Early Bird Birding

It looked like early birding only when the weather forecast promised rain by lunch time. For once the experts were spot on and the rain arrived at 1130 after a half decent morning of a bright but gradually clouding over sky.

I waited at a regular Barn Owl spot in the hope one would come along. One appeared on cue but was up and over the hedgerow, across the road, and out of sight over another field within seconds. 

Barn Owl

It’s worth repeating that Barn Owls are having a poor year with reports from many parts of the UK of starving broods caused by a shortage of their regular prey of voles. A pair of Barn Owls with three or four chicks need something like the equivalent of 1500-2000 voles over a 12 week period before the youngsters fledge, not counting the additional voles required to feed themselves. 

According to a study in 2013 the natural cycles in vole populations across Europe are fading away with climate change the likely reason. Until recently vole populations have fluctuated enormously on a three to four year cycle. A peak year, known as an outbreak, provides a bonanza for predators like owls, foxes, weasels and kestrels. But after a crash only a few voles per hectare may be left to rebuild the population. 

These long-established cycles have diminished across Europe over the last couple of decades with the years of population outbreaks no longer as marked. This change in one group of species at the bottom of the food chain is bad news for a diverse range of predators like the Barn Owl which relies on these years of plenty to keep its population at sustainable levels. 

There was little new at Conder Green except for a Greenshank in the creek and a single Snipe hiding amongst the rocks of one island. 

Snipe

Otherwise it was “as before” with 3 Common Sandpipers, 2 Dunlin, 50+ Redshank, 30+ Lapwings and 20 Oystercatchers. On, around and over the pool - 2 Little Egret, 1 Little Grebe, 2 Grey Heron, 4 Tufted Duck, 2 Wigeon and 5 Cormorant. There are still Swifts about with a count of 12+ today and the birds feeding as ever on the swarms of early morning midges which emerge from the hawthorn hedgerow. 

A walk of the “railway circuit” found a Kestrel using a distant boat mast as a lookout point. A few small birds appeared by way of a family party of 6 Linnets, then 4 Greenfinch, 4 Meadow Pipit, 8 Goldfinch and 2 Reed Bunting. 

Kestrel

Two flocks of House Sparrows numbered some 40+ birds. I’m not sure if it is the paucity of other species this year which is making House Sparrows appear more numerous or if the spodger is experiencing a real revival of fortune.

On the other hand House Sparrow nests are less likely to take a battering from our inclement weather than the nests of species like Willow Warbler, Sedge Warbler and Whitethroat which build open nests in often fragile vegetation close to or on the ground. Cold northerly winds have been a feature of Spring and Summer of 2015 with our Lancashire rainfall for July looking to be on course as the wettest on record. 

House Sparrow

With the cloud building and rain on the horizon I made time for a walk at Fluke Hall. A Whitethroat sang a partial song and a couple of Tree Sparrows busied themselves around nest boxes but in the wood all was quiet.

Fluke Hall - Pilling, Lancashire

A walk along the sea wall salvaged a few Linnets, a Green Sandpiper, a female Sparrowhawk, a Grey Heron and a couple of Skylarks. One of the Skylarks was still in song and perhaps waiting for a spell of warm weather to have another go this year. 

Skylark

Grey Heron

When the weather improves I’ll be having another go too, so log in soon for news and views from Another Bird Blog.

Linking today to Stewart's World Bird Wednesday.