Patch Struggles

After yesterday's Brent dip I really struggled to motivate myself to get out onto patch; and I'm starting to have seriously dark thoughts of defecting to a different patch to try my luck. Nevertheless I eventually pulled myself out of my funk and headed off to the patch (well, I was never going to turn down the chance to get out for some birding!). The weather had turned decidedly unspring-like overnight and it was back to cold, grey and damp conditions.

Starting on Carr Lane I parked up at the bridge and had a little scoot around. Little Grebes have finally returned to the flooded field, and could be heard calling from the deeper cover. A (the?) male Merlin was again bombing at the back of the pools, but wasn't in a very photogenic mood. A Kingfisher darted along Ramsbrook, and that was about it. The Pools were decidedly quiet, with only a small group of 7 Black-tailed Godwit and a few Lapwing and Redshank.

I again decided to head to Within Way to double check the Marsh. A couple of Common Buzzard looked as enthused with the weather as I did. Grey Partridge seemed to be everywhere, with small coveys in most of the fields as I headed down. I stopped to pay my respects to the local Little Owl, who again was sitting nicely out in the open. A few Blue Tits and a Robin had clearly taken exception to it though, and were constantly hopping around giving it a bit of grief.

A single Little Egret was feeding in the middle of the Marsh, and there were again good numbers of ducks and geese about - 500+ Canada Geese, single Greylag Goose 142 Shelduck, including the dodgy hybrid again. However there was again no sign of the Brent Goose. A Peregrine was zooming around distantly towards the Runcorn Bridge, but with no sign of the goose I decided to press on to the end of Within Way.

A couple of Rock Pipit were flying around at the end, whilst I was clearly too noisy when approaching the shore, flushing a Turnstone and 3 Ringed Plover, amongst the noisy Redshank. A female Merlin dashed through towards the Marsh, causing panic amongst the Pipits and Wagtails. The river was exceedingly quiet though, and despite a decent scan I failed to pick out anything of great note.

Returning along Within Way I picked up a rather nice mixed flock of winter Thrushes, which included c.120 Fieldfare and c.20 Redwing. The mixed flock also contained good numbers of Starling, Linnet  and a few Goldfinch. It will be good to see how the numbers build over the next couple of weeks, and maybe there is still time to pick out a decent Thrush amongst them.

A brief stop at Town Lane to check Carr Lane Pools was unproductive other than a single male Stonechat. So I decided to again head towards Burnt Mill Farm to check out the Buntings. I spent a good 45 minutes traipsing around the fields with very little joy - 2 Yellowhammer and 7 Reed Bunting the only result.....time to go home and pour a LARGE glass of something strong!

Swanning about on the Mersey

The forecast was fairly grim for the weekend, so I decided to try and risk getting out on Saturday to avoid the impending "torrential" rain on Sunday (which never materialised!!). It was still a fairly grotty day, with low cloud, heavy rain and light drizzle, whilst it still felt relatively cold. Fortunately visibility was marginally better, and with a reasonable high tide (7.8m) I decided to head down to Hale Lighthouse.

I decided to park up at the end of Church Lane to scan the Mersey from a higher vantage point, which turned out to be an inspired idea. I immediately picked up 3 Red-breasted Merganser on the far side of the Mersey feeding just off Ince Marshes. They were quickly followed by my first Mute Swan of the year (a rather grotty looking juvenile) floating along in front of Frodsham Score. A Great White Egret and c.8 Little Egret were on Ince Marshes, but unfortunately the Geese were all a little too distant to have a proper look through. The covey of Grey Partridge had increased to 28 birds, although they looked fairly miserable in the wet conditions.

The walk down to the Lighthouse was quiet with only a few Reed Bunting and Skylark (where are all of the Finch and Bunting flocks from last year!?). A couple of Raven cronked over, always a joy to see on this side of the Mersey (despite seeing massive groups on the Frodsham side). I spent the next hour or so scanning the Mersey with little luck, only managing 9 Great crested Grebe, but nothing rarer. Hale Shore held 2 Rock Pipit, 7 Turnstone, 2 Grey Plover and a few small groups of Linnet and Goldfinch, but was otherwise quiet.

With the rain becoming heavier and more persistent I found a slightly more sheltered spot by the Lighthouse and had a good scan through the Canada Goose flock that has taken up residence on the fields. However there was nothing hidden amongst their number on this occasion. Loosing patience with the weather I headed back to the car, enjoying the Ravens that had come down onto the fields, and were cronking away to each other.

Moving round to Within Way I had a brief wander along to catch up with the Little Owl, but the fields were otherwise dead (probably not helped by the endless shooting going on in the background). A scan of Hale Marsh revealed one of the pale Common Buzzard, Peregrine, a couple of Little Egret but little else and again no Merlin.

I decided to check Carr Lane Pools from the Town Lane gate. A male Stonechat was feeding and sitting up on the fence posts, whilst a couple of Common Buzzard were also sat around. The pools held c.400 Lapwing, c.150 Eurasian Teal, 3 Common Snipe and 2 Shoveler. A Little Egret flew in and fed at the back of the Pools, but otherwise it was rather disappointing. Hopefully the rain will at least raise the water levels a little in time for Spring.

