Friday 6 January 2017

Join us at our Big Garden Birdwatch at Sefton Park Palm House Saturday 28 January 2017.


Big Garden Birdwatch at Sefton Park Palm House

Location: Sefton Park Palm House, Sefton Park, Liverpool, L17 1AP
Join us at Sefton Park's Palm House for the Big Garden Birdwatch.
We want to get more people interested in birds and nature and  this is the group's way of promoting the RSPB' Big Garden Birdwatch.

Reed bunting, greenfinch, chaffinch
House sparrows
Siskin
Jay

RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch will be held on Saturday 28,th, Sunday 29 &Monday 30th January 2017.  All you need to do to take part is watch the local birds in your garden or park for an hour - visit www.rspb.org.uk/birdwatch to register your participation.








For more information on Sefton Park Palm House, please visit www.rspb.org.uk/groups/Liverpool/places/341325/ or http://liverpoolrspb.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/and-so-ends-voting-of-liverpool-watch.html





Time: 12 noon til 4 pm
Price: Free admission
Telephone: 07831 352870
E-mail: christtynan@aol.com






http://liverpoolrspb.blogspot.co.uk/2016/01/big-garden-birdwatch-30-and-31-january.html
http://liverpoolrspb.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/a-snowy-big-garden-birdwatch-at-palm.html

Eagle-eyed schoolchildren set to count Merseyside’s birds

rspb images

Big Schools’ Birdwatch, 3 January- 17 February 2017
Tens of thousands of schoolchildren across the UK, including throughout Merseyside, will be swapping books for binoculars this term to take part in the UK’s biggest schools wildlife survey.
The RSPB’s Big Schools’ Birdwatch 2017 takes place during the first half of the spring term and helps children discover the wonderful wildlife they share their school grounds with, whilst providing a helpful insight into which species are thriving or declining.
According to research conducted by the RSPB2, one in five children are disconnected from nature. Big Schools’ Birdwatch aims to inspire children to care about the natural world around them in the hope they’ll want to help protect it for future generations.
Last year almost 100,000 pupils and teachers from schools all across the UK took part by counting the birds that visited their school grounds, and it is hoped even more will take part this year.
Over the years, more than 70 different species have been recorded in school grounds, ranging from starlings and house sparrows, to red kites and green woodpeckers. The blackbird remained the most common playground visitor in 2016 whilst starlings held onto the second spot. And for the first time wood pigeons made the top three, jumping up the list from sixth position the year before. 
Since its launch in 2002, the Big Schools’ Birdwatch has provided opportunities for children and teachers to learn about how to give nature a home in their school grounds. Many schools prepare for the event in advance by putting up feeders and nestboxes and making bird cake. Seeing and counting the birds coming to their feeders during the Big Schools Birdwatch is the perfect reward for their efforts.
Emma Reed, RSPB Education, Families and Youth Manager in Northern England said: “Taking part in Big Schools Birdwatch uses just one lesson or lunchtime so it’s really easy to get involved. We hope the excitement of taking part will then inspire children in Merseyside to get out and experience more of the wildlife around them.
“With studies showing that children are becoming increasingly disconnected from nature, a concern that is linked to poorer physical and mental health, we want to provide young people with as many opportunities as possible to have fun exploring the natural world around them.”
The Big Schools' Birdwatch is the school version of the Big Garden Birdwatch – the world's biggest garden wildlife survey aimed at families and individuals. The event will take place over three days on 28, 29 and 30 January 2017 and further information can be found on the RSPB websiterspb.org.uk/birdwatch
To register to take part in the 2017 RSPB Big Schools’ Birdwatch, visit rspb.org.uk/schoolswatch. Everything schools need to take part is available to download from the RSPB website.

2017 new year field trip


Today started cold and fresh on our first field trip of the year which, makes a change from last years rain. With the 2nd in January being a bank holiday it certainly gave lots of us a chance to get out and those that did really enjoyed the day.

This field trip has always been about enthusing and showing how many species can be found in Liverpool and we thought we would be on to break our record of 62.One of our first birds of the day was greenfinch in the trees by the car park followed by goldfinch, blackbird, wood pigeon and kestrel.

As we started to walk towards the estuary 2 mute swans flew out of the river towards town. As it was low tide the exposed mud banks were quite some distance out but telescopes we were able to show, redshanks, curlew, dunlin, oystercatcher, turnstone,mallard, teal, grey herons, cormorant, black headed, herring and lesser black backed gulls.

As we walked back from the shore 2 ravens conked their way into view and a solitary crow helped show off the size difference. We continued the walk checking the estuary as a great black backed gull flew past, but small birds kept flying about. Robins kept jumping about on the path in front of the main group, grey wagtail flew over the back of the group and in the vegetation dunnocks, wrens, reed bunting and a fly over meadow pipit. We stopped as the call of a fieldfare flew into a large shrub.  As we reached the sailing club a local dog walk told us how his dogs had flushed 3 short eared owls on the saltmarsh, we were very excited by this news. 


A single ringed plover and common gull was at the end of the slip way and 4 grey partridges flew off the marsh never an easy bird to see well.   



2 Skylarks flushed out of one of the meadows and a walk up towards the business park helped add more meadow pipits but even better some showy stonechats and 2 common snipe. A few blue tits were in this area with song thrush and mistle thrush but we had failed to see so many common species. The list stood at 40 species.

We walked back to the car to find 4 back windows had been smashed and it really spoilt a wonderful start to the year. Some went one to Sefton Park to try and add more species but the day had been ruined.

Chris Tynan
Leader



Footnote
Several members of the group have contacted various agencies including liverpool council, peel holdings and mps about  the  damage and we await further contact and hopefully progress in making this site  secure for visitors.


(I have to say its not a happy start to the year. I led a walk around the reserve yesterday with 31 other people. We started at 9am and returned to the cars in the car park just after midday.

We returned to find 4 of the groups cars had had their back windows smashed and their boots ransacked. Considering the car park was full of cars it could have been all of them! The car park had lots of glass from other windows which makes you wonder that whatever low life is responsible for this vandalism is there with some degree of regularity.

I really like showing off this reserve to members and the general public but it makes me feel that RSPB Liverpool wont be leading any more walks here until security improves.

All 4 incidents were reported to Merseyside Police. Some of the group have now contacted the local councillors and MP through emails and social media.

I feel I have to let you know of these incidents).