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Archived Latest Sightings:
November and December 2009.

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Click here to see list of Archived latest sightings from September 2000.

December 31:
2 Hen Harrier (ringtail), 4 Short-eared Owl, 1 Merlin and 5 Stonechat 
(3 male 2 female) - Burton Marsh.

December 30:
2 Hen Harrier (1 'Grey' male and 1 ringtail) - Parkgate Marsh this evening and yesterday.
17 Goldeneye, 12 Red-breasted Merganser and 1 juv Shag - West Kirby Marine Lake.
1 Stonechat - Red Rocks marsh.
3 Bullfinch - Lingham Lane, Moreton.
2 Peregrine hunting through a flock of 6,000 Knot at high tide - West Kirby Shore.
3 Red-throated Diver and 8 Common Scoter on the sea, also 2 Peregrine, 13 Purple Sandpiper, 420 Curlew and 50 Grey Plover - Hilbre, for more details see
  http://www.hilbrebirdobs.blogspot.com/ .
1 Black Redstart (fem) on boulders by Leasowe Gunsite.
1 Mediterranean Gull (ad) on grass between Leasowe Castle and Lighthouse.

December 29:
1,200 Black-tailed Godwit, c800 Pintail and c10,000 Knot - Thurstaston Shore as tide went out.
120 Bar-tailed Godwit and 220 Black-tailed Godwit - Caldy Shore by Caldy Blacks.

December 28:
16 Goldeneye and 2 Red-breasted Merganser -  West Kirby Marine Lake.
2 Short-eared Owl and one Ringtail Hen Harrier - Parkgate Marsh this evening.
2 Scaup and 60 Shoveler - Shotwick Boating Lake.
13 Bewick's Swan, 2 Whooper Swan, 8 Mute Swan, 1 Black Swan, 1 Spotted Redshank, c300 Wigeon, 5 Gadwall and 2 Peregrine - Connah's Quay Reserve and  nearby Dee channel.

December 27:
3 Hen Harrier (2 fem, 1 imm male) - Parkgate Marsh.
1 Greenshank on groyne, Meols Shore.
1 Kingfisher on Lingham Mere fish pond, Lingham Lane, Leasowe.

December 26:
820 Pintail and c10,000 Knot - Thurstaston Shore at low tide.
1 Black Redstart (fem) on sea wall by Leasowe Castle, at dusk.
1 Mediterranean Gull (ad) and 400+ Bar-tailed Godwit, 100+ Black-tailed Godwit over - Leasowe Lighthouse.
880 Lapwing and 270 Golden Plover - Heswall Shore this morning.

December 25:
14 Goldeneye and 3 Red-breasted Merganser -  West Kirby Marine Lake.
1 Hen Harrier (ringtail) - Parkgate.

December 24:
1 Water Pipit near Harp Inn, Neston Marsh but no sign of Richard's Pipit.

December 23:
1 Richard's Pipit opposite Harp Inn, Neston Marsh.
1,060 Pintail, 650 Black-tailed Godwit and c7,000 Knot - Thurstaston Shore as tide came in.
2 Short-eared Owl - Burton Marsh.

December 22:
1 Richard's Pipit opposite Harp Inn, Neston Marsh between 12noon and 3pm (if you have lost your spectacles there send me an email!).
2 Hen Harrier (ringtail) and 2 Short-eared Owl - Burton Marsh.
2 Hen Harrier, 3 Short-eared Owl and 1 Barn Owl - Parkgate Marsh.

December 21:
9 Purple Sandpiper - Wallasey Lifeguard Station.
8 Purple Sandpiper on pontoon - New Brighton Marine Lake, also 1 Shag.
1 Richard's Pipit opposite Harp Inn, Neston Marsh at 2.30pm.

