Seawatching was frankly pretty disappointing today, with the wind lessening and sticking firmly in the south west...the best that came past Ainsdale over the high tide was good numbers of storm-shocked Common Scoters in the shallows, which would explain why I found this stunning male exhausted on the beach in the late afternoon.
Gorgeous bill pattern on it, and despite its waterlogged condition, it was feisty enough as Duncan R and I put it in a cardboard box and left it to dry out for a few hours, releasing it later in the evening on the Sands Lake, where it paddled off trying to ignore hostile Coots and Mute Swans.
If it survives the night, you never know, it might still be there tomorrow morning - always nice to see scoters up close and personal.
Less fortunate were a selection of victims of the high winds and rain, including Harbour Porpoise, Guillemots (one ringed bird - details on the way to the BTO), Gannet, Manx Shearwater, Kittiwake and even Bar Tailed Godwit.
Everyone say "cheese".
Amazing how small Manxies are when you see 'em up close - they look so powerful as the cut over the waves.
One Small Tortoiseshell on the seawall at Southport mid-afternoon.
Despite the high tide washout, I tried another seawatch off Ainsdale between 4 and 5pm, and managed 2 Arctic Skuas and 11 Manxies, which was considerably better than my earlier attempts.
Ah well, tomorrow is another day.
Eyes to the skies everyone, eyes to the skies...
- Post to:
del.icio.us
Digg
Newsvine
Nowpublic
Reddit
« Previous | Home | Next »
hi i read your post "living and the dead" and saw the pics of the dead sea birds and was a bit annoyed by the comment "everyone say cheese" a saying you would use to take a pic of happy smiling subjects i really don't think the birds were very happy do you? if i have read it the wrong way please let me know
yours in sport
a parkinson
Quiet seawatch with Neill, Paul and Mike at Formby Point today, 1100-1400:
Red Throated Diver 1
Great Crested Grebe 1
Gannet 17
Common Scoter 500+
Arctic Skua 7/8
Kittiwake 2
Sandwich Tern 100+
Common Tern 15
Guillemot 1
Hi John,
I have been reading your excellent blog for a couple of months now, and would like to echo Alan's comments. Was there any need to take a picture of the rather macabre scene that you had put together?
Paul Shenton.
Re the gallery of the dead, we do pile 'em up before burial - I included the pic to remind folk about the downside of a big blow.
Nature and the weather is red in tooth and claw.
Re the flippancy, the way I see it, you're a long time dead, and I'm sure they're all happy in birdy heaven now.
Oh, and by the way, the set of wings on the right is truly intriguing - bigger wingspan than a Gannet, and we can't work out the species...but more of that later.
Casualty reports for big auk wrecks in the north of Scotland in Jan-Feb are horrendous. It depends on where the wind is coming from and the time of year but really big wrecks are relatively rare on the Lancashire coast. John's 'gallery' is trivial comapred to what I have seen for Aberdeenshire caosts and even east coast of England in late winter when the birds are heading back towards breeding grounds.
Mystery wings could be a raptor but I would like to know more about what little remains of the skeleton. Judging by size alone would suggest osprey or marsh harrier because juvs (more likely than adults going astray on return migration?) are both dark and 'big'. It is a shame no legs are present because there is a 50:50 chance (depending on species) that there would have been a ring.
Ver 2.0 The remains actually look a little like badly decomposed remains of a bird tentatively identified as a marsh harrier I saw a few years ago.
Cheers Ian - interesting you went for Marsh Harrier, we did too, but the secondary bulge is massive, and the wingspan (such as is left of it), was 160cms, tip to tip.
Primaries seemed too pointed for Marsh Harrier, but you could well be on the money.
Underside too trashed to be conclusive, but all dark.
At risk of appalling the squeamish, we exhumed it today and took serious measurements, and I'll be forwarding feathers to grown-ups who can do DNA testing and stuff.
I'll do a full blog entry on the remains asap.
J
Them wings......Frigatebird sp??
Get back on the medication, Bazzo
Interesting stuff! 160cm certainly puts an Osprey in the frame - it is a pity there were no rings because it would be a cracking (if sad) bit of gen.
Hi John,
Whatever you do don't start censoring yourself! It would change the blog not for the better.
Run out of Wild Merseyside, any more left?
Andy