Tern and Little Gull numbers grow throughout the day

A steady SW wind. The early morning showers stopped by 09:00. After that just a few showers, but overcast all day.

South Shore (MD/PM)

Common Tern 5-6. There were 3 at 09:20, 4 by 14:30 and 5-6 when Pete checked early evening (when visibility wasn't good from Ocean Edge)

Little Gull 6. Just 1 x 1cy at 09:20, 2 adult and 2 x 1cy in the afternoon and 3 adult plus 3 x 1cy in the evening

Sandwich Tern 1 in the afternoon 

Two adult and a 1st calendar year(1cy) Little gulls in the afternoon 

1cy Little gull and a Common Tern

This clip begins with a 1cy and an adult Little gull and ends on a 1cy Common Tern

Once again very few other gulls feeding, by Pete's evening check there were more Little Gulls and Common Tern than anything else on the outflows.

Other stuff:

Shelduck 2 south

Rock Pipit 3

Rock Pipit on foreshore 

Wheatear 1

Wheatear hunkered down against the wind

Middleton Nature Reserve (MD)

Just a quick check of the two main pons in passing.

Mute Swan pair plus 7 large cygnets 

Mallard 12

Coot 12

Moorhen 3

Little Grebe 1 

Little Grebe

Grey Heron

Cetti's Warbler 1 male singing in the distance, probably from the central marsh

This shot from Janet, as she says, you wouldn't want to be the Oystercatcher at the back!

Some decent stuff through the rain!

It rained pretty much all day except for a short break mid morning. The wind started SW then shifted to south.

First some shots by Janet from yesterday, when the light was a bit brighter.

I was on Half moon bay beach just at the right time to capture these all flying over to the helipad roost.

Knot

Oystercatcher 

Curlew

Redshank 

Many rested on the shore, till the tide moved them onto the Helipad wall.

This morning's report from Shaun:

Heysham Outfalls 07:15 - 08:45: 

Little Gull adult on no 1 and 1cy on no 2

Mediterranean Gulls - Just 3 adult

Common Tern adult and 2  juvs on no 2 

Sandwich Tern also no 2

Heysham Head 09:15: 

Common Scoters 2 juv

17 Eider

Great Crested Grebe 7 

Red-breasted Merganser 1

Bar-tailed Godwit 6 on beach. 

I walked out to the skear at low water 10:20 (MD) - just in time for the rain to start again!

Didn't see the scoters but Eider and Great Crested Grebe were as Shaun. By this time there were 5 Red-breasted Merganser feeding together.

Black Tern 1 juvenile flew south along the far channel.

Little Egret 8

Guillemot 1 - it had allowed itself to become stranded on the shore. This clip pans out to reveal Heysham Head.....and the rain on my lens!

I had walked out from the children's play area as I wanted to see how much weed is around for the Brent Geese this winter. There isn't a lot!

This is the runoff that drains into the SE skear corner. There are a few patches
of sea lettuce for the early arrivals, but it won't last long!

The lushest area is the furthest out rocks to the north of the play area.
But even here the gutweed is quite short

There was no weed on the rocks out from the play area, until just below
the sea wall and even there is was nothing like what it has been in previous years

Looks like it could be a hard winter for the Brents, as presumably whatever has caused the weed to be sparse here will also affect other feeding areas. Although there is plenty of gutweed on Red Nab.

I checked the outflows again in the afternoon (MD) - still raining. It was strange, there were hardly any gulls feeding on them, which suggests that not much food was coming through. Even so there were six terns feeding. This is the full inventory, all on No.2 outflow, nothing on No.1.

Black-Headed Gulls 6

Little Gull 1 first calendar year

Sandwich Tern 1

Common Tern 5 - 4 first calendar year and a second calendar year 

This is the Little Gull

First calendar year (1cy) Little gull

This 1cy Common Tern catches a fish early in the clip (watch in slow motion). 

Clearly there is food to be had here today, I don't know why more gulls weren't feeding. This short clip is the 1cy Little gull, 2 x 1cy Common Tern and the Sandwich Tern. Not a Black-Headed gull in sight.

