The New Header Pic.

As can be seen by the new header pic, Conder Pool in the right conditions can look quite brilliant. When I took this photograph last Tuesday the pool was void of birds but looked stunning with the bright blue sky - for a change - and some excellent cloud reflections.

Like any location the desertion of birds can sometimes be the case, but Conder Pool has had its moments and I'm not going to create the list just now. Having said how brilliant this small pool can be with its show of the odd rare/scarce birds over the years, it is in need of management, a scrape perhaps, and an area of shingle for the likes of the Little Ringed Plover to be attracted to breed for starters. Also as can be seen from the photograph its a bit too much like Lake Windermere at the moment....to much water and no muddy edge to attract the forthcoming passage waders. Still, like I say....looking rather nice Ehh!

Collared Pratincole Antonio Puigg    

Who knows....perhaps one of these staring at you next time you pay a visit to Conder Pool!

The Little Dash....

....follows a Big Bash!

I managed to sneak off for a couple of hours yesterday afternoon, for my liking it represented an all too short a visit to Bank End, Glasson Dock, and Conder Green. Like Tuesdays birding which lasted seven hours for similar coverage, today I just had a fraction of the time on my hands, still....owts better than nowt! 

Mediterranean Gull. Copy Permitted.

At Bank End where birding in the afternoon is pretty hopeless on a sunny day when it's in your face, but if the gulls choose to roost here at high tide it's an excellent place and this was the case today, but most of the birds too distant, and a haze to contend with. However, an adult Mediterranean Gull was the reward for a bit of determination and a Little Egret for the bonus.

Mediterranean Gull.Copy Permitted. 

If you'd find the photograph of a juvenile MG useful this one is just what you need.

At Glasson Dock another adult Mediterranean Gull obliged, and I also noted a Spotted Redshank and c.320 Golden Plover, 2 Wigeon were a surprise though two were summering on Conder Pool but not seen since Tuesday 22 May, reasonable to assume these are the two.

At Conder Green another adult Spotted Redshank, and 2 Common Sandpiper. On Conder Pool a Greenshank, and a Snipe roosting beside a Teal was an unusual sight. I noted a House Martin visiting a nest at the rear side of Cafe d' Lune, but another nest above the window of the house here had a large gaping hole in the side which caused me some concern. 

Swallows in Kent.

Swallows Warren Baker 

Warren achieved some excellent shots of this adult Swallow feeding one of its youngsters preparing it for the long haul to Africa. Thanks Warren, these are brilliant.


Little Gulls in East Yorkshire.

Little Gull www.arkive.org 

At Hornsea Mere in East Yorkshire a spectacular event takes place around this time in August when Little Gulls gather, on Wednesday evening at 9.00pm 7,200 Little Gulls were recorded, a truly wonderful sight. 

The Big Bash!

I gave Conder Green/Glasson Dock/Cockersands a good seven hour bashing yesterday. As the weather turned out it would have been ideal for an overdue visit to the uplands, but too much of a risk of running into the 'Rambo Brigade' and having my ear drums burst with the sound of gunshot with these lot on double barrels until the novelty of the new season wears off and they start to spend more time setting up more traps to maintain their land management exercises.

By the way....

If you're planning some birding at the end of the month and it involves travelling south beyond Conder Green on the A588....you'd best take note of the pic above.

At Conder Green a Spotted Redshank was soon seen, also a Common Sandpiper appeared to be alone, the House Martin activity seems to have fallen off at River Winds but I noted a Swallow obviously visiting a nest site here today. The best bird at Conder Green was on the pool and was a Little Grebe in full breeding plumage....must check my dates for this species here on today's date as this one could be a first record of Little Grebe in breeding plumage on Conder Pool.

On the Lune Estuary at Glasson Dock, the Spoonbill found here again, the bird appears to like the area around the mouth of the River Conder which is where I saw it last time on 23 July. Also to note, 2 Mediterranean Gull were both adult, 2 Greenshank, a Spotted Redshank, 2 Common Sandpiper, and c.250 Golden Plover.

At Cockersands the 'hard labour' kicked in but I noted a Whimbrel and estimates of 200 Golden Plover, 85 Curlew, and 25 Dunlin, 9 Eider were off Plover Scar. The circuit resulted in little more than a healthy exercise, plus 12 Tree Sparrow, and 2 Greenfinch.

