Arrived at Marshside in a brisk easterly with overcast conditions this morning. Female Kestrel perched near Sandgrounders as I parked the car and given the chilly conditions I opted for the shelter of Nel's Hide.
Singing Sedge Warbler and Common Whitethroat both year ticks and plenty of Black-tailed Godwits on the Junction Pool alongside Avocets, Shoveler, Wigeon and Teal.
Grateful for the shelter from the biting wind I settled into Nel's to scan over Rimmer's Marsh. It wasn't long before I found the Curlew Sandpiper with 4 Dunlin and a Grasshopper Warbler breaking into spells of "reeling" every now and then was a surprise.
Curlew Sandpiper (above) and Avocet (below) , Marshside RSPB 25 April 2009.
The Little Stint took a bit more finding (in fact someone else did it for me!) as it kept disappearing behind the tussocks. It settled down to roost for a while but always at a distance from the hide.
Little Stint with Black-tailed Godwits, Marshside RSPB 25 April 2009.
It popped up again later, preening at the back of the godwit flock and feeding with 4 or 5 Dunlin in the shallows. No sign of the Spotted Redshank this morning though but my first Reed Warbler of the year could be heard from the Hesketh Road platform.
Heading back towards the Junction Pool 2 Swifts circled overhead (my first of the year) and the Sandplant was good for Wheatears (8+) with a Whinchat also. Tide came in as I left lifting loads of waders including hundreds of Dunlin, smaller numbers of Ringed Plovers and thousands of Knot. Still plenty of Pink-footed Geese out on Crossens Outer too.
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