Clear skies after a misty start

Dense sea mist didn't clear till mid morning, then sunshine and very light variable breeze.

The last of the mist clinging to the warmer water of the outflows 10:00

South shore (MD)

Knot c2000 including at least two Sefton coast orange flag ringed birds - unfortunately not read

Grey Plover c50

Ringed Plover c50

Dunlin c70

Bar-Tailed Godwit c30

Some of the Bar-Tailed Godwit with a backdrop of mist

Pink-footed Goose 79 south 10:00

Skylark 3 south

Rock Pipits 2 - one seemed to be a passage bird, as it was chased off by another, presumably one of the "resident" birds

Wheatear 2

Wigeon 28

 

Middleton Nature Reserve 

Ringing and vis report from Jean

The fog deterred birds from moving over Middleton NR this morning. As an example of how thick the fog was, if you stood on the edge of the grass foreshore of Ocean Edge and looked back, you couldn’t see the caravans.

On arrival at Middleton NR the first bird heard, apart from a Robin ticking, was a Cetti’s Warbler at 06:33hrs. A second Cetti’s responded at 06:40 and a third was heard later on the west.

Overhead vis was no more than a trickle:

Meadow Pipit 8

Reed Bunting 6

Lesser Redpoll 1

Linnet 4

Alba Wagtail 3

Grey Wagtail 5

Redwing 1 dropped in

Coal Tit 4 dropped down from height into bushes

Chaffinch 2

Pink-footed Geese got going from 09:45 and a total of 518 flew over in 6 flocks.

A flock of 10 Carrion Crows moved off in twos and threes at about 10:00

Whooper Swans were heard.

Ringing

Meadow Pipit 1

Reed Bunting 4

Alba Wagtail 1

Robin 1

Chiffchaff 2 (inc 1 retrap)

Wren (retrap)

Blue Tit

Insects

Brown Hawker (late for this)

Red Admiral

3 Common Darter

3 Migrant Hawkers 

Migrant Hawker picture from Janet

Chiffchaff passing through my garden this afternoon (MD)

Heysham Skeer - evening (MD)

Great Crested Grebe 4

Red-Breasted Merganser 2

Knot c2000 again one Sefton Coast flagged bird

You can get close to the waders, with the sea and sun behind you

Snorkelling lesson

This adult Herring Gull caught a crab

It flew to shallower water

Carefully dropped, the now incapacitated, crab

Shouted the juvenile (come and get your dinner...)
Then flew off

The juvenile came over and after a bit of snorkelling
retrieved the crab.

Then flew off to join the adult.

This Hermit Crab was upside down on top of a mussel bank. There is no way that it would have been stranded there. A gull must have fished it out but failed to reap its reward. This is a full sized Hermit Crab in a Common Whelk Shell. I returned it to the water.

I have very large hands.