Pennington & Stanpit Marshes, Winterbourne Downs :: 26 September 2026

In the search for new birds to add to the year list, the semipalmated sandpiper at Pennington Marsh was right at the top of the list. On Thursday evening, Kev @kev07713 got in touch to say that he’d realised the bird wasn’t on his wife’s life list, so they were planning to visit on Friday. Unfortunately, I already had a few things organised and wouldn’t be able to join them.

They had a great day, managing not only to see the sandpiper but also to visit and tick a Lapland bunting and saw both white-tailed eagles and ospreys - the location for viewing the eagles and ospreys had been suggested by our friend David South @davidso55441100. On Friday evening, Kev got back in touch to ask whether I was planning to head down to Hampshire on Saturday, as David was keen to go and see the eagles and ospreys himself, as well as the sandpiper and anything else that might be on offer.

I said that I was going, and it was agreed that Kev would join David and I. With plenty to look forward to, we planned to set off bright and early.

Pennington Marshes form part of the extensive Lymington and Keyhaven Marshes on the Hampshire coast, a mixture of grazing marsh, saltmarsh, mudflats and saline lagoons that is renowned for its birdlife. One of the most productive areas is Fishtail Lagoon, which lies immediately inside the sea wall and can be viewed from the Solent Way. A large island in the centre provides a nesting site for birds such as avocets, while the shallow margins of the lagoon can attract a variety of waders, wildfowl and terns. With its combination of muddy edges, shallow water and surrounding marsh, Fishtail is also the sort of habitat that can produce scarce passage waders, making it an obvious place to check during likely passage events.

We stopped for a comfort break and a spot of breakfast before deciding whether to make a detour to look for a Lapland bunting before heading on to try for the semipalmated sandpiper. With no report available yet to guide us, we decided to make our way straight to the rarer species.

We arrived at the car park to find it already full, but fortunately there was just enough room to pull in at the side of the road while still allowing other vehicles to pass. There was also good news on the BirdGuides news service confirming that the semipalmated sandpiper was still present, so we hurried from the car park towards the sea wall to see if we could connect with the bird. Having already been flushed from the pools on two previous occasions/days, once by a sparrowhawk and once by a peregrine, there was certainly no guarantee that it would still be there - it had gone awol for 4 hours the previous day.

As we approached the sea wall, we spotted what looked like our bird in the shallow pool and, sure enough, a few people were already taking photographs. Within a couple of minutes, another small wader joined it, but both birds suddenly took to the air and flew away towards Butts Lagoon. Apparently, a peregrine had been seen back towards the car park, which may well have been the reason for their sudden departure. After such a promising start, we were going to have to check that the semipalmated sandpiper was still there. Thankfully, we needn’t have worried, as it was soon located at the back edge of the water on Butts Lagoon, where it was associating with a little stint. Kev picked up a bearded tit after hearing it call, although Dave and I couldn’t manage to get onto it. We all did, however, get good views of a Cetti’s warbler as it called and then relocated nearby.

We followed the two birds as they fed, occasionally chatting with each other and with a couple of the birders nearby, until they suddenly got up and relocated back into Fishtail Lagoon, this time further along the sea wall. We followed a group of birders ahead of us along the lower path beneath the sea wall and soon found the birds feeding much closer. We all crouched down to get views through and over the fence, with the two birds still largely associating with one another. For me, the best photographs were those that captured the reflections in the still water. As we watched the birds, we were joined by Trevor Ellery @ElleryTrev16932, who had made the journey back after returning home the previous day when it appeared that the bird had departed. Having heard the news that it had returned, he was back again and had managed to catch up with it.

The semipalmated sandpiper is a scarce North American visitor to Britain, with most British records occurring during the autumn migration period. Although it occurs regularly enough to be firmly established on the British List, it remains a bird that most birders will encounter only rarely - the first documented British record was in Norfolk in 1953. This individual was a juvenile, its fresh, neatly patterned upperparts giving it a distinctly scaly appearance, contrasting with its clean white underparts.

From time to time, I found myself following the little stint as the two birds worked their way along the water’s edge, generally feeding from left to right, with one sometimes taking the lead before the other caught up. The little stint appeared smaller than the semipalmated sandpiper, with a tiny, fine black bill and dark legs. Its upperparts were intricately marked, with pale feather fringes creating the distinctive pale lines, or ‘tramlines’, down the back, while the underparts were clean white. It moved quickly along the water’s edge, constantly feeding, running a few steps before stopping to pick at the muddy margin. Having the two birds together made the difference in size and structure particularly obvious, although both were remarkably small waders.

