A first for Lancashire today - a Rock Pipit observed carrying a faecal sac! Next best were a couple of Pomarine Skuas sitting out the rain on the incoming tide and lifting and heading north east as it lifted. Doesn’t get much better than that on a routine local patch day!
Sea 0620- 0820
Arctic Skua - dark morph up the close channel before the heavy rain at about 0635
Pomarine Skua - two light morph as described above about 0740
Gannet - 6 in
Common Scoter - 3 out, 7 in
Sandwich Tern - one (!) out
Swallow - 16 in
Red-breasted Merganser - two in
Rock Pipit - attending best with food and see above
Office
A few nets left up and produced migrant-wise a couple of long winged Willow Warbler and a passage Lesser Whitethroat
Mammals
Two Grey Seal
Butterflies
First Small Copper
The observatory was set up in 1980. It involves ringing,'vis mig' counts (including seabirds) and general monitoring in the Heysham Nature reserve/power stations/harbour area. The statutory moth trap is in place and also a daily log for butterflies, dragonflies etc. We share an office, kindly provided by EDF Energy, with the County Wildlife Trust. This is located next to the Nature Reserve car park. Do call in. Please leave sightings in the letterbox, ESPECIALLY 'fly-by' seabirds.