was very quick I couldn't get a photo. I then went down to the lake and found that the Black-Headed Gulls are returning with 7 birds present. Soon there with be possibly hundreds on the lake to scan through so I will make the most of these small easy flocks whilst I can.

2 of the Black-Headed Gulls

Today the Great Crested Grebe which has spent all year since February on the lake flew almost the length of it today which shows that it could be getting ready to depart for the winter. The bird is virtually in full winter plumage now. Last year it, or a different bird, stayed until the end of October so its not got long to go.

Great Crested Grebe through some leafs

On both visits all 6 Mute Swans have been present on the lake. All 3 of this years cygnets are doing fine and last years cygnet is looking basically like and adult but with a pale bill.

Last years cygnet

Adult male Mute Swan 089 

Two of this years cygnets. Both looking very old now!

Holmebrook Valley 4th to 26th of May

I haven't put a blog post on for over a month, so I am going to put on what has been seen at Holmebrook Valley since the 4th of May.

On the 4th I was looking for Swifts from a vantage point overlooking the lake but instead of seeing Swifts I managed to find two Hobbys which was a year tick for me and a first for the site. They drifted south before heading back north a few minutes later. Against the blue sky they were hard to photograph, but I managed a record shot of both birds together.

Hobbys

Also on the 4th I managed to count 7 eggs in the Mute Swans nest.

On the 5th I managed to actually see the Lesser Whitethroat as it sang in the shrubs on the east side of the lake. Unfortunately as it was only a glimpse, I didn't manage a photo. Also seen on this day were 2 Greylag Geese, some Orange Tip and Large White Butterflies, all 3 Mute Swans and the Great Crested Grebes were building a nest.

Great Crested Grebe nest building

On the 6th I got my first Mallard ducklings and Moorhen chicks for the site this year. There were 10 Mallard ducklings and 3 Moorhen chicks. The 2 Greylag Geese were still on the lake and 1 male Tufted Duck was new. The Mute Swan pair were still incubating.

Mallard ducklings

On the 7th the only new birds were 7 Tufted Ducks and there were 3 Greylag Geese instead of 2.

Greylag Geese

On the 12th I got my first damselflies of the year with about 4 Blue-Tailed Damselflies seen around the lake. The Greylag Geese had disappeared but the Mute Swans were still incubating and there were at least 20 Mallard ducklings.

Blue-Tailed Damselflies

On the 13th I had my first site Swifts of the year with around 3 birds flying around the lake. I had seen my first Swift of the year on the 8th over my house. Again there were a couple of Blue-Tailed Damselflies. The Greylag Geese returned on the 14th, but there was nothing much about.

On the 19th there were lots of damselflies about in the sun and I managed to get four species including one that was new for me and the site. First off, the new one, Red-Eyed Damselfly. This is a species I have wanted to see for some time so when I found four of them on the reeds next to the lake, I was very happy. The other three species were Common Blue, Large Red and Blue-Tailed Damselfly of which two were year ticks.

Large Red Damselfly

Red-Eyed Damslefly

Birdwise on the 19th there wasn't much except 2 Tufted Ducks and the normal birds.

From the 20th to the 24th nothing much changed apart from a couple more Mallard ducklings appearing, a Whitethroat on the 23rd and I managed to find two new Coots nests including one containing one chick, which had hatched that day, and one plus egg.

Coot sat tightly on chick and egg

 I also found a Blue Tits nest containing 5 or more chicks. Although they will breed every year around the site, this is my first confirmed nesting record for Blue Tits.

Blue Tit sat tightly on her chicks

Today when I went down I was met by three Mute Swan cygnets which I presume hatched yesterday. I predicted that they would hatch in early June, so I wasn't to for off! Surprisingly the parents didn't care about last years cygnet who stayed with them whilst they looked after their cygnets.

Mute Swan cygnets

The other four eggs were left in the nest so I presume they have been abandoned. Other things seen today were 25+ Mallard ducklings, plenty of Damselflies, 1 Coot chick and the Great Crested Grebe pair were still round the nest.