The sun finally did manage to put in an appearance, so I spent the next hour searching for Bunting and Finch flocks along Carr Lane - sadly without much success. A flock of 18 Yellowhammer, c.7 Reed Bunting were the best, with a Sparrowhawk causing chaos among a group of Meadow Pipit, Linnet and Goldfinch hiding in the stubble field. The flooded field though seems to be going through a quiet patch with no sign of the Cetti's Warbler (again!) or any Water Rail. By now although I had pretty much dried out I was feeling quite cold and tired, so I decided to head home. 

Patch Torment

An earlier finish from work and a spare hour or so to check out the patch was not to be missed, even if the pain from my last visit had not quite subsided. Finding a group of c.50 Waxwing on the way over had clearly perked me up and I arrived on patch with renewed enthusiasm. It was again a rather cold, grey and murky afternoon (not much different to the rest of the week when it felt that it hadn't got light all day!!).

Parking up on the bridge on Carr Lane I picked up a Kingfisher feeding in Ramsbrook, it was regularly fishing and returning to it's obscured perch (hence the even poorer pics than usual!). However other than that it was exceedingly quiet, the flooded field seemed devoid of any birds at all, with not even a peep from the Water Rail or Cetti's Warbler (it's now nearly 2 weeks since I last saw/heard it). Carr Lane Pools was just as quiet with only a handful of Redshank, Eurasian Teal, 2 Shoveler and a single Little Egret. A Kestrel and a Common Buzzard were keeping an eye on proceedings, and looked nearly as bored as me.

Pickerings was just as bad, with only 4 Bullfinch in the hedgerow down to the Mersey. The tide was still relatively high, but the murk meant that trying to pick out anything on the far shore was impossible. A Peregrine was sat up on the Runcorn Bridge in it's usual spot, but Gull numbers were exceedingly poor with only c.30 large Gulls gathered close to the bridge. With a rather bitter wind still blowing I decided to call it quits and head around to the Lighthouse.

The murk had cleared a little by the time I reached the Lighthouse, but saying that I could still hardly make out Frodsham from my side of the river. I again decided to work the shore to the east of the Lighthouse, which was decidedly quiet. I managed to kick out a single Jack Snipe and single Common Snipe. However there were next to no passerines, with only a handful of Linnet and Goldfinch, but surprisingly no Pipits at all. A few Grey Plover, Turnstone were the wader highlights, whilst 4 Shoveler had been enticed into the Mallard posse.

With limited time available I made my way back having a quick scan through a poor number of large Gulls moving west (Gull numbers seem to be seriously suffering this year). A Common Buzzard landed on the post near to me, and in better light may have allowed some half decent pics. 24 Grey Partridge were scattered across the fields of Lighthouse Lane, and another Peregrine bombed through as I made my way back to the car. Feeling rather cold and dejected I made my way home, where at least a few glasses of wine and tapas at a nearby restaurant picked up my spirits. 

Slim Pickerings

After a fun evening on patch yesterday I was hoping that today would bring more of the same. However the cold, grey and very murky conditions didn't really inspire much confidence. I managed to get out for a few hours from late morning, and decided to head to Hale Lighthouse to check out the shore for rare finches, buntings, arctic ducks, divers and yank waders......

Walking down Lighthouse Lane I was ecstatic to see lots of walkers in brightly coloured jackets, dogs having a great time running across the fields, and a group of kids on bikes screaming their heads off.......I wonder why I'm not a big fan of weekend birding on patch?! Despite that I pressed on, but unsurprisingly seeing very little on the walk down to the Lighthouse. I decided to attempt walking the shore to the east and west of the Lighthouse, where at least there was less human interference.

The section to the east of the Lighthouse at least produced a few birds, including 2 Jack Snipe that waited until the last second before flying up and dropping almost immediately back down into the reedbed. There were at least 4 Rock Pipit also feeding along the edges of the Shore, whilst 9+ Meadow Pipit and a few small groups of Linnet and Goldfinch gave me cause to stop to double check for nothing rarer.

The walk to the west of the Lighthouse was less productive, with next to nothing around. A single Common Sandpiper was feeding along the shore line, whilst I only managed to kick out a single Common Snipe. A Common Buzzard gave a low pass over my head, but even the presence of a raptor failed to frighten anything out of it's hiding spot. The visibility was so poor I didn't even bother scanning Frodsham Score or Ince Marshes, and although I could see plenty of activity out on the Mersey mudflats I didn't waste any time trying to peer through the murk.

A brisk walk back to the car to warm myself up was only interrupted by a brief stop to look at the Grey Partridges. Moving round to the bridge on Town Lane I was thoroughly depressed to see next to nothing. Carr Lane Pools was dead, and the Marsh was not much better. A single Common Buzzard sat on the fenceposts, and 2 Little Egret were the best of not much at all.

Parking up at the entrance to Pickerings Pasture I finally caught up with the male Blackcap which was coming to the feeders by the gate to the control meadows. Up to 8 Bullfinch were again feeding in the hedgerow on the way down to the Mersey. Reaching the river I was again exposed to the freezing cold wind, but at least there were some good wader numbers spread out and relatively close.

