Looking Back.

Yesterday I made some attempt, getting an hour in the Conder Green area, then spent two hours sat in a car watching squall after squall at Cockersands whilst staring out to sea to see if any wind blown strays were in the area, before throwing in the towel and going home to do an interesting back date search through my records to compare some bygone November birds.

Grey Phalarope. Martin Lofgren @ Wild Bird Gallery  

2005.

I was surprised to find it was 10 years ago since I found the Grey Phalarope at Heysham on 5 Nov, the bird was between the old wooden jetty and number one outfall, a juvenile Arctic Tern and 2 adult Little Gull were also present. On 17 Nov 15  Stonechat and 13 Wren were both good counts at Clougha/Birk Bank, not sure when - if ever - we will get these numbers of Stonechat back up here again in summer let alone 15 in November.

2006.

On 9 Nov 12 Brambling were at Tower Lodge, not an easy bird to locate recently, and a Hen Harrier was on Hawthornthwaite Fell on 13 Nov, a sighting which gives the feeling today of something like a miracle has happened.

2007.

Three Jack Snipe were at Conder Green 16 Nov, and 3 Scaup there throughout November on Conder Pool.

2008.

Three Short-eared Owl were at Bradshaw Lane 12 Nov. A widespread arrival had me see 19 Waxwing at Levens 14 Nov, a Long-tailed Duck was at Conder Green 18 Nov, this bird was present here for around a week, a Snow Bunting was at Jubilee Tower 24 Nov, and 2 Cattle Egret at Milnthorpe 15 Nov.

2009. 

Slavonian Grebe Jan Larsson 

On 3 Nov I got my share of the Slavonian Grebe on Pine Lake for almost two months, 4 Snow Geese were on the Eric Morecambe complex 3 Nov, they were regarded as the same birds on Aldcliffe Marsh which I saw myself there on 27 Nov, and I found a Black Redstart at Cockersands 9 Nov, the bird was on the roof tops at Bank Houses.

2010.

In the Tower Lodge area in Bowland I found up to 80 Brambling on 10 Nov, and on 19 Nov I saw 20 Waxwing at Silverdale. 

2013.

On Fluke Hall Lane I saw 3 Curlew Sandpiper on the late date of 13 Nov, on the same day I saw another Curlew Sandpiper at Cockers Dyke, with 95 Twite also a good count here. 

2014.

A Snow Bunting was on Plover Scar at Cockersands 10 Nov, and 150 Twite were at Cockers Dyke.

2015.

In the middle of the month this year, I've had no sign of anything like this quality of November birds, but I'm keeping the faith and....here's hoping!

Many thanks to Martin and Jan for their images of the brilliant phalarope and grebe.

Slow, Slow....

Wheatear Marc Heath 

This has to be the bird to make every birder realise that summer is around the corner....isn't it! Found today in Kent, a cracking male as you rightly say Marc. 

White Wagtail. Pete Woodruff.

This White Wagtail was on Conder Pool on 6 April 2009, although I found two on the flood at Aldcliffe on 21 March 2011. But the migrants will be struggling until we get this crap weather out of the way, but fear not a few are being seen in the south having presumably departed in fairer conditions on the other side of the channel. Iv'e come across just a few examples with figures of 5,000 Meadow Pipit, 75 Alba Wagtail, and 31 Slavonion Grebe seen, but I think we'll need to wait a few days yet for anything like good numbers to reach our area if the forecast I watched a few minutes ago is anything to go by.  

Sedge Warbler David Cookson  

But this year I'm already late seeing my first Wheatear and Sand Martin, having found both species on 17 March in 2011 at Cockersands and Glasson Dock respectively, though for the Sedge Warbler above I think we may need to wait until the first week of April, but predictability isn't all that sure with our feathered friends so keep looking and forget the weather and the date. 

Laughing Gull. Pete Woodruff.

Well you can tell its one of mine by the quality....But this Laughing Gull was at Marton Mere in Blackpool in April 2006, so the month isn't just for migrants but vagrants too.

Laughing Gull Isidro Ortiz  

Thanks to Isidro for this excellent in flight shot of the Laughing Gull, to Marc for the Wheatear, and to David for the Sedge Warbler....photography to impress every time.

I'D SOONER BE BIRDING!....But yesterdays 'hopefully tomorrow' wasn't good enough to do any birding today, perhaps a couple of prayers might bring about a change on that for tomorrow.  

