Had a couple of hours this afternoon at Caldy/West Kirby, all the usual winter suspects including 100's of Knot, Redshank, Curlew, Oystercatcher, Dunlin and the 1st winter Scaup still on the marine lake - haven't seen a Scaup for over a year then get two in a week
Burton Marsh - Worth mentioning that there are lots of wigeon and lapwing feeding on Burton Marsh and later on views of short-eared owls hunting both on the marsh and in the fields adjacent too. 2 snow bunting seen by wardens on Tuesday feeding on the washed up seeds from the high tides.
Parkgate - views of harriers continue to be brilliant with both hen(x4) and marsh(x1 Juv/fem) and short-eared owls again later in the day. Spoonbill has been obvioulsy feeding in the Old Baths and Boathouse flash.
West Kirby Marine Lake - Drake 1st winter scaup yesterday justs metres from 100's roosting redshank and dunlin on the rocks at south end, turnstones too. Beaches around West Kirby allow for great views of ringed plover, sanderling, grey plover, curlew, oystercatcher, bar-tailed godwit, redshank, dunlin, knot,
Had a really good day out on the Wirral today, including Thurstaston shore where I settled myself on the sailing club slipway and waited for the tide to push everything in and therefore had brilliant views of Oystercatcher, Redshank, Turnstone, Curlew, Knot [which were wheeling around in amazing numbers], a few Dunlin, fly over by a Raven and misc gulls.
Then also had a look at Red Rocks and West Kirby Marine lake for close up views of Knot, Redshank and Dunlin all looking very crisp in the winter sun [when there was some]. Found a spot at the western end of the lake and sat and watched Turnstone feed towards me down the high tide mark until it went about ten feet past the bench I was on! Really good to watch it pulling seeds and other bits from the debris. Down for one last look at the roosting waders at the other end saw the first winter drake Scaup work its way towards the shore alternatively diving and preening as it came.
Would have been quite happy to spend several hours at Kirby but went on to Parkgate and walked right along the marsh back towards Burton, not a lot about but plenty of teal and other duck flying around the marsh, egrets, gulls, Mipits and good views of a Stonechat just north of the Parkgate Baths when I got back to the car.
I did mean to go round the North Wales coast in the afternoon but with so much to watch on the Wirral I never made it!
Was at the high tide today, which despite being the third or fourth over the last few days still produced the goods. I've not been at one this high for probably 6-7 years, so was cracking to witness the bird and mammal mayhem!?
I saw the following from the pub over a hearty breakfast, then the old baths and surrounding area:
Shelduck 300+ Gadwall 5 Shoveller 2 Pintail 800+ Teal 3-4000 RB Merganser 2 Water Rail 1 (think the Herons must have eaten mostof them by now ) Little Grebe 1 Spoonbill (was at Neston Old Quay on wayback) Little Egret 5 + 35 (35 at Neston Old Quay) Hen Harrier (3 different birds) Marsh Harrier 1 female Kestrel 3 Peregrine 2 Merlin 2 Short-eared Owl (4 different birds) Redshank 1000+ Dunlin 30+ Lapwing 1000+ Golden Plover 45 Black-tailed Godwit 1000+ Oystercatcher 600+ Common Snipe 50+ Curlew 700+ Green Woodpecker 1 Reed Bunting 4 Stonechat 1 Meadow Pipit 50+ Rock Pipit 3 Water Pipit 1 Skylark 400+ Grey Wagtail 2 Pied Wagtail 4 Fieldfare 30+ Redwing 15+ Linnet 30+ Raven 1
Think that was the most of them!?
Also saw several Water Shrew, Common Shrew, Bank Vole and Short-tailed Vole (great little rustic coloured voles) escaping the flood, although some only made it clear from the water and ended in a Herons, Owls or Ravens mouth etc?!?!
