A Short Birding Sortie And A Little Miscellany.

Can't resist the juvenile Black-winged Pratincole for my latest header image. Referred to as a fantastic 'first for the Fylde' find by Adam Hutt, it was seen hawking insects over fields south and east of Cocker's Dyke Houses on 28 September.  It was the 3rd Lancashire record, and 29 years since the last one.

Thanks to Adam for the record and to Paul for the image, excellent on both counts.

Spotted Redshank Conder Creek 7 October. Pete Woodruff.

It was good to find 2 Spotted Redshank were still on Conder Pool, with a Ruff, 2 Black-tailed Godwit and 2 Snipe for company. Otherwise the place was deserted, but I note there has been some refurbishment to the screen, and posts have been installed much to the delight of the photographic fraternity.

Kingfisher Conder Pool. Pete Woodruff.

I'm not sure precisely where the appreciation should go to for the work done on the screen, but I would like to voice mine here on B2B....Thank You. 

On the Lune Estuary at Glasson, it was good to see an increase in wader numbers with c.3,360 in my notes, consisting of at least 2,000 Lapwing and 650 Golden Plover, also 325 Dunlin 250 Curlew, 120 Redshank, 16 Snipe, and 2 Bar-tailed Godwit. Also noted were 255 Greylag and 16 Little Egret. 

 

It was interesting to find the Bar-tailed Godwit close in and feeding on the mud, characteristically more active than the Black-tailed Godwit, and probing for prey whilst walking.

Also interesting was the Black-headed Gull I found, it stood out amongst the few hundred other gulls and was in breeding plumage complete with full hood. 

Black-headed Gull (centre) Lune Estuary 22 October. Pete Woodruff.

The photograph has no value other than evidence of a Black-headed Gull in full breeding plumage on the Lune Estuary nearing the end of October. At the distance, similar to and recalling adult Bonaparte's Gull, from which separation is difficult....Dream on😉

Hummingbird Hawk-moth. Pete Woodruff.

The HBHM was back in the garden again, in fading light at 6.10pm Monday 19 October. I reckon this was the last we see of this moth, it having returned to our garden 32 times since it first appeared here a little over 4 months ago 0n 17 June....I was surprised to find in my records, a Hummingbird Hawk-moth was seen in our garden 4 years ago in October 2022.

And Finally.

A pair of Greenfinch appeared in the garden yesterday, a major event for our little urban garden in South East Lancaster. 

The Greenfinch was added to the UK Red List 5 years ago in 2021. Perhaps the birds in our garden were migrant winter visitors from Fennoscandia!

Pleasantly Quiet.

There were 9 Spotted Redshank with Greenshank on Conder Pool 27 September, and the header image is perfect as my introduction to this weeks post on B2B. Thanks to Paul Ellis for this amazing image of record numbers for Conder Pool. 

I missed the good stuff again on Conder Pool, with recent records being, 35 Greenshank, and 9 Spotted Redshank, both all time peak counts.

Conder Pool.

When I arrived at Conder Pool on Thursday, I was pleased to be able to count 22 Greenshank and 4 Spotted Redshank.

Although there was just the 26 waders to note, it was good that a lone Bar-tailed Godwit was feeding in front of the screen, at best an irregular visitor to Conder Pool, and not a bird I have ever seen here beyond single figures.

Lune Estuary.

At the estuary on the rising tide, 8 Golden Plover were seen as the vanguards of returning winter birds. Also 190 Curlew was a decent count for the end of September, 550 Lapwing, 220 Redshank, 85 Greylag, and 45 Wigeon completed the picture.

Saltcote Pond.

At the pond, 4 Migrant Hawker, a pair of Common Darter in cop, and a Clouded Yellow butterfly.

Hawker Down.

Whilst at Saltcote Pond, I observed some interesting behavior by three of the Migrant Hawkers, an incident which ended badly for one of the males. I watched a pair in cop for several minutes, they were flying around erratically until they eventually separated, at which point a second male started an attack on the other. I have no idea which of the males ended up in the drink, but it started to swim frantically, then stopped before swimming again.

