Merlin And Mipits

The slightly murky start to the morning produced some obvious autumn migration by way of an influx of Swallows, some visibly heading south, a number of landfall Meadow Pipits, and my first Merlin of the autumn. 

I stopped at Braides Farm to look along the fence line and across to the sea wall. The local Grey Heron and Buzzard were in situ along the fence line and seemingly nothing else. When I looked closer there was a single Wheatear sat motionless on a fence post, probably easy to overlook except for its rather bright appearance on such a dim morning. 

Wheatear

I spent very little time at Conder Green where a large wagon with blacked out windscreen greeted me at the layby. The driver had spent the night there but very soon he started up the diesel engine to warm the cab, so goodbye the few birds that were about; 14 Little Grebe, 1 Greenshank, 2 Common Sandpiper, 2 Stock Dove, 2 Wigeon, 1 Grey Heron and 3 Little Egret. Loud “cronk-cronks” told me Ravens were about and when I looked up it proved to be a single one heading south. 

A quick look at Glasson showed about 300 Swallows around the marina with 7 Tufted Duck and 18+ Coots on the water. The sky was beginning to clear with the first signs of some promised sunshine. 

I settled down to go through the wagtails on Bank End Marsh when someone stopped to tell me that the whole road was closing for maintenance in 30 minutes time and that it would remain so until midnight. I don’t mind spending an hour two at Bank End but not a whole day thanks. Luckily by then I’d seen 45+ Pied Wagtail, 2 Yellow Wagtail, 15 Linnet and 2 Little Egrets. 

Yellow Wagtail

Grounded and flighty Meadow Pipits numbered 15 +. I also met an old friend here, a one legged Curlew I first saw a couple of years ago and in exactly the same spot. This bird is a real survivor even though adult Curlews have few predators except man and the wily old fox. 

Curlew

I made it back to the main road and headed to Cockersands where a steady but not enormous stream of Swallows flew in off the river, over the silage field and then headed quickly south. There’s a nicely developing set-aside plot here where I counted 3 Reed Bunting, 3 Whitethroat, 8 Goldfinch, 2 Greenfinch and 10 Linnet. Very noticeable was a group of 15+ active and excitable Meadow Pipits along the roadside and where the pipits joined the other birds in taking advantage of the set-aside. 

Meadow Pipit

I was turning the car round when I spotted a Merlin fly low over the marsh and land on the roadside fence. Within seconds the Merlin was gone, over the fields and out of sight. 

Our UK Merlin is often linked to the Meadow Pipit. Meadow Pipits breed in good numbers in upland Britain where they share the landscape with the Merlin and other species. The dashing Merlin preys extensively on Meadow Pipits and the small birds’ ability to produce two or even three broods of young, a ready supply of food for a growing family of young Merlins. It’s an inter-specific relationship of the two species, so well connected that it is thought the Merlin as a species times its autumnal dispersal south to coincide with that of the Meadow Pipit while the pipit resumes the role of a meal ticket. I am positive this theory is true as many times in the autumn and winter I have seen a Merlin target Meadow Pipits, often ignoring other possible meals. 

Merlin - USFWS - CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

There was time for a quick look at Lane Ends, Pilling; 18+ Little Egrets scattered across the marsh and 80+ Swallows feeding low over the marsh.

Linking today to Anni's Birding Blog and Eileen's Saturday.