Birding Group Visit to RSPB Marshside 18 Mar 2025
The birding group visit to RSPB Marshside was blessed with some quite pleasant weather with sunshine and only a slight wind off the sea. Apart from the usual suspects we managed to get a few year ticks and some nice waders
We started off at the Sandgrouser’s hide and on the main lagoon there was a good mix of ducks and other birds. It better at the other hides, though, with the best at Nel’s hide where we got a flock of about 500 Golden Plover. There were other birds mixed in with them and we managed to spot a couple of Ruff. There was also a fair number of Avocets and we got a year first Ringed Plover. On one of the thin strips of land a pair of Spoonbills were roosting. There were also good numbers of Black-tailed Godwits
There were the expected Canada Geese and still a large number of Pink-footed Geese still on the marsh. In the pools were Pintail, Pochard, Shelduck, Shoveler, Teal, Tufted Duck and a couple of Little Grebes. A pair of unusual Buzzards had us confused as to what they were until they eventually rose into the air and then it was obvious.
On the walk back to the car we stopped a few times to look at Skylarks as the ascended high into the air singing at top volume. It’s a pity the road is so very busy as, otherwise, it is a lovely scene. Year ticks here included Little Grebe, Spoonbill, Golden Plover, Ringed Plover, Ruff and Wren.
The birding grup split up at the car park with some people going on to Hesketh Out Marsh; we decided to go on to WWT Martin Mere to see what was there.
Bird Sightings : RSPB Marshside 18 March 2025
| Species | No |
|---|---|
| Avocet | 40 |
| Black-headed Gull | 100 |
| Black-tailed Godwit | 80 |
| Buzzard | 2 |
| Canada Goose | 50 |
| Coot | 4 |
| Dunnock | 1 |
| Gadwall | 4 |
| Golden Plover | 500 |
| Goldfinch | 2 |
| Herring Gull | 10 |
| Lapwing | 60 |
| Lesser Black-backed Gull | 8 |
| Little Grebe | 2 |
| Mallard | 20 |
| Moorhen | 2 |
| Mute Swan | 2 |
| Oystercatcher | 2 |
| Pink-footed Goose | 400 |
| Pintail | 1 |
| Pochard | 4 |
| Ringed Plover | 1 |
| Ruff | 2 |
| Shelduck | 20 |
| Shoveler | 10 |
| Skylark | 6 |
| Spoonbill | 2 |
| Starling | 30 |
| Stonechat | 1 |
| Teal | 2 |
| Tufted Duck | 40 |
| Woodpigeon | 6 |
| Wren | 1 |