A dark-belly turned up

Another dry but cooler day. A NE wind freshened during the day becoming very strong by mid afternoon, before easing again.

Middleton Nature Reserve (Janet)

A couple of shots from yesterday

Summer Plumage Little grebe

South shore (Malcolm)

Just a short walk from the saltmarsh to Red Nab and back through the Nature Park.

Rock Pipit 1 display calling and flights along the foreshore.

Rock Pipit

Meadow Pipit 16 north. Five landed briefly near the displaying Rock Pipit but quickly moved on.

Meadow Pipits

Pied/White wagtail 1 north

Redshank 145 along the waterline. The only other waders visible along the waterline were Curlew and Oystercatcher 

On Red Nab

Pale-bellied Brent goose 22 

Shelduck 15 plus 20 near the waterline

Wigeon 180

Nature Park

Chiffchaff 1 singing

These Blue Tits seemed to be checking for a suitable nest hole

Near Naze and Heliport (Malcolm)

I just had a look in passing to see if there were any grounded migrants. There wasn't, but there were 3,000 Knot. Unfortunately, very flighty and 2,000 quickly left towards Heysham Head, the other 1,000 out of sight beyond the Oystercatchers on the Heliport sea wall. Still I managed to read a few flags before they left.

These are some of the departing birds. None obviously with a coloured flag.
But the circled bird does appear to have a black flag

This Knot with a black flag was on the north shore last week. We have now
received its "history". Ringed November 2018 eastern Wadden Sea Holland.
Amazingly, this is the only confirmed sighting since it was ringed!

North shore (Malcolm)

I went out on the skear this afternoon towards low water. The NE wind was surprisingly strong out there!

Pale-bellied Brent geese 33 (almost certainly including this morning's 22)

Dark-bellied Brent goose 1 - I didn't see it arrive, but suspect that it just had done so, as it was having a thorough bath.

It climbed out to dry itself off......

......but as soon as it opened its wings to shake them......

........the wind blew it back into the sea.

Probably all of this morning's Knot were on the skear. The strong NE wind stirred up the water enough along the northern edge of the skear to bring small shrimps into the shallows.

Knot shrimping in the shallows, you can see the line towards the top
of the picture where the clear water becomes muddied.

Despite the high number of Knot, checking for flags was difficult, partly as many legs were hidden, but mainly as it was barely practical to stand still! Some new birds for the skear were seen though. 

Redshank and an orange flagged Knot. Unfortunately, in this case part of the
code is obscured by a blob of something on the flag - you can't win them all!

First Wheatear and Sand Martin

Another unseasonably warm day, peaking at 18.5° this afternoon. A freshening east wind.

Shaun Coyle had a good walk around the recording area.

Heysham Head 07:00: 

PB Brent Geese 73. 

Pink-footed Goose 65 north plus 60 west later

Whooper Swan  1 north plus what looked to be a group of swans on a sand bar well on the way to Barrow.

Little Egret 5.

Two pairs of Rock Pipits.

Heysham NR: 

Two Chiffchaffs singing.

Red Nab: 

Wigeon 233 

Shelduck 52.

Little Egret 2.

Rock Pipit pair on the seawall near Outfall 1 and another pair at the Lighthouse/Harbour mouth. 

Adult type Shag roosting on the Wooden Jetty.

Ocean Edge: 

Two male Wheatears - first records this year

BY Middleton (scrub & marsh):

Two singing Cetti's Warblers 

2 pairs of Reed Bunting. 

Great Spotted Woodpecker 

Sand Martin 1 heading north - first records of the year

Middleton NR:

Cetti's Warbler 3 singing 

5 singing Chiffchaffs. 

Raven heading east 

a single Redwing!

Main Pond 

Little Grebe pair

Coot 6

Tufted Duck 2m + f 

Gadwall 11.

No Swimming Pond - Mute Swan pair, 

Coot 2 and 

Gadwall 6.

Tim Butler Pond

Teal pair.

Janet also had a look later

The Coots were bickering.....

