Birthday Birding

On Saturday the 28th of June I turned 13 and for my birthday I got a new lens which I then tested it out at one of my favourite reserves, RSPB Saltholme.

As we arrived we asked some people around the visitor centre to see if the Roseate Tern was around and it was. They said it was showing from the Paddys Pool Hide so we went straight there. When we arrived the bird wasn't in sight but as we waited lots of birds kept us entertained such as a very nice Med Gull at the back of the lake in with some Black Headed Gulls, a Great Crested Grebe family and lots of Common Terns sitting on perches in front of the hide.

Common Terns

 

Then someone had finally got the Roseate Tern through their scope, the man allowed us to have a look through the scope. It was always quite distant but at least we got to see it. It was very nice bird to see and through the scope the bird looked fantastic. After around 10 minutes all the birds lifted of including the Med Gull and Roseate Tern and sadly both of them could not be relocated. Here are a few record shots of the Roseate Tern and Med Gull.  

Roseate Tern

Med Gull

 

We waited a little longer to see if any of them came back but non did so we then moved onto the Wildlife Watchpoint Hide in hope of seeing Water Rail, Garganey or Water Vole. Sadly for the whole of the time we were in the hide we didn't see any of these species. When we left the hide we got nice views of a Whitethroat which sat up nicely on a bush.

 

Whitethroat

 

We had to go a bit early today as we forgot the reserve closed at 5pm but as we were leaving I had a check on the feeders from the visitor centre and there was a little Hedgehog feeding below them. 

Hedgehog

 

After we then went to have a look at this Common Tern colony just down the road. As soon as we arrived the Terns came over and they started mobbing us, it was an amazing experience. They were only a couple of meters above our head! Some of them even came to close that I couldn't get them in the full photo.

 

Common Terns

 

After we had a walk around some lakes where we saw some juvenile Ringed Plover, Oystercatchers, Meadow Pipits, Skylarks and more Common Terns and my Dad also found an Oystercatcher nest. Around one of the lakes there was a few juvenile Pied Wagtails sitting in some trees and a Magpie also came very close.

 

Pied Wagtail

Magpie