December River Cole and Rea, Kingfisher pairs

After great year for finding Birmingham kingfisher it has continued into December with kingfisher on the River Rea, Cole, Bourn and Bourn Brook. The Bourn Brook has another wintering kingfisher in the same spot after last years wintering juvenile. I got a nice surprise when I found a kingfisher on the Bourn, Stirchley, I'd never seen one there before. The best sighting have been the pair of kingfisher on the River Cole at the start of the Kingfisher Country Park. I've seen them either side of a bridge fishing, having a bit of a squabble and chasing each other and then flying along the river together. There is then a pair of kingfisher on the River Rea, they are about a mile apart. I saw kingfisher in the same area last winter. They are by the nests they had in the Spring and Summer. I assume they are the same birds. Not been able to get a photo.

My first Sea Kingfisher

I visited Brighton Marina, my parents live nearby. I've seen a couple reports of a Kingfisher in the past few months. I walked past the restaurants looking closely as the boats. I then got to the path in front of the apartments that look over the Marina harbour. I could have only been there 10 minutes when I heard the distinctive two tone call of a kingfisher calling over the top of a few starlings chattering that were on the apartment roofs. I scanned the harbour in front of and there it was flying past, a kingfisher. It landed on a boat mooring rope and if I'd had my camera with me, I could have got a photo. It then flew off and I lost it in amongst the boats. I think I heard it calling again later but I couldn't see it. What a result though, my first sea kingfisher. Great!!

Six Kingfisher Week

On Friday I stopped at Bittell Reservoir and was lucky to time it right that a Kingfisher was on a perch and it flew across the reservoir and it gave a call as it went up the river next to the reservoir. On both the Saturday and the Sunday morning, the Kingfisher was again present on the Bourn Brook at it's usual spot on a perch. Same for the Small Heath, Kingfisher Country Park, River Cole, Kingfisher it was in the same spot both Saturday and Sunday morning. It flew up the River Cole. The River Rea Kingfisher was also in the same spot but on the Sunday was a little further down the river, which gave me the chance to watch it catch a fish, do some hovering and then fly down the river. The Hall Green, Yardley Wood, Trittiford, River Cole kingfisher on the Saturday was in Hall Green on a perch over the River Cole. On the Sunday it was just down from Trittiford, flying along the river with the sun shining on it, making it appear more green than blue. It stopped a couple times on perches over the river before it was disturbed by dogs in the river and it flew back up to Trittiford. With all these sightings I wished I had the camera to get some photo's. In the week, I had finally found my works patch kingfisher on Langdon fishing lake, EWT. I was up early so had a look and it flew across the lake at the sluice end and gave a call. We also found it sheltering from the wind, having a rest in the trees next to the path. All in all a pretty good week for kingfisher sightings.

Four Birmingham Kingfisher

I've now got a route that takes in four regular Birmingham kingfisher. The first is on the Bourn Brook, it's an adult male. This is where a juvenile female wintered last year. What is good about this years is, I never know where it's going to appear from. It seems to like a number of perches. Sometimes first thing in the morning with a small amount of light I can just see it fly past. The next is on the River Rea, I'm hopeful it's the juvenile female from the Bourn Brook. Though it could be another male, as there was one here over the summer and then another passed through which spooked the female and had to be chased off by the male. Last year an adult female wintered on this section. The next kingfisher spot is the River Cole at Small Heath/Kingfisher Country Park. Again there was also a male kingfisher here last winter. What has made this winter sighting interesting, is that I have found a pair a couple times. One time they were happily fishing either side of a bridge, another time they where sat together and then they were chasing and calling each other. The fourth kingfisher is again on the River Cole but this time at Yardley Wood/Trittiford. Late winter of 2013 there was a kingfisher further along this section at Sarehole with another further down at Sparkhill. They then moved up to Hall Green over the summer of 2014, where they had a nest and chick. I have checked along Sarehole but not get lucky this winter. I'm looking forward to the holidays to get some more time and check the fifth (or sixth) kingfisher on the Bourn, just down the road from me. I've seen it reported recently. Got to find it again!!

