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!

Poms and Larks in Lancs

With a Pomarine Skua having been present on the saltmarsh at Pilling for several days and the beautiful Shore Lark still mooching around at Rossall Point, me and Alex headed up to the Fylde to catch up with them both – the Pom actually being a lifer for myself.

Upon arriving at Preesall Sands, I spotted the Pom immediately, just right of the small building and happily feasting on one of the many grisly carcasses that had been left, presumably by photographers to entice the bird in to providing exceptionally close views. 

We approached the bird slowly, and it soon became apparent that it was suffering from a possible broken wing – several of the feathers were looking very untidy with the wing jutting out at an odd angle. I’ve since seen shocking photos showing dog walkers allowing their Dalmatians to attack the bird in its vulnerable state, although the latest reports and photos seem to show the bird is on the mend, with the wing seeming to have healed a little. Whilst we were on site, the Skua did have a little bit of difficulty flying, shuffling along the grass before finally alighting, only to drop down again a short way away on the beach. Fingers crossed it's able to make a full recovery and continue on with its journey!

The damaged wing is clearly visible

Obviously brought in by the recent storms, this unseasonable sighting was completely unexpected and I was blown away to get such close views of an often difficult to identify bird, which in most cases can be a distant dot miles out to sea! Having until recently only experienced Skua species as far away specs in a scope, the Pilling Pom now completes my set of UK Skuas, having experienced close-up and satisfactory views of all 4 species in the space of a year, with a stream of fantastic Arctic Skuas passing by extremely close to the shore at Porthgwarra and a lucky fly-over-the-head moment at Spurn as we jammed in to a juv Long-tailed Skua this autumn.

I personally find Skua species very difficult to identify in flight, often on the backdrop of a stormy and wind battered sea, so it was great to get the rare opportunity to see one both on the deck and at such close quarters (I’ve only ever previously seen the Audenshaw Bonxie on the deck before).

This particular individual was a dark morph juvenile, larger than the very similar Arctic Skua and displaying all the typical features of Pom ID – thicker neck, head and bill, as well as the overall bulkier appearance when compared to the much slimmer Arctics. The barring of the undertail coverts was also apparent – not seen in dark morph juv Arctics. Quite how useful this will be when assessing a fast moving dot in the scope on future seawatches has yet to be seen!

The barred undertail covers can just be seen

With the much-loved Shore Lark still present at the picnic area at Rossall Point, I couldn’t resist going back for second helpings, and sure enough after an accidental locking-in the car and the horn pipping that resulted, we were both admiring extremely close views of this winter wonder as it happily hopped along the grass in front of us. These were much better views than the last time we visited, and it was great to see this little bird enjoying itself and bumbling around for everyone to admire. Truly one of my all-time favourites!