Dodging the showers

Heavy overnight rain and heavy morning showers became less frequent during the day. Sunny spells. NW wind.

South shore (Malcolm)

I exercised my daughter's dog along the sea wall late morning, it was raining just before I started and a heavy shower as I returned to my car, but dry and sunny while I was out.

Shame there was little to see!

Lots of Black-Headed gulls on the outfalls

Mediterranean gulls 6 on the beach by the wooden jetty.

Gulls feeding on No.1 outfall with a few on the beach beyond

The Mediterranean gulls were easily catching sandmason worms. 

The white ringed bird is a Dutch bird that has been with us all summer

This Med was catching sandmason worms in the normally not favoured 
rocky area below the sea wall

One of five Little Egret

This Curlew was out from the foreshore. It stuck me as odd that there were
no footprints. Even when they land from flying in they take a couple of steps.
More on this later.

Wheatear 2 on Ocean Edge grass.

Wheatear 

I returned late afternoon to check the waterline for waders out from the saltmarsh. As soon as I got on the shore, I knew why the Curlew had left no footprints. The heavy overnight rain and strong wind had completely flattened and compacted the mud. It was like walking on the surface in a kiddies play area, flat and firm with just a hint of "give".

The shore out from the saltmarsh, completely smooth, not a single
Lugworm cast or mollusc mound. Made for easy walking

Two lots of small waders, Knot I think, had already flown south and the small group that remained soon joined them.

Knot 180

Dunlin 20

Oystercatcher 16

There are fresh Lugworm casts here where the neap tides still cover the mud

And then they were off. Nothing spooked them, it was just time to leave.

The birds had flown and there was obviously heavy rain already falling to the south and north. Still sunny here, but it was time to leave!

Rain to the south

Rain to the north

There was nothing feeding on the barren upper shore, but a group of 11 Ringed Plover were feeding around the saltmarsh creek.

I just got back to my car, when the rain hit again. Two walks and missed the rain both times.....not like me!

Kevin Eaves checked the sea wall early evening.

A particularly chunky Devil's coach horse beetle

Good coverage with some reward, but the wind is now turning

The fresh wind started SW but drifted round to WNW by the afternoon. Mainly dry apart from a heavy morning shower. Some sunny spells.

First some shots taken this weekend by Peter and Rosemary Silvester.

An excellent shot of a Southern Hawker on the dipping pond
Heysham Nature Reserve

Directions to dipping pond - the little pond you come to by going down the entrance road to the Heysham reserve, over the first style you come to on your right, turning right and following the path for a short distance until you come to the small pond

Common Darters

It's not easy getting a clear shot of a Brimstone's upper wings.

Shaun checked early from the north wall.

Gannet 2 - distant, heading out.

I had a morning walk along the south sea wall (Malcolm). The walk out was accompanied by the driving rain of the only heavy shower of the day. But it had eased on the return leg.

Common Tern 1 adult feeding on No.2 outfall.

Common Tern

There were a lot of gulls on the beach by the wooden jetty, and they seemed to be catching sandmason worms. There was only one Mediterranean gull, an unringed bird feeding on the "patch" where the green ringed German bird has been feeding all summer.

Mediterranean gull surrounded by sandmason worm tubes

Bar-Tailed Godwit 2, also on the beach by the wooden jetty.

Bar-Tailed Godwit, also surrounded by sandmason worm tubes

Rock Pipit 3 (1 + 2) on Red Nab

A return visit this evening, but there was already north in the wind. There was nothing of note on the sea and not a single bird followed the SeaTruck in.

Pink-Footed Goose 122 in three skeins south.

Pink-Footed geese

Six Common Darters catching the evening sun in the Nature Park 

Pete checked early afternoon 

Shag 1 juvenile in harbour mouth then into the harbour

Mediterranean gull 5 at least on Red Nab - all the gulls were hunkered down

Later, Cornelius Jones managed 6-7

Middleton Nature Reserve (Janet)

"Only" 8 Tufted Duck today 

Male Common Darter

Female Migrant Hawker

A Brown Hawker was the only other dragonfly species seen.

Speckled Wood

Red Admiral

Footnote - Cornelius Jones saw c200 Pink Footed geese flying south at dusk. I had two skeins of over my house either side of 20:00 (Malcolm)

So at least 350 through this evening, should be more around tomorrow, if nothing else! 

Black Tern and Pinks return

A dry day with sunny spells. A fresh NW wind drifting round to the west by evening 

Middleton Nature Reserve (Malcolm)

Just a quick passing check of the two main ponds mid morning.

The solitary Mute Swan on the "no swimming" pond was swimming around today.

