Ribble Birding, Lancs.

[Colin Bushell]

I moved to Preston in Lancs from Herts in 2001 and having been "landlocked" for so long I soon acquainted myself with some new birding areas of coastal Lancs. The first sites I visited were on the Ribble Estuary, mostly on the north shore near Freckleton and Warton. This area soon became a favourite of mine but it wasn't long before the scarce birds turning up at Brockholes Quarry just east of Preston made this site too hard to resist too. So my "patch limits" were set: Ribble Valley about six miles east and 10 miles west of my home in Preston.

Over the past five years I've seen some good birds in the Ribble Valley: Honey Buzzard, Ring-billed Gull, Spoonbill, Glossy Ibis, Temminck's Stint, Long-tailed Duck (cracking summer plumaged male at Preston Docks), Waxwing, Yellow-browed Warbler, etc, etc, etc ...... But it's the everyday stuff that gives me a lot of pleasure up here - the estuary is just loaded with birds (especially at the moment!) and nothing gives me more of a thrill than huge gatherings of birds.

Last Sunday (19 Nov) was my first chance to get out locally after my latest trip abroad. My first stop of the day at Warton Bank was pretty uneventful really - just 11 Whoopers out on the saltmarsh and 6 Little Egrets (a Lancs max. for me at the time). I spent some time searching through stubble here and found some Tree Sparrows. I only saw parties of 8 or 9 but apparently there's about 30 around at the moment. It was quite late by the time I got to Freckleton and the footpath down to Naze Point that overlooks the estuary. The fields around Naze Pool were loaded with birds: 1500+ Lapwings, 550+ Golden Plover, 35+ Black-tailed Godwits and a huge flock of Starlings. A nice mixed tit flock in the woods along Freckleton Creek held a couple of Goldcrests and a Chiffchaff but the sound of Pink-footed Geese in the distance meant I hurried a bit to Naze Point. "Pinks" are usually just fly-overs in this area and usually only seen as distance specks on the deck across the Ribble at Hesketh Marsh across from Warton, sI was pleasantly surprised to find a huge flock of 3,000 or so feeding on Longton Marsh. A white-necked bird had the pulse racing for a few seconds in the fading light of a late November afternoon but excitement soon faded when the bird stood up and revealed itself to be an escaped Emperor Goose! Another "sweep" through the geese with the 'scope produced the goods in the form of 3 Barnacle Geese - a patch tick for me. Let's hope this flock of Pinks hangs around and drags a few other stragglers down. Far fewer wild swans on Longton than usual though - just 16 Whoopers and 4 Bewick's.
A Little Egret flying over stopped me opposite Naze Pool on my way back to the car and when I checked there were 18 of these snowy-white birds at a pre-roost gathering. Easily the most I've seen together in Lancs. Last word to the Barn Owl before I reached the car - a pretty good afternoon really and only ten miles from home.

More soon ...... Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Despite the foul weather today I coudn't resist a return trip to Naze Point, just to see if the Pink-footed Goose flock was merely displaced birds due to wildfowler's activities at the weekend.
A brief stop at Newton Marsh en route (best so far for me here is Temminck's Stint although this pool's been graced by Citrine Wag' in the past) produced little apart from 153 Wigeon and a drake Pintail. Pintails are not common here despite the huge numbers of this attractive duck a few miles west along the mouth of the Ribble near Lytham.
Anyway ... on to Freckleton: As I walked the path to the Naze Point I couldn't hear any geese but my first looks over Longton Marsh revealed that the weekend's flock was still present. Definitely settled (no shooting today on the south bank), but well spread out over the marsh. En route to the Naze I encountered the tit flock again - no Chiffchaff but Coal Tit was unexpected and the whole lot was "spooked" by a passing Sparrowhawk. It was high tide when I arrived at the Ribble - not my favourite conditions but good for scrutiny of the huge Wigeon flocks (no American Wigeon .... yet), and a couple of Greenshank flew out of the creek as I approached Naze Point for a scan of the geese. Single Barnacle and the "rogue" Emperor were still present amongst the Pinks. The longer this flock sticks around the better - the first winter I've had grey geese on the deck on this part of the estuary since I've been in Lancs.
Peregrine over the Naze and Jay near the boatyard were the only birds to trouble my notebook on the way back to the car.
Colin

[Stephen Dunstan]

Hi Colin,

As you haven't been welcomed to BF I thought I would oblige.

Isn't 18 L Egrets a county record?

Regards,

Stephen.

[Colin Bushell]

Hi Stephen,

Thanks - good to be back in the UK birding again. Yes, must be a Lancs record I reckon - bet it can be beaten though.

Cheers,
Colin

[SiG]

Hi.

L Egret certainly doing well locally; anything up to 11 most days on the Ribble estuary at Marshside at the moment

[Gavin Haig]

Hi Colin! Just spotted your thread.....which means yet another site to check out on a regular basis! Great stuff though - birding there sounds brilliant, and a bit different from E Devon, and even more so from Herts and NW London! Already I've found some stuff to be jealous about - 3,000 things in fact.

Hope this thread takes off nicely - the Backwater thread has been huge fun, and a great advert for the local birding. Are you alone, or are there one or two other local patchers up there?

I shall follow your antics keenly.

All the best.............Gav

[Colin Bushell]

Hi Gavin,

Good to hear from you as always. Yes, bit different from Hilfield Park Reservoir! More of a challenge with so many birds but exciting all the same. Over the past five years I can probably count the number of birders I've seen on this patch on one hand, so I've virtually got this part of the estuary to myself.

Like your Devon thread very much Gavin. Seems you've got a great team down there. Keep up the good work.

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Pretty dismal up here today with all birding done from the car. A quick stop at Newton Marsh produced the usual 200+ Wigeon and an increase in Teal (up to 150+). Very flighty though, making "sifting" for any trans-Atlantic visitors tricky. Pair of Shoveler were the only other bits.
With the conditions worsening I popped in at Warton Bank where 5 Whoopers were in evidence amongst the Mute Swans. Loads of Pink-footed Geese on the south side of the estuary over at Hesketh / Banks, all out of range and flighty though. Just the usual Blue and Great Tits on the feeders in the orchard, the site of last year's Marsh Tit. No harriers as to be expected in these conditions.
Hope for better at the weekend - including the weather!
cOLIN

[Colin Bushell]

Another late afternoon visit to the estuary produced very little today but apart from being a bit blustery it was pleasant all the same. High tide at Freckleton Naze Point is rarely the best conditions but today's birds included 3,000+ Lapwing, small numbers of Golden Plover, 4 Oystercatcher and a couple of Turnstone. Still only 13 Whoopers on Longton (usually about 80 or so here) and sadly the flock of Pink-footed Geese seems to have moved on. Standing on the point checking the passing stream of gulls heading out to the outer estuary proved fruitless (I still need Glaucos and Iceland for the patch). Returning to the car past Naze Pool a Little Egret dropped in and I could only find 5 in total though I suspect there were more hidden under the high bank, shelteing from the wind. I'll check elsewhere on the Ribble tomorrow I think .....

Colin.

[Paul Jarvis]

Sounds like a good patch Colin, I will have to check it out for myself sometime.

[Colin Bushell]

Sounds like a good patch Colin, I will have to check it out for myself sometime.

Hi Paul,

Please do - the area could do with more coverage. Bring your wellies!

Yesterday (26/11) was indeed better than Saturday and the morning started well with 2 Great spotted Woodpeckers as I walked the path from the car down to the Ribble. Bright and sunny so a good day for scanning distant flocks of Wigeon etc so I covered Warton Marsh where several hundred were in range but nothing in amongst them. The Lapwing flock on the south side held 80+ Gloden Plovers, there was a Turnstone and a single Bar-tailed Godwit on the shore (neither common so far up the Ribble this time of year) and two Greenshank were knocking around. Just 2 Shoveler, one Pintail (a drake) and a dozen Teal made up the "quacker" totals with 42 Pink-feet around but still no herds of swans out on Longton.
With the fine afternoon weather I decided to walk towards Warton Bank to look for raptors over the saltmarsh. A superb Barn Owl hunting over the airfield at 2 PM managed to avoid my digiscoping efforts and 5 Whoopers and 4 Little Egrets had made it into the notebook by the time I turned back towards the car. Still no harriers but 3 Peregrines, single Sparrowhawk and Merlin made it worthwhile.
Few passerines out on the marsh: 8 Skylarks, Grey Wag and while I was searching for Bramblings in a small Chaffinch flock I flushed 4 Grey Partridges. Nice to see 37 Whoopers out on Longton Marsh as I made my last scan of the Ribble / Douglas confluence before reaching the car.

[Colin Bushell]

Lunchtime visit to the Ribble estuary today starting at Newton Marsh: Very small numbers of duck (just 40 odd Teal and 20 or so Wigeon), but female Stonechat on wasteland was expected even if a Gt sp Woodpecker on the fence posts wasn't!
Westwards to the outer estuary as far as Fairhaven (about as "coastal" as the patch gets). The lake here has a good record for rarities, usually when I'm working abroad. Adult Ivory Gull and Dusky Warbler still hurt but Ferruginous Duck and Shorelarks have brightened up winter days here for me in the past. Anyway immature Scaup was the best today in with 25 Pochards and 3 Goldeneye. A tit flock with Goldcrests in "the Dusky bushes" (grrr...) kept me busy before heading back to the office.

CB

[Colin Bushell]

With a poor forecast for the weekend and having been "grounded" in the office for two days, I was gagging to get out today. Bright and sunny on the Ribble but not much to report really. First stop at Newton Marsh where duck numbers were back up: 300+ Wigeon, 100+ Teal and 20 Shoveler. Rest of the time at Freckleton Naze - loads of birds (800+ Wigeon, 3000+ Lapwing, 700+ Golden Plover, 125 Curlew, etc, etc) but nothing special except a couple of Greenshank. Gazing south across the river from Naze Point it was nice to see the Whoopers have crept up to 84 (that's more like it!) and there were 5 Pink-footed Geese flying around. Merlin and Little Egret only highlights here otherwise.
Now, with Rough-legged Buzzard and Green-winged Teal on the south bank (just outside the patch) I really should be trying harder!

