Bonaparte's return

Heysham Obs
Less floaters and glaze in the haemorrhaged eye the last two days prompted a scope and tripod "lunchtime (and a half)" long the north harbour wall with Andrew Cornall and the long-range sight seemed fine although I cannot be trusted with reading ring numbers!

Sitting by Heysham 2 outfall, a small gull on the seaward end of Heysham One seemed worth following up as it flew further out and landed in the boat channel.  However the heat haze impaired definition.  Then it flew towards us and was confirmed as the recently 'lost' Bonaparte's Gull.  It then gave the full range of long-range instructive right down to close flight views plus a spell of landing both on the railings and on the sea.  Maybe it is just my odd perception but the original attention was obviously caught by size/underwing glimpses of what appeared to be an adult, but also a rather Kittiwake-like slightly stiff-winged direct (as opposed to feeding) flight with the wings not dropping below the horizontal.  Still showing about 1330hrs

The summer plumaged head pattern is still fully intact apart from perhaps a rather 'fuzzy' edge to the central rear crown where it may have lost the odd feather i

Gatekeepers reached a new milestone with the transect (as opposed to total count) reaching 120! and there appeared to be an influx of Silver Y (12 seen)

Med Gull - at least 8
Bonaparte's Gull -  see above
Little Gull - surprisingly no obvious sign (not a two bird theory - seen well and photographed yesterday!)

Moths
Too many! 10 Dingy Footman, 18 Straw Underwing, 2 Blackneck, and perhaps the best for here was Epiblema roborana.  A nearby actinic produced 50 Shaded Broad Bar and 30 Straw Underwing!

Little Gull new in

Heysham Obs
A late stage of the incoming tide watch from Ocean Edge saw:

Bonaparte's Gull - no sign but there was a seemingly smallish adult gull facing into the wind (so no underwing seen) in the melee in Heysham 2 outfall (as viewed from Ocean Edge) about 1240hrs - seen only very briefly with an eye I'm still having problems with.  However a birder on a bike (good move here) was in a far better position to see anything, so no news = presumably a runt BH Gull.  Unfortunately I had to return to the office.
Little Gull - stunning adult summer on Red Nab
Med Gull - 6 x 2CY (at least one green-ringed bird), 4 x adult (at least 2 of them unringed), one x metal-ringed 3CY, 1 x juv
Kittiwake - 1 x 2CY
Dunlin - 2
Redshank - c45

CES ringing
Very little evidence of anything moving apart from a few Sedge Warbler on Middleton

Moths
Rather a lot with the best been a doubling of recent VC60 records of Agonopterix angellicella with 3 in the actinic at Middleton and one in the office toilet.  170 moths in the Middleton actinic including Silky Wainscot and a few Eudonia pallida.  75 species in the toilet trap!

Med Gulls

Heysham Obs
Thanks to Mark Breaks, Jean Roberts, Pete Woodruff, Mike Watson, Chris Batty and especially Gav Thomas for going through the Meds and coming up with an excellent series of colour ring sightings, including three ringed on the same day at a German colony.  Special thanks to Ian Walker for finding the Bonaparte's Gull and catalysing visits from birders as the three main local observers were all unfortunately incapacitated for most of this month.  Hope you recover from your op soon, Pete (Cook).

German-ringed birds
AKZH, AKUR, AKRS were all ringed as nestlings at Pionierinsel, Luhe, Niedersachsen 53 35N 9 36E on 16/6/12

Polish-ringed bird
PNE7 was ringed as a nestling at Otmuchow, Opolskie  50 27N 17 14E on 10/6/11 (1420km)

An as yet unknown adult is pictured below along with one of the German-ringed birds:

   Thanks Gav for these

No sign of the Bonaparte's Gull today but about 13 Meds on the incoming tide but many birds had already anticipated the high tide and had headed off to the south.  So the Bonaparte's could quite easily be still here if people searched intensively at low tide 

Moths

The new bulb did well with four species of Footman and 56 species in total

Red Nab and dog walking area, afternoon.

