Resurrection!

Well my birding has been very patchy of late, in fact it's been non existent to be honest, but I'm working on getting myself out of the hole I find myself in. Meanwhile, there's some resurrection on the horizon in some areas starting with a fledged c.6 week old juvenile Tawny Owl seen in Bowland.

This is the best image available, a phone shot for the record. I've decided to keep my mouth shut about details on this one....Schedule 1 birds and all that!

The Lancaster Orchids.

It was good to find the orchids again this year east of Lancaster.

Southern Marsh Orchid June 2026. Pete Woodruff.

This time I found at least 120 spikes of Southern Marsh Orchid, a slight improvement on last year, when I made a count of up to 100 spikes.

Common Spotted Orchid June 2026. Pete Woodruff.

My count this year, was of 48 Common Spotted Orchid, better than last year when it was 25 spikes.

Garden Birds.

Our birds have had a good breeding season so far this year.

I managed to get some footage of the Blue Tit feeding young, also Great Tit, Goldfinch and Dunnock all have young, and a Blackbird with a juvenile. The House Sparrow has done well with a total figure of at least 40 adult and young.

Who knows how many adult and young Starling have visited us over the past few weeks, it could have been a three figure number, and included this bully juvenile on the apple.

Garden Bees.

The garden bees were busy on Sunday with the weather warming.

Red Mason Bee. Pete Woodruff.

The Mason Bees were back and forth to the hotel....

The Blue Mason Bees were filling in the holes, with an upstairs neighbour having a nosey!

Blue Mason Bee. Pete Woodruff.

....this one was resting on the roof. I think these will leave later than their red cousins, but both will have gone by the end of July.

Common Carder Bee. Pete Woodruff.

A Common Carder Bee was nectaring on Viper Bugloss.

Conder Pool.

It's good to see the Common Terns have taken control of the platform, and even better to hear they have started to produce this years chicks. The news from Conder Pool gets better by the day, when two new Common Terns arrived yesterday.

The Avocets are also having a good season, and adults have already succeeded to guide chicks off Conder Pool, to cross the busy B5290 to the River Conder. I have no accurate figures, but I get the impression there are at least 20 Avocet chicks with 5 nests to hatch.

There seems to be no end to the good news from the pool this year, when a new Avocet arrived here to breed. This is a bird ringed at Boulais in France 20 June 2008, according to its history, a much traveled 18 year old Avocet.

I am grateful to Howard Stockdale for this update with news and images from Conder Pool. 

Bittersweet In Bowland.

With with an e-mail from AC of 10 male and 2 female Keeled Skimmer at Birk Bank on Tuesday, and my finding Golden-ringed Dragonflies without much effort at three locations already, I'm fast becoming confident of a good Odonata year, in particular the GRD's.

My day on the fringe of Bowland was a bittersweet affair on Monday. Beginning with the 'sweet', on 29 April I found a pair of Redstart prospecting a tree hole near to Holme Wood, but despite two subsequent visits on 19/27 May, I had no sign of the birds. But on my return there on Monday, I found one possibly two Redstart, one a juvenile, the second, a glimpse of movement around the trees, I failed to establish female/juvenile, but good to know they bred there after all, but not in the Ash I had seen them at on 29 April.

Common Blue Damselfly. Pete Woodruff.

I found a Common Blue Damselfly at Grisedale Brook, and it didn't take long for me to find 3 Golden-ringed Dragonflies, watched a Wren feeding a begging young on the brook, and noted an Ashy Mining Bee.

Of 3 Willow Warbler singing within 50 metres of each other, this one was atop of the same bush it was when I saw it here on 27 May, when it escaped the talons of a Sparrowhawk that dived into the gorse, I had thought it had met its end, thankfully I was wrong.

The 'bitter' came with a visit to Harrisend, where I was disappointed to find just 3 Stonechat, being two male, and one escaping ID behind the tall bracken. A Raven and a large number of Carrion Crow including c.80 up into the air over the ridge. At least 10 Meadow Pipit seen, 2 Reed Bunting one a singing male, 3 Willow Warbler, 4 Linnet, a Goldfinch, Blackbird, 3 Swallow over, and a Kestrel.

Bombus vestalis Pete Woodruff.

Butterflies and bees seen on Harrisend, 17 Small Heath and a Red Admiral. Also the second of two Cuckoo Bumblebees I've recently found, this one is the largest of British cuckoo species, the Vestal Cuckoo-Bee.

