Quality local birds began firstly with a call from Dave Bickerton who kindly invited me over to his garden at Petre Crescent, Rishton, where He and Mark Breaks had caught two Common (Mealy) Redpoll during a ringing session in DB's back garden (referred to hereafter as Rishton Bird Obs - RBO).
Above: 2x 1stw male Common Redpoll - Rishton Bird Observatory, 31st Jan 2011.
Above & below: 1stw male Common Redpoll (left) and 1stw Lesser Redpoll - RBO - 31st Jan 2011.
Dave Bickerton (centre, RBO President/Chariman/Owner) and Tony Disley (right) photograph the Common Redpolls. Much to my annoyance, I forgot to get some shots of the undertail coverts.
MkB extracts a Bullfinch: Rishton Bird Obs, 31st Jan 2011.A good number of Gulls were noted from the moving car as I passed Rishton Reservoir enroute to RBO. Thankfully the majority were still present over an hour later. A juv Iceland Gull was noted on the first scan, probably the same bird as found by Steven Grimshaw c5 days previously at Whinney Hill Tip, and a different individual to the juv present a few weeks previously, being darker and more coarsely patterned than that bird.
Despite disturbance by the eternal scourge that is the dog walker (two in this case), the Iceland remained for c2 hours when it flew in the direction of Whinney Hill Tip at 14:22. Against the odds in foggy conditions, I briefly saw the bird at the Fishmoor Reservoir roost at 16:48.
Left-Right: Myself, Mark Breaks, Dave Bickerton, Geoff Turner & Steven Grimshaw - Rishton Reservoir, Lancs - 31st Jan 2011.