A Quiet Tour.

Generally a quiet and relatively shorter tour on Wednesday around the estuary at Conder/Glasson. The time of year when most of the winter birds have left to return to breeding quarters, and summer visitors still to arrive. 

A bit of a reversal of the usual when I parked the motor at Glasson Dock to leg it to Conder Green and return. On the canal basin at Glasson Dock I could only find 4 Goldeneye today, and the Great-crested Grebe doesn't appear to have found a mate yet. The Lune Estuary here has taken on it's quiet summer appearance with little more than c.30 Black-tailed Godwit and a 'few' Bar-tailed Godwit. Wildfowl totals were 35 Wigeon and 30 Goldeneye, with a Great-crested Grebe of note, perhaps a mate for the basin bird. Two soaring Buzzard were seen from here distant over the Scorton area.

Rock Pipit Martin Lofgren        

At Conder Green, 2 Spotted Redshank, a Common Sandpiper, 6 Goldeneye, 4 Little Grebe, and a Goosander were all on Conder Pool. I spent an hour here watching the tide reach its height to see if it pushed anything out of cover off the marsh and came across a Snipe and a distant Rock Pipit with two more seen later on the marsh below the coastal path. 

Conder Pool.

Little Ringed Plover Antonio Puigg

The water level on Conder Pool is higher now than it has ever been, as a result one bird I reckon we won't be seeing on here this spring is the Little Ringed Plover. One thing for certain, if one does turn up on here in the next few weeks it won't be staying to breed.

Thanks to ML for the Rock Pipit race littoralis, and to AP for the Little Ringed Plover.