Starling flock at Leighton Moss
Great White Egret in the roost at Leighton Moss. This is the ringed bird that has toured the area - Bill Aspin's blog contains a good run down of its movements!
Little Egrets in the roost. They all perched openly in the trees to start with and then headed further in and disappeared as the light fell
The River Lune at Crook O' Lune picnic site
Snow Geese at Leighton Moss
The Morecambe / Allen complex from the road above the reserve
Escaped female Harris' Hawk in the garden
Billy at HGFXXX
Saturday started off sunny and an early morning trip to Houghton Green Flash with Billy. Not much to report on the water though the Tufted Duck numbers had risen to the dizzying heights of 12. A snipe lifted out of the south field, as a little later did the Meadow Pipit flock which now numbers 30 birds. At least 25 Goldfinches also exited their roost in the south hedge. I then headed off home and pulled into the drive to find every bird in the garden had gone bananas. Two Crows, two Magpies, eight Goldfinches, a few Blackbirds and at least 15 Collared Doves and Woodpigeons were all mightily upset with, and in most cases dive-bombing, a large brown lump perched in the larger Ash tree.
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I immediately thought it was a Buzzard so I set my scope up on the front drive and pointed it down the side of the house to the Ash tree to find a female Harris’ Hawk perched in the garden. Awesome! She looked amazing and was clearly ignoring the mobbing crowd while eyeing up our pet rabbits in their runs. Coincidentally the owner of this bird was cruising the area at the time and had spotted me with the scope and stopped to enquire what I was watching. The hawk has been on the run since Saturday 17th October and had to date evaded a number of recapture attempts. The falconer tried to tempt her with some dead rabbit and then tried to catch her. She flitted around the garden a bit before deciding she wasn’t tolerating any more and flew off south west. The area is full of myxied rabbits at the moment so I suspect she is finding easy prey – I understand she has visited HGF a time or two! I briefly called in at my feeding station in Waterworks Lane (around 50 Tree Sparrows present) and then headed north for the weekend.
Xxx
Saturday afternoon I decided to have a mooch over to Pilling Lane Ends. Unfortunately high tide had been several hours earlier and nothing much was close in. A few Little Egrets were dotted around the salt marsh with 440 Pink-footed Geese. Out on the shoreline I found 6 Whooper Swans, 85 Pintails and several hundred Golden Plovers along with various other waders. It seemed very quiet so I drove up to Conder pool and creek where the place was full of Teal and Redshanks but not much else. I soon left.
Xxxx
I then decided Leighton Moss probably wasn’t a bad bet and headed off there. I parked up on the road above the Morecambe/Allen complex and viewed the reserve here from the layby. Although it was distant, I soon picked up a Peregrine preening on a post and then the four Snow Geese, way out on the marsh. On one of the distant pools which can’t be seen from the hides I also found two red-head Goosanders. I couldn’t go onto the reserve as I had Billy in tow so I next wandered over to the layby above the pools nr the Public Hide and settled down for the evening roost. I spent the next hour or so in the enjoyable company of a local birder named Rob.
Xxxx
Although we were trying to be diligent, we only confirmed two of the Great White Egrets coming into roost. We did see another bird flying around but couldn’t rule out one of the earlier birds just flitting around. While the various egrets kept flying in to the trees in ones and twos the local Starlings were also coming into roost. We would suddenly hear a whoosh sound and a few hundred sheps would fly right over our heads. As dusk descended Redwings also started flying in while the Starling flock took flight and made allsorts of shapes in the sky. I love watching this and from photos I have taken I would estimate the flock to be in excess of 20,000 birds. Rob counted 45 Little Egrets into the roost while I counted Redwings and got to 1660 before it became too dark to see any more. I also got a Woodcock (by accident) and a Sparrowhawk while a Green Woodpecker was vocal on the hill behind us. I can’t say I have enjoyed birding more at any time this year that that hour or so just before dusk! Lots of breathtaking sights and I was chilled and relaxed for a change.
Xxx
Sunday – rain and very strong winds stopped play! This morning I woke up early and headed off to Leighton Moss, arriving in the Public Hide well before dawn. The three Great White Egrets flew out of the roost together at around 06:35 – it was another 25 minutes before the first of 39 Little Egrets left the roost. There were plenty of common birds around, two Greenshanks dropped in to the island in front of the hide and the Cetti’s Warbler was singing away opposite the grit trays. A very noisy Tawny Owl was also nearby and out on the marsh beyond the flood remained the four Snow Geese.
