Not a bad morning. A spot of birding, another Wheatear in the bag and I even nailed the reluctant Kingfisher.
The forecast was for a sunny day so I headed for Conder and Glasson but as the windscreen wipers drew back and forth I wondered if I’d made the right decision. The rain was quite steady at Conder Green where an initial look into the creek revealed the usual wader suspects and their by now consistent numbers - 2 Greenshank, 1 Spotted Redshank, 5 Common Sandpiper, 4 Snipe, 28 Redshank, 4 Curlew.
The Lapwings seemed flighty this morning, not just those around the pool but the ones hidden from view near the canal. Their regular eruptions into the air before settling back down allowed a count of more than 150.
Herons and wildfowl remain the same with 2 Little Egret, 2 Grey Heron, 5 Little Grebe, 2 Great Crested Grebe and 2 Wigeon.
A Cormorant dropped in to feed, those are raindrops in the photo, the ISO at 800, and both I and the camera were getting wet. Time to head off to Glasson and bird via the car until the rain stopped.
Cormorant
Seven Pied Wagtails and 2 Grey Wagtails near the Glasson car park with a Grey Heron on the far jetty and about 60 Swallows feeding over the water.
I took a few rain spotted pictures of the resident but far from tame Tufted Ducks, their wary eyes watching my every move. I rather admire our commonplace and largely ignored UK Tufted Duck, a duck of town and city parks with ornamental lakes and ponds. But the Tufty is also a highly migratory beast whereby their numbers increase in the UK in winter as birds move here to escape the cold winters of Iceland and northern Europe. The numbers at Glasson Dock will swell from the present 15/20 to nearer 80/90 during the winter months.
Tufted Duck
The sky was brightening a little so I made my way back to Conder Green.
Looking North from Conder Green
At the pool a Kingfisher was surveying the scenery and fishing the waters. Don't forget to "click the pics" for close-up views of the Kingfisher.
Kingfisher
Kingfisher
Kingfisher
Kingfisher
Kingfisher
Kingfisher
Kingfisher
Kingfisher
There's nothing much to add to the earlier numbers of birds except that both Common Terns took their share of the tiny fish on offer and then returned to their nest on the island where they fed the hidden from view youngsters.
There was time for Pilling Marsh where I found Buzzard, Kestrel, Greenshank, 7 Little Egret, 2 Grey Heron and 5 Wheatears. One Wheatear, a juvenile of 96mm and 25.1 grams, succumbed to the temptation of a meal worm.
Pilling Marsh
Wheatear
Wheatear - juvenile
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Linking this post to Anni's Blog, Eileen's Saturday and Weekend Reflections.
Linking this post to Anni's Blog, Eileen's Saturday and Weekend Reflections.
Yep, you nailed the kingfisher! Great photos. Even got him feeding. Love them all! Love the shot of Conder Green from a distance too. Wow, what a beautiful place!
ReplyDeleteI love that third image - the scenery is just beautiful!! And the kingfisher close-ups are incredible!!
ReplyDeleteThe Kingfisher, excelente, amigo Phil.
ReplyDeleteVery beautiful birds!
ReplyDeleteWe made it back home! Over 2,000 miles of driving but a great visit with family.
ReplyDeleteDespite your "sunny" weather forecast (!) you had some great numbers and interesting variety this morning. It's easy to overlook the "common" birds, but every time I slow down to really look at them I'm once again impressed how beautiful they are. Very lovely Tufted Ducks!
That Kingfisher is certainly a little jewel. Superb photographs don't hurt! Nice work.
Happy the weather cleared a bit and you were able to tempt a Wheatear.
Hopefully, I'll be able to resume posting soon.
Have a great weekend, Phil!
Wow, such beautiful birds you've shared. They seem to have their own little expressions too. Thanks for stopping by my blog too!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful bird photos and wonderful reflection shots on the river ~
ReplyDeleteartmusedog and carol (A Creative Harbor)
A great series of shots of the kingfisher.
ReplyDeleteThe kingfisher is so gorgeous... Very nice serie indeed ; you have a perfect eye to catch those birds : they look so alive on your pics...
ReplyDeleteWOW ! Superb Clicks....:)
ReplyDeleteWonderful series, Phil! I love the Kingfisher shots.. and the view of the sky and marsh is beautiful. Happy birding and have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteYou can't beat those Kingfisher shots, Phil! What a stunning bird! I especially love the tiny light blue jewels all over its crown.
ReplyDeleteIt's great you make the effort to bird even when its raining. I tend to be a bit too precious about these things and have spent two weekends in the confines of my house thanks to unending torrential rain.
Spectacular kingfisher shots!
ReplyDeleteAll Photos are copyrighted by Phil Slade...ha ha, or words like that, just popped up and all I was doing was double clicking on the Kingfisher to view it up close as you suggested. It is early and I know I was only scrolling down, but I promise I was not about to copy anything ;)
ReplyDeleteThose Kingfisher images truly are remarkably stunning Phil, and Conder Green, glorious~
Marvelous series of the Kingfisher.
ReplyDeleteI love watching the Tufties. Had a few on my local patch but regretfully no evidence of breeding this year.
Phil, Thank you for linking up to my critter party..Have a happy weekend!
ReplyDeleteamazing pictures...I feel as if I could reach out and touch the kingfisher
ReplyDeleteThe kingfisher is amazing. The ones I see around here are a different color. Beautiful landscape shots, too!
ReplyDeletemy goodness, your kingfisher shots are divine!
ReplyDeletefabulous photos...especially of the kingfisher
ReplyDeletewow those kingfisher photos so clear can feel the moss even great thanks
ReplyDeleteFabulous photos of the kingfisher!
ReplyDeleteGreat shots of the kingfisher, you are very lucky.
ReplyDeleteWow Phil so jealous of that Kingfisher shot. Superb!
ReplyDeleteIt seems that there have been many pictures of Common Kingfisher on various blogs recently, and hardly surprising. It's a gorgeous bird, isn't it?
ReplyDeleteAw..the kingfisher is my favorite! What awesome shots!
ReplyDeleteSo fine!!!
ReplyDeleteYou know I love your kingfishers Phil. They're so much more colorful than our American species.
And the 'looking north' scene is so beautiful. I'm understanding just why you go birding here...wow.
Your linking this weekend at I'd Rather B Birdin' is much appreciated!!! Thanks.
Beautiful bird! What a great series!
ReplyDelete