The Mediterranean season

Another sunny day with hardly a cloud in the sky and a sparkling sea was reminiscent of the Mediterranean provided you didn’t look inland! And the Mediterranean Gulls lounging in small groups on Red Nab were perhaps fooled into thinking they were already in France? Well, probably not and the chilly northwesterly breeze was more likely to make them think about continuing south soon.
Today there were at least 19 Med Gulls including 4 x 2 CY and 3 x 3 CYs and the first juv of the season.

Thanks for the photos, Malcolm.

The Rock Pipits are still feeding young in the nest. 

Plenty of young birds on the Reserve, though very few young Greenfinches so far. Young Goldfinches are the most vocal and are going around in gangs. There are spotty Robins and not quite as spotty Dunnocks, yellow-cheeked Great and Blue Tits as you might expect and today several young Chaffinches made an appearance. 

JR

Meds and Reds

Skeer and low tide channels (MD)
Red-breasted Merganser - a most unusual midsummer flock of 10 female/imms
Common Tern - adult fishing

Outfalls/Red Nab
Med Gull - careful check c3hrs before high tide = 12 2CY, 2 3CY and 18 adults - no ringed birds legs visible (PJM, JR)
Common Gull - c30

Middleton boat pond
Red-veined Darter - 6 males in marginal afternoon weather (18C but windy)

Mainly Meds

Mediterranean gulls - rising tide on and around Red Nab

Adult 19

3cy 3

2cy 8

They are not yet focused on sand mason worms near wooden jetty at low tide, but spreading out along shore. This picture is from near No.1 outflow 3.5hr after high water.

Little gull - 1 x 2cy

Whimbrel 1

Rock pipit - adults feedind young in nest, near lighthouse. 1 juv from first brood, still hanging around.

GCG conundrum

Minimum 8 male Red-veined darter and a probable female around main pond at Middleton this lunchtime. Still 7 males over water mid pm.

Just 15 Mediterranean gulls confirmed today, but timing not great.

Great- crested grebe. 8 drifted through skeer channel on flood tide this evening. Don't know if they are are waiting to go, or have come back, or have nowhere to go (MD)

Meds increase

Med gull - minimum of 24 (16ad, 3 3cy, 5 2cy

Little gull 2cy very briefly then south

Whimbrel - 1st returning bird  

Monday

Med Gull - 19

Manx - 11 out

Gannet - 1 put
Great-crested grebe 2 off skeer

Sunday

two sandwich Tern and half A dozen Meds seen

Rock Pipits feeding young in harbour wall nest

Female Red Veined Darter ovipositing and Med Gulls find the sandworms

Between 9 and 11 males over the pond this morning with one in cop with an ovipositing female

Med Gull - five feeding on sand mason worms this pm

Sandwich Tern - one resting on the sands in am

Curlew - at least 210 red nab probably others out of sight

Strong easterly impeded insect searches

Med gull - 10 in neap high tide roost south of OE slipway (5ad, 4 2cy, one 3cy).  C/f  rings, legs only seen on one ad and the 3cy - both unringed

Red veined Darter - min 6 model boat pond but strong winds keeping them close to the edge where harder to count
Emperor - Male along Heysham south harbour wall - first for SD35Z
Black tailed Skimmer - hey Nr where rare
Broad bodied Chaser - latish female ovipositing briefly on model boat pond

Painted Lady - main concentration still along south harbour wall with c100 in morning.  Ringlet hey NR

Hot!.....then really hot!

Model boat pond
Red-veined Darter - absolute minimum three probably another two
Banded Demoiselle - SE corner of pond briefly.  Malcolm's pics - thanks!

The following pictures from Janice cover all the dragonflies, that you could expect to see around the main pond at the moment.

South wall roundhead 16:30 - 17:30 (MD)

By this time the warm easterly breeze had strengthened.

Insects were flying in off the sea from the west at a rate of one every 5 seconds between lighthouse and wooden jetty. Mainly painted lady. A ten minute check between waterfall and lighthous resulted in 118 Painted lady plus3 Red Admiral all moving steadily inland.

By 17:30 they were still coming in but the rate had reduced slightly to one every 10 seconds.

But it wasn't just butterflies, there was also a steady influx of dragonflies.

Red-veined darter - absolute minimum of 10 (this assumes that the only one that left the area

was the one male seen to - unlikely). There were at least 4 adult male, possibly a teneral male and 6 female.

Large dragonfly - one came in overhead, no features or colour discerned (not blue or red). Based on context of sightings and definite sightings from Freshfield earlier today. This is likely to have been a Vagrant Emperor.

Rock pipit - this bird dropped down to area of original nest site with this bill full of what looks like Painted lady bodies.