The RSPB big garden birdwatch

I did my watch yesterday from the same spot as last year. It wouldnt be as accurate if I went out looking in the entire garden area, so just the feeder area was my spot.

6 blue tits (seen at same time, not 1 bird 6 times)
1 great tit
3 robin (still sorting out their territories for 08)
2 dunnock
1 blackbird (m)
1 greenfinch
1 chaffinch
3 redpoll (feeding on the ground in front garden area)

The 8 long tailed tits turned up after I'd done my hour (same as last year).
Other notable absentees were the coal tit pair and the feral pigeons.
The female sparrowhawk took one of the ferals this week, so they seem to be steering clear.
I think the v. windy weather probably contibuted to the poor turnout of birds.


I managed to get a digibinned shot of one of the redpoll in the alder tree. The branches were blowing about in the wind, so the cameras "antishake" function works well.

Meanwhile....back at the ranch......

The weather has been awful this week, so much rain that the River Calder broke its banks, near Whalley. I've only managed to get out for short spells. The female sparrowhawk has been hunting around the garden frequently. It was the male that I filmed killing the collared dove last year.
When Jill and I were walking Treakle yesterday, we flushed a brown bird from the trees in "owl corner". Jill says that this is the bird that she's flushed several times. The first time she reported this to me, we put it down to snipe or even a female pheasant. However now that I've seen it myself (and the fact that it was flushed from a wooded area) I reckon that its a woodcock.
It was only a fleeting glimpse as it flew off, so I havent added it to my UK08 list yet, got to be 100% sure.
I went out today and scanned the ground in front of me with the bins as I walked. Nothing flushed though. Gives me something to target. I'd love a dodgyscope of a hiding woodcock.
The Slav is still on Barrow lodge and is still attracting numbers of twitchers every day.
Also siskin, redpoll, bullfinch and goldcrest around the garden area.

Barrow lodge again

Popped over to the lodge again today to see how the Slav was getting on. Its still there and I thought I'd get some better pics in the slightly better light today.


















The Slav had other ideas though, and dived or moved every time the sun came from behind a cloud. Infuriating and frustrating! Quite a few other local birders out today in the better weather, one I remembered from last April, up Pendle hill, twitching the Dottrel.






































Anyway, I spotted another UK2007 list tick for me in the shape of a common kingfisher, one of my fav British birds.






















































Thats 74 species , so far , this year.

Woohoo! Slavonian grebe on Barrow lodge.

I managed to find a free half hour today....and the Slav grebe stayed! Phew! I'd have hated to miss such a good twitch in my own backyard. I was in Blackpool this morning and planned to stop at Marton mere to see the long eared owls. However, I called Jill to see if the Slav was still there. It was and I changed my plans. Jill had already been round to photograph it, just in case I didnt get the chance.

The first photo with the mallard is Jills, and the rest are mine, taken thru the scope.

Click on pics to enlarge

AAAAAAAAARRRRRRRrrrrrrrrrrrrrgggggggggghhhhhhhhh!!!!!!

My computer has been down since Sunday am. Now I get in from work to find out that theres a SLAV GREBE on MY patch.
Lower barrow lodge, reported for the last 2 days.
I'm busy from first thing tomorrow and dont even know if I'll have time to get round there until middayish.
What if its gone??!!?? Well nothing I can do til daylight eh? Unless.....I go down there with a floodlight. LOL.

Anyway, while the PC was down, I thought Id amuse myself (on such a rainy day) by photographing the birds on the garden feeders.
Amusing when the long tailed tits invaded in numbers, but the great tit and robin got their fill too.

Leighton moss
Jill and I went up to Capernwray dive centre to see if we could get her Suunto dive computer fixed (again! as it broke in Egypt last month). This isnt too much of a prob for me as it gives me an excuse to nip over to nearby Leighton moss for a look.

All paths were flooded, which is great cos it means the hides arent full of pfaffing oldies with flasks or "robin-strokers" getting excited cos theyve managed to spot a gull amongst the coot!!!!


























Wellies on! and Jill had her first go at dodgyscoping! She seemed to find these swans arses amusing.


















Not much to be seen because of the high water, and we were on limited daylight, so we had to be quick between hides.
Some magpie were flitting around the public hide, looking like they were going for a swim!



















A stop at the feeders was exciting as I had no trouble at all in spotting the highlight of the '08 list so far

Marsh tit!!!


















Although it was getting some serious grief off all the other passerines.

Bad house sparrows and greenfinches!







































Also at the feeding area were

Bullfinch (just avoiding a clear shot), Pheasant (Jill made me photograph him cos she liked his little "ears"), Moorhen, Mistle thrush, and a female GS woody.





















































On to the Eric Morcambe hide and the Allen hide

I found little egret, shelduck, blackwits, 1 greenshank, lapwing, redshank and a few dunlin hiding in the flocks......see arrows below.



















making at total of 19 new ticks for the 08 list. Bringing the total this year to 71 species.

