Ribble Estuary at Fairhaven 7 July 2008.
No. 1 Pit, Brockholes Quarry 8 July 2008.
Bit of local birding over the last couple of days. Remembering last year's Caspian Tern at Fairhaven I thought I'd give the high tide another look there on 7th. Pretty bleak and miserable it was too, and of course there was no rare tern either. Just 3 Sarnies in with the BHG's on the mud, a couple of hundred Oystercatchers, 50+ Curlew and 5 Dunlin in their summer black belly dress. Numbers should build in the next fortnight or so before I leave for my next jaunt abroad hopefully.
Found myself down at Brockholes this lunchtime. Bill Aspin dropped me a text yesterday about a juv' Black-neked Grebe so it was a good excuse to visit the quarry today. Main Pool (above) is looking good for attracting migrants at last and certainly appears the most promising since the Lancs Wildlife Trust took over the property. Hopefully it'll be as productive as when Hanson's Aggregates owned the site a few years back and fulfill its potential to attract wildlife AND wildlife enthusiasts.
Anyway, the Black-necked Grebe was indeed still on No 1 Pit but distant and no chance of a picture due to the showers and strong westerly wind (seawatching may have been good today?). Still, Bill got some good pics - see his blog here. With a bit of luck it'll stick around long enough for me to get some shots.
