The Naturalists' Notebook

On the day of the Liverpool Marathon we avoided the disruption of public transport in the city centre and took the 80A bus to Speke Road / Banks Road and walked down to the coastal reserve.

It was a warm but overcast day, with gusty breezes off the river. There were Skylarks and a Kestrel overhead, and on the shore a Curlew, a Crow, some Teal, Mallards, Black-headed Gulls and an Oystercatcher.  When the sun came out we saw a butterfly, which was probably a Red Admiral.

We ate our lunches amongst the deserted hi-tech offices around Dakota Drive and Hurricane Court, then made our way along the landscaped verges of Estuary Business Park. Goldfinches and Jackdaws were about in fairly large numbers and the ponds were full of water lillies and Arrowhead. The ornamental trees were full of fruit and late flowers – crab apples, Alexandra roses, acorns. It would be heaven for squirrels, but they don’t seem to have found this bountiful new food source yet.

Then into the new Dobbies garden centre for a pleasant half hour of browsing amongst the shrubs, bedding plants and (expensive) bird tables.  A display of vividly coloured heathers caught my eye, and I was relieved (if somewhat bemused) to see that they were artificially dyed and would eventually revert to a more natural state. What’s the point?

The 300 bus from Sir Thomas Street dropped us at Haskayne at 11.15 and we made our way to the canalside and boarded the Pride of Sefton barge for a trip on the canal. It had been a gloriously warm and sunny week but the weather had changed: it was still warm but had turned cloudy with spots of rain, preventing us from sitting out on the bow at our leisure.

We chugged slowly north as far as Rufford Marina then turned back south. There were no particularly interesting birds, and certainly not the Kingfisher we had been hoping for. There were plenty of Mallards and Coots on the canal, Moorhens on the verges, Magpies, Blackbirds, a Robin and a Mistle Thrush in the hedges, a big flock of Black-headed Gulls came up off a stubble field and a pair of Mute Swans had three well-grown cygnets. There were Lapwings flying above, a group of Red Admirals feeding on some Ivy, and one very cheeky young Mallard which hung about when we moored for a while, hoping for a share of our lunch.

Of more interest were the other boats moored along the towpath, some very brightly painted, others apparently needing serious attention!

As we passed Haskayne going southwards we were joined by the Pride of Sefton 2.

We continued in convoy under the swing bridge and turned together south of Downholland Cross, returning to Haskayne in time for the bus back to Liverpool.

The 53 bus dropped us at Alexandra Park in Crosby just before 11. We had a short poke around the small park, admiring a totem pole on one of the lawns and the restored “Green Lady” fountain. The lady is now silver! The only birds we saw were a Blackbird and two Wood Pigeons.

In Coronation Park we read the sign on the huge stone – a glacial erratic – and took its picture.

They had a small greenhouse tucked away behind the Clubhouse, made with recycled plastic bottles, not glass. It might work, but it would be breezy!

We were in St Luke’s cemetery in time for lunch, then looked at all the wildlife-friendly features installed around the edge. They have a new bug hotel.

Amongst the gravestones we found a group of medium-sized toadstools with a point at the top centre. Some were orange, some redder and one was completely black. I think they were Hygrocybe conica, Blackening Waxcap.

Several of the gravestones in St Luke’s are noteworthy. One records a lady who was a code-breaker at Bletchley Park and another is that rarity, a CWGC stone to a woman, Private Muriel Marion Sawyer of the ATS, who died when she was 20.

A movement caught our eye on the roof of the church extension. A Wood Pigeon had tried to land there, thinking it was made of rough overlapping slates, but it was much smoother than it looked. The pigeon scrabbled for a foothold then slid rather ungracefully down into the gutter, where it sat, trying to regain its composure. An alert Magpie flew in immediately and perched on the gutter, eyeing the Wood Pigeon. Was it an injured bird which would make a meal? It pecked at the pigeon, which rapidly gathered its wits and flew off.

On the way out we saw one of the huge Garden Spiders that are common at this time of year. It was in an ivy and honeysuckle hedge, hanging vertically in its web.

No nature notes this week. Because it was Heritage Open Day we went to St Anthony’s RC Church Scotland Road, Deane Road Jewish Cemetery and Walton Church Tower and Old Grammar School. But you might all like to see a picture of the crypt of St Anthony’s – quite spooky!

On a warmish but overcast day we took the 10.40 train to Ormskirk and the 2A bus to Rufford, arriving at 10 to 12.  We walked in via the Cricket Club path and were in a hide for lunch.

On the way through the houses we saw a Small Tortoiseshell and a Red Admiral on a Buddleia in one of the gardens and there were House Martins flying about. Over the ditch at the Cricket Club there was this large fungus amongst the Himalayan Balsam, probably a Chicken-in-the-Woods.

There were no very exciting birds about – Mallards, Coots, Canada Geese, a Tufted Duck and a pair of Great Crested Grebes. A young Heron was fishing at the edge of one of the lakes.

The reflections were interesting, though. These reeds look like they have matching green roots.

Near the tower hide, now a bat roost, we came across this bench with a water vole sculpture, dedicated to Tom Brierly, a former MNA member and YOC member, who died in 2008.

We also saw one of the benches to the MNA’s founder Eric Hardy, who was also one of the founder members of the Lancashire Wildlife Trust.

On the way back for the bus to Ormskirk at 2.50 we saw our last butterfly – a Speckled Wood.

No nature notes this week, we went to the Ormskirk Motorfest for the benefit of the petrolheads amongst us.

A day for autumn fruits and late flowers. It was warm and breezy, but hot in the sun. The 487 bus dropped us in Neston at 11.20 and we headed for the Wirral Way then down to Neston Old Quay. On the way we picked damsons and blackberries and noted the hedges full of sloes.

There were Swallows sitting like clichés on the telegraph lines, Blue Tits, House Sparrows, Goldfinches, and a Kestrel over the marshes being mobbed by small birds. Butterflies included a Small Tortoiseshell, several Gatekeepers, a Common Blue and a Small Copper. We spotted a Red-tailed Bumblebee, very black and glossy. It was busily collecting pollen, so was definitely a queen.

There were great fields of Giant Willowherb, which Margaret called “Plums and Custard”, and along the margins the very pretty Cinquefoil, probably Creeping Cinquefoil.

After lunch at the Old Quay we retraced our steps to the Wirral Way and along to Parkgate. They are digging out the gutters in the marsh and making larger pools in an attempt to reduce the mosquito population.

One of the parked cars had an appropriate number plate for this blog! Anyone we know?

Since were were an hour early for the bus, we were forced (greatly against our will, of course) to go for tea and cake in the café.