I flushed a small brown raptor from the scrub near the waterfall, only seen briefly from behind , but looked to be a Merlin

Wheatear 1

Rock Pipit 2

Plenty of good wind blown stuff

A fresh west to SW wind. Dry for most of the day.

Report from Pete:

Low tide check: 

Common scoter two juvenile off heysham sunny slopes

Pintail pair near conger rock

Little Gull 1 adult and 1 Juvenile Common Tern heysham two outfall

Behind midday IOM ferry as watched from the back of the harbour: 

additional adult and 1cy Little Gulls

Common Tern 1 adult 

Kittiwake c12 (6 1cy) 

Mediterranean gulls at least 13 (4 1cy)

Another check from Ocean Edge later

Common Tern 3 juvenile 

Black Tern 1 juvenile briefly 

Shaun had a walk along the wall on the evening ebbing tide:

Heysham Outfalls 16:00-18:30: 

Little Gull 8 - 5 adults + 1cy on no 2 and 2 adults on no 1. 

Mediterranean gull 50+ between Red Nab and the wooden jetty (37 roosting on Red Nab, including 3 1cy's). 

Common Tern 3 adult plus 2 juvenile 

Kittiwake 4 adults behind Seatruck. 

Pink-footed Goose 44 out.

I had a walk along the wall just after high water (MD). The only record not covered above was:

Sandwich Tern 1 adult - this clip starts with it climbing out of the water, even when the food is on the surface they can't help but plunge in. It does have a small Whitebait, but it is quickly eaten. A guest appearance by an adult Little Gull too.

Adult Little Gull

1st calendar year Little Gull

1st calendar year Common Tern

This is yesterday's new white ringed Mediterranean gull
White 34PN ringed as an adult at Hardenhoek, Werkendam, Netherlands 18/05/21
It has been recorded in France and Portugal, but the last sighting was Little Singleton; Lancashire 25/09/22.

Just out of the recording area - seen from Knott End after presumably passing through the recording area - ref Pete.

Leach's Storm Petrel seen at Knott end 1453

Long-tailed Skua 2 juvenile flew out mid afternoon 

A busy day

A fresh and gusty west wind. Showers in the morning.

Heysham skear - low water 09:00 (MD)

Red-breasted Merganser 3

Great Crested Grebe 1

Eider 17

Pink-Footed Goose 174 in 3 skeins

Little Egret 8

Carrion Crow 8 chased off...

Raven 1

Oystercatcher 300

Curlew 25

Redshank 50

Turnstone 120

Ringed Plover 7

Knot 1500 - these seemed to be eating small mussels or snails, either way they were going down whole.

Howard checked the Heliport and managed to read one ringed Knot, despite many being obscured by the long grass.

Colour ringed Knot on the Heliport 

South Shore

Report from Pete:

Little Gull 2 -  1 adult on outfalls plus 1cy  behind ferry then into bay. No tern species. 

Mediterranean Gull 5 behind ferry at lunchtime and at least 5 red nab 

Kevin also saw the adult Little gull later on in the afternoon, but by this time, also...

Common Tern 2

I was busy till it was almost dark (MD)

Common Tern 1 juvenile on No.2 outflow.

Juvenile Common Tern

Mediterranean Gulls there were 18 adult/2nd calendar year and a 1st calendar year on the beach near the wooden jetty. It's very difficult working out when this beach is going to be good for the gulls. It must be very good at the moment as a large group feeding after a full day of feeding opportunities, including this beach earlier, must mean that the pickings are easy.

This is how busy it was with just a tiny corner of the beach exposed

There were two white ringed adult....

This white ringed med has been seen several times this year, 
but the shot does show how prominent the Sandmason worm tubes are at the moment.

The other white ringed med was a new bird for Heysham - details awaited 

This young gull was eating, or rather preparing to eat, a crab, when a 1st calendar med flies in to pick up the pieces, I was hoping it was the ringed bird seen the other day, but it wasn't, perhaps just as well as it was quickly moved on by a 2nd calendar year med.

