Knot in May and Nesting Arctic Terns!

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 Knot in May and Nesting Arctic Terns!


We first visited RSPB Burton Mere Wetlands at 12:00 in hopes of seeing some Spoonbills. We arrived only to hear that half an hour ago, the Spoonbill were chased of by some gulls at Border Hide, flying towards Wales. So, with our target Spoonbills gone, we then turned our attention to some Knot seen recently, also at Border Hide. We went straight there, meeting a birder who had written a book on the way. When we arrived at Centenary Pool, we spotted two Great White Egrets out on the pools outside the hide. When we walked in, we asked a man who let me look through his scope pointed at a Knot (a life tick). It was behind a huge flock of Black-Tailed Godwits along with three others. It was only in winter plumage, though the man said that the other day there was one in full breeding plumage. It at first was sleeping, then came woke up and waddled closer to the shore, and then finally went back to sleep. We also saw a female Marsh Harrier from Marsh Covert Hide on our way back. We then headed over to Preston Docks (location pinned to blog) in hopes of seeing Arctic Terns. We parked in the location pinned and then walked over Swing Bridge to view the tern nest boxes closer. We viewed the pontoons and saw many Common Terns and within them were a few Arctic Terns (life tick). I watched as both species of terns flew out, caught some fish, and fed it to their partners. Herring and Black-headed Gulls were also present. Overall, an awesome day!


Location: Mariners Way Retail Park, Mariners Way Retail Park, Mariners Way, Ashton-on-Ribble, Preston PR2 2YN, UK

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