Wednesday, 1 February 2017

Feeding Of The Five Thousand....

....and the rest.

The fields around Cockersand held an impressive several thousand waders on Monday, in particular the field behind and to the north of Abbey Farm which had a carpet of at least 3,000 Golden Plover, together with an impressive 2,000 Dunlin, in the midst of which I found a Ruff, with good numbers of TurnstoneRedshank, Lapwingand Curlew in this and surrounding fields, also in the fields south from Moss Lane to Bank End, the swan herd stood at up to 450 Whooper Swan and 9 Bewick's Swan

High Tide Plover Scar. Pete Woodruff.
Oystercatcher Plover Scar. Pete Woodruff.

Plover Scar had been taken over by a combination of dismantled lighthouse stonework and a high tide and held 300 Oystercatcher roosting with 16 Turnstone. On Slack Lane, 18 Linnet were in and around the winter cover crops.

On the Lune Estuary from the bowling green at Glasson Dock, in view to the Cocker mouth, 110 Dunlin, 8 Snipe, 4 Red-breasted Merganser, and 11 Goldeneye. Godwit numbers on the estuary here remain low, with just 8 Bar-tailed Godwit, and 2 Black-tailed Godwit seen today, but I learn they roost a Middleton, and apparently do especially on the lower high tides, but they're not congregating at low or high tide anywhere on the Lune Estuary this winter to date.

Little of note at Conder Green, with a single Little Grebe and a Goosander drake on Conder Pool, and the pair of faithful winterer's, the Spotted Redshank and Common Sandpiper in the creeks.

Coming Soon!

Wheatear Richard Pegler 

If I'm going to find an early Wheatear - probably at Cockersand where I usually do - I may well have done so in six weeks time, a nice thought....Thanks for the image Richard.

2 comments:

  1. To get a Whooper Swan in east Kent is a big mission so to see that number you have there makes me a little jealous.

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  2. I can understand that, but the dragonfly season is just around the corner, and some of those you see makes me jealous too. Keep up your good and fascinating work Marc.

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