A Minor Species

This has been a disastrous time for the small number of Avocets that nest in their usual location of Conder Green, where this year, three or more pairs failed to rear a single chick. On Monday I drove to Cockerham to check out the remaining pair of Avocets that nested at a different location for the very first time - the perhaps unusual setting of a private and working dairy farm. 

From a fair distance away I noted the Avocets had four tiny young in tow so I arranged to meet with Andy on Tuesday with a view to ringing those chicks and to combine this with another go at the nearby Sand Martin colony. Both jobs would require two pairs of hands and eyes should the young Avocets be difficult to locate through their parents’ ability to divert and disrupt. Sand Martin catches can be unpredictable in numbers whereby it is also essential to have two or three pairs of hands around. 

Tuesday morning and we met up at the Sand Martins to see the whole of the Avocet family just yards away from our parking spot and to hear the warning ’kleet-kleet’ calls of the adults. Before long we had four youngsters in the bag despite the “broken wing” distraction displays and overhead warning flights of the adults. Four ringed - the first Avocets for Fylde Ringing Group. 

 Avocet

A look in the BTO Migration Atlas (first published in 2002) showed the Avocet - Pied Avocet Recurvirostra avosetta as being featured in the pages of “Minor Species” rather than “Waders”. This is a reflection of the species status at the turn of the millennium when the population of the UK was at about 450 pairs. Avocets had recolonised Britain over 50 years earlier from 1947. 

They spread quite slowly to include North West England in their range in the 1980s and 1990s and first bred in Lancashire in 2001. The number of Avocet breeding pairs in the UK in 2020 is thought to be now close to 1,950/2,000 (BTO). 

It is known that Avocets from Southern England join post-breeding moulting flocks of Avocets in the Netherlands where they mix with birds from Sweden, Denmark and Germany. As winter progresses individual birds move further south to wintering sites in southern or southwestern Britain, e.g. the Tamar, Tavy and Exe estuaries. Yet others may fly south to Portugal, Spain, Morocco or West Africa. 

Our North West England Avocets are winter absentees but return as early as late February/early March to look for breeding opportunities. It is likely that these individuals have spent recent months in southern England rather than being Africa returnees. 

So little is known about Lancashire and Merseyside Avocets, an area where very low numbers have been ringed, that more ringing records and recoveries should add to the current understanding of the movements and migrations of the species as a whole. 

Avocet   

While we counted around 140 Sand Martins at the colony the catch of just 13 was disappointing- 10 adult males and 3 juveniles of the year. The ten adults included a ring not of our own series - APA6004. 

Sand Martin - adult

Sand Martin - juvenile 

Sand Martin

We had no recaptures from our previous one of 30 Sand Martins on 30 May when twenty of those were adult males. It would appear that the ladies avoid us and that the resident birds as a whole have in a short time, learned to negotiate our mist net. 

 Sand Martins

We will leave them to get on with it for a while and try to time our next visit for a more substantial result.

Linking today to Anni's Birding and https://viewingnaturewitheileen.blogspot.com.

Cuckoo

And now for the worst TV advert of 2020. 

Why is this woman talking about Cuckoos from her childhood when the bird song in the advert is a Chiffchaff that sounds nothing like a Cuckoo?

Come on Nationwide, don’t take us all for mugs. At least dub the sound of a Cuckoo over the film and tell us about your savings accounts instead of virtue signalling about coronavirus.

    

Nationwide Building Society is a mutual building society, also known as a ‘mutual’. Put simply it means the society is owned and run for the benefit of their members.

Their Chief Executive Joe Garner was paid a total of £2.37 million in 2019 and he would like you to put your hard earned cash into a Nationwide ISA account that pays out the magnificent sum of 0.5% interest. That’s right, put £100 into their fixed one year ISA and you will receive a whole 50p in interest.

   

Now that is cuckoo.

A Waiting Game

Five in the morning and I lay wide-awake, mulling over the weekend gone and the days ahead. With another morning of waiting around for a promised delivery, I felt a rant coming on and sat at the keyboard with one eye trained along the road outside. 

For three days we watched for a delivery that never arrived. But the neighbours' did. White Van Man and then another food drop as Sainsbury’s green one failed to stop at Number 3. I swear those neighbours are stockpiling the garage, cupboards and freezers for the next pandemic or the newest Project Fear, inspired by our unbiased and impartial but highly predictable media. 

