Manx seen but evening Skuas missed

A largely overcast day with some showers. A fresh SW wind became fresher as it drifted to WNW

Pete:

male Common Redstart in buddleia near ferry terminal 

nothing on the sea in poor early am visibility 

Four adult and one 2cy kittiwake on outfalls 

four inbound swallow and a house Martin  

Returned in afternoon but wind nothing like as forecast: 

one Manx Shearwater in, 

c42 Pale-bellied Brent geese red nab.    

South sea wall - Kevin Eaves 14:00

Still 2 adult and a 2nd cy Kittiwake on No.2 outfall

Wheatear 2 near the lighthouse 

Wheatears

Heliport - Malcolm

I was heading to the south shore at 15:00, 90 minutes before high water. But a large flock of Knot circling the Heliport changed plans. At just 7m today's high water barely reached the wall, at this stage in the tide it had just reached the rocks, so a bit of a surprise to have 3000 Knot roosting on the wall. These are some of them coming in, albeit warily.

But they didn't just rest on the wall c150 elected to stand on top. 

Carrion Crows and on one occasion a Swallow passing over lifted all the Knot, when they landed again it was a bit like playing a fruit machine. Some times none of the birds on the top were flagged, usually one and on one occasion, three. But they tended to be the same flagged birds, presumably ones that prefer to be able to see in all directions.

Even sat on top it can be crowded, this orange flagged bird was ringed
at Merseyside in 2024

Swallow spooking the Knot (the other bird is a Starling)

Male Swallow

42 Pale-bellied Brent, presumably the ones seen by Pete on Red Nab, flying north

Two Arctic Skuas seen flying into the bay this evening from Rossall.

Whimbrel, plus first youngsters arrive

Another warm dry sunny day, perhaps the last for a while. A light variable breeze.

A check by Pete:

Not a lot over the sea but Sandwich terns have started their off-passage assembly on the buoys off the north wall (4 out of the 6 in total).  

Otherwise just 75 PF geese nw and 6 common scoter in truncated session

Heysham Nature Reserve 

Report by Alan:

I set three nets at Heysham this morning just after dawn.  There was no early cloud cover as I had hoped for.  The morning was very slow with few migrants and only 18 birds were caught in five hours.
Singles of Blackcap, Willow Warbler, Lesser Redpoll and three Chiffchaffs were ringed.

A very aggressive Jay was caught , also 1 Wren, 3 Blackbirds, 2 Greenfinch, 1 Goldfinch plus single retrapped Dunnock, Robin, Blue Tit, and Goldfinch.

Middleton Nature Reserve 

Kevin Eaves:

I went for a wander around Middleton nature reserve at lunch time today. 

1 Red Admiral - first of the year

2 singing Willow Warbler

and at least one of the pairs of Coot has had breeding success.

Coot pair with 4 chicks

 Janet:

2nd calendar year Cormorant 

Female Kestrel 

Male Bullfinch

Male Chaffinch 

Peacock 

Female Orange Tip

North shore - Malcolm 10:45 - 12:00

Pale-bellied Brent goose 4

Eider 45

Red-breasted Merganser 5

Little Egret 3

Knot c2000 but just resting along the western skear edge then most moved to a sandbar on the north side. No chance of checking them for flags.

This was as close as I got to the Knot

Bar-Tailed Godwit 104

Godwits arriving from the south

Bar-Tailed Godwits and Eider

Some of the Godwits 

15 of the 60+ Turnstone 

I checked the shore out from the play area as the tide was ebbing this evening 18:00 - 19:00

Pale-bellied Brent goose 33. Initially in two groups 16 and 17 out from the play area, then merged as they flew to the skear

Pale-bellied Brent geese

Sandwich Tern minimum 4 fishing

Sandwich Terns

I'd gone down hoping, but not expecting, that the Knot would arrive as they did yesterday (they showed no interest in feeding along the waterline this morning). None arrived, but a Whimbrel did - first this year.

It flew from further north

Then landed on the mud out from the play area

First Swallow Prominent of the year in my Bell Aire Park moth trap. Alison Hayward

Swallow Prominent

First swallow and Willow warblers arrive

A warm sunny day with light a south breeze.

Heysham Nature Reserve 

Report by Jean:

On Wednesday Alan visited Portland Bird Observatory, Dorset which lies due south of Heysham. That day 300 Willow Warblers were ringed there. We caught our first ones at Heysham this morning. Only 2 though, but many others were moving through rapidly all over the area. 
Also caught this morning:
2 Chiffchaff
1 Blackcap
and a retrapped Wren. 

Had I set the nets an hour earlier before first light I would probably have caught more. It went fairly quiet at 08:30. 

Just one Redpoll heard going over.

Pete checked the sea:

A large diver flew in then floated out - looked like Great Northern Diver, but distant

Red-Throated Diver 9 in non breeding plumage flying/floating out

Little gull 1 adult in then out

35 plus 4 pink feet north

swallow north - first record this year

willow warbler in harbour brambles

Middleton Nature Reserve 

Janet thought she could see at least one egg under the sitting female Mute Swan, when she stood briefly.

Total of 4 butterfly species between the nature reserve and Red Nab - Kevin Eaves
Peacock
Orange Tip male - first record this year
Brimstone
Small Tortoiseshell

Plus a singing Blackcap by the nature park pond.

North shore - Malcolm

Two checks again 10:15 - 11:30 and 17:00 - 18:00

Pale-bellied brent goose 12 flew north this evening 

Eider 45

Red-breasted Merganser 6

Little Egret 1

Sandwich Tern 1 flew north this morning 

There were 2500 Knot on the skear this morning until a Peregrine attack reduced the numbers by one.