Blue-Tailed Damselfly

Throughout the whole month numbers of House Martins and Swallows have risen but there don't seem to be many Swallows around this year. Since the 8th Swift numbers have gone up but again there don't seem to be as many.

Other birds this month include Red-Legged Partridge with one seen near Wadshelf and a Redkite seen over The Hardwick Inn last weekend.

Cambridge 28 - 29/04/18

Last weekend I visited Cambridge with some family and friends. Whilst on the journey down and walking round the city I managed a lifer and a year tick.

First of the lifer, a Cuckoo. I have heard the species many times before but never managed to actually see one, so when one flew in front of our car whilst driving down the A14 I was pretty happy.

Next the year tick, which was a Peregrine Falcon. I saw the bird on both Saturday and Sunday flying round the city and sitting on the Kings Collage Chapel.

Peregrine Falcon

Also whilst walking by the river I noticed my first Canada Geese pair with 5 goslings.

Canada Goose family

Holmebrook Valley 15th to 22nd of April

During the last two weeks I have managed to get to Holmebrook Valley a couple of times.
On the 15th of April it was very dull, but I still managed to get my first site 2018 Willow Warbler and Swallows. The Willow Warbler was calling in the bushes on the east side of the lake whilst the 2 Swallows flew through. Unfortunately the Willow Warbler wasn't showing and was calling from deep inside the bushes. I also found the two Reed Buntings again and this time they seemed to be looking for a nesting site.

Male Reed Bunting

I checked the Mute Swans nest and found the male bird sat on 4 eggs.

Last week the weather turned nice with the hottest day, the Thursday, being 24°. Due to this and it now being light after school, I managed to get down 3 times during the week. On the 18th I found my first Sand Martin for the site with a flock of about 15 House Martins. The Great Crested Grebes were building a nest and there were 2 Willow Warblers singing but still not showing.

Female Mute Swan sat tightly on nest

On the 19th there was nothing much different from the 18th apart from two Canada Geese. Again I checked the Mute Swan nest and this time when the male stood up there were 6 eggs in the nest. I presume that they will hatch in early June.

Mute Swan eggs

On the 20th I managed to see my first Willow Warbler of the year with one bird showing very well in a tree by the lake.

On the 22nd I had my first Lesser Whitethroat of the year calling in the bushes on the east side of the lake. Unfortunately the bird was hidden deep in bushes and was not seen. Whilst looking for the Whitethroat, I also managed to get my first site butterflies for the year with 2 Commas and 1 Large White Flying round.

Comma

Other birds seen on the 22nd included 5 Greylag Geese (On lake), 15+ House Martins, 3 Swallows and 7+ Chiffchaffs which were calling round site.

Holmebrook Valley 1st to 8th of April

During this week I have managed to get down to Holmebrook Valley every day apart from on Monday. It has been an interesting week and migrant birds are slowly making a comeback for the summer.
Some birds on the lake have started nesting now like the Coots, Moorhens, Mute Swans and the Great Crested Grebes. There are at least 4 Coots nests but as of today only one nest had a bird sat on it.

Coot pair with nest

I have only seen one Moorhen pair on a nest but they seem to have moved off it now and possibly abandoned it.
The Mute Swans have their nest at the top of the lake and had at least one egg by the 5th and for the past few days the male bird (089) has been sat on the nest whilst the female bird is on the lake, usually chasing last years cygnet away. As far as I know they could have up to 4 eggs now as it usually takes a Mute Swan up to a week to lay a full clutch of eggs which is usually 5 to 7 eggs.

089 (male) on nest

The Swans nest has been fenced off by the council to stop dogs and people from getting to the nest. Last year dogs attacked two of the three cygnets and one got killed. You can still get a good view but don't go past the fence as the male swan could be quite aggressive.

