Thursday 15 May 2008

Surprisingly good seawatch

Heysham Obs
North-east winds can sometimes produce the goods on spring seawatches and this morning suggested an earlier start should have been made!

North harbour wall 0815-0900
Auk spp - 27 in
Razorbill - 4 in
Guillemot - 2 in
Arctic tern - flock of 19 in
Red-throated Diver - flock of 6 1st summer in
Black-headed Gull - flock of 18 1st summer in
Black Guillemot - harbour entrance

Didnt have time to check wooden jetty properly but Turnstone seemed much reduced (c15?)

Ocean Edge foreshore
Sandwich Tern - 13 Red Nab (including ringed bird & one in non-breeding plumage), 2 feeding offshore
Curlew - 8 Red Nab
Oystercatcher - 550 Red Nab

Insects
8 4-spotted Chaser Middleton IE in quick check - spread throughout

Elsewhere
Drake Garganey EM Pool but not late afternoon? TWO Wood Sandpiper during the afternoon on EM Pool. The rear end of two white birds flew high to the north over Heysham head as I was at the Moneyclose Lane traffic lights at 1205ish. No time to use optics before they disappeared, so I'm not claiming them as the two Spoonbill which arrived at Leighton Moss ten minutes later (they could have been white Mallard etc etc!). At least one of these remained on the EM Pool/flood until at least 1800hrs. On the same sort of theme, but so far without a 'happy ending', a 'possible Black Kite' was claimed by an 80mph motorway driver near Carnforth. Osprey at Leighton from lunchtime and two seen together at 1600, one of which departed towards Haweswater. Two Yellow Wagtail (pair?) near the YOI at east Lancaster.

14th May rubbish!

Heysham Obs
A few bits and bobs from minimal coverage:

Sandwich tern - 2 off north wall
Arctic Tern - 2 seaward end H2 outfall
Black Guillemot - harbour entrance
Whimbrel - one OE foreshore
Reed Warbler - one in NR reedbed

Elsewhere
Osprey Leighton Moss until midday. Red Kite Brennand valley. Short-eared Owl Whitray Fell.