Dean clough reservoir

I'm working nightshift this week, so this means I've got some time for birding in the morning, whilst running errands before I sleep in the afternoons.

Weather still terrible, so all the birds must be sheltering somewhere!!!

DC reservoir only yeilded 1 more new '08 list tick, in the shape of Goldeneye. Circa 14 birds including 4 drakes.

























10 or so BH gulls, 2 cormorant, a pair of mallard and a coot also on the water. Very few passerines around, I expected stonechat and brambling here but nothing barring a few tits, a robin and a kestrel.

Had a quick scan of parsonage reservoir....nothing! nada! zilch! where are all the birds??

I stopped quickly at upper barrow lodge on my way to the supermarket for my first Great crested grebe of the year


















but no kingfisher on the fishing pond. :(

Heres the view of Pendle hill from the pond

Shrike at Padiham


Nipped over to Padiham this morn, to twitch the 3rd Lancashire Great Grey Shrike of this winter. Plenty other birders already at the stake-out, and I saw the bird straight away, albeit at a distance.


What a terrible record shot eh? over half a mile away.

















Still, a nice tick for the '08 list
It was hunting small birds in the riverside hedgerow until 2 kestrels came along and chased it off.
A red breasted merganser also flew up river whilst shrike spotting.

Stocks res.

Terrible weather for birding but what the hell. Nipped up to stocks, confident that I'd get over the half century for the year but no! Only 7 more species new for '08.

Heres my updated '08 list


No shorties, hen harriers or great grey shrike on the moorland for me today. I found 3 Sika deer near the road just before the church.

















































Only a few cormorant and coot visible on the island in the blowing gale.

On to the car park feeding station.

























Lots of tits, chaffinch, 5 or 6 jay, 1 GS woody and a marauding grey squirrel.

























A flock of about 10 bullfinch feeding in the brambles up the path to the hide.
I met 2 nice chaps in the new hide, Mike Watson (who works for birdquest) and his mate Mark. Thay said theyd just seen some Brambling at the feeders, but none for me.
Nothing fabulous from the hide.


2 pairs of pintail









































the odd pochard.....

















....mallard,teal, 10 greylag geese & and the funny hybrid thingy that I thought was a scaup.
I somehow managed to miss the goldeneye and little grebe, but no major drama as I'll get them in the next few days, I'm sure.

Back over the moors still with no shortie, HH or GGS but a suicidal stoat on the road (not wearing his white ermine) staring me down until I had to jump on the brakes.

Not the greatest mornings birding.

Well, this blog is just about 1 year old now. This is when it really shows its use. Now I can look to see what I saw at this time of year eg. when did I see the first swallow last year? Also in Blogger we have the search box in the top left. I use this to search for specific species or places. Perfect!
Or, of course, we have the chronological list on the left of this post.

Anyway, I'm determined to thrash my record of 133 species in the uk for 2007. I never visited any good seawatching spots in 2007, thus my list was missing many common seabirds like gannet, puffin, razorbill etc etc

I managed to add moorhen,wigeon and teal to the '08 list on a short stop during the Preston deliveries today.

However I will now keep my yearlist here , on Birdforum. Even though I will probably still post just as often on the BLOG.

A quick walkies for Treakle today in the freezing weather. Managed to spot 3 siskin with a single redpoll, to add to the '08 list. I could hear treecreeper and goldcrest but they continue to evade me.

2008 so far...

In order seen, from garden to Blackburn and back to patch.

I had a look for the Long eared owl reported 2 days ago at the edge of my patch. However, being NY day, there were many loud annoying walkers out on the paths in large groups. I dont know why they bother walking, they are so loud that they must not see anything interesting.

1. Robin
2. Blackbird
3. Great tit
4. Dunnock
5. Coal tit
6. Blue tit
7. Black headed gull
8. Collared dove
9. Carrion crow
10.Starling
11.Magpie
12.Jackdaw
13.Feral pigeon
14.Wood pigeon
15.Kestrel
16.Rook
17.Mallard
18.Coot
19.Grey heron
20.Chaffinch
21.Grey wagtail
22.Wren
23.Goldfinch
24.Greenfinch
25.Nuthatch
26.House sparrow
27.Little owl














28.Dipper















29.Meadow pipit
30.Sparrowhawk
31.Pheasant
32.Redwing
33.Mistle thrush
34.Great spotted woodpecker


Notable patch absentees for first day were -

long tailed tit
bullfinch
song thrush
lapwing
siskin
redpoll
jay
treecreeper
goldcrest

I see these birds most days in the winter, I'm sure they'll be on the list in the next few days.

I've been maintaining my nestboxes too. Cleared branches from front of Kestrel box, fixed roof proofing on little owl box, put up this new robin box (a modified recycled 3 litre soft drink bottle)



















and evicted a grey squirrel from the tawny owl box.