Raptor Morn

Seumus sent me a text this morning to say that Meadow Pipit passage at Rossall was “decent”. I was a little late getting out but even so the pipit passage at Pilling seemed indecent or more precisely non-existent. Comparing notes in the past it’s often the case of course, Rossall can be quite busy with birds but it’s not necessarily replicated a few miles east and probably crucially, the reason is that Pilling is further into Morecambe Bay. As a result of the text I had a quick check of Ridge Farm but all I found was a couple of flocks of finches - 100 Linnet, 60 Goldfinch, 2 Reed Bunting and 3 Dunnock which may or may not have been migrants, but otherwise no discernible migration.





At Lane Ends, with a cool north easterly breeze, the noticeable migrant was Skylark if only in small numbers, as first a group of ten and then three smaller groups of two and threes went south. A single Wheatear was along the fence behind the sea wall and 8 or 10 Swallows went through south. There wasn’t much happening vis mig wise overhead so I switched my interest to sitting down on the sea wall at Pilling Water for the next hour or two watching the 9 metre tide run in.

Conspicuous was the reappearance of large numbers of Shelduck with a count of 500+ and Pink-footed Goose building to 255 as small parties came in not from the north but the local fields. Herons were represented by 3 Greys and 3 Little Egrets and swans by 10 Mute Swan.

Raptors put on a good show with 2 Peregrine, one of which tried unsuccessfully to see off a female Marsh Harrier that then settled into the marsh. Quite unusual that the next raptor I saw coming in from the west was a Short-eared Owl that flew around at some height at first, then as before like the harrier, it settled into the marsh to roost. Also in from the west was a female Sparrowhawk that flew quickly and purposefully across to the east then into the trees at the car park. A couple of hovering Kestrels completed the raptor glut but no sign of Merlin this morning.



The tide was perhaps too low to do a wader count with most of the waders beyond the green marsh out of sight, but anyway I had been so busy watching the assorted raptors that the best time was past. Even so I did count 12 Snipe over plus 14 Golden Plover but noted the remarkable disappearance of Redshank today with less than ten. But they often fail to show here, perhaps just on slightly lower tides.



Photos today of Dunnock, Reed Bunting and another Redshank from Wednesday, then the Marsh Harrier courtesy of Simon Hawtin – more of his work by clicking the link in the right hand column.

A Full Page

I ended up with an almost full page in my notebook today. Nothing extraordinary as I might expect by visiting the usual spots, but it was just a good variety of birds, some nice totals, whilst enjoying a very pleasant morning in reasonable weather. Anyway it’s no good just sitting in reading the blogs and web pages, it’s much better to go out and actually do it?

First port of call Conder Green. Maybe it’s about due to turn up something a bit out of the ordinary again. Very occasionally I just stumble across rarities, and at Conder Green only in the month of July every 20 years – White–rumped Sandpiper in July 1984 and Pectoral Sandpiper in July 2004. The “pec” was really strange because the morning I tripped over the Pectoral Sandpiper was the day after I finished “work” as a civil servant and the beginning of my new career as a full time birder/layabout. Roll on July 2024. In the meantime I did find something of a rarity today, more of that later.

The pool and creek were as deceptively quiet as ever but with a little looking, a tiny bit of patience I found: 2 Little Grebe, 2 Greenshank, 1 Kingfisher, 2 Common Sandpiper, 2 Grey Heron, 1 Cormorant and 11 Teal. Passerine wise I saw PW’s flock of Goldfinch in the centre of the marsh, but they later split off to leave about 40 here and the remaining 300 or so flying over the working areas of Glasson Dock then out towards the marsh. I walked over the footbridge where I saw and heard a fruity Chiffchaff in the immediate bushes, then some distance out on the marsh, a Merlin sat upright on a piece of debris. A single Grey Wagtail flew calling overhead in the direction of the pool I had just left. In the creek below an additional 5 Greenshank stayed together as the tide ran in slowly around them. I did manage to get a photo of a Redshank, just the most easily spooked species ever.



A quick count at Glasson gave me 14 Tufted Duck 14, 52 Coot and 8 Great Crested Grebe, together with the aforesaid Goldfinch.

