Wednesday 14 March 2012

CUMBRIA BIRDING

North Cumbria provided a few delights this past couple of days and this time I had my cameras. First up a superb Blue morph Snow Goose in with a huge flock of Pinkies, European White-fronts and Barnacles. As is the case though with big flocks of geese its a bugger to get close so it was digiscope time from half a kilometre away.




Some of the Euro White-fronts had huge black smudges on their bellies (some field guides say these are Greenland) but with small pinkish (honest) bills and size similar to Pinkfoot there all European, in this flock anyway. Checkout the video action you'll see what I mean...


Lunch just had to be taken at the well placed car park at the entrance to Workington Harbour and guess who was still on show, the Med Gull I found a few weeks back now coming into summer plumage.


Floating along behind a couple of Mute Swans was this most unexpected harbour visitor a Whooper Swan.

Near to where I was surveying (location withheld top secret) this Roe Deer was not what I was looking for whilst rummaging through the reeds.



oh nearly forgot found this pipit down by the beach and was about to whap it on as a Rock Pipit but the dam things got pale almost pink legs??? baffled...answers to comments if you're an expert please ta!


Arrived home from Cumbria and of course its straight back out with the pooch. On the local mere fresh in was one rather nice adult winter Little Gull doing what LGs do. A treble whammy of a bird, Year, Patch and Self found all in one go now that's how I like'm.


Daffy Duck is still performing to the local bread chuckers, heaven knows what flavour(s) it is? the duck that is.


toodle pip punters

5 comments:

Jason said...

Your Rock Pipit is just that? A Rock Pipit.

Cheers
Jason

Mr Payne said...

1st for Britain Pink Footed Pipit

Mr Payne said...

Juv's can show variable leg colour. From BWPI: legs noticeably dull or dark, from dirty flesh-brown through black-brown to lead-grey.

Podster said...

Rock Pipit then nice!

Podster said...

funny actually cos the first pipit I came across was similar but with a distinct pale supercilium and I thought it might be the Scandinavian race littoralis...cool.
Must get some decent piccies next time I'm up there.