CB

[Colin Bushell]

Blowing a gale up here too today so I headed out to the estuary. As I passed Lea Marsh I noted it was flooded due the 9+ metre tide and the strong SW wind. Warton Marsh was already flooded when I arrived and there was very little happening, just 3 Little Egrets and 20 Whooper Swans. With the tide in I thought I'd head to Fairhaven but nothing of note in Granny's Bay and I couldn't even find the Scaup on the lake. By now the tide was dropping and it was really blowing so I headed back inland to Brockholes Quarry. This is a superb site at migration times but a little neglected in the winter. Anyway, not much to report: 4 Little Grebes, 40 Teal, 23 Gadwall, 16 Shoveler, 20 Pochard and best of all a Bullfinch (scarce around here) with some Chaffinches.

CB

[Colin Bushell]

I remember sitting watching the Lytham high tide wader roost with local birder Maurice Jones last May when a Fulmar flew into the mouth of the estuary. We discussed the possibility of seabirds in the Ribble in the right conditions and that no-one had ever really looked.
After the strong SW winds over the past 24 hours and the fact there had been Leach's Petrels along the Lancs coast, today had to be the day. On arrival at Fairhaven conditions were great - onshore blow and high tide. Sure enough after 10 minutes one, then two Leach's appeared - my first for the estuary - Ribble Tick! I had to leave after an hour and a half but a total of six birds was very satisfying, one right under the seawall too. Fantastic stuff!

Colin

[Stephen Dunstan]

I remember sitting watching the Lytham high tide wader roost with local birder Maurice Jones last May when a Fulmar flew into the mouth of the estuary. We discussed the possibility of seabirds in the Ribble in the right conditions and that no-one had ever really looked.
Colin

Hi Colin,

I think they have looked from Marshside quite a lot over the years. I have seen Arctic Skua at Fairhaven and Sabine's Gull at Freckleton, though the latter was an over-summering bird. And of course seabirds regularly go up the Ribble and overland.

Regards,

Stephen.

[Colin Bushell]

Hi Colin,

I think they have looked from Marshside quite a lot over the years. I have seen Arctic Skua at Fairhaven and Sabine's Gull at Freckleton, though the latter was an over-summering bird. And of course seabirds regularly go up the Ribble and overland.

Regards,

Stephen.

Hi Stephen,

Thanks for the response Stephen, I didn't make it clear but I was referring to my regular Ribble sites really (north shore to Fairhaven).

For what it's worth my Ribble "seabirds" since 2001 (when I moved here) consist of a Bonxie at Banks Marsh (not in my area - see SIG's thread in the "Your Birding Day" section of BF for Marshside stuff), a couple of Arctic Skuas from Fairhaven (lingering at low tide) and the aforementioned Fulmar. Maurice also mentioned some past records of skuas over Freckleton and Preston Docks, so as you say overland migration is documented for the Ribble.

Interesting stuff.......could do with more folks looking in the right conditions I reckon.

Colin

[Steve Jones]

Colin,

I worked on Preston Docks in the early nineties (until BAE closed down the warehouse...sigh!) and still occasionally watch around the basins and downstream from the 'bull-nose'.
Some of the better birds when I worked there were Little Terns, Black-Terns, Little Gulls, Ring-billed Gull and a Gannet heading up river during a gale (which was very surprising at the time).
Waders were not as good that far up the river, but I still clocked lots of Whimbrel, a few Curlew Sands, plus Black-Tailed Godwits. Inside the BAE compound we used to get nesting Shelduck every year, and a healthy colony of tree-sparrows after nest boxes were fitted on the building, and once a juv Cuckoo inside the warehouse.
The area downstream held wintering Stonechats, and the hedges were good for Winter Thrush's, Goldcrests etc. Alas this area is now the Trax Motorbike Racing area.

I've started birding the Penwortham side of the river more often now, as its quieter and has interesting Stubble Fields as well as better access to the downstream marshes.

[Gavin Haig]

Nice result with the Leach's Petrels, Colin! The vast majority seem to have been whisked up the Irish Sea and Bristol Channel - amazingly few reports from the SW. So I'm envious again. Mind you, we do at least get proper seabirds on a regular basis!

Keep up the good work.........

[Colin Bushell]

Nice result with the Leach's Petrels, Colin! The vast majority seem to have been whisked up the Irish Sea and Bristol Channel - amazingly few reports from the SW. So I'm envious again. Mind you, we do at least get proper seabirds on a regular basis!

Keep up the good work.........

Hi Gavin,

Seems like today was better on the south coast for petrels - just read your thread on Backwater Birding though ..... ooops! Never mind, I missed a Ribble tick today too (Shag).

Grounded for the next two days unfortunately - have to do a full days work!

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Colin,

I worked on Preston Docks in the early nineties (until BAE closed down the warehouse...sigh!) and still occasionally watch around the basins and downstream from the 'bull-nose'.
Some of the better birds when I worked there were Little Terns, Black-Terns, Little Gulls, Ring-billed Gull and a Gannet heading up river during a gale (which was very surprising at the time).

I've started birding the Penwortham side of the river more often now, as its quieter and has interesting Stubble Fields as well as better access to the downstream marshes.

Hi Steve,

Thanks for the feedback - the more Ribble birding history the better! I'd be interested to hear about any "goodies" you find on the south shore Steve. The docks have been good in the past: I also heard of Great Northern (I think?) Diver there, Red-necked Grebe, Firecrest and Waxwing. I believe there was once a small wintering flock of Scaup too. Worth a look still, I bet.

Back to normality today - 4 Little Egrets at Warton Bank and missed a Shag in Granny's Bay. No petrels in an hour watching the sea at high tide.

Colin

[Stephen Dunstan]

Colin,

There has also been Slav Grebe and Shag at the docks. I covered the area for three years or so when I worked there, also as Steve had Black Terns (two - one very late), Little Gull, RB Gull and a Scaup or two. I will see what else I can find for you from there in old bird reports. Alan Porter had some tern passage and other stuff including SE Owl.

Regards,

Stephen.

[Colin Bushell]

Thanks once again Stephen. Pic attached of the best bird I've seen there - cracking Long-tailed Duck a couple of years ago. Thanks to whoever found that one.
Colin

[Colin Bushell]

A quiet morning on the Ribble with a couple of hours out at Brockholes and Preston Docks. Not much to report at all really: Pochard flock building up at the quarry and 7 Great-crested Grebes at the Docks where the smell of bacon sarnies and rain gave me every excuse to get back to the office!

Colin

[HokkaidoStu]

Hi Colin. I really enjoyed reading this thread. I grew up in Penwortham and the south side of the river between Howick Cross Lane and Longton Marsh was my local patch in the early 1980's and at various times since when I ended up back in Penwortham between jobs.

I'll follow this thread with some interest.

Steve-nice to know someone is watching the south side of the river. I've spent countless hours of my life down there.

The best bird I saw was a male Ferruginous Duck in Sept '95. On the subject of seabirds I also saw Fulmar and Gannet after storms. The Tern passage in May was my favourite time.

That motorcycle scrambling course on the north side got going in the early 90's which was pretty annoying though they only seem to use it at weekends.

I feel homesick now. And you both seem to have seen better birds than I did!

[HokkaidoStu]

- the more Ribble birding history the better! I'd be interested to hear about any "goodies" you find on the south shore Steve. The docks have been good in the past: I also heard of Great Northern (I think?) Diver there, Red-necked Grebe, Firecrest and Waxwing. I believe there was once a small wintering flock of Scaup too. Worth a look still, I bet.

BColin

My memory is hazy and I may be wrong but I recall someone telling me they had seen Pectoral Sandpiper, Melodious Warbler and White-winged Black Tern on the Ribble near Preston in the late 70's/early 80's. Someone at the Fylde Bird Club maybe. Naturally he saw these just before I got into birding.

There was also a real grizzled old birder ("Jack" I think his name was) who did a lot of birding down there (the south side) in the early 80's and saw some pretty interesting things. He was a bit of a loner and didn't share his sightings much..........

I never did much birding in Preston Docks. Looks like I should have done.

[Colin Bushell]

[QUOTE=stuprice68]Hi Colin. I really enjoyed reading this thread. I grew up in Penwortham and the south side of the river between Howick Cross Lane and Longton Marsh was my local patch in the early 1980's and at various times since when I ended up back in Penwortham between jobs.

I'll follow this thread with some interest.
[QUOTE]

Hi Stu,

Thanks. Lancs is a great county for birding for sure. Funny enough before I moved here I'd only seen one half-decent bird in Lancs - Richard's Pipit. Can't even remember when it was but it was on Blackpool Airport I think. Only stopped to see it because we were on our way back south from Speyside.

Just took a look at your blog by the way - very interesting indeed.

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

My memory is hazy and I may be wrong but I recall someone telling me they had seen Pectoral Sandpiper, Melodious Warbler and White-winged Black Tern on the Ribble near Preston in the late 70's/early 80's. Someone at the Fylde Bird Club maybe. Naturally he saw these just before I got into birding.

There was also a real grizzled old birder ("Jack" I think his name was) who did a lot of birding down there (the south side) in the early 80's and saw some pretty interesting things. He was a bit of a loner and didn't share his sightings much..........

I never did much birding in Preston Docks. Looks like I should have done.

Steve and Stephen will be able to throw more light on that I'm sure, but the local "hotbed" for rarities in the past was Freckleton Sewage Farm I hear. Sounded brilliant.

Colin

[HokkaidoStu]

Hi again. I checked your blog too. Very nice. I even tried to leave a comment (about the Glossy Ibis) but for some reason the site didn't let me. Oh well.

Latin America is pretty different from the Ribble. Understatement of the century.

I went to Venezuela a few years ago. I didn't do much serious birding as I was a bit overwhelmed by all the new species and didn't travel in the jungle with fieldguide/decent binoculars (I went to the Rio Cauro on a 6 day boat trip). I gave up trying to ID everything and just decided to lie back and think "wow another Macaw/Toucan/large raptor that may possibly resemble a Harpy Eagle at distance but also certainly isn't". I'd love to go back with a better attitude (birding-wise). .


