Plan A.

It was always going to be Plan A today whilst the weather is good, though the wind chill factor was something else. The plan was to walk from the River Lune at Green Ayre in Lancaster to Glasson Dock whilst thoroughly checking out the bird life on the way. I had another one of those welcome e-mails today with some pics attached two of which are on show in today's post....Thanks for these Tim, the photography is looking good.

Robin. Tim Crossley.

I noted 29 species along the coastal path and at Conder Green with one or two silent in flight silhouettes which escaped me. The first bird to catch my eye was a Grey Wagtail below Greyhound Bridge, a 'few' Redshank had found their way up river here, 5 Goosander and 5 Goldeneye were also on the river as was a Little Grebe. On Freemans Pools there was no sign of yesterdays reported 10 Goldeneye, but I noted a Little Egret, 9 Gadwall and a similar number of Shoveler.

On Aldcliffe Marsh 14 Barnacle Geese are down two in number from the original sighting of sixteen, with one down from yesterdays fifteen. I counted my best ever of up to 650 Greylag, also 320 Canada Geese and 3 Little Egret. Over the distance from Aldcliffe to Conder Green, 10 Golden Plover were in the flood field at Aldcliffe with Lapwings, 22 Blackbirds, 3 Song Thrush, a Dunnock, solitary Goldfinch, Pied Wagtail, and my first lone Redwing of the winter, 5 Robin, 2 Wren, and a flock of at least 30 Chaffinch, a Red-breasted Merganser was on the river.

Red-breasted Merganser. Brian Rafferty.

With not much time left for anything serious at Conder Green I did find the wintering Common Sandpiper, a Greenshank, and 2 Little Grebe. In the channel below the railway bridge c.180 Wigeon and a drake Red-breasted Merganser, a Raven went over going northeast. On the canal basin at Glasson Dock I counted 74 Tufted Duck and noted a Goldeneye, 6 Pochard, and a Little Grebe....here endeth Plan A.