Update...

Today Freeman’s Pools were quiet, a Kestrel doing the rounds. A Green Sandpiper on one of the smaller pools.  At marsh point were 65 LBB Gulls, 26 Herr Gull and 6 GBB Gulls, along with a few dozen BH Gulls. Wildfowlers’ Pool had 2 Green Sandpiper, 1 Snipe, Lapwing, Mallard and Moorhens.

2 Wheatear were on the marsh, a roughly 8 Pied Wagtails in the area. Chiffchaff’s at the cutting, about 4. 7 Common Sandpiper at gull bank. Apprx 350 greylag now presnt, increasing numbers of BH Gulls and Lapwing. Cormorant 7. 

Midweek, 7 Greenfinch at the cutting, again up to 7 Common Sands, and a Med Gull scoped. 1 Bar-tailed Godwit present. 30 Curlew on the marsh and single Little Egret.

Steve

Shanks on the Banks

Dan here.... but no pictures today blurry photo lovers...

A good high tide roost of waders and gulls along the estuary at Gull Bank this afternoon Over a hundred redshanks, 5 greenshank, 70 adult dunlins, 4 common sandpipers and a bar-tailed godwit were to be picked out here.

Elsewhere an adult mediterranean gull was roosting in a field.

DH.

It's nice to have a Hobby

Dan here, bringing you the latest Aldcliffe wildlife news and the best in bird photography....ahem...

An adult hobby was hunting swifts over much of the parish in heroic fashion this afternoon.

Observed for about fifteen minutes over the marsh, the wood, trig-point hill and Aldcliffe village, and briefly again over the wood.

Increased numbers of gulls included the first commons for weeks and 3 mediterranean gulls (2 ads and a juv).

Waders included four green sandpipers and a juvenile little ringed plover.

DH

Common Cause........

Highlight this morning was 24 Common Sandpiper on the mud opposite gull bank. Also, in the hedges were Goldfinch, Linnet, Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Chiffchaff, Sedge Warblers, Whitethroats etc. A Peregrine was screeching from the pylon, and up to 7 Ravens were showing interest in a carcass, think it was a cow. A flock of 30 Starling, Shelduck with young, Lapwing, Curlew and 2 Bar-tailed Godwits were on the marsh.

The Flood saw 1 LRP, Wildfowlers’ 3 Green Sandpiper, 1 LRP. Freeman’s Pool saw 1 Little Egret which was good to see, also, 2 Common Sandpiper, 30 Lapwing, Little Grebe etc. Pair of Kestrel was also present. House Martin, Swallow and Swift numerous.

Steve

Dan here with a different slant on the day's birds (5 green sandpipers, 2 skylarks in song over marsh and one over the maize fields, 3 little ringed plovers including a juvenile, an early-ish common snipe) and some insect sightings:

A few dragonflies were braving the nagging wind, namely 8 emperors, 2 brown hawkers, 2 black-tailed skimmers and 5 of the season's first common darters. One of the latter pictured above. Sadly a speedy but inquisitive female/juv male. hawker species evaded identification. What an amateur!

Butterflies were largely unremarkable with a few red admirals, meadow browns and speckled woods, though a single painted lady was my first of the year.  DH.