Hi Stu,

Thanks. Lancs is a great county for birding for sure. Funny enough before I moved here I'd only seen one half-decent bird in Lancs - Richard's Pipit. Can't even remember when it was but it was on Blackpool Airport I think. Only stopped to see it because we were on our way back south from Speyside.

Just took a look at your blog by the way - very interesting indeed.

Colin

[HokkaidoStu]

Steve and Stephen will be able to throw more light on that I'm sure, but the local "hotbed" for rarities in the past was Freckleton Sewage Farm I hear. Sounded brilliant.

Colin

I was a schoolboy at that time so was stuck to where I could get to on foot/by bike. I could SMELL the sewage fram though if the wind was blowing in the wrong direction.

[Colin Bushell]

I was a schoolboy at that time so was stuck to where I could get to on foot/by bike. I could SMELL the sewage fram though if the wind was blowing in the wrong direction.

Reckon I'd put up with the small at the moment in exchange for some of those good birds they had. Still the waders must turn up somewhere on the estuary. Perhaps the new reserve on the south shore will address this. See http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/lancashire/5405480.stm for some mouthwatering news.

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Hi again. I checked your blog too. Very nice. I even tried to leave a comment (about the Glossy Ibis) but for some reason the site didn't let me. Oh well.

Latin America is pretty different from the Ribble. Understatement of the century.

I went to Venezuela a few years ago. I didn't do much serious birding as I was a bit overwhelmed by all the new species and didn't travel in the jungle with fieldguide/decent binoculars (I went to the Rio Cauro on a 6 day boat trip). I gave up trying to ID everything and just decided to lie back and think "wow another Macaw/Toucan/large raptor that may possibly resemble a Harpy Eagle at distance but also certainly isn't". I'd love to go back with a better attitude (birding-wise). .

Hi Stu,

I've changed the settings on the blog to allow comments. Thanks for the feedback.
Colin

[lammy]

Hi Colin, I wondered where you had disappeared to having not seen you on the quarry for a while. Anyway going back to the Bullfinch, the new feeding station next to the first passing place had 1 male both Sat and Sun.
SE Owls should appear at Warton soon down the bottom of Bank Lane.
Great thread.
Regards Roy Lambert.

[Colin Bushell]

Hi Colin, I wondered where you had disappeared to having not seen you on the quarry for a while. Anyway going back to the Bullfinch, the new feeding station next to the first passing place had 1 male both Sat and Sun.
SE Owls should appear at Warton soon down the bottom of Bank Lane.
Great thread.
Regards Roy Lambert.

Hi Roy, nice to hear from you. Yep, been working overseas (Peru & Brazil), but back until mid Jan so lots of local birding for me. Popped down to the quarry the other day - pretty quiet but what a brilliant feeding station Roy! Great news about the "Brockholes Appeal" too. Still a way to go though (anyone interested in preserving Brockholes Quarry, or East Lancs birding for that matter, should see Bill Aspin's superb East Lancashire Birding website http://www.eastlancsbirding.co.uk/ for details).
I checked Warton for SEO's on the last big tide Roy but no joy with those or any harriers. Any time now though as you say. Glad you like the thread.

Anyway, made it to the estuary today at last - work, bad weather, chores, Arsenal on TV (still a southern softy you see), blah, blah ........usual excuses. Sat at Granny's Bay for a couple of hours to see if anything came in with the tide. Nothing unusual but really enjoyed it anyway. Nice pack of 150+ Knot pushed up by the tide, a few Barwits, Curlew, Oyc's and 30+ Sanderling on the mud. Best of all were 20 Pintail - stunning ducks. Not much on the lake either apart from a couple of Goldeneye.

Colin

[lammy]

Hi Colin
Wouldnt mind a trip out with you over the Christmas period to the Freckleton area if thats ok with you. I only know the Bank lane spot, tide and weather permitting of course.
Re the feeding station. Im beginning to think its in the wrong place ie not viewing or photography friendly. Ive thought about moving it left about 30 metres nearer the lake so we could put up a viewing barrier ala Leighton Moss feeding station.
Also see this forum Garden birds bird feeding and nestboxes/ Food and feeders and go to thread Woodland feeding station tips.
Regards Roy.

[Colin Bushell]

Hi Colin
Wouldnt mind a trip out with you over the Christmas period to the Freckleton area if thats ok with you. I only know the Bank lane spot, tide and weather permitting of course.
Re the feeding station. Im beginning to think its in the wrong place ie not viewing or photography friendly. Ive thought about moving it left about 30 metres nearer the lake so we could put up a viewing barrier ala Leighton Moss feeding station.
Also see this forum Garden birds bird feeding and nestboxes/ Food and feeders and go to thread Woodland feeding station tips.
Regards Roy.

Hi Roy,

A Freckleton trip seems like a great idea - I've sent you a PM. I'll spend some time at the feeding station when I get to the quarry next.

Cheers,
Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Back out to Fairhaven again for a couple of hours after lunch. Pretty standard stuff at the moment really. Waited for the gulls to come in but nothing of interest (where are all the Meds?). Scaup still on the lake with 24 Pochard, 4 Tufties and a pair of Goldeneye. A nice flock of 130 Oystercatcher in Granny's Bay with 15 or so Grey Plovers. Otherwise only notable event was a Peregrine flushing a small flock of Curlew.

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

After a day "off-patch" yesterday it was nice to get back on the Ribble Estuary and see what's going on today. Started at Newton Marsh with a couple of Ravens and a pair of Stonechat. Good numbers of Wigeon too but most spread out over the filelds and out of view. Nice 'scope views of Merlin on a fencepost to finish off here. Dashed out to Fairhaven where the Scaup was still present on the lake but little of note in Granny's Bay. Then headed back east stopping at Church Scarr for all the usual estuary waders (Turnstones, Grey Plovers, Barwits, etc) and Lytham Jetty where single Little Egret and Pink-footed Goose noted.
Next stop Warton Bank where the rarest sighting was two other birders! Spent half an hour scanning the saltmarsh, no harriers or owls, just a Merlin and 4 Little Egrets so headed for Freckleton Naze. In a darkening sky I walked past the pool clogged up with Shelduck and a single Little Egret and made it to Naze Point just as it started to rain. Good to see a flock of 210 Pink-footed Geese on Hesketh Marsh across the river with 70 Whoopers. Two Barnacle Geese in the Pinks was a nice bonus. Low tide so plenty of birds on the exposed rocks and mud. Best was a single Ruff in amongst the 150+ Redshanks but sifting through the 500 Wigeons and 200+ Teals kept me busy until a huge Peregrine spooked the lot. Egyptian Goose in the Canadas on Longton Marsh was a new "plastic" for the patch for me.

Not a bad day .....

[Colin Bushell]

Had to pop out in the car on some work-related chores this morning. Whoops, the bins were in the car ;) . Anyway, a reasonable morning visiting Granny's Bay and Fairhaven on a falling tide - 250 Dunlin, 41 Barwits, 3 Grey Plovers and a couple of Turnstones in the Bay. Went through the gulls - still no Med's - where are they? Scaup still on the lake with 31 Pochard, 3 Goldeneye and a nice drake Merg'. Came home via Lytham Moss where 35 Bewick's Swans and 8 Whoopers were on view. Nice to see 3 Corn Buntings in the hedgerow too.

Some very good news for all local birders can be seen at http://www.lancswt.org.uk/ regarding Brockholes Quarry by the way :clap:

[HokkaidoStu]

A "plastic" !?!?. Don't know what to say about that!

I had an Egyptian Goose and a Chilean Flamingo on the Ribble in the early 80's and the former was ticked and the latter wasn't. I also once saw a weird black pheasant type bird running across a field near Longton Marsh. I never found out what that was.

A Raven? Not a bird I ever saw round that neck of the woods. Nice one.

I saw my first ever local patch Little Egret on Longton Marsh just before I came to Japan in 1999 and am amazed how common they seem to be in the area now. In my very brief career as a twitcher I actually twitched one at Freckleton Pools in 1987.

[Colin Bushell]

A "plastic" !?!?. Don't know what to say about that!

Hi Stu,

Yeah, bit disrespectful you're right. I was actually quite pleased to see it at the time.



A Raven? Not a bird I ever saw round that neck of the woods. Nice one.

I saw my first ever local patch Little Egret on Longton Marsh just before I came to Japan in 1999 and am amazed how common they seem to be in the area now. In my very brief career as a twitcher I actually twitched one at Freckleton Pools in 1987.

Yes, the Ribble Estuary seems a strange place for Ravens doesn't it. However the Clifton - Warton stretch is one of the best places to see them on the Fylde. I saw about half-a-dozen together at Warton in the autumn. Rumour has it that they bred on some of the big pylons over at Longton a few years back.

I can remember twitching my first Little Egret at Langstone Harbour, Hants in '76 I think it was. Now, thirty years on my patch has a county record of a gathering of 18 birds. And that's a fraction of south coast flocks!

Cheers,
Colin

[Colin Bushell]

A misty morning at the Naze started with a noticeable influx of Redwings. A group of 10 Whooper Swans on Freckleton Marsh could just about be identified in the poor conditions but little to be seen until I reached the Naze Pool where there were 3 Gadwall and 3 Little Grebes. Things livened up a bit when I spotted a superb Barn Owl perched on the fence post ahead of me on the coastal footpath however. Viewing across the Ribble over to Hesketh was difficult but the sound of Pink-footed Geese in the distance finally turned into a flock landing on the fields. Something like 160 birds, but too distant to check for other species. The Egyptian Goose was still with the Canadas over at Longton but the birds on the river were very "fidgety" thanks to the incoming tide. A Little Egret flying around at the Naze was probably the same as the one over the pool as I watched a Greenshank there on the way back to the car.

Probably my last addition to this thread before festivities begin B (: so Happy Christmas to everyone!

