A lot going on today

A warm sunny day with a light variable breeze.

Heysham Nature Reserve 

Ringing report by Jean

Yet another Cetti’s Warbler at Heysham NR. 

Conditions weren’t great for ringing with clear skies, but we managed to catch 30 birds of 13 species today:

Goldfinch 9

Greenfinch 1

Chaffinch 1

Cetti’s Warbler 1

Chiffchaff 4

Blackcap 1

Goldcrest 3

Robin 4 (2 retraps)

Blackbird 1

Dunnock 1

Great Spotted Woodpecker 1

Great Tit 1

Blue Tit 2

Overhead Vismig seemed to be Invis Mig apart from 3 flocks of Pink-footed Geese totalling 122 south, a Skylark, the odd Meadow Pipit and  Chaffinch heading south. 

A Peregrine landed on a pylon which upset the local Carrion Crows and Magpies. They shouted at the Peregrine and chunnered noisily amongst themselves but didn’t challenge the falcon. 

A Moorhen emerged from the fire pond area to feed along the path, and a Kestrel was seen briefly over the non-op land. 

A flock of at least 8 Long-tailed Tits moved eastward through the bushes, dragging along a Chiffchaff and Blue Tit with them in search of food. 

A Bullfinch called, a sound that has been missing recently. Usually there are 4 or 5 about. 

Finally, a Pheasant seems to have made it onto the reserve. It was seen scuttling off into the undergrowth.

Middleton Nature Reserve 

Ringing report by Alan

I went to Middleton this morning expecting that the very clear conditions would not produce many birds - I was right!  Just 14 birds captured and ringed.  One Grey Wagtail was caught and colour ringed. A Treecreeper was also ringed, this species is just about annual here and mostly caught in Autumn.
The total caught:  
Wren 2 + 1 retrap
Blue Tit 1
Grey Wagtail 1
Chiffchaff 1
Cetti's Warbler 2 + 2 retraps
Robin  2
Dunnock 1 retrap
Treecreeper 1

Janet checked this afternoon 

Little grebe on the main pond

Black-Headed gull

Moorhen and Mallard

There were three lots of geese over to the south. The last lot were definitely Pink-Footed geese

Pink-Footed geese

The first two skeins were not as obvious 

Geese sp

Common Buzzard

Not welcomed by the gulls

Chiffchaff on Kingsway field near to Meldon road, It's where I heard the first one this year - Janet

Heysham skear - Malcolm 09:30 - 10:45

Pink-Footed goose 32 south

Eider 7

Red-breasted Merganser 7

Great Crested Grebe 4

Great Crested Grebes

Five of the Mergansers

Shag 1 

Shag

Little Egret 13

Grey Heron 1

Oystercatcher 1000+

This is another regular visitor. Ringed as a chick in Iceland 2022.
It has been seen at least once in Heysham every year since. 

Curlew 30

Redshank 350 - they were feeding like this in several of the pools

Knot c1000 - a scan from the promenade before I set out saw a pale smudge along the western edge of the skear. It had to be feeding Knot, one of the worse areas to check if any were coded. I was hoping that they would move before I got there, but they didn't take to the air once. Then just before I reached them a Peregrine attack sent them off to the south and I didn't see them again.

Turnstone 45

Dunlin 2

Ringed Plover 5

South shore 

Janet checked first

Loads of Linnet, but no sign of the Merlin

Meadow Pipit on the foreshore 

Robin on the foreshore 

Curlew over the marshes

Curlew out from Ocean Edge

Shelducks out from Ocean Edge

Malcolm 15:00 - 17:00

The noisy chattering of Linnet as I approached the saltmarsh prompted me to get my camera out early, but I wasn't quite quick enough 

Small raptor chasing Linnets. 

I walked out to the waterline, there were c1000 Knot and 30 Dunlin feeding. Initially on the shore, but as the tide caught them up feeding in the water. The Dunlin leaving to the south.

I was on the wrong side of the feeding group, the sun was on the other side.

Amazingly, I managed to walk past them on the seaward side without 
disturbing them, not all in this shot, there are more behind me

Part of their confidence, was just the naivety of youth. Most if not all were
young birds. This one has some weed trailing from its bill. There is a reason 
for that....

