Southport

Snow bunting

I'd been ignoring the shouting in my ear and the paw in my face for what seemed like many lifetimes and when I finally properly woke up I was convinced I'd slept through to lunchtime. I hadn't, so I got the early train into town to get a new monthly travel card and the train to Southport. 

The snow bunting was back on the pleasure beach at Southport. I don't know whether it, or its counterpart at Wallasey, is the same bird every Winter but I like to think so. I dipped repeatedly last Winter so I thought I'd renew my acquaintance. I could also have a look for twites on the nearby salt marsh while I was at it. After that, depending on the visibility on a grey and misty day, I'd either bob on to Crossens or head back for a nosey at Martin Mere.

A grey wagtail flitting about the roof of Deansgate Station I took to be a good omen. Similarly the field near Hoscar that was blanketed with a couple of hundred pink-footed geese, a hundred or so woodpigeons, scores of rooks and jackdaws but still had a bit of room left for a dozen black-headed gulls. There were another hundred or so pink-footed geese in a field near Woodmoss Lane just after Bescar Lane Station. All good omens.

Black-headed gull
Some birds travel thousands of miles. This gull was ringed at Southport Marine Lake six years ago and has only ever been seen here.

Arriving at Southport I walked down to the marine lake which, by its lights, was rather quiet: a herd of mute swans cruised by the Venetian Bridge; a few coots, mallards and black-headed gulls; a handful of herring gulls and a crowd of pigeons. Carrion crows and a couple of oystercatchers fed on the grass just beyond.

Herring gull

Southport pier 

As I walked down onto the Pleasure Beach the sun poked through the clouds a couple of times, more to tease than anything much else. The tide was lowish and the wet beach was dotted with redshanks, shelducks dabbled with the little egrets at the salt marsh edges and a small group of dunlins scrabbled about between redshanks.

Redshank 

I'd dropped down to the beach but decided to get back on the revetment. I could see all the beach from there and it would have been just my luck for the snow bunting to be fossicking about in the storm debris littering the tops. As it happens, the bunting was on the beach, almost perfectly camouflaged against the shell debris. A few people spotted that I'd spotted it; luckily by the time they came over it had moved into a patch of open sand by a square puddle so I could give coherent directions for seeing it. I do like snow buntings, they're bonny birds.

Snow bunting
First sight of it.

Snow bunting 

Snow bunting 

Snow bunting 

Passing under the pier I thought I'd try to find any twites in the salt marsh by Marine Drive. Plenty of redshanks, shelducks and starlings, a couple of skylarks… Technically I suppose I didn't see any twites in the salt marsh. A couple flew up and briefly  joined the starlings perched on the telephone lines by The Guelder Rose. Another one flew by a hundred yards further down.

Carrion crow 

I crossed the road and tried my luck by the sailing club. When the twites disappear into the salt marsh they do a proper vanishing act, if any are about the sailing club they show very well. But not today. There were plenty of pied wagtails and black-headed gulls but no twites. Out on the lake there were more mute swans and coots, a dozen dabchicks bobbed about and half a dozen gadwall were getting very amorous. 

I had a walk round the lake. Small charms of goldfinches posed picturesquely as they fed on the seedheads, right up to the moment the camera got them in focus. A young male stonechat followed their example. For a change, and in the light of the recent visit to Hoylake, I took the path going through the stand of sea buckthorn bushes. It provided plenty of cover for the passage migrant (and also felt significantly warmer than the open country) but all I could find were goldfinches, wrens, greenfinches and chaffinches, which I really shouldn't sniff at, I miss them when they're not around.

Goldfinch 

Goldfinch 

Goldfinches

It was apparent that I wasn't up for a visit to either Crossens or Martin Mere. The steep hill climb and descent followed by a long and cramped train journey home the other day wasn't enjoyed by my knee. Yesterday's walk got a lot of the movement back and took a lot of the ache out but today I seemed to be walking more ache in, it might be the change in the weather. 

Hesketh Park 

I contented myself with a walk down to Hesketh Park where the scaup that was on the pool earlier in the week hadn't made a reappearance. There was no shortage of tufted ducks, though, including a couple of females with white blazes about their beaks which made me look twice. They were undeniably tufted ducks once they stuck their heads in their back feathers for a doze. 

Tufted ducks 

Tufted ducks 

Tufted ducks and black-headed gulls
Tufties are not big ducks.

Tufted ducks 

There was a wide variety in the first-Winter drakes ranging from almost indistinguishable from the females save for the greater contrast between the dark back and wings and the underside, through various shades of dark browns and sandy greys to individuals that looked like adult drakes but with grey sides. I wasn't finding myself a scaup so I thought I'd better double-check all the tufties just in case there was a ring-necked duck in the crowd. There wasn't but if you don't look you don't find. A grey wagtail feeding by the path was a nice consolation prize.

Grey wagtail 

Calling it a day I walked back to the station. I didn't feel so bad about being so lazy when I realised I'd done four and a half miles' worth of dawdling about and somehow clocked up fifty-two species of birds for the day. On the way home I added a grey heron, a pair of teal and a flock of stock doves to the tally.