Peregrine with a Knot

1800 of the Knot settled again on the mud to the south of the skear. You can hear their soft calls in this clip, as the tide pushes them towards me.

They were clearly finding plenty to eat so I returned to the shore as the mud became exposed this evening. Sure enough 2000 arrived to feed. Quite a few are beginning to moult into summer plumage, and very few of them with flags.

Bar-Tailed Godwit 15 this morning 25 this evening 

Dunlin 50 this evening 

Other waders as recent 

Oystercatchers in the evening sun

Remember this?

This yellow flagged Oystercatcher was first seen here on the Cricket field in 2021.
It was spotted in various locations at Heysham up to spring 2022. This is one of
Howard's shots on the heliport. It was ringed as a chick in Norway in 2020.
The scheme manager has advised that it has now returned to where it hatched,
  and now in its 7th calendar year, may breed there itself.

Well traveled bird

A nice warm and mainly sunny day with a light, mainly SE, breeze.

North shore

Knowlys Rd - David Kaye

Pale-bellied Brent goose 26 

Red-Throated Diver 1

Heysham skear - Malcolm 10:00 - 11:00 and 17:00 - 18:00

I also counted 26 Pale-bellied Brent geese this morning 

Eider 75 this morning 

Red-breasted Merganser 1 female this morning 4 males this evening 

Red-breasted Merganser

Little Egret 3

Wader numbers this morning unless stated:

Oystercatcher 2000

Curlew 6

Bar-Tailed Godwit 25

Knot 1500 this morning 2000 this evening, very flighty both times and no new flagged birds were seen. 

Redshank 120

Turnstone 150

Ringed Plover 2

Bar-Tailed Godwit, Oystercatcher and Knot on the waterline south of the sker

A check at the heliport roost at high water also saw 1500 Knot but sat happily on the sloping wall so no flags seen but we have now received some of the histories of yesterday's birds. This one is interesting.

I said that this was an old bird. I was right. Ringed on route to breeding grounds in 2013. 

I thought ringed in Iceland. I was wrong. It was actually ringed in Norway.

But it later changed its migration route as it was seen in Iceland in 2022 and 2025. They breed even further north in the high Arctic. It's hard to imagine just how many miles this little bird has flown!

South shore - Kevin Eaves

At least 23 of the Pale-bellied Brent geese ended up on Red Nab

Kittiwake 1 2nd calendar year and 3 adults still on No.2 outfall

Imperial Rd - Malcolm

Just a passing check

Buzzards 2

Common Buzzard

The nest in the fork of the tree in the copse was clearly occupied by something large sitting. Then a Raven arrived to feed the female, she got out of the nest briefly then returned to sitting 

Raven

The above shot and clip are from the road, where the nest is easily visible, at least until the foliage develops.

Long-tailed Duck tops the bill

 Strong morning westerlies eased and shifted to NW by mid afternoon. Mainly dry with sunny spells by the afternoon.

Pete checked from the back of the harbour 0945 - 11:15

Long tailed duck flew out past Heysham harbour mouth quite close - quite a bit of s.p but views brief with close stuff from here.  

Also in one hour as sandbanks were being covered: 

whooper swan 10,9 flying (back?) south, 

kittiwake 1,2,c16,13,c35, in

red throated diver 1,1,1 in.  

Just 2 more Kittiwakes in, in the last 30 minutes 

South shore - Malcolm 08:45 - 09:45

Kittiwakes 2 2nd calendar year plus 8 adults on No.2 outfall, as I walked out, just 2 2cy and 4 adult on the return leg

2cy and an adult Kittiwake

Rock Pipit 2. I have seen this one feed like this on No.1 outfall before. I can't think what it is finding to eat. This would have been covered by rough seas just a few hors earlier, surely washing off any tiny titbits. But it seems to be finding plenty.

Wheatear 5 males

Wheatear on the grass at Red Nab

Middleton Nature Reserve - Janet

The feeders at the bottom carpark of the main pond continue to attract a good variety

Female Chaffinch 

Male Chaffinch 

Male Greenfinch

Goldfinch 

Coal Tit

Blue Tit

Great Tit

Robin

Heliport - Malcolm 13:30 - 14:30 and 15:45 - 16:15

There were c2,500 Knot on the heliport wall and the rough sea pushed many to the top of the wall. Regular disturbance by Carrion Crow shuffled the birds around. Eventually allowing many flagged birds to be seen, including 4 new for this winter period.

Increasing numbers are sporting some summer plumage feathers

Even though there are a lot of birds, there are not so many legs on show.
This orange flag with a green ring is an English ringed bird

This orange flag with a yellow ring was ringed in Scotland 
Note the Bar-Tailed Godwit with these Knot

This was lucky, this yellow flagged bird was ringed in Norway, it is an old
bird as it is from a time when the code was printed on, not laminated as now.
The ink has worn away, but the light and the angle was just right to read
where the code had been (TCU)

I returned later hoping that the Knot would move to the mud after the wall, but the improving weather meant that there were a few walkers around so the Knot rested a while on the wrack covered rocks before heading north

No chance of reading any flags here! As well as the Knot and Oystercatcher 
and the tail of a Curlew, there is a Starling

Bar-Tailed Godwit 12

Some of the Godwit

Two Ringed Plover and two Dunlin battled south against the wind

70 Turnstone in one flock flew north

Cormorant having a rest on the wall