December 20:
12,000 Dunlin, 6,000 Knot, 300 Grey Plover and 60 Sanderling - West Kirby Shore at high tide.
127 Black-tailed Godwit and 3 Water Rail - Gilroy NP/Hoylake Langfields.
1 Richard's Pipit seen and heard at about 10am, then until at least 2.45pm  - opposite Harp Inn, Neston Marsh.
1 Greenshank - Dovepoint, Meols at 9.30am.
1 Hen Harrier (fem) - Connah's Quay Reserve.
1 Kingfisher - Burton Marsh (end of Denhall Lane).
2 Hen Harrier (ringtail) - Parkgate Marsh.

December 19:
24 Bewick's Swan, 21 Whooper Swan, 25 Mute Swan and 1 Black Swan off Burton Point, also 1 female Merlin, 1 male ringtail Hen Harrier, 1 Short eared Owl and 1 Raven.
1,600 Black-tailed Godwit before high tide - Thurstaston Shore.
2 Shag, 14 Red-breasted Merganser, 9 Goldeneye, 2 Great Crested Grebe, 500 Dunlin, 41 Turnstone, 17 Redshank and 2 Grey Wagtail -  West Kirby Marine Lake this morning.

December 18:
8 Bullfinch along the Wirral Way between Heswall and Cubbin's Green.
1 Peregrine being mobbed by a crow, also c700 Pintail and c1,000 Black-tailed Godwit - Thurstaston Shore as tide came in.
7 Red-breasted merganser, 4 Goldeneye and 2 Shag at West Kirby Marine Lake.

December 17:
3 Hen Harrier (ringtail) - Parkgate Marsh.

December 16:
2 Stonechat, 2 Raven and 350 Curlew - West Kirby Shore.
1,200 Black-tailed Godwit and 510 Pintail - Thurstaston Shore.
9 Goldeneye and 5 Red-breasted Merganser - West Kirby Marine Lake this morning, c1,000 Dunlin and 80 Turnstone on the rocks at high tide.

December 15:
2 Peregrine,  2 Raven, c600 Lapwing, c 12,000 Knot, c600 Dunlin, c 300 Black-tailed Godwit, 3 Snipe and c120 Linnet - Heswall Shore over high tide.
600 Black-tailed Godwit - Thurstaston Shore after high tide.
3,000 Pink-footed Geese - Parkgate Marsh.

December 14:
169 Great Crested Grebe and c100 Common Scoter - Leasowe Lighthouse at high tide.
610 Pintail, 560 Black-tailed Godwit and c10,000 Knot -  Thurstaston Shore.

December 13:
30,000 Knot over Black Horse Hill, West Kirby, flying in one elongated flock towards Leasowe.
1 Water Rail in front of Old Baths wall, Parkgate, also 3 Hen Harrier (ringtail), 6 Short-eared Owl and 450 Pink-footed Geese observed during raptor watch.
Up to 10 Short-eared Owl and 1 Hen Harrier (ringtail) - Burton Marsh.

December 12:
198 Great Crested Grebe, 1 Kingfisher, 150 Common Scoter, 322 Lapwing and 44 Sanderling - Leasowe Lighthouse just after high tide.
3 ring-tailed Hen Harrier, 6 Short-eared Owl, 1 Barn Owl and 1 Peregrine - Parkgate Old Baths.

December 11:
7 Red-breasted Merganser, 5 Goldeneye ( 3 ad. males ) and 3 juv. Shag - West Kirby Marine Lake.
1 Black Redstart (male) seen Hoylake Station flying west late afternoon.

December 10:
4 Goldeneye, 4 Red-breasted Merganser and 3 Shag on West Kirby Marine Lake.
9 Stonechat, 1 Ringtail Hen Harrier and 4 Kestrel - Burton Marsh.
2 Short Eared Owl, 2 Ringtail Hen Harrier, 4 Kestrel, 1 Marsh Harrier and 100/200 Pink Footed Geese flew over - Parkgate Marsh.
145 Brent Geese - Hilbre.

December 9:
872 Pintail and c20,000 Knot this morning, 2 Raven over this afternoon - Thurstaston Shore.
17,700 Knot, 1 Greenshank, 1 Merlin which chased a pipit into a bush and 2 Peregrine - Heswall Shore as tide came in.

