Notes From The Lune Estuary.

The peak count of 22 Little Grebe on Conder Pool this year was on Sunday 6 October (Ian Hartley). Since then the number on the pool begins to fall each year by mid-October, and the grebes are to be found in the creeks and have even been seen at times on the Lune Estuary. 

On Friday I found 10 Little Grebe, five of which were in the creeks, and included two downstream towards the Conder mouth, the other five were seen on Conder Pool with 2 Goosander noted.

At and around Christ Church, at least 12 Long-tailed Tit seen, with a Grey Wagtail seeming out of context amongst the topmost branches of a tall Sycamore. A Great-crested Grebe was amongst a good number of Coot on the canal opposite the church. Noted on the Lune Estuary, with the exception of Lapwing, wader numbers were very low and unremarkable, a conservative estimate of 350 Common Gull, with an equal number of Black-headed Gull, 22 Black-tailed Godwit, c.120 Wigeon and 2 Goosander. 

At Cockersand, Tuesdays 550 Curlew were seen as at least that number again today, but c.450 Golden Plover were less than half the number seen that day. Walking along the road, a Snipe came up out of a ditch, 180 Redshank were on/around the flood at the Moss/Slack Lane junction, and a Merlin allowed me to stalk quite close, perched on a fence post.

Common Darter Cockersand 8 November. Pete Woodruff.

Although their flight period goes into November - rarely in December - it's always going to be a bit of a surprise to see a Common Darter on a cold day at Cockersand in that month.

Thanks once again to Howard for his excellent Little Grebe header image.

Golden Moments.

Another short - but I was raking about for 5 hours - and sweet job!

I was tempted to say Tuesdays birding was a little quiet, but then if I was to report seeing in excess of 1,000 Golden Plover at Cockersand, that would make the comment a bit of a nonsense. There was at least 750 in a field to the south of Abbey Farm, 175 to the north, and 125 in a field off Slack Lane.

When the sun eventually came out, and the wind dropped too in the late afternoon, it shone some brilliant light on to the plovers in the field south of Abbey Farm to give a stunning golden carpet effect to the birds which twice left the field to fly low over my head to create a 'whoosh' of 1,500 beating wings as they went out over the shore to turn and return to the field....Golden Moments to savour.

Curlew. Howard Stockdale. 

There was also the good number of 550 Curlew in a field at Cockersand today. An excellent count in one field for a species in the Red on the UK Conservation Status list. One of the most rapidly declining birds at a near 50% fall in number, even exceeding this in Wales and Scotland. If like me you've been lucky enough to have heard the evocative bubbling call of the Curlew when on the moors in Bowland, it stays with you forever. 

Only c.50 Whooper Swan were in view at Cockersand today. On Conder Pool, 6 Little Grebe, 6 Goosander, 4 Snipe, 18 Curlew, and 4 Wigeon. Up to 80 Teal were in the creeks. A bit of a howler in the face made the Lune Estuary hard work, but only 350 Golden Plover of any note, with 32 Tufted Duck and 2 Goosander on the canal basin.

In Greaves Park this Thursday morning, 4 Jay together were closely accompanied by 6 Magpie.

In the header, a large number of gulls follow the small fishing boat in Morecambe Bay. Also I was grateful for the excellent set of images Howard sent me yesterday, of which the most appropriate for this post was the Curlew. Clik the pik, the light reflecting on the bird is quite something.

The Bullfinch Has It.

Whilst some decent weather lasted, on Thursday I decided on the walk from Aldcliffe to Glasson Dock to note 33 species including, walking by Freeman's Wood I found 5 Goldcrest, a Treecreeper, and a Jay. At Freeman's Pools, 6 Goldeneye were my first this winter with a few Gadwall seen. In the Frog Pond field, a mix of up to 900 Greylag and Canada Geese were at around 60/40%. The only bird of note on the Wildfolwer's Pools was a drake Shoveler.

In the Stodday area, a pair of Bullfinch in the cutting was excellent, also a Song Thrush, and 7 Little Egret together on the marsh. Along the way, 12 Blackbird, 6 Long-tailed Tit, Greenfinch, Coal Tit, and Wren. On the canal basin, 11 Tufted Duck were all female, and at least 50 House Sparrow were around the bowling green bushes.

The Bullfinch.

Male Bullfinch. Richard Pegler.

