Thrush Time

There was a heavy frost this morning with the temperature at minus 4C when I cleared the car windows but then struggled to open the frozen solid doors. 

At those temperatures I decided to give ringing a miss but stopped at Gulf Lane on the corner of the A588 to empty a bucket of seed and to count the Linnets ready for milder days. There seemed to be about 70 Linnets, a few Chaffinches and the usual Little Egret in the adjacent ditch. 

Linnets 

Goodness knows why but I followed the lane around the edge of Cockerham Moss, farmland where crops once grew and where winter stubble and unpicked potatoes provided boundless food for birds like Tree Sparrow, Skylark, Chaffinch, Yellowhammer and Corn Bunting. Nowadays “Moss Edge” is one of the worst examples of farming monoculture I know; a bird free desert where the only crop is silage grass that serves to fatten animals until they’re ready for slaughter. 

Cockerham Moss 

Cockerham Moss 

I re-joined the A588 half a mile from Gulf Lane having seen absolutely zero of note around Moss Edge and then turned right towards Conder and Glasson. 

Conder Green seems not to have recovered from its expert makeover of last year and although it is winter there are few birds to be seen. While 90 Teal, 40 Wigeon, 4 Little Grebe and 2 Snipe provided the numbers other waders proved scarce. A Kingfisher provided a literal splash of colour as it dived into the icy water from the sluice wall. 

Kingfisher 

The dry summer of 2019 gave way to a bumper crop of hawthorn and other berries. In some years berries, mainly hawthorn, get stripped quite quickly by incoming migrant thrushes. This year the countrywide crop is so big that it is lasting longer and may be responsible for the huge flock of Redwings roosting recently at Longridge Fell, 8 miles north of Preston. The latest estimations were of 25,000 Redwings flying to the plantations at dusk. 

I found Redwings, Fieldfares and Blackbirds galore along nearby lanes. The overnight frost which blanketed Northern England on Friday night had obviously sent thrushes far and near in search of food. Huge numbers scattered ahead of approaching cars along busy Moss Lane. 

Some of the Blackbirds were definitely “continental” types, immigrants from Northern Europe, distinguished by their mottled appearance, streaked throats, dark bills and general behaviour in sticking with their cousins the Fieldfares and the Redwings. I settled in one spot and waited for the birds to come to me. 

Blackbird 

Blackbird

Blackbird

Hedgerows provide food and shelter for many species. Because they often link small woods, they are essential corridors along which wildlife can travel. It is said that hedges may support up to 80 per cent of UK woodland birds, 50 per cent of mammals and 30 per cent of butterflies. 

Redwing 

Redwing

The ditches and banks associated with hedgerows provide habitat for frogs, toads, newts and reptiles. It is at this time of year that our protected-by-law hedgerows provide essential food for migrant and wintering species like Fieldfares, Redwings and Blackbirds. 

Fieldfare 

Fieldfare

Fieldfare

Fieldfare

That was an enjoyable morning.  In most years our Redwings and Fieldfares don't stay throughout the winter and have mostly departed for France and Iberia before the year is out.  It would be nice if they stayed just a little longer.

Linking this post to Eileen's Saturday.

  

Three Of A Kind

We had a drop of rain on Friday; the first here for several weeks, just a few showers that barely wet our parched, straw coloured lawn and briefly dampened the roof tiles. By Saturday morning we were back to sun and blue skies but I rather hoped that the scattered showers had produced a different bird or two as the birding of late has been rather predictable.

So I hit Micawber Road at the usual unearthly hour in the hope that something might turn up.  Naturally I headed for Conder Green, one of the most productive of local birding sites and where a couple of extra places are but a stone’s throw away to make for an often satisfying circuit.

It was good to see up to 20 Swifts hawking insects over the surrounding hedgerows this morning. That’s probably as good a count as anyone has had this year.

July sees the first Kingfishers returning to the pool. They breed close by along the canal or the associated River Conder. “River” is something of a misnomer since the waterway resembles the final throes of a babbling brook rather than a mighty river. I was more than pleased to see three Kingfishers today, a family group that stuck close together but stayed distant from the camera. Sorry for the poor images. Today wasn't the most productive in the picture stakes but you get the idea.

Kingfisher 

Kingfisher 

Kingfisher and Common Tern

Kingfishers

Like many other species, Kingfisher families stay together for a week or two after the youngsters fledge so that the inexperienced birds learn from the parents about growing up and how, where & when to feed. It’s rather like a human family except that kids and teenagers are very slow to learn, always think they know best, and if they ever leave home will likely be back.

