Lancashire Birding

I took an early morning trip to the North West coast near Southport recently, as there were a number of good birds in the area, and there are always good numbers of geese and swans to see here too. I started at RSPB Hesketh Outmarsh, where I had good views of many Tree Sparrows in the hedges, and Whooper Swans in the fields. Then I had a Merlin overhead trying to catch another bird. Moving on to RSPB Marshside where I was looking for a Smew that wasn't there. I did find a Scaup though, which is not very common here, so that was a bonus. 

There were hundreds of Lapwings and Geese on the Marsh. These were mainly Pink-footed, but there were lots of Canada and Greylags too. Oystercatchers, Black-tailed Godwits, Tufted Ducks, Wigeon and Shelduck made for a good supporting cast.

I moved on to Southport where I was fortunate enough to watch a flock of 30 or so Twite. This is a bird that I've really struggled to find over the years, but was in the right place at the right time. So that concluded a very good morning. 

You can see more of my trip here:

Grey Heron

Pink-footed Goose

Pintail

Poor, distant images of the Scaup

Shelduck

Distant possible Snow Goose

Whooper Swans

Signs of Winter

 I took an afternoon walk just to get out of the house last weekend. I didn't really know where I was going or what I was going to find. It had rained most of the morning and that hadn't helped my mood. So I ended up at what is becoming one of my favourite local spots. Lapwing Hall Lane in Chelford. There's a really good mix of woodland, scrub, farmland, hedgerow and a very large lake that attracts a good variety, especially in winter.

I could hear Redwings overhead and it wasn't long before I caught a glimpse of a few. They had probably arrived in the week for their winter stay here. I carried on to a wooded area that is very good in the colder months. First bird I could hear was a Bullfinch, followed closely by another Redwing and a Goldcrest. Then I spotted some other birds flitting around. I was delighted to get a small group of Bramblings in my sights. I'd not seen any this year, so was pleased to add them to the year list. Great birds, and I was really pleased to see them here. I was able to stand and watch them for 20 minutes before I'd had my fix and moved on.

Brambling

I continued my walk and leant on a gate to see what was across a stubbly field. I thought I was going to be looking at a large flock of Canada Geese, but it was obvious very quickly that I had a good number of Pink footed Geese in with them.  I'd seen a few large skeins fly over recently, but these were the first of the year that I'd seen down on the ground. Winter has arrived (in bird terms) and I'm thoroughly enjoying it.

The Pink footed Geese are the ones with the darker heads, with Canada and Greylag at the back.

Unusually, there were still some signs of the summer months with some butterflies and dragonflies still on the wing. 

Small Copper Butterfly

Comma Butterfly

Burton Mere

A nice Spring time visit to Burton Mere is always a good trip out. The sun was shining and the birds were nice and active on the reserve just by the Dee Estuary. There wasn't anything out of the ordinary this day, but it was nice to be out with no rain, snow or wind and good light.

I managed to add a few year ticks too, in the shape of Curlew, Pintail, Marsh Harrier and Oystercatcher. The elusive Cetti's Warbler was once again added to my 'Heard Only' list for the year.

This Dunnock was in fine voice in the warm sunshine.

A Little Egret on a fly past.

A Little Grebe with a fish almost as big as itself.

Some soon to be departed Pink-footed Geese flying over the marsh.

A very good looking Shelduck.

A Teal in the fantastic light.

Autumn in the North West

A nice bright day on the north west coast always lends itself to a good opportunity to take the camera out. It was busy on the Wirral coast as the tide came in, with plenty of waders, gulls and seabirds. The weather had certainly turned more Autumn like and there was cold bite in the air. Here's what I saw.

A Curlew just above the sand at New Brighton

A lone Pink-footed Goose proving that Autumn had really arrived.

Good numbers of Shelduck were at Hoylake and Meols.

A Common Gull resting on the sand before high tide.

The very elusive Water Rail made an unexpected appearance. Never easy to sea these birds, as they usually stick to the reeds. This was a real bonus.

Pink Feet

Pink-footed Geese are what I really look forward to seeing in the Autumn. A trip to Martin Mere in Lancashire is a highlight of this season for me. Thousands and thousands of geese and wildfowl are attracted to the habitat here. It's a real spectacle that I never tire of.
I went a little earlier this year than I normally do and I manages to see the first Whooper Swans of the Autumn come in. It was the Pink-footed Geese that really stole the show for me though.
What a sight and what a sound? They have to be seen to be fully appreciated.

Stockport Rarities

It never rains but it pours. For the first time in a long time, I was able to get out onto my patch, albeit the majority of it was spent sat in my car due to the dreadful weather. However I was able to catch up with a local rarity. Three Pink-footed geese had been on the Church Lane flood for a few days and I was hoping that they'd be able to hang around until I could get there. When I arrived I could see a couple of hundred Canada Geese and a few Greylag Geese mixed in with them. Stupidly I'd left the binoculars at home, and I didn't have time to go back and get them in my small window of opportunity. I relied on my camera lens to pick them out, and I did that some 150 yards away. I usually venture to Martin Mere or Norfolk to see these birds. To see them just two miles from my where I live was quite amazing. Come again please.
Then, to my amazement, a bird was put up in the air by three incoming Mallards. It was quite clearly a Pintail, even without binoculars. I threw the camera up at it and hoped for the best. Two local rarities in one day. Birding doesn't get much better than this.

Pink-footed Goose

This Pintail flew towards me and then over me. A real Stockport Borough rarity.

The Pintail kindly came back, so I was able to get some very distant shots of it on the flood on Sunday.

Geese a plenty - Norfolk

Geese are always plentiful in Norfolk during the winter months, and I managed to come across a couple of species that I'd never seen before. The first was the Black-bellied Brent Goose. They winter largely on the East coast, and Norfolk holds good populations. They depart again in March. I don't know if it was because I'd not seen them before, but I did find them to be quite a good looking goose. Certainly nicer to look at than the numerous Canada Geese we see all year round.
The second species I'd not seen before was the European White-fronted Goose. I only saw two and didn't manage to get any shots of them, but it always makes a trip worthwhile when you see something new.

Black-bellied Brent Geese

Pink footed Geese were always on the move, or so it seemed. Huge skeins could be seen high up in the classic V formation.

Pink footed geese overhead.

 

Egyptian Geese were quite plentiful. They seemed to turn up in most places.

 

 

 

 

 

Martin Mere

I thought I'd start my first entry at Martin Mere, an amazing wildfowl and wetland centre in Lancashire. At this time of year especially, it is teeming with thousands of swans and geese. It's a great day out, with lots of birds to be seen at all times.  There are plenty of hides along well laid out paths, and feeding stations too. Here you will find the usual finches and tit flocks. A Kingfisher can regularly be seen, and on the day I went, there was a Red Kite and two Marsh Harriers. Two great birds to see in flight.

Below are some of my photos from my day at Martin Mere in September. Some of these are captively bred, but they are still quite nice shots.

This Red Crested Pochard posed nicely for me.

This male Common Eidur Duck was constantly preening and splashing.

Here we have two Pink Footed Geese either side of a Barnacle Goose.

Here you can see the numbers that were starting to build up in September.

And finally, a Whooper Swan.