I turned to rejoin Kev and David, only to find Kev chatting with Alan Boddington @alanbodd, a birder from nearby us in Warwickshire who we regularly bump into around home, as well as at birding sites further afield. It’s always good to see a familiar face further from home, and after catching up for a while, Alan headed off to get some closer photographs and videos of the birds.

On the Solent side of the sea wall we could see so many grey mullets, some adults and some fry. They can often be seen moving through the shallows or breaking the surface as they feed. The extensive network of tidal creeks, lagoons and mudflats around Lymington and Keyhaven provides ideal habitat for fish, and the abundance of marine life is one of the reasons the area attracts such a wealth of birdlife. The Isle of Wight provides some shelter from the full force of the English Channel, allowing fine sediments to accumulate and creating the shallow, productive waters and mudflats that are characteristic of the Solent coast.

After a quick discussion, we decided to move on and head for Stanpit Marsh, as the latest reports were still negative for the local Lapland bunting near Southampton. When we reached the car park to leave, we found Nick @old_caley and Anne Truby just arriving and parking up. We offered them our spot, as the space they had managed to find was particularly tight, making it difficult for cars parked opposite to manoeuvre out. This meant a quick repack of the car and a brief chat with Nick and Anne before we set off again. It was then that we discovered the phone signal was rather patchy, and eventually we had to rely on Kev’s phone to get us the directions we needed.

Stanpit Marsh lies at the northern end of Christchurch Harbour, where the Avon and Stour meet before making their way out towards the sea. The reserve is a mixture of saltmarsh, reedbeds, wet grassland, pools and tidal creeks, with the changing water levels constantly altering the appearance of the site. It is a particularly good place for waders, with the muddy margins and shallow pools providing feeding habitat for both resident birds and migrants.

The views across the marsh are extensive, with Christchurch Harbour and Hengistbury Head providing a backdrop beyond the pools and channels. At the right time of year, the open habitat can produce a good variety of passage birds, while the reedbeds and surrounding scrub add the possibility of something different. Like many coastal sites, Stanpit is a place where patience can pay off, with the birds often spread across a surprisingly large area and conditions changing as the tide moves through the harbour.

We joined a large group of birders gathered at the BCP Raptor Watch, who initially had their attention focused away from the Solent as they followed a glossy ibis moving around the marsh. We soon discovered that the largest contingent were members of the Christchurch Harbour Ornithological Group (CHOG), who were on an organised visit. We were told that the pair of white-tailed eagles had arrived at around 9.30am and had already spent at least ninety minutes on the East Marsh.

With David regularly taking to the water in his kayak, we were aware of the presence of several kayakers inside the yellow buoys around Stanpit and that they could potentially cause some disturbance. The eagles, however, appeared completely unperturbed, remaining settled on the marsh and occasionally preening.

The white-tailed eagles are part of the ongoing reintroduction programme on the Isle of Wight, where young birds collected from wild nests in Scotland have been released since 2019. Once released, the eagles roam widely as they learn the landscape, and Christchurch Harbour has increasingly become a regular destination for some of them. Individual birds have been recorded around Stanpit for several years, with a pair now making increasingly regular visits to the harbour and surrounding marshes. The presence of the pair was therefore no longer quite the unexpected event it would once have been, although seeing two of Britain's largest birds of prey settled together was still an impressive sight.

Although there was a significant amount of heat haze, views through the scope were still good, and we were able to share them with a couple of people who had either binoculars or cameras but not both. The haze is particularly noticeable in the videos below and reflected the conditions, with the day feeling more like the height of summer than late September.

We were scanning the marsh and out on the water when a shout went up that the eagles had taken off - we'd missed that. They flew along the channel in front of the houses, and you could see residents and birders watching them from the opposite side. Now in the air, their sheer size became even more apparent. They flew with broad, powerful wings held almost flat, the long, wide wings and projecting head giving them a very distinctive silhouette. Their flight was surprisingly effortless for such large birds, with long glides punctuated by slow, deep wingbeats. As they circled over the marsh, their white tails were clearly visible against the darker plumage, while the sheer breadth of their wings made them unmistakable even at distance. Watching the pair together, effortlessly gaining height before gliding over the marsh and the harbour, was an impressive sight.

