Good Brent count

A dry sunny day with a light west wind.

Middleton Nature Reserve - Janet

Green Woodpecker calling near the goof course

This Buzzard wasn't welcomed by the gulls!

Common Buzzard and Lesser Black-Backed gulls

Heysham skear - Malcolm 11:00 - 12:30 and 15:00 - 16:30

Pale-bellied Brent goose 76 - that is the number that flew to the skear from the north side this morning, just after a Peregrine attack had lifted all the waders.

There were high numbers on and around the skear on both visits. One of the advantages of persuading the waders that you are not a threat, is that the Brent also ignore you. These came to within 5 metres of me.

Eider 13 this morning 

Shag 1 adult on conger rock this afternoon 

There were 3500 Knot but very flighty, I saw three Peregrine attacks, at least 2 successful 

Peregrine Falcon with a Knot

This is the effect of another attack this afternoon, once again the Brent lifted

The Knot moved onto the mud to the south of the skear after a Peregrine attack this morning. They are much easier to check for flags here, but only two of the many hundreds checked were flagged. They were finding small bivalves (Baltic Tellins) and shore crabs

This Knot has a small shore crab

The Knot on the left has a Baltic Tellin (macoma)
One of the two flags seen, this one ringed at Merseyside in 2024
There were further flagged birds seen later including three new ones for this winter

One of several Dunlin also probing the mud.