[Colin Bushell]

"Fancy a walk?" Angie asked me and twenty minutes later we were at Fairhaven (I know how to treat a girl!). OK, I lied when I said yesterday's was my last posting before Christmas. In a biting easterly we saw very little but the high tide roost off Fairhaven Dunes was nice with 250+ Oystercatchers, single Bar-tailed Godwit and Grey Plover, and a mix of Sanderlings and Dunlins. Not much change on the lake: Scaup, 7 Goldeneye and a Little Grebe. Very enjoyable anyway.

[Stephen Dunstan]

Colin,

Went to the Naze for some fresh air after lunch today and has a real surprise in the form of a Grey Seal on the river. I saw one in Preston in the past but they are surely uncommon so far up the river.

Seven Little Egrets and a Little Grebe on the Naze Pool.

Regards,

Stephen.

[Colin Bushell]

Colin,

Went to the Naze for some fresh air after lunch today and has a real surprise in the form of a Grey Seal on the river. I saw one in Preston in the past but they are surely uncommon so far up the river.

Thanks for that Stephen,
Sure you're right about the Seal - never seen one on the river personally. I remember one at Avenham Park on the Ribble a few years ago (probably yours).

Popped out this morning as the sky had cleared after a series of grey days (it's raining as I write!). First stop was Newton Marsh where the Wigeon were nice 'n' close near the road on the entrance pool. Seems to have been a bit of an influx onto the marsh from the Ribble lately as there were about 250 on the pool and another couple of hundred spread over the fields but too distant to check thoroughly. Black-tailed Godwit and 50 Curlew around the pool too. Nice flock of finches in the stubble consisted of mainly Linnets (c. 200) plus a few Greenfinches and Chaffinches. It's been a few years since I last saw Twite on the Ribble so I checked through this lot but no joy. Last winter there were a few Brambling, Corn Bunt's and Yellowhammers here so I'll keep an eye on this flock.
Decided to check Clifton Marsh for Stonechats. No sign today but a Raven on the tip and hunting Barn Owl over the rough ground near the water treatment works made up for that. By now the skies were closing in so I whizzed down to Warton Bank. Nice gathering of birds out on the marsh included 5 Little Egrets, 38 Whoopers, 6 Bewick's and 50 Pink-feet.

[Colin Bushell]

Last chance this year to get out on the estuary, despite less than ideal conditions. Newton Marsh is the nearest site to home so I called in there where the entrance pool was full - 400+ Wigeon, 50+Teal and 12+ Shoveler. In blustery conditions birding from the car seemed best but the Barn Owl hunting over the rough ground on Clifton Marsh encouraged me to stray out to the Ribble. As I made my way through the grassland a flock of 7 Corn Buntings flew towards the tip but no sign of the Stonechats today. The river was well-stocked with birds this morning: A couple of Oystercatchers in amongst a huge duck flock loafing on the mud consisted of 700+ Wigeon and 150+ Teal. Best of all there were a few hundred BHG's, 50+ GBBG's, a LBBG and 20+ Herring Gulls to go through and it wasn't long before I noticed a cracking adult Med' Gull on the rocks. Hutton Marsh (on the south shore) was packed with 300+ Curlew, 800+ Lapwing and part of the Longton Canada Goose flock. Looking into the strengthening wind birding was becoming more and more difficult, and with the onset of rain I decided to quit while I was just about winning. Driving back across Newton Marsh a Sparrowhawk spooked all the Wigeon and 25 Pink-feet were struggling to make headway towards Longton. A lone Black-tailed Godwit was the last bird I clapped eyes on before heading for Preston.

A nice way to end 2006 - Today's Barn Owl digipic attached.

Happy New Year!

[Colin Bushell]

No birding for me so far this year but it's interesting to see that the Fylde Bird Club website (http://www.fyldebirdclub.org/index.htm) reports a couple of Water Pipits from Warton Marsh on the Ribble yesterday. A good time to look for these will be later in the winter during 10 metre tides when the birds are pushed near to Warton Bank from the saltmarsh.

[Colin Bushell]

Still no time for birding for me yet this year (apart from the usual hordes of Wigeon on lunchtime visits to Newton Marsh). Few bits and pieces reported though: Hen Harrier at Warton Marsh and Lesser Sp Woodpecker near Brockholes over the last few days. Also a Firecrest away from the Ribble, just north west of Preston enticing me away from a busy work-load at the moment.

Have to wait until the weekend ............

[Colin Bushell]

Been back from Central America a couple of weeks now. Apart from a day out catching up with Lancs birds like Purple Sand', Waxwing and Hawfinch and a quick Snow Goose twitch, I've been too busy to get out on the Ribble. OK, the Waxwing was sort of "on patch" as it's on the way down to the estuary from home and I did manage a few hours at Brockholes one Sunday (good luck Lammy at the weekend with the Lesser Spot' by the way), but that's about it.
So, nice sunny morning with a couple of hours to spare and I'm at Fairhaven today. No ducks. Six Stonechat in the scrub by the water pumping station but no sign of the Black Redstart reported there while I was away. Spring is in the air everywhere at the moment and Newton Marsh was alive with displaying Redshanks and singing Skylarks. Very few Wigeon or Teal on the entrance pool though so I decided to try my luck at Clifton Marsh. With high tide approaching all the gulls were loafing on the banks (this is one of the best loafing spots on the river), but nothing in the G B B Gulls and no Med's in the Black-headeds. Nice roost of 200+ Curlew and 40+ Oystercatcher but only 80 or so Wigeon on the river.
Ten meter tides in the coming week so there'll be a bit of observer coverage on the Ribble. Needs it!

Colin

[Stephen Dunstan]

Colin,

There were 8 Little Egrets and a Merlin at Warton Saturday plus wild swans etc.

What dates are the biggest tides?

Regards,

Stephen.

[Colin Bushell]

Forecast was showers this afternoon and I know this is pushing it a bit for "Ribble Birding", but here goes .....

Needed to get out, didn't want to get wet so went for an afternoon around the southern shore of Morcambe Bay, from Conder Green round to Pilling. One of my favourite local stretches of coastline with plenty of birds this time of year and handy places to park the car and scan the shore without getting stranded in the rain.

First stop Conder Estuary and Pool: 2 Greenshank, Spot' Red' in the creeks and female Scaup on the Pool. Nice drake Scaup on the Marina. Not much on Glasson marsh so nipped round to Cockersands. I really like this place, particularly since the Broad-billed Sand' last May! Anyway, nowt there at high tide, just loads of windsurfers. Then on to Pilling where 5 Little Egrets were on show from Lane Ends car park. Finished the afternoon listening to Five Live and the footy while I was sifting through Pink-feet. Nothing unusual as far as I could see but a very pleasant afternoon out.

Colin

[Gavin Haig]

Nice to see you're back, Colin, and out patching again too. All the best for the spring.....Gav.

[Colin Bushell]

Thanks Gav - been following the Backwater Birding thread, it's a great read.

Anyway, been spending some time on the south shore of the Ribble the past few days. Focus has been on Marshside RSPB where a drake Green-winged Teal has been showing well at Sandgrounder's the past few days. Good views today plus the usual Avocets and Blackwits. Scaup down to a single duck today (4 here Monday) and the Little Egrets were still on the saltmarsh. After a quick look around the sandplant I headed for Nel's Hide only to be greeted by "Green-winged Teal's over the back". Has to be a second drake. More distant than the Sandgrounder's bird (see fuzzy pic), but very welcome nevertheless. Couple of thousand-plus Golden Plovers, Pintail, Ruff, Snipe, loads of Wigeon, etc from the hide but no summer migrants (Garganey must get here soon).

Stopped at Crossens on the way back - loads of distant Pink-feet on the saltings. Nice afternoon.

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Quick look at Newton Marsh at lunchtime today: Nice to see 85 Black-tailed Godwits out there but only 100+ Wigeon and 5 Teal in very blustery conditions.

[HokkaidoStu]

Great to read your updates Colin. Hopefully I'll be doing a bit of birding on the Ribble later in the year (August perhaps) and I'll be expecting lots and lots of Little Egrets. Any chance of Avocets upstream at Penwortham? Or am I dreaming?

[Colin Bushell]

Hi Stu,

Glad you like the thread. Loads of Avocets at Marshside today but that's the only place I've ever seen them on the estuary. They tend to turn up in July / August for a few days in the Warton - Freckleton Naze stretch though. No problem with Little Egrets though Stu; there was another count of 18 at Warton last month on the big tides. See what next week brings.

Had a couple of hours to spare at Marshside this morning. Definitely hide-weather up here today (getting old!). Female Scaup on Junction Pool with Tufties and Pochard but otherwise just the usual hordes of Wigeon, Black-tailed Godwits plus a few Pintail. Green-winged Teal still on view from Sandgrounder's and reports of Wheatear and Spotted Redshank too.

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Went to Crossen's on the south side this morning to watch over the ten metre tide there. The rising water pushed the Pink-footed Geese (c. 400) closer but I couldn't find anything else in them. Nice flocks of Black-tailed Godwits pushed into the air by a Merlin that Angie (my wife) spotted too. Pretty poor on the Ribble for raptors this winter though. A quick dash down to Sandgrounder's at Marshside produced 30 Avocets sheltering from the wind but no sign of the Green-winged Teal.

A few Water Pipits reported from Warton Bank yesterday and still a couple of big tides this week to catch up with them.

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Water Pipits on show at Warton Bank with the tide this morning. I had to leave before the tide came right up having only seen one, but ten reported later. 10 Little Egrets out on the saltmarsh too.

[Colin Bushell]

Another 10+ metre tide today found me perched up on the Sandplant Mound at Marshside. Waders were on the move all over the place with large numbers of Grey Plovers, Curlew, Redshank and Black-tailed Godwits flying around and even floating by on rafts of vegetation coming in with the tide. A couple of Merlins seen today, but best of all a Short-eared Owl over the diminishing saltmarsh as the tide came in. Nice to get a "Shortie" as they've been pretty scarce on the estuary this winter, though one was seen today at Warton I believe.
Took a walk up to Crossens which was almost covered, seeing 4 Little Egrets, some Avocets and a Goldcrest in the bushes on Marine Drive. Back at Sandgrounder's I saw the drake Green-winged Teal fly in to the pool so I went into the hide for a look. Great views (see attached)! Quick look at the Junction Pool revealed little (the Scaup were nowhere to be seen this PM), but 500+ Golden Plover, 8+ Ruff, couple of Snipe and 20+ Dunlin on show. On my way back from Nel's I noticed c. 150 Pink-feet heading inland so I drove up to Crossens again where about 500 Pinks could be seen way out on the marsh. Too distant to pick out Beans but pretty sure there were no other geese of interest in them this afternoon. Great view across the Ribble on a clear afternoon with Bowland in the backdrop (see attached).

