Standing in the teeth of a gale...or The return of the hooley!

I knicked the title from the opening line of a Runrig song...seemed very appropriate for this afternoon. (I was at Donnie Monroe's farewell concert at Stirling Castle a few years ago now...brilliant...beyond brilliant...very emotional)

But that is not what this blog is about. Leach's Petrels is where we are at. After a top up of the Land Rover with recycled cooking oil and donning the waterproofs it was time to head down hill for the tide. A savage wind was blowing from the south west and finding decent shelter on Blackpool's north promenade is like trying to find shade in the Sahara. The safari tucked in behind a huge stone lighting tower, the steel lamp post a couple of metres away was doing an Irish jig.

For those of you who don't know what the fuss about Leach's Petrels is, John Dempsey (see Song of the Leach-less 4th Oct, Merseybird blog in links on right) describes them as enigmatic, mysterious, awkward, indestructible and ridiculous. If you've never seen a picture of them John's blog features some fantastic shots by Rich Steel and Fylde Bird Club's Chris Batty also has a superb picture on 1st October (see blog links on right)

Trying to watch from behind the column was not easy. Sand, salt and cold wind in the eyes, buffeted binoculars, salt spray on the lenses all made it difficult. Even following a bird as large as a Herring Gull through the waves was proving hard. Passers-by gave us looks which suggested we 'weren't quite right'. But we knew they were walking past probably the best, most spectacular wildlife sight Blackpool has to offer. The waves crashed against the sea wall throwing spray and foam 50 feet in to the air, the surf was wild (pictures and video to follow). In the gloomy distance the Isle of Man ferry struggled to make headway in to the wind. It was only a mile or so away but we could barely see it - how were we going to see a bird no bigger than a Starling in all this mayhem.

The pictures mentioned above are great but they don't give the sense of absolute awesomeness of something so tiny battling its way through such a hostile and enormous environment.

A bit of black amongst the waves and spray!...only a piece of seaweed tossed from the crest of a wave...doh the heart was going...

Two hours we had been stood there getting knocked around by the wind, imagine spending your whole life out in those conditions with only the crashing waves to shelter you from the fierce wind! That's why these little birds have such devotion and following amongst birders - they are tough beyond belief; dancing their way across the sea; almost defying the waves to cover them in spray or dunk them under.

A lump of drift wood is thrown 15 feet in to the air by the wind.

There...THERE...300 yards out just beyond the worst of the surf - a glimpse, a tiny angled wing, a flick of black, the hint of pale rump. That was it! That 1/2 second, or even less, was it - a Leach's Petrel. Up and over one wave and into the trough behind, perhaps not to be seen by another human being for years. I saw it...my soul is fulfilled...for this season. Luckily the binocs were pointing at that patch of sea at that particular moment.

Why are they so good? I think the Blackbird singing before dawn in spring is beautiful, the exotic birds of foreign holidays are - well - exotic, the rarity you find on your 'patch' is exciting and the big twitch to see someone else's rarity makes for a good day out but Leach's Petrels have to be EARNED - that's why they are special.

I can feel a tear coming to my eyes...

What else did we see...not a lot, a few Herring Gulls, a single Black Headed Gull and the stiff wings of a Fulmar or Manx Shearwater (impossible to tell in the gloom).

Before the driving rain arrived we cleared the crust of salt spray from the windscreen and pointed the Land Rover towards a welcome hot cup of tea.

Where to next? More of the same perhaps.

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

Surfs up!

Lancashire and Lakeland Outback Wildlife Adventure Safaris

A late start at work, a rising tide and a strong wind blowing a right old hooley in midsummer equals only one thing – Storm Petrels. So a stint down by the North Shore Boating Pool was called for. Humming “They’ll be coming round the boating pool when they come….they’ll be coming round the boating pool when they come…they’ll be…” (Well, I’ve seen a few Leach’s Petrels doing that) I made my way to a sheltered cliff top vantage point, passing the fossils of all manner of marine creatures embedded in the ‘decorative’ water-worn limestone. It’s a pity this was ever removed from some now precious limestone pavement but things were different in times past. Even the cliffs themselves are a shadow of their former selves. Old photos on Blackpool4Me show the cliffs in their natural state without the concrete apron. What plants and animals were to be found there is anyone’s guess now. Soft cliff is a very rare habitat in Lancashire, as they have always been ‘strengthened’ with sea defences and not left to their own natural devices. Clever these Victorians and Edwardians! Hmm.

In the distance the wind turbines off Barrow were spinning like mad. More of these please but only in the right area. No point having ‘environmentally friendly’ energy if it destroys the environment! On a day like today just one of these giants produces enough juice to power my house for a year every 2 hours!

Finding a sheltered spot was proving difficult, the Thrift was blowing about that much it looked like it was going to torn from its roots. Finally found a place where I wasn’t staring in to the teeth of the gale. First bird past was a Common Gull. Unusual, as they are the least common at this time of the year. The supporting cast of Black Headed, Herring and Lesser Black BackedGulls soon put in their appearance. (That’s more species than the whole of Australia!). Even from my high vantage point the larger gulls were disappearing in the troughs between the waves so picking up a bird no bigger than a crisp packet in that expanse of sea was going to be tricky.

It was mesmerising sitting there watching the shadows of the clouds scudding over the churning sea. I was finding it hard to concentrate being buffeted by the wind and my hair was trying to escape to Yorkshire! At least the sun was warm on my back. There weren’t many birds about just a few of the local Herring Gulls riding the up-draughts from the cliffs.


A young Gannet drifted by, unusual to see this species so close in, only a few hundred yards off shore, just behind the surf. Then another Common Gull. The wind is getting stronger, I’m fifty feet up the cliff and getting soaked by the spray from the crashing waves. A Great Black Backed Gull powers by, impervious to the storm. Things are looking up as two Turnstones dash past. Normally they would be roosting in the shelter provided by the boating pool; but this is being used as a race track and the disturbance has forced the wading birds to find somewhere else – I hope they have found an alternative sheltered spot as there is precious little shelter elsewhere along the Promenade.

Magic – a Fulmar not a hundred yards out. I very rarely see these ocean wanderers and then only as distant dots on the horizon. Not a wing beat, just dipping from side to side using the wind – absolutely effortless! Then another! Two Fulmars to one Gannet – that never happens!

No sign of any Storm Petrels. That’s the trouble with wildlife – you just can’t guarantee anything – better luck next time. But it was much better to be out in the wilds (and boy was it wild!) than to be sat indoors watching daytime TV.

I hope this storm blows itself out before next week's National Whale and Dolphin Watch.

Where to next?