Dee Estuary weekend,

4-7^th  March 2011.

Day 1.  

First stop was to look over the salt marshes at Burton. This is a large flat expanse with a great many posts and a few gates which were useful markers. Sadly the visibility was poor to start with, and as most the birds were at ‘scope distance, identification was tricky. The star of the morning was the Merlin. We had excellent views of a female sitting on a post, which was near one of the gates so it was not too hard to explain where it was. Merlins are fast flying birds, which catch their prey in flight, which are usually small birds. They are small falcons, with the shape of an inverted tear-drop when sitting on a post. They hunt in a low flight, but can rise and suddenly dive on an unsuspecting Meadow Pipit. They have a weak moustachial stripe and large pale patches on a dark nape. The upper parts of the female and immature bird are brown, in contrast to the adult male which is slate-blue. We watched one hunting, it went high and then dived down. The flight was purposeful and fast. We also saw a Peregrine, and a Buzzard, on other posts, and a Kestrel in a tree. It was nice to see Wood Pigeon, Collared Dove and Stock Dove in the same tree, giving us an opportunity to compare them. The biggest is the Wood Pigeon, which is a metallic grey with very obvious white patches on the wing and on the side of the neck, which helps to separate it from the smaller Stock Dove The Collared Dove is similar in size to the Stock Dove , and is a warm pink, with a longer tail and a black ring round the neck.  

We then went to the coast at Hoylake to see flocks of waders at high tide. Afterwards we went on to Leasowe lighthouse for lunch, and then to New Brighton beach, across the Mersey from Liverpool docks. We did eventually did find a Purple Sandpiper on the rocks, which is where they live. It is a dumpy little bird with short yellowish feet and visits us in  winter from its breeding grounds in Scandinavia, Greenland and Svalbard. We saw both a Grey Plover and Knot together which was useful for separating them. One way of telling is that the Grey Plover has longer legs and a short bill which means that its body is at a greater angle to the ground when it feeds. The Knot has short-ish legs and a longer bill, and feeds with the body more horizontal.  

The last stop was the Gilroy Road nature reserve where we found a lot of hedgerow birds like Robins, Blackbirds and I was delighted to see a small flock of House Sparrows around the houses. In the ponds there were Black-tailed Godwits, Teal, Shovelers and Mallards.  

Day 2. 
Three of us went round the hotel grounds with Keith before breakfast and saw a lot of garden birds, with good views of both Song and Mistle Thrushes, and a Great Spotted Woodpecker. Then it was off to Point of Ayr in Wales. It was very cold and blowy. We saw a tremendous number of Oystercatchers standing close up with their backs to the wind, on a sandbank. We had three Ravens overhead, one was on another’s territory and with certain choice words passing between then, one retreated. I have never seen so many Shelduck, swimming around, and it was good to see a flock of Pintail landing in the water. We had an excellent view of a Sparrowhawk.  

We had lunch beside Flint Castle. In the distance we saw a flock of swans, and there was the difficulty in identifying them; were they Bewick’s or were they Whooper? They were a long way off, so it was very difficult to tell; the main difference was the length of the neck. The Bewick’s are smaller and have a shorter neck. We saw a small flock of Redwings near the Flint United Football Club. They are interesting thrushes which come to us, mainly from Scandinavia. When they arrivein the autumn, they eat berries, but by the spring they move onto worms and similar. Identification is by the prominent white  supercilium.  

We ended the day on the salt marshes, where we watched a flock of about 1000 Pink-footed Geese. They are grey geese and can be difficult to identify. They are small, with a small darker head andbill. They are winter visitors from Greenland and Spitsbergen. Then we saw a Short-eared Owl. This was wonderful to watch. It has remarkably long wings which are an adaptaion to hunting in open country. It has a pale-ish face, with distinct black patches around yellow eyes. It was a wonderful sight while the sun was going down to end the day. 

Day 3.
On the Monday morning we went to Inner Marsh Farm, where we saw a lot of ducks at close quarters. There were Teal, Gadwall, Pintail, Shoveler, Wigeon, Shelduck  and Tufted. It was great to see then, as we found one kind after another swimming round the corner. Then we drove to Thurstaston, for a short walk before lunch. We had excellent views of Bullfinch and then, under the far hedge, looking like a pile of wood, were two Grey Partridges. These are becoming rarer but they are difficult to see and are very wary, so there may be more around. They are birds of open farmland, and are often found on stubble or ploughed fields.  

It was a great weekend, and I am sure that everyone would like to join me in thanking Keith and Linda for leading us so well, and are so interesting, teaching us, without us knowing we were being taught. Also many thanks for Richard for organising it all.  

Number of species seen: 84 

Ann Crawford   

Birds seen, in BOU order or alphabetic order