First time at Parkgate with such a high tide. Saw most of Nick's list but substitute male for female Merlin, 4 Peregrines and 4 ringtail Hen Harriers. The mammal watersports were just amazing! Tried really hard to turn one of the myriad Snipes into just one Jack Snipe, but to no avail. Heard there was a Water Rail runner, but not seen by us. Brilliant few hours.
2 Peregrine 1 Hen Harrier 1 Marsh Harrier 1 Merlin (f) 3 Kestrel (two mating right in front of car park) 1 Sparrowhawk (m) 4 Short Eared Owl Spoonbill Little Egret Pintail Raven Red Breasted Merganser Huge amounts of Curlew, Redshank, BT Godwit, Shelduck, Teal, Snipe, etc , etc.
Highlight of the day had to be when the tide finally reached the wall and hundreds of small mammals (mice, shrews and voles) were seen making for cover. One was even seen floating past on a crisp packet. The gulls in particular had a field day mopping them up along with a lone fox about a 150 yards out that stood in the water up to its chest waiting for the voles to come swimming by. A cold but really enjoyable day.
High tide today between Pargate and Heswall produced all that Joey,Karen and Jonathan saw but I didn't get the Peregrine although one was seen near the baths. Smashing view of the Spoonbill, quite close up preening and then in flight. Earlier at West Kirby 2 male, 1 fem. (I confused it witha fem Goosander at first) RB Merganzer. Dunlin, Redshank, Turnstone and lots of Oystercatchers. There was also great numbers of teal and curlew all over the marsh. There were a lot of people there today but not as many as I expected. I met a very sociable local birder and GM poster Ian Boot, so all in all a good day. Mike
We (Mike Baron and I) thought there were at least two, probably three or more (there were certainly three yesterday evening) rt hen harriers on the marsh today. We also had two adults and at least one 1st winter peregrines. We estimated possibly six se owls in all, and merlins kept popping up all over the place! A few minutes before the peregrine chased the jack snipe towards the crowd, another jack flew over the NW end of the car park. A brown hare ran across the marsh at one point, and we had three foxes - one straight out from the car park and two on the tide's edge to the NW. The sighting of the day for us involved one of these foxes. The marsh harrier floated over and started to mob one of them. The fox took offence to this and continually leaped up and snapped at the harrier each time it swooped down - magical!
At The Harp we had another rt hen harrier and merlin then, after Mike left, I went to Burton Marsh where there were two rt hen harriers (one from The Harp earlier presumably) and a se owl.
good day today with 5 lifers sea didn't flood marsh completely but everything turned up
1 fem merlin offering great views 1 or possibly 2 fem hen harriers fem marsh harrier 2 s e owls kestrel (mobbed by s e owl at one point) peregrine (saw it strike a bird but couldn't recover its prey item) spoonbill stonechat red breasted meganser on near pool skylark raven pink footed goose oystercatcher shelduck redshank curlew lapwing LBB and GBB gulls 1 grey heron devouring a water rail, which then got lodged in its throat! 1 live water rail lots of snipe reed bunting 1 red fox 1 man in a canoe
I was unknowingly trail-blazing a route it seems! Nice one with the Barn Owl Sid, must have been a lovely view with the wild marsh as a backdrop. Henry.
