Short-eared Owl

I spent yesterday on the Dee Estuary visiting a couple of my favourite locations.
Starting the day at Parkgate hoping to see Short-eared Owls hunting, I was greeted on arrival by 3 Owls, but unfortunately they were at a distance and in poor light.

Next I spent 4 hours or so at Burton Mere RSPB trying to capture Bearded Tits.
Again I saw the birds but they didn't really show at the front of the reed beds, preferring to stay tantalizingly a few feet inwards.

The highlight of the day at Burton was the first ever recorded sighting of a White Stork on the reserve and the buzz around the place was electric!
I saw the bird from a great distance on two occasions and on the second it was being mobbed by around 20+ Gulls.
I did get a few record shots, but even at a 100% crop the Stork is tiny in the frame so I won't bother sharing.
Apparently the White Stork was sighted again on site, but of course its anyone's guess to how long it hangs around.

Finally after the excitement of Burton Mere, I returned to Parkgate in hope of another crack at the Short-eared Owls.
By this time it was around 3pm and after an half hour wait a Owl arrived on the scene.

The Shorty hunted along the marsh for around 45 minutes, covering a great deal of ground in a characteristic figure-of-eight pattern, with just a couple of resting periods in-between flights.
In total the bird made four flybys pass my position near the Boat House...A great end to a very memorable day.

Shag

Juvenile Shag that I saw on West Kirby Marine Lake a couple of winters back.
I just had to remind myself after Sunday's disappointing trip, that there are more often than not some very nice birds to see on the lake.

The End Of Summer

As much as I love the spring and summer months, there is always a part of me that yearns for the colder months of autumn and winter because of the rich bounty of wildlife that they bring.

Although there are many joys to behold in the warmer months with new life and migrant birds a plenty, the business time of the year for my photography has always been the period from late September to May and I'm starting to get a buzz of anticipation already.

I spend a great deal of time in the winter visiting coastal locations and one of my favourite areas is the Wirral and Dee Estuary.
For me, there is no better time to spot birds in this part of the world than the colder months, so I thought I'd share with you a taster of some of the areas birdlife with a few shots taken last winter...

Redshank

Turnstone

Shag

The Wirral

A bit of location hopping on the Wirral side of the Dee Estuary this morning...

First stop was Burton Marsh and apart from the presence of 5 very distant Little Egret, the site proved unusually disappointing.

Next it was one of my favourite places and an often overlooked gem...West Kirby Marine Lake.

I arrived as planned at high tide and despite a low bird count and a very choppy sea which threatened to engulf the path that circles the lake, I managed to get close views of Redshank, Dunlin and a single camera shy Turnstone!

The highlight of the day was the drive back towards Parkgate, where I got a real treat, with a very close view of a Red Kite flying along the side of Telegraph Road just north of Heswall.

Parkgate itself was very quiet apart from a further 4 Little Egret and I was disappointed to learn I'd missed the Spoonbill yet again!

Finally it was back to Burton, but this time Inner Marsh Farm.

Hen Harrier and Ruff were just visible at the far reaches of the marsh, with Shelduck and Teal a lot nearer to the hide.

I couldn't resist a shot of this cheeky Grey Squirrel...

The most pleasing event at Inner Marsh was the sound of a very early Cuckoo calling from the woods close to the car park...Although I couldn't see the bird, I was more than happy to hear it because it's the first I've heard in several years!

Spring is here!