They eventually climbed high enough that taking any more photographs seemed rather pointless, so we resumed scanning the waders around the water’s edge, across the marsh and along the field margins. There were good numbers of little egrets, with more than 20 present, along with at least nine grey herons, most of which were roosting rather than feeding. The grassier areas held plenty of curlews and bar-tailed godwits, giving us plenty to keep checking through as we continued to scan the marsh.

Overhead a glossy ibis flew by giving great views and is apparently a new arrival at the site that day. The glossy ibis has become an increasingly familiar sight in Britain. Once a genuine rarity, its numbers have risen considerably since the turn of the century, mirroring a major expansion of the species across western Europe. The first confirmed British breeding took place in Cambridgeshire in 2022, when a pair successfully raised a chick, and the species is now regarded as a colonising breeder.

The scale of the change was highlighted dramatically in September 2025, when an unprecedented influx saw hundreds of glossy ibises arrive across Britain and Ireland. With birds now being seen regularly at wetlands across the country, encounters with them no longer carry quite the rarity value they once did, although seeing them remains a memorable part of any visit.

We had already seen a single osprey pass through earlier, followed by a couple working their way up and down the coast. As we turned and started back towards the car park, however, one returned and, rather than simply passing through, appeared to be actively fishing offshore. We made our way back to our original position and watched as it worked steadily further from the shore, searching the water below.

Then it suddenly dropped into the sea. When it emerged, it was carrying a fish, and fortunately it began flying back towards the shore, giving us several passes as it carried what appeared to be a grey mullet. It looked to be a sizeable fish, and the osprey seemed to be working hard to carry it towards the coast, occasionally being mobbed a a couple of gulls.

With autumn migration well underway, the ospreys won't be staying for much longer. Having spent the summer in Britain, they will soon begin their journeys south, eventually reaching their wintering grounds in West Africa. In Hampshire, ospreys can remain into October, so the birds we were watching at Stanpit were taking advantage of the rich feeding opportunities around the harbour before setting off on their migration.

We prepared to leave, and from where we stood, as well as along the walk back, we picked out a selection of smaller birds including pipits, linnets, reed buntings and stonechats.

As we passed the Visitor Centre, we looked back towards the marsh and Kev pointed out a sun halo above us. A large, faint ring of light surrounded the sun, suspended against the sky. It is apparently caused by sunlight passing through millions of tiny ice crystals in high, thin cloud, with the hexagonal crystals refracting the light to create the circular halo. The effect was surprisingly obvious, occasionally showing a hint of colour around its inner edge. Against the intense late-September sunshine, it added another striking feature to a day that had already felt more like midsummer.

Kev was already armed with an explanation of how it formed, having read about sun halos recently.

We made it back to the car and discussed what to do next, conscious that the Lapland bunting had still not been located. Our friend Bryan Manston had warned us that there could be traffic problems on the route back, suggesting that travelling via Salisbury might be the better option. With that in mind, we decided to head through Wiltshire and make a stop at RSPB Winterbourne Downs, where we could try for some stone curlews. David had never seen one, so it seemed like a worthwhile addition to the day.

We arrived at the site and parked up where we had earlier in the year and set off up the track to view across the fields. The site was a complete change of habitat from the coastal marshes we had left behind. The reserve sits within the rolling chalk country of Wiltshire, with wide, open fields of restored chalk grassland stretching across the downland. Formerly agricultural fields, much of the site has been transformed into wildlife-rich grassland, with fallow plots and areas of sparsely vegetated ground providing the open, bare conditions favoured by stone curlews.

By late September, the site has taken on its autumn character and was very different from the habitats we had encountered earlier in the day. The grassland looked dry and somewhat parched beneath the strong sunshine, while the open landscape was broken by hedgerows and substantial areas of scrub. The carefully managed plots provided ideal habitat for stone curlews preparing for their autumn migration, but the birds could be remarkably difficult to pick out, even when they were standing in the open only a short distance away.