I have news for BBC, ITV, Channel Four and Sky - We, the public who pay your wages, know what you’re doing, your hidden agendas.  For sure it’s the re-election of President Donald Trump in November 2020 and Real Brexit of 1st January 2021 when the media’s EU funding dries up. 

I left Sue on lookout Monday afternoon and snuck out to Cockerham for a look along the sea wall. Richard had newly fixed Covid signs to gateposts to deter social distancing doggie and cycle folk from their recent and ongoing trespass through his sheep and cattle. None had bothered to seek permission for their jaunts. So it continues - farmers versus townies and never the twain shall meet. 

I had a good selection of birds where the pool, reeds and hedgerows provided the best. At least six singing Reed Warbler and three pairs of Reed Bunting proved easy to find by their respective songs. More difficult to see were now quiet Sedge Warbler, Blackcap and even Chaffinch, all of which by June have less need to display their desirability.

Reed Bunting 

Reed Warbler 

The water held several Greylag, Mute Swans with 2 young, 4 Tufted Duck, 2 Shelduck, the inevitable Little Egret, and whinnying but unseen Little Grebes. The grebes may be on their second brood by now because ten days ago I saw a flotilla of young and old disappear into the pool margins. 

Little Grebe 

Along the sea wall the Environment Agency had found work for idle hands whereby three x four by four vehicles and a JCB were sent to drive up and down the bund and shift tidal wrack a few yards higher up the sea wall. The story is that the lower down debris stops the growth of grass that binds the grass to the substrate which in turn maintains the strength of the bund. The bund/sea wall serves as a defence to high tides that might one day engulf the land behind. Mystified? Yes, me too. 

Needless to say, I saw few Skylarks, the single species that actually nests on the same ground during May, June and July and along which the vehicles drove up and down for some hours. In several visits I have seen no evidence of Skylarks nesting along here this spring. I also think The Environment Agency could do with a makeover that includes a different title.

Skylark 

Along the ditches and dykes came 6 Oystercatcher, 5 Redshank, 4 more Little Egret, a single Pied Wagtail and several Linnets. Out on the marsh were distant gulls, more Shelduck and 2 Eider ducks, male and female but as far as could tell, no young in tow. Half-a-dozen Swallows and a lone Swift drifted by. 

I bumped into Richard, out to survey his barley, a crop struggling for height in this driest of springs. As we spoke a Roe Deer crashed from the dense hedgerow, bounded through the crop and disappeared out of sight. 

Richard told me the family had not ventured out onto Murder Mile last weekend because they could see and hear the probable aftermath of release from lockdown. They were right to stay safe. Bikers hurtled full throttle along the A588 where 100 yards up from the farm another middle aged wannabe racer bit the dust by landing head first into the roadside ditch. Six kids and a wife left behind. Another needless death caused by the China virus. 

I heard tell via the Internet that all three Avocet nests at Conder Pool had failed so motored on for a gander. Indeed all gone with not a one to be seen, least of all little fluffy grey ones. There’d been a little unanswered discussion online as to why the Avocets failed so miserably, perhaps sheep or mink, even though Oystercatchers and gulls yards away produced fine chicks? 

No one seems or even wants to know except that grazing sheep or a mink might carry the unopened can of worms, but not bird watchers. 

Luckily, another pair of Avocets half a mile away on a stony island encircled by comatose, immobile anglers succeeded where others failed. There they strode, three healthy looking chicks and two proud parents who for weeks saw off Grey Herons, gulls and Greylag Geese with no interference from trespassing birders. 

Avocet 

 Avocets

We’re still waiting for the van. Watch this space.

Linking today to Anni's Blogspot and Eileen's Saturday Blogspot.

Garden Time

Monday 25 May 2020 produced a tiny catch of birds at Oakenclough during our first visit of the spring. We planned a return for this week as we knew from experience there would be more Willow Warblers and other species along pretty soon. 

Andy and I met up at 0630 to zero wind, full cloud cover and a promise of no rain. We ringed just 13 birds - 9 Willow Warbler, 2 Great Tit, 1 Blackcap and 1 Garden Warbler. 

The highlight of the morning was the last named species - yes, a Garden Warbler Sylvia borin. 

“So what’s the big deal?” I hear the cry from afar. 

