Onward, here, there, and everywhere and even further afield

The Safari mentioned at the very end of our last blog that theres not much change in the local birdlife at this time of year, the birds are pretty much settled down in their favoured spots waiting for the winter to draw to a close, saving energy and staying warm are order of the day. Well that was about to change. As all UK based readers will know this winter has been a 'Waxwing Winter' and these birds do move around...some so quickly they've moved on before we'd finished reading the news of their whereabouts on several occasions so far. Then news broke of two not too far away but we couldn't go that day, panic was setting in, this looked like it wasn't even going to be our fourth dip of the winter.                                          We were mightily relieved to learn they had stuck overnight so picked up CR and off we went...arriving at the site, after a minor detour, we spotted a couple of birders who told us we should have been there five minutes earlier...ARRRRGGHHH. They pointed in the direction thwe birds had flown off in and we had a drive round the local housing estate being viewed with some suspicion by a few of the residents. Then we went up the lane we'd detoured down earlier (at least we were in the right area) but there was no sign of our quarry. It was indeed fourth time unlucky. Thankfully the birding gods were with us as again there was positive news the following morning so off we went again. This time as we approached we could see a birder on the other side of the road who looked to be looking at something...we waved and made a thumbs up and then a thumbs down sign...she replied with a thumbs up. Happy Days. A quick dash across the raod and two minutes later we were enjoying poor views of two Waxwings high up in the tree tops. #111

Better was to come, they stayed another night and we were able to go back with the intention of getting some shots of them feeding on the Guelder Rose berries down at eye-level like everyone else was putting on social media. (That puts paid to the widely accepted theory that nothing eats Guelder Rose berries). Anyway we arrived on site, the birds were still there...and when we say there they were still high in the tree tops. Guess what..yep, the birders on site told us they'd been down to feed on the berries and were now up there digesting them, should have been here ten minutes ago...AAARRRGGGHHH. Best hang around until they drop down again. In the meantime we took some more, slightly better, tree top shots.

Nearly two hours we stood by the roadside waiting for them to drop onto the berries. The Waxwings had other ideas, they started calling persistantly then flew off away over the houses... AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH. At least our dips had been broken, it would have been dreadful to be the only birder in the country not to have connected with them this winter.

For our nest safari we had been hoping to head up north to Leighton Moss again but the coninuing wet weather meant we'd be wading through knee deep water to see the same few birds as last time so we decided to head back to (the much drier underfoot) Martin Mere to see the same few birds as last time. 

As usual we met IH in the Discovery Hide were we tried our hand at getting some gull in flight shots. There were many more Black Headed Gulls than last week and they were in the early stages of their pairing/breeding behaviour so there was lots of noisy activity. We've got a beginners talk on gulls coming up later in the spring (all will be revealed in due course) so took the opportunity to get a load of hopefully useful shots.

A cold wet wind blew through the window of the hide so we soon decamped to the more sheltered feeders. It was fairly busy with the usual suspects but without the Great Spotted Woodpecker of our previous visit.

As you can see the ringing team have been very active, almost all the birds we saw sported brand new shiny bling. Including this Siskin which was a good spot, we've never seen one on the feeders here before.

The Reed Buntings were still glreaning from the surface of the water

And some had found the table top with its nicely positioned perch

All this excitement was proving too much so IH suggested moving on to nearby Mere Sands Wood just for a bit of a change...and there might be a Jay which we needed for our Challenge.

It was wet and grey in the woods with little to point our cameras at until we reached the first hide where in the gloom beyond gloom, through the heavy drizzle, at the farthest point away from us, a tiny orange spot sheltering under the dark branches of a huge Rhododendron bush was a male Mandarin, but could it be captured on digital film? The answer was yes - just - #112 but only after a lot of deleting absolutely dire shots that could have been nail varnish on Bigfoot's toe and some serious processing we ended up with this single useable identifiable pic.

The rest of our visit continued in the same gloomy veinbut there was some good stuff to be seen like several Goosanders.

IH found the first Toad we've seen this year and AH found what's probably a Geen Shieldbug but still in its winter garb.

So a wet but still fun day out with good mates. Only one new species was added to our Challenge tally but that now leaves just three more to reach our February target with half the month (and we get an extra day this year) to go.

A couple of days later we had an errand to run up Fleetwood way so took t'mutt for a walk along the prom to see if we could catch up with any waders, in particular the Purple Sandpiper that's been hanging around with the large Turnstone flock. No such luck and we've not had any joy with it at the high tide roost on the old boating pool wall close to Base Camp this winter either. The only waders we found were small numbers of Sanderlings and even fewer Ringed Plovers.