Among the c.600 Lapwing were c.70 Golden Plover (I'm not sure where the rest had gone), c.50 Curlew, c.400 Dunlin, Ringed Plover, Redshank and a handful of Black-tailed Godwit. The Peregrine was sat up on the Runcorn Bridge, whilst a second bird was sat up on the higher section of the road bridge. I walked up to Ditton Brook, having an unsuccessful scan through the small numbers of large Gulls that were gathered on the sandbar. I trudged back to the car thinking that I would head straight home, but had second thoughts so decided to pop to Carr Lane.......

.......in hindsight I probably should have just headed home. Having thoroughly depressed myself with finding nothing I finally headed home. Where have all of the good birds gone from early January?!

  

Beanie Birding

After a good opening session on patch, I had planned to get back out and hopefully catch up with some of the easy birds I had missed yesterday. The weather had improved drastically, and although it was still cold it was at least bright and sunny for the majority of my visit, although the clouds did roll in a little later.

I again spent some time around Burnt Mill Farm, where I managed to locate a reasonable sized finch (Goldfinch, Greenfinch) and bunting (4 Yellowhammer and c.20 Reed Bunting) flock, but despite much scouring I failed to pick out any Corn Bunting. The first of many Jay (a bird I somehow missed yesterday) spent a while flying around the Farm garden, with a couple more flying over for good measure.

Parking up at the bridge on Carr Lane I could hear the Cetti's Warbler ticking and squeaking from the edge of Ramsbrook, although it remained hidden. A Water Rail was squealing, whilst the usual selection of ducks, Moorhen and Coot were about on the flooded field. A smart immature male Merlin was sat on the hedgerow at the back of the flood, although the bright sunshine meant getting any decent pics was surprisingly difficult. A single Water Pipit could be heard calling and was eventually located on the Carr Lane Pools side of the road.

A large gaggle of Canada Geese were present on the Carr Lane side of the Pools today, and a bit of scanning revealed two smart Barnacle Geese amongst them. Walking back to the car I bumped into a local birder, Warren. As we were having a chat I heard some geese flying towards us, which I didn't immediately recognise (a rather out of tune, double "hunn-hunn"). On closer inspection they turned out to be Bean Geese, and I managed to fire off a few pretty poor record shots. Only my second patch record, and a quality local bird (although it appears that there are a few floating about the North Lancashire Mosses at the moment).

Warren headed off and I headed round to the bridge on Town Lane. After a bit of a search I eventually located 3 Water Pipit, which were strangely feeding on the decoy side of the road again. They are becoming increasingly difficult to see at the moment, and certainly not performing as well as they did in early December. Otherwise Hale Marsh and the flooded fields were very quiet, with only a couple of Little Egret, Common Buzzard and Kestrel. That was until a Sparrowhawk hurtled across Ramsbrook, disturbing a Green Sandpiper that had presumably been enjoying a quiet feed.

I had a brief look at Pickerings, noting the Bullfinch again in the hedge which runs down to the Mersey. The feeders held very little of note, although it is good to see the number of House Sparrow this winter. Scanning along the River I picked up a Great-crested Grebe, again a bird I had somehow missed yesterday. Waders were in relatively short supply with, other than the normal gathering of c.800 Lapwing and c.200 Golden Plover. A couple of Ringed Plover were milling about, but the majority of small waders were sat a long way out. A single Peregrine was sat up on the Runcorn Bridge whilst an adult Mediterranean Gull was floating about amongst the Black-headed Gulls feeding just east of Ditton Brook. I considered walking up to the bridge, but with next to no big Gulls, I decided to cut my losses and head round to Hale Lighthouse.

A scan over the Mersey from the top of Lighthouse Lane finally added Great Black-backed Gull to the yearlist, whilst I could also make out loads of Raven out on Frodsham Score (where had they been yesterday?!). An immature male Marsh Harrier floated out from Frodsham Marsh and fed along the Score and Ince Marshes. Continuing down to the Lighthouse I stopped again to have a proper look through the waders and picked out a couple more regular waders (Grey Plover and Knot) that I had somehow missed yesterday.

Clambering down the riverwall I walked the section of Hale Shore to the east of the Lighthouse, finally finding a small (c.60) flock of Linnet. Continuing on I flushed up to 5 Rock Pipit, 6 Common Snipe and eventually nearer to the reedbed 2 Jack Snipe. A small group of 7 Turnstone and 16 Redshank were bizarrely feeding around the dry rack line, although I'm not entirely sure what they were feeding on as they were very flighty. Some decent Goldfinch flocks were milling around, whilst I also kicked out a few Meadow Pipit and Reed Bunting.

The walk back to the car was uneventful, but Grey Partridge were everywhere with upwards of c.24 birds scattered across the fields. A brief stop along Carr Lane to speak to a couple of other local birders (Derek and Steve) resulted in 2 Siskin flying over our heads and into Great Boar Wood, but very little else. I said my goodbyes and headed home, pleased with a fairly successful second day on patch of the year.