Egghead!

Lost to the world of 'other things' and unable to get out birding, I thought it a good idea to fill the gap with some exposure to the man from Scotland who isn't an academic 'egghead' at all, which makes my title to the post a little sarcastic....but n'er mind.

It's also an excellent opportunity to put up another three brilliant images....even more brilliant if you 'clik the pik'.

Slavonion Grebe.Tim Kuhn.

This guy pleaded guilty to several charges relating to the trading in eggs of protected or threatened species of birds including Slavonion Grebe, Black-throated Diver, and Peregrine Falcon. He also pleaded guilty to charges of unlawful possession of in excess of 300 eggs including those of the Osprey and many others. 

  

Peregrine Falcon Tim Kuhn.

The future populations of vulnerable or slow breeding species like the Peregrine Falcon and other birds of prey and divers are at risk of a devastating impact because of this illegal and out dated practice of egg collecting, and this fella was involved in one of the biggest ever egg trading investigations. 

Black-throated Diver Rick Derevan 

The outcome of this was a long time in the making and started back in 2009 when another man was convicted of a similar crime. Thousands of e-mails were examined in that case and a network and number of individuals were discovered and exposed  to be trading in eggs via the internet as far afield as the US and Scandinavia, it was because of this case that Mr 'Scotland' was amongst these individuals, and was unearthed by investigators and found to be in possession of 2,300 birds eggs....He gets sentenced in April, and its taken since 2009 to come to this....a bit of a drag!

Thanks to Tim Kuhn for the excellent images of the Slavonion Grebe and Peregrine Falcon, and to Rick Derevan for the equally excellent Black-throated Diver.

Birding tomorrow....hopefully.

Picture This!

If the truth be known there are as many birders who take excellent photographs and who visit Birds2blog as there birders who don't take photographs at all, these photographers are always pleased to find a decent pic or two on here whilst I share their brilliant work with everyone. So we have an all winners situation here and that's really good and just what I like the blog to be, a show-ground, an advertising tool....Oh, and I also get out birding on occasion's and can then pass on my records.

So here are four of the most recent photographs I have found on the various websites, plus one sent to me by a birder who often helps me out of some of the holes I find myself in from time to time....it ain't what you know, its who you know! 

    Bee-Eater Antonio Puigg  

Some birds display some truly amazing colours and the Bee-Eater must be one of the most colourful to be found in the UK on occasion's, I have seen multi reports of them today including two in East Yorkshire.

Knot Brian Rafferty

Our own Knot changes from its less colourful winter plumage into the red summer coat as shown in this excellent image which includes the very smart Grey Plover also in its summer breeding plumage.

Red Kite Phillip Tomkinson  

The Red Kite is one of a few magnificent birds of prey resident in this country and has been the subject of a successful reintroduction scheme in recent times as opposed to other species of raptor some of which are staring extinction in the face....just for being birds of prey.

Slavonion Grebe David Cookson

In its subdued winter plumage the Slavonion Grebe becomes a little black and white job, but the grebes are all delightful birds.

And finally....

Common Rosefinch. Copy Permitted.

Here's another one of the Common Rosefinch featured a couple of times in recent posts on Birds2blog.

Red-necked Grebe.

Grebes. A. Thorburn.



An illustration of five grebe species by Archibald Thorburn, regarded by many as the best natural history artist of the 19th century and in particular of birds. The picture shows clockwise from the top right, Black-necked, Great-crested, Little, Slavonian, and Red-necked Grebes.

A Red-necked Grebe (RNG) was found on Fairhaven Lake, Lytham St Annes on Tuesday and remains there today though the species is generally a 'short stay' bird and this one may soon move off. However, there are exceptions to the short stay records, some are of birds staying more than two weeks and the most interesting one from a local perspective is the bird which lingered for sixteen days at Leighton Moss in 1979.

The RNG is essentially a winter visitor to the UK, but small numbers have been recorded in the past during the summer and breeding has been recorded on more than one occasion. The European population winters mainly off the coasts of the Baltic and North Seas though little is known about the species mainly attributed to the poor number of ringing and recovery data.   