The single pair of Avocets still have three good sized chicks ably looked after by their aggressive parents. In turn I watched both adults chase off a Grey Heron, a Little Egret and any number of Redshanks and Oystercatchers.

Avocet 

Grey Heron 

Other waders noted as 120 Redshank, 18 Oystercatcher, 15 Lapwing, 4 Common Sandpiper, 4 Curlew, 2 Snipe, 2 Greenshank. Smaller stuff – 6 Pied Wagtail, 2 Blackcap, 2 Reed Bunting, 2 Whitethroat and 2 Reed Warbler.

Greenshank 

Pied Wagtail 

Six Common Terns still around as they vied with the Kingfishers for the prime launch pad into the water below. Three Little Grebes on the water and now just 8 Tufted Duck and another mostly unproductive year for the persistent tufties.

Common Tern

There's still a pair of Common Terns hanging around Glasson Dock and here’s where I found a flock of 18/20 Goldfinches and a healthy number of House Martin nests right in the village centre. The martins fly down towards the dock gates for their building materials and where the tidal flow leaves exposed mud in this driest of summers.

Common Tern

House Martin

I called into Gulf Lane where a small party of 6/8 Linnets plus 2 Whitethroats suggested it will soon be time to cut that ride for project Linnet.

That’s for another, cooler day.

Linking today to World Bird Wednesday and Anni's Birding Blog.

Post-Christmas Post

The blog’s been in sleep mode for a week or more to take in the holiday period. A good time was had by all but there’s only so much food and drink one person can consume before the urge to go birding takes over.  And it was time to find news for a new post. 

I set off over the moss roads towards Pilling where I watched an early morning Buzzard quarter a field in almost harrier fashion. A couple of times the Buzzard dropped into the long rough grass where it was totally out of sight and perhaps searching the ground for a meal. 

At Gulf Lane Linnets began to arrive as I deposited a bucket of seed into our net ride. After a while I’d counted about 90 Linnets, 11 Stock Doves and a hovering Kestrel. 

Kestrel

At Conder Green - 205 Teal, 95 Mallard, 1 Goosander, 44 Wigeon, 2 Goldeneye, 2 Shelduck, 21 Tufted Duck, 4 Snipe, 8 Redshank , 3 Lapwing and 1 Oystercatcher. Also - 1 Little Grebe 1 Kingfisher, 2 Little Egret and 1 Grey Heron. 

Kingfisher

The light was very interesting near the coast. Unfortunately a pair of Stonechats showed in poor light and a heavy shower. Then along came the doggy walkers and goodbye Stonechats. 

Cockersands

Cockersands

Stonechat

Stonechat

Also here - 1 Kestrel, 10 Goldfinch and 15 Greenfinch. That latter count is almost as good as it gets nowadays for the once abundant Greenfinch. 

At Glasson Dock the Linnets proved as flighty as ever and numbered about 300 birds in a couple or more flocks. They alternated between feeding in the wild bird seed mix and flying energetically around and occasionally landing on the roofs of nearby buildings. While the roofs are quite moss covered and might hold insect food it is more likely that the Linnets were taking grit from the roof tiles. Grit is eaten a lot by seed eating birds. But birds have no teeth so grit accumulates in the gizzard and helps to break down the tough seeds by abrasive action thereby making the seeds more easily digested. 

Linnets

The forecast is better for Thursday with a wind of less than 10mph so there’s a ringing session planned for this somewhat exposed site. 

I drove back over the moss roads where the sound of gunfire was all around as three or more congregations of shooters/farmers planned their route across endless fields. The after Christmas shoot is as much a tradition around here as the birders’ post-Christmas rush for their binoculars. 

Buzzard

On Stalmine Moss I found a party of a dozen Whooper Swans plus a few Mutes, together with 35 Lapwings, 2 Curlew and 2 Snipe. There was yet another Kestrel. As I watched the swans a party of 4 Roe Deer strode across the field but as they met the steep banks of the moss road, hesitated. A car went by, the driver seemingly oblivious to the animals, and up the deer leapt. They crossed the road, walked down the other bank and at a trot disappeared into the next wood. Magic Moments. 

 Whooper Swan

Whooper Swan

 

Whooper Swans

 Roe Deer 

Log in again on Thursday. There should be news of those Linnets.

Linking today to Eileen's Saturday Blog.

