....And The Sunday Brents

Bowland Best Bits. 

Confined to barracks this past week, but I managed to keep myself occupied, including stitching some footage together to create a compilation of a few of the best bits to come out of Bowland in the past twelve months.

 

The Marshaw Wyre at Marshaw

Grey Wagtail towards Tower Lodge on the Marshaw Wyre

Common Sandpiper at Marshaw on the Marshaw Wyre

Catshaw Grieve falling down Hawthornthwaite Fell

Wheatear on Hawthornthwaite Fell

Barn Owl hunting the foot and surrounds of Hawthornthwaite 

Dipper at Stoops Bridge, Abbeystead

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Brent Geese.

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A walk along the promenade Sandylands to Heysham gave excellent views of 58 Brent Geese.

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Unfortunately there was much disturbance from the 'walkies fraternity' but my delight in seeing them overrode my annoyance. 

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Aberrations in Dragonflies.

Migrant Hawker. Pete Woodruff.

Taken on the Lancaster Canal at Conder Green in September 2021, despite viewing this image of the male Migrant Hawker several times, I've not noticed until recently, it has blue markings missing on S4.

Southern Hawker. Copyright John & Carol Hurd.

I was given a link to another aberration, this male Southern Hawker has a blown headlight.

Mid-Winter Bowland.

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On a beautiful sunny if cold day on Thursday, the purpose of a trawl around Marshaw - Tower Lodge - Trough Bridge, was to give me some mental and physical well-being, this clip certainly contributed to that....but not a bag full of birds. In fact in the 4 hours I was there, a count totaled a pretty depressing 9 species....yes NINE! 

OK, so this is upland birding in January, but c'mon, 9 species being a classic example of recording what you don't see, being as important as those you do.

My list was, 4 Mallard, with not a Dipper in sight on the Marshaw Wyre, 2 Red Grouse, 8 Long-tailed Tit, 2 Dunnock, 6 Blackbird, a Robin, Kestrel, and a Pheasant. Well if that's not depressing....I give in!

But with a couple of hours decent daylight left, I gave Hawthornthwaite a look in, brief by usual standards. The brilliant sunlight on the fell did me a favour, when I spotted a pair of Stonechat on the top of a ridge, I found a pair here on my last visit on 11 November. Also seen, 6 Red Grouse, a Buzzard, and a Snipe, on take-off with it's 'muffled sneeze' soon dropped to ground again.

Stonechat 20 January. Pete Woodruff.

When I came back down, a male Stonechat was silhouetted against the light on the wall opposite and soon disappeared. But the day that had offered me few birds, soon turned positive when a Barn Owl came on the scene to give me several minutes of pleasure when it hunted the lower moor of Hawthornthwaite, before making a dive opposite me on the other side of the road.

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Barn Owl. 

The Barn Owl is recorded as a scarce resident breeder in our area, with no breeding reports in The Birds of Lancaster & District 2019 

Ten pairs of Barn Owls nested successfully in monitored boxes in Bowland in 2020. The East Lanc's Ornithological Club received 136 records, with confirmed breeding at 17 sites. Sightings from 8 locations in the LDBWS recording area were published...Lancashire Bird Report 2020 

I don't recall ever seeing a Barn Owl in Bowland, so an excellent first for me. I've obviously been going to all the wrong places in Bowland all these years, but Thursdays bird put an end to that, and gave me another Grand Finale.

The header image of the PFG at Cockersand, in the same field I saw them in on 14 January, is to show my appreciation to Ian Mitchell for sending it to me.       

Notes From The Estuary.

I put together a few notables around the estuary on Friday, starting at Conder Pool where there was a decent count of 35 Tufted Duck, the 47 Wigeon present took off in sync flying to the estuary. Also 4 Little Grebe, and 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull noted on the island.

At Cockersand, the swans were over three fields again, the ones north of Bank End Farm were distant and inaccessible, but I reckon the total count was of up to 320 Whooper Swan with 12 Bewick's Swan including juveniles, and 2 Black Swan in the field west of Gardner's Farm.

