Ribble Birding, Lancs. (1 Viewer)

[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]

Brockholes Quarry

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]

Brockholes Quarry

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 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.