Wirral

Black redstart, Red Rocks

A bright sunny day was promised so I decided on a day at the seaside. Hoylake was boasting both black redstart and snow buntings yesterday so I headed thataway to see if I could find one or other of them, then see where else I end up.

I left home earlier than usual, hoping to get into Liverpool half an hour earlier. What I hadn't figured on was the train I was getting to Warrington not connecting with anything heading towards Liverpool — it's another of those cases where Northern chops a service into two smaller chunks then making sure there's no through connection. 

From Birchwood Station 

I didn't fancy spending the best part of half an hour sitting at Warrington Station so I got off at Birchwood and watched the fields by the station. Which turned out to be very rewarding: about fifty black-headed gulls came in to feed on the closest fields with a couple of stock doves, a flock of rooks feeding further out. Woodpigeons and carrion crows flew hither and thither and the hedgerows by the platforms were busy with dunnocks, blackbirds and a mixed tit flock. Robins and a mistle thrush sang in the bright sunshine and it was a very agreeable way to wait for a train.

Herring gull, Hoylake

Knots, Hoylake

I arrived at Hoylake and walked straight down The Kings Gap to the beach. The tide was on the ebb and dark lines of roosting waders still marked the high points on the mud banks. Redshanks dunlins and knots were the most numerous, small groups of ringed plovers skittered around the mud, grey plovers lurked at the edges of the crowds, oystercatchers and curlews were already moving out. Small groups of herring gulls loafed near the esplanade, more were flying out to the timeline with a few lesser black-backs. One group of half a dozen herring gulls were dwarfed by three great black-backs. As the herring gulls flew out from the beach black-headed gulls started flying in.

Walking from Hoylake to Red Rocks 

As I started walking across the top of the beach towards Red Rocks linnets, goldfinches and meadow pipits started flying down to the beach from the seaside gardens. The starlings were for staying on the rooftops for a bit longer. I let on to a couple of birdwatchers who were after the black redstart and let them walk ahead so as not to put the jinx on them. 

Snow bunting, Hoylake

Snow bunting, Hoylake

Snow bunting, Hoylake

I hadn't gone far when a cheep from the wall by my shoulder made me stop and look round. Two snow buntings were sat on top of the wall looking at me. They were very close and the sun was directly behind them so I had to walk down the beach a bit to try and photograph them, all the while gesticulating at the other two guys to let them know the buntings were there. Snow buntings are fearless so you can get away with this sort of nonsense with them. Anyway, we all three got a good look at them and once the buntings had decided we'd had our fill they jumped down into the garden to feed on the lawn.

Cormorants, herring gulls and brent geese

The crowds on the offshore rocks off Red Rocks were starting to disperse, flocks of dunlin, knots, redshanks and ringed plovers flying up the estuary, oystercatchers and curlews following the tide out to join the shelducks already dabbling out there, leaving loafing cormorants and grazing brent geese behind.

Hoylake from Red Rocks 

I wasn't sure if I wanted to walk as far as Red Rocks or just get as far as the big muddy patch and retrace my steps with the sun behind me as I walked. I was approaching the muddy bit when I noticed a robin-like bird on the fence by the nursing home. "It'll be a robin," I told myself, not unreasonably. There was something about it that wasn't quite so I tiptoed a bit closer. 

Black redstart, Red Rocks

Black redstart, Red Rocks

Black redstart, Red Rocks

The something that wasn't quite right was that its underparts were the same colour as its upperparts and the tail was stick-thin and a bit long for a robin. I got close enough for a better look and it dived out of sight onto the lawn. It quickly bobbed back up onto the seawall where I identified it properly as a "female type" black redstart (young male black redstarts look like females and some of them never gain the black face and breast of the textbook male). It kept bobbing up and down onto the wall as I walked along trying to get the sunlight to the side of it rather than directly behind. I looked back for the pair of birders but they were already halfway back to Hoylake.

Stonechats, Red Rocks

I didn't fancy walking back to Hoylake — I'd either have to go back through the mud or traipse down Stanley Road — so I headed through the nature reserve and on to West Kirby. The boardwalk seemed to have a pair of stonechats every hundred yards, which was a bit distracting as I was having to keep a close eye on where I was walking as I'd forgotten how dodgy the boardwalk's become. Pairs of water rails squealing in the reedbeds were even more distracting.

Hilbre from Red Rocks Nature Reserve 

Looking out into the estuary small flocks of dunlin and ringed plovers flew upstream, a little egret flew into the long grass in the marsh and redshanks foraged on the mud in the marsh. Further out the brent geese were spreading out across the estuary as they grazed upon the sea grass.

Great Egret, Red Rocks

A sense of relief passed over me as I reached Terra Firma and another pair of stonechats. Looking back out of the estuary I was surprised to see a great white egret at the edge of the marsh. (There's no good reason why one wouldn't be here, they breed a few miles upriver.)

Dee Estuary 

Black-headed gulls and turnstones, West Kirby

I decided on a late lunch by the marine lake at West Kirby. The tide was well out now and there were loads of waders on the estuary upstream but the pontoon was still standing room only with black-headed gulls, turnstones, redshanks and knots. I was feeling greedy so I double-checked to make sure there weren't any purple sandpipers in there. There weren't.

Black-headed gulls and turnstones, West Kirby

Redshanks and turnstones, West Kirby

Knots, turnstones and redshank, West Kirby

There were a few gulls and a pair of mute swans out on the lake. I looked for the juvenile great Northern diver and found it very easily: the lake was like a mill pond and the diver was dead in the middle of it. 

I looked at the time, remembered it was late November and decided against moving on to another site. It had been a good walk in excellent weather and some excellent birdwatching. A seaside walk with snow buntings in it is always special and the black redstart was a cherry on the cake.

West Kirby Marine Lake