Plenty of Sedge warblers

A sunny morning after a cold night. It clouded over after lunch then light rain by mid afternoon.

Middleton Nature Reserve 

Report by Alan:

This morning was my first foray to Middleton to set nets this Spring. There was a heavy ground frost, clear sky and a light southerly breeze, the two nets set early produced just 16 birds by 10.30.

The catch :

Cetti's Warbler  1 + 2 retraps

Sedge Warbler  5 + 1 retrap (a high number for this early in spring)

Blackcap  1

Reed Warbler  2 retraps

Dunnock  1

Willow Warbler  2

Blue Tit  1

The two Reed Warblers and single Sedge Warbler retrapped were returning birds after their long migration journeys that were trapped and ringed here in previous years.

Janet checked later:

The Heron was patrolling the pools and shallows. There is a Little Grebe
skulking in the Bogbean

Robin with food for mate or young

Two pairs of Bullfinch 

Great Spotted Woodpecker 1 drumming 

Heysham skear - Malcolm 08:45 - 10:30

Eider 80

Common Scoter - the female with the damaged left wing

Her right wing is fine

But the left wing's feathers are damaged. The wings work normally, and she
must be capable of diving for food as it is four weeks since she was first seen
here. She should hang around a while, as there is plenty of easy feeding here

Red-breasted Merganser 5

Great Crested grebe 3

Sandwich Tern 10

Sandwich Terns resting on the distant Honeycomb worm reefs

Little Egret 4

Whimbrel 3 at least

This Whimbrel didn't have a very distinct pale crown stripe.
Fortunately it was calling regularly 

Knot c1500 was a bit of a surprise (there were just a few hundred on the Heliport wall later).

Most of the Knot, they quickly left to the south as the tide moved them
from where they were feeding.

This afternoon there were 5 Pale-bellied Brent geese - David Kaye

South shore - Kevin Eaves early afternoon 

3 Wheatear on Red Nab at high tide

Little Gull 1 2cy

Common Tern 1 

both on no.1 outfall

2cy Little Gull

Common Tern

1 Swallow north.

2 male and a female Blackcap near the small anemometer in the Nature Park

Imperial Rd - Malcolm
I just stopped off for a quick check in passing, there were at least 2 singing Sedge Warblers, one on the south side of the blocked entrance near the roundabout. The other near the pylon. These are the brambles on the south side of entrance. The bird followed is a Common Whitethroat, but it has a tussle with a Sedge Warbler, meanwhile a male Sedge warbler is singing.

Last year Common Whitethroat nested in these brambles 

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