Wirral Birding

Thurstaston shore from the cliff top

Shotton steel works seen from Burton marsh

Heswall shore

Twite at Heswall shore

Burton marsh looking towards the Dee Bridge at Shotton
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Not much this morning from a brief trip to HGF and also Waterworks Lane. In the garden the 4 Grey Partridges visited briefly and a male Song Thrush sang from the top of the large Ash - apart from a brief sighting on 8th November this was the first Song Thrush seen in the garden since early July. I have also noticed that Greenfinch sightings are few and far between - hardly get any on the feeders this winter whereas this time last year up to a dozen birds visited regularly.

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So late morning saw me off to the Wirral. I arrived at Burton Marsh late morning and headed off down towards the rifle range. Although the temp gauge in the car showed 4.5C, the strong wind made it feel colder. I never saw the sun all afternoon.

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Down by the rifle range 2 Little Egrets flew about and then a pair of Stonechats showed well. A flock of Lapwings then flew up in alarm indicating the presence of a raptor - a ring-tail Hen Harrier was the culprit. At the same time a female Merlin hunted the same patch.

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In the far distance approx 20 Whooper Swans grazed in the field - they were too far away to determine if any Bewicks were present. The Lapwing flock numbered around 800 birds.

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On the way back a pair of Short-eared Owls flew up - they briefly had a tiff before separating. One was mobbed by a Great Black-backed Gull and the other by a pair of Crows. Another female Stonechat popped up by the path and a second Ring-tail Harrier also appeared. On the hill a flock of 47 Fieldfares fed with some Starlings. While watching them I noticed a Buzzard on a fencepost behind them and then heard a noise right behind me like a welly being pulled out of thick mud - the alarm call of a Snipe flying off. A female Kestrel also showed well and a further 18 Whooper Swans were seen in flight.

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I then headed off to Thurstaston to try and find the Twites. A flock of approx 150 Fieldfares flew over the main road and 25+ Goldfinches flew around making lots of noise near the visitors centre. On the beach there was no sign of the Twite. I headed off down the beach towards Heswall - the wind was blowing in my face and several times I thought of going back, particularly as the only living things around seemed to be a pair of Crows.

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Approx 1 mile along I encountered the salt marsh nr Heswall - hundreds of birds wheeling in the air indicated a raptor and sure enough a Peregrine caused pandamonium. The falcon was dashing over the marsh at low level and then suddenly dropping onto the floor - very like a Harrier. I can't remember seeing a Peregrine hunt this way before. Another ring-tail Harrier also appeared - no kills were observed.

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High tide was at approx 2pm this afternoon - the water came quite high on the beach which is a mixture of fine shingle and sand with 20-30 feet high sandy cliffs. The shingle/sand mix continually shifts and makes walking on it over distance a bit difficult.

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A bit further along I heard birds chattering in a bush - I had found the Twite flock. I got superb views through the scope before the 13 birds flew off onto the marsh. Also around the marsh were >200 Shelduck, 21 Pintail and 250+ Black-tailed Godwits with 4 Bar-tailed Godwits mixed in. With the numerous Lapwings were 200+Dunlin and around 30 Knot plus 25+ Redshank. Another Little Egret also put in an appearance.

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Going back was easier with the wind behind me - I then headed off to Parkgate. Within minutes a ring-tailed Harrier appeared and then 2 pairs of Stonechats. At least 8 Curlews flew around calling and a further 4 Little Egrets. A male Hen Harrier showed up and ended up crossing swords with a male Merling - they flew across each others flight paths for a few minutes. A second male harrier then appeared - ultimately 5 birds (3 ring-tails and 2 males) came in to roost. No sign of any owls at Parkgate and it was getting increasingly windy and cold so I the headed off home.

Siberia is coming!

Had a quick trip to HGF today - set off in glorious sunshine and mild conditions, by the time I reached the pool there were grey skies and a very icy blast from the wind. A precursor of the Siberian weather due to hit us on Sunday night.

8 Linnets flew over the field calling. At the pool a Cormorant was circling over the water. Nothing much of interest - today's numbers were:

4 Moorhen

64 Coot

15 Tufted Duck

6 Pochard

75 Wigeon

1 Great Crested Grebe

2 Redshank

1 Lesser Black-backed Gull

3 Common Gull

40+ Black-headed Gull

Walking back over the field a very pale Buzzard was seen distantly with a tail very much like Rough-legged Buzzard - it quickly disappeared past Midhops farm and I could not relocate it. A darker Common Buzzard also appeared. 2 Reed Buntings flushed from the field by the path and a Kestrel hovered over the field. Grotty light conditions but the scope was still superb.

Quick look at Waterworks Lane yielded 15+ Chaffinch, 2 Tree Sparrow, 2 Yellowhammer, 1 Reed Bunting, 3 Fieldfares and 3 Buzzards before a falconer looking for his lost Peregrine flushed everything.

Some more dodgy pics from a couple of weeks back - Little Owl and Pink-footed Geese on Plex Moss, Snow Bunting at Red Rocks, male and female Brambling in the garden on New Years day.

Gulls! Gulls! Gulls!

Some photos from my recent trip to Arpley tip near Moore Nature Reserve. An estimated 15000 gulls were present (down from 45000 before Christmas) with the vast majority being Herring Gulls. I saw 3 Iceland Gulls (a superb adult and 2 first winter birds) and a first winter Mediterranean Gull. An intermedius (Scandinavian) Lesser Black-backed Gull showed well stood next to a graelsii (UK) bird for nice comparison.

Glorious morning

Up bright and early this morning to try my new Kowa scope. By 8am I was mooching around Houghton Green Flash with Bill, Bins and new scope.

The first thing that I noticed was a Buzzard perched on a fencepost by the "lawn" in the field behind the kennels. I then spotted some Linnets perched in the top of the Hawthorn bushes in the south hedge. Some more appeared and some more until there were 50 birds - they then relocated to the Oak by the gate. The rising sun made them all glow pinky-red - a wonderful sight.

These were the first birds viewed through the Kowa - I am still blown away by the sharpness and clarity. The view was absolutely superb.

The pool was relatively calm with the western half lit up pink (it made the Wigeon & Pochard glow) and the eastern half still in shade. Most of the water fowl were out on the water for a change and seemed fairly settled. Numbers today:

87 Wigeon
12 Tufted Duck
9 Pochard
1 Great Crested Grebe
53 Coot
4 Moorhen
1 Pied Wagtail

Hardly any gulls about so I didn't bother checking the few that were present.

A brief visit to Waterworks Lane this lunch, there was a largish flock of Chaffinches (circa 50) with 2 male Bramblings. One of the latter was the male with the dark hood which I have nicknamed Vader! 6 Tree Sparrows, 2 Yellowhammers and a Reed Bunting completed the line up with a Buzzard on its usual fenceline nearby. The finches as usual were extremely flighty and cleared off when disturbed by a passing van.

Also had a quick visit to the pool off Moat Lane in Rixton at lunch. Tufted Ducks up to 93, plus 58 Gadwall, 50 Coot and 2 Little Grebes. 3 drake Teals were new.

I am now impatient for the weekend and a chance to use the new scope in anger!