Dingy December days give typical winter fare

The Safari and Monty have mostly been getting wet this week, for the last two days its been perpetual dusk. Earlier in the week a frosty start gave the opportunity for a dry - well at least not rainy - wander round Marton Mere, it wasn't that dry underfoot...think big puddles and quagmires.

The early morning frost was melting and the limp sun was lifting a cold mist over the wetlands as we walked in. To further brighten the morning a Cetti's Warbler sang briefly but otherwise all was quiet. Certainly no sign of the Roe Deer that was spotted very early morning a few days previously. Our prize of a king-size Mars Bar to the first person the get a pic of a deer on the reserve is still up for grabs...

To give Monty more of a run we chose to walk round the perimeter of the reserve where we heard but couldn't see a couple of Goldcrests in the dense Blackthorn boundary hedge. We had a look for any Long Eared Owls from the few places it's now possible to see over the hedge but yet again all the previously favoured spots were uninhabited. Where are they? Are there any about? News of a roosting Tawny Owl nearby a few days ago may not be good news for any Long Eared Owls as there's a bit of intra-guild competition between the two species and sometimes aggression too from the larger and much more powerful Tawny Owls. Maybe any LEOs that have been around have been scared off/eaten??? 

Nothing of note was noted along the embankment and the few remaining trees in that corner of the caravan site were devoid of birds. We parked up in the Fylde bird Club hide and enjoyed a bit of sunshine illuminating a nice variety of water birds, about 50 Teal, there was a Green Winged Teal at this time of year back in '94 and we checked the 'normal' Teal just in case...none - unless there's an unidentifiable female in the flock! Mallards, Shoveler, Gadwall, a dozen or more Wigeon, the flock of Grey Lag Geese with a (the?) neck collared bird that was too distant to read and to get a pic of with the 300mm - our 600mm is in dock for auto-focus issues to be sorted, hope it's not going to be too expensive to sort out, a a real life lesson in filling out those 5 year warranty cards/web pages!!!

The Coot had yet another mass panic but we couldn't see what had caused it. News was that one had been taken by the Otter a day or so ago so they have good reason to scatter. Otters are fairly catholic in their diet but the do prefer fish so if ours is eating Coots does that mean there's not many fish of a suitable size or just a super-abundance of pretty clumsy and easy to catch Coots available?

The Coot panic made a good flock of gulls lift off the water to our left but they settled back down in the same place out of sight from our vantage point in the hide so e left to check them over from 'under the trees'. The now fallen Typha here allows good views over the western end of the mere and the all important gull flock although today we didn't find anything other than Herring Gulls and a couple of Black Headed Gulls in the flock.

Another Cetti's Warbler sang from close to the Dragonfly Den hide and the recently cut swathes through the reedbed played host to a few Coots, a couple of Moorhens and a Heron.

There wasn't anything to point the lens at until we came across this Robin sitting at the side of the track.

we got a snap off and then it dived down to the path to collect a tiny morsel it had somehow seen and then returned to a perch close to the one it left but just a little further away from us. But as we inched closer trying to get closer than before for the 300mm to bed more effective a dog walker appeared from found the other side of the bush and the Robin was gone.

The Feeding Station was well provisioned but there was little activity apart from the ubiquitous aliens, Pheasants and Grey Squirrels, so we chose not to stay long.

It's not often you come across a solitary Goldfinch but this one feeding on the soggy heads of a Spear Thistle was just that, there were no others to be seen or heard in the immediate vicinity. Where were its chums?

Again we tried to inch closer to get a better range for the 300mm but this time we spooked it and off it went. We imagined that once it took flight others would join it from their hiding places but none did.

Just outside the reserve the morning's frost and mist had created artistic droplets all over the vegetation  -we couldn't resist snapping away at some of the Rose Hips at one of the path junctions.

As our walk neared its end there's a few Apple trees with a good number of windfall apples still lying on the ground. We could see some Blackbird activity in and under the trees so approached cautiously.

There were several, probably at least double figures lurking in the undergrowth but were quite aggressive towards each other with lots of chasing rivals off to get to the best fruit so it was quite tricky to keep tabs on them all. We did however see the pale rump of a Fieldfare lift up through the twiggery and heard the unmistakable 'whacka chacka' call as it did so. It then took some careful repositioning to be able to see it anything like well up in the top of the tree, this was easily our best view.

It shifted position and we lost sight of it somewhere round the back of the tree and lower down but thought we'd refound it again when we saw a 'paler than a Blackbird' movement at the foot of the tree. Not the Fieldfare but a Song Thrush this time.

By now a cluster of dog walkers was closing down on us and their mutts were running amok here there and everywhere through the vegetation - needless to say that was the end of any chance of seeing the Fieldfare again as most of the birds took flight and went over behind us back the way we'd come from towards the reserve. 

We did see LR's favourite gull though, a Black Headed Gull that has been pacing up and down the track for a good few winters now - wonder where it hangs out during the summer, a local nesting colony on the Lancashire coastal marshes or much much further away???

November ended with 192 bird species on our year list of which we'd got pics of 176 for our Photo Year List Challenge - a rather unexpectedly high 'strike-rate' of  91.6666666666666666% and we still haven't been able to submit such local species as Jay, Yellowhammer or Corn Bunting to the SD card.

Where to next? Blimey anywhere will do as soon as this dreek rainy weather gives over.

in the meantime let us know who's got the track side eagle eyes in your outback.