Good place, Marshside. First visit there about a week after I moved to Lancs produced Hen Harrier over the saltmarsh, Black Redstart on the sandplant and Bonxie on Crossens!

[lammy]

Hi Colin
No luck at all with lesser spot in boilton wood. there were six of us on the search but not even a call or drumming heard. Brilliant mornings birding though
full list on brockholes pages posted by Zac. I may have another go on Saturday the 24th.

Regards Roy.

[Jaff]

Oh and with regards Lesser Spot, I read somewehere on Birdforum that Mere Sands Wood is good for them, I assure you it's not.

Excuse the free advertising fella's.

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=80106

The more the merrier!
Jaff

[Stephen Dunstan]

Oh and with regards Lesser Spot, I read somewehere on Birdforum that Mere Sands Wood is good for them, I assure you it's not.

Excuse the free advertising fella's.

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=80106

The more the merrier!
Jaff

It was a good site in the past. As you suggest it isn't any longer.

Regards,

Stephen.

[Colin Bushell]

Popped out to see the Glossy Ibis this morning at Warton Bank. Got it there by the skin of my teeth as it flew off north just after I arrived. Nice to see Marsh Harrier and Merlin over the marsh after such a poor winter for raptors too. White things out there included at least 5 Little Egrets and 90 Whooper Swans.

Stopped at Newton and Clifton Marshes on the way back to Preston where Raven on the Clifton tip was by far the best bird.

[Colin Bushell]

Glorious day yesterday on the Ribble. Nothing special seen but spring was in the air, even if I didn't see any migrants! Started at Marshside where female Scaup and male Ruddy Duck were on show at Sandgrounder's. The Green-winged Teal appeared here later in the day but wasn't around first thing. Viewing from Nel's Hide was out for me with the hazy sunshine so I opted for a walk along the back of Marshside on the Hesketh GC footpath instead. Stopping at the platform at the Fairclough's Pool end briefly, a pair of Siskins headed north but little else was seen here. My walk produced all the Marshside regulars - 25+Avocets, 15+ Ruff and loads of Golden Plovers, Blackwits, Wigeon, Teal and a few Pintail.
Headed for Martin Mere WWT for lunch. Even when there's no birds around the soup in the Pink-foot Pantry is worth the short hop from Marshside! Nothing much to report from here - Pink-feet down to 240, but still loads of Whoopers on the Mere.
Few pics attached from the day out: Marshside viewed from the platform and one of Wigeon taken from there (just to proove there are birds there). Also the Whoopers on the Mere.

[Colin Bushell]

Took a walk along the sea wall at Crossens Marsh this morning. First decent bird was a Raven mobbed by Carrion Crows and Jackdaws. Still a good record on the Ribble. Next a moment of panic as a large hawk with what seemed like a white rump / tail flashed over the belt of trees, with Buzzards in chase. Soon calmed down when I realised it was a Bay-winged Hawk, a bird I regularly see on my tours to Latin America and a definite escape. Nice bird all the same though. We (Angie and I) walked as far as Old Hollows Farm logging Peregrine, 500+ Pink-feet, 4 Little Egrets, Spotted Redshank, several hundred Golden Plovers and a bunch of Blackwits. Reaching the farm we found a singing Chiffchaff and a Green Sand' on the pool, before heading back to the car. Nice Merlin and a couple of Grey Partridges back at Banks.
Off to Marshside then, seeing another couple of Little Egrets on the way. THE Teal was on show at Sandgrounder's but the lure of the Pec' Sand' reported earlier in the day was just too much so I headed for the Junction Pool.
Looking into the sun was not on so we headed for the path across the GC. 'Scoping the marsh I picked up what looked like a Pec' (looked really good!), but too distant to be sure. Headed back to the pool elated but no joy from there. Inconclusive ...... have to let it go. Spirits had to be raised so straight to the Pink-foot Pantry at Martin Mere WWT for cake! Single Bewick's on the Mere and a couple of Peregrines bombing into Blackwits. 23 Avocet and 40 Oystercatcher on the Mere too. Nice flock of 250 Fieldfares and a couple of Red-legged Partridges in the fields off Curlew Lane on the way back home.

Ooops, nearly forgot: 3 cracking Med' Gulls on Crossens today.

[Colin Bushell]

Afternoon down at Marshside in hope of summer migrants today. Scored on Wheatear (at last!) near the Sandplant and then took in the Green-winged Teal at Sandgrounder's before heading down to Marshside 1 to look for yesterday's Garganey. No luck for me today (bet they're still lurking there somehwre though), but good birding nevertheless. My first Sand Martins of the Spring came over as I supped tea on the platform and from Nel's I managed to find that elusive Little Stint. It was in with some Dunlins, weaving in and out the roosting Golden Plovers as they fed. Plenty of wildfowl still on the marsh and loads of Blackwits, Ruff and a few Snipe. I decided to take a look from the footpath near the GC last knockings which produced a female Merlin.

Pics attached of female Scaup on Sandplant lagoon today.

[Colin Bushell]

Cycled down to Brockholes Quarry this afternoon and was well rewarded. While I was scanning over the main pool I spotted an Osprey heading up the valley! Next was a Swallow over the Ribble but apart from a couple of Sand Martins there were very few hirundines around. A Kittiwake had been found on No. 1 pit, but after the early excitement the afternoon fizzled out a bit with just a single Chiffchaff as I made my way back along the footpath towards the M6.

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Funny weekend on the Ribble. After all that excitement on Friday afternoon with the Osprey, Saturday was quite dreadful really. Only popped out for a while to Newton Marsh but the water level's high on the entrance pool (no mud for waders) and there's just a few Teal and Wigeon left now. Nice to see a dozen Golden Plovers and 40 Blackwits out on the grazing though. Nowt down on the river by Clifton Marsh.
Today was better at Marshside though: 3+ Little Stints, Curlew Sand', loads of Golden Plovers, Blackwits and Avocets. Ruddy Ducks (2 drakes and a duck) have joined the Scaup and great views of female Merlins on two occasions this afternoon. The Green-winged Teal was just too close to digiscope today, so I took the attached through the blind shutters as it fed below me! The other efforts are taken from Nel's Hide using more regular methods.

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Spring's on the way and with the wildfowl leaving the estuary I tend to move inland so I started hammering Brockholes Quarry this week (it's that time of year again). No sign of the Lesser Spotted Woody in Boilton Wood but a few migrants around in the form of Sand Martins, Swallow, Blackcap, male Wheatear and 6 LRP's. Best bird was the 1st summer Med' Gull found by Zac Hinchcliffe.

Few pics of the site and one of the LRP on my blog.

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Well, it's been slow going so far. Flogging the quarry this past week has produced a stuttering arrival of migrants with House Martin and Common Sands (9th), Willow Warblers (11th) and Swift (today). The one day of quality was 10th when a female Common Scoter arrived on the Main Pool and two adult Little Gulls graced the site as we were watching it. The quarry's 2nd and 3rd Kittiwakes of the Spring dropped in after I left too.

CB

[Colin Bushell]

Past few days have seen a small arrival at the quarry with Yellow Wagtail (yesterday - good record locally) and White Wags (up to 8 today). Whimbrels have started to appear with 16 at the roost last night. Last night's roost vigil was interrupted by an Osprey overhead and I hear there's been one this afternoon too, making five records so far this year probably. Swifts and House Martins were more prominent today.
Away from the summer migrants 17 Black-tailed Godwits (today) and up to a dozen Goosander (on the Ribble) are perhaps the most noteworthy birds.

Whitethroat, Sedge and Reed Warblers any day now ........

[HokkaidoStu]

Hi Colin. I always remember the Whimbrels arriving on the Ribble in late April. They always seemed to be circling high over those huge pylons that cross the riverat Penwortham at the bottom of Howick Cross Lane (you don't know how homesick I am as I'm typing that last line!)

My favourite summer migrants were always the Terns. Mainly Common Terns but sometimes more interesting species joining them.In the early 80's there were flocks of over 100 on early May evenings. I used to cycle down the river after school. Happy days. There didn't seem to be as many on later spring trips alas and I haven't been on the Ribble in spring this century (!).

[Colin Bushell]

Hi Colin. I always remember the Whimbrels arriving on the Ribble in late April. They always seemed to be circling high over those huge pylons that cross the riverat Penwortham at the bottom of Howick Cross Lane (you don't know how homesick I am as I'm typing that last line!)

My favourite summer migrants were always the Terns. Mainly Common Terns but sometimes more interesting species joining them.In the early 80's there were flocks of over 100 on early May evenings. I used to cycle down the river after school. Happy days. There didn't seem to be as many on later spring trips alas and I haven't been on the Ribble in spring this century (!).

Hi Stu,

Whimbrel roosts are one of the features of springtime birding locally. Unfortunately the Longton Marsh roost has been a little neglected of late and I belive data is a bit sparse for that site. I will drag myself away from Brockholes this year for a night or two to cover it however.

The tern passage on the Ribble is an interesting one too. In recent years there's been a heavy passage of Arctics noted in the Freckleton / Longton area. I don't have the figures for Longton (althpough I think it was a 4 figure day count), but I had over a hundred fly up river in less than an hour one day last May from Naze Point. We're yet to get a decent flock of Arctics at Brockholes. The theory is that these birds come up river, see Preston in the distance and gain height and by-pass the quarry. I have certainly had Little Gulls up river as far as Clifton and with the floodlights of Deepdale in view they have climbed high and out of sight!

