Merseyside bumper bundle

Redshanks, turnstones, black-headed gull and purple sandpiper

I thought I'd have one last nibble at the year list so I headed for New Brighton to see if I could find my first purple sandpiper of the year. The train run to Liverpool was nicely uneventful and for once I managed to just catch the New Brighton train at Lime Street (I usually miss it by a whisker).

Wallasey Beach 

I got off at Wallasey Rose Grove and walked down to the lifeboat station. It was a grey day and not for the first time in the past week I had to put my cap in my pocket. I don't have enough hair to hold it in place when the wind catches it, I'll have to buy some toupee tape.

Wallasey Beach 

It was lunchtime and low tide so the birds were mostly far out on the beach well away from frisky dogs and their frisky owners. Large flocks of herring gulls loafed on sandbanks while almost as large flocks of oystercatchers worked the muddy sand. I walked down to the car park in the dunes, just in case any pipits or buntings were about. Sadly not.

Carrion crows

Herring gulls 

Herring gulls 

Herring gulls 

Herring gulls 

I walked back a way along the beach. I'd passed one of the breakwaters when a couple of redshanks caught my eye. I had a wander over that way to see if anything was on the breakwater and was rewarded with a dozen turnstones skittering about on the concrete breakers. As I wandered back to the seawall a couple of pied wagtails chased each other about the sand and a rock pipit flew onto the wall.

Sand gaper
A few of them at the base of one of the flights of steps had been unearthed from the sand by the tide and a couple of them hadn't yet been got at by gulls or crows. 

Acorn barnacles
This flight of steps is the last safely navigable one on the way into New Brighton. The next is fenced off as unsafe.

Oystercatchers 

Although there had been plenty of black-headed gulls flying about none of them properly settled on the beach until I'd passed the Pierrot statue into New Brighton. The first common gulls of the day turned up here, too.

Cormorant, redshanks, turnstones, purple sandpiper, knot, black-headed gulls and herring gull

Redshanks, turnstones, purple sandpiper, knot and black-headed gull

Redshanks, turnstones, purple sandpiper, knot and black-headed gull

Redshanks, turnstones, purple sandpiper and black-headed gull
The knot had fidgeted its way into the redshanks.

Redshanks, turnstones, purple sandpiper and black-headed gull

Redshanks, turnstones, purple sandpiper and knot
(cropped detail of first photo in this sequence)
The purple sandpiper is centre-right, the knot behind the turnstone to its right.

The tide was noticeably on the turn but it was hours before high tide so I wasn't overly optimistic about what I might find on the pontoons on the marine lake. The first birds I saw on my approach were a bunch of herring gulls and a cormorant. Then I turned the corner and could see the end of the pontoon where a couple of dozen redshanks and a dozen turnstones were already twittering at roost. A few more birds flew in as I walked round past the restaurants and I found a couple of knots in the crowd. I was about to give up when I noticed a lone purple sandpiper asleep amongst the turnstones.

It was still only lunchtime and I was still rankling about not seeing the snow bunting in Southport the other day so I headed over there. I might strike lucky with twite, too, I thought to myself. I got off at Birkdale and walked down to the foreshore, the idea being to walk the length of the path from the salt marsh to the pier, just in case. 

Walking to Southport Pier 

Goldfinches 

Goldfinch 

Grey wagtail 

The tide was still pretty far out so the herring gulls, oystercatchers, curlews and shelducks were distant figures beyond the marsh at first. The path was muddy and treacherous but I reckoned I'd have more chance of seeing the bunting down here than from the roadside if it was about. I succeeded in upsetting woodpigeons, goldfinches, pied wagtails and a grey wagtail that spent three minutes fidgeting about five yards ahead of me. Every so often it would fly ahead and wait for me to catch up, just in case I was disturbing any insects in my progress. Skeins of pink-footed geese passed overhead on their way to the salt marshes North of the pier.

Pink-footed geese 

I breathed a sigh of relief when I joined the little bit of revetment between the slipway and the pier and could tread confidently again. Not too confidently, mind, it wouldn't be the first time I've nearly trodden on a snow bunting. I needn't have worried, I couldn't find it though a couple of meadow pipits and a dunnock jumped out of my way.

Southport Pier 

A large flock of black-headed gulls loafed on the beach South of the pier, an army of redshanks fed on the beach North of the pier. The light was failing though there was still technically quarter of an hour to sunset. Gulls flew out to sea and squadrons of cormorants flew in to roost on the marine lake. I had one last look at the raft of dabchicks fishing on the lake and made my way for the train home.