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Around 90 Pink-footed Geese were in a field - a few in the next field - between Lighthouse Cottage and Abbey Farm, and at least 500 Curlew were in view on the Cocker Estuary, probably more out of my view at Bank End.

Stonechat Female Cockersand 14 Jan. Pete Woodruff.

It took a while to find the female Stonechat being elusive today, but it eventually performed well in front of the motor, from where I got the shot through the windscreen. I've not seen the male of this pair on my last two visits here, and four other reports failed to mention the bird.

 NOT ME!

I'm now thinking it may have fallen prey to a cat, there are at least three often around and on the hunt, though I did catch a glimpse of what I reckon was a male Stonechat in silhouette at the far end of the rough field behind Lower Bank Houses....Watch this space!

The light was fading when I decided to take a brief look at the estuary at Glasson, but I managed to find an adult Mediterranean Gull with at least mainly 400 Common Gull....probably an underestimate there.

Black-necked Grebe....Ian Hartley LDBWS.

A blast from the past December 2019, and a good example of why the Lune Estuary is amongst those at the top of the list for some excellent all round birding in our area.

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The header Grey Wagtail visiting his garden, features one of Martin Jump's excellent images he keeps sending me....Thanks Martin.

Breaking News.

Male and female Stonechat at Cockersand yesterday 15 January, in grassy area off the Caravan Park.....Guy McClelland LDBWS. 

Post Edit 17 Jan. 

Three Stonechat at Cockersand this morning. A pair flying in from the Bank End area have joined the original female. Excellent report from Andrew Cornall....Thanks Andrew.  

Full House At Cockersand!

Well, sort of a full house when I visited Cockersand on the best day of the week weather-wise. Sightings for the little black book looked good, and Plectrophenax nivalis hunters were out in force, with fourteen cars parked up when I arrived.

In order of being seen, 7 Goosander were the first to be noted on Conder Pool, then 22 Black-tailed Godwit arrived over the pool from the Lune Estuary, circled once and appeared to be going to land on the island, but decided against it and departed back from whence they came, they were accompanied by 2 Jack Snipe in the flyover. Two Little Grebe seen, one on the pool, one in the creeks.

The Cockersand swans were scattered over three fields, I estimated they numbered 220 Whooper Swan, with 8 Bewick's Swan accompanying 114 in fields west of Gardner's Farm. At high tide, 6 Rock Pipit were with a similar number of Meadow Pipit on the marsh, a few Snipe were driven off the marsh by the tide, and the female Stonechat of the wintering pair was constantly mobile over the shore between the caravan park and Bank Houses, it was still there two hours later on my return, but I never did see the male today.

On the circuit, I noted 4 Wren including three together, the interest there being I've never seen the species as a threesome before, though they are known to roost communally in hard weather, with numbers occasionally up to 10, but there is an amazing record of up to 61 from the archives. Also, a Reed Bunting, with 10 Greenfinch which are always a pleasure to be seen in double figures these days. Ten Eider were off Plover Scar, where 6 Turnstone was the sum total of waders on Plover Scar an hour after the tide.

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By the time I reached Cockersand Abbey, a happy little band of birders were enjoying the sight of an obliging and tolerant Snow Bunting quietly pecking around the front door of the abbey, at the same time 12 Twite were also pecking around the gate to Abbey Farm.

When I got back to the caravan park, a traditional look through the gate by Lower Bank Houses paid off when a Barn Owl came into view before soon disappearing again.

I didn't hang around for the sunset at Cockersand, but when I got home, this was the view looking SW from our bedroom window at 16.40pm....Another Grand Finale.

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Belted Kingfisher Ceryle alcyon....North America, south to Panama and Caribbean coast of South America.

First recorded (shot*) in Britain at Sladesbridge, Cornwall in November 1908. The sighting stayed unrecorded until it was exhibited at a meeting of the BOU in October 1918.

