Kittiwake still moving through in numbers

A light east morning wind switched to NW in the afternoon. A dry day with some late sunshine.

Seawatch report by Pete:

0600-0930 (MP, JR, TW, PM). 

All about second day of late adult Kittiwake passage - are these high Arctic eg Svalbard-bound? Just half a dozen or so 2cy.  A bit murky for overlanding though:

Kittiwake - 312 in (85 largest flock), 92 out - not necessarily same based on flock sizes

Common scoter - 153 in, 40 out

Red throated diver - 5 in, 4 out

Sandwich tern - 16 in, c25 blogging 

Manx Shearwater - 3 plus 7 in - first of year for heysham and year tick

Gannet - just 2

Common Tern - one out

Arctic Skua - lm and dm together with another dm trailing 300m behind - in at c0910

One swift and about 5 swallow

Just a grey seal mammal wise

Also singing male whitethroat north harbour wall 

Common Whitethroat on Heysham Head - Tim Woodward 

Heyshan Skear - low water 14:40 (Malcolm)

Eider 127

Red-Breasted Merganser 4 - these three females are having, what can only be described as, "an exchange".

Great Crested Grebe 2

There were only Oystercatchers (500) as I was walking out, but eventually 6 wader species were seen.

Turnstone just one

Bar-Tailed Godwit 27 - 20 along the western edge of the skear plus 7 along the shoreline 

Knot 18 - 14 along the western edge of the skear, plus 4 along the north edge.

These are some of the Godwit and Knot along the western edge.

Ringed Plover 19 in single flock

Most of the Ringed Plover

Whimbrel 2

Whimbrel on sandbar just north of the skear

Middleton Nature Reserve (Malcolm)

Just a quick afternoon check on the way home.

Mute 1 nesting pair

Gadwall 3 male

Mallard 10 (1 female)

Coot 4

Moorhen 4

Little Grebe 2 on "no swimming" pond.

Singing warblers

Cetti's, Sedge, Reed, Willow, Common Whitethroat, Blackcap and Chiffchaff 

Pheasant 2 calling males

House Martin 8 stopped off briefly at the main pond, before continuing north.

House Martins

Butterflies:

Orange Tip several

Large White 2

Small White 1

Brimstone 2 - this short clip shows a male and female mating. They seldom rest with their wings open, so this is a nice opportunity to see just how pale the female's upper wings are, compared to the yellow of the male and her underwing.

Female and male Brimstone 

Silver Y - 10+

Common Blue, Azure Blue and Common Bluetail damselflies now abundant.

Four-Spotted Chaser 5

Four-spotted Chaser

Broad-bodied Chaser 1 each male and female.

Male Broad-bodied Chaser