Stone Me!

Although I actually clocked up 48 species yesterday - and as most of it was spent on the coast I suppose that's not too bad a result - the day came to verge on tedious, but the never knowing what's next in birding overcame the tedium. 

Stonechat. Chris Batty.

I hadn't got out of the motor when, having turned off the A588 at Conder Green and on to the minor Galgate road, there was a male and female Stonechat on the fence posts. An excellent start to what I was hoping might be the 'big day' for some Stonechat action in the area, but it didn't turn out that way and these two were the only ones I saw in the six hours I spent on the Lune Estuary and it's surrounds.

The Conder Green Common Sandpiper showed again, the first time in a fortnight for me since 29 February, the lone Black-tailed Godwit was in the creeks, and a Buzzard was over. A Snipe was the only bird of note on Conder Pool where I saw not a single Little Grebe today.

The Lune Estuary at Glasson Dock was equally quiet, with c.420 Black-tailed Godwit and 14 Goldeneye noted. I had a good rake around Jeremy Lane where I had seen five out of eleven Stonechats in the Glasson/Cockersands area on 10 March last year....blank today.

At Cockersands, on Plover Scar at high tide, c.200 waders included c.80 Turnstone, with similar Oystercatcher, and a few Knot and Dunlin, c.150 Golden Plover were in an Abbey Farm field, and another good count of 14 Blackbird were in the horse paddock at Bank Houses. Up to 30 'alba' wagtail included at least one White Wagtail seen as a classic individual. An estimate of 200 Whooper Swans where distant towards Bank End, and non-birds were represented by 8 Brown Hare and 4 Small Tortoiseshell butterflies.

Garden Birds. 

Siskin. Jan Larsson @ Vingspann

A record count on Sunday morning was of 5 Siskin....The stuff of megas for us in our small urban garden.

Thanks to Chris and Jan for their images of a couple of little gems, much appreciated as always.