There are other interesting past 'local' records, one of a RNG on the Lune Estuary in January 1955 - long before I ever considered any interest at all in birds - and since this particular record there have been others involving about ninety individuals including two together at Skerton Weir in Lancaster in 1979 when a cold weather influx was apparent. The RNG is by no means an annual occurrence in Lancashire - a scarce winter visitor - and there have been many 'blank years' in the record books.

Of all the grebes the RNG is the least likely to be found inland though there are of course some records to contradict this claim including some more up to date ones, but a period between 1985-89 was unusual in that out of twenty four birds recorded in Lancashire during this time, fourteen occurred far inland.

As will be gathered I've had no birding again since Tuesday....too much to do with too little time to do it in.... but hopefully a 'Trip To The Local' with JB/BT is on the cards for tomorrow Friday....fingers - and everything else - crossed.

Going from bad to worse!

Well it didn't go from bad to worse actually as it started quite well and ended quite well too, but the bit in the middle was almost crucifying, in any case you should read 'Straight Talk' by Alan Tilmouth before my miserable records from today's efforts with JB/BT, as it says just about everything I would have said on the matter had I decided to.

Linnet. John Bateman.

Thanks to JB who took the photograph of the female Linnet last Tuesday near the set-aside at Cockersands which has attracted an estimated 200 'finches' at times.

So off we went in the direction of Kendal in search of Waxwings - not my kind of birding but there you go - we called in at Pine Lake to see the Slavonian Grebe giving good views in good light at the eastern end of the lake. Now the day becomes a bloody bore to be perfectly honest as we call at Holme Mere to find everything taking to flight as we arrived but I did get the chance to note a solitary Pink-footed Goose flying off with Pochard, Wigeon, and Tufted Duck. Now we're at Sizergh Castle for goodness sake looking in vain for Hawfinch and if I'm not careful I'm going to scream like a spoilt little brat. We came away from here with 4 Long-tailed Tits in my notes. 

Now we're at Kendal driving round Kendal Green looking for bloody Waxwings, followed by a run up Appleby Road looking for the same,  well OK I know they're an enigmatic bird but....come on, from a personal point of view I'm trying my best to convince everyone that I really am a birder!

We're now into our fourth hour of the day just riding around and I'm silently becoming something of a wreck, but wait - in keeping with the title of today's post it's - 'going from bad to worse' - 'cos now we're in the 'Hawfinch Hunters Heaven' at Woodwell, this is not funny anymore and we leave with a Jay and 2 Coal Tits in my notes.

But wait....nearly five hours into the JB/BT/PW Friday and the final push in search of the 'target bird' found us on Stankelt Road in Silverdale and yes you guessed it, 20 Waxwings at the junction of Stankelt Road/Hazelwood and all's well that ends well....Alleluia and Amen.

And finally.... 

Lanceolated Monklet. Colin Bushell. 

Two young little beauties in Peru with my thanks to CB who recently returned from his trip there, his website is HERE for some more accounts and photographs of trips to the Amazon and beyond. 

Keep On Plugging.

OK, so I was faced with a little household problem this morning which seriously interfered with my birding plans for the day, well not so little actually, in fact the problem needed immediate attention, and it not only interfered with my birding plans it actually buggered them up completely for the day....so life's not all that good after all, and to make matters much worse tomorrows weather looks like rhyming with 'trap'....

But here's a pic or two to be going on with....

Marsh Harrier. Dennis Atherton. 

An excellent photograph of the female Marsh Harrier which Dennis captured at Leighton Moss where the birds are well established as summer visitors which breed here. They are scarce but regular as passage migrants at sites beyond the hunting territories of the Leighton Moss birds. Thanks for the pic Dennis.

Kingfisher. Brian Rafferty.

Ah well....we've had Kingfisher pics on here before but not this one I reckon and in any case you never tire of seeing Kingfisher pic's....do you! Thanks for this Brian.

Slavonian Grebe. Phillip Thomson.

Well we ain't had Slavonian Grebe on here before and this image of one is as good as they come. The species is a rare visitor to our area but as I recall one was a long stayer on Pine Lake from 18 October until 10 December in 2009 during which time I enjoyed good views of the bird on more than one occasion. Thanks for this Phillip.

Unfortunately we now have the choice of whether or not to dip into some more 'gloom' but the truth is we all have a duty to 'Keep On Plugging' these terrible crimes against our wildlife and in this case - yet again - our birds, one thing for sure....we can't ignore it. 

THE WAR CONTINUES