December 8:
8 Bullfinch, c600 Pintail and c6,000 Knot - Thurstaston/Thurstaston Shore.
1 Spotted Redshank, 1 Greenshank, c3000 Knot, 53 Black Tailed Godwit, 250 Dunlin, 120 Lapwing, 275 Redshank and 1 Peregrine - Heswall Shore before high tide.

December 7:
2 ringtail Hen Harrier, 1 Short-eared Owl and 3 Kestrel - Parkgate this evening.
4 Goldeneye - West Kirby Marine Lake.

December 6:
36 Gannet, 100+ Great Crested Grebe, 100+ Common Scoter, 1 Great Northern Diver (flying east) and 1 Red-throated Diver (flying west) - Leasowe Lighthouse, also 1 Greenshank in channel off embankment and 1 Stonechat in gorse bushes.
22 Purple Sandpiper on pontoon - New Brighton Marine Lake.
12 Purple Sandpiper - on rocks below Wallasey Lifeguard Station.
1 Merlin, 1 Peregrine and 1 Kingfisher - Bagillt Marsh.

December 5:
2 Shag (juv) - West Kirby Marine Lake.
3 Hen Harrier, 1 Barn Owl and 1 Short-eared Owl - Parkgate this evening.

December 4:
4,140 Herring Gull and 74 Great Black-backed Gull - Hoylake Shore at high tide.
1 Black Redstart on sea wall by Leasowe Castle at 1245hrs then went into bushes.
1 Hen Harrier (imm male) and 2 Peregrine which both caught Knot within one minute of each other - Heswall Shore.
1 Red-throated Diver, 100+ Great Crested Grebe and 50+ Common Scoter off Leasowe Lighthouse.

December 3:
127 Pale-bellied Brent Geese, 296 Curlew, 104 Oystercatcher, 1100 Dunlin, 900 Knot, 51 Sanderling, 98 Grey Plover and 11 Ringed Plover, also 2 Raven and 1 Peregrine over - a very wet and windy West Kirby Shore as tide came in.
7 Red-breasted Merganser, 3 Goldeneye and 4 Shag - West Kirby Marine Lake.

December 2:
15 Brent Geese (pale-bellied) flew along North Wirral coast towards Hilbre at high tide, another 10 flew in and landed on sea between Meols and Leasowe Lighthouse.
8 Scaup, 215 Great Crested Grebe and 1 Gannet off Leasowe Lighthouse at high tide.
4 Shag (juv), 11 Red-breasted Merganser and 2 Goldeneye - West Kirby Marine Lake.
40 Lapwing on the island, also 112 Brent Geese (pale-bellied) and 630 Cormorant - Little Eye.
250 Sanderling and 1 Raven - West Kirby Shore.
11 Bullfinch between Thurstaston and Heswall.
1 Chiffchaff at Target Road, Heswall, by sewage farm, and 1 Raven over the shore.
2 Whooper Swan flying south west, and 1 male Goosander flew south down the west side, highlights from Hilbre, for more details see
  http://www.hilbrebirdobs.blogspot.com/ .

December 1:
3 Gannet and 20+ Common Scoter - Leasowe Lighthouse this morning.
610 Pintail, c700 Black-tailed Godwit and 1 Peregrine - Thurstaston Shore.
93 Golden Plover - Heswall Shore.
1 Hen Harrier (ringtail) - Parkgate Marsh.

November 30:
1 Hen Harrier (ringtail), 1 Sparrowhawk and at least 4 Kestrel - Parkgate Marsh.

November 29:
5 Gannet, 120 Common Scoter and 23 Whooper Swan which flew in off the sea - Leasowe Lighthouse this morning.

November 28:
4 Great Crested Grebe, 8 Wigeon, 1 Gannet and 35 Common Scoter off Leasowe Lighthouse this morning.
4 Short-eared Owl, 1 Hen Harrier, 1 Merlin, 1 Peregrine and c23 Little Egret - Parkgate Marsh.
2 Shag, 7 Red-breasted Merganser and 21 Turnstone - West Kirby Marine Lake.
1 Snow Bunting (fem) - Little Eye.
110 Pale-bellied Brent, 6 Shag, 1,000 Cormorant and 2 Rock Pipit - Hilbre.
1 Greenshank roosting on groyne at Meols before being disturbed by a Peregrine.