Janet was exercising a dog over Heysham Barrows - she had a distinct feeling of being watched from above........

Not only by this Kestrel......

.......this fox had a high vantage point too!

Unlucky for some.....13

A light SE breeze. Overcast but mild, the rain held off till early afternoon.

Black Terns 0 - the first record was two weeks ago, and an almost constant presence on the outflows ever since. Today would have been day fourteen, but there have been no records of any local sightings today. A number of visiting birders were unlucky, but pragmatic, there is always something to see here.

This report from Josh Hedley:

A few notes from Heysham NR and the Power Station Outfalls 09:30-11:30 today

Pink-footed Goose- 260 south

Bar-tailed Godwit- 1 between the outfalls

Swallow- 12 south at 10:30

Wheatear- 1 by the lighthouse

Wheatear

Meadow Pipit- 4 south

Chaffinch- 3 south

Siskin- 1 south

Goldcrest- 2 along dog walking track

Great Black Backed Gull N:0G8 at the harbour (reported to the North West England gull project).

Ringed in Walney 6/07/21. It has been seen at Heysham on 4 previous occasions,
Now seen in each of its three winter periods. Last record was 13/01/23

This is what it looked like in January this year.

I did a morning check of the sea wall and foreshore (MD)

These are the records that definitely do not overlap with Josh's report.

Shelduck 114 - these are some this morning having a drink and a wash in the freshwater runoff near Red Nab.

Rock Pipits 3

Meadow Pipit 36 east in small groups

Skylark 15 south in 2s and 3s.

Chaffinch 18 stopped briefly on Ocean Edge grass before continuing SE

Pied/White Wagtail 6

Robin 7 along foreshore and Red Nab - at least 3 more than usual 

Linnet 48 feeding on the small pink flowers on Ocean Edge grass - ref Jean

Ringed Plover and Turnstone 
This shot actually from Saturday when Jeff Gorse checked on the Black Terns

Pink-Footed geese were flying high to the south all around the recording area,
but it's difficult eliminating overlap. This shot from Janet from Knowlys Rd

Black Terns.......day thirteen!

A south to SW wind. Mainly dry apart from a few very light showers.

South Shore

Report from Pete Crooks:

3 juvenile Black Tern – still at Heysham Stage 2 Outfall

5 Mediterranean Gull (2 adults, 2 2nd winter, 1 1st winter) spread between Red Nab and Heysham Harbour

1 adult Little Gull – briefly behind the Sea Truck ferry as it rounded the Wooden Pier to enter the harbour

1 Guillemot – by outflow pipe in SW corner of harbour

48 Cormorant – roosting on the Wooden Pier

72 Pink-footed Geese – south offshore over HS2 outfall

3 Rock Pipit – 1 Red Nab and 2 by HS1 outfall

1 Swallow – south over the tideline off HS2 outfall

Later report from Shaun Coyle 

Heysham Outfalls 16:00-17:30:

Black Tern 4 juvenile on no 2. Three mostly together, other drops in briefly, then disappears. 

Common Tern 2 juvenile (one on each outfall). 

Sandwich Tern 1 (no 1). 

Mediterranean Gull at least 6 adult types. 

Guillemot still in harbour (intake/waterfall). 

North shore 

I checked Heysham skear at low water 07:30 (MD)

Pink-Footed goose 360+ - a flock of 60 was flying SE at 07:45. Then no more till the incoming tide lifted over 300 from distant sand bars. They resolved into 3 skeins and headed SE.

Shelduck 2 south

Eider 37 - these are some coming in

Great Crested Grebe 4

Red-breasted Merganser 18 - I managed to get most of them in this clip. They are swimming against the current, meanwhile a couple of male Eider drift in on the tide.

