John Barber

Only ever having had one poor view of a Lapland Bunting before, on the Gt Orme, so it was a thrill to have super views of the Leasowe bird earlier this morning.
Others will have the photographs, l was just delighted to have been there !

Heavy rain early this morning at Woolston Eyes Nature Reserve later gave way to bright sunshine and a super view of the Yellow-browed Warber not far the John Morgan hide on no.3 bed. Also large numbers of other birds present amongst the thick vegetation.

A flying visit to Spurn yesterday for the Black-faced Bunting. A 40 minute walk down past the breach not for the faint hearted ! A few brief views, made tricky by the jostling crowd restricted to the width of the narrow single lane road. Not the best, but a new uk tick !

A leisurely trip to Llanfairfechan turned into something slightly more focused when news of the still present White-rumped Sandpiper at Malltraeth came through early morning.
Not showing on arrival but 75 minutes later, magically reappeared on Cob Pool before flying to the beach

No news ?

A smashing day over at Welwick and Spurn yesterday. Six Glossy Ibis and lots of raptors at Welwick; the Red-necked Phalarope at Beacon Ponds; And a Cory's Shearwater from the sea watching hut at the Warren with a supporting cast of several Arctic Terns.

I've tried just about everything and nothing seems to work very well. In the end l gave up and learnt the best position to quickly hold the phone to the eyepiece for reasonable results. Having said that, some people seem to master adaptors very well.

A trip to Wykeham this morning to see the Ortolan Bunting turned out to be anything but easy, the bird being elusive to say the least !
Luckily l chose the right place to stand to see the bird on the ground shortly after arrival at 8.30. Later, others had occasional glimpses.

Sparrow. Patrington.

A very early start this morning for the Song Sparrow at Flamborough proved fruitless and particularly frustrating as l could have - and should have, gone for the bird yesterday afternoon. Plenty of other birds in the gully but not the star of the show. Lovely day though.

Great blog post. I was out fishing near Leigh at 5am and didn't know about the bird until after 9am. Packed up early and collected Dave Spencer in Woolston late morning for a quick drive down the M56. Only my second uk WS, the first was at Porthgwarra 10 years ago.

Much better photos of the Woodchat Shrike at Daresbury taken by Dave Spencer.

Ashamed to put this on but l was concentrating on the pylon really 😄
Woodchat Shrike showing well. Daresbury, Cheshire at lunchtime.

Great video.

Visited the lovely Kiftsgate Court gardens at Chipping Campden in Gloucestershire yesterday. Amazed to see so many Ravens enjoying the strong breeze and tumbling for fun from tall pines on the edge of the escarpment facing the Malvern Hills.

Mute Swan

Rebuilt hide opens at Leighton Moss The oldest hide at Leighton Moss RSPB in Lancashire has been rebuilt with improved accessibility and expanded views, offering visitors a better chance to spot iconic species such as Western Marsh Harrier and Eurasian Bittern. The hide has been opened to the public.

The oldest hide at the RSPB's famous Leighton Moss reserve has been rebuilt – and is now open to the public:

Very impressive and good to hear.

How's this for unusual.
A pair of Albino or Albinistic (?) Coot chicks photographed yesterday morning by a friend while fishing on a pool near Leigh in Lancs.

Having an eventful time here in Cheshire at the moment. Our latest continental visitor is a Hoopoe at Newchurch Common, not far from Winsford. Affording super views and continually singing, what more could you ask for on a lovely Spring day amongst the leafy lanes.

Ok

Where are you ?

So it was all a (non) wild Kite chase 🙄

A lamentable late morning try for the Black Kite reported at Lindow Common, Wilmslow. Used to fish there as a teenager back in 60's but haven't really been back since. I was pleasantly surprised how lovely the area still is. Must try to get back soon.

Think Dave Hughston and l bumped into you this morning and you showed us the photo.
Only seen one BK and that was at the raptor view point Wykeham Forest when looking for Honey Buzzard. Pure luck.

Photographs taken by Dave Spencer Monday evening of the Woolston Golden Oriole.
Dave spent most of the day, from early morning to 6pm, searching for a view of this bird, since briefly heard around 8am from a dense wooded area near no.4 bed.

UK ✅️ No. 408

Thrilled to finally see a Golden Oriole in the UK after fifteen years of near misses from Cornwall to Flamborough. This one kindly landed 5 miles from home at Woolston Eyes, Warrington and was found by Dave Spencer. Took three visits to see it though. Photo by Dan Owen.

Fortunate l was out fishing early this morning otherwise l might have been on my way to Flamborough for the Alpine Accentor ! Found by Brett Richards but disappeared soon afterwards and not seen again.

Three Common Tern, one diving for fish,at Blundells Fishery, Prospect Lane, Rixton, Warrington this morning. Presumed to include the pair that frequent the nearby M/cr Ship Canal. They were better anglers than me 😄