“Good” I said, as looking from the road up to Cockersands, the track over the beach appeared deserted; it was only as I turned the corner below the cottage that I saw it wasn’t. A lunatic with a household axe was very slowly, but systematically destroying and loading into his car and trailer the remains of a large tree that had lain on the beach for months. When he nodded “good morning” to me I pretended not to notice but kept a safe distance away. Me, I think I would spend a few quid to buy some firewood then go birding.



Whilst the noise echoed around the estuary I made my way to Plover Scar where I took a shot of what appeared to be a slightly sick Ringed Plover then counted the following: Oystercatcher 1100, Ringed Plover 7, Redshank 195, Wheatear 2, Meadow Pipit 6, Linnet 11.



The Mad Axeman was still there when I retraced my steps so I made my way to Jeremy Lane.

It was here that I found that local rarity Grey Partridge, a “covey” of 4, if four still constitutes a covey. They stood nervously waiting to enter a field full of Black-headed Gulls who were probably more preoccupied in robbing about 700 Lapwing and 120 or so Golden Plover of their food items to notice a few Grey Partridge. They did go in the field eventually but quickly disappeared out of sight below the hedgerow.



Nearly the end then, just time for a stop at Lane Ends to see a couple of Little Egret, 2 Wheatear and a Grey Wagtail.

Pilling Water wasn’t on the cards today as this was the first shoot of the season in the adjacent fields and outer marsh. But from Lane Ends car park I could see many of the released duck meet an untimely end as the sportsmen forced them to fly up from their nursery and over the guns.

A quiet start.......

....but it got a little better, and if optimism is the essential prime quality that bird watchers need, then perseverance is surely a close second. It was very clear again this morning, in fact both clear and cold, probably too much of both I thought as I took the sea wall west from Fluke Hall and felt the northerly draught.

Absolutely no “vis” at all, the half a dozen grounded Meadow Pipits I saw were probably left over from Sunday and showed no inclination to head south. A nice flock of 55 Goldfinch hung around the sea wall feeding on seed heads, as did a smaller flock of c 18 Linnets but the two species didn’t mix today. A group of 5 Snipe appeared from the fields south but flew north out over the marsh then out of sight. As usual the Lapwings stuck to the green marsh but I did see 3 Dunlin together with several Redshank amongst them this morning. I turned off at Ridge Farm to “do” the tracks and hedges. Again, zero apart from the ticking Robins. I stopped to watch a flock of about 50 Woodpigeons in a weedy field where I knew that with them I would find a number of Stock Dove trying to look inconspicuous by melting into the grey and white of the woodies. I was right, eight Stock Doves.

I started to think about Woodpigeons and how they are one of those species that aren’t really rated by birders. Too common, too big, too ugly, not rare or unusual, an agricultural pest even. Actually they are a pretty good looking, hugely successful bird and if I kept a list I would be happy to include Woodpigeon on it. Just look at the photo, isn’t that a corker of a bird?

Of course some people say they are pretty good to eat but Woodpigeon is not on my eating list either. Which reminds me of a birder, Doug, I met at Long Point Observatory Canada who had the ultimate list – Birds he had eaten, which naturally included many North American warblers. This eccentricity came to light when he showed an unhealthy interest in a freshly dead Myrtle Warbler (now Yellow–rumped Warbler) found under an obs window. Well I suppose he was in most respects a recycling pioneer.

The Yellow- rumped Warbler courtesy of http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page

Further away I heard the crows what I call “grunting”, that alarm call they use when coming across a raptor, even Kestrel and Sparrowhawk. But this morning it was the Buzzard that provoked their distrust as it flew briefly over the trees at Fluke before settling back somewhere into the canopy. I looked again from the wall at Fluke and in the direction of Cockerham noted a Little Egret right at the edge of the marsh.

I travelled up to Lane Ends, not stopping, just glancing left because as yet all the fields are either dry or uncut.

How often do we say that birding is just as much about listening as much as looking? Just through the gate, I didn’t need to look to know that a couple of Little Grebes were managing to survive in among the masses of ”Mallards” on the west pool duck brothel. Neither was it necessary to look for the Jays, just enough to hear their raucous screeches, garrulous they sure are.