Initially, we began to doubt whether we would find any, but then, in a green crop in the distance, we spotted one, then a second and then a third. Through the scopes we could make them out, although they were distant and the heat haze was very strong. As we continued scanning the area, the number steadily increased until we had counted 17 individuals. We could also occasionally hear others calling from the field on the other side of the trees, although the ground there was almost completely covered in scrub and there would have been little chance of seeing them. How many are present is unknown but the 17 is very much a low estimate.

The latest RSPB article, published 25 September, confirms that the reserve had eight breeding pairs in 2026, but doesn't give the September post-breeding total. Interestingly, an RSPB local-group page says 30+ stone curlews have been seen at Winterbourne Downs in recent years so there could be many more than those we saw.

We packed up and made our way back to the car, bringing what had been a fantastic day of birding to an end. It had been a rewarding trip, with plenty of memorable birds, some excellent views and a good mix of species including a new bird on my year list. The drive home was thankfully straightforward, and we made good time, giving us plenty of opportunity to reflect on everything we had managed to see during a very enjoyable day out.

Year list: 294.

RSPB Frampton Marsh & Ardley ERF Lagoon :: 20 September 2026

Saturday arrived, and usually this would be the day when Kev @kev07713 and I headed out birding for the weekend session. This week, though, I had a prior engagement, having arranged a social get-together for some of my former colleagues from work.

Well, I say I’d arranged it! My super-efficient former colleague, who had previously overseen admin at work, had done most of the groundwork. She had found out when her husband would be playing with one of his bands and then emailed around our old colleagues to see who might be interested and available to attend the gig. I then arranged for my old team to meet up for a curry beforehand. It turned into a lovely afternoon and evening together, eventually with 23 of us in all, catching up over food, reminiscing about our time at work, what each was doing now, and generally enjoying each other’s company.

Our birding trip was therefore rearranged for the Sunday, and with five reports of our target bird on Saturday, we decided to head for RSPB Frampton Marsh in search of a buff-breasted sandpiper. It had been reported in almost exactly the same spot where we had seen one back in early October 2023.

As I was likely to be home late and in bed around midnight, we agreed to meet at 6.00am, giving me as much of a lie-in as possible, while Kev would do the driving. Keen to get onto the bird as soon as we could, we decided not to stop for breakfast and instead head straight there. We could always grab something from the reserve café once we'd seen the bird - assuming, of course, that it was still there.

Once we had connected with the sandpiper, the plan was to work our way around the reserve and spend the rest of the day simply birding. Having already seen many species this year, there are relatively few other targets nearby, particularly on the UK mainland, at this point in the season. Hopefully, that will change over the coming weeks as the winds shift from their predominantly westerly direction currently to more easterly winds, bringing with them the prospect of some exciting autumn migrants.

We arrived and decided to make the walk from the car park to the sea bank and then along towards the raptor viewpoint, rather than taking the slightly cheeky option of driving almost to the end of the track and parking there. As we made our way along, we stopped from time to time to scan the fields in the hope of finding a merlin. They have been seen on several occasions around their usual haunts this autumn, but unfortunately, we couldn't find one. We did, however, see marsh harrier, buzzard and kestrel as we scanned the fields.

Then, as we continued towards the sea bank, we noticed a small group of birders gathered together in the distance. They were clearly looking at something, and given their location, there was a very good chance that whatever had attracted their attention was our target bird.

We met a chap coming in the opposite direction who confirmed that the bird was still present, although it was rather distant. We soon reached the group of birders already gathered on the sea bank, and one of them kindly stepped aside and pointed us towards roughly where the bird was. We scanned the area and, before long, had picked it up in our own scopes, while the others were still heads-down, watching for it themselves. It was windy, with the gusts buffeting our scopes and tripods, making conditions less than ideal for trying to capture any phone-scoped video.

The chap standing next to me then turned and asked, “Are you Kyle?” It was a bit unexpected, but as he introduced himself I immediately knew who he was - Paul Cashmore @pcashmore53. We started chatting, and then noticed the birder standing behind him was Mike Doughty @dogdoughty, who we hadn't seen since bumping into him in the Wyre Forest back in mid-May.

It seemed we'd been so focused on finding the bird that we'd completely failed to notice who else was around us! We had a lovely chat before they said their goodbyes and headed off in search of breakfast. We got back to the bird.

