A temporary(?) thaw

The temperature didn't drop below 4°C overnight or exceed 5°C during the day, but a cold night expected tonight. Dry, but overcast with a light north wind.

Imperial Rd

I checked at 10:00 Malcolm. The frozen ground was just beginning to thaw. As soon as I arrived the female Stonechat came over to greet me.

She all but sat on my shoulder!

They have followed me in the past taking advantage of any invertebrates that I disturbed. But I suspect after Janet's treat of mealworms on Tuesday she was expecting more. 

There had been no sign of the male, but within a minute of me turning over this plank...

........he turned up to investigate 

Water Rail 1 squealing

Long-Tailed Tits 11

In this clip they are foraging as they typically do in the bushes.

But they soon learned that there were better feeding opportunities in the undergrowth. I suspect that they are finding dead invertebrates freed by the thawing ice. A much needed bonus for insects feeders, but it can only be a case of diminishing returns for future freezes.

Janet checked mid afternoon, again the Stonechats came to greet her, but quickly returned to feeding over the marsh.

Male Stonechat

Female Stonechat 

Roe Deer

Fox with a bad back leg

These Long-Tailed Tits were at Middleton Nature Reserve a little later

South shore

I checked from saltmarsh to Red Nab - Malcolm 12:30 - 13:00

The freezing conditions have discoloured large swathes of the saltmarsh 

At the saltmarsh:

Song Thrush 1

Blackbird 2

Linnet 8

Red Nab:

Little Egret 2

Grey Heron 1

Shelduck 4

Wigeon 250

It was too early in the tide for the Brent Geese, the Wigeon were just arriving, you can hear the males whistling.

Peregrine Falcon 4 - around the Power Stations, including the adult with the dislocated talon, 2 ended up leaving to the south - reported on Facebook by Matthew Thomas (thanks)

Distant red-throated diver off Heysham harbour on incoming tide and juvenile Shag off Heysham Head - Pete

Just out of the recording area, Heaton - Malcolm

This location shot shows a family of Whoopers (left) and Mute Swans (right)

The red arrow points to the gate in the shot above. The yellow is the Bay Gatteway
This is the roundabout after the one to Imperial Rd. Heaton Marsh is to the right of
the picture with the river Lune in the top right corner. You can actually see the swans
from the bypass, that's where I noticed them. But safer to view from here.

Two adult and four Whooper Swan cygnets 
Greylag geese behind

A fifth cygnet was taking a rest

One of the adults, turned out to be the male, was colour ringed. This was his
first sighting since being ringed in Iceland in 2023. Possibly as it could easily
be misread as 260

But it is 26D

A weary sort of day

It didn't freeze overnight but the temperature didn't get above 3°C all day. Overcast (gloomy) all day, but it remained dry. A very light NE breeze began to freshen slightly by evening.

Heysham skear - Malcolm 10:00 - 11:30

The light offshore breeze didn't install confidence, and I wasn't surprised when there was little to see, and what there was, was mainly distant.

Eider 1 male

Red-breasted Merganser 5

Great Crested Grebe 6

Knot, just one feeding group of 200

Other waders similar to recent 

There was a faintly unpleasant smell out on the skear. For some reason "burnt Christmas" came to mind. I couldn't place it at first, then I realised that the offshore breeze was wafting the scent of traffic and a thousand lunches being cooked, out over the skear. You don't really smell these things too much when ashore, but it wasn't the smells of the sea and shore that I am familiar (and happy) with out here.

South shore - Malcolm 13:00 - 13:45

I couldn't see any Brent geese on the north side earlier, so I went to watch Red Nab as the tide reached it.

Pale-Bellied Brent geese 35 - originally 23 arrived, then later at least 2 more smaller groups arrived. When they moved further south it was in flocks of 26 and 9.