The morning had been cool, cloudy and not especially warm, just enough to deter the dog walkers from disturbing Pilling Water but instead staying in with a hot coffee or denying Fido the usual walk until later in the day. On the stones were a couple of juvenile Wheatears and five Meadow Pipits, again not migrants but refugees from an earlier day. But I’d saved the best for last and found 24 Black-tailed Godwit on the pool together with a Kingfisher that flew calling between here and the channel below the sluice gate.

You really don't want to see my pictures of Black-tailed Godwit from 500 yards on a cloudy morning so I'll sign off with a shot from Knott End last night.

Better luck tomorrow.

Fives and Sixes

At last, after the privations of August we managed to get some ringing in, combining this with some watching visible migration. Fleetwood Marsh Nature Park was the venue for this morning because it offers a coastal ringing site adjacent the River Wyre and for “vis mig” it is comparatively near the Rossall Point landfall if a little south east of it.

An 0615 start in time to set nets for first light then is not too arduous, it’s the mid summer 4am starts that are the ringer’s assassin.

As expected Meadow Pipits were the first to move soon after dawn then continued to arrive in fours and fives so that by the end of the session c1030 we totalled c100 passing overhead and continuing south. Also over were 20 “Alba” wagtails, 15 Grey Wagtails, 20ish Linnet and up to 10 Goldfinch. Three Snipe and over 50 Lapwing were on the “tyre” pool, the Lapwing leaving soon after the first walkers of the day arrived.

Catching wise was steady with obvious migrants in the shape of 5 Dunnocks, 6 Reed Buntings, 6 Meadow Pipits and a fairly late in the season Reed Warbler. Local titmice bulked out the field sheet.

Pink-footed Geese continue to arrive. This morning we counted 150 not long after first light, quite distant but travelling south west. Later in the morning whilst having an outdoor lunch (wow, it must have warmed up lately) I counted 45 more travelling west towards the River Wyre.









Pictures from today are Reed Warbler (2), Reed Bunting and Meadow Pipit, top to bottom.

Harrier Week

Last evening I didn’t get chance to update the Blog as I was tied up with a trip to the A6 and the Fulmar, not to mention ringing a brood of four healthy Swallows at Catterall.

So this is an update with things seen yesterday 10th September on a morning stroll around a farm near Nateby and then on a visit to an adjoining farm this afternoon.

Swallows are a good starting point. Early in the week when large numbers were counted on both Tuesday and Wednesday, and it appeared that a movement of thousands took place, the count helped by the overcast but warm weather which kept the birds feeding fairly low and thus more visible, by Thursday and today I noted that numbers were much reduced, in the dozens only.

Raptors were much in evidence, four Buzzards yesterday on the eastern edge of Rawcliffe Moss in the direction of St Michaels and then today five Buzzards over Rawcliffe Moss looking North West towards Pilling and two more directly over the farm. Maybe the clear skies with better visibility just made them more easily seen, but there is no doubt that Buzzards are now a daily sight in the Fylde and possibly our commonest raptor? The single Sparrowhawk I saw yesterday couldn’t compete with all the Buzzards in the air and neither could three or four Kestrels on both days.

Yesterday at Nateby I had a further sighting of Marsh Harrier, this time an adult female, maybe the one that frequented Braides at the weekend and Monday? Looking on Google Earth I can see that Braides is just a flap and a glide from the Nateby Road, via Eagland Hill and then Winmarleigh Moss. Unfortunately, whilst I have seen two different Marsh Harriers this week, I have not been able to get close enough or at the right angle to take a photo, they just don’t cooperate.

Whilst mentioning the moss this might be a good point to include today’s birding tip, as if I really need to relate this – Don’t take a family car over moss tracks that might look and start out solid but peter out to peat. The plonker in the photo got a large bill after calling out a rescue vehicle to Rawcliffe Moss this week when quite rightly the farmer didn’t wish to take responsibility for towing the stranded car through the black goo.

On the moss today I found another flock of Linnets, this time 43. There were definitely 43 because they obligingly sat on a telephone wire long enough to count them. The Goldfinch I saw this afternoon were scattered around in twos and threes so with a total of 17, I couldn’t match the Linnet count. In the pine copse I disturbed a couple of Jays and a Great-spotted Woodpecker.

Not the Great Spot I saw today but a similarly noisy, protesting one.