The buff-breasted sandpiper is a North American species, and is a regular but scarce visitor to Britain, with most records occurring during early autumn with September being the peak month. Most of the birds turning up here are juveniles, having made the long journey south from their breeding grounds in the Arctic before somehow finding themselves on the wrong side of the Atlantic.

The bird in front of us was indeed a juvenile, looking particularly smart in its fresh autumn plumage. It showed the warm buff wash across the breast and face that gives the species its name, contrasting with the intricately scaled appearance of the upperparts. It was feeding on the short, wet grassland below, walking around methodically as it searched for food apparently quite undecided as to whether it should feed left or right. Although distant, it was relatively easy to pick out once we knew where to look and the sunlight hit it - there is something rather special about watching a juvenile that had made its way across the Atlantic and ended up here at Frampton Marsh. The number recorded can vary considerably from year to year, making any sighting feel like something of an event.

The buff-breasted sandpiper was a beautifully marked little wader, with a warm buff-coloured face, breast and underparts contrasting with its patterned upperparts. Its back and wings were dark brown, edged with pale buff and giving it a distinctly scaly appearance, while the clean white belly stood out below the softly coloured breast. It had a small head, short, straight dark bill and yellowish legs. As it walked across the short grass, occasionally pausing to probe for food, it had an almost plover-like feel to it, making it quite distinctive even at this distance.

We dropped down the slope and sat on the sea bank, lowering our scopes so we could continue watching while seated. From there, I attached my phone to the scope and attempted to get some video. It wasn't particularly easy, as the bird was working its way through my field of view a little quicker than I would have liked. I clearly need to practise and improve my technique. I also sometimes try to take video with my camera, but at this distance it would have been difficult to get anything more than a basic record shot. I was therefore reasonably pleased with what I managed to capture on my phone.

Kev wandered off to the bench by the Raptor Viewpoint while I stayed behind to watch the bird for a little longer. I then started working my way through the many yellow & pied wagtails and meadow pipits, along with the odd reed bunting, checking to see if there might be anything a little more exotic among them. A couple of years ago there had been a Lapland bunting here at the same time as the buff-breasted sandpiper, which we'd managed to miss, but I certainly can’t afford to make the same mistake again this year if there was one!

Another birder dropped down the slope and sat beside me, asking about the sandpiper. When I checked, however, the bird had moved and was going to need searching for. Fortunately, it wasn't long before I picked it up again and was able to direct him onto it. That was my final act before I packed up and set off to join Kev.

I set up my scope and started scanning the area, eventually finding the peregrine that Kev had directed me towards, although it was a long way off, perched on a distant fence. There were also more marsh harriers, kestrels and a buzzard, but despite working the area carefully there was still no sign of a merlin.

After half an hour or so, we decided to head back towards the Visitor Centre and café for some breakfast before venturing further around the reserve and getting on with the rest of our day's birding. As we set off, I checked BirdGuides on my phone to see if anything else had been reported, followed by WhatsApp. That's when things suddenly changed. There was a report of a possible Baird's sandpiper at the Ardley ERF lagoon, just outside Banbury, and moments later it was confirmed.

I hadn't seen a Baird's sandpiper since August 2024 - and, rather oddly, that bird had also been at Frampton Marsh. A quick chat with Kev was all it took. Breakfast and the rest of our plans could wait; we were heading for the car. We only stopped a couple of times on the way to scan the fields for a merlin, but there was still no sign of one, and soon we were on our way south.

It was suggested that there would be limited parking in the layby by the entrance to the Ardley ERF site but as we drew up there was a single space on the end. We could see some cars a hundred metres or so down the road in another pull in so some people must have been there and already departed. We followed the track round and met a couple of people coming the other way who confirmed that the bird was still there. In a few minutes we were there at the fence joining about a dozen people viewing through.

The Ardley ERF lagoon is an unassuming little wetland just outside Bicester, but it has developed something of a reputation for producing good waders, particularly when falling water levels leave muddy edges around the lagoon. Despite its relatively modest size and rather industrial surroundings, it can be surprisingly productive, with a good selection of passage waders turning up and the occasional much scarcer visitor.

The lagoon itself is part of the wetland created around the restoration and water-management of the former quarry and landfill site. What began as an industrial landscape has developed into a surprisingly useful little wetland, with changing water levels creating muddy margins.