Linnet

Linnets

Blackheaded Gulls at different stages

Secretive Whitethroat

Common Hawker Dragonfly





Ringed Greenfinch

White-line dart-fest but no Bonaparte's Gull

Heysham Obs
A pretty careful search by four observers, three with previous experience of the bird, on the incoming tide drew a blank.  Now is the time to start searching other nearby gull flocks as it is absolutely typical for the higher tides to cause minor displacement of outfalls gulls (c/f in wing moult)

Outfalls/Red Nab later stages of incoming tide
Kittiwake - 2ns CY
Sandwich Tern - one end of Heysham one at low tide
Med Gull - at least 14, 7 of which were 2CY, one 3CY and two juvenile. All these at Red Nab end or seaward end of Heysham one outfall as viewed from north harbour wall this early morning.  No check made of the usual loafing area between stage one and the wooden jetty at low tide
Bonaparte's Gull - no sign

Office area
Tree Sparrow - at least one around feeder mid-am

North harbour wall
An actinic trap produced by far the largest ever single trap catch of White-line Dart (222) in Lancashire.  Lots more new 10km square records for SD36, the best being Archer's Dart and a worn Broad-barred White.  A Dot Moth was a little out of its usual suburban middle class habitat.  A single migrant Diamond-back Moth also of note

Bonaparte's Gull again but Red-vein in vain

Heysham Obs
Bonaparte's Gull around the outfalls during the early-mid morning but no other news from there
Thanks to Janet for the pics below

Middleton Nature reserve
The model boating pond, 3 Common Sandpipers, Common Darter and a Leech!...................but no sign Red-veined Darter in systematic search in perfect conditions....but also perfect for dispersing onwards

Seen at the no swimming pond

Cinnabar Caterpillar

Bonapartes Gull and Meds hit new heights

Heysham Obs
The outfalls produced yet another German-ringed 2CY last night.  To recap on known darvic ringed birds in the current 'pool' of at least 25 Meds:
German (green rings) 2CY = AKRS, AKUR, AKZH
Polish (red rings) 3CY = PNE7
Belgian (Yellow darvic added by us) 3CY = 2P96

Please inform us of updates on the above and please don't send them in yourselves as it creates extra admin.  Thanks.  I will make sure you are acknowledged

Any new ones, and this is quite likely, with e.g. a green 3CY somewhere in the mix, please let us know the details if you are sending in yourself or simply pass on to me and I will make sure you are fully acknowledged.  Thanks.  PMrsh123@aol.com

Outfalls and area
Bonapartes Gull - still showing well this morning

Med Gull - at least 25 last night = 7 2CY, 4 3CY and the rest adults apart from the first juvenile for a couple of weeks or so. Today: at least 18 between Red Nab and the wooden pier, including 8 adults, 3 2nd summers and 7 1st summers. (adult with yellow darvic - 2P96 - on left leg, adult with metal ring on right leg, 1st summer with green darvic on.right leg).

Swift - 19 flew in-off then south past the outfalls at 0800 and 0810 hrs.

Also: 1 Peregrine, 4 Sandwich Tern (Stage 2 outfall), 4 Whimbrel and 11 Turnstone (Red Nab).
Office area
A dispersing Reed Warbler was ringed this morning

Moths
We managed find a two-pin 160 watt blended bulb stored in a garage at Bentham - the last in the country?!   Unfortunately an easterly wind then kicked in and knocked the catch on the head.  The actinic at Middleton was more successful with Silky Wainscot, Silver Hook and Ebulea crocealis highlighting

Dark Green Fritillary weather and belated Red-veined Darter

Heysham Obs
Just received info this pm that Red-veined Darter was identified & photographed on Middleton model boat pond yesterday and the photos seen today.  To the photographer: please can you pass on records - it was only pure chance another dragonfly enthusiast saw your pics today.  Thanks! 