There's always something to see though and our attention was turned inland when the sky brightened up a bity and the Skylarks on the adjacent golf course started singing from their lofty song flights. Eventually one landed almost within range of our lens. #113

On the way back to Base Camp we had a quick stop at the old boating pool but there was very few waders in the roost. The next day we tried again but again very few waders were on the wall, where are they all going these days? Not to be outdone and ever hopefully we went again the following day. Yet again there were no more than a handful of waders but there was a small bird sat just beyond them...and one we wanted...a Rock Pipit #114.

A couple of Pied Wagtails mooched around the artificial rocks.

The Rock Pipit left just one more species to photograph for our February target of 15 and well over a week left in which to find it. What would it be...we put a plan together for it to be a biggy, but would the plan hold???

Our initial thought was to head back to Leighton Moss and see if there were any showy Water Rails along the causeway. Once again the weather had other ideas, heavy rain for 36 hours before meant that much of the reserve would be flooded so an alternative was quickly arranged. We were to meet IH at Sizergh Castle for a rendezvous with their elusive Hawfinches, where they had been very elsusive for the safai and CR over recent years being either unlucky, thwarted by deep snow and even turning up one year to find the car park closed for re-tarmacing - you couldn't write it! 

Today was different IH was there well before us and as we pulled into the car park he was sat on the cafe verrandah pointing excitedly skywards. From where the car was parked we could only see the low sun burning out our retinas so car doors were thrown open optics gathered and we dashed over to where he was sat to be shown a lone Hawfinch high in a Hornbeam tree in the middle odf the car park. Getting a pic of it was tricky with lots of branches and twigs in the way. CR managed this shot

but we couldn't get a way through to it so moved slowly to the other side of the tree. As we did so another car load of birders was diembarking their vehicle so we pointed it out to them...maybe we shouldn't have as no sooner had we got round to the other side of the tree withe the sun now behind us and far fewer twigs in the way it flew just as we began to lift the camera; those 60 seconds showing the new arrivals the bird cost us dearly...and worse most of them didn't see it when we asked them later. We hung around for a good hour more as IH had seen them coming and going all morning before we arrived, even a flock of five at one point but sadly we only got a couple more fleeting glimpses of fly-over birds and a couple of maybes that disappeared into the foliage never to be seen again. Ah well c'est la vie - no doubt we'll be back for another look before March is out.

Plan A failed but the day was young and we had another site or two to visit. From Sizergh we drove the few miles further to Fowlshaw Moss were the car park feeders were busy with a nice mix of finches, a few Tree Sparrows and a Great Spotted Woodpecker.

And then,while eating a tasty looking pasty, CR said there's a Water Rail under the end feeder. Stretching up on tippy-toes leaning on the car roof we could just about see it in the gloom of the ditch at far side of the car park.

Thoughts of nearly but not quite submitting the Hawfinch to the SD card were (almost) banished as we hit our target for February, and with the very same species we'd hoped but in a different location. 115 reached, now what? Do we stop for a few days or carry on and potentially eat into March's target which is only another six. That Law of Diminishing Returns is really biting hard now! At Fowlshaw there is another species that isn't on the 'list of potentials for March, Lesser Redpoll. So far we hadn't got out of the car park and we'd not seen one come down to the feeders nor heard any in the trees nearby nor flying over. Only one thing for it - go and have a look at their other feeding station a few yards away. That one wasn't so busy and again no sight nor sound of any Redpolls. The sun was out but the wind was cold as we hit the boardwalk trail. Last year we'd found our very first February Common Lizard at this site so it was deffo worth a look today particularly in any sunny sheltered spots. We searched high and low, well exclusively low, in sunny spots under sheltered bracken, along the sunny edge of the boardwalk, which we flet with the back of our hand and it had some warmth to it, and at the base of likely looking trees to no avail...but IH did spot a small group of Lesser Redpolls making their way through a copse of thick Hawthorn and Silver Birch, we struggled to get the bins on them in the deep cover and none of us managed to get a lens on them, another one for next time. We did find some likely looking lizardy/snaky spots that we'd not come across before that are worthy of further investigation in a few weeks time when the weather has warmed up a bit. Back at the not car park feeding station we had a chat with the Rangers while they had their lunch break away from boardwalk repairs. Still no Lesser Redpolls but a couple of Coal Tits and at least one Marsh Tit darted in and out.

Once the possibilities of Fowlshaw had been exhausted there was still plenty of time to do another site. IH really didn't want to do Leighton Moss so suggested we follow him to a nearby riverside walk he knew. Once off the road and over the stile we were in a different world, the river running wide beside us as we walked up the hill past some impressive veteran trees. Eagle eyed IH came up trumps again when he spotted a Dipper close to the river bank. It flew but a  bit of stealthy stalking found it downstream on the other side but now much more distant.

