Wryneck at Fairhaven Lake, Lancashire

With a Wryneck having been present at Fairhaven Lake in Lancashire since last Thursday (along with 2 Barred Warblers that have sadly now departed) we paid a visit to see if we could catch up with what is usually a rare migrant here on the West Coast. 

Arriving at the pumping station compound to the right hand side of the lake where the Wryneck had been favouring for the duration of its stay, we joined the rest of the crown in anticipation of it showing and looking forward to seeing only my second of these delightful woodpeckers. 

After a spot of lunch while we waited, what must have been the quietest announcement ever that a bird was showing went up, and the crowds eventually realised someone had spotted the Wryneck, cryptically camouflaged as ever in the tops of one of its favoured Rose Hip bushes. Incredibly hidden and matching the bark to perfection, the (dreadful) record shot below exhibits perfectly the difficulty in picking out these masters of disguise!

With the bird only showing every hour or so when it chooses to perch in one of its preferred bushes or gorse, the Wryneck instead spent the majority of its time feeding on the ground and out of sight, taking advantage of the many ants on the sandy soil and abundance of grasshoppers in the area. Having previously seen my first and only Wryneck on the east coast at Spurn last autumn, it was great to catch up with this relatively local bird not too far from home.

Perfect scrubby habitat for a Wryneck to hide out in!

After the Wryneck had disappeared back in to the depths of the gorse thicket, we tried to find the now resident drake Scaup that had been present on Fairhaven Lake for several months, but even a 15 minute scout around the lake in one of the motor boats for hire failed to turn him up!

A quick stop at Preston Marina on the way home for the long staying 2^nd winter Ring-billed Gull luckily resulted in success when I found it on the opposite jetty, putting an end to a string of dips for Ring-billed Gull this year in both Cornwall and Scotland! Much bulkier and larger than the Black-headed and Common Gulls, and with the black ring on the bill standing out even at a distance, there was certainly no mistaking this individual.

 A great end to a fantastic day out in Lancashire! 

Weekend Birding

Having wanted to call in and see the local Long-eared Owl at Burton Mere and the Red-throated Diver up at Fairhaven Lake since they both arrived, but not having a free weekend to do so with trips to Paris, Cardiff and Cornwall, I finally got the chance to see them both this weekend as I had a little bit of free time on my hands.

On arriving at Fairhaven Lake on the Saturday morning, I quickly spotted the Red-throated Diver sitting on the water outside the café, positioned in between the island and the bank, so made my way across to get some photos and a closer view. The bird showed really well, with the beautiful speckled plumage on the back and even the bright red eye visible – amazing up close views and details that you just wouldn’t see out on the sea. 

I was really keen to see this bird as I always think it’s great to get good views of a species in order to really admire the features up close and see the finer details that distant views just don’t provide. I also find that these individuals stick in the memory far more than those that are far away with relatively poor views achieved.

Red-throated Diver is also a species that I’ve only ever seen on the sea off North Wales and at a distance before, so I was glad I took the trip up – I wouldn’t normally get these types of views and Red-throated Divers aren’t recorded inland as frequently as Great Northern or Black Throated are. With amazing views of a Great Northern Diver on Rhyl Marine Lake a few years ago feeding just a couple of metres away, I now only need great up-close views of Black Throated (and Pacific if another reservoir bird is found!) to complete the set.

After discovering a Black Redstart had been present on a street in Newton-le-Willows for a good week or so, and with this being just off the M6 on the way back, I called in on the way home to see if it was showing. The bird has been favouring Brookfield Street (post code WA12 9QN), in particular house 4, where it can be seen on the crown shaped chimney pot and adjoining roof – although the bird does sometimes range all along the street. However, it tends to be seen most often on the houses nearest the main road.

After walking the length of Brookfield Street and the adjacent    Street, the owner of house 4 kindly unlocked the gate to the alleyway behind the houses for me to check along – a good spot where the bird is most often seen. I checked all the houses for a good ten minutes, but no sign – until I turned around to leave through the gate only to see the bird happily perched on the roof of the building opposite! Success! I crossed over the road to get better views and the bird hopped on to the chimneys, flicking its tail in that characteristic Redstart manner! 

Sunday brought with it considerable showers, but this didn’t stop me from enjoying amazingly close views of the juvenile Iceland Gull that has been hanging around Pensarn beach for the last week or so. 

Ranging on the pebbly shore along the seafront and around the small car park, I was lucky to get the bird on the sand, coming too close for my lens at one point as it enjoyed scoffing bread left by its admirers.

A stop at Burton Mere Wetlands in the afternoon saw me FINALLY catch up with the Long-eared Owl, showing quite well in a thick, scraggly Hawthorn tree to the right of the bridge near Inner Marsh Farm, having moved further down the path away from the hide and towards the bridge than its previous roost spots. 

Relatively out in the open, it was great to watch this little chap winking at us as he sat calmly on his branch – probably fully aware of his admirers! Thanks to Alex for coming along on the Sunday even though he'd seen the birds already!