Wednesday 15 April 2009

Common Buzzard & Arctic Terns highlight meagre fare

Heysham Observatory
The rain and far too northerly wind conspired to produce a big fat zero as regards night migrants other than three Wheatear at each of the heliport and OE foreshore. Later 9 Wheatear on OE as the wind went more easterly

North harbour wall
Black Guillemot - in the harbour mouth first thing, then sitting offshore
Purple Sandpiper - three under the wooden jetty
Common Scoter - 7 'in' + 10 'in' & 3 'out'
Arctic Tern - 3 flew into the bay at 1200hrs
Turnstone - 385 including one with non-British metal ring but no colour ringed/flagged birds

Office area
Common Buzzard - one drifted SE at 0830hrs - rarer than Osprey here!
Coal Tit - unringed bird caught

Vis
Very little in the murky conditions and F3 NE wind
Meadow Pipit - 8 NE
alba Wagtail- 5 NE
Linnet - 2 NE

Outfalls
A good collection of gulls but nothing of interest! Good magnet though
Black-headed Gull - 285 - mainly 2CY - a good number for this time of year and augurs well for something decent with them
Common Gull - 115, mainly 2CY

Middleton IE
Grasshopper Warbler - singing male western marsh
Sedge Warbler - 2 singing males

Elsewhere
ALPINE SWIFT seen to fly into SD35, therefore our recording area mid-afternoon - heading for Heysham Power Stations, perhaps via Sunderland Point! Unfortunately a little too murky to follow for any length of time