Back to '94.

If you ever fancy a drive a few miles

outside our area and - if you're timing
is right - an excellent day's sea watching you could do a lot worse than go to Rossall Point at Fleetwood which is where this pic was taken on one of the many visits I have made here in the past though I'm long overdue the next.

I was at Teal Bay on 19 November 1994 and found myself first checking the waders on the groyne before looking out into the bay. I hadn't cast

my eyes on many birds on the groyne before I came across a 'plover' with black legs and it only takes a few seconds to realise a plover with black legs is interesting, even more so if it doesn't look anything like a Golden/Grey one and it was only a few more seconds before I realised it was a Kentish Plover. Having had a good look at this bird I set off to drive down the coast to Heysham (ahhhh for a mobile phone) to tell someone I knew would be interested to know about this discovery. Unfortunately we had arrived at the days of windsurfing and it was to be our very bad luck when we were approaching with Teal Bay in our sights that a follower of this sport was heading at some rate of knots not only straight towards the groyne but also the Kentish Plover it was hosting......but not any longer, as the bird got sight of this object hurtling towards it and to which it took an instant dislike it took to the wing and was away along the coast to the south west......bad luck, but this is birding isn't it.

Two or three hours later a Kentish Plover was seen at Rossall Point roosting with 50 Ringed Plovers and remained at Rossall Point to at least 4 February 1995 and was obviously regarded to be the bird which had wintered there previously and now appeared to have arrived there for its fourth successive winter, it was also obviously regarded as the same individual which had been seen at Teal Bay earlier in the day.