Rosy Day in St Helens

"Frydays" Fish Bar ! - 26.10.2018

Just over a week ago a juvenile Rose-Coloured Starling has put in an appearance in a terrance property garden behind Frydays Fish Bar in St Helens Lancashire, the images of the bird I've seen in the main have either been sat on the property walls, roofs or TV aerials so I've not been enthusiastic about a visit especially after my last Rose-Coloured Starling "tick" on Tresco Isles of Scilly with a back drop of azure blue sea.

Rose-Coloured Starlings are usually found from southern Ukraine east to central Asian steppes to Kazakhstan, Western Mongolia and south to eastern Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan and north west China. Occasionally further west to eastern Europe and as a vagrant to western Europe and the UK. Most birds winter in India and Sri Lanka.....so this individual looks like its turned left instead of right and landed up completely out of its range in the UK.

The map below shows the Rose-Coloured Starlings summer breeding range in yellow, and winter migration location in blue...

All week the it's been grey and cloud hence I've targeted Friday to make the trip over to St Helens as the forecast is for some sun. I've deliberately waited for the commuting traffic to die down before setting off and you guessed it....its now grey and light drizzle, what happened to the sun !!

Parking up I'm not alone as there's others looking for Frydays chip bar, eventually we are where we need to be and right on cue the starling appears on a TV arial...doh ! not what I after. More waiting and the starling is now frequenting the rear of the buildings alternating between a walled garden presumably with a plentiful supply of food and some overgrown brambles at the rear of Robins Caffe.

Over the next couple of hours it's a case of waiting for the right photo opportunity, sometimes its in a small tree and at other times on a wall or a gutter, not the most photogenic of locations but at least its a trip out.

Now mid afternoon I have more than enough images of this rather uninspiring brown bird, oh for a nice pink and black adult, now wouldn't that be nice.

Rose-Coloured Starling

Not being too far away from Chester Wales, occasionally you may see a rather oddly shaped enlarge aircraft used by Airbus as a transporter, wings manufactured at the Airbus UK plant located at Broughton are transferred to a local airport at Hawarden and then flown direct to Toulouse in France for final assembly.

Airbus operate five of these aircraft numbered 1 - 5 this being number 2, any time you're in the Chester area you are more often than not likely to see these aircraft....right I now need to get images of the rest !

Airbus Beluga A300-600 Super Transporter

"Frydays" Fish Bar - 29.10.2018

As this scarce visitor from eastern Europe is one of the easiest encounters with little effort other than your time waiting for it to appear I thought I'd have another go to see if I can better the images I managed last Friday, in any case this could be the last chance to get out before the weather deteriorates later in the week or maybe even if the bird decides to move on....make hay while it lasts as they say.

I've deliberately decided to give the weekend a miss in favour of today as I didn't want the hassle of loads of people in such a small location, it's really only suitable to accommodate around six people before it becomes difficult moving about to get a decent shot, and there's also the possibly of loads of people spooking the bird.

The sat nav has taken me a different way than my last visit and I think I'm lost, out of the blue and from a completely different direction I'm here...amazing, always have faith in these gizmos ! Squeezing into the last parking space at Frydays chippy I can see the starling sat on a wall, gear out and I'm on my way.

Over the next few hours it's a repeat of my last visit only this time the bird is a little more skulking remaining out of site for longer periods of time, eventually appearing it heads for the small tree and remains there for probably five to ten minuets giving me the best photo ops of the day.

Not expecting to better the images of the day I decide to head for home eager to avoid the hard working community heading back home that will inevitably block up all the motorways.

Rose-Coloured Starling

Probably my number one image.....

Looking a little bedraggled after the starling had a bath in roof gutter, it then spent the next twenty minutes preening and drying off sat in the tree.

Report Update - 31.10.18

I've just read on "BirdGuides" a report that the Rose-Coloured Starling may be no more having been caught and killed by a resident Sparrow Hawk.

Present from 20th - 30th October 2018

Morning at Birtle

Birtle Lodge, Rochdale - 22.10.18

I'm keen to get out this morning as it's still warm with sunny intervals especially with the forecast for the end of the week of winds coming down from the Artic, but where ? Living close to the edge of moorland there are a couple of local reservoirs that attracts passerine migration at the right time but this morning I'm visiting Birtle Lodge which is slightly further away from the upper moorland and only a couple of miles from the house.

Birtle Lodge is an oasis in lower moorland fringed by some extensive tree and hedge planting and especially good at the right time of year for migrating warblers, but this morning I'm hoping to photograph Goosander that regularly appear in small groups in autumn and winter. Some times difficult to get near I intend using a small portable hide to increase my chances of a closer shot the only downside is this location being popular with dog walkers and often they stop and ask...."are you photographing birds"....doh !

A quick scan I pick up a male and female Shoveler, a new bird for me on this lodge and a small group of about eight Wigeon. On the south side of the lodge the sun is ideally placed behind reflecting some nice colour in the water from the vegetation opposite so out comes the portable hide and I setup behind a tree.

I'm only on site for a couple of hours so I don't have the luxury of stealthily getting into position never the less the Wigeon don't seem spooked and happily continue feeding amongst some Canada Geese. A mixture of female and eclipse males doesn't make for easy identification but much easier reviewing the images later picking out the white side flash which is the wing bar of the male.

It's been a great autumn morning and thoroughly enjoyable, the autumn colours of yellows, browns and lingering greens are a visual feast and along with the location make this venue a jewel in what can some times be a frantic and noisy part of the country.

Wigeon - (eclipse male)

Wigeon - female

Mute Swan - male & female

Day Out At Tatton

Tatton Park, Cheshire - 17.10.18

Work in progress.....

Red Deer Stag

I'm sat down amongst the grass with a group of about twenty five hinds guarded by a dominant stage no more than thirty meters away that seem at ease with my presence, I'm watching to see if a unusual shot materialises but eventually have to settle for some head shots of the hinds with some comical expressions as they chew the cud

Quite often you will see Jackdaws clambering all over the backs and head of the deer looking for ticks, beneficial to both parties the Jackdaws get a free meal the deer get a cleaning service. I hoping for that shot where the Jackdaw is perched on the stags antler...but no such luck.

It's not quite cold enough today to consistently get that classic shot where you can see the stags breath as it condenses in the cold air but I was lucky with this shot, may be another visit in a couple of weeks when the temperature and the weather gets a little colder.

It got a bit foggy at one point in the afternoon.