UKC

Saw a cracking male stonechat on the morning dog walk. Hopefully it’ll hang around all winter. Few skeins of pink feet flying right over our house. I can see thousands of these in West Lancs, but always specially to hear their sweet honk and then spot them. Lots of chiffchaffs in the hedgerows - almost small groups with usual tit species. And yellowhammer and reed buntings forming groups, with lots of linnet and goldfinch. Oh, saw three roe deer this morning, and have been watching brown hares on regular basis. 
Phone photo (using cheapo magnifier) spider 

Anyone else?  

I’ve not been out looking for any wildlife for many weeks sad to say. Hearing geese flying high overhead sometimes so they are on migration through here.

Sunday mt biking though I paused to watch 4 buzzards flying together in strong winds and in the same area saw five kestrels were out hunting. Fascinating to watch them, but no photos. Must be plentiful prey in the area to support those nine birds living there or in the immediate surrounds.

On Sunday, I watched on tv Hamza Yassin’s program in the evening which was on birds of prey coincidentally. https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001qxgn/hamza-strictly-birds-of-prey , for anyone interested it’s worth a watch - covers different parts of the UK.

Another wildlife program on, on Sunday, in Scotland at least, Scotland - The New Wild had its second episode. Should be on iplayer for all and worth a watch for those with an interest in wildlife https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001qzz3/scotland-the-new-wild-series... .

A spider photo from earlier in the month. Huge legs approx 10 cm across compared with the small body size.

Did you catch wind of the numbers of extremely rare birds that dropped onto the west coast last week?  Twitchers going crazy, rare American warblers especially. Think the guardian even had an article. Quite an event. This weeks storm may also throw something up. 

No, but I was browsing bird guides today catching up a bit and there are a lot of rare and other migrants in Shetland apparently.

All seen today alone ……

Warblers - Artic, Blackburnian, Lanceolated, Citrine, and Yellow-brown (only ever heard of last one!)

Red-breasted Flycatcher, Red-backed Shrike, Red-tailed Shrike, Pallid Harrier, American Golden Plover, Pectorial Sandpiper, Snow Bunting, Bluethroat, and, one I find amusing given the lack of trees in Shetland, a Greater Spotted Woodpecker.

Best I can see in my garden today is wood and feral pigeons, house sparrows and magpies!!

Amazing stuff.

Magnolia, Canada and Bay Breasted warblers and some rare flycatcher, all in Pembroke on same day last week (I think).  
More local to me, American Wigeon and The American Golden Plover looks like it’s been re-spotted 

Found the article:

https://amp.theguardian.com/environment/2023/sep/25/canada-warbler-magnolia...

Went to Marshside last Friday - hmm - rather windy and had to take shelter in a rather inventive manner for a couple of the heavy showers - end result being nothing uncommon seen - although there were still some nice views of commoner stuff and a cracking hare that allowed me to get quite close before eventually running off. Still lots of Swallows, House Martins and Sand Martins about.

I did see a harrier before I even got out of the car - this is the second time this has happened here - but this time it wasn't obviously a male Hen Harrier and it was too far away to be able to tell whether it was a female Hen Harrier (my #1 suspicion from the pale brown colouring but couldn't see if it had a white rump or not) or a Marsh Harrier.

On Sunday I went orienteering over towards Harrogate - several Kite hovering on the wind and one just behind the "car park" field that landed for a minute or two on the ridge behind - never get tired of seeing them.

Today at lunchtime I watched a Kingfisher catch something in the Irwell before giving it a lot of whacks and then gulp, gone.

Thanks, interesting read. A new term in the article, uber-rare!

V common species but an unusual individual - I saw a white cormorant last week.  Leucistic presumably.  Blurry pic attached..

Give us a nudge next time you’re going and I can give some tips on what’s been spotted (I’m on a WhatsApp group). Live it round there, but it is a great expanse of land to spot stuff. Tundra Bean, Pae bellies Brent had been spotted there, and a garganey  

That’s a great thing to see during a lunch break! I paid my first visit to Elton early Sunday. Very misty, but a really nice place. The phalarope had moved on. As did I , to Pennington, where a kingfisher nearly flew into me !!

Wow!  Very unusual. 

Will probably be a little while - too many weekends away coming up 😁, etc.

Knew about the Brent (*) - but didn't see it, would like to see a Bean Goose again - saw one (shown one really) there in April 2022 but I'd like a more definitive view, and to spot one myself I'd have to be giving all the grey geese a damn good scanning - and even then I'd likely miss it - like rare gulls, you need to be really tuned into the nuances when scanning flocks.

Not early enough and not yet high enough water level to be falling over Pintails - I remember the first time I went there a couple of years ago and there were loads close enough to the road to see clearly whilst just driving to the car park.

Didn't manage to get there to see that - Elton has a phenomenal tick list, but it's because there's one or two regulars who go there most days so virtually nothing gets missed - but it does make you wonder how much is missed elsewhere at unpopular sites.

(*) Brent (dark bellied) was a new tick for me in spring last year, Benllech Anglesey, went to the cafe overlooking the beach (wife insists), sat down outside, what are those 20 or so dark ducks, waddling around in easy view - flock of Brent - right place, right time - but they flew off before I could sort out scope and digiscope.

Interesting what you say about ‘what goes un-missed.’  Pennington had the reputation as the best birding site in Greater Manc, yet Wigan Flashes has a larger tick list.  Was chatting to a Wigan Flashes regular about this and he said ‘it’s not that birds aren’t  spotted, it’s that they don’t get reported.’ And news out this week was ‘Marsh Harriers bred at Wigan Flashes.’ Great news, and a good, well kept secret. 

Heard about the Marsh Harrier breeding success a week or two ago - great news.