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Friday morning found me at the edge of Boilton Wood at first light, looking for the Lesser-spotted Woodpecker seen the previous day. No joy for me and with the trees now in leaf it's looking like I might have to wait until next winter to get this little blighter on the patch list.
The morning wasn't wasted though as a Cuckoo was head just off-site over the Ribble and a couple of Wheatears were on the open shingle next to No 1 Pit at Brockholes.
After spending so much time scanning the open fields and quarry banks for Ring Ouzels I finally broke and visited Pendle on Saturday morning. Of course the Dotterels found Friday afternoon were a big incentive too! Angie and I saw 3 or 4 Ring Ouzels immediately and with them safely "under the belt" we trudged up the steps to the top where the Dotterel were still present. We spent a fair bit of time with these delightful birds before making our way down past the "quarry" where we watched 6 Ring Ouzels for some time. Loads of Wheatears around too. Click here (http://latinamericabirding.blogspot.com/) for some pics of Dotterels and Ring Ouzels at Pendle.
With south-westerly winds and showers the conditions looked good for some quarry birding this morning. Predictably Sedge Warbler had arrived at Brockholes but still no sign of Reeds or Whitethroats. While I was scanning the open areas of No 1 Pit and watching Wheatears a Common Tern appeared and it was good to hear Swifts screaming overhead.

CB

[HokkaidoStu]

Nice pics of the Dotterel on your blog Colin. I never actually got to see these whilst growing up in Lancashire............looks like a spring visit may be in order.

Pendle. Witches and passage Dotterels. An interesting place.

I got 2 Hoopoes today near Hakodate which was pretty nice though.

[Colin Bushell]

Generally a quiet week on the Ribble. Some nice arrivals such as Grasshopper Warbler and Lesser Whitethroat at Brockholes, but nothing noteworthy. Very pleasant day today though as Roy (AKA Lammy) and I decided to check the Brockholes Whimbrel roost, first thing. Good to see a healthy 124 birds on the quarry this morning. Next we checked yesterday's Garden Warblers (good bird around here) with success. While waiting for the Reed Warbler to show on the Main Pool a Lessser Whitethroat started singing, but only showed briefly. Pretty scarce nowadays at Brockholes but my third one this Spring; all early morning jobs.
Popped home for a quick brew before heading out to the estuary. On arrival at Freckleton Marsh I could see some Arctic Terns heading upriver so I was hopeful of a decent movement this morning. No joy, just 12 in total. Couple of Wheatears on the saltmarsh were the only passerine migrants of note. Nice mixed flock of godwits (20 Blackwits / 50 Barwits) was OK though, with some summ' plum' jobbies.

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Can't believe a whole week has flown by! Been a mixed week really with daily Whimbrel counts taking up a fair bit of time, some of which should have been spent asleep!
29th April was pretty quiet all round with glorious weather, Redstarts and Pied Flys in the Brock Valley but zilch at the quarry. The strong easterly wind persisted throughout the week and it's not been too productive for migrants. Having said that two good records for the quarry fell - Grey Partridge on 2 May and even better a House Sparrow the next day. An absolute Quarry Mega nowadays. Nevertheless I was more satisfied with a little bit of quality in the form of Hobby on two dates and a smart Whinchat on 3 May.
Yesterday was a gloomy day bird-wise. The Whimbrel roost count fell to 50 'ish' and I couldn't find a half decent bird worthy of opening the birdlog for. Standing on the banks of the pit, waiting for Whimbrels to arrive (they leave it to 9 'ish' at the moment) was obviously getting to me. I remember clearly whinging about "nothing to look at" and having rumagged through my notebook for last year and reading an entry for "May 4 2006: drake Garganey, 3 Black terns at the quarry".
Well, this morning Angie and I were in situ just after 4.30 AM to count the Whimbrels (yes - worrying isn't it - my wife's as mad as me and she's not a birder!). Only 55 (Whimbrels, not Angie!) on site so once they'd departed we supped the tea from the flask and took a stroll round the Main Pool. First bird I looked at was a female Red-crested Pochard. Probably a "quarry first" I reckon but this was quickly upstaged by the sheer beauty of a drake Garganey as texts went out to all local birders (with apologies for 5.30 wake-up call). Lammy rolled up, scored on the Garg' straight away but the RCP had disappeared. Walking back to the car looked up to see a summer plumaged Bar-tailed Godwit calling as it headed west. Another quarry tick! We located the RCP ten minutes later on No 1 Pit to end a good morning.

[HokkaidoStu]

Colin-you're still seeing lots of great birds that eluded me when I was in Preston.

Red Crested Pochard...............that's a pretty good one. I saw one at Seaforth years ago but never on the Ribble.

[Colin Bushell]

Colin-you're still seeing lots of great birds that eluded me when I was in Preston.

Red Crested Pochard...............that's a pretty good one. I saw one at Seaforth years ago but never on the Ribble.


Hi Stu,

Purple Patch continues today: summer plumaged Black-necked Grebe plus Arctic Tern. RCP's still there but flighty and mobile.

Couple of pics of the Pochard and yesterday's Garg on my blog by the way.

Cheers,
Colin

[Colin Bushell]

After the weekend's goodies it was back to reality on Bank Holiday Monday. Apart from another couple of Arctic Terns the morning Quarry visit on 7th was quiet so I wandered off patch to get a couple of Wood Warblers near Clitheroe. With almost instant success (unusual in rough weather and around midday for me) we had a quick look at some Pied Flys and then headed back to the Ribble to skillfully miss an Osprey! All you have to do is shelter from the rain and drink tea with the car facing the wrong way .........
My early visit to Brockholes Quarry on 8th was quiet and as I'd got up too late to count the Whimbrels at dawn, I returned that evening. A walk around the pits was pretty fruitless so I waited by the Main Pool where 19 Whimbrel were gathered. "Nice", I thought to myself when a large shape in the Swifts turned into a Hobby. Very nice!
Then Wood Sandpiper, quickly followed by a Turnstone flew straight through the site calling. Wow! 31 Whimbrel finished the evening off nicely.
Yesterday was pretty quiet down by the Ribble apart from the RCP still loafing around on the back pits (if that makes it "not quiet"?). Today though, started well. I arrived at the quarry at 5.30 am and just as I got myself sorted a Turnstone called and whizzed through the Main Pool with 2 Dunlins. Still feeling a bit sleepy, I "togged-up" with double fleece, hat 'n' gloves and started scanning the Main Pool for any waders. Strong SW wind - should be good. Not much else on the Main Pool so scurried across to the No 1 Pit where two cracking summer plum' Turnstones and a Dunlin were feeding on the edge of the pit in the howling south westerly. Took a couple of snaps and then checked that the RCP was on No 2 pit - it was, and very flighty too. White Wag' and some Wheatears on the way back to the car. Supped tea and texted a few locals to let them know that waders were on the move, when a Ringed Plover calls and a Dunlin drops in.
Back down the quarry at lunchtime: at least 25 Dunlin have gone through and the small flock present is accompanied by a Sanderling and 2 Ringed Plovers. A good day ....... so far.

[Colin Bushell]

Few shots attached: A fraction of the Whimbrel roost and some of today's passage Turnstones and Dunlins.

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

With the forecasted NW winds I decided on a lie-in yesterday and wandered "off-patch" to Martin Mere WWT, hoping to sample some of the wader passage or maybe see one of the Garganeys seen there of late. No such luck, but nice views of roosting Tawny Owl made it worthwhile. Lots of Avocets there now and great soup of course.
So back home, bit of work in the office and then a dash down to Brockholes Quarry where a nice drake Garganey had been found. I can't resist these birds. Indeed I consider these handsome ducks a bit of a lucky charm since I bumped into a Bee-eater once while searching for a Garganey on Scilly. Stupid I know, but if I don't go ..... well, you know what'll happen.
Anyway, pretty quiet otherwise - Dunlins and Ringed Plovers continue to trickle through and the Red-crested Pochard was still around last night.

Off to Panama on Saturday.
Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Pretty blustery end to a rather quiet week for birds. Not much of note to report since Monday's Garganey - waders still passing through with a max. of 6 Dunlin and 2 Ringed Plovers yesterday. Swifts are in in big numbers at last, but still very few House Martin in the Hirundine gathering over the Main Pool at Brockholes this morning. Some strange duck records this morning with 3 drake Pochards and a drake Teal joining the Wigeon this morning. Now 3 male Reed Warblers in the corner of the Main Pool and Garden Warbler hanging around too.

Shame I didn't get a chance to get out on the estuary as much of late. Have to wait a while now anyway as I'm away for a couple of weeks from tomorrow.

Hasta pronto!

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Back in the groove once again after a spell abroad (1 tick - Tody Motmot - see blog). Lots been happening (liked to have seen that Woodchat at Marshside!) but summer seems to have set in now. Our long-staying Glossy Ibis was on view at Newton Marsh today (seems to be making its way back along the Ribble to the Quarry). Thought I'd better take a look at it after straying further afield for Red-necked Phal' at Martin Mere WWT early this morning. Otherwise most notable things have been the Eyed Hawk-Moth and Poplar Hawk-Moth in the trap at home over the weekend. Couple of pics of those on my Ribble blog.

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Took a look at the Glossy Ibis on the Ribble yesterday afternoon. Showing really well at Newton Marsh (best to view from the car) in the afternoon sunshine. Not much else there apart from a Grey Partridge with 3 chicks on nearby Clifton Marsh.
Warton Marsh was quite good, starting with 5 Gadwall and an Arctic Tern over the river. Better still, a big mixed flock (c. 500 birds) of waders was wheeling over the mudflats. Most were Barwits, but lots of Knot too. Best bird of the afternoon was undoubtedly the Sandwich Tern overhead. Hardly a Lancs mega I know, but only my second Ribble Patch record (first was at Brockholes a couple of years ago). A Greenshank flying along the river with a couple of Redshanks was the last noteable bird of the afternoon.
June's been quiet really apart from a nice adult Yellow-legged Gull at Brockholes but waders should start returning soon.