Henry we must have followed you around today - we left home at 12.30 straight to Shotwick fields where we also found the three species of Swan from the second island along A548 for zones 3 & 4 Deeside Industrial Estate. Bewicks was a lifetime first for me. Then over to Burton Marsh - Peregrine on a post and several Stonechat on the marsh as well a couple of Shorteared Owls. The stuble field in-land from Decca pools yielded big numbers of birds including Skylark, Linnet, Reed Bunts, a Song thrush, Yellowhamer (M&F) and a single Brambling my first this winter and a lurking Kestrel. The final destination was Parkgate reached just as the Old Baths car park barrier went down at 5 o'clock. Luckily I had spotted the sleeping Spoonbill on the Boathouse flash where we watched it waken up and commence feeding, amazing to watch. We then had a couple more Shorteared Owls but the best was yet to come with fabulous views of the Barn Owl about 20m out on the marsh, a smashing end to a lovely afternoon - I do believe that Mrs A may have just enjoyed it as well
The chance of a trip to Parkgate came along today. Whilst the tide didn't cover the marsh I was pleased to get good views of the Spoonbill, Marsh Harrier (fem), 2 Hen Harriers (ringtails), 1 Merlin, 1 Peregrine, 4 Kestrels, 3 Reed Buntings, 50+ Skylarks, 13 Stock Doves and 2 Black-tailed Godwits. Down at Shotwick Fields on the border with Wales, the winter swan flock was immedately visible in the nearest field to one of the roundabouts near the Flint bridge. c30 Bewick's and c20 Whoopers were present including the presumed leucistic Whooper and a single Mute Swan hiding in their midst. It was a day of both fantastic birds and weather, a rarity in itself! Only downside was the sight of a moronic photographer, hundreds of meters out into the marsh, flushing allsorts out of the way in the name of just another mundane shot. Needless to say his camouflage jacket didn't have the intented effect thanks to awful fieldcraft and many birds fled needlessly...
-- Edited by Henry Cook on Saturday 30th of January 2010 05:08:29 PM
Yeah very early seeing as though we (the RSPB) will be there and a group is coming from Chester Zoo!
PS Save room for the RSPB vehicle and a safe pedestrian area please
You are correct Paul, I am now aware that the Chester Zoo "Count me in Project" people will be there on Monday so Tuesday may be a better option and as IMF is closed on Tuesday you guys should be able to get there early as well and save your own space
For those who may be interested there are those two 10m high tides next week on Monday at about 12.15 and Tuesday around 13.00.
As per Rigger's and my posts on this thread 5th December last, Parkgate may be the place to be . Especially if there is low pressure and a wind with a bit of westerly in it.
PS remember to get there well before the actual high tide mainly because that's when all of the action takes place but also the Old Baths car park tends to get very busy on "high tide" days.
-- Edited by sid ashton on Thursday 28th of January 2010 08:18:26 AM
Yeah very early seeing as though we (the RSPB) will be there and a group is coming from Chester Zoo!
PS Save room for the RSPB vehicle and a safe pedestrian area please
For those who may be interested there are those two 10m high tides next week on Monday at about 12.15 and Tuesday around 13.00.
As per Rigger's and my posts on this thread 5th December last, Parkgate may be the place to be . Especially if there is low pressure and a wind with a bit of westerly in it.
PS remember to get there well before the actual high tide mainly because that's when all of the action takes place but also the Old Baths car park tends to get very busy on "high tide" days.
-- Edited by sid ashton on Thursday 28th of January 2010 08:18:26 AM
As I had never seen a Richard's Pipit decided to venture over to the Wirral late morning. Not only was it a successful twitch for the Richard's at Denhall Quay but also came upon one Mr Platt - nice to meet you Johnathan
Just to add to what Karen reported from the Old Baths yesterday... I too was greeted by the friendly Stonechat Only other bird to add of note would be a Water Rail.
I started the morning around the 8.30am high tide at West Kirby Marine Lake... Plenty of Dunlin, Redshank, Knot, Turnstone and 3 Shag were showing very well close to the edge.
After Frodsham in the morning, we arrived at the Old Baths Car Park in good time for the roost. As we arrived we were greeted by a friendly Stonechat.
We were not to be disappointed with with the Harriers either with a Ringtail showing almost immediately directly in front of us, this was before we had even got out of the car. It was then fairly quiet raptor wise for a while with the only two or three Kestrels around. Then my dad spotted a Short Eared Owl which was up and down for 15-20 minutes and then gave great views quartering. We decided that in the end we had seen at least six and at least three ringtail Harriers.
There were plenty of Little Egrets about, and a Raven croaked over us.
I think standing in the old baths car park watching the SEOs is one of my favourite birding experiences so I'll be on the look out for a good Spring tide next year!
