New Brighton, Merseyside.
An absolutely brilliant days birding. With more Leach's pertrels than you could shake a stick at and a sabines gull that nearly got away made this a day to remember.
We arrived at the usual prom shelter in new brighton looking out onto the River Mersey at 11.00 to find only one birder present. I would have put money on that it would have been full today. It was not long before we got onto our first of many leach's. I would say we had 50 plus in the 4 hours we were there. At one piont I had 7 leach's petrel in one scope view but best of all was whilst I was watching a leach's close to Brazil buoy a juv peregrine stooped from above but just missed and the leach's escaped. Just a great birding moment for me. Another leach's came really close in along the road to Perch Rock and then banked up and flew around the car park in front of a now full shelter before finding the river again and making its way out to sea. After high tide the leach's were just streaming out of the river. This was certainly my best leach's petrel day. One birder had travelled by train and bus today from Durham, NE England to witness this spectacle. He left a happy chappy.
It was around 1300hrs when I picked up what I instantly thought was a sabines gull. It was with a small group of gulls on the far seawall (very distant) . As I watched it I tried to get others on to it and I was certain I had a sabines but it was not easy viewing and then it was lost. The only other person who got on it said he was not sure. Shortly after I did see a 1st w little gull and a few doubts crept in until I spoke to Tony Conway who had been watching on the seaforth side of the river who had good views of a sabines gull close to his side of the river around 1300hrs which fits perfectly with my sabines. Thanks Tony!
Also today a manx shearwater hurtled out of the river, a single and a group of 3 red throated divers came out, a couple of stiff winged fulmars were mid river, 20 little gulls, 2 curlew ,1 house martin and a couple of kittiwakes.
I had to drag myself away at 1500 . What a fabulous day.
An absolutely brilliant days birding. With more Leach's pertrels than you could shake a stick at and a sabines gull that nearly got away made this a day to remember.
We arrived at the usual prom shelter in new brighton looking out onto the River Mersey at 11.00 to find only one birder present. I would have put money on that it would have been full today. It was not long before we got onto our first of many leach's. I would say we had 50 plus in the 4 hours we were there. At one piont I had 7 leach's petrel in one scope view but best of all was whilst I was watching a leach's close to Brazil buoy a juv peregrine stooped from above but just missed and the leach's escaped. Just a great birding moment for me. Another leach's came really close in along the road to Perch Rock and then banked up and flew around the car park in front of a now full shelter before finding the river again and making its way out to sea. After high tide the leach's were just streaming out of the river. This was certainly my best leach's petrel day. One birder had travelled by train and bus today from Durham, NE England to witness this spectacle. He left a happy chappy.
It was around 1300hrs when I picked up what I instantly thought was a sabines gull. It was with a small group of gulls on the far seawall (very distant) . As I watched it I tried to get others on to it and I was certain I had a sabines but it was not easy viewing and then it was lost. The only other person who got on it said he was not sure. Shortly after I did see a 1st w little gull and a few doubts crept in until I spoke to Tony Conway who had been watching on the seaforth side of the river who had good views of a sabines gull close to his side of the river around 1300hrs which fits perfectly with my sabines. Thanks Tony!
Also today a manx shearwater hurtled out of the river, a single and a group of 3 red throated divers came out, a couple of stiff winged fulmars were mid river, 20 little gulls, 2 curlew ,1 house martin and a couple of kittiwakes.
I had to drag myself away at 1500 . What a fabulous day.
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