More Pleasantries Around The Estuary.

Although I had to sit out a 30 minute downpour as I was about to set off on my traditional circuit of Conder Green following a check of Conder Pool, the pilgrimage around the Lune Estuary was rewarded by at least one decent wader, and a personal all time odonata record.

With 8 Greenshank seen on Conder Pool, it's obvious they are remaining faithful to the site, not unusual as they can be recorded here throughout the winter, whilst they wave goodbye to their brothers and sisters as they migrate west of Africa. Also on the pool, a Common Sandpiper, 13 Little Grebe, and a Collared Dove not being a regular here, 2 Raven were calling overhead.

My initial plan was Cockersand next, but with an ominous looking sky, that idea was quickly kicked into touch. So it was an hour spent at the bowling green, to watch the tide rise and push a nice juvenile Curlew Sandpiper into closer views, surrounded by good numbers of Redshank, Dunlin, Lapwing, and 5 Black-tailed Godwit. Also, in company with a few hundred gulls, I picked out an adult and 2nd winter Mediterranean Gull.

The day bucked up nicely, breezy and sunny, and a wander along the canal towpath Glasson Dock - Conder Green, rewarded me with another eleven hawkers including four pairs in cop. This count sent my record through the roof, to put a grand total of 206 Migrant Hawker seen since my first over the River Conder at Cragg Wood 8 August.

House Sparrow.

During the week, I watched four groups of up to 60 House Sparrow flying to disappear into a wild rose bush on Sandylands Promenade towards Heysham. 

Gone Fishing Part 2.

Enquires about the legality of fishing off Plover Scar are ongoing. Meanwhile, as an explanation as to why these two 'completely ruined my birding' and caused serious disturbance to the waders on the day. My header image and two others sent to me, clearly show the reason why this was the case.

Little Stint Plover Scar. Howard Stockdale.

Sanderling Plover Scar. Howard Stockdale.

The images show a Curlew Sandpiper in the header, a Little Stint, and my favourite wader the Sanderling, all three of which I was hoping I might connect with on the day, but was thwarted by the anglers. 

I'm grateful to Howard Stockdale for this trio of excellent images. 

Whoopers Abound.

Whooper Swan. Brian Rafferty.

I'm reliably told of a total count of 1,350 Whooper Swan at locations in the Fylde, and I saw some Whooper Swan movement into and around Cockersand on Wednesday, with two flights of 25/20 S over Lighthouse Cottage, and later flights of 55/20 from the SW over the Cocker Estuary where birds were also seen on the sea. 

Whooper Swan. Brian Rafferty. 

When I got to estimate them in the field NE of Bank Houses where there had been c.265 on Monday, today there was up to 300 Whooper Swan.

Two Rock Pipit were always moving ahead of me on the tide wrack as I walked from Crook Cottage to Plover Scar around the high tide where there was a decent count of 112 Turnstone, 450 Oystercatcher, 52 Dunlin, and a lone Grey Plover, with 5 Eider off here. Of note on the circuit, 8 Blackbird seen, and up by at least 40 on Mondays count, 65 Collared Dove were in trees by Bank Houses horse paddock, 16 Greenfinch and a Reed Bunting on Slack Lane. 

Of note on the Lune Estuary at Glasson, c.420 Golden Plover, 225 Black-tailed Godwit, 5 Snipe and 4 Goosander. And my third consecutive brief look in on Conder Pool - it's been going dark every time - a Common Sandpiper, 5 Wigeon grazing along the terrace at the rear of the pool, 2 Little Grebe were in the creeks, and c.30 Goldfinch were flight over the marsh.

Thanks to Brian Rafferty for his Whooper Swan images.

Fieldcraft!

When I arrived at Cockersand yesterday it was soon apparent that the fields needed a little closer attention again with waders all over the place. In fields around Abbey Farm and Lighthouse Cottage, 550 Golden Plover, 105 Black-tailed Godwit, 75 Curlew, and at least 50 Turnstone, with Redshank and Lapwing, 8 Skylark went into the air, and there was no effort required in finding at least 265 Whooper Swan in a field to the north east of Bank Houses. 

Almost certainly the same bird seen here 25 October was a male Merlin obligingly on a fence post seen from Slack Lane where I saw a flock of 30 'finches' around the cover crop, 22 Linnet, 6 Greenfinch and 2 Chaffinch.

Off Lighthouse Cottage at high tide, 2 Rock Pipit were on the shingle and a Snipe came up off the marsh. When I returned to this area three hours later when the tide had dropped off, 12 Bar-tailed Godwit and 3 Grey Plover were noted, with 2 Red-breasted Merganser seen off Plover Scar.

On the canal basin at Glasson, 33 Tufted Duck, a Little Grebe and Great-crested Grebe. And the second successive brief look in on Conder Pool gave me a Common Sandpiper, Kingfisher, and a drake Goosander, 5 Little Grebe were in the creeks seen from the viewing platform in the half light.

Kestrel. Cockersand 6 November. Pete Woodruff.