 

I watched this desperate attempt to reach some vegetation to emerge from the pond which was impeded by the fact that it kept changing direction.

Migrant Hawker Saltcote Pond 1 October. Pete Woodruff.

I left the site feeling helpless, having had to watch this unfortunate creatures desperate attempt to escape from drowning....an experience I hope to never witness ever again. 

Hummingbird Hawk-moth. 

The regular HBHM to our garden broke its own record on Saturday 3 October, paying its 28th visit in the past 2 months, this time it was around the Honeysuckle when I spotted it....Truly amazing stuff! 

Hummingbird Hawk-moth on Salvia 20 September

I reckon any HBHM seen into October, is outside its flight period by the end of September, but interestingly, it is recorded to have occasionally survived mild winters in southern Britain. 

Error.

I'm working on the size of my header image which is in the wrong resolution.

Green For Go Part 2.

As I said in Wednesdays post, the report from Conder Pool will have to wait a few days. This was because of the chance finding of the spectacular Willow Emerald Damselfly on the Glasson Branch of the Lancaster Canal. So here it is....

Conder Pool/Green.

Five species in the creek, Curlew Sandpiper, Ruff, Lapwing, Teal, and Goosander. 

Curlew Sandpiper Conder Pool. Pete Woodruff.

There was 3 Curlew Sandpiper on this visit, and frustratingly I find in a still from the video, that one bears a ring on its left leg. 

Not viewing the bird through a telescope whilst making a video, and I failed to spot the ring....Shucks!

I achieved a count of 31 Greenshank on Conder Pool as a personal first and best, but this is four under an earlier count of 35 Greenshank by another observer. Also, 4 Spotted Redshank, 7 Black-tailed Godwit, 3 Common Sandpiper, 2 Ruff. Also, 2 Gadwall were almost certainly the breeding pair, and the Kingfisher put in an appearance. 

In the creeks at high tide, 2 Mediterranean Gull, a Marsh Harrier was drifting over, and at least 150 Pink-footed Geese >south.

  A Cormorant makes short work of an Eel for lunch on Conder Pool.

Hummingbird Hawk-moth.

Hummingbird Hawk-moth. Martin Jump.

A Humming bird Hawk-moth has visited our garden 18 times in the past weeks, since I saw the first one in late July.

Salvia. Pete Woodruff.

Over the last 8 sightings, the HBHM has consistently visited the Salvia in our garden, a pattern of behaviour which I mentioned in my last post. Since then I did some research to discover the Hummingbird Hawk-moth is a species known to engage in traplining, this involves traversing a specific route in which the insect checks specified plants that hold nectar, it does so repeatedly and in the same order.....Amazing!

Thanks to Martin for another of his excellent set of images of the Hummingbird Hawk-moth.   

Willow Emerald Damselfly.

Willow Emerald Damselfly. Marc Heath.

I found just 8 records of Willow Emerald Damselfly in West Lancashire 2025/26....

2025

09 Sept Brockholes NR

25 Sept Brockholes NR

31 Aug Hest Bank

2026

15 July Lancaster

24 Aug Brockholes NR

07 Sept Lancaster Canal

14 Sept Lancaster Canal

17 Sept Catforth

Thanks to Marc for his excellent image of the male Willow Emerald Damselfly. 

Brilliant Birds Staggering Numbers.

Christmas saw the start of what has become a mass influx of Russian White-fronted Geese (WFG) into the country. For much of this year so far, the wind has come from the east, particularly so in the first days of February. The combination of this easterly flow and lowering temperatures on the Continent has resulted in huge numbers of these geese building up across Britain, culminating in what is best described as staggering.

A couple of examples of these numbers are, a flock of WFG in West Midlands increased over three days, from 5 birds to 305, but this count was soon buried by a flock nearer to home, by that of an estimated 507 WFG at Pilling Moss in Lancashire on Sunday 8 February.

Cockersand Goose Fest.

Tundra Bean Goose. Tom Parkinson.