Garden Warbler

The big deal is that seven or eight pairs of Garden Warblers bred in the plantation here every year until the mid-2000s when they were gradually pushed out by invasive rhododendron that overwhelmed the entire area. Other species forced out at that time included the Common Bird Ringer, Yellowhammer, Bullfinch, Tree Pipit and Lesser Redpoll. There was also a drastic reduction in the number of breeding Willow Warblers from 15/20 pairs down to single figures. 

And then in 2012/2013 the owners United Utilities (UU) invested money in trying to eliminate the rhododendron and followed it up with a replanting scheme of native species. It was a thankless and massive task that took many hours of manual labour working in difficult terrain. Even now, the evil rhododendron is attempting a come-back and will surely succeed unless UU begin an ongoing and periodic regime of destruction. 

The significance of today’s Garden Warbler is that our bird was a female in prime breeding condition; a full brood patch at this the appropriate time of year rather than the species' usual appearance as an uncommon spring or autumn migrant. Fingers crossed that we catch the corresponding male, the youngsters and that the Garden Warbler has returned. 

Garden Warbler 

Over the years 1996 to 2019 our tiny group of ringers have ringed over 370 nestling Willow Warblers at Oakenclough. During that time finding, recording and ringing the nestlings became a project in itself where no mist nets were employed and no adults caught. 

Today we chanced upon a further nest that held 6 young Willow Warblers of an ideal size for ringing. Therefore our nine Willow Warblers consisted of 3 new adults and 6 nestlings. 

Willow Warbler nest 

Willow Warbler

The single Blackcap was a new adult male, the two Great Tits recently fledged youngsters. 

Blackcap

Great Tit

Other birds today - 2 Great-spotted Woodpecker, 1 Cuckoo, 1 Sparrowhawk, 1 Grey Wagtail. 15 Greylag, 2 Oystercatcher, 2 Swallow, 4 Chaffinch, 2 Goldfinch.

Linking this post to Anni's Birding Blog and Eileen's Views of Nature.

Martin Morning

Our Sand Martins (smarties) give us headaches every year. Last year all of their nests were high up the quarry face and out of reach for catching purposes. This proved even more frustrating when regular visits showed peak counts of 250-300 individual and 100 or more active nest holes. 

This year, and along with Swallows and House Martins, the Sand Martins arrived late. This year they chose a different part of the quarry face in which to nest and where the number of active tunnels seemed closer to 60 with the numbers of martins no greater than 130. 

But, this year’s face has a sheer rather than a sloping profile of loose grand and gravel, so on weighing up the possibilities, we considered it might be possible to catch a few.  Chris kindly offered to help out by way of placing some heavy anchorage on the quarry floor with which to secure a single mist net at both ends. 

Off we went for an early start when the sun would not light up a mist net. As it was, our net was many feet below the lowest tunnels but in the shade of the quarry face. We had a decent catch of 30 Sand Martins and 1 House Sparrow, the latter very unexpected. 

Sand Martin 

Sand Martin colony 

The martins divided as 20 adult males and 10 adult females. This told us that a good number of females were sat tight in the nest holes and that, as yet, there are no fledged youngsters. 

Field Sheet

Sand Martin

Other birds seen this morning – 18 Greylag Goose, 2 Oystercatcher, 2 Pied Wagtail, 1 Great-spotted Woodpecker, 1 Mistle Thrush. 

Oystercatcher

Mistle Thrush

Linking today with Eileen's Saturday Blogspot and Anni's Blogging.

Catching Up

We have now lost two months of ringing with a corresponding loss of two months of data collection. Bird ringers confined to barracks have not caught other ringers’ birds and ringers have been unable to catch birds previously ringed by others. 

Many ringed birds are recovered via Joe Public when they report their finding of a ringed bird via the address inscribed on each ring, but with so many people stuck at home it was inevitable that incoming information would be much less. 

Bird Rings - Size E and Size F 

Although ringing is no longer all about the where and when of bird movements, it is always interesting and thought provoking to receive a BTO notification about a bird ringed weeks, months or years before. Even better perhaps is to catch a bird wearing an unfamiliar ring number with a foreign ring, the ultimate prize for many bird ringers. 

The emphasis of bird ringing is the generation of information on the survival, productivity and movements of birds, helping us to understand why populations are changing. Ringing data make a major contribution to the study of population changes and to the understanding of species declines. 

Bird populations are determined by the number of fledglings raised and the survival of both juveniles and adults. 

On Monday, and after a weekend of gale force winds, we had a chance to remedy the recent data loss with an overdue visit to Oakenclough. There was a promise of a 5 mph and early morning sunshine for the meet with Andy at 0600. 

