A few bits and pieces

Over a month ago I spent a quiet hour with a Dipper up in Bowland, unfortunately I chose the wrong time of day and the sun was against me, while I took a number of photographs all are in shadow, gloomy and frankly not very good. Nevertheless I thoroughly enjoyed watching these engaging birds. Wonderful. While I was there a male mallard came along not twenty feet away and started feeding underwater. Mad!

I'm hopeless at most things (including birds), become dyslexic and type all sorts of nonsense, so if you do see any errors or mistakes, please do advise.

On the way out of Bowland, the sun had set and the grouse were just settling down for the evening and there was quite a lot of activity (where's my twelve bore?), I managed to catch one male and then surprised myself by capturing two males together. I do need to practice my Grouse call!

What I think is a Green-Veined White pigged off a male Orange Tip by not disappearing when 'attacked'; an early start at Newton Marsh was quiet apart from the regulars, except 32 Whimbrel that didn't hang around too long unfortunately.

As for the Oystercatchers, again I don't know what it is about these birds – were they a Friday afternoon job, something go wrong in the planning or somebody having a 'larf? When you look at them, they do look 'odd' but great.

Dipper in shadow

Male Mallard feeding

male Red Grouse

two male Red Grouse

Green Veined White

Lapwing

Redshank

Shelduck

Whimbrel

Oystercatchers

One of those weeks or a Pantomime?

Yes folks it is the middle of June and if you've found the sunshine let me know (or Katrina and the Waves... that's 28 years old I hear! STREWTH!). Not quite there with these photos but interesting perhaps and a bit of a Pantomine...

Juvenile Shelduck

Redshank

Snap... another Redshank

Coot, finally throwing out the kids

Male Shoveler

Hilda Ogden or Oystercatchers

He's behind you...

'Sleepless in Newton', so why not make the most of it... the juvenile Shelduck is just a big kid growing up, the Redshank are being busy in whatever they do, the Coot are getting stroppy again, the Shoveler I Iove because of their fidelity, shyness and the gentle way they go about their own business annoying no-one, the Oystercatchers was nearly 'the three ducks on the wall' and the Whitethroat a gentle reminder... keep your eyes open... sometimes, just like the Pantomome Dame, they are behind you.  (Meg Ryan didn't turn up, but she's a nutter too, we would get on well together... not!... although I have been up the Empire State building... then again, at that time I was Archibald Alexander Leach... film fans will know what I'm on about! Otherwise, don't woryy about it.).

Newton Marsh – Grey and 'orrible

weird or what – juvenile Coots 

Shoveler, male female and fence wire, as always in the way

Oystercatchers, note hoppalong on the left

Male Garganey, never comes anywhere near

Oystercatcher and Shelduck

Juvenile Shelduck

Male Garganey

Male Garganey and Shoveler for size comparison

Oystercatcher and male Garganey for size comparison

Broken leg!

As above, severely broken leg

A number of visits to Newton Marsh and not much to report, enough said in the photos and captions probably.

Overlooked and a Peacock

I have been meaning to upload some 'common' birds for sometime, the ones all around us that we so readily overlook, so here is a male chaffinch and three variations on the theme of a greenfinch. Over at Newton Marsh the Buzzard was still doing its thing, a male Reed Bunting checking it's territory while the count of Shelduck had increased to 68.

Male Chaffinch

I think this may be a young female Greenfinch

I think this may be a young male Greenfinch

Male Greenfinch

A few of the 68 Shelduck

First Peacock of the season but I have not been looking very hard

Sunny Sundays!

Weekends are not my favourite days of the week for getting out and about but sometimes you just have to make journeys. I thought you, dear reader might like to see the beach at Knott End on a sunny Sunday. While on the way home I clocked these three hares, two were passing through and I'm guessing a male following a female while the one at the back ('said everone attack and it turned into a ballroom blitz') captured my attention. Just as well, a Buzzard appeared out of the hedgerow and flew some twenty yards away from the hare upon a kill  (I don't do metric). Regular readers will have seen my earlier posts about Buzzard and Hare and here again I was witnessing the same scene as the hare ran towards the Buzzard – better the devil you know I assume. Meanwhile back at Newton Marsh I counted 52 Shelduck attracted by the farmer planting his crops and my friendly Buzzard that I have been following for some time was on scene and once again appeared to be feeding on frogs/toads. The last image isn't going to win any photographic prizes does appear to show a frog in its right talon.

Knott End beach, Fleetwood in the distance. I'm saying nowt!

Not a great success & the first

Harrumph, loads of pictures which are all out of focus, but here are a few that are not quite. Must be something I said but on my travels it has ben very quiet, quite a few herons at Lea Gate, while a buzzard circled over Clifton Village. A couple walking the road at Newton Marsh meant there were only a few Wigeon about, three male Shoveler, Mute Swan but the first Godwit I've seen this year down there feeding on the grass edges, the water is simply too deep.

A drive across the Fylde to Knott End was uneventful, while the Pink Footed Geese and 2 Little Egrets at Lane Ends have been well documented elsewhere. That's about it. (images enlarge by double clicking on them)

Shelduck fly-by

Curlew Pilling area

Tree Sparrow, Lea

On t'marsh again Godwit and co

Another early start in the marsh to see if anything was about. Nottalot!

Two Godwits, a pair of Redshank, a male Gadwall, Little Grebe while the Coot were looking after the family, each parent appearing to take two young to feed and look after. Bad tempered at the best of times and territorial Coot can get a bit 'stroppy' and fights frequently break out – with anyone who gets too close. An Oystercatcher looking for worms and in the hedgerow a Linnet and a Whitethroat. Overhead Canada Geese and the every present Shelduck. I included the Godwit on the bank as seeing the bird against the dry mud makes you realise why their plummage is as it is, not always easy to pick out at distance.

Later that day a sedge warbler was giving me the runaround at Carr House Common singing from deep within the reeds and dry grasses. A reed bunting sat up in a tree singing while at Brock Bottom a Nuthatch appeared adjacent to the car park on the feeders.