#116, we watched it for a few minutes before it flew further downstream and was lost to view. A top spot by IH again! He was certainly earning his Spotters Badge today. Now Dipper was on our list of March potentials so we've made our meagre target of just six perhaps a wee bit harder. What else could we find on this wander through riversides and woods? We'd not gone far when a herd of Fallow Deer came into view as we came to the crest of a rise along the path. Not unexpected as we were in a deer park and these are captive animals but not really domesticated as cows or sheep. Their dark colour took us aback at first and we thought they may be Sika Deer but no they are in fact a 'black' form of Fallow Deer and have been on the estate for about 300 years.

Many of the trees were planted at that time too and some of them have been damaged by big the storms of recent years. There's certainly some weird and wonderful shapes.

Continuing on along the footpath we came across another group of deer lazily chewing the cud taking it all very easy. You can tell they're used to people as they hardly bothered to look up as we stopped to get some snaps.

A few yards further on we got a better angle on him

Another one looked bizarrely Kangaroo like.

After leaving the estae and crossing a rather wet and fruitily scented field - looking at the tractor tyre marks we surmise it had recently been slurried, we ended up on a track leading back down to the river where the patch would take us under the main road on a ledge buit into the bridge stanchions. Above the track before we reached the bridge a pair of Buzzards circled over our heads.

Passing under the bridge we came out on a lane looking down into a bit of a gorge in the river which looked vaguelly familar. IH consulted his map telling us we were about to cross a bridge in a 100 yards or so and whe nit came into view we recognised it as the place we really ought to spend some time looking for leaping Salmon, Sedgewick Force. Now that is east of Sizergh Castle, it didn't feel like we'd walked that far but now we were at the furthest point all of a sudden the way back on the other side of the river felt like a bit of a hike.

Our route back was fairly uneventful other than for passing some very impressive Oak, Beech, Lime and Sweet Chestnut trees until we neared the road where our cars were parked. There we found another group of the balck Fallow Deer.

Again they went about their business oblivious to our presence and we were able to get some really close full frame shots. 

In the distance from the trees close to where the cars were parrked we could hear a Jay calling repeatedly, a species that's eluded our lens so far this year, in fact we've only had one fleeting glimpse of one. It is on the Potentials for March list but it was slightly annoying that it kept itself hidden all the while we walked back to the cars. Wonder if we'll get it in March??? And so ended a fabulous and diverse day out in south Cumbria.

Back at Base Camp the following morning we caught sight of the Snow Bunting on the dunes while out with t'mutt again. As per usual we didn't have the camera with us and it was way to far away for even contemplating as phone pic especially after our previous 'Weasel' attempt. There ws no sign of it on our late afternoon dog walk, however the next morning there it was again. This time we cut the dog walk short and went back for the camera only to walk up and down the prom for an hour or more without so much as a glimpse of the darned thing...where does it go??? Lunchtime saw us do another hour or so, again without any joy. The sun was more or less still out for our late afternoon dog walk so again we took the camera and this time after only half an hour we struck gold after seeing it being fluched by another dog walker. Unusually this time it didn't disappear to who knows where but stayed low down on the dune edge and began feeding. It was still very flighty having a little feed here before either flying or running mouse-like through the vegetation to start feeding in a new spot. Keeping up with it while dragging a reluctant 30+kg dog was easy but we did at long last manage to get some shots off. #117

With two species now crossed off our 'Wanted for March' list we've reduced our target to 6 out of the 10 remaining potential 'victims'.

Where to next? Another further flung safari is coming up but one that is still within our 75 mile Challenge radius - just.

In the meantime let us know who's finally fallen in your outback.

Onward, here, there and everywhere

The Safari left you on a high last time with the news that we'd hit the dizzy heights of 100 species of birds photographed in January. Well, as we alluded to then, things slowwwwweeeddd right down in February. We set ourselves a rather weeny target of just 15 new species to get during the extended month. How have we got on?

Our first safari of February saw us head up north to a rather soggy Leighton Moss where it didn't take long to find the long staying female Ring Necked Duck, as is usual for us it was away across the far side of Lillian's pool. But hey near or far if they're identifiable they all count for our Challenge - #101.

Our attention was soon drawn away from it by a well marked male Marsh Harrier.] quartering the reeds over the far side of the pool.

After a while we'd exhausted the possibilities at Lillian's and wandered slowly down to the Grizedale Hide where the water before us was largely bird free, in fact we don't think we've ever seen it so birdless. A shout from CR pointed us in the direction of a very distant Great White Egret, just about photographable beforee it banked and dropped into a distant channel btween the reedbeds\ #102.

