Durham Bird Club at 50
The county avifauna, The Birds of Durham (Bowey and Newsome, 2012) records that “A public meeting in late 1974 at Sunderland Museum and Art Gallery to discuss bird watching and recording was well-attended. This was followed on 8 January 1975 by another meeting and enrolment for membership of the Durham Bird Club began shortly afterwards.”
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We shall be organising various projects and events during the year to commemorate this special anniversary. These include a "Bird of the Week" feature, appearing below.
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Bird of the Week - Week 43
Fieldfare – Winter’s Restless Guests
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​​(Photo by Mark Harper)​​​
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It’s that time of year again, Fieldfares are back. Their harsh “chack-chack-chack” calls are now beginning to echo across the County, announcing the return of one of our most familiar winter thrushes. Smartly dressed in grey, chestnut and speckled cream, they bring a touch of northern brightness to even the dullest autumn day.
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This year’s first arrivals were noted in the east of the County on 13th October, with small flocks at High Moorsley, Crossgate Moor and Pittington. A few days later, birds were seen further west, with records from Rookhope on the 17th and more this week from Wearhead and Baldersdale. It’s a familiar pattern, arrivals sweeping in from Scandinavia and spreading across both upland and lowland areas as berries ripen and the weather turns colder.
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Fieldfares travel in tight, purposeful flocks, often alongside Redwings, moving from hawthorn to holly in search of berries or dropping to feed in open fields. Their upright stance and distinctive calls make them easy to pick out once you tune in.
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Over the coming weeks, expect numbers to build quickly. On frosty mornings, they’ll be feeding in fields and hedgerows, their movements marking the true onset of winter birding in County Durham.
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Have you spotted your first Fieldfares yet? Perhaps in a mixed thrush flock or raiding garden berries?
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We’d love to hear where you’ve seen them.
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More information on Fieldfares
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E-mail: admin@durhambirdclub.org.uk
Social media tags: #DBC #DBCat50 #DurhamBirdClub #BirdOfTheWeek
#Durham #Birding #BirdwatchingUK #CountyDurhamBirds
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