At this time of year we don’t expect huge catches because migration is over and birds have settled down in one spot to breed. It will be mid to late June before the catch rate improves. Therefore our catch of just eight birds came as no surprise and accompanied with the ringer’s refrain – “Well if you don’t go, you don’t know”. 

Our eight birds generated a little new data by way of  4 Blackcap (2 male, 2 female ) 2 male Willow Warbler, 1 juvenile Robin and 1 juvenile Wren. 

Blackcap 

Blackcap 

Blackcap 

Recapture Willow Warbler KCE788, an adult male was ringed here at Oakenclough on 24th July 2019 when it was undertaking its main moult period prior to heading back to Africa. It was in breeding condition again today where it was caught and then released in exactly the same area. 

Willow Warbler 

Robin

This was a quiet morning and other than the birds caught there was little to see; except for 2 Swallow, 4 Willow Warbler, 4 Chaffinch, 2 Goldfinch, 40 Greylag , 2 Oystercatcher and 2 Lapwing. 

On The Road Again

Recent mornings saw overcast skies, cold winds and very little sunshine. Such mornings are not ideal for a visit to the Pennine hills with a camera itching to click. I pencilled in Wednesday for an early start and then watched as the forecasts did their best to thwart the plan. 

There was a thirty minute drive before the first stone walls above Garstang where waders, wagtails and pipits wait for townies to slow, or stop and stare. They quickly drive on, not knowing the names of common British birds while clueless as to the dramas that unfold behind them. 

In April and throughout May begins a potent mix of territorial song and single-minded ownership of a stretch of wall, fence, hedgerow and a patch of ground.  By late May and into June begins the frantic warnings to vulnerable young and the loud scolding of intruders - man, beast or bird. 

Oystercatcher

It would be interesting to see how birds react to a car and wound down window following eight weeks when Joe Public was locked out from their heritage. While the shutdown continued gamekeepers were given a free pass for the “essential work” of supplying Red Grouse for the shooting season of 12th August.

During this time the RSPB were flooded with reports of birds of prey being killed in the uplands - a pure coincidence perhaps?  The Guardian.

Red Grouse

For those who wish to continue reading, I will post the same link at the bottom of this page together with a link to Raptor Rescue with the question - "Why has grouse shooting not been banned for this year?"  

But now back to the job in hand and a favourite stretch of road where the farmer had been busy catching moles. 

Moles 

I saw upland waders in their regular spots - Lapwing, Redshank, Curlew, Snipe and Oystercatcher but probably less Oystercatchers and Lapwings than in recent years. 2020 has been an exceptionally dry spring, one that has not been beneficial to birds that probe wet areas for food. On the other hand there seemed good numbers of Snipe this morning, and decent counts of both Curlew and Redshank, three species that favour soft ground.  And, I was surprised to see one or two roadside puddles perhaps as a result of a drop or two of heavier rain on Tuesday. 

Lapwing 

Redshank 

Snipe 

There was a Redshank that survived a winter or two despite the handicap of sheep wool entwined around each ankle. 

Redshank 

Meadow Pipit 

Pied Wagtail 

I saw plenty of Meadow Pipits, not too many Pied Wagtails, but 20 or more Grey Wagtails along the various watercourses up here. Both Meadow Pipits and Pied Wagtails have yet to show many youngsters, but the early breeding Grey wags have had a good year. This was a dry spring and zero disturbance from the annual day trippers who like to splash sticks and stones into the many streams. 

Grey Wagtail habitat, picnic spot

Grey Wagtail 

The streams held a couple of pairs of Common Sandpiper, a single Grey Heron and a small colony of 30 or more Sand Martins in the low riverbank banks of Cam Brow. Unfortunately this is another spot favoured by the sticks and stones brigade of picnicking tourists, now with no work but beginning to return to Bowland on sunny days. 

It’s difficult not to hear Cuckoos but virtually impossible to see them up here in Bowland. I guess I heard six male Cuckoos this morning, one or two fairly close, but saw not a one. Maybe this is a sign that the fortunes of the Common Cuckoo are on the up? 

At Marshaw the House Martin colony at Tower Lodge was frantic with birds rushing in and out of the eaves and eager to make up for lost time of their late arrival. Hard to say how many with the eaves in near darkness but six or eight nests looked likely. 

