Did Marshside from about 9.30am today - not bad despite the very heavy rain showers.
Swarms of hirundines and Swifts moving through - at one point there were 70 Swallows, 7 Sand martins and 2 House Martins perched up on the wires at the back of the Sandplant Lagoon, while scores more hawked over head.
Golf Course was fairly quiet - Reed Warbler in the SSSI ditch (and by Nels later), Sedge Warbler, Whitethroat, Blackcap and Chiffchaff singing and six Redpoll going north early on.
Clarko had a Lesser Whitethroat on his dawn chorus walk much earlier on.
From Nels the male Garganey was still present dozing away to the south.
3 drake Ruddy Ducks and 2 females on Marshside One.
One male Yellow Wagtail, two Ruff (including a fine male), Ringed Plover and hordes more Swifts and hirundines.
Quite a few young Lapwing out now, consequently quite a few Carrion Crows mooching about and keeping the adult Lapwings in a state of nervous hysteria.
From the Sandgrounders hide there were 10 Wheatear and up to 5 Yellow Wagtail amongst the cattle, a White Wagtail and two summer plumage Golden Plover further back.
Met Bazzo and John Bannon - JB had seen a Cuckoo at the north end of the Forest of Bale, before it flew off to the north east, but when I checked the compound, the Scrote Family Robinson were playing with the noisiest radio cars this side of hell, so the place was deserted, save a singing Whitethroat and Wren.
A fair few calidris had flown through over the tide, but only one or two landed which was a pity. One Little Egret on the outer marsh.
Checked Plex Moss quickly on the way home, but quiet-ish.
Most fields still peppered with Wheatears, Whitethroats singing away and at least 12 Rooks, presumably from the Rosemary Wood colony by Haskayne.
Orange Tip butterfly and Comma in the garden at Dempsey Towers in the sun yesterday, and the Hedgehog was still showing no signs of moving on.
First breeding Swifts were back around DempseyTowers last night, with up to seven today, but only half-hearted screaming so far.
Eyes to the skies everyone, eyes to the skies...
- Post to:
del.icio.us
Digg
Newsvine
Nowpublic
Reddit
« Previous | Home | Next »
ron jackson wrote...
Had a wet and lonely walk today doing WeBS as a locum for holidaying regular.
Walked from Hesketh Bank boatyard along the Douglas/Ribble seawall to the boundary of the new RSPB reserve by Hundred End and back via the newly constructed seawall at the east of the reserve.
Okay, "trespassing" but then I did know every inch of this area before it was reclaimed and before the RSPB had heard of anything north of Watford other than Loch Garten.
It pe--ed down!
As always one's Goretex etc etc boots give up the ghost after a couple of hours of long wet grass, so rain somehow trickles up one's legs as well as along one's sleeves.
Anyway as a Sandgrounder I'm more or less inured to wet!
Pretty quiet though, half a dozen Wheatears, Swallows moving in a SE direction (into the wind) and the only wetland birds being resident types, mainly Shelduck, Oycs, Peewits and a few Shanks.
12 Eider loafing on the Ribble bank .
Three or four pairs (or males) Whitethroats scratching away. A nice sense of wilderness out by the river's edge though.
Had a quick look into Old Hollow. The splashes now wet with an bunch of far off peep types, probably identical to the hordes along the shore out as far as Seaforth but still intriguing, plus a coupla Avocets so fingers crossed re those.
A singleton ,presumably male, Harris' Hawk being half heartedly mobbed by Lapwings and Herring Gulls.
Perhaps me, but did he seem lonely?
Ron
Posted by: ron jackson | May 4, 2008 7:32 PM