Bird Watching Lancashire

I headed to the Point this morning for first light and was joined by Ian. We had three oktas cloud cover and a 25 mph west-northwesterly wind. Unlike the other day when there was too much southerly, today there was too much northerly!We didn't expect much because of the wind direction, and as such we weren't disappointed, but the morning did have some interest. One of the most interesting/unusual sightings was that of five Little Egrets heading west out to sea and flying between the wave troughs. I have said it several times on here before that being a birder of a certain generation I always delight in seeing Little Egrets, but when they are heading west out to see it is quite spectacular. Where were they going? That is a good question, but as there are so many breeding in the UK now they are probably establishing migratory patterns from br...

I sort had this morning free so I took myself off to the Point to do some seawatching and joined Ian who said to me as I walked up to the tower, "you may as well go home mate it's awful"! Not what I wanted to here, but not surprising either as the wind was dues south without a hint of any west in it. At the Point the best direction is anywhere between southwesterly and westerly.Funnily enough, even though I was hoping for a bit of seawatching, because the wind was fairly strong, but not very strong, and because of the southerly direction there was a bit of vis. Three Grey Wagtails and a handful of Meadow Pipits and Swallows headed south into wind.The sea was quiet also, with the most numerous species recorded being the 86 Common Scoters that headed west and the scarcest a male Velvet Scoter that drifted slowly out and west on the falling ti...

Life, namely work, and the weather has been getting in the way of my birding of late and it's Autumn!!! And I haven't posted since 8th September, so really all I want to do with this post is to let you know dear reader that I am still here and very frustrated!Before I was self-employed I used to always take the last week in September and the first week in October off as annual leave and go birding every day. I can't do this now, because if I am doing a series of wintering bird surveys at a site for example, and the weather is fit to get some surveys in, then I have to do the surveys and there goes my day or days off! I'm not after a sympathy vote as there are far more worse ways to earn a crust, but I am just offering this up as an explanation for my 'radio silence'. That in its self rings a bell, and I think I have offered that as an expla...