Other birds seen but not photographed today included 6 Blackcap, 2 Redstart, 3 Spotted Flycatcher, 3 Pied Flycatcher, 2 Lesser Redpoll,  8/10 Willow Warbler, 4 Mistle Thrush and piles of Blackbirds.  Those links below.

RSPB flooded with reports of birds of prey being killed.

Raptor Politics.

More soon. Stay Tuned.

Linking today to Anni's Blog and Eileen's Blogspot. Pay them a visit for more weekend birds.

Stay Alert Birding

There’s good news. Ringers in England may go ringing again subject to following the constraints which apply to the public as a whole. It’s bad luck for ringers who live in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, whose devolved governments have taken a tougher line on releasing folk from house arrest. 

Andy tells me that via cameras in each box, the Kestrels of 2019 have five eggs while the Barn Owls are in situ but yet to lay any eggs. Mid-June should see more progress with both species and a then a spot of ringing when the youngsters are big enough. 

Barn Owl 2019

 Kestrels 2019

I was due to meet Andy later for a foray to a private site that has ringing possibilities. But first came a trip to Conder Green with the heated seat switched firmly “on” and the cabin heater to “max” when the dash said “-3°C” and I saw the layer of ice on the windscreen. 

A quick check of Conder Green’s pool and creeks revealed a few changes but nothing extraordinary. Both Avocet pairs appeared to be on eggs, one of the females is shown in the picture below sitting in her depression in the ground while her mate feeds closely by. There were still two pairs of Common Tern finding food here on the pool or out on the near estuary and where the tiny fish soon become presents to sitting a mate. 

Avocet 

 Avocet

Common Tern

A pair of Great Crested Grebe put in a brief appearance before they flew off in the direction of Glasson Dock where the species breeds in most years dependent upon disturbance and suitable water levels. A pair of Canada Goose have success by way of 4 tiny goslings. 

In the creek Godwits continue to fluctuate with today 44 Bar-tailed Godwit and 4 Black-tailed Godwit. There was a single Greenshank and a lone Dunlin. Four Swift was my highest count of the year so far on this the fourteenth of May. 

That completed the lightning visit to Conder Green because I was due to meet Andy at a local farm. The farmer, let’s call him Tom, Dick or Harry, emailed last week to ask if I would spend time on his little piece of heaven and make an inventory of the birds seen so as to help with his green credentials. “No more than two people”, he stressed. 

 “OK Boss”, I replied. 

 “I will take a look once lockdown is ended.” 

Now by mid-May we hoped to find active Skylark nests on his land and better still, ring a few youngsters before the season ends. Initially, and somewhat rarer than finding Skylarks were 2 pairs of Corn Bunting. 

It was pretty hard work as the males were very mobile around a number of song posts both fence and bush. It’s likely that females were sat on eggs or even tiny young but Corn Bunting nests are notoriously difficult to locate. It’s probably 20 years ago that I last ringed nestling Corn Buntings so it would be nice to reacquaint with them when they have become so very scarce. 

Corn Bunting 

Corn Bunting 

Skylarks were fairly thin on the ground with at least 5 singing but little sign of activity at ground or fence post level. We’ll take another look soon when there may be more action if the larks are late or failed on first attempts. 

There’s a small copse and a few nice stands of phragmites reed where we found 6 singing Reed Warbler, 4 singing Reed Bunting and 2 Sedge Warbler. In the copse that surrounds a tiny pool we discovered Little Grebe, Grey Heron, 4 Tufted Duck, an overhead Buzzard and a patrolling Kestrel. 

Reed Warbler 

Sedge Warbler

Reed Bunting

We were surprised by a small flock of Linnets that numbered 12-15, a little late in spring for Linnets to be in company rather than paired up for breeding. In other areas we found 3 Pied Wagtail, 3 Little Egret, 4 Tufted Duck and 8 Stock Dove. While not spectacular, and local birding rarely is, we found a good variety of birds and I guess more visits are on the card for the coming weeks. 

Back home in the garden there are Greenfinches feeding chicks. Trouble is, the nest is high in a conifer where I would need a ladder and sky hooks to reach.  Probably better to stay safe at ground level?  

Back soon with more from Another Bird Blog where the messages remain much the same – Enjoy All Birds, Stay Alert, Stay Safe, and Control Your Urge to Watch the BBC, C4, ITV or Sky. 

You know it makes sense.

Linking this post to Viewing Nature with Eileen and Anni in Texas.