Little egrets & more grebelets

Post-work blast around started, as usual, at Freeman's Pools where the coot numbers seem to be building slowly with 14 there this evening.
The 'new' little grebe nest had one very newly hatched dabchick - hopefully more to come. The pair on the upper pools were still attending to their lone offspring.
A doe roe deer was showing very well.

Could only see 2 green sandpiper on the Wildfowlers' Pools from the gate and the kingfisher seen earlier (see below) was still present, as were 3 teal - surely a garganey should drop by soon?

A greenshank was on Aldcliffe Marsh and a snipe was on The Flood.

At least 2 adult Med gulls were amongst the many common and black-headed at Gull Bank.

I picked a very young bank vole up off the road near Keyline and deposited it into the verge.

Jon C.


Aldcliffe AM

Bumped into Guy and we had a trawl round.
Wildfowlers’ Pools
Green Sandpiper 4/5.
Common Sandpiper 1
Snipe 4
Moorhen, 15+ with juveniles.
Kingfisher 1
Raven 2 fly over.

Flood
Snipe 2
Green Sandpiper 2
Pied Wagtail 1

Track by meadow.
Long-tailed Tit 20+
Chaffinch
Greenfinch
Chiffchaff 1
Blackcap1
Whitethroat 2

Marsh
Little Egret 4
Kingfisher 1, probably same as above.
Green Sandpiper 1, farmers in Wildfowlers’ at this point, I noticed still 3 Green Sandpipers present.
Lapwing
Curlew
Dunlin opposite side of river.
Scanned Gulls, no med that we saw.

Frog Pond
Little Grebe 1

Freeman’s Pool
Coot usual
Mute Swan 1
Goldfinch 25
Swift, still half a dozen along with Swallows and House Martins.

SteveW Guy McC

.

Really little little grebe

After slumming it down in Norfolk with my old chum Adrian 'Ziggy' Dawson for a few days it was good to back to the patch.
The birds might not be anywhere as near as 'good', or seen in such numbers, but there's nothing quite like local patch birding.

Freeman's Pools held a bit of a surprise in the form a newly hatched little grebe, though not from the main pool nest (still going strong) but from the pair on the upper pools. I'd assumed they'd failed, but the tenacious little beggars seem to have battled on!
Otherwise 7 swift provided the only other diversion.

Frog and Darter Pools were bereft of avian life though the Wildfolwers' Pools held an impressive 6 green sandpiper. This is the highest number so far this year, I believe.

A sparrowhawk was hunting along the seawall hedge but the marsh seemed pretty quiet.

Oh, what a Circus Take 2

Aldcliffe AM
Call off Guy at 09.20 re another Marsh Harrier on the patch. Got down there, Guy was still watching, and it was in tree at Heron Pool, juvenile, great view and in a tree! It then went airborne reason being some fool walking along the embankment, couldn’t believe it!
We continued and the raptors came thick and fast, Sparrowhawk, Buzzard, Peregrine and Kestrel, brilliant. Ravens 2.
Guy had also seen Snipe 4 and Green Sandpiper 2 and later I saw Common Sandpiper 1 and Gadwall 2, at Wildfowlers’ Pool.
Our day continued with double patch tick for us a Med Gull, silver ring, on the river mud down from The Channel (Cadaver Corner), along with a flock of Lapwing was also a single Dunlin. Freeman’s Pool quiet with mainly Coot. Darter Pool Little Grebe.
SteveW Guy McC

Oh, what a Circus

Received a call from Guy McC this morning, the long-eared owl was again roosting in the same area as a few days ago and a marsh harrier came over the pools before heading over to hunt on Colloway Marsh. As far as I am aware this represents the 3rd record of marsh harrier for the patch.

A post-work visit failed to relocate the owl, (though it must be said that Guy does possess an unusually good owl-radar...) despite my knowing exactly which elder it was in.
At least 4 green and 2 common sandpiper were at the Wildfowlers' Pools.
2 swift were over Freeman's Pools. There were the usual little grebes and coot present here (including a new late coot chick).

I was pleased to meet up with Reuben Neville from Lancs Wildlife Trust who filled me in with details of what they were currently doing at the site and what they planned to do in the future.
The Freeman's Pools site really is going to blossom in the coming years - it should be interesting to see how it develops.

Can't see the wood for the greens

A single wood sandpiper was with a common and 4, possibly 5, green sandpiper at the Wildfowlers' Pools at c.6.15pm.
Picked it up on call, then got flight views only and didn't manage to age it. It seemed to be keeping with the greens and was still in the area when I left.
6 teal now here too.

All else was pretty quiet with just the usual suspects at Freeman's Pools. Even yesterday's visiting gadwall had moved on...