Natural Selection

Following the heavy losses of Mute Swans at Stanley Park over the last few weeks the lake finally reopened today with no cases for some time. Brambles Wildlife Sanctuary who have been dealing with the sad avian flu losses asked me to do a waterbird count, as I have been doing the Wetland Bird Survey…

I had work business on our Mereside estate today so did my lunchtime birding at the waste transfer station. Almost instantly I got on a colour ringed Herring Gull. Whilst it was moving its legs in and out of view it was clearly N:37B. I’ve submitted the bird to the ringing scheme involved, but they…

I don’t know as much of the history of late at Ream Hills as I should. It’s on the outskirts of Blackpool, just about visible from the eastbound M55, and I first became aware of it when it was a field sports venue along with the neighbouring woods. As you may have deduced from the…

Today I started working on a report at an unearthly hour so I could get out at lunchtime and do some seawatching from North Shore. Unbeknown to virtually all Blackpool residents a nature spectacle occurs offshore. But the rub is it’s often a long way offshore. Common Scoter are seaducks that can form flocks up…

When I started this blog it was supposed to include creative writing, and hasn’t much. So here is a piece which I wrote a few months ago. Here’s another couple of pictures I took yesterday – the reservoir from Barrow Crematorium with the Walney windfarm behind, and inside the Holker Street ground from my seat…

I was up in Barrow today to watch the Bluebirds play Mansfield, and did some birding beforehand which salvaged some positivity from the day. I stopped at Pine Lake on the way to see if the drake Scaup was still there. It was, but on the other side of the lake and rather beyond the…

I picked up a copy of this book when Subbuteo Books cleared all their stock a couple of years ago, and as the Birdfair has been in the news this week I have reacquainted myself with it. The rather grandiose title is caveated with the sub-heading ’25 Years of Birdfair Posters’ which gives a more…

Tonight I saw swarms of Starlings passing over the house on the way to their roost on North Pier. It’s a privilege to be able to watch them even when it’s just a blink and you’ll miss it encounter like today. Better still to stand on the Promenade and hopefully be treated to the winter…

I am not sure what is about Rose Coloured Starlings, but there can’t be a species whose alternative names are so contrasting. On the one hand there is Rosy Pastor, whose other meaning is a minister in charge of a church or congregations. At the other extreme in informal parlance is Pink Stink, which I…

Tonight some of the writers who were involved in the Lifest New Writing Northwest Nature Writing Group last winter / early spring met on zoom. It was great to catch up with like minded people and share ideas. If you are interested in reading the anthology that came out of the series of workshops, which…