Still a tad on the breezy side

The Safari did manage to get out to do the Winter Thrushes Survey, a little later than anticipated but we were waiting to see if there was any improvement in the weather - there wasn't, the wind was still howling and freezing cold. So we wrapped up warm and headed out to  our 1km square wondering if we'd actually see anything. A couple of Fieldfares (NBPT #47), a couple of Redwings  and a Mistle Thrush graced the very over-grazed horse field, a little later we saw an RSPCA van with an officer making notes sat inside. In the far distance a pair of Mute Swans (NBPT #48) sat on the pond by our vis migging spot at the railway bridge.

On  our survey route birds of any description were hard to come by let alone thrushes and many of our usual thrush 'hotspots' were birdless. In the end we counted just 17 Blackbirds and one Song Thrush.

At the half way point we broke off and had a wander over to the lake where we found nine Teal, a couple of Herons and not a lot else. The flock about 50 Black Headed Gulls held three ringed birds two ringed on the left leg, the other on the right but they were 'just' BTO type rings not Darviks so we couldn't get near enough to be able to read them. Further round a Sparrowhawk was perched in twigs overhanging the lake causing a a  bit of consternation to the local Woodpigeons.

After sawing up another bag of wood we took Wifey and frank for a quick sprint round the big Park. Again the wind was a cruel icy blast. And again the smaller birds were keeping themselves well hidden. On the lake a good sized flock of gulls were enjoying the huge volumes of bread being thrown at them. Unfortunately the  light and the wind were in the wrong direction for getting decent shots and this one of a splashy landing Black Headed Gull was the only one worth showing you, it's the only one of the sequence that you can actually see the bird's head.

Frank approached one of the farmyard type geese a bit too closely for its liking and it shooed him off with some fierce hissing.

Where to next? Back to Patch 2 to see if anything has been blown in, not the gales have been onshore!

In the meantime let us know who's hissingly angry in your outback

Chilly start to a pleasant day.

The Safari left Base Camp with -5ºC showing on the thermometer. The recent cold snap has stopped all but the hardiest Robins from singing.

Once again the morning commute had us gazing in awe at the huge flocks of Starlings leaving the roost on the pier and spreading across the sky in waves as they disperse for a day of blunt beaks on the frozen ground.

Patch 2 was a cheek and ear numbing affair with little to show for our suffering in the bright but hazy conditions. Nine Great Crested Grebes were found none of them too far out and now with most in ‘full sum plum’ it shouldn’t be too long before they disappear to their freshwater breeding grounds. Nothing like the 30, and whopping flock of eight Scaup, seen from the southern end of the patch by FB yesterday when we were too busy elsewhere to be able to get on site :-( .

It was slightly warmer at lunchtime but if anything the wind had picked up a little making it feel colder. Visibility was still poor and to the south impossible with the bright sunlight glaring off the water. Only a handful of Great Crested Grebes could be seen and almost all of the couple of hundred or so Common Scoters were away off in the shimmering hazy distance.

We’ve had better days sea-watching that’s for sure (or should that be foreshore ;-)  )

A brief stop at the big park on the way home gave some photo opportunities and a chance to snap away at some of the colour ringed Coot...far warmer on the fingers than trying to record the details in the notebook. We'll pass these on to KB in due course.

Think last one is Y/bto - W (one missing?)

A man and his young daughter appeared on an after school saunter complete with a loaf of bread which attracted the local Black Headed Gulls. 

 Why does the most interesting one have to sit the furthest away? 

 We're pretty sure it reads VLJ - anyone recognise him?
Dancing on ice - where's Philip Schofield when you need him?

Then we tried some BiF shots, which turned out to be a little awkward as the wind was in the wrong direction.

Need to work out the settings on the camera a bit more thoroughly to see if we can improve on these results...and the wind making them face towards us wouldn't go amiss...

Where to next? Still need to get in the park and hunt down the woodland species still not yet on the year's tally sheet...you never know what Monika has been up to during the week and how many species she's been able to add to her list!

In the meantime let us know if the wind was in the right direction in your outback.

An American sneaks over the border

The Safari couldn't decide where to go this morning as the weather closed in. But before we tell you where we ended up have a look here at the second pic down, that to us looks like it could well be a Shag in which case it is likely to be the first record for the big park.

We desided the day would be spent at the nature reserve but shortly before setting off a text from AB decided for us and we headed a little further to the freshwater marshes near the river.

The American Wigeon seen yesterday on the South-side had been flushed by the high tide and/or shooters to the right side of the river so twitching it was a must. We got to the roadside lay-by from where it had been seen to discover it had flown with several hundred 'normal' Wigeon only a few minutes before we arrived  :-( We did see our first Shelducks (79) of the year from here though and our main quarry was still in the field though and fortunately MMcG refound it fairly quickly.
Viewing conditions were worse than dreadful with low cloud and heavy drizzle being driven right in our face by a stiff breeze. To view the flock we had to wind the Land Rover's window down and it just about filled with water during the half hour we spent watching the flock grazing.

There is an American Wigeon (80) in the pic - honest...see if you can find it. The pic has been digitally enhanced to make it easier for you; the real conditions were much worse than this!!! - and we were viewing through the outer branches of a Hawthorn bush

Further out in the field/murk a couple of Curlews (81) were seen - there won't be many years that we see an American Wigeon before our first Curlew!

With one leg and the whole of the inside of the Land Rover just about soaked through we decided to call in at the nature reserve for a few minutes on the way back...well we had to pass it anyway...
Several Lapwing were roosting on the bund and we found a sleeping drake Pintail (82) in amongst a portion of the Teal. A Grey Lag Goose (83) cruised out from behind the bund honking loudly - unusually it appeared to be on its own.
Gulls-wise it was very quite, the Iceland Gull had put in an appearance from about 10.00 - 11.00 its 'regular' time.
We noted a good number of Linnets on the wires across the field and MJ got a count of 120 with his scope along with 40 Fieldfare also sat on the wires - good numbers of both species for this winter.
Meanwhile the regular Moorhen climbed the bank almost reaching the hide - this pic has had only a tiny crop off each side. The rain had stopped but it was no less gloomy, one day we'll get a much crisper pic of him/her...soon?

Across on the island a pair of Kestrels were hunting giving some excellent views and a Sparrowhawk tazzed across the mere and along the reedbed. Behind the hovering Kestrels two skeins of Pink Footed Geese came into view heading our way and eventually hit the recording area's airspace (MMLNR No 56 - over half way).
Suddenly MJ shouted he'd seen something by the red bush in an excited voice - sure enough within a few seconds one of the Otters put on a performance for a good few minutes...we moved along the bankhundred yards or so with MMcG in the hope of getting a pic/vid but it didn't stay at the surface long enough, however we did hear a Water Rail scream and one of the Cetti's Warblers was singing...a fabulous end to a great, if wet, day's safari-ing...back to Base camp for a warming and celebratory cuppa...the American Wigeon was a new Fylde bird for us having missed all the others over the last 20 years!
Where to next? Patch 2 will be back in play tomorrow - let's hope the cloud has lifted by then and we can actually see the sea!
In the meantime let us know who snuck in to your outback