A nice pair of Kites, and an odd pair of Stocks

A bright sunny day with a light NW breeze

2 Red Kites south over Heysham village - David Kaye

Pete:

c35 plus c35 Kittiwake joined together on sea off ocean edge and floated in.  

Nothing else on webs apart from one sanderling sunny slopes groyne 

Pete Crooks and Clay Garland:

Sea-watch from south side of Heysham Harbour, near Lighthouse (7.50 – 11.35 am)

1 2nd CY Mediterranean Gull – feeding off seaward end Heysham Stage 1 Outfall from 7.50 am
1 2nd CY Little Gull – feeding off HS1 from 8.27 am
1 adult Arctic Tern – feeding off HS1 throughout morning
1 2nd CY Kittiwake – close in off seawall by HS1 Outfall, but only from 11.30 am

1 2nd CY Shag flew in from direction of Heysham Head to land on the Wooden Pier at 9.40 am

c.100 Pink-footed Geese – flew distantly north across Bay at 8.34 am (later 10 south at 9.32 am)
9 Whooper Swan – flew distantly north across Bay and landed on sea at 8.59 am, then continued to drift north
62 Kittiwake – sat on sea distantly offshore , drifting in on the tide (groups of 10, 17, 7, 3 and 25)
1 Red-throated Diver – flew into the Bay dsitantly at 9.16 am
2 Common Scoter – seemingly asleep on sea and drifting in with tide at 11.00 am

Also:
14 Sandwich Tern
5 Whimbrel
8 Sand Martin and 1 Swallow – in over the sea
1 Harbour Porpoise – in the low tide channel off HS1 outfall at 9.15 am
2 Grey Seal – including one wrestling with and eventually swallowing a large fish – Sea Bass?

1 female Wheatear – near Lighthouse
3 Rock Pipit – between Stage 2 outfalls and lighthouse
2 Stock Dove – on the Wooden Pier (the first I can recall seeing there)

2 male Orange-tip – Heysham Nature Park

Clay's digiscope shot of the Stock Doves. A very unusual, probably 
unique, record for this location 

Heysham skear - Malcolm 08:30 - 10:00

Little Egret 12 a significant increase to recent numbers

Eider 80+

Red-breasted Merganser 14

Great Crested grebe 5

Sandwich Tern a constant presence, most seen at one time were 5

Just 100 Knot seen flying south (100 also seen on the Heliport roost)

Whimbrel 3 together flying north

It was nice out there today and areas of the skear were exposed that I haven't seen since last autumn. Most of today's shots are as much about the skear as the birds:

Egrets amongst the Honeycomb worm beds in foreground. Red-breasted
Mergansers and Oystercatcher 

Great Crested grebes

Eider with Piel Castle in the background 

Oystercatchers moving from the outer skear to the shore

Sandwich Terns on Conger rock

Middleton Nature Reserve - Janet

Another swan circled the main pond then landed but got seen off by the
resident male, The new swan is ringed and I think it's the one that is
on the no swimming pond

Male Chaffinch unfortunately having lost a foot

The female also has a fungal infection on her foot

Male Bullfinch near the golf course 

Chiffchaff 

Green-veined White - first record this year

Still sea stuff to see

A dry day with sunny spells. A light west wind

Please note - NO ACCESS TO HEYSHAM NORTH WALL at weekends at least (barriers now down).

Pete:

Bits on the sea 0815-0915: 

Kittiwake - swarm of c20 in then on

Common Scoter - 5,2 out

Red throated diver - 1,1 out

Gannet - 1 out

Sandwich Tern - 8 out

Black headed gull - flock of 45 2cy out (checked v carefully! - there is a possibility of a Bonaparte's, always worth checking)

This report by Dan Haywood from the Stone jetty 08:15 - 12:30

Kittiwake 490, mostly ‘in'

Swallow 30 N

Common Scoter 7 in then ‘out’

Bar-tailed Godwit 52 feeding skear 

Sanderling 31 (one in breeding plumage) out

Common Gull 12 out

Red-breasted Merganser 8 flew in

Whimbrel 6 in

Red-throated Diver 5 in 

Pintail 3 floating in

Great Northern Diver 1 out

Little Gull 1 ad out

Little Tern 1 in

Arctic Skua 1 in

This is just part of Dan's report, to see all of it follow this link to the LDBWS website https://lancasterbirdwatching.org.uk/forums/topic/morecambe-stone-jetty/

Heysham skear - Malcolm 08:45 - 10:00

Pale-bellied Brent goose at least 3. A single bird flew south, then three turned up that were definitely two with a third in only loose association.

Pale-bellied Brent

Eider 35

Red-breasted Merganser 12. These were drifting in on the tide. You can see the speed of the incoming spring tide

Knot now reduced to 500 (a similar number were on the Heliport sloping wall at high water).