I'll start my share of experience of this unprecedented event, with the record of a Tundra Bean Goose at Cockersand 7 February. Found and photographed by Tom Parkinson, and was accompanied by 138 Russian White-fronted Geese. Thanks for this Tom, much appreciated.

Cockersand Monday 9 February.

White-fronted Geese/Pink-footed Geese

Nothing pleasant about the weather, dull with a cold wind, when I went to Cockersand today. Otherwise I would refer to the experience as, brilliant birds in staggering numbers. 

Barnacle Geese/Pink-footed Geese

There has been a range of varying numbers recorded over recent days, but personal counts today were, totals of 35 White-fronted Geese, 61 Barnacle Geese, and an estimate of up to 1,000 Pink-footed Geese.

Stonechat/Pink-footed Geese. Pete Woodruff.

Whilst viewing the geese in the field north side of Abbey Farm, I noted a Stonechat on the spoil heap being the sentinel for the Geese. 

1st winter male Stonechat Cockersand 9 February. Pete Woodruff.

A pair of Stonechat have been around here since I found them here 29 December. Up to 2,500 Black-tailed Godwit were feeding on the shore between Lighthouse Cottage to Crook Farm, 6 Skylark flew over >south.

There was an estimate of 220 Whooper Swan in a field south side of Moss Lane, and the 2 Bewick's Swan were in the field by Slack Lane. 

Lune Estuary.

Wigeon/Black-tailed Godwit

I called in at the bowling green to view the south shoreline to find at least 3,000 Black-tailed Godwit, 1,500 Lapwing, 250 Wigeon, and 220 Curlew.

Bewick's Swans.

The 2 Bewick's Swan seen off Slack Lane on Monday are the birds I found there 20 November 2025. But something of a mystery has developed since November, there have been several records of Bewick's Swans between Cockersand and Braides. The latest three sightings are....

9 Feb. Slack Lane Cockersand 2 Bewick's Swan

10 Feb. Braides Cockerham 4 Bewick's Swan

11 Feb. Slack Lane Cockersand 3(!) Bewick's Swan....*Note the 3(!)  

So the mystery of 'how many' Bewick's Swans rages on.

Brief Encounters.

Conder Pool did nothing to spur on my enthusiasm again on Monday, with 3 Little Grebe, 28 Teal, 22 Mallard, and a Lesser Black-backed Gull.

Within easy viewing range on the Lune Estuary at Glasson, barely moderate numbers of 600 Lapwing, 225 Golden Plover, and 90 Curlew, with more moderation of Dunlin and Redshank seen. At least 400 Wigeon, 3 Goosander, and a Great-crested Grebe on the river.

Along Jeremy Lane, swans in a field at the south end, were seen as 7 Whooper Swan and 3 Mute Swan. The Cockersand c.200 Whooper Swan herd were seen again in the fields south of Moss Lane stretching to Bank End.

Cockersand produced some interesting encounters today, not least of which was my finally nailing the Snow Bunting present here since 25 October.

The Snow Bunting is a ridiculously confiding bird, but can be difficult to spot when it is camouflaged whilst feeding amongst the tidewrack, but this one presented no such problem.

This Snow Bunting I saw on Plover Scar 5 January 2024, is a perfect example of just how cryptic the Snow Bunting can be at a distance.

Setting off on the circuit I soon came across the Dunnock, it was in the same hedgerow, and probably the same bird seen on 30 October.

This bird was just as confiding as the bunting, and gave me the opportunity to appreciate it as an attractive bird, with some nice plumage detail and colours, not as dowdy as sometimes portrayed.

As I walked along Slack Lane, 2 Snipe were high west overhead, and up to 12 Long-tailed Tit were working their way through the Willows.

Long-tailed Tit. Pete Woodruff.

One of the tits thought it was an autumn migrant Swallow on the wires!

There was a gathering of waders on Plover Scar, the best of which was a decent count of 14 Grey Plover, with 55 Turnstone and 350 Oystercatcher. A female Shoveler offshore was unusual, and certainly not a regular occurrence here, also 5 Eider. Another unusual and novel sighting was that of 5 Brown Hare driven off Plover Scar by the incoming tide, they were in a follow-my-leader line, up onto the sea wall, and away into the fields.