I guess it gets quite busy so wondered if its worth a spot on the wall of the road leading to the old baths, if the car park area itself is full? Guess it depends just how high the surge is?
Pete you won't have to wait until Spring for the next 10 m "spring tides" - there are two on 1st and 2nd February at mid day ish on both days. Parkgate itself is a nightmare for parking and the Old Baths is the place to be - just get there early
I think standing in the old baths car park watching the SEOs is one of my favourite birding experiences so I'll be on the look out for a good Spring tide next year!
I guess it gets quite busy so wondered if its worth a spot on the wall of the road leading to the old baths, if the car park area itself is full? Guess it depends just how high the surge is?
As you say, if you get the conditions right, it can be an awsome spectacle.
A few years ago, we (Myself and Mr Chorley, I think) were watching a Water Rail floating on a lump of vegetation. It managed to avoid the Gulls, many of which didn't, and came within a couple of feet of the sea wall, then flew inland, between our legs.
It can also be a bit "heart wrenching" at times watching the smaller birds and mammals being picked off as they try to avoid the incoming water.
A couple of years ago, we also witnessed a swimming fox as it got cut off from dry land-something I have not seen before
Riggers, I have put my post into English now I think cheers
But to clarify a little further what I made a hash of saying for others who may not be familiar with the "Parkgate High Tide story"
Under the weather conditions forecast today I wasn't expecting to see too much in the way of additional raptor activity. Sometimes on spring tides with the right combinations of wind and atmospheric pressure water levels rise dramatically with the approaching high tide.
When the water breaks over the edge of the marsh, small mammals such as Water Voles, Wood Mice, Brown Rats and Common Shrews attempt to retreat to higher ground.
With all this movement, the opportunist hunters arrive. Herons, Gulls, Kestrels and Marsh Harriers take their share, and on a good day Peregrines, Merlins and Sparrowhawks turn up. The most spectacular hunter though is the Short-eared Owl, quartering the marsh, getting closer and closer as the tide makes its way towards the sea wall.
I have of course seen the Owls both Short eared and Barn in recent weeks as well as the Harriers under "normal" conditons - I was just pointing out that the high tide spectacle at Parkgate depends on factors other than just a high tide and doesn't always happen.
So after all that I'm going to have a bit of my birthday cake and have a lie down
We had good sightings of Short Earred Owls (2) and a Barn Owl along with at least 3 Hen Harriers coming into roost at dusk from the Old Bath House car park. These species can usually be seen here at dusk.
Early this morning Burton Marsh/Decca Pools gave some of the best views of a Hen Harrier (ring tail) that I have ever had over there - also a Peregrine on a post close in was nice. Inner Marsh Farm was rather quiet the main interest being provided by a small flock of Linnet feeding in the meadow to the left of the path on the hill down to the hide and 5 Siskins in the trees at the bottom of the hill.
On to Parkgate for the spring tide. With the lack of wind not expecting too much and I wasn't disappointed - didn't see too much Another ring tail and another Peregrine on a post was the size of it - no Owls to be seen
-- Edited by sid ashton on Saturday 5th of December 2009 07:46:00 PM
1.30p.m. today high tide at Wallasey Life Boat Station, 7 Purple Sandpiper on rocks just below station amongst approx 20 Turnstone, excellent views Cheers Ian
Just so that no one gets disappointed if you go looking for the Purple Sands at New Brighton - generally the only time they are on the pontoon on the marina at New Brighton or on the rocks behind the lifeguard station is just before and over high tide.