Little Egret 14

Grey Heron 1

Oystercatcher 500 - many more flew from the outer skear on the rising tide

Curlew 10

Redshank 50

Turnstone 30

Knot 1,000

Swallow 4 together south

Skylark 4 together south

Meadow Pipit 3 east

Carrion Crow 53 at least, as well as the typical 10 or so scattered around there was this group of 43.

Carrion Crow and Knot

Middleton Nature Reserve (JP)

Grey Wagtail 1 (not ringed)

Singing lessons

A light SE wind freshened slightly when the rain started after lunch.

Heysham Nature Reserve 

Report from Jean:

Vis: 
85 PF Geese heading north

Ringing:
(Retraps in brackets)
Chiffchaff 3
Blackcap 1
Goldcrest 1
Dunnock 4 (3)
Goldfinch 9 (2)
Coal Tit 1 (4)
Greenfinch 4
Blue Tit 10 (2) - bird of the day!!
Great Tit 2 (4)
Chaffinch (2) 
Robin 2

South shore

Black Tern 4 juvenile on No.2 outflow at 08:00 - ref Pete

I checked at 09:15 (MD). At that time there was only 1 on No.2 outflow and none were showing when I walked back at 10:00. A quick (wet) evening check saw at least 3 on No.2 outflow.

Shelduck 35 beyond Red Nab

Wigeon 3 in the channel next to No.2 outflow - waiting for the tide to reach Red Nab

Pink-Footed goose - in the morning there were plenty heading south but the flight line was inland and only visible when I was at Ocean Edge and a quick visit to Middleton Nature Reserve. 219 in about 20 minutes.

In the evening this individual was grounded near the lighthouse.

A rain affected Pink-Footed Goose

No sign of the Greylag Goose today, but a Guillemot was in the middle of the harbour.

Rock Pipit - in the morning there were 3 (Red Nab, sea wall and lighthouse), but in the evening there were 3 on the sloping wall by the lighthouse. These are 2 of them.

Linnet 4 near the lighthouse, 40+ on the saltmarsh 

The only passage seen while along the sea wall in the morning was:

Thrush sp (probably Song) 6 south

But as soon as I reached the foreshore, overhead movement began. These records from the 10 minutes it takes to walk the length of the foreshore 

Meadow Pipit 47 east 

Skylark 2 south

Pied/White Wagtail 2 east

Middleton Nature Reserve (MD)

Just a 10 minute check of the two main ponds proved interesting 

Mute Swan 2 adult with 7 cygnets 

Coot 9

Moorhen 2

Little Grebe 1

Mallard 9

Gadwall 4 

Sparrowhawk 1

Cetti's warbler 2 male. One at the "no swimming" pond just announced itself with a typical short burst of song. But one in the SE corner of the main pond was going through its repertoire of song and calls, almost as though it was practicing. Nothing to see in this clip, even though the bird is only a couple of metres away. We are only 20m away from the feeding area and you can also hear a young family feeding the swans.

He eventually nailed it and produced a loud burst of typical song.

Black Terns hang on, and a wildfowl passage

A fresh west wind. Mainly dry with some sunshine.

Report from Pete:

Black Tern 4 juvenile on No.2 outfall. All four headed south towards the Lune estuary at 1105 after a previous attempt to fly out to sea was aborted in the strong winds. Looked like they may have been heading off, but by 1200 all four were back on No.2.

Common Tern 1 juvenile on outfalls

Southbound wildfowl; 

Pale-bellied Brent goose 2 distant

Canada goose 6

Pink-Footed goose 60 

Pintail 9

Wigeon 7

Shelduck 191 (8 flocks)  

A check behind the lunchtime ferry:

Kittiwake 2 - Ad and Juv 

Common Tern 1 additional Juv

Mediterranean gull 7

distant cross-over with outgoing freight ferry probably cost a few birds. 

I had a morning walk along the wall (MD). 

Yesterday's Greylag goose hadn't flown off, perhaps it's injured. This morning it was in the harbour mouth trying to get to calmer water.

It managed it as Kevin saw it near the waterfall in the afternoon. I can't think what, if anything, it can find to eat here.