With so little happening there we didn't stop long and retraced our steps past the deserted Bearded Tit grit trays to Tim Jackson Hide. Again high water levels meant the pool was lacking in our feathered friends but at least there were a few more than at the Grizedale Hide including several sleepy Snipe, #103, a species we just couldn't connect with in January.

Once again though we soon exhausted all the possibilities and headed back towards the Causeway Hide where pies would be consumed passing the Feeding Station as we went. Not as busy as it can be there but a Marsh Tit is always a good spot here.

Lunch was eagerly consumed while watching Cormorants coming and going.

And a pair of Teal did us the favour of foraging right under our noses.

Butties and pies scoffed it was time to head along the causeway to Lower Hide. The booming of Bitterns was our soundtrack of the day, we could hear them both sides of the track, at least three and probably four we thought. Four booming males, it's not that long ago there were only 11 in the whole country! Just shows what a bit of positive habitat management can achieve - "Build it and they will come" as they say. Along the causeway we got waylaid by a gang of Siskins feeding on Alder seeds that had been washed out of their cones by wind and rains and floodwaters had accumulated them at the edge of the path.

It's not often you see them on the ground as they usually prefer to feed acrobatically high in the tree tops. A Lesser Redpoll was seen with them but easily eluded our lens. Half way down the wooded path to the Lower Hide is a small bridge and that was a bridge too far for CR and his ankle high boots. WE carried on with IH in our wellies and did managed to get to Lower Hide after an intrepid journey through hell and high water - cold high wtaer at that!

And sadly a bit of wasted journey - the very high water levels meant no birds to be seen apart from a few Mute Swans so back to rejoin CR we slopped. Back on terra-firma we went to Lillian's Hide again passing a far-to-quick-for-us Water Rail and a couple of frustratingly invisble Cetti's Warblers. A stationary Snipe on the tern nesting platform was easier.

A little more Marsh Harrier action coincied with the Ring Necked Duck coming a bit closer.

Not the most productive day for our Challenge but a good day on safari with good friends never-the-less and that's what it's all about. 

A few days later our next safari took us along the icy lanes of Over Wyre. Passing a car that had slid off the road through a fence and into a field had us taking extra care on the narrow ditch-sided roads. We struck lucky in Eagland Hill, spotting the Little Owl we've not seen there for several years - #104.

It's a pity that it was on the wrong side of the tree and facing away but you can't have everything. Further down the lane we couldn't stop at the first Farmland Birds Feeding Station so motored on down to the next one where a Corn Bunting , #105, flitted in and out of the large anti-Pheasant/Grey Squirrel cage.

Obviously we'd have preferedv a pic of it in the tree away from the ironmongery but every time it flitted it flut behind the tree truck and out of sight - the pesky so-n-so! Not much else doing there so it was back to the first Feeding Station which was alive with birds, mostly Chaffinches and Tree Sparrows. Luckily there was a pair of Yellowhammers too, our target species, unfortunately it was right at the front of the viewing area with lots of twiggery in the way so our pic is a bit (well a lot) hmmmm, but you can tell what it is so it's (just about) good enough for our purposes. #106

We  met a couple of birders on the drive back to the main road and told them how to find the Little Owl which they'd not seen, we hoped they did find it as it wasn't where we'd spotted it when we drove past.

From the farmland mosses we headed further north for another attempt at the Bewick's Swans. We soon found the flock of Whooper Swans they were probably with but it was so far away across the fields we needed the telescope that we didn't have with us today. With that disappointment we went further up to Plover Scar where another birder was just leaving and told us of a Barn Owl that had been hunting the ditches - we didn't see it but the sound of singing Skylarks in the frosy morning air was glorious. The tide was dropping as we went for a mooch along the seawall to see what we could see. Curlews, Oystercatchers and Redshanks were the most numerous birds but a duck on the water was more interesting...an Eider #107

The following day we were out with t'mutt for his late afternoon walk and what an awful afternoon it was, reet dreich as a Scots person might saw, dark, grey, dingy and raining. Perfect conditions for spotting the Snow Bunting that's been kicking around the cliff/dunes/prom close to Base Camp. We've been seeing it fleetingly about once every 10 days but today it sort of hung around even if a little flighty. No-one in their right mind would carry a camera on a day like that but then everyone has a phone in their pockets these days...The Snow Bunting continued to flit about on the grass bank not too far away from us so ever so cautiously the phone cane out of the pocket. Full Zoom was selected and we held it in the direction of said bird...