Thursdays Bullfinch sighting was the best of the walk. Having only occasionally visited traditional sights in south-east Cumbria, Arnside and Silverdale, I've only ever made 15 records over 10 years, none of which were in Bowland. I think the surprise of these was 5 seen in Lancaster Cemetery on 30 October 2014, but 10 years earlier was the best of my records, when I found 4 Bullfinch at Birk Bank on 1 November 2004, this was followed by 4 here again on 22 November, then almost a month later I found 8 Bullfinch here on 18 December.

These are the only records of Bullfinch in Bowland in our recording area that I am aware of, but it is interesting to note that 2004 was the year of an invasion of continental Bullfinch into northern Britain around mid-October, when exceptional numbers were reported mainly in Scotland and along the east coast of England. No coincidence then, that these records of Bullfinch in Bowland occurred around this date in 2004, and that the distinctive 'toy horn' call of the Northern Bullfinch was noted in my records.

Thanks for the much appreciated Bullfinch Richard. 

Swans Return.

On Wednesday I counted 245 Whooper Swan, back in a field opposite the entrance to Clarkson's Farm....A wonderful sight, and good for the soul. 

On a brief visit to Cockersand, on what was left of Plover Scar under a 10m+tide, just 6 Turnstone seen. In the field south side of Abbey Farm, 550 Golden Plover and 60 Curlew, a Kestrel hovered overhead, with another seen later over Jeremy Lane. A Small Tortoiseshell was probably my last butterfly of the year.

Greenshank. Richard O'Meara. Clik the pik

On Conder Pool, 3 Greenshank, 14 Redshank, a Snipe, 3 Goosander, and 5 Tufted Duck female, 6 Little Grebe included two in the creeks. A Kingfisher seen on Conder Pool, it/another was seen later in the creeks.

Thanks to Richard for the trio of images he sent me recently, including the Greenshank.

A Place For Plovers.

There wasn't much left of Plover Scar above the surface when I arrived yesterday at high tide, so no evidence of what the scar is, and what it really means to the birds when the tide is out.

Clik the pik to read the importance of this message 

But since I was last here on Monday, I was pleased to find the erection of this excellent sculpture and notice at the parking area by Lighthouse Cottage.

Great work by everyone involved in getting this much needed important message and excellent art work put in place....Well done, and a personal Thank You.  

High As A Kite!

Hard to believe I didn't get up Hawthornthwaite Fell this summer, the last and only time I was there was 22 April when I found none, but I derived great pleasure in finding 3 Stonechat at Hawthornthwaite yesterday, also a decent count of 22 Red Grouse and a Wren to note.

Red Kite Noushka @ 1000-Pattes Clik the pik

As I reached to top of the hill at Cam Brow, turning a bend I was confronted by a large raptor on a carcass in the road, the bird took off the minute it saw the car and flew north toward Abbeystead. I pulled off the road to walk back to see if I could find the bird, but it had disappeared, but soon came into view again flying south towards Hawthornthwaite Fell, it was a Red Kite. I'm grateful to Noushka for the excellent image of this stunning bird. 

At least 100 Chaffinch seen today. Walking up the track toward White Moor from Tower Lodge, c.40 were up and down out of the trees and onto the track, I found just 2 Brambling with them. Later another flock of at least 60 seen in the road east of Tower Lodge, this time up and down between the traffic with just one Brambling seen with them.

Good numbers in excess of 200 Fieldfare seen on the day, with estimates of at least 40 at Isle of Skye Farm, probably 100 at Fellside Farm seen from a moving car, and 70 in the Tower Lodge area. A Dipper was the only bird seen on the Marshaw Wyre. 

Marshaw Wyre Bowland. Pete Woodruff. Clik the pik 

The Great Escape.

Well a good escape if not great, my birding never drops below good, and it was good to get out again yesterday, Today would have been a week since my last birding day, and a week since B2B ran out of material, and I reckon that's an 11 year record down the pan. I was tasked to do some decorating, something I couldn't escape from....I signed the contract!!

At Conder Green a count of 13 Little Grebe, with eight in the creeks and five on Conder Pool, also 3 Greenshank, 7 Goosander, and 2 Kingfisher seen within five minutes of each other, a Greenshank was down the Conder channel. Notably the 'winter' Common Sandpiper not seen again, last seen 11 October. 

Not before time, I saw my first Whooper Swan of the winter, albeit a lone bird drifting upstream. Also noted, a Greenshank close by which called in it's powerful whistling 'tyew-tyew-tyew' constantly for up to thirty minutes before falling silent, no more than 50 Golden Plover here today, 65 Wigeon, 2 Red-breasted Merganser and 2 Goosander.