Meadow Brown. Pete Woodruff.   

Apart from a few 'whites' I saw just three butterflies today and that is serious, 2 Small Tortoiseshell, and the male Meadow Brown pictured above which I hadn't realised was in such poor condition until I saw it on the computer.

And finally, well almost....

Photo Geoff Gradwell

Geoff took full advantage of the photo opportunity of the Common Tern youngster in the company of a Common Sandpiper at Preston Dock....Nice one and thanks GG.

No time in this post to address the subject of a cull of Canada Geese taking place just north of Carnforth at Pine Lake, but if you happen to be interested in this latest 'local' criminal act against wildlife perhaps you should watch this space.   

Fair Game!

I've just read an interesting post on a blog. 

Pheasant. Brian Rafferty.

Of course its no coincidence that I read this particular post today, though it does coincide with the Glorious 12th which of course was yesterday, but assuming the country gents do in fact abide by the rules, they cannot shoot on Sundays so the tradition started today. 

There's this gamekeeper who has recently visited a game fair and met up with many friends old and new, lots of them were asking this fella how were his Pheasant poults doing, at this point he covers up the main issue slightly by relating to the bad weather in addition to Buzzard predation.

I have no idea what the definition of 'the first week' is in this context but during this first week he 'lost a good few poults to Tawny Owl'....so now the Tawny Owl is a problem, well maybe it always has been for all I know. He goes on to say....'and Sparrowhawks and then the Buzzards, we loose one a day from each pen'....so these birds select a different pen each day to equal out the loss to the gamekeeper....Mmmmm!!

At this point he tells us....'as well as these losses from predation, my poults once again are on the verge of leaving me because of the onslaught'....does he mean they're walking out on him?

He mentions someone else in the post now, who is 'astonished at the death and destruction these Buzzards are meting out, not only to the poults but the other wild birds we have on the estate'....So do we assume the 'other wild birds' are all vegetarians or seed eaters then!    

Red-legged Partridge. Brian Rafferty.

I could go on but can't be bothered to be honest, instead here are two more birds, one of which lives its life in fear of being shot by someone still living in the dark ages, and is reared by the thousands - like the Pheasant - solely for that purpose.

Black Grouse. Brian Rafferty.

The other....well, not many of these left to shoot anyhow and are the subject of re-introduction programmes to many areas from where they disappeared.  

Thanks for the trio of game birds BR personally I rate them as stunning photographs.

I'D SOONER BE BIRDING...AND TOMORROW WILL BE COME HELL OR HIGH WATER!

The Hover-Fly.

One day last week I discovered what I eventually learned was a hover-fly on a flower in our garden. Dashing off to get my camera I was fortunate enough to get some pretty good pics - by my standards - of this individual. 

 

Helophilus pendulus  Pete Woodruff

The photograph above was featured at the foot of my previous post The Dunlin and two others with the request for anyone who could help identify it and I was grateful for the correspondent who gave me his answer to the ID. 

Helophilus trivittatus/pendulus 

In the photograph above the two hover-flies are shown as Helophilus trivittatus at the top, and H. pendulus at the bottom. The result of my always liking to get to the bottom of any given ID challenge and some research brought me to discover that following a study of the two images and comparing them with the individual in the garden the hover-fly was in fact the more common of the two the Helophilus pendulus.

The hover-flies include some of our most colourful and spectacular flies. There are about 250 species in the British Isles and, as well as their remarkable ability to hover, most of them display a swift, darting flight. Many hover-flies are excellent mimics of bees and wasps, although they are easily distinguished by the much shorter, drooping antennae. The larvae are extremely varied in both appearance and behaviour and include carnivores, vegetarians and scavengers, whilst the adult feeds on nectar....Learning something new every day.  

As for the butterflies - which we're not seeing many of this summer - here's a couple you won't be seeing anyway if you live in the same area that I do, and both are Priority Species for conservation due to loss of habitat resulting in the fall in population.

  Heath Fritillary Marc Heath 

The Heath Fritillary can be found in the south including Kent, Essex, Cornwall, and Devon where 130 Heath Fritillary butterflies were released in 2007 in order to re-establish a colony lost at a site in the county.

