Good for Wildfowl today - visibility 60 miles hardly anyswell and a 75 x scope. Wigeon 1 west, Teal 8 on sea (then 7 when visited by a female Peregrine) Long-tailed Duck - singles three times in flight plus 3 likely candidates on the sea. 70 Scoter, 9 Scaup, 12 Goldeneye and a Red-breasted Merganser. Three Swans, Whooper/Mute and prob former,over the sea towards Ainsdale - they went behind the Isle of Man Ferry so were at least 4 miles out. 14 Red-throated Divers, 500+ Great-crested Grebes, a small grebe spp, then later a bird which I first though(hoped) was the first Little Grebe record,but turned out to be a Black-necked grebe, well on the way (outrageously early) into summer plumage.
A Glaucous Gull at in plain view atMeols, as is customary, failed to show in the 10k Gulls in front of the house. I failed to find a Yellow-legged Gull. (50 for the year)
The only really notable earlier record was a male Velvet Scoter on Jan 3rd.
If someone finds the Glauc in these, don't tell me