A Fulmar

Someone phoned. A Fulmar found near Garstang after the recent gales was doing OK, eating food spontaneously and looking fairly perky. Could I take it and release it at Knott End near the sea where hopefully it would return to where it should be?

It’s good few years since I handled sea birds on Bardsey Island. Nights spent catching and ringing Manx Shearwaters near their burrows, deciphering worn and ancient ring numbers, or fitful naps in the tractor shed while waiting for periodic lighthouse attractions to deposit waves of birds on the ground where they might be rescued in one piece.

As soon as I saw the Fulmar and caught that unmistakable smell, that unique musty, oily but not unpleasant aroma that seabirds alone possess, it transported me back there to Bardsey and the Manxies, the Razorbills and the Gullemots.

Of course the name "Fulmar" comes from the Iclandic for a foul gull and refers to the smell that comes from the fishy oil in its stomach. The Fulmar is closely related to the Albatrosses in a group of birds sometimes referred to as "tube-noses". This name is derived from the tube that lies along the top ridge of the bill which contains the nostril and gives this group of birds a remarkably keen sense of smell used for finding food out at sea.

But this Fulmar wasn’t going anywhere, having taken a turn for the worse in just a few short hours. I took the obligatory photo before placing it in an overnight box.

This morning it was gone.

Linnets at Last

What a gorgeous sunny morning, bright and clear. “You can take the Mini” said Sue. I looked at the petrol gauge hovering above zero, then in the boot speculating how I would fit scope, tripod, camera bag, wellies, coat, jumper, flask and sundries into a cavity the size of a Tesco carrier bag. Today’s birding tip – You can’t do it in a Mini.

“No thanks, but nice try” I said, and took to Motorbike Mile the A588 at a sedate pace in the Honda with a view to frustrating the tailgaters desperate to get to work in Lancaster one minute early. I paused at PW’s Braides Scrapes (should that be Braides’, Braides or Braides’s?) to see the now regular Goldfinch flock flying near the sea wall but no sign of Merlin or Marsh Harrier.

Conder was dull, gone off the boil. I yawned through one measly Greenshank, a couple of Snipe, the grotty Kingfisher, the very Grey Heron and the common Redshank. A couple of Meadow Pipits went over but here on the coast we don’t seem to be getting many of the birds being reported further inland in the Pennines in the last few days(Yahoo Vis Mig). It’s early days yet of course, the main passage should start soon and last well into October.

I motored on up to Glasson Dock in search of excitement, amusing myself by feeding sliced bread to the waiting Coot crew. On testing whether they could beat Black-headed Gulls to the scraps, I am pleased to report that the Coot won every time; I have handled a few Coot and I can vouch for their aggression with some advice that if confronted by an angry Coot, avoid the lethal feet.



I walked round Glasson Basin to take another look at the Great Crested Grebes where I counted six on the water plus one passenger, but they kept their distance, not up for portraits today.



Near the lock I glanced up to see a male Peregrine, flying from the Cockersands direction, black and white against the bright blue, no need for the bins there as it flew across to the Lune. This seems to be the regular beat, Conder, Cockersands and Glasson in any order, a smorgasbord of raptor food from which to choose at will. A quick look from the Victoria to the distant Lapwing and gulls confirmed that the tide was too low for camera and binoculars so I made my way to Hillam Lane and Bank End.


The Plan is to set up a new feeding/ringing station where a sheltered little spot may draw in Tree Sparrows, finches and who knows what. Chris’s pools held four Red-breasted Merganser and a hopeful Cormorant who must have heard of the fishery plans on another version of Birdline. After bemoaning my Linnet luck yesterday it was nice to see a flock of 60+ feeding on the ground disturbed by the recent excavations together with a smaller party of Goldfinch, maybe a dozen. A further pool held the released Mallards and a Grey Heron, but overhead just little further away I heard the unmistakable “mewing” of Buzzards as two rose from a wood to be harassed by corvids before making off west. Down at the site a handful of Chaffinch fed on wheat put out for the Mallards where I weighed up the possibilities for seed drops, tree feeders and Twite bait. With 20+ Tree Sparrows in attendance without any additional feed as yet, the prospects look hopeful whilst the same hedgerow held a single Whitethroat that rasped away at me.



The forecast for tomorrow. Keep me in? I think not.

http://www.infomet.fcr.es/metoffice/mosaic.html