Red-necked Phalarope at Burton Mere Wetlands : 2nd June 2015

Our birding group day out today was supposed to be to either Neumann’s Flash or Brockholes. Since the weather forecast was poor we decided on a familiar fall-back – Burton Mere Wetlands. The weather forecast was a bit better here and although not entirely dry it wasn’t too bad; very windy though. We did get a lovely bird, though, but just before we were leaving. The best was kept to last.

We started out at the reception hide where there were lots of Avocets with chicks. Black-headed Gulls were on nests in numbers also. There were Swallows, House MArtins and Swifts flying overhead and just outside the hide we got great views of a Whitethroat singing. There were fewer Black-tailed Godwits thatn usual but a fair smattering of Tufted Ducks, Shelducks. Shovelers and Mallards. Mute Swans, Greylag and Canada Geese were feeding on the fields behind.

We walked up to Inner Marsh Farm hide but this was pretty quiet and apart from a Pied Wagtail there was nothing much new there. We walked up to Burton Point but it was so windy that it was pretty hard to stand there. Apart from a couple of Little Egrets we did not see much.

We returned via the Reed Covert hide and as we walked back we saw Willow Warbler and Chiffchaff, Grey Herons and Little Egrets. there was a Skylark in the meadows and small flocks of Goldfinch dashed about quite excited by the wind.

We popped back to the reception hide and as soon as we entered one of the RSPB chaps pointed out to us a female Red-necked Phalarope right at the back of the main lagoon. Even through the darkened triple glazing it looked nice and red and from outside the hide the colours were much clearer even though the bird was quite distant.

We had actually seen a juvenile Red-necked Phalarope at RSPB Burton Mere Wetlands, on the 9th September 2014 but this was a female – the brighter of the sexes; the male does all the rearing of chicks and migrates later in the year. The RSPB mentions this :

These small, delicate waders are adapted well to spending a lot of time on water. Unlike other waders, phalaropes have lobed toes which enable them to swim strongly when on pools or out at sea. They spend most of their time in the water but can equally run about on land. The duller coloured male looks after the eggs and young after laying. As a rare UK breeding species it is a Red
Small numbers breed on the Western and Northern Isles of Scotland. Birds are also seen on passage in the autumn, usually along the east coast.
They arrive back at their breeding grounds in May. Females start to leave in June, with males and young departing in July and August. Best looked for on passage in August and September.
Population
Europe UK breeding* UK wintering* UK passage*
– 20-24 males – 30 birds

* UK breeding is the number of pairs breeding annually. UK wintering is the number of individuals present from October to March. UK passage is the number of individuals passing through on migration in spring and/or autumn.

According to the RSPB web site the females arrive in their breeding grounds in May and then depart for their wintering grounds in June SO it isn’t clear if this bird was on its way to breed or had finished breeding and was returning to her non-breeding grounds. Interestingly recent radio tagging has shown some of these birds migrating as far as the coast of Ecuador and Peru. (See this BBC article) but it is not clear whether it is only the females that do this or if all males or females or juveniles do so; there simply have not been enough recovered trackers.

Bird Sightings : Burton Mere Wetlands : Reception Hide

Species	Count
Greylag Goose	20
Canada Goose	30
Mute Swan	12
Common Shelduck	8
Mallard	12
Northern Shoveler	6
Tufted Duck	8
Common Coot	10
Pied Avocet	12
Eurasian Oystercatcher	2
Northern Lapwing	20
Black-tailed Godwit	20
Red-necked Phalarope	1
Black-headed Gull	30
Common Wood Pigeon	10
Common Swift	10
Common Kestrel	1
Carrion Crow	12
Barn Swallow	6
Common House Martin	12
Common Whitethroat	1

Bird Sightings : Burton Mere Wetlands : Environs

Species	Count
Grey Heron	2
Little Egret	2
Common Buzzard	2
Eurasian Jackdaw	4
Rook	8
Sky Lark	1
Great Tit	1
Eurasian Blue Tit	4
Willow Warbler	1
Common Chiffchaff	2
Eurasian Blackbird	4
European Goldfinch	12

Bird Sightings : Burton Mere Wetlands : Inner Marsh Farm

Species	Count
Canada Goose	16
Common Shelduck	6
Mallard	6
Tufted Duck	6
Common Moorhen	2
Common Coot	8
Eurasian Oystercatcher	2
Black-headed Gull	10
Stock Dove	2
Common Wood Pigeon	8
Common Chiffchaff	1
Pied Wagtail	1

Bird Sightings : Burton Mere Wetlands : Marsh Covert Hide

Species	Count
Gadwall	2
Northern Lapwing	4
Little Ringed Plover	1
Common Redshank	2
Eurasian Reed Warbler	1

Red-necked Phalarope at Burton Mere Wetlands : 2nd June 2015