*Nothing's changed in the persecution of birds in the 113 years since this man seeing the bird from a window in his house, he records himself to say....'I took my gun and went out, and successfully stalked and killed it'.

Belted Kingfisher Kevin Cole

An angler and ex-birder George Shannon was astounded to see the bird at Redscar Wood by the River Ribble in Preston on 8 November 2021. George couldn't believe his eyes that a Belted Kingfisher had crossed the Atlantic Ocean and  found itself in Lancashire, England, but his disbelief was dispelled by the fact he had previously seen the Belted Kingfisher for himself in North America. In the month that followed the birds discovery by George, twitchers in droves from all over the country have been to see this bird. 

Stonechats & Dragons '21.

My birding took a bit of a nose dive in 2021, it became fragmented, and by December made a crash landing to be honest, even worse, I've yet to see any sign of lift-off in '22. But that's a long story, and in the main boring material for a birding blog. 

From a personal point of view 2021 went out on a high, thanks to the one bird I hold above all others.

Stonechats 2021.

I made notes of an amazing individual 539 Stonechats in 228 records through 2021, the first on I January, the last 22 December, and none duplicated. The records were collected mainly from Fylde Bird Club, a few from LDBWS, and include mine in Bowland, with evidence of breeding, including lowland locations with young/juveniles present (*)

12 May Cam Brow, at least one young.

12 May Fairhaven Dunes, pair and 2 young.*

8 June Hawthornthwaite Fell, pair with 2 young.

13 June Fleetwood Marsh, male with juvenile.*

14 June Birk Bank, 2 pairs with at least 7 young.

22 June Hareden, 6 birds including 2 young.

29 June Catshaw Fell, family party seen.

1 July Harrisend Fell, 12 birds including 5 juvenile.

5 July Cam Brow, pair and 3 young.

17 July Brennand Tarn, pair and 2 juvenile.

19 July Starr Hills, pair and 4 juvenile.*

26 July Langden Valley, 6 birds including 3 young.

2 August Harrisend Fell, 18 birds including 9 young.

3 August Fleetwood NR, male and 4 juvenile.* 

4 August Hawthornthwaite Fell West, pair/female/male.

4 August Hawthornthwaite Fell East, 2 pairs and 3 young

25 August Wesham Marsh, juvenile seen.*

6 September Birk Bank, pair and 2 juvenile.

6 September Mythop, juvenile seen.*

13 September Heysham Head, juvenile seen.*

14 September Heysham Head, 2 juvenile seen.*

Pete Cook.

Whilst searching the LDBWS website for records, I came across the news which reminded me that Pete Cook had passed away on 5 January 2021, he was the LDBWS Hon Secretary for 19 years from January 2012.

Pete Cook had been an active birdwatcher from the early age of 12. His trigger point for birding was watching Stonechats which were then nesting on Heysham Barrows. Pete wrote an article for the LDBWS Annual Report in 2013 when he said....'My enchantment with the Stonechat led me to want to know more about birds in general'....and went on to add his disappointment that the Stonechat was no longer a regular breeding bird in coastal areas in the LDBWS area, including Heysham. This brings me to note, the last two records of juvenile Stonechat at Heysham Head in the list above, would have been autumn passage birds....or alternately something I don't know!

Though not at the age of 12 in 1958, I was to follow Pete Cooks footsteps with regards to the most endearing Stonechat and the fascination which goes with the species.

Odonata....This year I turned my attentions from birds and a little more towards dragonflies. 

For the fifth year I found Keeled Skimmer again at Birk Bank, with 8 seen on 21 July, including something of a surprise when three males were seen around boggy areas on the west side of Ottergear Bridge. I found a total of 14 Golden-ringed Dragonfly at 4 locations, including 8 on Grizedale Brook at Grizedale Bridge, where I found my first Common Hawker.

Another highlight was of up to 100 Migrant Hawker found along the Glasson-Galgate length of the Lancaster Canal during Sept/Oct.

And Finally.

A Blackbird was singing in our garden in the evening of New Years Day.