Well hello everyone. It's nice to be back and thanks for the many thousands of letters and emails asking when the next blog would be done. To be honest this spring I've found birding a little bit difficult and I haven't really seen much. I've been out every sodding weekend trying to see birds but this spring has so far been like flogging a dead horse. Just too many unproductive weekends.
Take the recent WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW at Woolston Eyes. We were heading to North Wales when news broke and so we carried on up the M6 and popped in. We only just missed a sighting but we stood around waiting and watching. Then a young lad turned up and found it. He shouted out mumbled directions and someone else then took over with detailed directions to one bird moving up through the tree. We all spotted this bird, and pointed out it was a male Blackcap. And that was it. The twitch faded and we left. Headed home having seen nothing. Here's one I saw earlier.
White-crowned Sparrow at Cley. January 2008
So what actually did I see in April? Well there was a Spoonbill in Shropshire, a self found Black-necked Grebe at Branston and a fabulous full summer plumaged Black-throated Diver were the highlights.
Black-necked Grebe at Branston GP 9th April 2016
S/pl Black-throated Diver at Blithfield 10th April 2016
And so to May. The first bank holiday weekend was limp. Then on Friday 6th, the Audenshaw KENTISH PLOVER mysteriously reappeared. PJ offered me a lift and off we tootled on a Friday afternoon up to Manchester. The journey up wasn't too bad to be honest and we even had the thrill of climbing through a fence to get into the permit holders only reservoirs. This was more like it. A bit of excitement and a Manchester tick to boot. We walked past the adult s/pl Little Stint and carried on round past No1, then past No2 and along to No3. Well actually someone pointed where the Kentish Plover was on the far bank. And when we arrived it was showing a real treat. An excellent addition to my Manchester list.
