Today I made a short visit to the National Nature Reserve of Fenn's, Whixall at Bettisfield Mosses. I did not plod around the vastness of the open area but visited the new bird hide overlooking Charles Sinker Fields (you need a code to enter the hide). The hide overlooks a small area of open water with a much larger area of open water beyond. At this time of year it is mainly about ducks. Here are a few images.
A duck Eurasian Wigeon.
And a drake. On the very similar New World American Wigeon the yellow crown stripe is off-white giving the species the colloquial name of 'bald-pate'.
Two drake Common Teal in the foreground, one showing the green speculum in his wing as he flaps after bathing. On the bank behind stands a drake Eurasian Wigeon.
And now the other wing catches what little light there was.
A duck Common Teal in the foreground with a drake behind her and the same drake Eurasian Wigeon.
A smart drake Common Teal.
He goes looking for food underwater. These are mainly vegetation feeders.
Note the way the green on the side of the head ends in small tuft.
Here he is with his mate in the foreground.
There was very little apart from ducks. This lone Lapwing was the exception. There were several hundred Lapwing on a bund in the distant main water-body but this one chose to come and have its picture taken.
Think how much better those greens and purples would have looked had there been some sun.
The pale fringed to the feathers will soon wear away leaving it looking even smarter.
Today there was a forecast high Spring tide so I made another visit to the Wirral to see, primarily waders, forced off the Dee Estuary by high water.
A quick visit to RSPB Burton Mere to hear about the latest sighting produced a few worthwhile images. One of the area's winter specialities is flocks of Pink-footed Geese. Smaller than Canada Geese with dark heads and necks, a small dark bill and pale forewing. They have very distinctive calls.
Here in front of the Lapwings are a group of four Dunlin, one showing some dark on the belly that they acquire in the breeding season. The other waders are Redshanks. We will see both Dunlin and Redshank later.
On the left here is the only Black-tailed Godwit of the trip – these are never seen at the mouth of the Estuary where the similar Bar-tailed Godwit is more common. The two-tone, long and straight bill identifies it.
No mistaking a regal Curlew.
Moving quickly on to Parkgate where the highest tides cover the whole marsh and some spectacular bird-watching can be had. Sadly the published height figure was depressed by the high pressure and was further reduced by the albeit light easterly wind preventing any tidal surge. So these Pink-footed Geese were some of the rather few birds seen.
A head-on view of a Curlew.
Distantly over the marsh a few Marsh Harriers were looking to pounce on mice or voles escaping from the deeper channels being inundated by the incoming tide. I could not make out what this individual was trailing from one of its legs.
This is a rather closer Marsh Harrier. It can be identified as an adult male by the pale grey area in the upper wing.
A different adult Marsh Harrier. Note the small feather in the middle of the wing leading edge. This is called the alula. It helps birds to manoeuvre at very low speed. Aircraft have leading-edge slats on their wings for similar reasons.
The upper wing pattern is seen rather better in a head-down view as it scans for play.
The head is visible here.
A glimpse of the under wing.
Last photo of him. Just about the closest view I have had here.
There are always plenty of egrets around. Here is a Great White Egret with its distinctive yellow bill.
It was off to Hoylake to see 'Wirral's Wonderful Waders', as the diorama calls the views possible. Just a small selection of the massed ranks. Oystercatchers in front of Dunlin; with Knots and Grey Plover at the back. We will see some of these more closely later.
Count them! The local expert estimated 22500 Dunlin, 13000 Knots and 500 Grey Plover. He did not count the hundreds of Oystercatchers or the smaller number of Sanderlings and Ringed Plovers.
Spectacular. Mainly Dunlin apparently.
What my doctor calls my 'benign essential tremor' does not make this short video easy to watch. I was also a bit excited with the spectacle.
This swirling mass probably comprises Knots.
Another short clip. Note the gulls in the foreground: mainly Common Gulls.
A group of Oystercatchers disperse over feeding Dunlin.
A single Oystercatcher flies out...
.. and back! Note the minimal clearance between the wing-tip and the water. Note also how the white wing bar actually fades away rather than stopping short of the tip. White on the chin of this bird indicates it is a first winter bird.
Behind these Oystercatchers are Grey Plover which are rather stocky waders. Their back feathers are pale-edged giving them a mottled appearance.
All the 21 Ringed Plovers were gathered together. Here are seven of them.
A small group of Dunlin disperse. Some individuals show slightly droop-tipped bills. All show a dark line down centre of the white tail.
Two fly-by.
And now just one in flight...
..coming in to touch down...
...feet down.
In reflective mood.
Another flies in.
A view of the upper wing pattern of this species.
A size comparison between a Dunlin and a Redshank.
Another size comparison. Three Dunlin, two Redshank with a Knot – the medium-sized wader with the greenish legs.
A Knot comes in to touch down.
A Redshank flies by. This one with a rather muddy bill.
This view shows the white area in the wing and up the back with the barring on the tail.
Not all waders. Here a Little Egret with a dark bill and yellow feet.
An immature Herring Gull. Note the fresh inner primaries indicating this is a second winter bird moulting in to third summer plumage.
