We went to the Wirral again on the 18thfor a high tide of 9.9 metres at 12:30pm. It was a beautiful day and totally still which is rare for Hoylake which is where we started. It must have been the lack of an onshore wind that caused the tide to stay out so much. It did turn past the lifeboat station but there was still plenty of sand left – sand which is rapidly becoming a field as the greenery continues to grow on it. This is a recognised problem and they are dealing with it but it is taking a while for them to sort it out.
We still got a decent range of the usual birds. Lots of Oystercatchers and Dunlin etc but also some Bar-tailed Godwit (a year tick), some Knot and Sanderling and quite a few Curlew. As is usual for this time of year there were a lot of Ringed Plover as well.
We waited until the official high tide time but nothing much new was coming in so we went down to West Kirby Marine Lake where we got Turnstone, Dunlin and Redshank.
Then we continued to Neston Old Quay where we had a toastie and a drink out in the sun, sitting on the edge of the marsh. We got lots of Pink-footed Geese and a Marsh Harrier. It was very pleasant to see that The Harp Inn had had a revamp and now the toilets are actually civilised. The rest of the pub is essentially the same but spruced up a little. Two Curlew Sandpiper were still on the scrape and we managed our first Ruff of the year. It is very odd to be getting some relatively common birds as Ruff and Bar-tailed Godwit as firsts this late in the year – an example of the Covid 19 “new normal”.
A good day out with a nice collection of species
We finished the day off with a quick drop-in at Burton where we got a brief view of one of the ten Cattle Egrets that had been seen recently.
Our first visit to RSPB Burton Mere Wetlands since 10th March was such a pleasure. Just to be outside but not in your own garden reminded you of how much you normally take for granted. It was a beautiful, sunny, day We even managed to see some Curlew Sandpiper and – believe it or not – our first Greenfinch of the year – in September !
It was interesting to see how social distancing was being dealt with. You had to sign in first and give your address and contact number. The reception hide was closed but they were still serving teas and some snacks. The main toilets were closed but the ones down by the fish pond were in use. The only hide that was open was the Bunker hide but we did not use it, preferring to use the new outdoor platform that had been built on a high point behind where the bench is near the barn. This was a great idea and there was both width and depth so that quite a few people could fit in and still be distanced. It was more comfortable to use this that the Bunker Hide where you had to use a face mask.
We managed to pick out a couple of Curlew Sandpiper on the main scrape and some Pink-footed Geese were around. There were still a few Swallows remaining and we got Buzzard and Kestrel
I didn’t feel too much like walking up to Burton Point, my leg being a bit sore still so we headed off to Parkgate where we managed to see five Spoonbill on the Bevyl Road Flash. We also got a Great Egret and a Marsh Harrier.
We then drove down to The Wheatsheaf for lunch but it wasn’t very impressive. It has been taken over again and they have done it up in a really crappy way – there was nothing wrong with the previous décor. They also had a very much reduced menu and the place was pretty much empty which was unusual under the old management. Anyway we had a quick bite to eat and left. We had hoped that we could sit outside because it was such a beautiful, sunny, day but they weren’t serving outside except on the benches out front by the road. We should have gone elsewhere.
Be that as it may, it was great to get out at last and we did manage a couple of good birds.
Bird Sightings Hoylake 18th September 2020
| Species | No |
|---|---|
| Feral Pigeon | 30 |
| Common Wood Pigeon | 2 |
| Eurasian Oystercatcher | 300 |
| Common Ringed Plover | 20 |
| Eurasian Curlew | 30 |
| Bar-tailed Godwit | 8 |
| Red Knot | 10 |
| Sanderling | 30 |
| Dunlin | 300 |
| Black-headed Gull | 40 |
| Herring Gull | 30 |
| Lesser Black-backed Gull | 2 |
| Great Black-backed Gull | 40 |
| Great Cormorant | 30 |
| Carrion Crow | 3 |
| Common Starling | 10 |
| Pied Wagtail | 4 |
Bird Sightings West Kirby Marine Lake 18th September 2020
| Species | No |
|---|---|
| Ruddy Turnstone | 20 |
| Dunlin | 4 |
| Common Redshank | 12 |
Bird Sightings Neston Old Quay 18th September 2020
| Species | No |
|---|---|
| Pink-footed Goose | 50 |
| Little Egret | 1 |
| Eurasian Marsh Harrier | 1 |
Bird Sightings Burton Mere Wetlands 18th September 2020
| Species | No |
|---|---|
| Canada Goose | 40 |
| Northern Shoveler | 14 |
| Eurasian Wigeon | 2 |
| Mallard | 4 |
| Common Teal | 50 |
| Common Moorhen | 2 |
| Common Coot | 2 |
| Northern Lapwing | 20 |
| Ruff | 2 |
| Curlew Sandpiper | 2 |
| Common Redshank | 10 |
| Cattle Egret | 1 |