Scarce and Rare Birds on the Wirral

With a period of Easterly winds the Wirral got more than it's usual share of rare and scarce birds over the last week or so. At Burton Mere Wetlands RSPB Reserve (or BMW as it is known) there was a good list including a Red-necked Phalarope, Cattle Egret, Little Stints, Curlew Sandpipers and Pectoral Sandpiper. Some of these were present for most of the week, if not longer.
Tied in with some high tides I spent a couple of days out with the camera to see what could be done. BMW isn't great for photography and from the old hide unfortunately the birds are a little distant. So this would only be good for record shots. Still, I had a go and managed to photograph the Red-necked Phalarope and Pectoral Sandpiper.

Red-necked Phalarope

Pectoral Sandpiper

On the North Wirral coast I photographed Curlew Sandpiper on the beach at Hoylake and the diminutive Little Stint which was roosting with about 500 Dunlin at Leasowe.

Curlew Sandpiper

Little Stint

Here are some of the more common species I encountered in a productive couple of days with a bit of decent sunshine.

Dunlin (It's not marching)

Grey Heron

Mute Swan

Ringed Plover (juvenile)

Sanderling

Burton Marsh Rarities

I don't really like photographing or I should say trying to photograph birds when there are large crowds of people present.  If there is a rare bird that I want to photograph I will usually wait a few days until the birders and twitchers have moved on to the next subject.  With two rare species on my doorstep at the moment, both at Burton Marsh, I thought I had given plenty of time for things to quieten down a little. I popped down for a couple of hours this morning to try for some shots of the Buff-bellied Pipit and Siberian Chiffchaff which have been there for several weeks now.  They are still very popular though with around 50 or 60 people there.  I was reasonably happy with the results but may make a return visit.

Buff-bellied Pipit

Buff-bellied Pipit

Siberian Chiffchaff

Siberian Chiffchaff

Siberian Chiffchaff

Glossy Ibis

Having not photographed a Glossy Ibis before I was keen to try and get some shots of one of the many in the country at the moment.  The weather forecast said sun but heavy cloud was outside, I was undecided whether to make the trip.  Late morning it started to brighten and I headed off to Horwich, near Bolton.  As I arrived the sun was just starting to break through the clouds, I parked the car and could immediately see two of the four birds, right next to the road in a field.  They carried on feeding, five or six metres away, regardless of the large group of birders and photographers looking over the wall.  Forty five minutes later they decided to fly off and the job was done.  One of the easiest photo sessions I have done, especially for a rarity and I achieved much better results than expected.

Desert Wheatear

I took a trip to North Wales today. Part of the day was spent photographing the Desert Wheatear at Rhyl.