The first wave of Brent geese arriving at Red Nab

Brent Geese, Wigeon and Oystercatcher 

This is another batch of Brent arriving later

Shelduck and Wigeon

Wigeon eating the gutweed attached to the rocks. This is also what the 
Brent geese feed on here

One of three Little Egret

Cormorants, the one on the right still in juvenile plumage

Shelduck 3

Wigeon 120

Kingfisher 1 flitting across the outer reaches of Red Nab

At the saltmarsh:

Rock Pipit 1

Reed Bunting 4

Linnet 17

Linnet

Stonechats back on territory

The rain ended in the early hours. It remained above freezing but felt cold in the fresh NW wind.

Heysham skear - Malcolm 08:30 - 10:00

Not a lot again.

Eider 2

Red-breasted Merganser 2 

Male Red-breasted Merganser

Great Crested grebe 1

There was no disturbance by Peregrines while I was out, but the waders were a bit thin on the ground.

Just one Grey Plover

At least 15 Ringed Plover

Redshank 70

Turnstone 40

Oystercatcher 1500

Curlew 30

Knot 200+ two flagged birds seen but both seen previously 

They settled on the mud in the SE skear corner briefly. They were feeding 
on small bivalves here late last spring, a few had a probe, but it seems that 
this feeding opportunity is not yet available.

Howard checked the high water roosts for Knot:

No knot on heliport, a handful on sunnyslope, no flags seen, only a few hundred birds on Teal Bay no flags seen.

Imperial Rd

I checked at 10:30 and couldn't see anything (Malcolm).

Janet checked this afternoon and both the male and female Stonechats were near the blocked entrance.

Female Stonechat 

Male Stonechat 

Janet had some mealworms in her car and decided to treat them to a few.

They just weren't bothered about me, more him than her, I think he'd got
 fed up of waiting for her to take some worms!! so got in there first.

Not sure if she was impressed or not...

Roe Deer 2

South shore saltmarsh - Malcolm and Tom Walkington 13:00 - 13:30

Wigeon 160

Jack Snipe 3

Reed Bunting 4

Meadow Pipit 1

Rock Pipit 2

Meadow Pipit

Rock Pipit

This Siskin turned up on Kevin Eaves garden feeder this morning 

Not a good night to be a small passerine

It fell below -5°C again early in the night, a light shower just before daylight left a thin film of ice encasing everything. Overcast all day as the temperature crept up to 6°C. Heavy showers began 15:00.

A fresh south wind picked up in the afternoon 

Heysham skear - Malcolm 08:45 - 09:45

No chance of seeing Snowdonia today, I could barely see conger rock!

Cormorants on and beyond conger rock

No Brent geese, Mergansers or Grebes seen, and just 2 male Eider

Male Eider

Once again, at least one Peregrine was presiding over a largely wader free skear 

A ball of c500 Knot were seen heading south as I set off.
Other than that the total was these two birds.

Redshank

Common gull

Imperial Rd - Malcolm

I checked twice today, I was worried that the film of ice covering everything this morning would prevent the Stonechats etc. from finding anything to eat. Sure enough the check this morning failed to find any passerines. The only birds seen were 35 Lapwings in the field to the east of the road.

I returned just after lunch, by this time it was 5°C and some of the ice was thawing, but I didn't fare much better with the Passerines, just 1 Dunnock.

Absent (or at least not seen) from their regular territories: Robin, Wrens and Stonechats, plus no sign of the generally more elusive Cetti's warbler.

There were clearly a lot more Lapwing on the fields to the east. A Peregrine Falcon lifted them all, at least 130.

The larger of the two flocks of Lapwing lifted by a Peregrine.
The Peregrine later flew west with empty talons

Grey Heron 1

Little Egret 1

Raven 2

Raven

The resident Carrion Crows weren't happy!

But this Raven was only intent in display flying 

Roe Deer with her now well grown male and female youngsters
The male at the back, the females have rump tufts.

Just out of the recording area - horse paddock behind Middleton Parish Hall - Malcolm 15:00

By this time the ground was thawing and the rain just beginning.

Redwing 2

Mistle Thrush 1

The Thrushes and Black-Headed gulls were managing to break up the already well disturbed ground.