Lancaster Orchids.

I counted 180 spikes of Common Spotted Orchid, and 14 spikes of Northern Marsh Orchid on Langthwaite Road Monday evening.

Stunning header image of the equally stunning male Stonechat on Hawthornthwaite Fell, probably the same bird I recently caught on video. Thanks Martin.      

Third Time Lucky.

Bee Orchid 22 June. Pete Woodruff. 'Clik the piks'

It was third time lucky when KT and myself visited the site on the outskirts of Lancaster again, where we found three spikes of Bee Orchid, not that all that easy to find in the long grass on the bank. Other Orchids in the area have gone through the roof, when 378 Common Spotted were counted. Thanks to AC for his contribution here.

Garden Pond Frog. Pete Woodruff.

Everyone was chuffed to find a Frog in our garden pond recently, it has been seen three times since in various parts of the garden.

Conder Update.

I had an excellent update from Howard Stockdale, with all the news from Conder Pool.

No Vacancies. Howard Stockdale.

The news included this image of a full house, with two Common Tern, two Avocet, and a Black-headed Gull all sitting on the island.

A Common Tern appeared to be an immature on the marker at Conder Pool two days ago on 22 June. 

Common Tern Conder Pool 22 June. Howard Stockdale.

It was an older bird with stunted growth related to it's injury, having lost most of it's lower left leg contributing to poor health. 

The header image is of the first breeding Common Terns of Conder Pool 2014, and shows an adult with two young including one of the runts I mentioned in my last post as being a tradition with the terns here.

Armchair Birding. Episode 2.

Common Tern Chicks Conder Pool Pontoon 16 June. Howard Stockdale.

Some excellent updated news from Conder Pool. The Common Tern have three chicks on the pontoon, all ringed and one being a runt which is becoming a tradition with the Conder Terns....

Conder Cattle 16 June 2020. Howard Stockdale.

....and the farmer has replaced the sheep with coo's!

Bee Orchid. Pete Woodruff.

I made my third visit to a local site to count at least 147 Common Spotted Orchid, whilst finding no Bee Orchid, moving a step closer towards 2020 being a blank year. Although, unless my camera date was incorrect at the time, this image was taken at the location on 22 August last year, so perhaps plenty of time yet.

Large Skipper. Pete Woodruff.

Also seen this week on a pleasant couple of hours on an equally pleasant evening, a Large Skipper and Common Blue Damselfly.

Hedge Woundwort. Pete Woodruff. 

The Hedge Woundwort is common throughout most of Europe, but nevertheless a beautiful flower, adding some welcome colour to the roadside verge where I found it. A close relative of Marsh Woundwort, and are both members of the Mint family. 

Thanks to Bryan Yorke for this and previous requests to Bryan for help with ID. Please 'clik the piks' hopefully they may look better.

.............................................................................

During my conversation with the gamekeeper at Cragg Cottage on Wednesday, I asked if he had noted any Stonechats on his daily trips up Clougha and beyond. His reply echoed mine, that the Stonechat was only just beginning the return to Clougha in any number since their departure 10 years ago during the severe winter weather of 2009 - 11. 

Although I had given up on the Clougha/Birk Bank Stonechats when I realised they had abandoned the area following the two consecutive severe winters, on my occasional visits, I was encouraged by finding 9 Stonechat wintering at Birk Bank on 5 January 2017. That said, annual reports for 2018 claimed breeding at 14 locations in Bowland, but I saw no evidence that Clougha was included in the fourteen, and on the few summer visits that I have made there since 2011, I had no reason to think the gamekeepers comment was anything but correct, and that the Stonechat was only just beginning to return to Clougha in anything like the numbers I collected for 10 years 1999 - 2009. 

A good example from my past records would be, 20 Stonechat seen on 15 June 2009. My hopes are that it will soon become what was once our areas stronghold of this brilliant little gem. 

Armchair Birding.

Around and about, and goings on in the garden....The photographs will look even better if you clik the piks.

Conder Pool.

The Sheep Problem Conder Pool 2019. Pete Woodruff

It wasn't good news to hear a pair of Common Tern have suffered a nest failure on Conder Pool, but  good to hear the sheep have now been removed. Last year I had on good authority in a letter....'the sheep were not supposed to go on the surrounds of Conder Pool until late July to reduce disturbance to breeding birds'.