Small Blue Marc Heath

And the Small Blue which has the distinction of being the smallest native British butterfly .

Thanks for the butterflies Marc....Excellent.

The Dunlin and two others!

Having been in touch with GG, with his permission I'm able to post these photographs of three wader species at Rossall Point, all showing excellent plumage detail for study. 

I decided to single out the Dunlin to make a few comments.

Adult Dunlin.

The Dunlin is a well known bird in North America and Europe. The classic features of the species are its black bill, noticeably drooped at the tip, and black legs, breeding plumage shows a solid black belly-patch. The Dunlin - of which there are six races - is a variable species particularly in bill length and body size. It is an abundant small wader which I use as a yardstick when trying to identify similar species, not being yer average 'clever dick' it often causes me problems when trying to familiarise myself with its various plumage's. The bill length varies, birds of the race arctica have shorter bills than those of the race schinzii and the longer-billed is of the race alpina.

Juvenile Dunlin.

As can be seen in this excellent photograph, the juvenile has upperpart feathering of buff/chestnut edging, with - not all that obvious in this photograph - a lightly streaked breast and belly. The juvenile Dunlin is distinct until around the end of October by which time it is only possible to age in the hand by some retained juvenile feathers. Virtually all one year old birds acquire full breeding plumage.

In 2010 there was no evidence of breeding on the fells within our recording area. Interesting is that Clifford Oakes makes no mention of breeding Dunlin in Lancashire referring to schinzii as a summer visitor and passage migrant, and alpina as a winter visitor and passage migrant, further claiming that the two races cannot be distinguished in the field with certainty, he records a bird ringed in Norway in September 1938, and was recovered on the Ribble Estuary in February 1939.  

 Sanderling.

Another of GG's excellent photographs is that of the Sanderling showing equally excellent plumage detail. The species is seen in our recording area as a spring passage migrant, scarce as an autumn one, and a very rare winter visitor. 

Turnstone.

And another of my favourite waders, the long distance migrant Turnstone with more excellent detail in plumage.

Thanks to Geoff Gradwell for these I really appreciate them, all excellent close detail images.

And finally....

Unidentified. Pete Woodruff.

I found this interesting creature in the garden recently, as can be seen as yet unidentified, the same goes for the flower....anyone?

I'D SOONER BE BIRDING!

Hard Labour....

....but I wouldn't mind being able to do it on a daily basis.

Birding was a bit hard going yesterday, and to make matters worse the first three hours were spent back and forth to the motor to shelter from some heavy showers and I was beginning to get that - 'shouldn't I be doing something more useful with my life' - feeling. 

Wheatear.

The day eventually turned into something a little more like early August by the time I got to Cockersands where I continued the hard labour but found and noted a Whimbrel, 4 Wheatear, 5 Linnet and 9 Eider. 

Oystercatcher.

The guardians of Plover Scar were the only birds seen on here with c.130 Oystercatcher counted. I also found a Common Blue butterfly at Cockersands today....so there's a great ALLELUIA to that one.

Little Owl. 

On my way to Cockersands the 'Jeremy Lane' Little Owl was half hidden on the beam in the corner of the loft in the old derelict farm building....obviously not the one in the pic.

But I had started at Conder Green - well  where else - noting 2 Spotted Redshank adults, the 3 Greenshank on Conder Pool I only found as a result of a search from the fence at the west end of the pool and were well out of sight from the viewing platform, one of the three was an adult noticeably still retaining full breeding plumage. 

Common Sandpiper.

Three Common Sandpiper and 3 Goosander were in the creeks, and at least 16 House Martin were around River Winds.

At Glasson Dock on the Lune Estuary....surprise, surprise, 6 Ringed Plover were a remarkable coincidence, finding them just a few days after 'shouting my mouth off' they are never seen here on the Lune Estuary in This Post....so that'll teach me to run a blog making false claims, but that said, my comments in the post remain accurate at the time of writing according to my records and these six were a first here for me. Also noted, an adult Mediterranean Gull, and a Little Egret, wader numbers here were as low and unimpressive as my birding achievements today.

And finally....

Well its entered in my little black book so it might as well be reported on Birds2blog....Seen from the Caravan Park at Cockersands, Mrs Mutt was on the marsh at high tide with 12 - yes twelve - of her charges which were running amok....well there's a surprise!

