Leasowe

Wheatear, Kerr's Field

After a good day's rest I thought I'd go over to the Wirral to have a look for passage migrants. I particularly wanted to have a look in Kerr's Field for wheatears and yellow wagtails after missing out last year.

White wagtail, Kerr's Field

Linnet, Kerr's Field

Linnet, Kerr's Field

It was a dead straightforward trip out to Moreton Station, it was a bright sunny day and the breeze was light and fresh. The hedgerows along The Birket were thick with spadgers, goldfinches and greenfinches. There were a couple of blackbirds and pied wagtails in the paddock nearest the houses and a few woodpigeons in the empty paddock in the middle. The "usual" field held at least a dozen wheatears, a few meadow pipits and pied wagtails and a couple of white wagtails. A small flock of linnets skipped around the field margins.

Mistle thrush, Kerr's Field

I wasn't the only birdwatcher about. A chap who had been watching the field started scanning the field on the other side of The Birket and found a redstart hawking from the fence posts. He showed me and a couple of others where to find it and I watched it awhile as it skipped around the fenceposts. It was quite distant so it was only the sun glinting on the red of its tail that gave it away most of the time. The same chap told me he'd seen a Channel wagtail and a tree pipit earlier in the morning. I checked the field again but the only touches of yellow were from dandelions and daffodils. The sudden appearance of a mistle thrush out of one of the dips in the field showed how easy it is to miss small birds when you're scanning a field.

Bath time for goldfinches, The Birket by Lingmere Lane

There had been reports of ring ouzels over by the fishery on Lingmere Lane so I thought I'd try my luck as I've never seen a male one. I wandered down and bumped into a chap who told me precisely where to go and where to look. This is one of the nice things about birdwatching, most people are more than happy to help you find anything good they've seen. I do the same when I can (and did so today), it's enlightened self-interest, share the news and you'll eventually hear something to your advantage. I followed his directions and found two male birds a couple of fields away. Left to my own devices I'd have been looking a field too near. They were hard work, were it not for the white bibs shining brightly in the sunlight I'd scarce have found them.

Spot the ring ouzel!

I walked over to the sea wall. It was high tide so I wasn't expecting to see many waders until I got to the groyne at the halfway point between the lighthouse and the marina at Meols. As it happened, I was over-optimistic: a family was playing on the groyne so the only wader was a redshank that didn't stay long. A few gulls flew over the sea and a lone shelduck flew off towards Hoylake. As the tide ebbed a few more gulls came in and half a dozen curlews landed on one of the emerging sand bars.

Greenfinch, Leasowe Common

I wandered back inland and walked over the common back towards the lighthouse. I was struck by how many greenfinches there were about, and how few chaffinches. 

Leasowe Lighthouse

I got back to Kerr's Field for another look. There were plenty of wheatears still but the pied wagtails had moved to the other paddock and the white wagtails were nowhere to be seen. There were a few more linnets and a flock of starlings had taken over one corner of the field. It took me an embarrassingly long time to realise the snatches of song coming from the scrub in a ditch was a whitethroat.

Wheatear, Kerr's Field

Wheatears, Kerr's Field

Wheatear, Kerr's Field

There were dark clouds over Leasowe Golf Course and it was starting to rain when I got back to the station so I decided not to move on elsewhere for a teatime visit. I'd gone out looking for yellow wagtails and found ring ouzels and a redstart instead.