Gee tha's a cold wind

The Safari had a quick shuffy at our spreadsheets and discovered we'd not seen a Woodcock on Patch 1 before the other day making it the fortieth species we've found on the Patch so far this year. Not only that the Ring Necked Parakeet that flew over Base Camp on Wednesday was the 33rd species for the garden this year and the first of its kind ever! it came from the north...but from where??? We've heard one up at Monty's walkies field which is to the north of us, could it be that one and just how many are there around town now; three have been in Stanley Park now, an increase of two in recent days.

Yesterday we joined the Wildlife Trusts Living Seas team for a rather chilly and very blustery two seawatch from the top of Rossall Tower. Storm clouds gathered and the sea tossed and turned but there was a good turn out despite everyone realising there'd be very little chance of seeing any blubber, still there's always a chance of a seabird or two when staring out to sea.

Thankfully that big black cloud missed us, as did all the others!

It was a bit like hard work, but we found a distant flock of Kittiwakes perhaps the same as came right beneath our noses in a tight flock a little later. From our position tucked in behind the wall at the back of the tower we didn't see them until very late and they'd passed by the time we'd grabbed the camera.

Just one out of perhaps 20 - where'd the others go?

Not much else was out there. The new shingle island was almost covered and all we could see roosting on it was a handful of Eiders and a couple of Great Black Backed Gulls. After while a Red Throated Diver flew by but most of the action was right below us on the beach as the tide began to drop. First in was a fly-by of a nice flock of Ringed Plovers followed by a good number of Sanderlings which pattered up and down the beach on twinkling black legs dodging the incoming waves.

From time to time a larger wave would send the closest ones to the water fluttering skywards.

Best find of the session was actually as we were leaving when we spotted a Purple Sandpiper roosting with a few Turnstones.

Once we'd found one we found a second, and then a third and then two more; five! That's a really good count for this stretch of coast and most unexpected.

This morning we had a wander round Marton Mere for a couple of hours with Monty. We came across a couple of female Bullfinches and we were almost able to gget a decent pic of one until the usual plague happened - a couple of unleashed dogs (two of far too many this very chilly morning) miles away from their idiot human ran in front of us and flushed it seconds before we could press the shutter button...sooooo frustrating and infinitely annoying.

Not too much else to be seen, a Goldcrest and perhaps a bit of a cold weather movement with a bit of an influx of Fieldfares and Blackbirds, we heard at least a couple of Redwings too. 

At the platform a flock of tits came by some of which stopped to take a few pecks out of the remaining Apples still hanging from the branches.

The light wasn't good for looking at the water from there, but at least 200 Coots were sat in the middle of the mere.

A bumblebee buzzing past was a complete surprise, although it was sunny it was no more than 4C out there and there are lots of Bluebells popping up under the trees behind the platform.

We will get that Bullfinch pic one day (idiot dog owners permitting) but it won't be this weekend as we're elsewhere.

Where to next? Not sure and there might me snow...watch this space.
In the meantime let us know who's bitten off more than they can chew in your outback.

A Christmas short

The safari had a short trip out today before turkey and all the trimmings. More a case of getting out of the way while dinner was being prepared.

We found ourselves at Marton Mere nature reserve again. Unfortunately there were more dogs out than wildlife and the numpties above spent ages encouraging their mutts to jump into the wildlife ponds. I just hope they hadn't been in any of the nearby ponds that are contaminated with the invasive alien plants Crassula and/or Azolla otherwise the sterling efforts of the Nature Watch group will have been to no avail as it is almost impossible to eradicate these plants once they have taken hold. 'Ignorance is bliss' - so this lot must be very happy!




Over the mere itself the light was grotty and these are the best I can do with Photo Editor. Plenty of Common Gulls were on the water. A couple of Goldeneyes and a smattering of Tufted Ducks and Pochard but we couldn't see the recently reported female Ferruginous Duck - or is it some type of Aythya hybrid, no-one seems quite sure yet.

Down in the scrub the Long Eared Owls were disappointingly absent too. However there were a few Blackbirds about and the odd Fieldfare. Roll on the January sales and I can bag a bargain in the dslr camera with a bit of a telephoto lens line rather than rely on this little compact.

With the weather going to be cooling down again the few remaining apples are a vital food supply for the thrushes on the reserve.

At the reserve gate this male Kestrel come in from the west and in the still air decided to hunt from a perch high in a Poplar tree.

That was all we had time for - a turkey was beckoning.

Where to next? The weekend looks go for a safari but in which direction will we be heading?

In the meantime let us know what have you been seeing in your outback. Has any one in the USA seen real live backwoods Turkeys?

Short but sweet

This morning's safari was about the shortest ever, fortunately we got back to the Land Rover before the heavens opened.

There was little around but this sulphury yellow fungus was spotted growing on a rotting Willow stump. I've no idea what species it is but the top picture taken from above is a more accurate colour, in the other pics the flash has made the fungus look more golden than it was in life.

These apples haven't been eaten yet and will be an important source of food if the weather turns cold again. The reason they are still on the tree is because trunk is surrounded by dense Brambles keeping them safe from human pilferers.

The Gulls on the mere were twitchy; a Cormorant fishing underwater kept coming up for breath in between them giving them the heeby-jeebies. All the usual gull suspects were there, again Black Headed and Herring were the most numerous followed by Commons. There was just one of both Lesser and Greater Black Backs.

Where to next? Christmas shopping is now getting urgent - only a week left but there may be a chance of a new and much fancier Land Rover, so the next safari might be a long time coming but travelling in a little more style and comfort.

In the meantime let us know what you have found in your outback.

Monika at Orca Watcher (see blog links on right) has challenged me to come up with 6 random facts about myself...hmmmm - thinking cap is on...random facts tomorrow.