....And Some First Migrants.

Green Sandpiper Antonio Puigg 

A decent 'birds' day yesterday on which I wandered into the Aldcliffe parish to find the Green Sandpiper showing it's gleaming white rump as it flew away from me on the wildfowlers pool. The flood is looking good again and a Little Ringed Plover and 'several' Redshank appeared to think so too. Sheltered from the cold howler in the cutting near Stodday the benefit of the sun could be felt and it was much more like the first day of spring than it had been on the embankment on Aldcliffe Marsh, 3 Chiffchaff were seen here including one briefly breaking into song. On Freeman's Pools I had noted 2 drake Gadwall, 3 Goldeneye, and 8 Wigeon, another 2 drake Gadwall were on the wildfowlers pool.

I legged it from here to Glasson Dock, a good old dismantled rail route which produces - amongst others - good numbers of Blackbird in winter though I saw just six today, also noted were 6 Robin and 2 Long-tailed Tit. Though I was uninspired by this section today, undeterred you can bet I'll be doing it all again sometime soon. A quick circuit of Conder Green with little time to linger I saw 4 Black-tailed Godwit feeding on the water line in the creeks, and c.80 Pink-footed Geese went over going south. 

Sand Martin Simon Hawtin

And the Grand Finale came - I quickly excite when it comes to birds - with 3 Sand Martin over the canal basin, and yes you guessed it....the bus is coming! 

Thanks to Antonio/Simon for the excellent 'clik the pik' Green Sandpiper and Sand Martin.

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