On a more positive note, a pair of Common Tern have taken up on the pontoon now, hopefully a pair of Black-headed Gull already breeding on there, will have fledged young before the terns have hatched, hopefully avoiding a repeat of last years horrific attack by the adult gulls, when the young terns were lucky to have escaped with their lives....just. 

Interesting to note, the Common Terns had two chicks hatched on the pontoon a year ago yesterday on 13 June 2019. Despite the excellent spring weather, and May being the sunniest month on record, things are running late with the Conder Pool terns, but not as late as their first ever visit to Conder Pool, when they didn't arrive here until 2 July 2014.

Bowland. 

 
Woodcock Howard Stockdale 

More good news received from a favourite haunt of mine was a Woodcock at Marshaw. I had two Woodcock here on 21 February 2018, and previously saw two more in the plantation behind Tower Lodge on 18 March 2015. 

Dipper Juvenile Howard Stockdale 

A juvenile Dipper and Common Sandpiper were seen on the Marshaw Wyre.

The Orchid Wander.

Common Spotted Orchid. Pete Woodruff.

The wander with KT for an update on the local orchids was rewarded by up to 44 spikes of Common Spotted Orchid including this variant white. No sign of any Bee Orchid yet, flowering from early June. I'm beginning to wonder if 2020 isn't going to be a year for them here. A couple of butterflies were braving the not too perfect weather, a Red Admiral and the Meadow Brown was my first of the year.

From The Garden.

View Full Screen

Our now resident Carrion Crow was joined by relatives this week, with six being on the rooftops opposite one day. I can't work out what's going on with these birds hanging around a residential area, particularly the resident bird been here two months now.

Three pairs of Blackbird visit our garden daily, and we've had two new young in the garden this week, so four to date is a good result this year, also a young Dunnock was a welcome sight, the adults have been around all year. The Coal Tit still continue to entertain, collecting seed from the feeder and burying them all over the garden and beyond with their amazing behaviour, the pair emptied the sunflower feeder in a day. I watched them this morning whilst having my 'snap, crackle, and pop', one of them flew from the feeder to the same area of the garden twenty times in ten minutes non-stop. 

Thanks to Howard Stockdale for the much appreciated e-mail this week, with news and images attached.

Orc's In Lanc's.

I thought I'd glimpsed an Orchid from a moving car on Monday, so the following day I thought I should get myself off to investigate.....What a great idea.

Clik the piks, they're bigger and better.

Bee Orchid. 17 June. Pete Woodruff

I was delighted to find a few spikes of the brilliant Bee Orchid. Seen as one of the best known and loved Orchids, its flowering is sporadic, which accounts for failures to find it at the same location year on year.

 

Common Spotted Orchid. 17 June. Pete Woodruff.

With the Bee Orchids I found probably up to 100 Common Spotted Orchid. The most common of all the UK species, the flower of which can range from white to pale pink, through to purple.

Image courtesy of Julie Wareing

I was sent this moth for ID. Found in a Lancaster garden, it's a Buff Ermine, and many thanks for sending it to me Julie.  

A chat, a shank, an orchid, and a warning.

Stonechat Ana Minguez 

Since the beginning of 2014 I've collected 69 individual Stonechat records of wintering, migrating, and some with evidence of breeding birds. Only 7 of the 69 are my own records, a clear indication that in the areas I cover the Stonechat has made little and in some cases no return at all since the harsh winters of 2009/10 and 2010/11, but it is good that these records show that something of the opposite has taken place elsewhere.

Some of these records I have collected from the various local websites, but the majority have been sent in to me all of which I am very grateful. The latest set of records I have recieved were sent to me by a contact who has collated an excellent 36 territories within our recording area and for which I must add my appreciation.

There's no doubt the two harsh winters brought considerable mortality to our resident Stonechats which would bring about the ascendency of the migrant population which will maintain and increase numbers until the sedentary population regains the advantage which usually happens within 3-4 years following prolonged severe spells, and according to the records I'm collecting we're seeing that this is happening now, the irony here being....not in my territory it isn't.

The Shank.

Spotted Redshank Arkive 

The Spotted Redshank I predicted in my last post would soon return to be with the Redshank I counted on Thursday at Conder Green had apparently arrived the following day Friday 27 June, having only been absent from here for a mere eight weeks, and will probably winter here until the end of next April. The Common Sandpiper at Conder Green will also build to a double figure count over the coming weeks too, an area only usually surpassed by the Shard Bridge area for the species count on autumn migration. 

The Orchid.

