RSPB Bempton Cliffs

RSPB Bempton Cliffs has so many birds to offer, but being able to get up close and personal with these birds in their nesting habitat is one of the key attractions for me. With many ledges built out of the cliff you can see down on to the birds and get very close as they fly by at eye level.

These Guillemots were happy enough being closely packed in, but made a constant din of noise just to ward off their neighbours in case they got too close.

Below you can see a Bridled Guillemot with a white ring around its eye. It looks like it's wearing glasses.

The very good looking Kittiwake

The stiff winged Fulmar soaring on the thermals over the cliffs

RSPB Bempton Cliffs

Last month I made a visit to Bempton cliffs with a couple of my birding friends. We were hoping to see the Black-browed Albatross that had been in the around for a couple of a few weeks. Unfortunately on the morning we went, it had decided to go AWOL, and wasn't seen at all that day. It has since returned, but is very hit and miss. I'm hoping to see it one day, but will leave it for a while just at the moment.

Meanwhile, there was plenty to see on the rocks and sea below. Gannets galore, plus the usual Guillemots, Razzorbills and Kittiwakes. It was a hot day, which was a bonus, as the near 3 hour journey would have been really miserable in the rain. Just a reminder that not every twitch is successful, but I guess that's part of the fun.

Not an Albatross, but part of the same family, a Fulmar in flight and good light.

Gannets were plentiful.

Ever wondered what a sleeping Guillemot looks like? 👇

Kittiwakes were noisy on the cliffs.

There were not too many Puffins left.

 

Guillemots on the Farnes

I don't get to see Guillemots very often. Mainly because I don't live near the coastal areas where they can be found. It usually requires a special trip out. As I knew that I'd be going to the Farne Islands I put off any earlier trips. 

They're a very smart looking sea bird and they are in very good numbers on the Farnes. They make quite a noise too. They have a lovely chocolate brown top half and white below. The occasional Bridled Guillemot can be found. These have a white eye ring and a white line extending behind the eye. They look like they are wearing spectacles.

Bridled Guillemot (right)

Coquet Island

A trip out to Coquet Island with Puffin Cruises puffincruises to see Roseate Terns was the last item on my weekends agenda. (I can highly recommend the boat trip if you are in Amble, or indeed Northumberland.) A Tern that I had never seen before, and was desperate to add to my life list. Coquet holds 90% of the UK's nesting Roseate Tern population, so it was nailed on that I would get to see them. But before I share my pictures of them, I'll show you what I saw on my journey out to the island.

There were lots of other Terns, Guillemots and Puffins once again, all around. Eider ducks were here too. The sea was a bit choppy, but thankfully I had my sea legs on and stood for most of the trip.

A rare, lesser spotted me on the boat.

Coquet Island and it's lighthouse. The island is closed off to the public and is maintained by the RSPB. A boat cruise is the only way to get up close to it. All good news for the important populations of breeding birds here.

Grey Seals were a common sight from the boat and around the island. They have always been an exciting animal to see. These guys were really inquisitive and at times it felt like we shouldn't be there. Dozens of them popping up to see who we were and what we were doing. They put a smile on my face that's for sure.

Guillemot

One of the many Puffins over the boat.

Common Tern (I think) making off with a fish.

Staple Island - The approach

The morning had finally arrived. My day trip to the Farne Islands. I had been constantly checking my weather app for days, and it was at least looking dry. That's all I wanted. As I went to pay though I realised that the wind was also quite an important factor. If it's too windy with too much swell we wouldn't be able to land on Staple Island. After a tense fifteen minute wait, we were all systems go.

We set off on time at 9.30am. The islands look deceptively close from the shore. They're actually 2-3 miles away, and that takes quite a while by boat. I think it probably took 30 minutes to get to Staple, when it looked like it should be 10.

Glad Tidings 3. My boat for the day.

Bamburgh Castle seen from the boat.

Inner Farne and the lighthouse in the distance.

Eider Ducks will be one of my lasting memories of my time at Seahouses and the Farne Islands. A bird that I usually struggle to get on my year list is in abundance on the seas here. In the harbour at Seahouses on the boat journey across, and around the Farnes too. There are oodles of them. Super looking birds, and most had young with them.

Approaching Staple Island and you can see the cliffs heaving with Guillemots and Razorbills. Kittiwakes in the air, and an extraordinary smell.

I didn't really know where to look first, such was my excitement. I kept catching birds out of the corner of my eye as they took off from the sea. Others were flying in front of us. I was trying to bring the camera up every now and again but to no avail as everything was moving so fast. I need to remind myself that I am 41 and not 21. Should I be feeling this excited. The grin on my face was telling me YES!

The best I could do with a Puffin in flight shot from the boat.

A solitary Puffin on Staple Island as we approach.

Razorbills looking fantastic in the sunlight. My wishes for good weather had been answered.

Guillemots - The Farnes

Guillemots were in there thousands on and around the Farne Islands. A lovely dark chocolate brown and white bird, that sits on the rocks almost penguin like. They stay close together in their colonies alongside Razorbills and Kittiwakes. They can make quite a noise as they squabble with their neighbours.
They have been leaving the nest sights in the last couple of weeks, as they take their young out to sea to fatten up.

A small percentage of Guillemots have a white ring around the eye and a white line down towards the nape. These are Bridled Guillemots. These birds are still of the same race and not classed as a subspecies. The slight variation is quite striking though.

Common Guillemot

The Bridled variety.

A short phone video just to give you an idea of the noise on Staple Island.

Bempton

Some more pictures from Bempton Cliffs. The cliff top paths allowed us to get very close to all the birds, but it was the Gannets that really stole the show for me. I spent a lot of time trying to get good flight shots, but then I also found myself concentrating on the birds that were sat on the rocky cliffs.

A Gannet giving me the eye.

 

And in flight.



A Guillemot possibly with a Sand Eel .

A very good looking Razorbill.



And applying the breaks for landing.