Saturday highlights

Some obvious localised cold weather displacement.

7 tufted duck and 3 gadwall in the river.
3 goldeneye on Aldcliffe rapids and 1 goosander heading upstream and a red breasted merganser downstream.
1 little egret.
Kestrel with a recently caught vole being harassed by a large female sparrowhawk.
Passerines around Stodday included a treecreeper, grey wagtail, reed bunting and meadow pipit.
Minimum of four water rail, 4 snipe and redshank in the ditch between the top and bottom paths. 1 kingfisher and 3 bullfinch in the same area. This ditch is the only open water in the area.
7 linnet in the stubble fields.
1 sparrowhawk at Freemans pool and a black tailed godwit at Marsh point.

Guy.

Woodcock

My outside thermometer gave a minimum temp. of -9 degrees last night and didn't get above -1.5 during daylight hours. I've got a fieldfare in the garden eating apples and saw a snipe flying over my garden.
Sightings from Aldcliffe were highlighted by;
Woodcock seen at 1pm flying over canal near Admiralty Wood.
Merlin just south of Stodday picnic site with a small bird in its talons.
Snow geese and barnacles feeding together on marsh.
Guy.

Memories of warmer days

Marsh harrier 4/8/09

A Haywoodesque snap of one of the August marsh harriers photographed at Heron pool. Hope this warms your cockles on a cold winter night.
Guy

Hightide

The view from snipe bog to the Coniston fells.

Fewer birds around today and I couldn't locate any pinkies, linnet, water rail or goldeneye.
Common buzzard slightly out of the parish at deep cutting.
Thrush species increasing in fields.
Barnacles and snow geeses pushed off the marsh in to the fields by the high tide.
4 grey wagtails 4 meadow pipits seen at various places on the high tide mark.
4 tree sparrows in the hedge.

Guy

New year resolve

Looking down the estuary to Glasson.


One of the water rail

On call for work last night meant no alcohol and a clear head today. Eager to make the most of it, I headed down the parish fairly early. Highlights include:
2 water rail on the iced flood with a male bullfinch in the bushes and 2 meadow pipits on the ice.
7 tree sparrows, 53 linnet and a few reed buntings in the hedge between the stubble fields.
The 4 snow geese and 3 barnacles were on the marsh.
8 goldeneye, 1 red breasted merganser and alittle grebe in the river between cadaver corner and the pylons.
A rock pipit, 2-3 overhaed skylarks and reed bunting were at the Stodday picnic site and a coal tit on the lane to Stodday. Mixed flocks of redwing and fieldfares in the fields to the east of the sewerage works.

Guy.