Some You Win

The weatherman kindly told us that Thursday 31st August was the Meteorological End of Summer. I tried to recall more than a handful of summery days during of May, June, July and August that resembled summer but I quickly gave up. 

Friday 1st September. I took a flying visit to Conder Green where a distant Kingfisher proved the only bird of note as it dived into the now shallow water from the top of the marker post. Otherwise there was the usual fare – An increase to 17 Teal, 9 Little Grebe, 80 Lapwing, 5 Snipe, 1 Goosander and 1 Common Sandpiper. The female Tufted Duck is reduced to just three youngsters now. A few pairs of Tufted Ducks have bred on the pool for the last three years but always struggle to get more than one or two youngsters up to full size. 

Kingfisher

Tufted Duck

I was on the way to Gulf Lane to unload a bucket of rape seed into our net ride in preparation for a ringing session on Saturday. The seed is back-up to the natural food that the 300+ Linnets and Goldfinch now target because those large numbers of birds will soon make a large dent in natural food availability. 

Saturday 2nd September dawned misty but bright with the promise of sun and little wind for our ringing. I met up with Andy at 0630 just as the sun rose over to the East. 

Pilling sunrise

Looking West at Pilling

Unfortunately the Linnets didn’t perform as well as have come to expect and we ended up with a meagre catch of just five birds, a total quite unlike our catches to date this autumn.  Howver, all is not lost as those five bring us to 150 newly ringed Linnets so far this autumn.

Linnet

The composition of the flock has changed considerably this week with now something like 50/50 Linnet/Goldfinch and just 200 birds in total this morning. Given the natural abundance of food at this time of year, both on site here and in the local area, the birds have many choices of where to feed. Additionally, the preferred feeding patch on site is some way from our single 80ft cut through the crop. 

We have seen a Sparrowhawk on at least three recent spot visits which leads us to think the hawk is a very regular visitor and may be deterring the finches from their usual habits. As Sparrowhawks are liable to do, once they find a reliable source of food, they come back time and time again. The hawk made two visits today, once trying to snatch a Linnet in the air and then later, moving along the fence line from where it could wait to pounce. The hawk flew off when I walked along the road towards its lookout post. 

Sparrowhawk

 

Some you win, some you lose and it won't stop us trying again soon.

We may not have had the biggest catch of the year but it was certainly good to be out in the sun for a change. 

Linking today to Stewart's World Bird Wednesday.

Sunday Times

Saturday was rubbish for birding so I odd-jobbed, blogged and saved my energy for Sunday. I didn’t get many photos this morning but right at the end is a video that everyone will like. 

Braides Farm was first stop this morning where a roadside Buzzard flew off as soon as the car slowed. Our resident Buzzards don’t like being looked at, even less being pictured on bird blogs. Many of our native farmers and country folk have very established opinions about birds with “hook bills” and there’s not much doubt that the local Buzzard population suffers as a result. Hence the aversion to man. 

There’s been a large influx of Continental Starlings this week with substantial flocks noticeable. So much so that at Braides/Sand Villa I counted a minimum flock of 1000+ swirling around the cow sheds and the open fields. 

Starling

Of course the large autumn and winter flocks that visit the UK do not represent the overall status of the Starling. The following paragraph from the BTO  (British Trust For Ornithology) website may surprise anyone who thinks Starlings are abundant. 

“The abundance of breeding Starlings in the UK has fallen rapidly, particularly since the early 1980s, especially in woodland, and continues to be strongly downward. The map of change in relative density between 1994-96 and 2007-09 indicates that decrease has been widespread across England and eastern Scotland but that some increase occurred in Northern Ireland, western Scotland and Cumbria. Recent data suggest a populations decrease in Scotland and Northern Ireland, where the trends were initially upward. The species' UK conservation listing has been upgraded from amber to red as the decline has become more severe. Widespread declines in northern Europe during the 1990s outweighed increases in the south, and the European status of this species is no longer considered 'secure' (BirdLife International 2004). There has been widespread moderate decline across Europe since 1980” 

Starling abundance in England - BTO

The Kingfisher was about at Conder Green. It flew around the pool a few times and eventually landed on the sluice wall but didn’t stay more than a few seconds. 

Kingfisher

Kingfisher

 Other fishermen around this morning were 4 Cormorant, 2 Little Grebe and 3 Little Egret. 

Cormorant

The pool water is way down at the moment and it appears that the level is being managed via the sluice for some reason, perhaps to encourage wading birds. If so, it hasn’t worked just yet with my counts remarkably similar to recent ones - 140 Lapwing, 14 Curlew, 32 Redshanks, 6 Black-tailed Godwit, 3 Snipe and 1 Common Sandpiper.  Pied Wagtails seem to like the margins with a count of 18 today. 