Rock Pipits 3

I had another look in the afternoon (MD)

The 4 juvenile Black Terns and the juvenile Common Tern were still on No.2 outflow. But three of the Black Terns were resting on the rails.

Three juvenile Black Tern resting along the top rail.
Note the Turnstone below the bird on the left for a size comparison 

Zoomed in shot of a juvenile Black Tern and a Turnstone 

This is a visualisation of the relationship between the four Black Terns. Two routinely stick together with a third in association, while the fourth bird has its own agenda.

Today's light made their paler rumps look particularly pale, especially on one of the birds. The independent one.

Juvenile Black Tern

Mediterranean gulls 11 arrived at the beach by the wooden jetty to feed

Shelduck 33 on mud beyond Red Nab (224 for the day)

Wigeon 11 south (18 for the day)

Wigeon

Guillemot 1 near the waterfall, don't think it is the same one as yesterday.

Healthy looking Guillemot 

A few more storm driven seabirds

The very strong overnight SW winds started to ease early morning. Overcast all day, but remarkably it remained dry.

Pete and Jean had a check first thing.

Jean checked the north side:

1000 Knot on the skear but will probably end up  on the heliport- couldn’t see any colour rings. Later another 300 flew south.

13 Red-breasted Mergansers 

3 Great Crested Grebe in the low tide channel.

Some Knot did indeed move to the Heliport, this from Howard.

I decided to visit the Heliport today to check out Knot numbers and also visibility for ring reading, the vegetation is pretty high thus obscuring lots of the wall which is going to be a problem for recording

Knot

Redshank, Knot and Oystercatcher 

South shore

Pete scanned from Ocean Edge:

Loads of birds on heysham outfalls or resting on nearby mud with long range scan from Ocean Edge: 

Black Tern 4 juvenile on seaward side of No.2 outflow

Common Tern 2 

Little gull 1 adult

Both the above were on the seaward side of No.1 outflow but were displaced by the rising tide

Mediterranean gulls 32 at least

I had a morning walk along the wall (MD). Saw the 4 Black Tern, by this time on the sea wall side of No.2 outflow.

This lonely looking Greylag goose was in the harbour. You can just about hear it honking above the sound of the wind.

Birds aren't noted for their facial expressions, but you have to say that this one looks sad!
Almost certainly never been alone before.

Shelduck 3 south.

Tom and Eric had a look in the early afternoon, at that time only 2 Black Terns were on No.2 outflow.

Little gull 1 adult on the seaward side of No.1 outflow- likely to be the same bird as earlier

Kittiwake 3 behind the IoM Ferry. 2 x 1cy and 1 adult

Several Mediterranean gulls seen both along the wall and behind the ferry

Guillemot 1

The Greylag goose was still in the harbour.

Rock Pipit 2

I checked again mid afternoon (MD). Three juvenile Black Terns on No.2 now - the important thing here is that at least two were seen at every stage of the tide today, so a visit at anytime should be productive.

Common Tern 1 juvenile

Juvenile Common Tern

This first calendar year Mediterranean gull was on No.1 outflow. It has a white darvic ring. This must be a new bird as we haven't seen any ringed  first calendar year birds this year. One to watch out for!

1cy Mediterranean gull with a white darvic ring, just beyond reading range!

Another 15 adult/2cy Mediterranean gulls turned up to feed on the beach next to the wooden jetty, including green and white ringed birds, but both previously seen this year.

Shelduck 51 feeding just beyond Red Nab

No sign of the Greylag Goose it must have flown off. But one storm affected bird won't be flying anywhere. I don't know if this is the same guillemot as seen by Tom and Eric, but I suspect not. They didn't say anything about it having a broken wing, which this bird clearly has.

It elected to remain on the rocks by No.1 outflow as the tide ebbed.
It at least managed to set its wing to the correct position and seemed to be asleep.

It won't be able to dive effectively either, but of all the places for a flightless guillemot to be at least here there will be feeding opportunities with the fish from the outflows, but almost certainly only prolonging the inevitable.

Grey Seal 1