Kingfisher Country Park

I had not checked out Kingfisher Country Park in Birmingham since the new year when I got this photo https://www.flickr.com/photos/88816303@N08/15542729444/ I thought in the wind and rain I might not be lucky. I ran along the path having a look at the river and could not see a Kingfisher. I then remembered I had seen one on a tree perch over the river just after the bridge. So I crossed the road bridge and looked over the wall to the river and just saw a kingfisher splash in the river and return to the tree perch. Yes it had caught a fish! It then knocked it on the branch a few times before swallowing it. It then flew closer to me on another tree perch over the river. I then turned my head and it saw me move and it flew off, up the river. I then looked over the bridge, down the river and much to my amazement, there was another kingfisher in another tree over the river diving for fish. It was really difficult to see. So I approached the tree and then heard the kingfisher call as it flew off. Amazing in all the wind and rain. I wonder if one of them was this one; https://www.flickr.com/photos/88816303@N08/17531770440/ In the morning there was the usual kingfisher on the River Rea in this spot; https://www.flickr.com/photos/88816303@N08/15688732673/ Then there was another kingfisher on the Bourn Brook in this spot; https://www.flickr.com/photos/88816303@N08/15900961407/ Though it was not obvious to see in the poor light and flew out from a bush when I looked closer. It was a pretty good Saturday. Amazed to find four kingfisher! Great!

Bourn Brook Shocker!!

Bourn Brook 7.00-8.00, River Rea 8.00 Well what a shocker, three kingfisher on the Bourn Brook. Then four in a hour. I knew there was one from last week on the Bourn but three!! They were approximately one mile from each other. The first one was on the Bourn Brook Walkway, Weoley Castle. I was cycling along when I thought I heard a kingfisher call. I stopped to take a look and there it was perched in a tree over the brook. I tried to get a photo but the light was poor and it flew off up the brook. (this is the closest I have seen one to Woodgate Valley CP for a few years, I wonder if it will visit there) The second one was by Selly Oak park / the University, where there was one last year over the Winter. It was a bit of a shocker as I stopped to have a look at the spot, not thinking I would see another after seeing the first one, when another flew out of a bush perch over the Brook. The third one was the other side of the University and I saw it fly from it's perch down the Brook. I then stopped to look from a bridge further down and could not see anything, when all of a sudden a kingfisher dived from a tree perch into the Brook and caught a fish right in front of me. The water could have only been a few inches deep. It then sat on some rocks in the brook and ate the fish. Funny how they are all along the Bourn Brook. I wondered where the juveniles had gone from the Rea. The Ranger at Woodgate Valley CP one year said there were high numbers on the Bourn, now I believe him. Last year there were a few in a similar short distance on the Rea. I thought that was a shocker that they all can be so close but this morning proved it again. The fourth one was in the usual spot on the Rea. There were several grey wagtails all along the brook as well, which was great to see and a heron flew over. What a great morning!!

August River Rea Kingfisher Pair

So after finding the River Rea, Kingfisher pair, further along the river, I was pleased to find nest number two. However the surrounding area did not have the cover provided at nest one, so it was very difficult to get any photos. I tried to hide using trees as cover but they could always see me. The female was more sensitive than the male and would fly off at any movement. So I kept my sightings to a minimum not to disturb them. It was best to view them from a distance and watch them go in and out of the nest, feeding the young.This went on for a few weeks until I was lucky once again to see the fledglings. I think I only saw two, difficult to tell from a distance. I saw one flying off with what I assume was the mother to get some feeding training. Then the next day I saw the male chasing them off. He might have had a couple chases as he was up and down and very loud. I saw them chasing, head to toe with the eerie, repetitive call of the chase. Then when the juveniles were gone, the couple remained and I was hopeful they would make a third nest along the same stretch. At first this seemed possible and I think one day I saw them nest to a potential nest site. But after a couple weeks the female seemed to disappear only to leave the male patrolling up and down. There were no more two tone calls from the pair (the pair on the Cole were still together and calling) and it was quiet.