As I was leaving Plover Scar, in the space of a few minutes, 42 Pink-footed Geese, followed by up to 250 Golden Plover, and a spectacular encounter was of 3,500 Black-tailed Godwit were all purposefully in a fly-by >south. 

Around The Block....Again!

Tufted Duck. Pete Woodruff.

With just four species present on Thursday, Conder Pool seems to be loosing its grip at the top of the league table, but 21 Tufted Duck gave the feeling that all is not yet lost. Also 4 Goosander came into view from behind an island, 3 Little Grebe, a lone Redshank, and a Kestrel was hovering over the Stork Inn.

Calling in on the Lune Estuary at Glasson, if there was anything to call spectacular here, it was the sight of at least 2,000 Lapwing on the north side below Colloway Marsh. Also of note, a small group of c.70 waders were predominantly Knot and a 'few' Black-tailed Godwit. Up to 250 Wigeon were along the shoreline upstream to the Conder mouth.

In the field at Clarksons Farm, my notes read up to 200 Whooper Swan, in fact AC who I met later, told me he'd made an earlier count of 196 Whooper Swan.

Third time lucky....Having finally caught up with a female chat at Cockersand, I found a pair of Stonechat today on the marsh by the Caravan Park. Also to note, a large raft of at least 2,000 Wigeon were strung out along the length from Plover Scar to the Cocker Estuary.

As I set off on the circuit a small bird came out of the hedge, flew across the road and into the hedge opposite. It started a call which I'm not acquainted with, so I pointed the camera towards the hedge to get a recording.

Dunnock Cockersand 30 October. Pete Woodruff.

I did see the bird eventually whilst recording and found it to be a Dunnock, interestingly it's call was responded to by another Dunnock somewhere close by.

 

Best with full volume

So what's going on here, communication between 2 Dunnock at the end of October!

As I approached the junction of Moss Lane/Slack Lane, I spotted a raptor zipping at barely 1m above the stubble. I picked the bird up in my bino's and watched it come to land on a mound by a small flood, its was a stunning male Merlin. 

Moths & Waders.

A couple of birder/photographers who keep in touch with me and B2B, have had some remarkably good fortune with moth and wader encounters recently which demand to be featured here.

Ian Mitchell.

Ian has been in Bowland multiple times recently, and has had some amazing encounters, not least of which he has seen multiple Emperor Moths on a visit to the moors....

Emperor Moth Female. Ian Mitchell.

....and came across a female which was soon accompanied by several males....

 

 

....and had the double bonus of observing mating and achieved some excellent video footage....I personally turned a sickly green with envy at this news and the brilliant video.

Ian also attended the recent meeting for monitoring moths at Potts Corner, the result of which was a count of up to 50 Belted Beauty. 

Belted Beauty Male. Ian Mitchell.

Seen as one of the rarest moths in the UK, it was only first discovered on the coast north of Sunderland Point 50 years ago in 1975.

Belted Beauty Female. Steve Palmer.

The Belted Beauty is noted for its ability to survive against all the odds on the open saltmarsh, the male rarely flies, the female is wingless, and is often referred to as looking like a large hairy Wood-louse. I'm grateful to Steve palmer who was in touch to give me permission to publish his image of the female Belted Beauty.

Martin Jump.

Martin has been staking out on the coast at dawn for several days and has made some excellent discoveries and achieved some brilliant images.

Spoonbill In Flight. Martin Jump.

An excellent in flight shot of the Spoonbill at sunrise.

Spoonbill. Martin Jump.

And an even more excellent shot with perfect timing, and a Stickleback for breakfast, note the detail focusing on the eye of the fish.

Lapwing. Martin Jump.

Martins image of the Lapwing, like it's in the leading role of the Swan Lake Ballet. The pose of the bird, and the photography to capture it are classic.

Avocet. Martin Jump. 

Martin has also had some good fortune with the Avocets. This one was ringed as a chick on Conder Pool 2021 by Ian Hartley and shows the bird to have wandered across the English Channel for a winter break in France in November 2023....I'm grateful to Ian Hartley for securing the history for me.

