A nice pair of Kites, and an odd pair of Stocks

A bright sunny day with a light NW breeze

2 Red Kites south over Heysham village - David Kaye

Pete:

c35 plus c35 Kittiwake joined together on sea off ocean edge and floated in.  

Nothing else on webs apart from one sanderling sunny slopes groyne 

Pete Crooks and Clay Garland:

Sea-watch from south side of Heysham Harbour, near Lighthouse (7.50 – 11.35 am)

1 2nd CY Mediterranean Gull – feeding off seaward end Heysham Stage 1 Outfall from 7.50 am
1 2nd CY Little Gull – feeding off HS1 from 8.27 am
1 adult Arctic Tern – feeding off HS1 throughout morning
1 2nd CY Kittiwake – close in off seawall by HS1 Outfall, but only from 11.30 am

1 2nd CY Shag flew in from direction of Heysham Head to land on the Wooden Pier at 9.40 am

c.100 Pink-footed Geese – flew distantly north across Bay at 8.34 am (later 10 south at 9.32 am)
9 Whooper Swan – flew distantly north across Bay and landed on sea at 8.59 am, then continued to drift north
62 Kittiwake – sat on sea distantly offshore , drifting in on the tide (groups of 10, 17, 7, 3 and 25)
1 Red-throated Diver – flew into the Bay dsitantly at 9.16 am
2 Common Scoter – seemingly asleep on sea and drifting in with tide at 11.00 am

Also:
14 Sandwich Tern
5 Whimbrel
8 Sand Martin and 1 Swallow – in over the sea
1 Harbour Porpoise – in the low tide channel off HS1 outfall at 9.15 am
2 Grey Seal – including one wrestling with and eventually swallowing a large fish – Sea Bass?

1 female Wheatear – near Lighthouse
3 Rock Pipit – between Stage 2 outfalls and lighthouse
2 Stock Dove – on the Wooden Pier (the first I can recall seeing there)

2 male Orange-tip – Heysham Nature Park

Clay's digiscope shot of the Stock Doves. A very unusual, probably 
unique, record for this location 

Heysham skear - Malcolm 08:30 - 10:00

Little Egret 12 a significant increase to recent numbers

Eider 80+

Red-breasted Merganser 14

Great Crested grebe 5

Sandwich Tern a constant presence, most seen at one time were 5

Just 100 Knot seen flying south (100 also seen on the Heliport roost)

Whimbrel 3 together flying north

It was nice out there today and areas of the skear were exposed that I haven't seen since last autumn. Most of today's shots are as much about the skear as the birds:

Egrets amongst the Honeycomb worm beds in foreground. Red-breasted
Mergansers and Oystercatcher 

Great Crested grebes

Eider with Piel Castle in the background 

Oystercatchers moving from the outer skear to the shore

Sandwich Terns on Conger rock

Middleton Nature Reserve - Janet

Another swan circled the main pond then landed but got seen off by the
resident male, The new swan is ringed and I think it's the one that is
on the no swimming pond

Male Chaffinch unfortunately having lost a foot

The female also has a fungal infection on her foot

Male Bullfinch near the golf course 

Chiffchaff 

Green-veined White - first record this year