Turnstone Cockersand. Pete Woodruff. Clik the pik

At Cockersand, at least 220 Golden Plover and 50 Turnstone, including ten roosting on a little terra firma over a 10.23m tide, with 140 Curlew in a field by Abbey Farm, 3 Wren seen on the circuit, and 3 Blackbird around Bank Houses were my only other notes here.

Thanks to Richard for the excellent nine Snipe in flight at Knott End yesterday.

The Parish Of Aldcliffe And Beyond.

On Monday I went for another two pennyworth of the Snow Bunting on Plover Scar, saw a Sparrowhawk disappearing into a bush at Bank Houses, a Buzzard soaring over Abbey Farm, and a little evidence of Skylark and Meadow Pipit movement. Notes from the Lune Estuary included 128 Curlew, 11 Snipe, and 5 Goosander. On Conder Pool, 9 Little Grebe, 3 Greenshank, drake Goosander, and 5 Tufted Duck. 

Yesterday I did a circuit of the parish of Aldcliffe and was asked by a regular birder here if I had a permit for the area, but I seemed to get let off the hook even when I said I hadn't!....Good to see you again Barrie.

On Freeman's Pools, 15 Gadwall, up to 60 Teal, 6 Tufted Duck, 4 Wigeon, and a Little Grebe noted. Off Marsh Point, 122 Herring Gull with a lesser number of Black-headed Gull. In the harvested maize field, c.250 Greylag and 62 Canada Geese, and on the Wildfowlers' Pool, the female Scaup had the place almost itself, this pool would be more appropriately called Aldcliffe Wetlands, and the birdless flood called a lake.

On the Lune Estuary at Glasson Dock, c.650 Black-tailed Godwit and 250 Golden Plover, with 8 Wigeon and 3 Goosander drake noted. A Merlin was squat quietly on the south end of Colloway Marsh. At Conder Green, 8 Little Grebe were seen as four in the creeks, and four on Conder Pool with a Greenshank to note, a Kingfisher flew the length of the pool, and 4 Tufted Duck seen numbered five on Monday, today the drake was missing.

Common Sandpiper Conder Green. Howard Stockdale. Clik the pik 

Despite five visits, I've not seen the Common Sandpiper at Conder Green since 13 October. Many thanks to Howard for the image. 

The Triple Whammy.

It was one thing to get a phone call in the evening last Wednesday, but everything got a lot more interesting as it went along and blew me a little off balance.

Snow Bunting Plover Scar 16 October Clik the pik

I got news of a Snow Bunting found on Plover Scar that afternoon which I went to see the following day, and was rewarded with excellent views.

Cattle Egret Cockersand 16 October Clik the pik 

I then received a set of photographs of the Snow Bunting, but hey up, there's also included with the set, an excellent image of 2 Cattle Egret in a field...well blow me over! 

Then, as if that wasn't enough to be going on with at Cockersand. On my return from seeing the Snow Bunting on Thursday, Bob who was sat in his car at the car park by Lighthouse Cottage, tells me that recently he had seen a large seabird in the field between Crook Farm and Crook Cottage which he had identified as an immature Gannet.

Many thanks for call from Martin, the images from Ian, and the heads up from Bob about the Gannet....What next!

Plover Scar Delivers.

There was a spectacular mix of corvids on the Lune Estuary on Thursday as viewed from the bowling green, they were all over the place and impossible to count, they numbered at least 500, with a maximum of probably up to 700. In order of numbers, the highest being up to 50% Rook, with Carrion Crow, and Jackdaw, they were on the mud, and scattered widely on the south end of Colloway Marsh, many distant with little if any chance of separation.

Otherwise, the estuary was on a quiet day, though up to 350 Golden Plover were present, and 3 Goosander were noted, also the crippled Curlew Sandpiper made it's third appearance for me in 14 days, still hoping on its left leg, the right one tucked under its belly.

Snow Bunting Plover Scar 17 October Pete Woodruff Clik the pik

The rest of the afternoon was spent at Cockersand with a Snow Bunting which showed well though often quite mobile and well camouflaged when it went way out on Plover Scar amongst the shingle. Seen as an early record for Snow Bunting, most of which are singles found on the coast from around mid-October, these tend to pass through quickly, this one hasn't been seen since Thursday seeming to confirm this, most turn up during November to January. 

A male Kestrel, was the only other bird I noted at Cockersand, and a Painted Lady in mid-October may well be my last of the year, in which case my tally for this brilliant butterfly in 2019 would be 417.