Ring number	EW87052
Colour code	6L
ringed as chick	Conder Green, Lancs, UK. 53.993N 02.829W	18/06/2021	Ian Hartley
sighting	Morecambe Pool, Leighton Moss, Lancs, UK. 54.154N 02.805W	22/07/2021	Richard du Feu
sighting	Wolferton mudflats, near Wolferton, Norfolk, UK. 52.845N 00.439E	17/07/2022	Bernard Siddle and Carole Davis
photo	Frampton Marsh, Lincs, UK. 52.929N 00.020E	17/08/2022	Toby Carter
sighting	Frampton Marsh, Lincs, UK. 52.929N 00.020E	18/08/2022	Bernard Siddle and Carole Davis
photo	London Wetland Centre, Barnes, London, UK. 51.479N 00.231W	16/03/2023	ggwildlife via twitter
sighting	Conder Green, Lancs, UK. 53.993N 02.829W	09/04/2023	Howard Stockdale
sighting	Conder Green, Lancs, UK. 53.993N 02.829W	09/04/2023	Ian Hartley
sighting	Conder Green, Lancs, UK. 53.993N 02.829W	10/04/2023	Howard Stockdale
sighting	Réserve Naturelle des Marais de Séné, Séné, France. 47.616N 02.712W	20/11/2023	François Hémery
photo	Newton Marsh, Freckleton, Lancs, UK. 53.756N 02.828W	25/03/2025	Paul Ellis
Sighting	Conder Green, Lancs, UK. 53.993N 02.829W	28/03/2025	Ian Hartley
photo	Newton Marsh, Freckleton, Lancs, UK. 53.756N 02.828W	04/04/2025	Martin Jump per Pete Woodruff

Avocet. Martin Jump.

EY98060 N1  24/05/15 KCL Seal Sands, Teesmouth (SALINE), Stockton-on-Tees

W/B R/Y O 3  Sighted (R) 13/06/15 AS Seal Sands, Teesmouth (LONP), Stockton-on-Tees (20 days)

O 3 Sighted 25.07.15 Newbiggin, Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria (137km WSW 62 days)

O 3 Sighted  19.06.16 Hesketh Out Marsh, Ribble Estuary, Lancashire (149km SW, 392 days)

O 3 Sighted 01.06.17 Hesketh Out Marsh, Ribble Estuary, Lancashire (149km SW, 739 days)

O 3 Sighted 27.03.19 Hesketh Out Marsh, Ribble Estuary, Lancashire

O 3 Sighted 22.04.19 Newton Marsh, Lancashire

O 3 Sighted? Newton Marsh, Lancashire

O 3 Sighted 22.08.23 Colne River, Essex

O 3 Sighted 17.02.24 Colne River, Essex

O 3 Sighted 24.04.24 Newton Marsh, Lancashire

Sighted 27.08.24 Killingholme Haven, Lincs

Sighted 11.09.24 Killingholme Haven, Lincs

Sighted 25.03.25 Newton Marsh, Lancashire

Sighted 05.04.25 Newton Marsh, Lancashire

I'm grateful to Chris Brown for sending me the history of this bird, and for permitting me to publish on B2B.

Black-tailed Godwit.

The bird Martin found plays a leading role in the story to save the Black-tailed Godwit in the 21^st century.

Black-tailed Godwit 13 April. Martin Jump.

After an absence of more than a century, the limosa subspecies of Black-tailed Godwit returned to breed in England in the 1930s, reaching a peak of 65 breeding pairs on the Ouse Washes in the early 1970s. However, a series of spring floods saw numbers halved by the late 1980s, and now the majority of the population is found at the Nene Washes, where just 42 pairs were recorded in 2016.

The Header.

Howard Stockdale sent me three images of the Conder Green Spotted Redshank, they show the result of plumage transformation over 3 weeks since 1 April. This bird will have completed the moult into full breeding plumage before the week is out.

A Little Upland Birding.

Bowland Wilderness. Pete Woodruff.

