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A change is as good as a rest

Posted by on May 5, 2008 6:44 PM | 

buzz2505.jpg

Just for a different perspective, I headed down to the Freshfield Dune heath reserve this morning - I've given Marshside, Plex Moss and the Sands Lake such a hammering recently, I thought I'd go for a change of scenery.
And it wasn't bad.
Met Steve White as I arrived, and he looked like a man who'd just tetraded the pinewoods on a Bank Holiday - which is exactly what he'd done.
Poor sod.
As we wandered down the trail, it was pretty quiet, with 1 Wheatear, Meadow Pipits and four or five singing Linnets up on the blazing gorse.

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From the deeper cover, good numbers of Willow Warbler and a few Whitethroats and a Chiffchaff were singing.

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Said farewell to Mr White and headed back through the reserve.
Speckled Wood, Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell about, and two superb Whinchats in the heather.
As is always the way, they didn't come close enough for anything but record shots.

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Two Buzzards had been circling earlier, and they landed at the top of a clump of pines to avoid the attentions of the local Jackdaws and Carrion Crows.

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Nice, quiet reserve really, although those Hebridean sheep are a bit on the freaky side - I'm sure I've seen the one on the right in a Hammer horror movie...

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Eyes to the skies everyone, eyes to the skies...


Comments (10)

Don Wilson wrote...

Walked around Crosby Marine Lake & onto the foreshore Saturday 3rd May & was delighted to see the following : Swifts (my 1st of the year), Swallows & House Martins.
A Shag was preening itself on the posts midlake, amongst various gulls, & a very handsome male Wheatear chased insects of some sort in the sand.
The Wheatear was very close to us & was not at all disturbed by human onlookers.
Finally there was a group of aprox 5/6 terns high above us squabbling over some item of food.
Not sure what species they were but they did look quite large , Sandwich Terns or Common Terns, I don't know! Fantastic wildlife watching!

Posted by: Don Wilson  | May 6, 2008 6:05 AM

Jellyhead Jackson wrote...

Male White Throated Sparrow trapped and ringed at Heysham.

Posted by: Jellyhead Jackson  | May 6, 2008 9:25 AM

ron jackson wrote...

Could the spadger be ship assisted? But from the Isle Of Man??
Lesser Whitethroat outside Nels at Marshside today and lekking Ruffs, two/three active Ruffs and three Reeves. Nothing " positive" seemed to take place, does the "deed(s)" happen away from the lekking area?
About 10k Dunlins on splashes off Old Hollow, came in with the tide but a good scattering of Ringed Plover with smaller numbers of Dunlins feeding over the grass, or what the Wigeons have left of it.
Plovers on grass at Banks is an annual May event.
At least two busily feeding Curlew Sands, seeming to keep themselves aloof from the transitory and not feeding hordes of Dunlins.
Ron
ps Nels as noisy as Sandgrounders for a while today which meant disconnecting the mike from the videocamera while there were these lovely whinnying Dabchicks doing their stuff. Remember when hides had notices along the lines of "birds have ears"?

Posted by: ron jackson  | May 6, 2008 5:30 PM

john wrote...

Re the Ruffs - they frequently lek on passage, so unfortunately displaying birds is no indication that they're going to breed at a site.
I live in hope though...

Posted by: john  | May 6, 2008 8:50 PM

Paul Slater wrote...

Have had some good days, down along the Mersey, in the vicinity of the Old Garden Festival site during the last week.
On Tuesday (29 April), 2 Wheatears were at the Old Garden Festival site, with Yellow Wagtail overhead and 8 Whitethroats singing across the site, along with Willow Warblers, Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps.
The following day (30 April), 8 Porpoises were in the channel, in the outgoing tide, below the Old Garden Festival site.
Some of the Turnstones that feed on the seaweed covered rocks, below here, are now obtaining their summer plumage.
On Saturday (03 May), a Sedge Warbler was singing in a privet hedge in a fairly built-up area of nearby Dingle. Down at the Old Garden Festival site, 8 Frogs and 4 Newts were found trapped down inspection chambers. 3 Frogs and 2 of the Newts were rescued, but the others evaded capture, and so will have to wait for another time.
Best of all though, was when shortly after midday, 3 Cranes were observed flying south-east overhead.
Yesterday, a Sedge Warbler was singing at the Old Garden Festival site. If this bird attracts a mate and they breed, it will be an addition to the growing breeding list for this site. Speckled Wood butterflies now emerging across the site.

Posted by: Paul Slater  | May 7, 2008 6:03 AM

ron jackson wrote...

Re Ruffs. They have bred on the Ribble NNR as you know, and that is where I would expect these to set up home if staying around.
Suspected breeding two years ago.
What I was wondering was whether copulation took place at the lek itself or was the lek merely a meeting place where mates were chosen for future fun. I'll be digging into BWPi in a mo,
Ron


Posted by: ron jackson  | May 7, 2008 7:40 AM

john wrote...

Try "The Ruff" by J.G. Van Rhijn (Poyser 1991) if you can get hold of a copy - full breeding ecology details, including the fact that they will actually breed on passage, never mind just lekking, and carry on north after the event.

Posted by: john  | May 7, 2008 9:34 AM

ron jackson wrote...

Don't own that particular book and am trying to get my "new book" intake to match to some extent the rate at which I read or use them. Plus all the mags periodicals birdblogs etc etc!
Had a look in BWPi to be informed that they do mate "en lek" (lekover?); they are promiscuous and can nest near to a lek site.
Read somewhere else that the "ruff" as worn by the likes of W.Raleigh is named after that worn by a breeding male "p.pugnax" but the bird's name is based on "rough" as in fighting.
Ron

Posted by: ron jackson  | May 7, 2008 11:49 AM

Graham Clarkson wrote...

Crane at Altcar, waiting for details from observer.
JD: Ta Graham, Birdline Ted (09068 700 249) says the Crane was on the Withins near Broad Lane, till 10am, when it flew off south west.

Posted by: Graham Clarkson  | May 7, 2008 12:46 PM

Phil Smith wrote...

Male Snow Bunting (part summer plumage) and male Yellow Wagtail at close range on southern end on the Green Beach this afternoon.
Also a distant Cuckoo.
Another 45 Natterjack spawn strings, giving a total of 217 (new site record).

Posted by: Phil Smith  | May 7, 2008 5:30 PM

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