November 27:
960 Pintail and c20,000 Knot - Thurstaston Shore at low tide.
3 Little Gull (1st winter) - north end of West Kirby Marine Lake.
1 Hen Harrier (ringtail), 2 Raven and 4 Stonechat - Burton Marsh.
c150 Pink-footed Geese, 1 Barn Owl, 4 Short-eared Owl, 2 Hen Harrier (ringtail, prob fem and imm male), 1 Merlin and 5 Kestrel - Parkgate Marsh.
121 Brent Geese (pale-bellied), 1190 Cormorant flying north out of the estuary, 1 Gannet and 12 Common Scoter - highlights from Hilbre, for more details see
  http://www.hilbrebirdobs.blogspot.com/ .

November 26:
2 Shag (juv) - West Kirby Marine Lake.
5 Bullfinch along the Wirral Way between Heswall and West Kirby.
514 Pintail - Thurstaston Shore.

November 25:
7 Grey Heron and 30 to 40 Siskin - Gilroy NP, West Kirby.
1 Shag (juv), also 3 Great Crested Grebe and 3 Red-breasted Merganser - West Kirby Marine Lake, 1 Raven on the shore.

November 24:
1 Little Auk off north end late morning then in gutter this afternoon - Hilbre, also 2,478 Cormorant, 3 Shag, 10 Purple Sandpiper, 10 Great Crested Grebe and 112 Brent Geese.
2 Raven over Heswall Fields.
639 Dunlin, 274 Sanderling, 250 Lapwing, 1 Greenshank and 2 Scaup (male) - Leasowe Lighthouse.

November 23:
1 Slavonian Grebe, 2 Great Crested Grebe, 4 Shag, 111 Brent Geese (all pale bellied) and 2 Purple Sandpiper - Hilbre this morning.
4,000 Knot, 250 Pintail, 235 Lapwing and 88 Golden Plover - Thurstaston Shore, 6 Bullfinch on main path from Visitor centre.

November 22:
11 Red-breasted Merganser and 1 Rock Pipit - West Kirby Marine Lake, 3,200 Starling over in four flocks heading SE.
1 Mediterranean Gull - Leasowe Lighthouse.

November 21:
4 Scaup (drake), 3 Red-throated Diver, 6 Guillemot, 200 Common Scoter, 2 Shag, 108 Brent Geese (pale-bellied) and 5 Purple Sandpiper - Hilbre.
265 Pintail in gutter off Thurstaston before high tide, 2 Bullfinch by Visitor Centre.
c300 Lapwing and 1 Greenshank, c150 Linnet in marsh - Heswall Shore.

November 20:
2 Shorelark - Point of Ayr, east of lighthouse, at 10am, flew off east ahead of heavy rain, no sign since (at 1045am), also 1 Snow Bunting and 1 Merlin.
3 Snow Bunting - on the beach at Thurstaston, about 150m north of Tinker's Dell steps at 1pm, no sign at 3pm.
20+ Gannet and c50 Common Scoter off Hoylake at high tide.
17 Mistle Thrush, 7 Song Thrush, 38 Pied Wagtail and 2 Great-spotted Woodpecker in horse paddocks between Leasowe Lighthouse and Dove point, also 1 Peregrine, 420 Lapwing and 65 Ringed Plover on beach this morning.
22 Shag (mostly juv) at southern end of West Kirby Marine Lake briefly before disturbed by windsurfer.
4 Short-eared Owl - Burton Marsh.
7 Purple Sandpiper and 20 Turnstone - Wallasey Lifeguard Station.