Baird's sandpiper is a real rarity in Britain, with only around seven records a year on average. Numbers can vary considerably from year to year, with some years producing more than ten records, but it remains an accidental visitor from North America and one that is always worth making an effort to see when one turns up.

It is a smart little wader, slightly smaller than a dunlin but with noticeably longer wings, with the primary feathers projecting beyond the tail. It had the characteristic finely patterned upperparts, with dark feather centres and pale fringes giving the back and scapulars a neat, scaly appearance. The head and breast were softly streaked, becoming much cleaner and paler towards the white belly, while the dark eye and relatively long, straight bill gave it a distinctive look.

The bird was nicely positioned in front of us, but we joined the group at the far end where there was a little more space, although the views were partly obscured by some brambles on the other side of the palisade security fence. Seeing the bird through the scope was straightforward enough, but trying to record it through the gaps in the fence with a phone proved rather more difficult. Getting close to the fence with the camera and shooting between the posts and over the brambles, however, was much more productive. A two-sandpiper tick day!

While the views were good, the bird was still a little way off, so my photos were never going to be frame-fillers. Nevertheless, I was happy with what I managed to capture, and the views were certainly better than those we'd had at Frampton Marsh in 2024, when the bird spent much of the time resting with its head tucked beneath its wing before eventually flying further away and becoming even more distant. There were also at least three green sandpipers flitting around the muddy edges of the water.

At one point the bird was spooked by something, although we had no idea what, and it took a circuit around the lagoon, calling three or four times as it went. We needn't have worried, though, as it then flew back and settled again in the same area as before.

The track was now starting to fill up with other birders, Oxfordshire's finest, and the bird then flew down along the water's edge to a more distant position. That seemed like our cue to leave and create a little more space for those still arriving. When we reached the roadside, we found that people were now parking on the verges as well as in the lay-bys. As we loaded our kit into the car, Bryan Manston rushed through, then Steve Holliday, BOS Reserve Manager for Balscote Quarry, arrived with his wife. After a brief “Hello” to each, they headed off to see the bird.

Later, we heard that a sparrowhawk had later flushed it and that it had subsequently departed over the trees. Unfortunately, it wasn't refound that evening or the following day, so we'd clearly timed our visit rather well.

Year list: 293.

Leasowe, Cheshire :: 17 September 2026

New Brighton, on the north Wirral coast, is one of the best-known places in Britain for watching Leach’s petrels from land. The birds are normally pelagic, spending much of their lives far out at sea, but strong autumn weather can transform the Liverpool Bay coastline into a spectacular sea watching location.

The key ingredient is strong north-westerly or westerly weather. Gales and prolonged periods of rough seas push Leach’s petrels towards the coast and into the Mersey and Liverpool Bay. Around New Brighton and nearby Leasowe, birds can sometimes pass remarkably close inshore, making this one of the few places where a species that is usually so difficult to see can occasionally be enjoyed at closer range.

Timing the visit around the tide is also important. The best conditions are generally around high tide, with the two hours either side of high water often particularly productive, probably more so the two hours before as the sea retreats very quickly after high tide. Leasowe and New Brighton have produced impressive movements in the past, including dozens of birds during major weather events.

There is something particularly exciting about watching for them from the shore. One minute the sea can appear almost empty; the next, a small, dark bird comes powering through the spray, skimming low over the waves with its long wings and distinctive forked tail. In really good conditions, several can appear in a single sea watch.

Leach’s petrels are rarely the only reward. Strong north-westerlies can also bring other storm-driven seabirds and migrants into the area, making a sea watch there an unpredictable but potentially memorable experience.

Britain and Ireland hold less than 1% of the world's breeding Leach's petrels, but the UK population is nevertheless internationally important. The species breeds in a small number of colonies on remote islands, particularly in northern and western Scotland. The largest UK colony is said to be on Dun, St Kilda.

The most recent BTO information gives a UK breeding population estimate of around 48,000 pairs, based on the 1998–2002 Seabird 2000 census. However, Leach's petrels are notoriously difficult to census because they nest in burrows and visit their colonies almost exclusively at night. Subsequent surveys at some colonies have indicated substantial declines; BTO reports a 54% decline at Dun, St Kilda, which held roughly 58% of the UK population at the time of the Seabird 2000 survey.

Outside the breeding season, they disperse widely across the Atlantic. Birds breeding in Britain can travel huge distances over the ocean, with individuals potentially travelling up to 1,000 km from their colonies while foraging during the breeding season.