Middleton Nature Reserve - Janet

The Cormorant was very close to the bottom car park

Male Chaffinch 

Male Blackcap

Red Nab - Janet

Rock Pipit

Two Wheatears on Red Nab

Imperial Rd - Malcolm 16:00 - 16:30

The Raven's nest is becoming difficult to see with the developing foliage. But it is still visible from some angles and the female is still sitting. No sign of the male.

Buzzard 1

Water Rail at least 1, almost constantly making contact calls. A couple of squeals heard as well.

Swallow 2

Linnet 1

Chiffchaff 2 singing

Cetti's warbler 1 singing another seen briefly 

Sedge Warbler 1 singing 

Common Whitethroat 1 singing. 

This is on the hedgerow that borders the bypass.

So he has to sing louder to be heard

The outfall regulars still on show

Showers to begin with, but fine with sunny spells from early afternoon. A light SW wind.

Heysham skear - Malcolm 08:00 - 09:00

Pale-bellied Brent goose, just 2

Brent geese and Oystercatcher 

Eider 27

Red-breasted Merganser 8

Knot 2 flocks of c1500 lifted by the incoming tide. One headed high to SW, the other low south (later c3000 were on the sloping wall of the heliport)

Middleton Nature Reserve - Janet

Grasshopper warbler 1 singing

Common Whitethroat 

Female Orange Tip, plenty of males about too

South shore

Kevin Eaves checked the sea wall first this afternoon. An adult and a 2nd calendar year Kittiwake were resting on the sea wall, he managed to pass without disturbing them.

2nd calendar year Kittiwake

They were still there when I passed a little later (Malcolm)

2cy Kittiwake lower left, adult upper right. No.2 outfall in the background 

Adult Kittiwake. I too managed to pass them without disturbing, but only thanks
to a lady with a dog waiting until I had done so. The Kittiwakes inevitably flew 
off as they passed.

2cy Little Gull feeding at the seaward end of No.1 outfall

2cy Little Gull

Rock Pipit 2 (Red Nab and near the lighthouse)

Linnet 2 each, saltmarsh and waterfall area

Wheatear 6 along Ocean Edge and Red Nab

Lesser Whitethroat and at least 4 Chiffchaff singing in the Nature Park

Peacock in the Nature Park

Little Gull still around and Lesser Whitethroat arrive

A dry and mainly sunny day with a light SW wind.

Pete and Jean 0700-1000

2cy Little gull again feeding in Heysham harbour mouth then flew out of sight towards outfalls

Just singles of guillemot and 5 sandwich tern offshore

Outfalls check from Ocean edge: 

ad and 2cy kittiwake inner heysham 2

the same 2cy little gull now seaward end heysham one (also reported on the outfall this evening on birdguides)
Six pale bellied Brent still red nab mid tide

These shots by David Talbot:

Adult Kittiwake 

2nd calendar year Kittiwake 

Pale-bellied Brent geese

Female Blackcap on Kingsway fields - Janet

Middleton Nature Reserve 

Grasshopper Warbler singing - Emma Kelly 

Lesser Whitethroat singing near the "no swimming" pond - Kevin Eaves

These shots by Janet:

Sitting Mute Swan with an unwelcome visitor 

The Heron soon moved on

Swallow

House Martin 

Kestrel

Speckled Wood

North shore - Malcolm

Just south of the skear 07:45 - 08:15

Pale-bellied Brent geese 6

Pale-bellied Brent. Every rock is covered in gutweed now

Shelduck 2 north

Sandwich Ten 3 fishing 

At least 2500 Knot were moved into the SE skear corner

Knot, Oystercatcher and 15 Bar-Tailed Godwit

Godwit, Knot and Oystercatcher 

I was expecting the Knot to begin feeding along the waterline, but instead they flew back onto the skear. I think feeding was done for the morning. Still, two new flagged birds were located.

Heliport 10:30 - 11:15

c3000 Knot were resting on the sloping wall. At one point they all lifted and flew very high, I thought that they might be heading off, but instead they were joined by another smaller flock, resulting in 3500 - 4000 Knot. These are some of the Knot drifting high

I couldn't tell if they all landed back on the wall. Only a few hundred of them rested on the top.

Some quite striking now

There was a constant drift of discarded feathers along the sloping wall

Heysham skear 13:45 - 15:00

Just 5 Pale-bellied Brent geese now

Eider 16

Red-breasted Merganser 3

Knot c3000, these tides drain quickly and the Knot move with it. No more new flagged birds were seen.

It is difficult enough seeing flags on the skear, spray from bathing birds
doesn't help! This orange flagged bird eventually revealed itself to be code 58P.
It has been seen here previously this spring, ringed in Merseyside 2024.

Ringed Plover 6

Ringed Plover

Just out of the recording area. Angela Gillon took this shot of the new Rookery at Morecambe Bay Community Primary school, before the nests are hidden by the developing foliage.

At least three nests. Be interesting to see how many next year.