The Kestrel was perched up by Bank Houses horse paddock posing nicely for me whilst I practiced my second rate photographic skills to achieve this 'hazy' shot as proof I'm not making much progress, also of note here was a good count of 25 Collared Dove loafing in a tree.

And a good time was had by all....again.    

Out And About....Again.

There was 2 Common Sandpiper at Conder Green again yesterday, one in the creeks and one down the channel towards the Conder Estuary. Four of the 5 Little Grebe seen were also in the creeks with just one on Conder Pool where there was a roosting Greenshank, 6 Curlew, and 3 Goosander.

Pink-footed Geese. Pete Woodruff.

From the coastal path, 73 Pink-footed Geese were over >south, 10 Long-tailed Tit and a similar number of Goldfinch.

An impressive sight in excess of 2,000 Golden Plover were on the Lune Estuary, with 82 Black-tailed Godwit, 4 Great-crested Grebe and a Goosander noted. On the canal basin, 38 Tufted Duck seen, beware of the female with the white blaze, never as extensive as the Scaup, and this one has an obvious small tuft if you get close enough to it.

Lesser Black-backed Gull. Pete Woodruff.

At Cockersand, 25 Black-tailed Godwit and 10 Bar-tailed Godwit were of Crook Farm, with 25 Collared Dove and up to 40 Tree Sparrow around Bank Houses. Up to 350 Curlew were scattered through the fields here today.

Great-Grey Shrike....AC strikes again!

Great Grey Shrike. Preesall Flashes 1 November. Chris Batty.

I was grateful for the call at 2.50pm to tell me of a Great Grey Shrike at Preesall Flashes, though not seen again by dusk....But there again this morning at 9.05am.

My sincere thanks to AC for the call, and to CB for the image. 

Late Start Early Finish.

It was a late start yesterday, and by 1.30pm the rain - which lasted until early evening - brought about an early finish by the time I got to Glasson Dock where I found 12 Little Egret assembled on the marsh for the high tide roost about an hour away.

At Conder Green, in the creeks I found only one Common Sandpiper, 2 Greenshank, c.150 Redshank, a single Dunlin and Snipe, and saw House Martins around the Cafe d' Lune area still. On Conder Pool, 2 Wheatear were something of a surprise, with 24 Goldfinch on the thistles, 4 Little Grebe, and a Collared Dove on here was unusual.

A big disappointment as I was looking forward to another good wander again but finished up with a pitiful short list. Some you win, some you loose, talking of which....

The Yellow-breasted Bunting.

Yellow-breasted Bunting Arkive 

The Yellow-breasted Bunting is an extremely rare vagrant to the UK, the first record being of a female found in Norfolk in September 1905, the latest one being of a juvenile at Brownsman, Farne Islands, Northumberland, in September 2013. 

As one of Eurasia's formerly most abundant species, the Yellow-breasted Bunting (YBB) has declined by a staggering 90% and retracted its range by 5,000km since 1980.

High levels of hunting appear to be responsible for this decline of the YBB, and at night time roosts where the birds gather in huge flocks on migration and on wintering grounds, they become easy targets for trapping in huge numbers. The species is known in Chinese as 'the rice bird' and following initial declines, hunting of them was banned in China in 1997, but millions of these and other song birds were still being killed for food and sold on the black market as late as 2013. 

Back in 2001 an estimated one million YBB were being consumed for food in one Chinese Province alone, and the species has now all but disappeared from Eastern Europe, European Russia, large parts of Western and Central Siberia, and Japan. 

Hard to believe that, in the 21st century, man needs to be better educated on the consequences of eating wildlife. 

Homo sapiens....The greatest and most ruthless of all know predator species.

Today's Quickie!

Another of those short posts today to help keep the old blog up and running along with a couple - well three actually - of those excellent 'customary' pictures which hopefully will interest you. 

You may have noticed I've put a link to the Portland Bill Observatory in my sidebar, an excellent site for keeping in touch with whats arrived and what hasn't as in the case of the Stonechat. A 'run' through the month of March on the website will uncover the virtual absence of any Stonechat arrivals, virtual save a solitary bird noted as an assumed continental bird on 12 March....this is serious. An e-mail from Martin at the obs confirms my/the general view that the Stonechat was amongst the worst to suffer at the hands of the two winters prior to 2011/12 and there appears to be no sign of any migrants to talk about arriving in the country....time will tell. The good news is that the obs does have a pair of resident Stonechats around.

And the three customary's....

Montagu's Harrier. Mike Watson.

The stunning Montagu's Harrier taken by MW on his recent travels to places far away....See Here

Hawfinch Colin Bushell   

If you need some guarantee of finding the Hawfinch, apparently you need to get yourself off to Sizergh Castle near Kendal in Cumbria where they appear on an almost daily basis, and they are actually inclined to 'come to you' in the car park, even better than armchair birding....car seat birding!

Collared Dove Warren Baker

And finally the Collared Dove....An excellent image of a largely neglected bird, and a good looking bird too!

Thanks to Mike/Colin/ Warren for the pictures, much appreciated.