.........again

Comma

Small Tortoiseshell - 2 Brimstone also seen

Five spot Ladybird 

Some of 60+ Pink-Footed geese heading north this afternoon 

I watched the tide slowly uncover the skear late morning (Malcolm)

Some of the brent Geese

Pink-Footed goose 95 and 12 south, plus 62 NW, these will be what Shaun saw, and possibly Janet's birds too. So 172 minimum total for the day.

A low south bound skein of Pink-Footed geese.
Great Crested Grebe on the water

Eider 18

Red-breasted Merganser 2

Great Crested Grebe 2

Black-Headed gulls 70+ in several small groups flying low to the north.

Black-Headed gulls

Meadows Pipits 8 individuals heading NE

Oystercatchers 500

Curlew 20

Curlew and Oystercatcher 

Knot 650, unfortunately disturbed by two Peregrines, not a pair as both were the same size.

Redshank 120

Redshank

Dunlin 30

Ringed Plover just 1 seen

Turnstone 43

All the Turnstone grouped together after a Peregrine attack had lifted everything.

Small Tortoiseshell 1 in/off the sea

Just outside the recording area

Hummingbird hawkmoth in a garden in Overton yesterday, seen by two different people. (Reported on Facebook - Janet)

It definitely felt like spring today

Another warm (peaking at 18°) dry and largely sunny day. An east wind.

Heysham Nature Reserve 

Report by Alan:

This morning I set a couple of nets by the office at Heysham again. Very few birds were caught even though the feeders have required topping up every other day, as the food is being eaten quite quickly. 

One Chiffchaff was trapped and at least two were singing in the vicinity. 

A female Stonechat was in the reserve car park area and a bright male Brimstone there showed well in the sunshine.  

        A good number of toads, both singles and pairs in tandem were in evidence 

around the office area, presumably making their way to the water bodies for breeding.

Middleton Nature Reserve (Janet)

A ringed Chiffchaff

Greenfinch 

Reed Bunting 

Great and Long-Tailed Tits

Gadwall

Brimstone 1

Comma - Kevin

North shore (Malcolm)

I checked early in the ebbing tide mid morning, as the inner skear was becoming exposed.

Meadow Pipit at least 2 north

Pale-bellied Brent goose 33

Pink-Footed goose 63 north in two skeins.

Eider 65

Whooper Swan 5 North

Whooper Swans

Oystercatcher 1,000

Curlew 20

Knot 3,000 resting at first then many went to feed on the muddy shore, presumably as their favoured shrimps are not readily available. These neap tides drain too slowly to leave shrimps stranded and the offshore wind did not muddy the water along the margins.

Knot on the shore with a few Redshank in the water behind

Dunlin 80

Turnstone 35

Redshank 250 - these were finding areas to shrimp where draining water was muddying the sea slightly.

Redshank and Dunlin looking for shrimps 

At least 5 wheatear coastal lancs today, something to look out for.

It wasn't a complete washout.

Rain for much of the morning with lighter showers in the afternoon. Overcast all day with a light SE wind.

Just my stuff so far (Malcolm)

I went to check the south shore after a heavy morning shower. Hoping it had grounded a migrant or two. But there wasn't a single passerine of any description from the saltmarsh to Red Nab. Not even a Wren! It didn't bode well for the day.

Middleton Nature Reserve 

Just a quick, wet, look at the two main ponds. Interestingly, there were no Mallard on either pond.

Main pond

Mute Swan pair

Gadwall 14

Coot 6

Moorhen 1

"No swimming" pond

Gadwall 11

Tufted duck 1 male

Coot 3

Moorhen 1

Imperial Rd

Just a quick drive along 

Wood Pigeon 40+

Buzzard 2

The one at the back was just finishing off a morsel.

The front bird left when the last of the morsel disappeared. The other had something else to do, before wiping its beak clean on the post.

North shore

It cleared up a bit this afternoon so I went down to watch the tide cover the skear (very slowly now that we are back to neap tides).

Pale-bellied Brent goose 33 - a main flock of 26 occasionally joined by others.