  Common-spotted Orchid. Pete Woodruff.

On a wander through our local Williamsons Park recently it was good to find a decent show of Common-spotted Orchid on Fenham Carr where a wild meadow has been planted out.

The Warning. 

You've seen my post The Disappearing Act and seen some of my band of excellent photographers images deleted from Birds2blog, so here's the warning. If you keep your pictures in and use Picasa, before you decide to clean up your computer and delete any of the pics you think you no longer need to keep in Google + Photos, make sure you read the following info....

Doing so will remove the album and its photos from all Google products, including Picasa Web Albums, Blogger and others.

B is for Bowland....

....as T is for Townson and Friday has become BT day again, we were off into Bowland once again, part of the objective being to look for/check out some House Martin sites.

Looking in on Bea Tarn reservoir a Common Sandpiper gave itself away in flight over the far side, also 2 Great-crested Grebe one of which may well have been on a nest. A walk up the west side of the plantation strip below Catshaw Fell was worth the effort if only to find a Spotted Flycatcher, also a single Redpoll, Goldcrest, Willow Warbler, 3 Coal Tit, and a Buzzard.

At Cam Brow, a small colony has established itself here once again with up to 8 Sand Martin and four nests observed, also of interest were at least 20 Meadow Pipit on telephone wires. At Well Brook Farm a single active House Martin nest seen, this is a former good location for the species, but it seems no longer, further down the Trough Road 4 House Martin nests in the Marshaw Farm complex. Noted in a short period of time in the Marshaw - Tower Lodge - Trough Bridge area, 3 Spotted Flycatcher, 3 Common Sandpiper, a Curlew with a fledged young, a Mistle Thrush, 2 Grey Wagtail, and a Coal Tit.

Meadow Brown Marc Heath

Only five butterflies were seen on the day, 3 Small Heath on the fringe of Catshaw Fell, and 2 Meadow Brown on Wyresdale Road east of Lancaster where....

Common Spotted Orchid. Pete Woodruff. 

....900 spikes of Common Spotted Orchid were estimated. I have no knowledge of the history of this orchid at the site, but this must surely be a good year for it. 

And finally....

 Photo Pete Woodruff.

I often visit Bowland and leave having seen something I'd rather I hadn't and Friday was no exception....This is the work of a warped mind having a sick joke.

 Photo Pete Woodruff.    

This was on a post close by to the one above by the same warped mind. The vandalised notices were in place by the access gate to the track on to Catshaw Fell.

Lets Twitch Again....

....like we did last summer, Chubby Checker in 1960....but his was the twist not a twitch.

Common Spotted Orchid. John Bateman.

Thanks to JB for the CSO image taken at the location for these flowers annually on the outskirts of Lancaster where this year there are a healthy number of spikes.

The Montagu's Harrier. 

If KT ever asks me 'should we' and the question includes the word 'birds' the answer is always YES. And so yesterday we set off to Champion Moor a couple of miles to the east of Slaidburn to stake out - a flask of coffee and some butties included - in the hope the adult male Montagu's Harrier currently in the area would oblige. Unfortunately it didn't and 3.5 hours later we set off once more, this time home to Lancaster a couple of miles to the east of Morecambe having suffered a 'dip' in twitching jargon. The bird was last seen on Champion Moor at around 11.00am which was 1.5 hours prior to our arrival and not reported again. 

The Montagu's Harrier (MH) is a stunning bird, in particular - as is nearly always the case - the male which at first sight is similar to the equally stunning male Hen Harrier. The MH had its heyday in the mid-twentieth century and bred in Ireland and Anglesey, and north to Scotland, but no evidence has been achieved of nesting ever having occurred in Lancashire, though there is an interesting record of a female shot in Bowland - nothing new there - in 1889, this bird was reported to have had a brood patch making the shooting of this bird an even bigger tragedy than it was that it was ever shot in the first place. 

In the late nineteenth century the MH bred more or less regularly in or around areas of Cornwall, Hampshire, Kent, and East Anglia though probably not more than 20 pairs. Through the  mid-twentieth century numbers seemed to have increased to 40-50 pairs. A pair bred in Ireland in 1971 but not since, although the species continues to be recorded there on a regular basis.

There are some interesting colour ringing of nestlings records showing that these birds return close to their natal site, often being paired with un-ringed individuals suggesting that new birds are entering the breeding pool from elsewhere in Europe, limiting the possible effects of inbreeding in an otherwise small population. Most overseas recoveries are from France, although there is one recovery from Senegal at the western end of the MH's wintering grounds in the savannahs of Africa, India, and Sri Lanka. 

