Knot arriving in numbers

A dry day with the odd short sunny spell. A SW breeze

South shore - Malcolm 09:45 - 11:00

It was quite gloomy again so I set off from Potts Corner to allow what light there was to be behind me. There was a large group of waders resting on the mud quite high up the beach within the recording area.

Knot c1500

Dunlin c500

Grey Plover 14

And a Teal!

Knot and Grey Plovers

Teal (by size mainly, they are Dunlin with it)

I wasn't on them for long when they set off purposefully south. It was clear that they weren't coming back. I don't think anything spooked them, they just know that such gently sloping beaches are covered very quickly by these spring tides. The whole beach was covered 15 minutes later.

I walked the tide in a while but the only other waders seen were Oystercatchers flying from Red Nab, a steady procession of Curlew south in small groups and a Bar-Tailed Godwit also heading south.

Bar-Tailed Godwit 

Shelduck at least 80

There was another smaller group of waders on the beach as I walked back beyond the recording area. This included 200 Knot, 35 Grey Plover, 100 Dunlin and a Sanderling.

Sanderling with a Dunlin

None of the Knot checked this morning were colour marked

Heysham skear - Malcolm 15:15 - 17:00

There were at least 2000 Knot here too. Initially three flighty flocks

One of three flocks of Knot

They all ended up settling in one area. They must have been finding food easily as they remained in the same area for 30 minutes, before heading out further west on the skear. 

Many of the Knot were juveniles. This one is just swallowing a seed mussel

This is the sight and sound of Knot happily cleaning up the seed mussels

The terrain here is difficult for spotting any colour coded rings and flags. It alway is! But I had plenty of time and checked the feeding birds from all sides and couldn't see any coded birds.

There will be some somewhere. One of the schemes at the Wadden Sea, Holland fits tiny transmitters to a few birds as well as colour coded rings. Its website has noted that some of the Knot have been leaving to the west. It is an interesting website if you would like to know more visit

https://maps.nioz.nl/watlas/

More of the Knot with transmitters have left since I posted this link. There may be none if you look.

Oystercatcher, Curlew, Redshank and Turnstone similar to recent visits

There were only c100 Herring gulls feeding on the skear, but Black-Headed Gulls plus a few large gulls were feeding in the drains. These spring tides drain so quickly that shrimps and small fish find themselves exposed.

Little Egret 7

Grey Heron 1

Eider 1 male

Red-breasted Merganser 3

Mergansers

Merganser and Redshank 

We had to rely on yesterday's sun for any colour today

Very low cloud all day. When it wasn't actually raining, it looked like it should be! A very light variable breeze.

Middleton Nature Reserve 

Peter and Rosemary managed another visit while the sun shone yesterday.

There were far fewer dragonflies around than there have been lately but those that were there put on a show for us.

We were fortunate to see a pair of Migrant Hawkers mating and they waited long enough for us to get some good pictures before they separated - something we didn't realise they were going to do. 

Migrant Hawkers on the southern pond

Common Darters

Common Blue Damselfly (electric blue in this shot)

Noon Fly

Mute Swans on the main pond

Algae forming an "algae-mite"

South shore 

I checked the shore out from the saltmarsh this morning 09:00 - 10:45. I was hoping to do this walk yesterday but I didn't have time. Shame, it would have been better with the better light and the lower tide. Today's inrushing tide didn't allow the waders to settle for long. At least it more or less stayed dry.

Linnet 200+ on the saltmarsh 

Linnet, plus a view of the shore where I was heading

There was nothing along the foreshore except more Linnet and a couple of Robins.

Shelduck very mobile, but at least 60

Shelduck 

Mallard 3 flew south from Red Nab

Mallard

Little Egret 7

Grey Heron 1 flew north

There were 3000+ waders. 

Bar-Tailed Godwit 14

Grey Plover 8

Knot c2500

Dunlin c500

Sanderling 2

Knot and Dunlin and a Godwit. The visibility was terrible and the birds mobile. 
I failed to see any colour coded birds, in fact I failed to see any colour!

Grey Plover and Knot

Sanderling and Knot. The Sanderling on the right is a juvenile 

I thought I took a video of both Sanderlings, but if I did I misplaced it! It was that sort of day. Just one Sanderling with Knot and Dunlin in this clip.

These are Knot and Dunlin frantically trying to feed ahead of the tide. Although one bird just looked as if it was settling an old score.

 Redshank 120 around the saltmarsh 

Redshank. 

Common Snipe 4 lifted from the saltmarsh.

Lapwing 3 on the saltmarsh 

Lapwing amongst the Samphire 

Stonechat 1 female type on the eastern edge of the saltmarsh.