This is a shot of the mud below the water surface. If you look closely you 
can see a few filaments of weed. Each of the filaments will be anchored to
a small bivalve below the mud surface. There will be many more bivalves 
with no weed attached to them

The Knot on the left is just lifting out a bivalve, with the weed still attached

The Knot in the middle has a clean bivalve. Presumably, that is why they
chose to feed in the water. The mud just above the waterline is softer as
the incoming tide is already under it and has fluidised the mud. The water
covered mud is also fluidised of course, but the increasing weight of water
above compacts it more.

By this time I was surrounded by feeding Knot. You can hear their soft calls.

Higher up the shore was a feeding group of 25 Dunlin

Higher still and there was a group of 11 Grey Plover and 5 Dunlin

Ringed Plover 9 to the north. Many more waders south of the recording area

This is the mud above where today's tide reached. There will be a small
invertebrate under each of those dimples. Most likely tiny snails here

Just out of the recording area Heaton Marsh

Pete checked this morning and saw two Glossy Ibis. I was passing just before lunch (Malcolm). I didn't have much time, but fortunately a birder had already located three and showed me where (thanks). Still not easy though as they easily disappeared in the long grass, but I did manage to get them all in one frame.

Glossy Ibis

The large Linnet flock hasn't gone unnoticed

A mainly overcast day with a heavy lunchtime shower. A SW wind.

These shots from the heliport wall yesterday - Kevin Singleton 

Not sure what this Oystercatcher is regurgitating 

Curlew

Middleton Nature Reserve 

This from Peter and Rosemary's visit yesterday 

It was very quiet on the insect front at both the Southern End and Main Pond but given the time of year that was not so surprising.

Southern End:

Migrant Hawker 2

Common Darters in Tandem 1 pair only

Male Common Darter 10

Female Common Darter 2

Speckled Wood 2

Greylag Geese 14 flying westerly. One one of them had quite prominent white wing tips

Heard:

Robin

Chiffchaff

Main Pond:

Migrant Hawker 2

Male Common Darter 6

Mute Swans 2

Moorhen 1

Mallard 2

Grey Heron 1

Heard:

Robin 2 - one singing from the trees at the northern edge of the main car park and another singing from the trees at the southern edge of the main car park.  It would be interesting to know which one won the territory!

Cettis Warbler

Long Tailed Tits

Greylag geese

The one with white wingtips is either partially leucistic
or has a domestic goose ancestry 

Common Darter on Peter's head

Male Common Darter making a more conventional landing

Some of the detail

Female Common Darter

A pretty flower with a less than pretty name - Common Toadflax 

Janet checked this morning and managed to spot one of the colour ringed Grey Wagtails ringed at Heysham earlier this autumn.

Buzzard passing over

South shore 

Kingfisher 1 flew out from the freshwater runoff culvert on Red Nab - Kevin Eaves

Malcolm 13:15 - 16:00

It was still raining when I reached the saltmarsh, but you could see it was about to ease. I hadn't seen any Linnet, then a male Merlin flew low and fast over the marsh and lifted c200 Linnet. All my optics were safely stashed away so I couldn't see if it got one. But if it didn't that time, it probably would later.

Another 15 Linnet were drying off along the foreshore. By this time the rain had stopped and the sun was out.

Linnet

Shelduck 88 close to shore but more further out

Plenty of gulls on Red Nab

Mediterranean gull 6

This adult Mediterranean Gull was shaking the rain off its pure white wings

This 2nd calendar year Mediterranean Gull still has some black at the wingtips 

I walked out to the waterline, the tides are dropping now and do not come in too quickly for the waders to feed along the waterline. But apart from the Oystercatcher just a couple of small groups of Knot stopped off briefly before continuing south. Then at 14:15 a flock of c4000 waders, mainly Knot, arrived from the south.

They circled a while then settled beyond the recording area. I walked over to check them out then something spoked them and they all lifted again. Fortunately, this time many of them settling within the recording area.

Bar-Tailed Godwit 30

Grey Plover 45

Knot c2000

Dunlin 300

I was stood in the sea to keep what little light there was behind me, but by this
time visibility was poor. Also waders are much more trusting of someone
 approaching in the water than they are if you approach them on the mud.

Bar-Tailed Godwit, Grey Plover and Knot

Knot, Grey Plover and Dunlin 
I did spot three flagged Knot, but only managed to read two, both regulars
from the last winter period. One an Icelandic scheme the other an English scheme

1st calendar year Common Gull

The same Common gull

Shelduck 

Three of seven Wigeon at the saltmarsh 

Lapwing 3 and Redshank 30 also at the saltmarsh 

Male Sparrowhawk in Janet's garden this morning