goosander – Enviro-Mentalist

Goosanders – See them now at the Country Park

We all have certain triggers in life that remind us of past times, or tell us that something new is happening. For me, the sign that Winter has arrived is the appearance of goosanders (mergus merganser) at Daventry Country Park. This Winter I was surprised to see them at the end of November, particularly as, if you remember, it was quite mild and sunny. However, a few days later the weather turned chilly and there was a bit of frost at night. Winter had come.

So, why am I so interested in these birds? It is not just their weather-forecasting abilities that I like about them. They really are stunning birds, particularly if they catch the Winter sun. They are quite a large bird, not really looking like a duck. They swim low in the water, being very pointy with a thin red bill, which gives their group its name – Sawbills. The serrated inner edge allows them to grip slippery fish, which they search for by swimming with their head under water before diving down with a jump to get them. (Amazing fact number one – they can dive for up to 45 seconds.)

The duck and drake look quite different. Whilst the duck is grey with a chestnut coloured head with a shaggy crest, the drake is much sleeker. He has a bottle green head which looks black unless it catches the sun, some black on his back, but the rest is mainly white (with a hint of pink!).

Whilst these are not the rarest of birds, in fact their numbers are increasing (there are about 2,600 breeding pairs, numbers tripling in Winter to about 16,100 birds) they do face a threat from the owners of fisheries due to their particular love of salmon and trout. (Amazing fact number two – a young goosander eats 33kg of fish in order to reach adulthood.)

Whilst researching this article, I also discovered amazing fact number three (well, puzzling fact really) – after breeding most of the male goosanders from Europe migrate to the north of Norway to moult – I have no idea why they do that. The females stay put – I am not sure if this is due to parental requirements.

So, next time you are in the country park in Winter (the goosanders tend to stick around into February) look out for some very white and black, long, sleek pointy birds. They tend to sit around in groups, close to the dam, particularly from about halfway up.

To quote from Birds Britannica goosanders ‘spend long periods asleep or loafing on the water and, on a cold, bright Winter’s day there are few more lovely visions than a group resting in a backwater, their smooth contours and patterns mirrored in the river’s surface.’

Further experiments with my new lens.

There was a bit of blue in the sky, I was not at work today and I have a new telephoto lens; no more excuse needed for a trip to the Country Park.

I was interested to see how well the lens would perform with a bit more light than is available in our north facing garden, particularly after I dropped it on some concrete slabs! (It still appears to function, and, if anything, the image stabiliser and autofocus seem to be somewhat quieter!) I have also hankered after getting some shots of the goosanders that arrive each Winter.

The Country Park seemed to be busier in terms of people rather than birds, and I did notice a few female goosanders in one of the more sheltered areas where I hadn’t seen them in the past (and where I could not get a decent shot due to the number of trees growing at the edge of the water).

When we made it to the dam I was a little disappointed to find that the usual group of males and females was not there this time, my opportunity for wildlife photographer of the year had vanished! However, further along the reservoir I did spot a lone female and managed to get a few shots, one of which was not too bad for an early attempt (not great either, but I was pleased to get a shot).

I think it must be Winter.

I have spent the last few weeks thinking about how, despite the wet Summer, this Autumn has been spectacularly colourful. The leaves on the Sycamores that I pass on the way to work have been a glowing yellow, but alas, they are no more. The wind of the last couple of days has taken away most of the leaves and left them on the ground, shadows of their former glory. The Purple Hazel and the Dogwoods in our garden, which last week seemed to laugh at the autumn, are now as naked as the Rowan and Silver Birches.

Around Daventry, apart from the evergreens, it seems as though it is only oaks that have kept their finery. Walking down the old railway track you can be fooled into thinking that the trees are still looking green, but it is the ivy, winding its way up so many trunks, that is giving the colour.

I went for two walks today, because I could, and because it wasn’t raining. This morning we walked into Daventry, and then back along the old railway track via the church yard. It was all peculiarly quiet. About this time last year we carried out the first Winter surveys for the BTO bird atlas, and the church yard was full of life (no pun intended). We struggled to count the blackbirds, they were so abundant, and, as for the old railway track, you could hardly hear yourself speak for their rustling and alarm calls. This morning there was hardly a peep (or cheep) out of them. We saw an occasional blackbird leaping about in the yew, looking for berries, but nothing else. But then, there were hardly any berries for them to leap for. Has it been a bad year for berries, was it the late frost and Easter snow, or are these shrubs and trees also suffering from the same lack of insects as most gardens this year?

Anyway, to look for more birds (and, I admit, in a half-hearted attempt to find the Red-crested Pochard again) I went to the Country Park. To sum up, it was cold. I only had binoculars (photography being my primary reason for the outing) so am not sure whether there were many birds out in the water. I am pretty sure there were no Red-crested Pochards though. What I did see, which surprised me as I have never seen them in November before, was a flotilla of Goosander. These are my bellwethers, the Harbingers of Winter. I may still be missing the redwings, but I need no other signs to tell me that it is time to get the thermals out.

More Evidence for a Cold Winter?

I decided that I would go for a spot of birdwatching today at the Country Park, although the black clouds and horizontal rain this morning did make me think twice.

However, the sun emerged in the afternoon, so I bade farewell to my long suffering beloved and set off with my ‘scope slung over my shoulder and headed east (on foot of course). Once again there seemed an absence of small birds at the park and very little birdsong to be heard above the roaring wind.

I edged out onto the dam clutching my ‘scope in the hope that we would anchor each other against the wind. The first thing that I noticed was the large number of wigeon around the edge of the water. The second, and slightly disappointing thing, was that the golden plovers seem to have moved on.

I moved down the dam to look at some of the birds further along and have subsequently decided that Winter has come early this year. I usually decide that Winter has arrived when the goosanders make it to the reservoir, last year this was around Christmas. Well, as you may have guessed they are here already, and in greater numbers, I counted 24 today, twice the number that I have seen before.

Time to get the thermals out?