Starting Afresh

This last two or three weeks was possibly the worst cycle of rain & wind weather systems I have experienced in my years of being a birder, bird ringer and weather watcher. 

Every day became a “no go” until a brief respite on Tuesday took me to our Pilling ringing site to assess the damage. Fortunately things were not as bad as feared once the still flooded track was negotiated by avoiding soft spots where the car might sink. Puddled net rides might dry out overnight given their open situation, while ropes left in situ were still visible if soaked and wind-blown wayward. 

By a miracle and in the few hours of dry with glimpses of sun, it seemed a few birds had returned or perhaps never left; alongside the fence flew three Stonechats and in the trees Reed Buntings, Linnets, Chaffinches, Greenfinches and Redwings. A Buzzard mewed in protest as crows gave chase and Skylarks flitted overhead. 

On the pool with ducks a single Gadwall faked being a Mallard and then drifted out of sight. I dreamt I heard a Water Rail. 

Stonechat

 

Gadwall

All was well for new a beginning on Wednesday, perhaps Thursday, and even Friday. 

“Now then Mr Slade don’t get carried away. It can't last”, came the weatherman’s voice. 

I arranged to meet Andy at 0645, a new time now that clocks are also back to a normal winter.  

We rather hoped the Stonechats might be around to spice up the morning but there was no sign of any Stonechats, just the expected species list dominated by approximately 120 Linnets in several small parties that came and went through our four hours. The Stonechats were a “one day wonder” and almost certainly moved on during the overnight clear skies of Tuesday/Wednesday. 

We caught 21 new birds – 7 Long-tailed Tit, 5 Linnet, 4 Greenfinch, 2 Redwing, 1 Robin, 1 Blue Tit and yet another Chiffchaff. 

Chiffchaff

Redwing

Linnet

Greenfinch

Long-tailed Tit

  

Birds noted in between our ringing, mostly approximate numbers: 120+ Linnet, 25 Greenfinch, 18 Redwing, 4 Skylark, 2 Chaffinch, 2 Reed Bunting, 10 Little Egret, 1 Buzzard, 1 Kestrel, 1 Sparrowhawk. 

The forecast is OK for tomorrow, maybe even better by way of less of a breeze and more sun. We arranged to meet up again for another go. 

What's that saying? Make hay etc, etc. 

Linking this post to Eileen's Saturday Blog and Anni in Texas.

 

Quietly Trying

The instrument panel flashed 1⁰C and there was a film of this ice on the windscreen. It had been another clear, cold night and one that tends to both clear migrant birds out while not leaving any new ones in their place. As strange as it might seem, the best weather for finding new migrants is that of a rather changeable scenario with showers and the odd weather front or two, conditions which make migrant birds interrupt their often non-stop journeys. 

I drove up to Conder to check the pool where I found 36 Tufted Duck dominating the water, then 8 Shelduck, a single Cormorant, 2 Canada Goose and 30 or so Mute Swans. Floating around on the margins of the tufty gang was a single Gadwall, a very uncommon duck here. In fact it was probably the first Gadwall I’ve ever seen just here. A pair of Teal continue to feed in the tidal channel. 

Gadwall

Waders were represented by 1 Spotted Redshank, 1 Black-tailed Godwit, 1 Curlew, 15 Redshank, 14 Oystercatcher and 2 Lapwing. The Oystercatchers are mostly paired up now, as are the Redshanks whereby both species breed here, as do Lapwings in most years. There didn’t seem to be much passerine activity apart from a Reed Bunting singing from the area of the road bridge. A number of both Sand Martins and Swallow flew through heading north but generally the arrival of both species and also House Martin has not yet been huge. 

Fluke Hall was the next port of call where things were equally quiet. I saw my first Whitethroat of the year along the old hedgerow, and there was a single male “Greenland” Wheatear on the nearby rockery. Whitethroats seem late this year whereby my calendar is marked at 15th April for the first Whitethroat to be rattling along the hedgerows.

Whitethroat

The woodland gave up singing Greenfinch, Goldfinch, Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Willow Warbler (2), and Song Thrush (3), whilst at least one of the 20+ Blackbirds was busily collecting food. Two Buzzards soared over the wood and there was a single and unusually silent Jay flying through the trees. 

