BIRDING THE LUNE ESTUARY THE FOREST OF BOWLAND AND BEYOND......................................................MEDITTERANEAN GULLS CONDER POOL PETE WOODRUFF

Sunday 17 April 2016

Birding By Halves.

Better late than never....I'm putting last Thursdays birds on Birdsblog in two halves as I'm struggling with time at the moment. So here are the results of a Lune Estuary sortie which started in fine style, even though it proved me wrong....again!

A quote from Wednesday's post....'I have a distinct feeling it's not going to happen in 2016'....I was talking about the likelyhood of a Little Ringed Plover on Conder Pool this late spring, but my prediction was about to be proved wrong. 

I was hanging on to the hope of finding a LRP again this year, and looking excactly in the area where the birds had always been found in previous years there it was, Little Ringed Plover Conder Pool had delivered again

I'd noted the pool was quiet, but it was good to see the Gadwall pair still on here, though never seen out in the open yet, always lurking somewhere behind the islands, also 'the' lone Black-tailed Godwit here. I don't understand this bird, always alone and surely the same individual seen here numerous times throughout this year and last.

In the creeks, Spotted Redshank, a Greenshank, and 2 Common Sandpiper, with a few Redshank one of which was displaying. Legging it to Glasson Dock from Conder Green, 2 Great Tit, Reed Bunting, Goldfinch, Chaffinch, Robin, and House Sparrow....Not a migrant in sight and still waiting for my first Willow Warbler.


Black-tailed Godwit. Pete Woodruff.

On the Lune Estuary, c.350 Back-tailed Godwit, the photograph clearly illustrating the difficulty of counting birds on these stoney islands at low tide, there are at least fifty in the picture above. A 'few' Bar-tailed Godwit seen, 16 Eider is by far my best ever count on this section of the estuary where at best they are irregular, 4 Red-breasted Merganser seen recently were here still. During my 3 hour visit to the Lune Estuary maybe 8 Swallow went over heading north.


Black-tailed Godwit. Pete Woodruff.

Some of the Black-tailed Godwit were feeding close in, I did my best to capture the stunning breeding plumage most of these birds are acquiring. Hopefully the second half of Thursdays birding to follow when I can get to the computer.   

I'm grateful for some images Mike Atkinson sent me, including the excellent female Siskin header. 

2 comments:

  1. As a lifelong bird lover...I really love your blog!

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  2. Keith....As a 'half of my life' passionate birder. Many thanks for your compliment about Birds2blog, I'm sure you will appreciate what to means to a common little birder like me for someone to be so kind through their words.

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