Piercing drizzle low to the waves made an early morning seawatch near impossible off Crosby marine lake yesterday morning.
I did manage a dark phase arctic skua pursuing a common tern through the gloom, but the lake itself was better, where the two black terns and a pair of little gulls were up on the pools at the north end.
The tides pick up at the end of the week, so it could be seawatching time again _ Steve Young has sent me a series of stonking pics of seabirds taken at the Mersey mouth, which I'll post when I get time this week _ including the best pic of Leach's petrel I've ever seen.
The sun came out later yesterday as I scanned the marsh at Martin Mere from the Miller's Bridge Hide.
The pectoral sandpiper showed very well after an hour of hiding in creeks and reeds, and a spangly wood sand called before feeding on the mud amongst hordes of ruff, lapwings and a handful of dunlin and lrps (5).
Ignore the flock of 40 odd barnacle geese there (with the dicey red breasted goose in tow occasionally), they're as feral as they come.
Marsh harriers, buzzards and kestrels were quite nice though.
On the coast at Marshside a flock of meadow pipits were grounded in the drizzle, but good numbers of snipe suggested a large arrival from eastern Europe overnight.
Teal numbers are picking up too.
I was shown a thorn apple in bloom out on Plex later in the day _ there are worse ways to spend a bank holiday....but then again I had to tackle the leylandii hedge at Dempsey Towers, aided only by a scary electric trimmer/saw thing and a copious supply of cold beer...what could possibly go wrong????
Eyes to the skies everyone, eyes to the skies.
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