Overflowing with enthusiasm to do some birding yesterday I set off to the Lune Estuary at Conder Green in brilliant sunshine. Within a mile of leaving home the fog started to thicken, and by the time I arrived at Conder Green....pea soup.
To wait and see if the fog would lift I set off to walk the coastal path to Glasson Dock, noting c.50 Goldfinch flighty over the marsh, 3 Chaffinch, 2 Wren, 2 Blue Tit, and a Great Tit. By the time I got back to Conder Green the fog had lifted enough to be able count 15 Little Grebe and 19 Teal on Conder Pool. In the creeks, through the murk I could see the Spotted Redshank, a Common Sandpiper, 7 Black-tailed Godwit, and a Snipe.
By now the fog was thick as ever again, I gave in and decided to drive back to Lancaster to find the sun blazing down again and headed to where I should have headed in the first place....towards Bowland. Given the time of day I decided to look in on Birk Bank and walked the lower path, over Ottergear Bridge, down to Cragg Cottage, on to Littledale Road, and back along Rigg Lane.
By now the fog was thick as ever again, I gave in and decided to drive back to Lancaster to find the sun blazing down again and headed to where I should have headed in the first place....towards Bowland. Given the time of day I decided to look in on Birk Bank and walked the lower path, over Ottergear Bridge, down to Cragg Cottage, on to Littledale Road, and back along Rigg Lane.
The Track To Clougha. Pete Woodruff.
I had a conversation with a guy I met at the start of the Clougha track, and whilst stood talking I reckon by now the temperature was probably 18c. The circuit took two hours, during which time I saw just 35 birds of 8 species, 25 of which were Wood Pigeon overhead going south. Also seen, 2 Blackbird, and singles of Chaffinch, Great Tit, Mistle Thrush, Buzzard, and 2 Kestrel.
Birk Bank Fog. Pete Woodruff.
By 3.30pm it was back to square one and the fog had caught up with me again and little chance of seeing anything else, but the best bird of the day called to attract my attention to it, if it hadn't I'd never have seen it in the murk, in any case there was the bonus of 2 Green Woodpecker.
Hardly cutting edge birding today, but always good to be out there doing it.
Green Woodpecker Antonio Puigg
Thanks to Antonio for the Green Woodpecker, excellent and appreciated as always. Don't forget to 'clik the pik' to get value for your money!
Always worth getting out pete, even if its just for the exercise :-)
ReplyDeleteI'm with Warren on that, Pete! I decided, out of curiosity, to go out yesterday between 13.00and 17.00, in thick fog, to see how the Little Owls would react to the fog. At about half the sites I visited, I couldn't have seen an owl if it had sat there waving at me, but I did see four owls where the road was closer to the sites - a higher figure than I've had for a couple of months!
ReplyDeleteBest wishes - - - Richard