[Colin Bushell]

No sign of the Glossy Ibis at Newton Marsh during a quick visit this afternoon, just a Common Sand'. Freckleton was just as drab but invoved a longer walk. Couple of Arctic Terns on the Ribble from Naze Point and 4 Blackwits on Naze Pool was about all that troubled the notebook. Couple of Red Admirals on the Lancs Coastal Path were nice though.

[Colin Bushell]

I've had Thursday afternoon pencilled in for a bit of birding for a couple of days now. Spare time was at a premium today and with the weather threatening another downpour I decided on a quick bit of "smash 'n' grab" birding at Fairhaven - out the car, 'scope the birds and back in if it's raining.
Stopped briefly at Newton Marsh (nothing doing) before Granny's Bay. Not much to report here either but the tide was coming in nicely and there were quite a few birds (mostly gulls and Oycs) gathering on the shore near Fairhaven. Parked up near the pumping station and it started to spit as expected (left camera in the car) as I strolled over to the dunes and climbed onto the mound to view the estuary. First scan: Oycs (couple of hundred), Curlews and quite a few Herring Gulls gathering towards St Anne's. Second scan with the 'scope much the same. Quick scan with the bins: Crikey - CASPIAN TERN!
Must be the same bird as the one I twitched on Monday on the southern shore of Morcambe Bay, but what a great way to brighten up a wet Ribble afternoon. As on Monday though, just as I was on the phone the bird raised its wings and then headed off out to sea and along the coast.

Worth checking again tomorrow though....

[nick patel]

Crikey - CASPIAN TERN!


What a find Colin. Even if it is the same bird from Knott end, this is still massive, I'd love to see one.

Have you got rid of your Ribble Birding Blog, as i cannot open it anymore.
On the topic of the Ribble. I remember seeing pictures of White-letter hairstreak at Boilton/Red scar/Tunbrook woods on your Ribble Birding Blog a few weeks ago, and this interested me. I know already that they come out in July and August, and i already knew about them being there, but i was just wondering if you had any other info about them At Brockholes, as we might go see if we can see them.

By the way, has the Chemical explosion at Red scar Industrial estate affected the areas around Brockholes or the Woods in any way at all, as this is something i must take into account before going anywhere near the area.

Thanks.

[Gavin Haig]

Quick scan with the bins: Crikey - CASPIAN TERN!
Ha ha! Brilliant! What a class bird to find - good one Colin!

Actually I am rather envious....as I have only ever dipped the beasts.......|=)|

[HokkaidoStu]

Wow Colin, a Caspian Tern in Lancashire! Nothing like that back in my day (or if there was I never heard about it). I never got Sandwich Tern on the Ribble either let alone Caspian.......

I did find Hokkaido's (apparently) first ever Caspian Tern last year though.

[Colin Bushell]

Hi Nick, Gavin & Stu,

Yes, the "Beast on the Beach" was very welcome. Had another look with a few other birders yesterday afternoon but no sign. Nice high tide roost of 112 Sandwich Terns on St Annes beach though. Could be worth keeping an eye on over the next month for Littles or Roseates.
Ventured up to Starr Gate for a brief seawatch yesterday. No Stormies but 5 Manx Shearwaters heading south made the trip worthwhile.

[Colin Bushell]

Quick stroll along the front from Fairhaven to St Annes this afternoon: 65 Sandwich Terns and 6 Common Terns on the beach and two dark phase Arctic Skuas chasing Sarnies out in the bay at hight tide from Fairhaven. Very few birds on the mud apart from 70+ Oystercatchers and the usual Shelduck.

[Colin Bushell]

Went to the outer estuary this morning and covered the Fairhaven - St Annes stretch at high tide: 3 Eider, 70+ Shelduck, 120+ Curlew, 60+ Bar-tailed Godwits, 7 Black-tailed Godwits, 720 Oystercatcher, 1 Dunlin and 1 Whimbrel on the mud. Just 25 Sandwich Terns and 2 Common Terns on the beach, but a male Whinchat in the Fairhaven pumping station scrub is an unusual record for July. Stopped at Lytham on the way home where there were 35 Turnstone by the Fairlawn slipway and a quick stop at Newton Marsh revealed just a lone Teal on the Entrance Pool.

[Colin Bushell]

Loads of waders at the Warton Marsh roost this morning. Most were Knot (750+) and Barwits (500+). Still only small numbers of Dunlin (13) but an uprecedented (for me) 15 Common Sands. Single Greenshank on the shore with 35 Blackwits. Otherwise the other 'larger" waders weighed in with a single Whimbrel, 50+ Oycs, c.70 Curlew, 15 Golden Plover and 150+ Lapwings. Sandwich Terns were again present (two birds this time) but the Warton Marsh 'mega' came in the form of a drake Tufted Duck! Couple of Common Terns knocking around the Ribble / Douglas confluence and just 3 Wigeon flying around, reminding me that autumn isn't that far off. Not much of note in the passerines apart from a pair of Tree Sparrows.

Drove round to Fairhaven where 655 Oycs (including a mostly white one) were crammed onto what little terra firme was left exposed by the 9 metre tide. Only 4 Sandwich Terns in with the BHG's and 5 Dunlin and 5 Curlew at the roost. An imm' Stonechat on the pumping station compound fence and 16 Eider offshore.

[bilbo_baggins_u]

Hi Colin.

I saw my first ever Whitethroat on the 10th July on the scrubland between Sunwin Motors & Trax on the reclaimed docklands area of Preston.

http://www.birdforum.net/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/150222/ppuser/13325


Here is the photo I took. Can you confirm this is deffo a Whitethroat please?

[nick patel]

It is a Whitethroat - nice picture.

[Colin Bushell]

Nice pic of the Whitethroat and good to see someone ele's looking around the docks. I had a walk around there on Monday bit nothing to report.

Went down to Granny's Bay and Fairhaven with the tide this afternoon. Signs of autumn with quite a few waders on the mudflats. Good to see Dunlin numbers building with 250+ birds off the Lytham prom'. Might attract soemthing a bit more interesting with a bit of luck. Summer plumaged Black-tailed Godwits were attracting a lot of interest from the non-birders with conversational "chattering" as they fed close by. About 220 there at high tide. Otherwise it was just nice to see the common stuff - 3 Whimbrels, 30+ Curlews, 50+ Knot and 200+ Oycs. A small party of 7 Ringed Plovers with 30 Turnstones were the first I've seen on return passage, as were 5 Sanderlings scampering along the tide as usual. Some Eider (9) offshore at Fairhaven but only a dozen Sandwich Terns and just a single Common Tern.

[Colin Bushell]

With Marshside scoring well with a Pec' and a White-rumped Sand' at Seaforth there just had to be something on the north shore of the Ribble?????
No! Despite a nice tight flock of 135 Dunlin I couldn't find anything, although there were a few hundred more 'out if range' on the mud near the Lytham jetty. Otherwise it was pretty unremarkable with 33 Eider off Fairhaven, 10 Ringed Plover and 5 Sandwich Terns.

[Colin Bushell]

I arrived just a little late at Granny's Bay yesterday evening, just missing the high tide. Eider were up to about 50 birds on the distant shore and I could see a dark morph Arctic Skua on the prowl as I scanned across the bay. Lots of waders around but a bit too spread out by now to make meanigful counts. Still no sign of any Grey Plovers but Dunlin numbers are building, mostly black-bellied summer jobs. The few pale bellied birds around were checked but nothing unusual to report. Several Sandwich Terns in the BHG roost plus a few Common Terns over the Ribble.

[Colin Bushell]

It (see above) was still there this morning so I had to take a look at lunchtime. Pretty good views of the Pec' really in the company of some Redshanks and Blackwits from Nel's Hide, despite its liking for a 'tussocky' island. The hide was filling fast and I'd had reasonable views so I left for a quick look elsewhere. A good Ribble bird - got a couple of record shots so I'll put them on the blog when I get a minute.
Our old friend the Glossy Ibis was on view from Sandgrounders as was a Little Egret and stacks of Blackwits. Three Ruddy Duck on the lagoon too. Get the feeling there were other goodies lurking but had to get back to the office unfortunately.

[Colin Bushell]

Quick dash down to Brockholes Quarry at lunctime today for Common Scoter and there she was, sleeping amongst the Coots. Very little else on the Main Pool with the water level oh-so high.

[Colin Bushell]

Started birding from the prom at Lytham about 7.45 this morning. Good numbers of Dunlin here now on the rising tide; 650 and really surprised I didn't get a Curlew Sand' at least. Very few other waders here though, just 70 Turnstone, 2 Ringed Plovers and a couple of Barwits.
I could see a lot of waders on the shore near the jetty from the slipway so I shot down there. The muddy peninsula was packed with birds, mainly Redshank (550+) and Dunlin (800+) with smaller numbers of Lapwing, Blackwits and Turnstones, 2 Sandwich Terns and 15 Eider on the Ribble. Fairhaven was pretty quiet but did produce 'bird of the morning' in the form of a female Merg offshore and 55 Sandwich Terns were on the beach at St Annes.
Then it was home for a quick bite to eat and out again. Martin Mere WWT was heaving and very busy (forgot it was the school hols) and 'notables' included a couple of Avocets, at least 3 Green Sand's, a Marsh Harrier and Kingfisher. Last stop of the day was Marshside RSPB. Glossy Ibis and Little Egret on view near Sandgrounders and my first Merlin on the Estuary for some time over the saltmarsh where a Marsh Harrier was also hunting. Not much in the way of waders apart from a few summer plum Dunlin and stacks of Blackwits everywhere.
Nice day.

[Colin Bushell]

Another trip to the south shore yesterday at Banks Marsh produced a few bits and pieces. In the very blustery conditions I managed 7 Avocets, a Merlin. a Green Sandpiper and 2 Common Sandpipers. Lots of Dunlins zipping about on the marsh; very flighty and I couldn't find anything interesting in the few that settled briefly. Best of all, there were several Yellow Wagtails around, including some juvs (rare in Lancs now).

