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RING-NECKED DUCK AT FISHMOOR

Ring-necked Duck, Fishmoor Rservoir, 15 October 2021 (fifth from left)

SO MY ELOC LIST WENT UP BY ONE. Following on from the poor views of Pectoral Sandpiper at Alston last month a juvenile Ring-necked Duck on Fishmoor Reservoir, found by John Wright, kept my ELOC counter moving. Another good catch up after missing the drake at Stocks twice earlier in the year. Incidentally the Pec at Champion Moor flood pool was just before I arrived in East Lancs in 2005 so Gav’s Alston bird was another good one to get back. The Ring-necked Duck was an interesting plumage for me, new for me in the UK at least I think. Fishmoor is a shit hole though, surrounded by housing now and I see there’s what looks like an unecessary new road cutting through what used to be wasteland to the southwest. There used to be rough grassland all around it when I first moved here. There’s hardly room for a Meadow Pipit to turn around now.

Ring-necked and Tufted Ducks

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RISE OF THE JAYS

Jay collage from the benches by the school in Ribchester

I WAS LATE ON THE RIVERBANK TODAY after spending a couple of hours spotlighting with Alexander for Tim’s dog, which went missing last night. We checked the fields, ditches and riverbank but in the opposite direction to where she was eventually found, just before midnight near the Ribchester Arms, about 1km from where she disappeared. Well it was an interesting nocturnal walk, livened up by lots of rabbits, hares and a Tawny Owl. This morning a warm southerly wind was blowing across the valley bringing with it several Red Admiral butteflies that were wafted across the river like leaves. A jay was calling from the tree next to the school and eventually crossed the river in the other direction. I am seeing lots more jays than usual even accounting for autumn activity. A pair of sparrowhawks soared over the river, while small numbers of squeaking meadow pipits passed on their way south. A noisy kingfisher was also about in its usual spots around the island and a flock of seven lapwings flew west down the valley on a gorgeous sunny morning before it was time to go and look for a petrol station that actually still had some petrol and head off to Oldham climbing .

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RETURN OF THE PINKFEET

Pinks in and out of the mist today!

THE WOBBLY CALLS OF PINK-FOOTED GEESE OVER THE VILLAGE has been a feature this weekend so far. In fact a couple of flocks have passed over the house in the dark while I was looking at my photos for this post. There has been a massive push of Pinkfeet over the last few days down the east coast, Twitter has been alive with them so it has been great to join in the excitement as some of them chose to cross the Pennines and fly down the Ribble Valley. They have all been heading west here, a total of 236 in 7 flocks since the first on Friday evening. It is fantastic to have them back!

This blog post could easily have been ‘Golden Plover - new for me in Ribchester’ instead as one flew over calling at Red Bank, also heading west, presumably a little lower than usual thanks to the low cloud base/mist. Phil has seen them in the fields at Salesbury before but not in recent years. It brought up 120 species for me in Ribchester, not bad for somewhere with no notable habitats. Other migrants today included a few summer visitors still around - by coincidence c.120 hirundines on the wires at Osbaldeston Hall and hawking low over the river there was a magnificent sight. They were mostly swallows but included around 10 House Martins as well.

A late Common Whitethroat was in an isolated riverside hawthorn . We tallied seven Common Chiffchaffs today, including one daft bird singing at Red Bank. Another very conspicuous bird at the moment is jay, they seem to be everywhere in the northwest right now, or maybe just more visible as they rush around stashing food for the winter? The juvenile Osprey seems to have moved on now though, it took my 5KO sightings to 13 this year! Finally, I thought our eight Little Egrets was pretty good until I learned that 46 roosted at Sawley this evening!

Golden Plover collage in the mist over Red Bank

A late Common Whitethroat, surely the last of 2021?

Chiffchaffs are dull compated to Willow Warbler! Look at those short wing tips too!

Very dark legs and only a couple of flecks of yellow = chiffchaff

A damp Red Bank with a low cloud base hanging over the Ribble Valley this morning, there are plenty of hawthorn berries for the Redwings, which will soon be here again for the winter.

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FIRST PEREGRINE OF THE AUTUMN

Peregrine, juvenile over the White Bull in Ribchester, 14 September 2021

LOCK UP YER PIGEONS! The first Peregrine of the autumn wheeled into view over the White Bull on my way home tonight, a pristine juvenile bird only just over the rooftops. It was obviously prospecting the village for an evening meal and was five days earlier than last autumn’s first on 19 September. I was very sorry it appeared after Phil and Lee had gone home - it would have looked great from the benches, assuming it passed that way. Peregrine is a regular feature in the lower valley during the winter but they range widely so you can never be sure of when and where they will appear.

Also around this evening were Little Egret (up to four recently), a kingfisher (it seems to be fond of the large willow on the island at the moment), a flock of 11 lapwings over, several Grey Wagtails (which also roost in the island willow), a sparrowhawk dangling an injured leg and a couple of buzzards of note. Five swallows were around Lower Alston Farm, they are becoming scarce now and a large salmon flopped out of the water almost around the bend upstream from us. The cold easterly wind felt like autumn this evening so I didn’t stay until dusk.

A Little Egret flies upstream past the benches this evening

Ribchester sunset on the riverbank, looking east towards Pendle Hill

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