Still the Stonechats come

Very light breezes starting SW ending WNW, often breathless in between. Overcast for most of the day but the sun came out at 15:30 and made it a very nice evening.

South shore

Wigeon 232 floating around Red Nab towards high water, before starting to fly off towards the estuary.

Rock Pipit 6

Stonechat at least 4. A male on the saltmarsh, another male on Red Nab, seen by several observers at different times and could easily have been more than one bird. Male and female together near the pond just north of Red Nab.

Male on the gorse behind Red Nab beach - by Kevin

The female and male near the pond - by Janet

Janet has been doing some good work with the regular "seal", she was confident that her last two sightings were of different seals. Walney Nature Reserve have confirmed that her images do indeed represent two individuals. Today's seal is different again. So three individuals in three sightings - Janet is on the case now, watch this space!

This is today's Grey seal, it has just caught a bass, unfortunately quite a long way out. The sea is getting warmer and the bass are not as dependent on the outflows as they were.

It doesn't take long for the gulls to turn up!

I like this shot of a Cormorant just starting to dive

The Priorslee, Telford (Shropshire) wintering male Grey Wagtail  starting to sing and presumably getting ready to move north (see post entry 20/12/20 for details).

Thanks to Edwin Wilson for the information and picture 

Juvenile Buzzard on lamppost west of Imperial way
This is the same lamppost that Pete photographed one on 15/09/20

Heysham skeer late afternoon (MD)

It was absolutely beautiful out on the skeer this evening. I left my coat and pullover near conger and completed my walk in a T shirt! (Although by the time I got back to my coat at 17:00 it was getting cooler quickly).

Nothing unusual about:

Eider c150

Red-breasted Merganser 3

Great Crested grebe 2

The sea was like a mirror, if the Goldeneye had been feeding I would have seen it.

Here's another unusual angle shot.

Cormorant just taking flight

When I said the sea was like a mirror......

....I meant, it was literally like a mirror!

We've had some great images recently, thanks to all contributors (and please, if you are in the area, any records and photographs are always welcome). But this is my favourite so far this year!

Kevin managed this shot of a Black-headed gull on the "forbidden rails" 
on the structure over No.2 outflow. Originally there had been two, but one chickened out!

The above relates to the observation that we never see sea birds rest on this structure (see post 31/12/20). Obviously one factor must be the wind, it was almost breathless today, but I've seen it deserted on many a previous wind free day. And gulls regularly use the rails on the wooden jetty in quite fresh winds. We'll see if this is a one off or if this bird is going to break the mould.