Lancashire & Cheshire Fauna Society Registered Charity 500685 www.lacfs.org.uk Publication No. 114 Lancashire Bird Report 2010 The Birds of Lancashire and North Merseyside S. J. White (Editor) D. A. Bickerton, M. Breaks, G. Clarkson, S. Dunstan, N. Godden, R. Harris B. McCarthy, P. J. Marsh, S.J. Martin, T. Vaughan, J. F. Wright. 2 Lancashire Bird Report 2010 CONTENTS Introduction ............................................................................. Dave Bickerton ......... 3 Review of the Year ...................................................................... John Wright ......... 4 Systematic List (in the revised BOU order) Swans .................................................................................................................. Tim Vaughan ............. 8 Geese ............................................................................................................. Graham Clarkson ........... 10 Ducks .................................................................................................................... Nick Godden ........... 16 Gamebirds ........................................................................................................... Steve Martin ........... 26 Divers to cormorants ............................................................................................. Bob Harris ........... 29 Herons ........................................................................................................... Stephen Dunstan ........... 32 Grebes ...................................................................................................................... Bob Harris ........... 35 Birds of prey ................................................................................................. Stephen Dunstan ........... 37 Rails ...................................................................................................................... Steve Martin ........... 44 Oystercatcher to plovers ................................................................................... Tim Vaughan ........... 47 Knot to phalaropes ............................................................................................... Steve White ........... 53 Skuas ...................................................................................................................... Pete Marsh ........... 65 Gulls ...................................................................................................................... Mark Breaks ........... 66 Terns to auks ......................................................................................................... Steve White ........... 74 Doves to woodpeckers ................................................................................. Barry McCarthy ........... 79 Shrikes to tits .................................................................................................... Dave Bickerton ........... 87 Larks & hirundines ...................................................................................... Barry McCarthy ........... 94 Warblers to Waxwing .......................................................................................... Steve White ........... 98 Nuthatch to starlings ...................................................................................... Dave Bickerton ......... 106 Dipper to chats .............................................................................................. Barry McCarthy ......... 108 Pied Flycatcher to sparrows ................................................................................ Steve White ......... 117 Wagtails and pipits ...................................................................................... Barry McCarthy ......... 119 Finches to buntings ......................................................................................... Dave Bickerton ......... 124 Escapes and Category D ...................................................................................... Steve White ......... 136 Lancashire Ringing Report ........................................................ Pete Marsh ..... 140 Firsts for Lancashire: Breeding Cetti’s Warbler at Marton Mere ..... Frank Walsh, Maurice Jones ..... 158 The Altson ‘Ring‐billed Gull’ .................................................. Gavin Thomas ..... 159 Earliest and Latest Migrant Dates ............................................. Steve White ..... 161 Submission of records, Society contacts ..................................................... ..... 162 Birding sites, List of Contributors ............................................................... ..... 166 Lancashire Bird Report 2010 3 Introduction Dave Bickerton What a year 2010 was – a whole host of extreme weather conditions and bird movements to match. Extended cold spells in both winter periods, a fine spring and another dismal summer resulted in some extraordinary events such as the invasion of Waxwings and Lancashire’s first breeding record for Cetti’s Warbler. New birding sites on the Ribble such as Hesketh Out Marsh have encouraged birds and birders into newer areas and the now completed Brockholes Wetland is blossoming. All this is captured in this year’s bird report and I hope you enjoy reading the detailed accounts written selflessly by a committed band of volunteers. The area covered by this report is one visited by many birdwatchers from the novice to the experienced ornithologist due to the many and varied habitats and the wealth of birds they support. Yet again we have had an incredible number of records submitted, all of which have been considered for inclusion in the report. Whether you send in just one or two records or you can offer comprehensive data on a regularly watched site, we welcome all your records These can contribute enormously to conservation efforts and we share them with national bodies like the BTO, RSPB and Natural England and the two county biological record centres, the Lancashire Environmental Records Network (LERN) and Merseyside Biobank. Four years of work on the Lancashire atlas surveys of breeding and wintering birds have finally come to an end thanks to the efforts of large numbers of the countyʹs birdwatchers who have carried out more than 6000 hours of timed survey visits and accumulated close to half a million individual records. All that remains now is to write it all up and decide how best to publish the results ‐ hopefully by 2013 at the latest. There has been some debate recently on the role of the Society with the resources that have been going into the local authority record centres and the proposed accessibility of data. Once upon a time, the Society was the fulcrum of record collection for the region and put in place a series of recorders for all faunal groups. Times have certainly changed and many interest groups now collect data so it makes sense for the record centres to be the repository for all records, including the ones submitted to us directly. The Society will continue to be a conduit for the bird records of the area enabling us to produce regular readable reports on an annual basis. I must thank the team of writers who give up many days of their own time to compile their sections of the report and to those on the rarities committee who sit in deliberation on records of Lancashire rarities. Most of all I must thank the recorder and editor of the report, Steve White, who puts in an incredible amount of effort in collating and disseminating the records, reviewing and editing the texts, co‐ordinating the production of the report as well as numerous other activities. If you would like to contribute an article, help in writing the species accounts or take a more active role in any way, then please don’t hesitate to get in touch with the editor. Thank you for supporting the work of the Lancashire and Cheshire Fauna Society in either being a member or purchasing this report. The cost of producing this journal of record is just about covered by membership subscriptions and sales. If you are a regular purchaser of the report, please consider joining the society (see the membership section towards the end of the report). Front cover: White‐tailed Lapwing, Seaforth, May by Steve Young Back cover: Iceland Gull, Preston Dock, November by Mike Malpass 4 Lancashire Bird Report 2010 Review of the Year, 2010 John Wright JANUARY The month was mostly unsettled, the first half being very cold with widespread snowfalls and some sharp frosts. Despite the freezing conditions the Velvet Scoter at Barrow Lodge and Black‐necked Grebe at Rishton Reservoir remained on the 1st. Both departed as the ice increased but on the coast the male Ring‐necked Duck continued to be seen at Fleetwood Marine Lakes and other sites on the Fylde. Bitterns skated around the ice at Leighton Moss, Martin Mere, Haweswater and Mere Sands Wood. They also revealed themselves in a number of unexpected locations including Lytham Moss, Crossens Outer Marsh and the Lancaster Canal at Over Kellet. Other signs of winter’s grip included a nationally important count of 2300 Coot at Southport Marine Lake, four redhead Smew feeding on the River Ribble between Preston and Longridge and a pack of 102 Red Grouse at Lords Hall on Darwen Moor. Passerines were also noticeable during this period, with particularly large Linnet flocks numbering 580 in the eastern fields at Marton Mere and 600 at Holland’s Farm, Ormskirk. FEBRUARY It was the coldest February since 1991 with a few brief milder interludes. With