Same as below for us today except 1 heron, only 1 poss merlin in the distance and one hen harrier and sadly no barn owl seen! The stonechats were friendly today, as was one kestrel that happily ate it's dinner in full view of us all. Over at the marina was what at first looked like a rb mergansa but on viewing the photo's seems to be a f goosander (maybe). Lots of redshank sunning themselves on the jetty, Single raven from the car traveling through thurstaston, no buzzards though which seems different somehow. Apparently a spoonbill at parkgate which we failed to spot
-- Edited by brandon mulhern on Sunday 8th of November 2009 08:34:39 PM
3 Hen Harriers (all ring-tails) 5 Short-eared Owls 2 Peregrines 2 Merlins 3 Kestrels 1 Barn Owl 2 Stonechats around a dozen Little Egrets plus oodles of Mipits, Skylarks, Curlews etc
A short Wirral wander today starting at New Brighton for high tide at 11.30 found Redshank, Turnstone, Dunlin and 5 Purple Sands on a very crowded pontoon on the marine lake - No Purples at the Lifeguard Station though. A sea watch at the Gunsite produced - gulls!!. Redrocks just after high tide is never the place to be but the Brents were visible on the landward side of Hilbre. Finally to Parkgate where the Short Eared Owl numbers have reached 5 and the ringtail Hen Harrier came vey close by but then the rain set in and time for home.
The golf ball stealing behaviour has been noted several times here before - I have not seen it but I bet a few the local birders are familiar with it - do they think they are eggs?
Late afternoon visit to Parkgate for a walk along the Wirral way to Heswall and back around the golf course.
Before we left the Old Baths car park we had a really good display from a ring tail Hen Harrier over the Boat House pool and a pair of Stonechat just on the marsh side of the wall. Our walk along the marsh/golf course produced a flock of 15 - 20 linnets and several Mistle Thrush but no Redwings. We did see something really unusual with a Raven diving down onto one of the golf course fairways and making off with a golf ball much to the dismay of the owner of the ball . Had he been "birdied" Mrs O? Has anyone else ever seen this sort of behaviour from a Raven. Arriving back at the car park we met a friend of Phil Owen - nice to meet you Steve. As the sun was setting we watched 3 Short-eared Owls, 2 Hen Harriers and the resident Barn Owl out for it's evening fly round the marsh.
Quick visit to a couple of Wirral favourites today - Innermarsh farm for the Wood Sand not seen one in late summer previously - very smart little bird plus several Ruff, loads of Lapwing and one Paul Brady
Walked along Cadly Beach with the ebbing tide - lots of Gulls of course and Oycs and a good number of Curlew but not the hoped-for Whimbrel.
Finished up at Parkgate where we had the most amazingly close views of Barn Owl(s) - the bird(s) returning from the marsh were low and directly over our heads in the old baths car park flying inland. This was between 18.30 and 19.30 - just before we left a Marsh Harrier (not adult male) came in apparently to roost.
To finish a really nice Chinese meal at Mr Chows on Parkgate front.
-- Edited by sid ashton on Friday 11th of September 2009 11:35:34 PM
High winds had me making the annual pilgrimage down the M53 in search of Leach's and other goodies.
Stunning adult Sabine's Gull s at Wallasey Coastguards (down to 3m!) and New Brighton (one lingering for well over an hour) plus another adult, a juv, Bonxie, manx Shearwater, probable Sooty, 2 - 6 Leach's made a great day out.
new brighton lots of turnstone and a few ringed plover near perch rock also the usual gulls and cormerants and a steady passage of terns. west kirby was a lot more productive manxies and arctic skuas plus a large roost of sanwich terns approx 350 with lots of youngsters.also a large group of oystercatchers and curlews with some nice summer plumage knot and bar tailed godwits.
20+ Gannets (distant), 2 Common Scoter, 70+ Sandwich Terns, 15+ Knot, 30+ Sanderlings, 30+ Dunlin, 100+ Oystercatcher, 3 Curlew, Great Crested Grebe, Peregrine sat on a sand bank.
Bit disappointing considering the high tide (over 9.5m) and onshore blow. (Formby had Manxies & Arctic Skua, and Heysham & Walney both had European Storm-petrels and Manxies).
-- Edited by Ian Woosey on Saturday 25th of July 2009 04:30:36 PM