Slurry spreading from Lower Alston Farm usually means a chance of seeing Mediterranean Gulls in Ribchester. CLICK IMAGES FOR LIGHTBOX
A DESPERATELY DISAPPOINTING DAY SPENT SCANNING THE SKIES for Whooper Swans, and not seeing any of the hundreds passing through East Lancs (none of them ventured further west than Clitheroe), followed by the news of two cranes were visible to the west of Alston. At least I learned later from their finder, Bill Aspin, that they had not entered Rib airspace. That’s 7.5 hours spent on visible migration this weekend, not seeing very much of it! A handful of Meadow Pipits and a flock of 38 Fieldfare heading north were the only signs of anything happening. All the other sightings may just have been local movements. The afternoon effort was brightened up by a nice pair of breeding plumaged Mediterranean Gulls among a throng of Black-headed Gulls on the ‘freshly’-spread slurry along Shorton Lane.
Kingfisher activity was good again with sightings from ‘The Tush’ at 0751, 0808, 0818 and 0920 (2 birds) and raven and siskin were new for the month as I creep towards the benchmark 70 spcies, with 67 so far. March is now the best month of the year on 79 all time. There were five buzzards in the air together again today and the other interesting sighting was a fight between two pairs of Grey Wagtails on the shingle opposite ‘The Tush’. The curlews on Gary Paul’s fields continue to sing and a pair of Stock Doves was still display flighting on the other side of the river.
Mediterranean Gull pair, with Black-headed Gulls, passing the 16th Century Osbaldeston Hall on the south bank of the Ribble.
Today’s only Common Gull, they become scarce this far downstream from about now until the autumn.