Lesser White-Fronted Goose - Big Waters, Northumberland

After initially thinking of heading to North Wales for a Surf Scoter that had been present during the week, our plans changed with a Lesser White-Fronted Goose was reported in Northumberland the previous day. Setting off at about 6:30am, with Carl driving, we made the 3-hour journey to Big Waters NR in Northumberland.

Upon arriving, we found that most of the lake was frozen, with only a small exposed area in the centre. An American Wigeon has been present at the site for a while now and would be a new species for me. Thankfully, another birder soon turned up, and with his scope soon picked out the American Wigeon. It was well hidden - surrounded by around 100 Eurasian Wigeon. The views were clear through the scope but the bird was largely obscured by the surrounding birds. Amongst the commoner waterfowl, there were also several Tufted Duck, Pochard, Goldeneye, Common Gull, lots of Lapwing, a Great Black-Backed Gull and a female Pintail. Unfortunately the regular Iceland Gull wasn't around, although it was reported later in the day.

We then made the mile or so walk towards where the Lesser White-Fronted goose was reported the previous day. We noted several Siskin along the way and lots of Roe Deer (17 in total for the day). After making our way across a few fields, we spotted a large group of geese in the adjacent field. One of the first birds in my binoculars was the Lesser White-Fronted Goose, showing well in the nearest group! The 300+ flock was mainly comprised of Greylag Geese, with a few Pink-Footed Geese too. The White-Front looked incredibly small in comparison, and noticeably darker. It spent much of its time associating with 2 Pink-Footed Geese. The origins of this bird are still unknown, but it was unringed, wary, associating with wild geese and in a rural location on the east coast.

You can get an idea of the size difference between the White-Front and Greylags!

On the walk back to the car we saw several Yellowhammer and Linnet. It was nice to meet a few birders back looking for the Wigeon again, including Paul, Sophie and Michael.

Our next call was nearby for the long-staying Hooded Crow at Linton NR. Unbelievably, we didn't even need to get out of the car! Driving past some horse paddocks, Carl spotted a paler crow on a pylon - the Hooded Crow not 5m away from the car!

The Hooded Crow showed well for a few minutes before flying west

Unsure where to head next, we then saw a report of a Baikal Teal in South Yorkshire. It was a sizeable drive, over 2 hours, but we decided to go for it as it would be a lifer for both of us. Arriving with not a huge amount of light left, we tried our best to get to the spot It was reported from, but google maps had other ideas! After a few electric fences and an 8ft ditch, we eventually arrived at the lake along with several other birders. There were huge numbers of ducks on the lake, and with little remaining light and over 300m between us and the lake it wasn't looking too promising. Then, one of the birders picked out a sleeping duck alone on the ice. After getting everyone on it, it quickly became clear it was the female Baikal Teal! Unfortunately, it had already gone to sleep, but the small size, pale colouration, white markings and pale underside were all obvious. The lake also held about 500 Wigeon, lots of Teal, Shelduck, Gadwall, Mallard and Tufted Duck. Several Lapwing, Snipe and Fieldfare were also around the edges.

Overall a fantastic day with 4 lifers for me and 2 for Carl!


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