50mm morning rain!

Very heavy rain started 06:30 and by the time it eased at lunchtime Kevin's weather station had recorded an impressive 50mm! After the rain there were a few sunny intervals. A SE wind.

South shore - Malcolm 13:00 - 14:30

It was still raining when I set off but it had eased to light rain and brighter weather was clearly on the way.

Two of four Carrion Crows sitting out the last of the rain

Two of seven Pied Wagtail on Ocean Edge grass. The parched grass here
will appreciate the watering

Swift 1 flew north

Wheatears 7 (5 on the foreshore and 2 on Red Nab)

Wheatears

Rock Pipits 3 (1 on foreshore 2 on Red Nab)

Rock Pipit

Common Whitethroat at least 4 flitting around between the foreshore and Red Nab

Common Whitethroat 

It had only just stopped raining and an Osprey was already fishing.

Osprey high over the wooden jetty

But is soon settled onto the post at the end of No.2 outfall and spent
some time preening

Blue ring on its right leg

It had another go at fishing, but eventually returned to the post fishless.

There were just two Black-Headed gulls on the beach by the wooden jetty,
and no sign of any Sandmason worm tubes

Peregrine Falcon 2 together flew behind the Power Stations

Middleton Nature Reserve - Janet

A couple of shots after the rain

Small White

Silver Y

Not much......if you can call an Osprey "not much"

Some overnight rain and an odd shower during the day. Some sunny spells. A light west breeze.

Middleton Nature Reserve 

Janet took some insect shots with here phone

Common Darters.
Also Migrant Hawker seen

Speckled Wood

Square-spot Rustic

I exercised my daughter's dogs around the NE section of the reserve (Malcolm)

Brown Hawker 1

Migrant Hawker 1

Common Darter several

Red Admiral 1

Painted Lady 1

Several Whites, the ones checked were Small Whites

Common Blue 3

Meadow Brown several

Speckled Wood several

One Chiffchaff calling and several Goldfinch were the only birds seen or heard

Red Nab - Malcolm 14:15 - 15:00

There were fewer gulls again and I couldn't find any Mediterranean gulls

Whimbrel at least one calling

Curlew c80

Curlew leaving Red Nab. There was an Osprey on the post today

More accurately, the Osprey was resting on top of the white box on the post.

I didn't see it leave but the birds did. Everything on Red Nab lifted, but they soon settled again.

This is the same angle shot, but devoid of Osprey

One of two Little Egret

Wheatear 2 along the foreshore 

Wheatear showing its white rump

Eider numbers returning

Heavy overnight rain followed by some light showers during the day. A fresh SW wind shifted to W.

Heysham skear - Malcolm 11:15 -12:15

A check on the rising tide hampered by several light showers 

Eider 28 - 5 individual males and a raft of 23 that all looked to be males.

Eider

Great Crested Grebe 1

Great Crested Grebe and an Eider

Little Egret 14

Some of the Egrets

They were frantically fishing (or shrimping) as the tide rushed in.

Gulls, mainly Herring gulls c200

Oystercatcher c1500

Curlew 15

Redshank 100+

Turnstone 60+

Ringed Plover 2

Saltmarsh to Red Nab - Malcolm 13:30 - 14:15

Linnet 2 by the saltmarsh 

Wheatear 3 along the foreshore 

Wheatear

Not as many gulls on Red Nab today and both they and the waders were very flighty. I didn't see any raptors, but presumably there had been at least one around.

There are three Mediterranean gulls in the air in this shot

Mediterranean gulls 8 including one 1st calendar year bird

Mediterranean gull (centre) with Black-Headed gulls

1st calendar year Mediterranean gull

Oystercatcher c1500

Oystercatcher (no Osprey on the post today)

Curlew 100+ most flying south directly from the north side

Whimbrel 2 - one flew from Red Nab calling, at least one other calling from somewhere on Red Nab

Osprey becoming a regular

Overnight rain and a heavy early morning shower. Mainly overcast with more showers after lunch. A very light variable breeze

Middleton Nature Reserve

Janet reports a big increase in Goldfinch numbers, partly due to large numbers of juveniles 

South shore 

I had a walk along the foreshore and the sea wall 13:00 - 14:00 (Malcolm)

Wheatear 4 along the foreshore 

Wheatears

Linnet 2 along the foreshore and 2 at Red Nab. This one was freshening up after a bath. The second bird looks like it expecting to be fed.

Rock Pipit 1 on Red Nab

Plenty of gulls on Red Nab. Mainly Black-Headed

I didn't go out to check them but could see at least 8 Mediterranean gulls
from the sea wall.

An Osprey was sat on the post at the end of No.2 outfall again.

At first, that's all it was doing, sitting on the post. By this time the tide
was quite high and dead flat. These are the conditions that large numbers
of Grey Mullet come close in to feed near the sea wall. I was hoping the
Osprey was waiting to fish close to the wall. But......

.......after a while it began feeding on a Bass that it had already caught.
You can see the Bass's tail, quite a large fish, so a few courses. 
The Osprey has a blue ring on its right leg

It was still feeding 20 minutes later

Grey Heron with Cormorants on the wooden jetty

Little Egret on the wooden jetty

All of the above 

White Wagtail on the sea wall

It was catching flies disturbed by the rising tide

Whimbrel 1

Kevin was setting off along the wall as I was heading back. 

The Osprey was still feeding.

Silver Y "hidden" in plain sight on the sea wall

Alison had this fine moth in her trap this morning.

Maiden's Blush Cyclophora punctaria. A good record for Lancashire 

Maiden's Blush

Not really an insect day, but a Clouded Yellow anyway

Sunny spells and the odd very light shower. A light variable breeze.

Red Nab - Malcolm 12:00 - 12:45

Mediterranean gulls - just 6 seen roosting on Red Nab

Mediterranean gull (right) with Black-Headed gulls

This Dutch ringed bird (LCG) was ringed as a chick in 2010.
Its 16 year old white ring is now wearing in places and can be difficult to
read from some angles

Common Gull with Black-Headed gulls

An Osprey was resting on the post at the seaward end of No.2 outfall

Along the foreshore 

Painted Lady 2

Painted Lady

Clouded Yellow flew along without stopping 

Clouded Yellow. Not very clear shots, but fortunately they are a very
distinctive butterfly

Middleton Nature Reserve 

Ringing report by Alan

I set three nets this morning after an early light rain shower.  A reasonable catch of 26 birds included 8 Lesser Whitethroats and a Grasshopper Warbler.  The latter was the first one caught there for two years.  This species has been fairly numerous at Middleton in earlier years but possibly the changing habitat now suits them less.
The Grasshopper Warbler was a juvenile suggesting, but by no means proving, breeding here.
The total catch:
Singles of Common Whitethroat,  Cetti’s Warbler, Sedge Warbler, Swallow, Blackbird, Grasshopper Warbler.
Reed Warbler  4
Lesser Whitethroat  8
Robin  2
Blackcap  4
Chiffchaff  2

I just did a passing check of the two large ponds - Malcolm

Main Pond

3 Mute Swans

10 Coot

No Mallard seen, probably resting out of sight.

3 Swallow

"No swimming" pond

1 Mute Swan

4 Gadwall (2 each male and female)

5 Coot

2 Moorhen

I Grey Heron

Female Gadwall

Male Gadwall

Heron resting in the trees

No dragonflies seen on either pond, although it was overcast at the time