Song Thrush

It was 10am and on the way home I stooped to watch a Barn Owl hunting nearby fields. That’s pretty late in the morning for a Barn Owl to be out and about. I’m guessing it was hunting to feed at least one other mouth. It proved an agreeable end to my somewhat quiet morning of birding, but there’s more birding and ringing soon from Another Bird Blog. 

Andy’s back from Gibraltar with tales of Bee Eaters, Black Kites and Blue Rock Thrushes. I’m sure I’ll hear all about those “Bs” fairly soon when we meet up for a ringing session at Oakenclough. 

Linking today to Stewart's World Bird Wednesday.

The Other Moss

Today I had to go up to Kendal for my car service so popped into Leighton Moss RSPB nature reserve near Silverdale. I’m not a great fan of nature reserves, I prefer to go out and find birds myself, but maybe once or twice a year I will go to Leighton Moss which has breeding Marsh Harriers, Bearded Tit and Bittern, to name a few of the specialities. Anyway it was a chance to do a bit of photography where the birds aren’t too shy of approaching the hides and I persuaded that emblematic Lancashire bird the Lapwing to provide me with a new blog header for a while.

During my short visit I noticed that lots of the summer migrants were in: singing Blackcaps and Willow Warblers seemed everywhere I walked, with one or two of both Sedge Warbler and Reed Warbler striking up their chatter in the reeds. At least three Marsh Harriers and two Buzzards put in brief appearances but kept a long way from the two hides I visited.

I grabbed a few pictures to post for today but I hope I can get back to the real mosses of Pilling and Rawcliffe soon.

Grey Heron
Grey Heron
Gadwall
Marsh Harrier
Teal
Lapwing

Back to normal tomorrow I hope.

Wuw?

Wet, Unsettled and Windy, that’s what Heather said on BBC North West on Monday morning when she predicted the weather for this week.

So I went for a swim this morning fully expecting to be rained off birding pm. Wrong Heather, it was actually a pleasant afternoon with a balmy southerly wind and just the odd shower that at least kept me looking at the sky to later find my second Swallow of the year. At 1300 hours I hit the Pilling Lane/Lane Ends trail and saw lots of bits and pieces but no Wheatears. At and from the car park/pools I saw 1 Chiffchaff, 10 Meadow Pipit, 1 Reed Bunting, 2 Goldfinch, 2 Greenfinch and a Sparrowhawk again. Water birds came in at 3 Cormorant, 2 Gadwall, 8 Teal, 2 Goldeneye and the trilling Little Grebe that while very vocal, is actually difficult to see as it hides around the well vegetated margins of the west pool with partner and dives at the very hint of being looked at.

Gadwall
Meadow Pipit
Between Lane Ends and Pilling Water I counted 55 Shelduck, 4 Little Egret, 5 Ringed Plover, 130 Redshank and 2 Black-tailed Godwit, with only 250 Pink-footed Goose, a figure that left me wondering where the rest of them were. No worries as I found another 2,400 down at Braides Farm but I didn’t walk the track for fear of disturbing their feed or sending them all prematurely packing out to the marsh. I listened and watched from the gateway for a while but sadly saw only one Lapwing around the newly created but still dry ditches. There are a couple of Lapwings sat on eggs opposite Lane Ends entrance but I’m afraid the overall picture for the poor Lapwing doesn’t look too good again after a promising period a few weeks ago.

Ringed Plover
Lapwing
It still didn’t rain and the sun came out, the only cue I needed to try out Ridge Farm, walking along the sea wall and back through the farm track. It was quiet, with a few Linnets along the gorse, then fairly late in the afternoon a flight of about 60 Meadow Pipits heading east and a single Swallow, fairly high but heading all the while out over the bay.

I’ll see what tomorrow brings but I bet the weather isn’t as bad as predicted and if that southerly wind is still there overnight, I may find a job for those mealworms. You see, the BBC has got it wrong before and all the trees may not fall over during the night despite the Scottish blizzards I just watched on the news.

Happy Birding.