There has been a single Great Crested Grebe on the lake since February and it disappeared on Friday so when I got news from my Uncle yesterday morning that it was back displaying with another grebe on the lake I had to go get some photos. I went down and got great view of both birds as they displayed to each other yesterday and they were still at it today. They also seemed to be looking for a nesting sight as they were looking round the banks of the lake.

Grebes displaying

If you would like to see my videos of them displaying then either click HERE or HERE. The first video includes there weed dance.

There has been a number of geese round during the last week with up to 4 Greylag Geese on the 7th and 13 Canada Geese on the 3rd which is my highest record for not only Canada Geese but just geese in general on the lake. On other days there have been 2s or 3s of both Greylags and Canadas.

All 13 Canada Geese on the 3rd

Other birds of interest during the week...
On the 5th two Mandarin Ducks (Male and Female) landed on the lake for 10 minutes. This was also my first male Mandarin Duck that has landed on the lake. On the 8th I found two Reed Buntings in the bushes at the bottom end of the lake. This was my 2nd site record for this species at the site. Also there have been around 5 Chiffchaffs singing all week around the lake but I have not heard a Willow Warbler yet.

One last bird to add to my year list was Swallow which I saw flying north at The Gate Pub above Cutthorpe on the 7th.

Walton Dam Mute Swans 27/03/18

Last Tuesday I cycled along Walton Dam in Chesterfield with a friend to look for some ringed Mute Swans that are present there. We found two Mute Swans easily near the dam. The birds were 460Y and 462Y. These birds were ringed at Walton Dam back in September 2016 with a 3rd bird 461Y which was not there today.

460Y

462Y

The swan 462Y has pale legs instead of black legs which means its a "Polish" Mute Swan which is a morph which causes them to have light legs and white cygnets instead of the normal dark cygnets. Also present on the lake were a couple of Canada Geese and with it was a Hybrid Goose which has been seen at Linacre Reservoirs since 2006.

Hybrid goose at Walton Dam

Hybrid Duck at Linacre Res March 2013

Photo by Peter Stoppard

It was nice to relocate the Hybrid Goose. Now I just have to wait till it turns up at Holmebrook Valley.

Holmebrook Valley 24th - 30th of March. Sping is coming!

Because its the Easter holidays I have managed to get to Holmebrook Valley 5 times this week. During the week there has been quite a few geese on the lake and finally a few signs of spring.

On the 24th I had my first Chiffchaffs of 2018 calling with about 3 birds around the site. On the lake there were now 4 Greylag Geese (Highest HBV record) and 2 Canada Geese. The Greylag Geese seemed to be two pairs and were very territorial towards each other. One of the pairs flew south but returned 10 minutes later and then 3 of the Greylags and both Canada Geese left at 15:30 and didn't return. 

All 4 Greylag Geese

 Other birds on the lake were 7 Tufted Ducks, 1 Cormorant, 20 Black-Headed Gulls and the Great Crested Grebe. I also found my first 2018 frogspawn at the bottom end of the lake. This week it is meant to get colder but hopefully it will survive.

Frogspawn

On the 25th there was not much difference but the Chiffchaffs were still calling and both Canada Geese had returned to the lake and were with the 1 remaining Greylag Goose. Also there were only 2 Black-Headed Gulls, 5 Tufted Ducks and I found a Coot already on a nest. I couldn't find the Great Crested Grebe though. 

Coot on nest

On the 26th there were 3 Canada Geese, 9 Tufted Ducks, 1 Great Crested Grebe and still only 1 Greylag Goose but I did find the male Mute Swan (089) on last years nest. I presume its to early for them to breed yet and he was probably just sitting there because its comfortable.

089 on old nest

On the 27th 3 Greylag Geese, 2 Canada Geese and 10 Tufted Ducks (New highest Tuftie count) were on the lake. 

Greylag Geese

On the 30th there were no Greylag Geese or Tufted Ducks but the 2 Canada Geese were still present and a Great Spotted Woodpecker was heard drumming below the lake.