My last visit to Hawthornthwaite was 12 November 2024 when I found two wintering Stonechat. The only other records I have from this location in 2024 are, 2 Stonechat 24 April, and 7 Stonechat 10 May. This is a disappointing result from me, but the truth is, the dragonflies, butterflies and bees take over these days from late April and the chats suffer serious neglect.

In the video, the farmer on his quadbike was ahead of the sheep on the Hawthornthwaite track. It was an amazing sight to see up to 300 bleating sheep running off the fellside from all directions to form an orderly procession and claim their turn for a portion of the cake.

Can't Have Your Cake And Eat It!

The visit produced five sightings of Stonechat, but my records read 4 Stonechat seen as 2 pairs, I regarded one of the females seen alone, to be one from a pair. Other notes made, a Pied Wagtail was on Cam Brook, a Lapwing was on territory and was the only one seen, a Curlew was heard only as was a Red Grouse, 2 Wren seen, and a Raven overhead, 5 Meadow Pipit was a shock result, but I decided as it was only the 2 April, maybe early days.

Two hours on the east side of Hawthornthwaite from Marshaw, had me find 2 Stonechat, seen as a pair in a area of Bowland that my records have never highlighted to be a Stonechat mecca. The only other sightings were, 8 Meadow Pipit and a Jay was seen as I arrived back off the fell.

That's a total of 9 species in a 5 hour period....Well that's upland birding in'it!

Wilfred The Cuckoo

    

There had been no signal from Wilfred's transmitter since 20 March when he was in south-east Guinea, but good news eventually came through in the past few days, that he had made remarkable progress and was in fact now in Spain. Currently just north of Guadalupe, having covered at least 2,174 miles since leaving Guinea, and in excess of 4,350 miles since he departed his wintering grounds in Angola. 

It's worthy of note, that of all the tagged Cuckoos, Wilfrid was the one that wintered the furthest south, and that he is now by far the most northerly of all the satellite tagged Cuckoos.

Rock on Wilfred....I think you are one truly amazing bird!

All Quiet Around The Estuary.

On Conder Pool, not only was it good to find 2 Little Ringed Plover there, but it was interesting to see the female reject the males advances and fly off when it was posturing....But love at first sight it seems! 

Also on the pool, no count of Avocet today, but certainly didn't see a double figure of them. In the creeks, a Greenshank and Spotted Redshank, which according to my records is the first at Conder Green since one there on 26 July 2024 with plumage black as the devils waistcoat. All quiet on the Lune Estuary at Glasson, with just 48 Black-tailed Godwit and a Greenshank seen at low tide.

To be honest it was all quite at Cockersand too, but Mondays 120 Linnet were seen again, and I guess the count was of c.220 Whooper Swan in inland fields. Plenty of pre-breeding activity, with good numbers including at least 40 Lapwing tight-knit in a field off Slack Lane.

I made a vain attempt for a pik of the White Wagtail, seen on the rim of a silo as I set off on the circuit, but had a little better luck for a pik when it was seen again 2 hours later in the field by Bank House.

White Wagtail Cockersand 26 March. Pete Woodruff.

Early Migrants.

I've yet to find my first Wheatear and Sand Martin. Last year on 29 March a Wheatear was seen at Cockersand, and on the 24 April Sand Martin were seen on territory at Catshaw Grieve on Hawthornthwaite.

Interesting dates for earliest migrants in Lancashire.

Wheatear. 26 February 2003. Mean Date 10 March.

Sand Martin. 24 February 1990. Mean Date 9 March.

March Stonechat.

Female Stonechat Cockers Dyke 22 March. Paul Ellis.

My records for March stand at 76 Stonechat at 36 locations collected from FBC sightings page, with no duplicate counts. To keep it simple I've noted the records as passage birds, though by now some will be on territory, and April records are to be noted as territorial/breeding. However, I have limited knowledge of lowland breeding sites in the Fylde and on the Sefton Coast, although I do know that breeding along the Sefton Coast was widespread in 2023....Lancashire Bird Report 2023   

A Large White was in the garden this morning, my fourth butterfly of the year. Here's hoping they have a better year than the last one.