Stonechat 

Clouded Yellow 1 flew past me heading south at 10:30

Janet checked later

Redshank its legs were a lovely splash of colour on a drab day.

Turnstone 

Little Egret

One of two Rock Pipits on the small pebble beach between the foreshore and Red Nab

Wheatear 1 female type near the lighthouse - Kevin

Stuff on the move again

A dry day with plenty of sunny spells. A light variable breeze

This from Pete:

Sanderling off Ocean edge then joined c15 knot and c20 Bar-Tailed Godwit on incoming tide line south of the old sewer pipe

Immature Shag wooden jetty.  

Heysham NR

Clouded yellow and at least 6 red admiral south past NR office this am 

‘subtle’ migration included a flock of three migrant Song Thrush, a newly arrived dawn Robin at 15.4g chased into net by the already ringed local at 20.4g (!) and a trickle of southbound Chaffinch, presumably north British birds at this time of year. 

Of more interest a flock of 6 Jay south - vis mig postings nationally suggesting some movement this autumn.

Full report by Jean

It was a clear, cool start at Heysham NR this morning with just 3 Robins and a Chiffchaff in the first hour. Things then picked up at 08:15 with a flock of 5 Grey Wagtails. There was another lull then birds, especially finches, piled onto the feeders at 10:15

Ringing totals:
Robin 4 plus a retrap
Chiffchaff 1
Goldcrest 
Blackcap 2
Grey Wagtail 6
Goldfinch 8 plus 3 retraps
Greenfinch 8
Blue Tit 5
Dunnock 1

Vis (all south):
Pink-footed Goose 179 in 4 flocks

Carrion Crow 6
Jay 7
Song Thrush 3 together 
Grey Wagtail 2 more in addition to the ones ringed
Skylark 1
Red admiral Butterfly 3

A Peregrine called from a pylon

The adult female Goldcrest caught 2 days ago had been ringed as a youngster at Caernarfon last August so an unusual movement, although young birds quite often disperse northwards.

Middleton Nature Reserve

A more detailed report of Rosemary and Peter's visit yesterday 

Southern Section:

Speckled Wood 3

Southern Hawker 1

Migrant Hawker 1

Common Darters 3 pr ovipositing plus at least 7 lone males

Main Pond:

Migrant Hawker 2

Common Blue Damselflies 3

Common Darters 6 males

Mute Swans 2

Mallards 6

Coot 1

Migrant Hawker on the main pond

Southern Hawker 

Migrant Hawker on the south side

Migrant Hawker

Common Darter 

Common Blue Damselfly striking an unusual pose

Speckled Wood

South shore

Janet went along the sea wall 

Oystercatcher and Curlew

Oystercatcher and Knot

Cormorant 

1st calendar year Black-Headed gull

This Turnstone has a crab

Turning stones paid off!!!

White Wagtail 

I checked later (Malcolm) 14:15 - 16:00

Linnet 200+ on the saltmarsh plus 16 along the foreshore and 6 on Red Nab

Linnet

This one had just had a bath on Red Nab

Stonechat at least 5. They must have arrived after Janet checked. Initially there were three feeding on Ocean Edge grass then one flew off inland. The two that remained were female or immature. Then a male joined them. Possibly the bird that flew off? Then a second more striking male arrived from the direction of the Nature Park. So I left two female type and two males. When I returned there were three female type, one flew inland almost straight away. There was no sign of the males.

This one had a pale supercilium 

Giving it a look of a Whinchat in flight

This is the first male with a female type

This is the second, more striking male

This was one of the female type on the return leg

Wheatear 1 - I didn't see one on the way out but one was on the foreshore when I returned 

Wheatear

Rock Pipit 3

Pied Wagtail 6

Robin 2

Along foreshore and Red Nab

Shelduck 20 out from Red Nab

Mediterranean gulls 6 along the waterline on the feeding beach by the wooden jetty. 2 2cy and 4 adult. I was a bit later than planned with the delay checking the Stonechats so they were quite distant.

Mediterranean gull amongst a forest of Sandmason worm tubes

Imperial Rd - Malcolm

I called in on my way home to check if there were any Stonechats. There wasn't. 

But the field to the east of the road had been mowed and the birds were feeding on something.

c60 Wood Pigeons with their heads permanently down presumably finding seeds.

But the gulls including 6 Mediterranean gulls were on the prowl, presumably finding invertebrates. These are two of the adult meds

One of two 2cy Mediterranean gulls. That's a Wood Pigeon bottom right

Adult Mediterranean gull. Despite the same numbers as those seen on the
feeding beach these are almost certainly additional birds