Maybe we should have used Night Mode??? Hopefully optomistic we asked our fellow Challengers if they could identify what was in the picture, if they could we could count it towards our tally. The answers came back...a 'shriky thing', nothing, even a Weasel was touted by wildlife savvy IH! So, no we can't count it but would we be able to get a much improved pic before it heads northwards, that was going to be another challenge.

Our next safari saw us with CR and IH at Martin Mere WWT reserve again. It was another grey and drizzly day. Our first port of call was the feeders, on the way we spotted a Brown Hare in the distance guarding the entrance to the Harrier Hide, a nice way to start the day!

The feeders were unusually quiet but as it was raining we stuck it out just in case something of note should show up. Eventually the rain eased and that was our cue to head round to the opposite end of the reserve...the thinking being if we've had at least 60 hours of miserable weather the Barn Owls will be hungry and needing to hunt, the break in the weather is going to bring them out. the hunch was right and we didn't have long to wait. #108 - over half way to our target of 15 for the month now.

After a while hunting the bull's field it swept in front of us and moved over towards the mere to our left.

It then disappeared, possibly circling behind us. Our attention was then turned to the pools in front of us to check all the Teal for any Green Winged Teal that may have secreted themselves among the many hundreds of their Old World counterparts...that's got to be done at this time of year. We couldn't find any, if indeed there were any to be found, We did however find an unexpected quartet of Avocets, a nice little bonus towards our February target. #109. They didn't do much just stood in a line up to their bellies in the water chilling out all day.

Two Kingfishers were also seen but neither were in a photographable location. A shout went up in the hide - someone had spotted the Barn Owl again, only this time there were two. One of which was a little closer than the earlier one.

It even thought about trying  an impression of a Cattle Egret at one point; either that or its eyes were much much bigger than its belly!

But soon it was back to business as usual quartering the fileds for voles.

We hoped one of them would land on a nearby post but neither did, rather they both took themselves further and further away from us across through paddocks. So we took our leave of them and headed back towards the feeders. On the way we called in at the little hide and watched this Little Egret doing its foot-stirring thingy

With little to show for its efforts it decided to swith opools and went for an overland wander rather than take to the wing.

Having a little shimmy on the way.

A brief stop at the Discovery Hide gave us a very close fishing Cormorant. We didn't see it catch any fish but they do swallow small prey items underwater.

For some reason we gave the feeders a miss and continued round to the UU hide where we were kindly shown a Kingfisher. Was this a third one or one of the two we'd seen earlier?

Along the dyke from the Kingfisher and on the opposite side was this bedraggled male Kestrel sat atop his lookout post.

His eyesight must be phenomenal as after a few minutes he swooped down 30 odd yards to nail a worm or other small invertebtrate in the grass

Time for the feeders! The Reed Buntings have found they can collect seeds fallen from the bird table without having to take part in the hustle and bustle that goes on above them.

A female Chaffinch has learnt the trick too.

There was a rattle of camera shutters when a male Great Spotted Woodpecker turned up.

A woodpecker eating Millet - what's that all about? Then a female arrived,

There was a second female too, this second one was a leucistic individual with very pale brown wings, somehow we didn't get a pic of her. We did get the obligatory pic of the pools resident Moorhen though, it's just got to be done; no ifs, buts or maybes.

In the distance we could hear that it was getting near time for the mayhem to begin...otherwise known as the afternoon swan feed. Off we went to the Discovery Hide to get our ring-side seats. 

While the Ranger got herself organised we fired off some point blank shots at the usual suspects.

You can't beat a bit of vermiculation and those found on Pintails and Pochards are exquisite.

The Ranger went out with her barrow of grain, the decibels rose, a flurry of scattering wings soon returned when she threw the first couple of scoops of grain.

After the third scoopful was launch the scrummage began in earnest.

Birds arrived from further out on the lake pitching in wherever there was a  few square inches to get they feet onto - it was bedlam, a seething mass of forward moving feathers...unstoppable in their quest for the free grub.

In the thick of the ducks was a wader, a Black Tailed Godwit with a horrendous looking injury.

Look closely at the foot on the damaged leg, it's horriblby swollen and has lost the claws - yuk!

Then we spotted what we'd been hoping for, a Ruff had joined the party #110

It was now just about time to leave but we couldn't go without a couple more Pintail shots - what a bonny duck.

We were now at two thirds of our February target for the Challenge and only one day into the second week, things were going well but could they/would they continue???

Where to next? There's little change in the local bird world at this time of year, would the water levels in our favourite wetlands remain (too) high, could we get those next five species? 

In the meantime let us know who's doing the scrummaging in your outback.