A thirty minute vigil 1525 onwards today produced a red darter briefly over the water in the NE corner which then disappeared but the over-water flight was spot-on for red-veined = hugging the water with sharp turns

Thanks to Mike Watson for this pic taken this morning

The Bonaparte's Gull was performing well this morning between Heysham 2 outfall and Red Nab along with Meds PNE7 and AKRS.  Please don't send the darvic-ringed Meds in directly but please send to me and I'll make sure you are acknowledged  PMrsh123@aol.com Thanks very much and this saves a bit of admin for the ringers. On the other hand, please don't assume the bird you see has already been read, especially if you manage any of the metal-only-ringed birds!

Other birds included a notable 6 Common Tern heading north, three Whimbrel, at least 10 Med Gulls.  Thanks for these Mike

We were only saying yesterday that this sort of weather could produce a wandering Dark Green Fritillary as per previous years.  This happened today with one below the classroom late morning and is about the fourth such record over the years

Bonaparte's gives the morning a miss but reappears mid-afternoon

Heysham Obs
No known sightings of the Bonaparte's Gull this morning but it was on the pager for 1435hrs between the two outfalls.  No other coastal news other than "the odd Med"!

Middleton NR
Fairly mediocre ringing session with about 19 new birds, the most numerous being Sedge Warbler (7).  No shelter from the blazing sunlight!

Moths - more SD36 coverage
A sheet and light session between the mound and sandworks last night was quite interesting.  There were loads of out of context insects on the move and it would have been a great session if there was a caddis specialist, beetle specialist and small fly/hymenoptera specialist available to add some more 10km square dots.  Insects included a single median wasp which was 'removed', two 7-spot Ladybird, a "backswimmer", several normal water boatmen and masses of unidentified small insects

It was a fantastic session for small micros but unfortunately I only had a limited number of pots, so hopefully discarded look-alikes were duplicates and not similar species!  By far aand away the best was a spectacular Hedya salicella and a lot of time has been wasted this morning trying to identify what appears to be a "distinctive" Epinotia-type.  Presumably it is a variation on a common species which is not illustrated and not a boat-hopping mega (two came into the harbour during the session!). An actinic was also left in the sandworks, thankfully in the lee of the single building and morning sunlight was avoided.

Quite a difference in the catches between the more rocky area (S & L) and the actinic in the sandworks.  The former saw Cloaked Minor dominating the sheet and the latter produced 61 White-line Dart.  Quite a few moths seemingly wandering out of habitat, notably Light Emerald and Peach Blossom and loads of new 10k square species

Bonaparte's Gull still present

Heysham Obs
It has been elusive today with 'no sightings since mid-afternoon' until about 8.30pm after which it was located off the southern end of Ocean Edge with at least 6 Meds.  Need to be aware that the freshwater is very low on Red Nab and birds may also go and bathe on Middleton model boat pond
Obviously the Bonaparte's Gull has been the main attraction but there is a sideshow involving up to 20 or so Med Gulls.  See below for Gav Thomas pics (flight) and one from Mark Nightingale (on Red Nab).  Thanks very much for these

Med Gulls
Some of these have rings and thanks very much for the efforts so far by Chris Batty, Paul Ellis, Jean Roberts, Pete Woodruff and Gav Thomas.  This activity is completely out of my league until the eye fully heals!  The following is the situation I am aware of:

Yellow with black letters - 3CY 2P96 - ringed by us last spring, already had Belgian metal ring
Red with white letters PNE7 - Polish ringed 3CY already sent in details awaited
Green with black letters - German-ringed 2CY AKRS - this bird may have gone but details received
Green with black letters - German-ringed 2CY possibly/probably AK(U?)R - under investigation to see whether a fit - confirmation gratefully received.  STOP PRESS:  Confirmed a few minutes ago by Pete Woodruff as AKUR!

A right-leg metal above the foot 3CY - anyone managed to read it, please?
3-4 with metal above tarsus - assume these are impossible!

Any other darvic rings seen, please?

Thanks very much

Moths
18 Double Dart in two actinics - definitely the top site for this species!  Loads of moths in actinic set overlooking many key habitats