Tufted Duck 19 (15 males)

Male Tufted Duck

Female/immature Tufted Duck

All but one were on the main pond. There are 15 in this clip.

Cetti's warbler 1 singing

Chiffchaff 2 calling

House Martin 24 - the sun had come out for the first time in the day, and within a few minutes two groups of 6 and 18 hurried through to the west.

Swallow 1 south

Common Darter 2

Migrant Hawker 5

South shore

I had a walk to the waterline from the saltmarsh on the rising tide this afternoon (Malcolm).

The bulk of the waders were to the south of the recording area, and moved further south as the tide rose. 

Waders inside the recording area just:

Oystercatcher 40

Curlew 150

Bar-Tailed Godwit 4

There was just a small feeding group of 8 Ringed Plover and 6 Dunlin higher up the shore. The large groups tend to feed here on the first tides to cover the beach after a series of neap tides. 

There was a nice mixed group of waders resting high up the beach though.

Bar-Tailed Godwit 1

Grey Plover 19

Knot 22

Dunlin 13

Some of the resting group, all four species here

On the saltmarsh 

Redshank 24

Lapwing 6

Little Egret 5

A nice view of the creek running through the saltmarsh. The marsh grass
and samphire are now well established on the far bank.

Mediterranean gull 1

Mediterranean gull

Wheatear 5

Linnet 14

Pied Wagtail 8

Kevin Eaves had a walk along the sea wall as soon as it was opened up for the evening.

Black Tern 1 first calendar year was feeding on No.2 outfall.

First calendar year Black Tern

It was still around when I got there later (Malcolm). Although, not always feeding it rested on the rail a couple of times.

A nice size comparison to a Black-Headed gull

Rock Pipit 1 on Red Nab

Pink-Footed goose 56 south

Nice having Pinks back

House Martins 27 feeding high between the anemometers - making 51 seen today

Great White Egret pays a visit

Cloudy all day, the rain starting in earnest after lunch. A light variable north breeze.

Middleton Nature Reserve 

Alan Wilson spotted this Great White Egret on the main pond yesterday. They have been seen passing over the reserve many times in recent years, but this is the first record of one feeding here.

Great White Egret yesterday 

Migrant Hawker also by Alan

This morning's ringing report by Alan (Draper)

I only set two nets this morning in view of the forecast early rain - the rain didn't happen until around 11.30. However, six more Grey Wagtails were colour ringed making the total 26 so far this Autumn. A flock of 12 Meadow Pipits passed through but no hirundine movement was evident (one Swallow did pass through, but northwards).  Swallows were on the move elsewhere so Middleton was clearly not on a flightline.  A large flock of at least 60 Goldfinch were again roaming the reserve.  Late in the morning the whole flock dropped into bushes adjacent to one of the nets and I approached expecting a netful but only three were caught.

Robin  3

Grey Wagtail  6 (For details of the Grey Wagtail colour ringing scheme see sidebar)

Blackcap  7

Chiffchaff  2

Goldfinch  3

Sedge Warbler, Great Tit, Goldcrest, Willow Warbler & Chaffinch   1 of each.

I had a quick look at the two main ponds later in the morning (Malcolm)

Cetti's warbler 1 singing

Mute Swan pair plus a cygnet on the main pond. Lone adult on the "no swimming" pond. It (presumably she) was stood on the nest where the paired female hatched three cygnets earlier this year. There are at least three eggs on the nest. Not really sure what's going on, perhaps they were three eggs that didn't hatch, although I'm sure the nest was empty when the paired female left it. I'll watch this space!

Mute Swan stood on nest with at least three eggs.

Tufted Duck 13 (11 male). Two males were on the "no swimming" pond the rest were on the main pond. This is the largest group feeding

But when the female left all the males followed.

Mallard 10

Coot 17

Moorhen 3

Little Grebe 2

Tufted Duck, winter plumage Little Grebe and Coot

At 14:00, after the rain had started, Janet saw 30+ hirundines feeding high above the main pond. Unfortunately she had no optics with her and they were too high to identify.

Red Nab to saltmarsh mid morning (Malcolm)

Shelduck 8

Robin 3

Wheatear 8

Pied Wagtail 10

Linnet 2

Meadow Pipit 2

Male Wheatear

A particularly rufous female/immature Wheatear

Meadow Pipit

Two Meadow Pipit and two Wheatears

There was still the odd butterfly coming down the sea wall, this Red Admiral 
choosing to rest on one of the bollards at the beginning of the wall

There hasn't been many Small Tortoiseshell so far this year

Janet took these shots in the Nature Park yesterday 

Showing the abundance of Peacocks

Peacock and a Red Admiral