Thanks to PW for today's four pics....you can tell they're his by the quality!

Heres hoping!

Its always best to live in hope, any other way is pretty hopeless - hows that for a pun - and I'm hoping to get in some birding one day this week....here's hoping!

Meanwhile three pics all with a bit of added interest.

Black-tailed Godwit David Cookson

Not sure if this is a mating ritual....or a 'ding dong' going on. In on the action again David!

What's this Antonio Puigg

I suppose the ID stars amongst you will know in an instant what this is....but does that include you?....Thanks Antonio.

Photograph. Pete Woodruff. 

Well for starters you can tell this is one of mine without the credit by the quality, but what are they. Well, I don't honestly expect any replies on this one, too risky and the chance of ending up with egg on your face is huge.

I'D SOONER BE BIRDING!

Not very nice....

....the photograph below that is. 

Regular visitors to Birds2blog will appreciate that this is another of my so called 'gap fillers' between my birding days....far and few between still I'm afraid. 

This is a 'not very nice' photograph of a Mountain Hare found decomposing in a snare, a snare which doesn't differentiate about what it traps in its deadly spring mechanism which of course includes birds of prey. There is an ongoing trial with regards to this disgusting piece of 'land management' equipment, but to cut to the chase....

The trial of an 'estate employee' - I think we know his 'job' - has been adjourned until mid-August, coincidentally after the opening of the grouse shooting season, it also coincides with the opening of a game fair on an estate with a 'bad' reputation (Red Kite with two broken legs and a blow to the head causing death). A chairman of a 'National Heritage Group' is also attending this game fair, he was the convenor of a National Park for many years and under his leadership it has now become the first National Park in the world to have a brand new town built within it on an estate. With much hesitation I've withheld my intentions to publish who holds ownership of this estate, but this decision may not hold for very long. 


The aforementioned 'chairman' holds the distinct title of being the single most disastrous thing to happen for conservation since the first conservation laws in 1949. The good news for shooters and every developer in the land who are out to destroy what we have left is....that his tenure has been EXTENDED by two years. 

You couldn't make it up could you!  


And finally....

Mountain Hare. Unknown.

Here is a much nicer picture of a Mountain Hare as it should be seen, and....

Pine Marten Cliff Raby

....a much nicer picture of a Pine Marten. Thanks CR I really appreciate this.

See me here....

....see me there!

I've always subscribed to the idea that its just as important to record birds not seen just as much as birds seen. But this is a different take on where you're not likely to see certain species of waders, giving a clear illustration on where birds can be found regularly in some areas, yet not many miles away and sometimes just around the corner, are rarely - if ever - seen at all. 

If you view the River Lune at the start of the estuary at Glasson Dock, there are waders you're not likely to find there. In these three cases I don't recall ever having seen them, in the other, at best irregular.


Please note these claims are made according to my observations and records over many years on a virtually weekly basis at this location, if you have records to the contrary I'd be pleased to hear from you.

Sanderling David Cookson

The Sanderling is seen as a passage migrant and very rare winter visitor in our recording area, but despite being able to see the Sanderling on occasions at Cockersands and certainly  just a few miles away from here on the Fylde coast, you won't find the bird on the Lune Estuary (LE) at Glasson Dock at any time in the year. 

Turnstone. Peter Guy.

Another species on the list is the Turnstone, a fairly common if localised passage migrant and winter visitor which you can find around the corner from here at Cockersands but never on the LE at Glasson Dock. 

Ringed Plover. Pete Woodruff.

The Ringed Plover is not found at Glasson Dock either and is another bird I don't ever recall recording here - though a search may reveal I may have just one record - but is also to be found around the corner from here at Cockersands. This species is uncommon and declining, though at Cockersands was seen in the spring of 2010 in April/May with figures recorded at 120, 373 and 200, and again at 130 in late August on return passage.  

Grey Plover Brian Rafferty

The fourth species can be seen in single figures on the LE at Glasson Dock, but never regularly. The Grey Plover might be found on very few occasions in the winter months on the estuary, but at Conder Green in the creeks it is present annually during the winter but never in double figures, in fact I think my best all time count is three, on the North Fylde coast it can be found in good number. 


If you find any of these species on the LE at Glasson Dock, I'd like to think you'd let me know about them please.