November 19:
2 Shorelark - Point of Ayr, east of lighthouse, also 1 Short-eared Owl over, 1 Merlin, 1 Black Guillemot flying west and 14 Common Scoter west.
1 Red-throated Diver - Gronant.
3 Gannet, 1 Red-throated Diver, 7 Purple Sandpiper, 17 Common Scoter and 5 Great Crested Grebe - Wallasey Lifeguard Station.
1 Hen Harrier (ringtail) and 1 Peregrine - Burton Marsh this morning.
1 Hen Harrier (ringtail) - Riverbank Road, Heswall.
3 ring-tail Hen Harrier, 1 Merlin, 1 Barn Owl and 100+ little egret east at dusk - Parkgate Marsh.

November 18:
98 Brent Geese and 770 Cormorant - Little Eye.
11 Red-breasted Merganser and 1 Mediterranean Gull - West Kirby Marine Lake, 78 Turnstone on lake wall.
6,000 Dunlin and 5,000 Knot - West Kirby Shore.
2 Shorelark - Point of Ayr, east of lighthouse.

November 17:
6 Gannet off Hoylake Shore.
2 Shorelark and 6 Snow Bunting - Point of Ayr, east of lighthouse.

November 16:
95 Brent Geese and 615 Cormorant - Little Eye.
8 Common Scoter  - Red Rocks.
2 Shorelark, 4 Twite and 6 Snow Bunting - Point of Ayr, east of lighthouse.

November 15:
99 Brent Geese off Little Eye.
4 Gannet, 27 Great Crested Grebe, 36 Common Scoter and 2,600 Oystercatcher - Red Rocks.
15+ Gannet offshore, 1 Greenshank on groyne - Meols Shore.
2 Shorelark and 5 Snow Bunting - Point of Ayr, on beach between Lighthouse and red flag.
3 Hen Harrier, at least 4 Short-eared Owl, 1 Barn Owl, 1 Merlin and at least 5 Kestrel - raptor watch at Old Baths, Parkgate.

November 14:
6 Gannet offshore, 730 Grey Plover, 120 Bar-tailed Godwit, 210 Sanderling, 26,000 Knot, 11,000 Dunlin and 4,000 Oystercatcher - Hoylake Shore at high tide.
640 Black-tailed Godwit (three colour-ringed) - Thurstaston Shore as tide went out.
1 Short-eared Owl - Wallasey Golf course.

November 13:
5 Gannet, 1 Red-throated Diver, 63 Brent Geese, 2,500 Oystercatcher, 274 Shelduck and 750+ Cormorant - Red Rocks at high tide.
23 Gannet off Leasowe Lighthouse, a very high count for November. 
9 Red-breasted Merganser - West Kirby Marine Lake.
162 Pintail and 440 Black-tailed Godwit (five colour-ringed) - Thurstaston Shore as tide went out, 1 Kingfisher seen today and during the past few days by the Visitor Centre.
2 Great Spotted Woodpecker flew out of the marsh and flew south, also 2 Peregrine and 1 Greenshank - Heswall Shore.
1 Merlin (male), 2 Hen Harrier (ringtail) and 1 Peregrine - Decca Pools, Burton Marsh.
1 Hen Harrier (ringtail) at Parkgate just before the rain came!

November 12:
2 Hen Harrier (ringtail) and 1 Merlin - Decca Pools, Burton Marsh, a mixed flock of 300 finches moving south.
485 Teal, 74 Wigeon, 176 Lapwing and 2 Common Buzzard - Inner Marsh Farm.

November 11:
1 Woodcock - Caldy Woods.
7 Red-breasted Merganser - West Kirby Marine Lake.
1 Hen Harrier (ringtail) and 1 Short-eared Owl - Denhall Quay, early afternoon.
2 Barn Owl, 2 Short-eared Owl, 3 Hen Harrier (ringtail) and 100 Pink-footed Geese - Parkgate Marsh, this evening.
546 Lapwing - Heswall Shore.
374 Pintail and 4 Wigeon - Thurstaston Shore.

November 10:
1 Greenshank - Dove Point, Meols.
6 Stonechat, 30+ Meadow Pipit, 40+ Pied Wagtail and 450 Lapwing - Leasowe Lighthouse area this morning.
1 'grey' male was with the Hen Harriers at Parkgate Marsh this evening.