Their distinctive long, narrow wings and deeply forked tail are useful identification features, although the combination of distance, poor light, spray and fast-moving birds makes them a notoriously challenging sea watching species.

Having visited New Brighton and Leasowe just a week earlier and failed to record a single sighting, Kev and I were determined to give it another go. On that occasion, the birds had passed through much earlier than expected, with most of them apparently making landfall along the North Wales coast rather than the Wirral. Kev @kev07713 had received the nod from a local birder that Wednesday was looking promising, but I was tied up, so he went with his wife Karen instead and managed to see three.

There is always an element of uncertainty with Leach’s petrels. Even at one of the country’s best sites, you can spend hours staring at a heaving sea without seeing a single bird, as had been the case for us the previous week. This time, however, the conditions seemed to be falling into place.

Now free on Thursday, and looking at the forecast, I felt it should prove to be exactly the sort of day that gets sea watchers excited. A stronger westerly to north-westerly wind was blowing, and Leach’s petrels had already been recorded passing Blackpool first thing. At Leasowe, high tide was around 3.20–3.30pm, giving me what looked like the perfect window to get there and scan the sea as the tide rose.

I arrived at 'The Gunsite' car park at Leasowe at 11.45am, having spent just under an hour beforehand at the mouth of the river. I had decided to relocate after a sighting was posted on BirdGuides from this area. A handful of birders were already in the car park, scoping the sea from the comfort of their cars, windows down and scopes balanced on the ledges of their doors.

I jumped out and asked the chap parked next to me if he’d had any luck. He told me he was watching a Leach’s petrel at that very moment. I asked for some idea of the bird’s range before returning to my car, where I trained my scope out to sea. It took a little searching, but soon I picked it up, a fair way offshore. I followed it as it worked its way along the coast from right to left, working steadily against the wind.

A short time later, I picked up a second bird, again some distance offshore. By now the sea was moving in quickly, and I followed it as it traced much the same path as the first. The chap beside me then signalled that he had two together, but despite searching the area I never managed to pick either of them up.

Now having got my eyes in I spotted my third bird well along the beach, only just visible above the bonnet of the car beside me. As it continued towards me and came into view directly in front of us, it was considerably closer than the first two. This time, I decided to try to get some photographs and video of it.

Its plumage is predominantly sooty brown, almost black, with a contrasting pale rump that flashed into view whenever the bird twisted in flight. Its long, slender wings were held slightly swept back as it angled into the wind, using the air rising from the wave faces to maintain height.

Despite the turbulent sea, the petrel looked remarkably steady and controlled, seemingly completely at home in conditions that made the water almost impossible to watch for long. It weaved effortlessly between the troughs and crests, alternating short bursts of wingbeats with long, graceful glides. Every so often it would dip towards the surface before rising again, following the contours of the waves. Watching it work its way through the rough water, it was easy to appreciate just how perfectly adapted Leach’s petrels are to life at sea.

At one point I jumped out of the car to grab a drink from the boot and have a chat with a couple of birders who had been braving the conditions outside. It didn't take long to realise that the car was probably the sensible place to be, with the wind driving sand and rain across the car park. I quickly retreated to the driver's seat, where I could continue watching through the windscreen. Occasional showers swept across the glass, but with the car angled into the wind and the window still open, I remained surprisingly well protected from the worst of it.

The birds continued to come through. I would go on to see more than ten Leach's petrels, along with an Arctic skua, a couple of terns, sanderlings, dunlin, oystercatchers, curlews, and bar-tailed godwits. At one point, two petrels appeared close together on the water, briefly feeding amongst the waves before separating and continuing independently.

A grey phalarope was reported, and the birder in the car next to me said that he had been the one to report it. His views had been extremely distant, however, as the bird flew steadily from left to right. It was also picked up from the river mouth at New Brighton, so it was clearly moving along the coast rather than remaining in one area. Despite the distance, it was another reminder that in these conditions, you never quite know what might appear in the scope next.

As high tide arrived, I packed away my kit and loaded everything into the boot. It had been a thoroughly enjoyable sea watch, and with plenty of Leach’s petrels and a good selection of other birds under my belt, I headed home to join the family for dinner, more than happy with the day’s sightings.

Year list: 291.