As I publish this post the Montagu's Harrier has again been seen today in the Champion Moor area at 9.30am. 

This is a good image of the male Montagu's Harrier showing to good effect the difference of underwing marks compared to the male Hen Harrier Montagu's Harrier by Phil Boardman 

Return to Bowland.

Yesterdays birding was in subdued mode as is often the case with BT....but thats not a complaint you understand, in any case the weather held us up at one point. BT suggested a visit to Bowland which meant a return for me having been there the day before....but thats not a complaint either you understand!

Redshank. John Bateman.

Lots of birds have become at least scarce - if not rare - in the uplands and the juvenile Redshank above is certainly one of them but was a welcome sight today with one of its parents feeding in a field near Marshaw. In the same field JB/BT and I were able to witness at first hand the dangers faced by young birds when a 'large' gull swooped down on a Lapwing chick, took the small creature in its gaping bill and consumed the unfortunate bird in less than five seconds....raw nature.

Sand Martin. Gary Jones

The Sand Martin colony at Cam Brow this year appears to consist of about four occupied nest holes in the small bank where they return to each year, a Mistle Thrush was noted here. Plenty of activity in the photograph at GJ's colony which is elsewhere I must add.

At Marshaw I established what I suspected in a particular area during recent visits here, that the Common Sandpipers have bred and one today was accompanied by a young bird. During the visit to the Tower Lodge area I added another two birds to Thursdays count which now stands at 10 Spotted Flycatcher. The pair of Pied Flycatchers seen Thursday were seen feeding young again. A brief visit to Langden produced a Dipper, 3 Grey Wagtail, a Common Sandpiper, and at least 4 House Martin hawking the beck.

Common Spotted Orchid. Pete Woodruff. 

At Blea Tarn Reservoir a Little Ringed Plover flew along the east side of the reservoir before banking to head over the fields towards Langthwaite Reservoir. There appears to be a healthy number of Common Spotted Orchids at the Wyresdale Road location this year with a 'large' number of spikes found and where in some seasons the Bee Orchid may also be seen.

It is interesting a Little Ringed Plover was reported at Conder Green on Thursday on the Fylde Bird Club website, not seen here by me since in flight on 6 May. There's never any telling whats going on in the world of LRP's on Conder Pool year on year and this one is no exception, they may yet surprise us all by bringing young into view one day soon, but somehow this year I'm not feeling confident....but its happened before! 

But first the Orchid.

With JB today we first went to the junction of Newlands/Wyresdale Road SE of Lancaster to find up to 300 spikes of Common Spotted Orchid. I'm not well up on the history of this flower at this location but would suggest a good season this year. I'm also aware of this location for Bee Orchid but none found this year.

Our first birding port of call  was to Conder Green where 2 Greenshank was the first sighting soon followed by the trusty Spotted Redshank which changes its appearance on a daily basis at the moment, I also recorded the same number as yesterday with 11 Common Sandpiper seen, the Little Ringed Plover sits tightly and camouflaged to perfection, a Little Egret also graced Conder Pool, and the 3 Wigeon drakes are holding on here, c.75 Lapwing and 50 Redshank were noted along with single males of Reed Bunting and Greenfinch, 3 Knot in the Conder channel downstream from the old railway bridge were something of a surprise, and I heard for the first time in my birding life a Kestrel following another in flight and calling reminiscent of Lesser Spotted Woodpecker.

On the Lune Estuary from Glasson Dock c.30 Knot were almost certainly the same as seen yesterday which I refused to record because of uncertainty through haze and distance, a lone Black-tailed Godwit and Little Egret were noted. At Cockersands the combination of a little rain and fishing activity on and off Plover Scar caused me to stay in the car - a rare event for me - but 30 Eider were counted and included 5 grown young which coincidentally is the same number I saw off Bodie Hill on Glasson Marsh on Sunday 13 June. Unfortunately the day 'fell flat' from here on but a short walk along the coastal path west of Fluke Hall produced 15 Small Tortoiseshell. 

In my post on Sunday I noted 10,000 Swift through Spurn in the early evening, in fact later that evening I had another report of 20,800 Swift through Spurn, East Yorkshire. I think here we have the perfect example  of not always fully understanding the natural world though I've gratefully received some constructive suggestions.