Lancashire and Lakeland Outback Adventure Wildlife Safaris

The Safari and Wifey had a very pleasant afternoon stroll along the estuary this arvo. Cold but bright and sunny. As we pulled up in the car park a Buzzard was getting grief from two Carrion Crows over the river and was gone before the camera could be activated. Immediately we noticed that there were thrushes everywhere, mainly Blackbirds and Fieldfares but also quite a few Redwings and Song Thrushes as well, numbering many hundreds altogether.
Sadly they like the estuary birds were being flushed from pillar to post by the multitude of doggers out with their hounds, people throwing balls well out on the marshes flushing Shelduck, Wigeon, Teal, Curlew, Lapwing, and a flock of around 250 Skylarks was continually kept on the move, really disheartening, why can't the flipping doggers stay on the paths; we managed it just fine but still disturbed too many of the thrushes and just one Robin. At one point the Skylarks had just settled down for the umteenth time when a little raptor whizzed over flushed them and had a bit of a chase - Merlin?...no such luck they are all on Hesketh Out Marsh, a male Sparrowhawk chancing his arm - he missed this time but as the flock gets hungrier and more tired we reckon he'll get a meal. Couldn't see any Lapland Buntings in the flock, even though it was nearly as cold as Lapland, we're still as cold as Chicago perhaps a little colder! The safri was always taught that central continental locations were

Difficult to get shots of the wary thrushes, should have done that yesterday on the reserve where there was much less disturbance, In the end we scored, just about, the light wasn't too good and the birds were at full range.

We took some pics of a handsome mutt for next year's NW Labrador Rescue calendar - d'yer think his modelling skills are up to to the job?

Have a great Christmas/winter festival where-ever you are...hope you have a cracker...ho ho ho pun very definitely intended as usual.

Where to next? Little chance of a safari tomorrow...been cooking the scram all day reckon the electricity has cost more than the turkey!

In the meantime let us know who's disturbed or disturbing in your outback,