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At lunch today I called in at HGF. The Wigeon flock has now increased to 12 birds and the first wintering Redshank is now back at the pool. The Meadow Pipit flock was absent but four Skylarks buzzed around the sky while a Buzzard and a Kestrel were also present. An adult Common Gull on the pool had a cracking band across its bill and had me excited for a few seconds. At my feeding station only four Tree Sparrows were seen.
Xxxx
I immediately thought it was a Buzzard so I set my scope up on the front drive and pointed it down the side of the house to the Ash tree to find a female Harris’ Hawk perched in the garden. Awesome! She looked amazing and was clearly ignoring the mobbing crowd while eyeing up our pet rabbits in their runs. Coincidentally the owner of this bird was cruising the area at the time and had spotted me with the scope and stopped to enquire what I was watching. The hawk has been on the run since Saturday 17th October and had to date evaded a number of recapture attempts. The falconer tried to tempt her with some dead rabbit and then tried to catch her. She flitted around the garden a bit before deciding she wasn’t tolerating any more and flew off south west. The area is full of myxied rabbits at the moment so I suspect she is finding easy prey – I understand she has visited HGF a time or two! I briefly called in at my feeding station in Waterworks Lane (around 50 Tree Sparrows present) and then headed north for the weekend.
Xxx
Saturday afternoon I decided to have a mooch over to Pilling Lane Ends. Unfortunately high tide had been several hours earlier and nothing much was close in. A few Little Egrets were dotted around the salt marsh with 440 Pink-footed Geese. Out on the shoreline I found 6 Whooper Swans, 85 Pintails and several hundred Golden Plovers along with various other waders. It seemed very quiet so I drove up to Conder pool and creek where the place was full of Teal and Redshanks but not much else. I soon left.
Xxxx
I then decided Leighton Moss probably wasn’t a bad bet and headed off there. I parked up on the road above the Morecambe/Allen complex and viewed the reserve here from the layby. Although it was distant, I soon picked up a Peregrine preening on a post and then the four Snow Geese, way out on the marsh. On one of the distant pools which can’t be seen from the hides I also found two red-head Goosanders. I couldn’t go onto the reserve as I had Billy in tow so I next wandered over to the layby above the pools nr the Public Hide and settled down for the evening roost. I spent the next hour or so in the enjoyable company of a local birder named Rob.
Xxxx
Although we were trying to be diligent, we only confirmed two of the Great White Egrets coming into roost. We did see another bird flying around but couldn’t rule out one of the earlier birds just flitting around. While the various egrets kept flying in to the trees in ones and twos the local Starlings were also coming into roost. We would suddenly hear a whoosh sound and a few hundred sheps would fly right over our heads. As dusk descended Redwings also started flying in while the Starling flock took flight and made allsorts of shapes in the sky. I love watching this and from photos I have taken I would estimate the flock to be in excess of 20,000 birds. Rob counted 45 Little Egrets into the roost while I counted Redwings and got to 1660 before it became too dark to see any more. I also got a Woodcock (by accident) and a Sparrowhawk while a Green Woodpecker was vocal on the hill behind us. I can’t say I have enjoyed birding more at any time this year that that hour or so just before dusk! Lots of breathtaking sights and I was chilled and relaxed for a change.
Xxx
Sunday – rain and very strong winds stopped play! This morning I woke up early and headed off to Leighton Moss, arriving in the Public Hide well before dawn. The three Great White Egrets flew out of the roost together at around 06:35 – it was another 25 minutes before the first of 39 Little Egrets left the roost. There were plenty of common birds around, two Greenshanks dropped in to the island in front of the hide and the Cetti’s Warbler was singing away opposite the grit trays. A very noisy Tawny Owl was also nearby and out on the marsh beyond the flood remained the four Snow Geese.
Xxxx
At lunch today I called in at HGF. The Wigeon flock has now increased to 12 birds and the first wintering Redshank is now back at the pool. The Meadow Pipit flock was absent but four Skylarks buzzed around the sky while a Buzzard and a Kestrel were also present. An adult Common Gull on the pool had a cracking band across its bill and had me excited for a few seconds. At my feeding station only four Tree Sparrows were seen.
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