The female Tufted Duck still has four youngsters. At one point I watched her angrily chase off a Cormorant that came too close to the island where the youngsters were hiding up. I noted a few passerines today in the shape and sound of 10 Goldfinch, 8 Linnet, 4 Reed Bunting and 1 Willow Warbler. 

A “quickie” at Bank End revealed a flight of 19 Black-tailed Godwit dropping into the wet fields, an overhead Jay, plus a Grey Heron and 20+ Sand Martin on the quarry pool. On the marsh and living up to its name, a Marsh Harrier and lots of Pied Wagtails.

Black-tailed Godwits

I stopped off at Gulf Lane and the 120 strong Linnet flock. More than 50 fed quietly in our net ride until I walked in to leave more seed for them. There’s lots of natural seed now but the Linnets obviously like the rape seed too. Looking ahead, Tuesday and/or Wednesday may be OK for a ringing session on the tail end of Hurricane Gert.

On the way home I stopped off to see another Marsh Harrier, 2 Kestrels and a single Buzzard, this time over farmland.

Meanwhile as a change from gulls that steal ice creams, here’s a video of a town in Alaska with Bald Eagles that like to play Bingo. Enjoy.

Wednesday 2nd August

The forecast for Wednesday wasn’t good. Dry, dull and cloudy for the morning before yet more rain. Luckily I managed a couple of hours birding before dark clouds rolled in from the West and rain spotted the windscreen. It was just eight-fifteen so I was home in time for morning coffee after clocking up an agreeable list of birds in short time. 

I stopped first at Gulf Lane where Linnets in the wild bird seed crop numbered more than fifty. We plan a ringing session on the first suitable morning to kick off Linnet Project 2017/20018. The latest forecast points to next Tuesday or Wednesday before the weather becomes anything like. 

A feature of the last few weeks has been the number of Sand Martins at Conder Green. This morning I again noted a large number of martins feeding over the water and along the hedgerows. Mixed in with the martins were lesser numbers of both Swallows and Swifts, a mass of fast moving birds that I estimated at 140 Sand Martins, 40 Swallows and 10 Swifts. This appears to be an early morning phenomenon linked to the post-dawn emergence of many thousands of insects from the immediate area. A visitor later in the day will see very few of the same bird species. 

A mile away is the now highly successful Sand Martin colony at Bank Lane where on Monday I counted 350 Sand Martins but today less than 50. If I were a Sand Martin I too might be tempted to head for Africa rather than persist with an English summer. 

Meanwhile, and back at Conder Green  2 Common Terns continue to loaf around the floating pontoon where the species bred this year. Whether some three weeks after breeding these two birds are the self-same pair is anyone’s guess; probably not, as the species is both widespread and as common as the name implies. 

Four Goosanders floated across the water and took turns to dive for fish. As is often the case here, autumn sightings consist of a female and three or four offspring but rarely a male. 

Goosander

Wait long enough and Lapwings that roost on the island show themselves by “spooking” at something unseen. The Lapwings seemed especially nervous and took to the air several times before returning to the island a minute or so later, their worries over for now.  I counted 160+ today.

Other waders and wildfowl today: 22 Redshank, 14 Curlew, 10 Oystercatcher, 2 Common Sandpiper, 1 Dunlin, 5 Little Grebe, 3 Little Egret, 2 Tufted Duck, 1 Grey Heron, 1 Cormorant. 

Common Sandpiper

“Bit and bobs” were few and far between and limited to 6 Linnet, 4 Goldfinch, 2 Pied Wagtail, 2 Stock Dove, 1 Tree Sparrow and 1 Willow Warbler. 

It was a little too breezy for the regular Kingfisher to sit around so I drove up to look on Glasson Dock where the water is protected from the wind by buildings, tallish boats and the walls of the dock. My luck was partially in with a brief view of a Kingfisher on mooring ropes and a Grey Heron fishing the shallow edges. A small fishing boat gave out voices and then an outboard motor sparked into noisy life to ripple the water. Both birds fled the scene and I cursed that I hadn’t been there earlier. 

Grey Heron

 

Grey Heron

Kingfisher

Lesser Black-backed Gulls

On the larger expanse of water I saw a Great Crested Grebe, a second Grey Heron, a Common Tern and four Cormorant.

Linking today to Eileen's Saturday Blog.