Brent geese

Little Egret - only one seen today

Knot 3,000 - they left the skear in three separate flocks and each spread along the shore to feed before moving further south. Unfortunately most were too distant to read flags in such poor light. Some flags were seen but no new birds today.

Knot feeding along the shore

The Knot bottom left is just about to swallow the small bivalves
that they feed on here

This one, trying to reach a bivalve, is an Icelandic ringed bird

Curlew and Knot

The sun returns tomorrow!

First butterfly

A very warm and dry sunny day. The temperature peaked at 16° at 14:30. A fresh SE wind.

Heysham skear - low water 10:00 (Malcolm)

I set out early in the ebbing tide and followed it out.

No sign of Brent or Pink-Footed geese, but...

Canada Goose 1 flew south

Canada goose

Eider only 4 seen

No Merganser or Grebes seen.

I went out early for a better chance of checking the Knot for any flagged birds. We are quickly moving back to neap tides, but today's tide still drained quickly. This causes small shrimps to become stranded in shallow pools and wet mud, where they burry themselves and wait for the tide to return. 

3,000 Knot were on the skear and they had other ideas about what should happen to the stranded shrimps.

It was very nice seeing so many Knot, but very difficult checking many of them for flags when they are feeding like this.

Grey Heron with Knot, Oystercatcher and a Redshank.
There were also two Little Egrets

There was only one Peregrine attack this morning, and the Knot quickly resettled, which tends to mean the attack was successful and the Knot "know" the Peregrine won't need to return for a while. So at least I had plenty of time and ended up with a good tally of flagged birds including at least six new to the skear this winter.

This one is part of a Norwegian scheme

This is a UK scheme bird, almost certainly new for the skear this winter,
but unfortunately just avoiding identification this visit - you can't win them all!

The other waders similar to recent.

Heysham Nature Reserve 

Small Tortoiseshell - Janet

South shore  (Kevin)

Pale-bellied Brent goose 20 on Red Nab

Chiffchaff singing along the dog walking path

A nice day and a decent day

Another dry and largely sunny day. A SW wind.

Middleton Nature Reserve (Janet)

Gadwall coming in

Gadwall pair

Little grebes

Not welcomed by this Coot

Coot

Mallard pair on the secluded fence pond

All the regular tits were taking advantage of the feeders in the bottom car park.

Great Tit, taking great care with its meal

Blue Tit

Coal Tit

Long-Tailed Tit, in punk mode

Saltmarsh to Red Nab

Janet checked in the morning when the tide was out.

Shelduck

Little Egret

Curlew

Redshank - the forest of Samphire behind it is binding the mud in this section
beyond the creek that historically only had temporary tufts of marsh grass

Female Stonechat

This is a cuttlebone, the internal skeleton of a Cuttlefish. They often wash 
in during spring tides, sometimes in large numbers. This one appears to
have remnants of its skin on the upper surface.

I checked again this afternoon towards high water (Malcolm).

The, or another female Stonechat was along the western edge of the saltmarsh, near the slipway.

Reed Bunting 2

Linnet 4

Rock Pipit 6 - two along the foreshore and four feeding together on the flotsam at the saltmarsh. Unfortunately some of the flotsam is manmade waste, but to be fair there is much less of this now than there was twenty years ago. Three of the Rock Pipits in this clip.

Common Snipe 4 flushed by the rising tide.

Wigeon 167 at the saltmarsh.

North shore 

Shag 1 out from Heysham Head at low water - David Kaye

Pete checked later 

Great Crested grebe 7

Red-breasted Merganser 3

Low numbers of Eider

I checked as the tide covered the skear late morning (Malcolm)

Pale-bellied Brent goose 6

Oystercatcher 1,500

Curlew 40

Redshank 80

Knot 1,000 got as close as the middle skear, just 400 as far as the waterline. Two Peregrine attacks saw them off.

Turnstone 140 - three flocks of 30 - 40 flew east, plus typical feeding numbers

Dunlin 80

Ringed Plover 12

Ringed Plover