Summary March 2025
New “Year Ticks” in March 2025: 41
New “Life Ticks” in March 2025: 0
Total Species for 2025 so far: 84
We started the month early with a visit to the Wirral for a high tide taking in Burton Mere Wetlands and Parkgate on the 2nd of March. It was an overcast day so good for birding but the tide wasn’t that dramatic. Of course, there were good views of Marsh Harriers and the other usual residents fo the marsh.
On the tail end of the series of high tides, the birding group went to New Brighton and Hoylake on the 4th March for a 9.8 metre high tide at 2:16pm. At New Brighton we managed to get three Purple Sandpipers and at Hoylake we got a flotilla of Common Scoter. Apart from that, the brids were as you would expect – Curlew, Oystercatchers, Knot, Dunlin, Sanderling, Black-tailed Godwits etc. It was a lovely sunny winters day with just a hint that Spring might be coming.
On the birding group morning out to RSPB Marshside on the 18th March the stars of the morning were a good sized flock of Golden Plovers and a pair of Spoonbills and a Ringed Plover was also nice – all of these year ticks.
After we left Marshide we dropped in at WWT Martin Mere on the afternoon of the 18th March getting another four year ticks and the best bird of the day there was a Mediterranean Gull.
The last birding group outing of the month was to Brockholes on 25th March where we had a better than expected morning and where we managed 39 species and six of these were year ticks including fantastic views of the first Sand Martins of the year.
The garden continues to be fairly quiet, especially after I stopped putting meal worms out in a feeder on the bird pole; this attracted large numbers of Magpies and Jackdaws. A Dunnock has been singing loudly every day. We had the occasional Ring-necked Parakeet and sometimes the House Sparrows will venture to pick some meal worms from under the cage I have afeeding tray under. Nothing has nested in my ned WiFi bird box yet and the Hedgehog hasn’t appeared yet. Last year it was unusually early coming out at the start of March; I thnk mid-April has been more usual. On the plus side, spring appears to be close adn it’s starting to get busier around the garden.
New Sightings for March 2025
| No | Species/Place |
|---|---|
| 2 | Black-tailed Godwit Burton Mere Wetlands 2 Mar 2025 |
| 3 | Chaffinch Burton Mere Wetlands 2 Mar 2025 |
| 4 | Chiffchaff Brockholes 25 Mar 2025 |
| 5 | Coal Tit Brockholes 25 Mar 2025 |
| 6 | Collared Dove New Brighton Marine Lake 4 Mar 2025 |
| 7 | Common Scoter Hoylake 4 Mar 2025 |
| 8 | Dunlin Hoylake 4 Mar 2025 |
| 9 | Redshank Hoylake 4 Mar 2025 |
| 10 | Goldcrest Brockholes 25 Mar 2025 |
| 11 | Golden Plover Marshside 18 Mar 2025 |
| 12 | Great Black-backed Gull Parkgate 2 Mar 2025 |
| 13 | Great Spotted Woodpecker Parkgate 2 Mar 2025 |
| 14 | Herring Gull Parkgate 2 Mar 2025 |
| 15 | Jay Burton Mere Wetlands 2 Mar 2025 |
| 16 | Knot Hoylake 4 Mar 2025 |
| 17 | Lapwing Burton Mere Wetlands 2 Mar 2025 |
| 18 | Lesser Black-backed Gull New Brighton Marine Lake 4 Mar 2025 |
| 19 | Little Egret Parkgate 2 Mar 2025 |
| 20 | Little Grebe Marshside 18 Mar 2025 |
| 21 | Meadow Pipit Parkgate 2 Mar 2025 |
| 22 | Mediterranean Gull WWT Martin Mere 18 Mar 2025 |
| 23 | Nuthatch Brockholes 25 Mar 2025 |
| 24 | Oystercatcher Hoylake 4 Mar 2025 |
| 25 | Pheasant Parkgate 2 Mar 2025 |
| 26 | Pied Wagtail New Brighton Marine Lake 4 Mar 2025 |
| 27 | Purple Sandpiper New Brighton Marine Lake 4 Mar 2025 |
| 28 | Reed Bunting Brockholes 25 Mar 2025 |
| 29 | Ringed Plover Marshside 18 Mar 2025 |
| 30 | Ruff Marshside 18 Mar 2025 |
| 31 | Sand Martin Brockholes 25 Mar 2025 |
| 32 | Sanderling Hoylake 4 Mar 2025 |
| 33 | Skylark Parkgate 2 Mar 2025 |
| 34 | Song Thrush Parkgate 2 Mar 2025 |
| 35 | Spoonbill Marshside 18 Mar 2025 |
| 36 | Stonechat Parkgate 2 Mar 2025 |
| 37 | Tree Sparrow WWT Martin Mere 18 Mar 2025 |
| 38 | Turnstone New Brighton Marine Lake 4 Mar 2025 |
| 39 | Whooper Swan WWT Martin Mere 18 Mar 2025 |
| 40 | Wigeon WWT Martin Mere 18 Mar 2025 |
| 41 | Wren Marshside 18 Mar 2025 |