As I was going directly to Banks I took a slightly different route than my normal one through Southport and as I neared Rufford on the A59 I found a field full of Whooper Swans - a great candidate for some Bewick searching. Unfortunately after three passes in front of the field I couldn't find anywhere to stop and so I had park on the verge just off the road which is something I don't normally do.
A quick count revealed that there were at least 350 Whoopers in this field with a mixture of adults and juveniles. I was soon getting a few strange looks from a couple working in their garden and so I walked over to explain what I was doing. They were completely OK about it and where I had parked, but I didn't feel comfortable getting out my scope to scan for Bewick's, so I moved on after about 10 minutes.
My next stop was to see the famous Banksy, a Little Owl who lives on Gravel Lane. A ping on my phone had told me he was out sitting on top of his barn roof in the usual place, and indeed his missus had been there as well. When I arrived there was only bird present and fortunately no-one else around. So I took up prime position for once here and managed some shots from inside the car.
And so on to the Waxwings which had been reported in the trees on the central reservation along the A565 Southport New Road. There was a convenient lay-by to stop in and I soon found the birds as two other birders were already there looking at them. The first two birders left and I was joined by Les Brown for a while. After a few shots on one side of the carriageway, I decided to move to the other side because the berries they were feeding on were more easily seen there.
Over here I was joined by another birder and we had a nice chat whilst waiting for the birds to drop down from their high perches to the hawthorn berries which were lower down.
There has been a good influx or irruption of Waxwings in the UK this year and people don't half like to moan about people getting to close them, particularly to take photographs. Here there was a natural limit to how close you could get - the A565! The cars and lorries were nosily whizzing down here a tremendous speed and the Waxwings were not all bothered, as indeed they aren't in every other place I have been to see them. People just like to moan, it seems.
The light wasn't great and the berries not particularly attractive or plentiful, so I moved on along Marsh Road to Hundred End where the Whoopers often congregate. Sure enough here they were, and for a very short while some were close to the road. I stopped the car, rolled down the window and started scanning them with my bins. The moment I did this the birds at the front turned to walk away and soon they were all walking away before taking flight to the furthermost field they could find - ah well, I'll have to look for Bewick's on another day. I did come across this rather bedraggled looking Kestrel as I left Banks on the way to Marshside RSPB.
After a quick butty break on Marine Drive where I only really saw Lapwings, Wigeon, Teal and a single Grey Heron, I set off for Sandgrounder's Hide.
At first there was absolutely nothing in front of the hide, but a very nice Pintail pair did approach before turning back. It's not often that you see them out of the water.
I moved on to Marshside Road and then Hesketh Road where there were a good number of ducks and some waders but nothing unusual that I could see.
So I had a very pleasant afternoon out to blow away the cobwebs after coming back from Scotland.
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