November 9:
1,530 Bar-tailed Godwit and 6,700 Knot - Leasowe Shore at low tide.
8 Bullfinch along/or near the Wirral Way between Heswall and West Kirby.
60 Pink-footed Geese over NE, 1 Greenshank, 1 Whooper Swan, 120 Golden Plover, c7,000 Knot, 112 Pintail and 2 Common Buzzard - Heswall/Thurstaston Shore at low tide.

November 8:
1 Spoonbill, 2 Hen Harrier (ringtail), 1 Short-eared Owl and 11 Pink-footed Geese - Neston/Parkgate Marsh.
102 Brent Geese Hilbre, for more details see
  http://www.hilbrebirdobs.blogspot.com/ .
1 Great Northern Diver over Little Eye.
2 Raven over Thurstaston Hill.
2 Short Eared Owl, one Merlin and one Hen Harrier (ringtail) - Parkgate Marsh.
1 Kingfisher, 3 Greenshank, 12+ Little Egret and 5 Little Grebe - Connah's Quay Reserve.
4 Whooper Swan and 3 Bewick's Swan - Burton Outer marsh.
7 Purple Sandpiper on groyne, and a sick looking Guillemot on the sea - Wallasey Shore.

November 7:
2 Snow Bunting - West Kirby Shore.
1 Slavonian Grebe, 7 Common Scoter, 14 Brent Geese on rock by Bird Rock, 4 Stonechat and 2 Water Rail - Red Rocks and marsh.

November 6:
1 Black-throated Diver (w/pl) and 2 fairly distant Slavonian Grebe, and 97 Brent Geese - highlights from Hilbre, for more details see
  http://www.hilbrebirdobs.blogspot.com/ .
1 Short-eared Owl over Hoylake Langfields.
30 Pink-footed Geese flying north over Heswall this morning.
3,600 Oystercatcher. 460 Lapwing, 74 Great-crested Grebe, 37 Common Scoter (very close in), 21 Bar-tailed Godwit and 3 Razorbill - Leasowe Embankment, by Lighthouse.
c110 Pink-footed Geese settled in the middle of the estuary off Thurstaston for about 25 mins before moving off S over Heswall c 9.30 am.
361 Lapwing, c80 Golden Plover, 6 Snipe and 2 Peregrine - Heswall Shore, plus 47 Brent Geese off Riverbank Rd car park on the tide.

November 5:
7 Purple Sandpiper on pontoon - New Brighton Marine Lake.
670 Cormorant - Little Eye at high tide.
1 Merlin and 2 Green Sandpiper - Burton Marsh.
3 Whooper Swan - Inner Marsh Farm.
531 Common Gull, 65 Herring Gull and 247 Black-headed Gull sheltering from wind and rain on West Kirby playing fields, Anglesey road.

November 4:
1,300 Oystercatcher, 300 Dunlin, 14 Common Scoter, 4 Red-breasted Merganser, 3 Great-crested Grebe, 40+ Meadow Pipit through and 12 Siskin over - Leasowe Embankment before high tide.
9 Bewick's Swan - Inner Marsh Farm.
3 ringtail Hen Harrier and 1 Marsh Harrier - Burton Marsh, at 12.30pm.
1 ringtail Hen Harrier and 4+ Short-eared Owl - Parkgate Marsh at 4pm.

November 3:
7 Purple Sandpiper - Wallasey Lifeguard Station, on rocks at high tide.
75+ Brent Geese - Hilbre.
3 Short-eared Owl and 1 Barn Owl - Parkgate Marsh.

November 2:
1 Leach's Petrel past Leasowe Gunsite at high tide.

November 1:
1 Marsh Harrier (adult female), 1 Hen Harrier (juv male), 2 Peregrine, 2 Water Rail, 2 Greenshank and 300+ Pintail - Inner Marsh Farm.

Click here to see Archived latest sightings from September 2000.