More Goldfinch, More Whoopers

Early Sunday and perhaps too premature for Conder Green where an autumn mist lay across the pool so nothing to look at except the farmer’s two cattle. So I motored slowly up to Glasson where there might be a Kingfisher and a Grey Heron or two. 

It wasn’t misty here on the larger expanse of water. And then right on cue a Kingfisher appeared but didn’t stay. There was nothing doing on the water with just the regular 25 Tufted Duck and similar numbers of Coot. 

Tufted Duck

At Conder Green things had warmed up a little, the mist cleared and so I was able to tot up the waders and the Teal. 3 Spotted Redshank, 70 Redshank, 7 Snipe, 6 Curlew, 4 Lapwing, 3 Goosander and 90 Teal was OK but neither sight nor sound of the regular Greenshank or Common Sandpiper rather took the edge off the count.

One of the Spotted Redshanks has a droopy wing, I noticed it earlier in the week. Two of them were a bit far apart to fit in the frame. 

Spotted Redshanks

On the pool a Kingfisher, 2 Pied Wagtail, 5 Little Grebe, 1 Cormorant, 1 Grey Wagtail, 1 Little Egret. 

Pilling next stop. On the wildfowler’s pools I found 34 Whooper Swan, 2 Mute Swan, 38 Shelduck and 8 Wigeon while out on the marsh were “many thousands” of Pink-footed Geese, and I’m thinking 10,000 plus. The whoopers peeled off in small groups to fly south and over Pilling village - on their way to Martin Mere Wildfowl Trust at a guess. The folk at Martin Mere feed them even better than the Pilling shooters.

Whooper Swans

I gave the woodland a go with little to report save for a Nuthatch, a single Kestrel and 3 Jays but still no sign of Brambling or Yellow-browed Warbler despite my persistence. The weather charts suggest that things might happen on Monday/Tuesday in the way of Redwings and Fieldfares and possibly more.

Later and back at home I noted many Goldfinches in the neighbourhood treetops again plus a good number on the niger feeders. So after a leisurely lunch I set about catching more to add to the 19 ringed since Monday. The Goldfinches piled in and I ended up catching another 22 with no recaptures from Monday, Friday or today, thereby confirming once again that the day-to-day birds we see aren’t necessarily the same individuals, especially in the spring and autumn.

Other bits and bobs came in the form of 2 Coal Tits, a single Blue Tit and a Long-tailed Tit with attitude. A young male Sparrowhawk escaped from the net before I could get there and flew to next door's sycamore tree.

Coal Tit

Blue Tit

Long-tailed Tit

Goldfinch - juvenile

Goldfinch - female

Goldfinch - male

More news and pictures soon from Another Bird Blog.

In the meabtime I'm linking to Stewart's World Bird Wednesday.