[Colin Bushell]

Little Egret on the saltmarsh off Fairhaven Dunes at lunchtime. Flock of 75 Dunlins and 21 Ringed Plovers at the Lytham high tide roost and a couple of Whimbrel on the mud flats. Arctic Tern in Granny's Bay only other bird of note.

[Zac Hinchcliffe]

This Summer, and infact all year has been pretty much a damp squib at Brockholes but friday (17/8) wasn't too bad.
Immature Little Egret and Twite with 30 Linnet

[Zac Hinchcliffe]

Pretty Quiet again at the quarry today.
I had a Swift over the Log though, which was quite late. Has anyone else had any sightings locally recently?

Zac

[Colin Bushell]

Hi Zac,
Thanks for the postings. I'm just back from Brazil (and away again at the weekend), but I hope to pop out tomorrow and see what's about.
Colin

[HokkaidoStu]

I'm just back from Brazil (and away again at the weekend)



Must be really awful for work to drag you away from the biodiversity of beautiful gorgeous sunny Preston to boring sh*#holes like Brazil and Costa Rica. How do you put up with it?

Hi Zac-I remember that big winter flock of Twite at Marshside when I used to go there over 20 years ago.

[Colin Bushell]

Must be really awful for work to drag you away from the biodiversity of beautiful gorgeous sunny Preston to boring sh*#holes like Brazil and Costa Rica. How do you put up with it?

Hi Zac-I remember that big winter flock of Twite at Marshside when I used to go there over 20 years ago.


Hah! Nice one Stu,
Off to Marshside in the morning in hope of the GW Egret. There's already been one Twite in the Linnet flock in the Banks area I think.

Back to packing |;|

[Colin Bushell]

Finally found time for some local birding on the Ribble Estuary this afternoon. Newton Marsh was quite "birdy" with plenty of Teal and Wigeon on the pool plus a few Shoveler. Some of the drakes are now starting to look pretty smart too. A Little Egret flew in and put 20+ Snipe up and a single Blackwit was feeding in the shallows. Nice to see 5 Corn Buntings up on the cables with the Starlings as well.
Drove round to Freckleton for a walk out to Naze Point next. I could see that Longton had no geese as soon as I started to walk on the footpath so it looks as though last winter's early gathering of Pink-feet here was a one-off. Still time yet but I guess they were displaced from more traditional grounds. Nice to see 50+ Whoopers in the fields between Naze Pool and the Clifton Marsh though. Otherwsie the pool was as expected - loads of Teal, Black-tailed Godwits plus 3 Little Egrets in the trees. Wandered down to the river to go through the gulls gathering at the Douglas as the tide dropped but couldn't find anything interesting. Single Greenshank, Barwit and Oystercatcher with the Redshanks and Dunlins and 4 Gadwall of note. Bird numbers are building up though with 300+ Wigeon on the marsh and 350+ Golden Plovers roosting on the mud. A Brambling calling in the small wood at Naze Point was a "patch tick" for me, otherwise just the usual 3 or 4 Jays, Great Spotted Woodpecker and 50+ Redwings and Fieldfares. Little Egrets were up to 13 as I strolled back past Naze Pool. Nice afternoon, now back to work!

[Colin Bushell]

I visited Newton Marsh (http://latinamericabirding.blogspot.com/)at lunchtime, mainly birding from the car. A Little Egret was flying around as I arrived at the entrance pool and there were plenty of Wigeon (http://latinamericabirding.blogspot.com/)and Teal with smaller numbers of Shoveler. Seven Blackwits were feeding on the fields and up to 12 Snipe fed at the muddy margins. The rough grassland was quite productive though with 3 Stonechats and a nice flock of 36 Corn Buntings and a couple of Tree Sparrows using the overhead telegraph wires. Scanning the hedgerows I picked up a Buzzard but little else of note, although a skein of 80 Pink-footed Geese heading south was a nice sight.

[WyreWader]

I visited Newton Marsh (http://latinamericabirding.blogspot.com/)at lunchtime, mainly birding from the car.

Hi Colin.

I had a twenty minute break to eat my pie at Newton Marsh this lunchtime so also did some birding from the car.

There were two fellas in high vis yellow jackets that had just finished painting the bollards, so most of the birds were keeping their distance.

There were still plenty of Wigeon & Teal about & in addition there were two Little Grebe, which I think is the first time I've seen Little Grebe at Newton Marsh. (**A quick edit - I've just read your blog entry & note that you spotted 3 Little Grebe there yesterday, doh, I wish I'd read that before posting |:$| )

Regards (& BTW, thanks for the tip re. where to see a Merlin, I'll definitely be looking out for one:t:)

Cliff

[lammy]

Hi Colin
Just a bit of news regarding Brockholes Quarry.
Sophie has been granted permission to lower the water level so maybe back to its best soon hopefully.
Regards Roy.

[Colin Bushell]

Back in the UK for a long(ish) spell at the end of an intense guiding season overseas.

Thanks for the news about the quarry water levels Lammy - the wader passage at Brockholes was sadly missed last year. Be interesting to see how things develop this year.

Anyway, not too much to report from the Ribble this week. Usual wildfowl and only small numbers of Corn Buntings at Newton Marsh; Glossy Ibis and 9 Little Egrets at Warton Bank yesterday (after dipping on the Martin Mere Cattle Egret) and a ring-tail Hen Harrier at Marshside this afternoon. Bit "flat" at the moment - should liven up with this cold spell hopefully.

[Colin Bushell]

I managed to get out to the North Ribble Marshes this afternoon and it was just nice to get some fresh air after a couple of days of misearble damp weather. All quiet at Newton Marsh apart from a single Stonechat so we moved on, stopping at Warton Bank. Scanning the saltmarsh we soon picked up half a dozen Little Egrets before spotting the Glossy Ibis out there too. Plenty of Pink-feet flying around and 7 Bewick's Swans overhead too. A Raven was unexpected here but despite prolonged searching for Hen Harrier there was no sign and we settled for a Peregrine instead.
On tyhen to Lytham where Fairhaven was pretty quiet but a nice raft of quackers held 2 Mergs, 21 Pochard, 5 Tufties and 4 Goldeneye. Back to Preston then stopping at Lytham Moss for a good swan herd comprising of 82 Whoopers and 30 Bewick's ending a nice afternoon.

Happy New Year everyone!
Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Had a bit of time on the estuary this afternoon. Glossy Ibis still at Warton Bank with 7 Little Egrets, 10 Bewick's Swan and 19 Whoopers. A female Merlin was perched on a stump and across the Ribble there was a ringtail Hen Harrier over Bank's Marsh.
The fields at Freckleton were littered in Lapwings, Golden Plovers and Fieldfares but the freezing cold eastery put me off and I left the pool before any egrets came in to roost. Stonechat and 21 Corn Bunts at Newton about the only things of note but Buzzards seem to regular between there and Lea nowadays.
Have to try the south shore at the weekend.

[Colin Bushell]

Had a bit of spare time this afternoon so I popped down to the Ribble for a couple of hours. First stop was Preston Docks where there were plenty of BHG's, a few LBBG's, Herring and Common Gulls but nothing of note really. I was just thinking that I hadn't seen anything of note at the docks for some time when I glanced up to see a huge Raven over the houses and heading in a northerly direction!
With the light fading I decided to spend the rest of the afternoon at Newton Marsh. The pool was totally flooded and Wigeon were spread out but close enough to search through for anything from "across the pond". No joy there, just a few Teal and Shoveler. Distant Little Egret had me wondering when we're gonna get a Cattle Egret in this part of the world (even went round to Freckleton to check it just in case!). Not much else apart from a Buzzard in the fields so I finished the afternoon at Clifton Marsh where a Barn Owl showed really well, even being mobbed by a female Merlin at one stage. Pair of Stonechats and 10 Stock Doves made it into the notebook before heading back home.
Nice afternoon.

[Colin Bushell]

Quck visit to the N Ribble Marses after a trip out to East Lancs for the Slav' Grebe (see blog for pics). Pair of Stonechats and 40 "Pinks" south at Clifton Marsh and Buzzard perched on a hedgerow only birds of note there. Warton Bank was quite good despite an ibis "no-show" with 13 Whoopers, 5 Little Egrets, 2 Merlins, a Peregrine and best of all a ringtail Hen Harrier.

[Colin Bushell]

Bit of time on the estuary this afternoon produced the Glossy Ibis, at least 15 Little Egrets, 48 Whooper Swans, a Peregrine and a Sparrowhawk at Warton Marsh. No sign of any harriers or shorties though. Plenty of Pink-feet flying around over the estuary but could be just local movements.

[Colin Bushell]

Finally found time to get back on patch this afternoon. As is often the case, my first outing for a long time proved very good. Wheatear and White Wagtail in with the Mipits out on the marsh (I was hoping for a Water Pipit though - they've been showing well just "off patch" over at Warton Bank), House Martins in with a few Swallows, Sedge Warber singing from a creek and a Whimbrel in with the Curlews. Single Little Egret flying about too.
Back at Freckleton I went for the short walk as far as the Naze Pool (and not the Point) given the weather outlook. Good idea as it happens - v. liitle on the pool apart from 150+ Blackwits but an Osprey in the distance over the Ribble was a fine end to the afternoon.

Colin

[Colin Bushell]

Got a nice surprise when I found this little gem drifting out of the bay into the estuary Friday lunchtime. Still there today apparently and there seems to be a passage of Arctic Terns too.
Iceand Gull, Marsh Harrier, Little Gull, Avocets all seen over the weekend (ibis still there too) - just shows what a bit of extra coverage can turn up!

CIB.

[Gavin Haig]

Now that IS a nice addition to your patch list! :t:

[Jane Turner]

One last prompt, before I make myself unpopular with cross posting - but I am selling a copy of the birds of Lancashire here http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?p=1274098#post1274098

[Colin Bushell]

Quick look along the Ribble at lunchtime today. Newton Marsh very quiet (water level very high), zilch at Granny's Bay (nots of grockles and tide wrong) but at least 6 Marsh Harriers on view from Warton Bank. Easily the most I've ever seen at one time.

CB.

EVENING UPDATE: 60 Little Egrets in the roost at Freckleton Naze Pool by 8.15 PM.