Hobby tops a decent bill

The breeze was more to SE this morning and remained so all day. Sunshine for most of the day.

Middleton Nature Reserve 

Ringing and vis report from Jean:

It was a much better ringing session than of late with 35 new birds and just 2 retraps. The retraps were two juv Cetti’s, one on the east side of the track and one on the west side. In all 9 species of Warbler were caught.

Birds caught and ringed:

Lesser Whitethroat 3

Whitethroat 3

Blackcap 6

Garden Warbler 2

Willow Warbler 5

Chiffchaff 1

Sedge Warbler 2

Reed Warbler 2

Reed Bunting 1

Meadow Pipit 3

Grey Wagtail 2

Dunnock 2

Robin 1

Great Tit 2

Visible migration:

Grey Wagtail 7 (including the 2 ringed)

Meadow Pipit - only 5 detected but there must have been more out of visual range if 3 were caught.

Swallow - 11

Linnet - 5

Greenfinch - 2

Goldfinch - 2

Kestrel - 2

Sparrowhawk - 1

HOBBY - 1 seen over the power station heading south.

A further 2 Kestrels were hunting over the site. 

South shore 

Towards high water

Rock Pipit 3

Meadow Pipit 7 ( 3 grounded, 2 + 2 over)

Big flocks, 3,000 plus, waders mostly making their way to Potts corner. Mainly Knot, but including:

Bar-Tailed Godwit 60 

Grey Plover 50

Dunlin 150

Not a good shot, but it gives a flavour of the density of waders passing 
These are mainly Knot with a few Dunlin

We are now moving to spring tides and the birds "know" they will not be able to roost on the beach over high water, so most move straight through. Some stop off for a while though, this is a flock of mainly Knot and Grey Plover coming in.

The wind from the SE does not hold back the waves from lapping on the tideline (see yesterday's post). This clip shows a more typical movement of waders as the tide encroaches. It includes mainly Grey Plover and Knot, but also a Bar-Tailed Godwit and a couple of Dunlin.

Mediterranean gull 5 adult plus 4 juvenile on Red Nab

Also on Red Nab was an immature Mute Swan and a sleeping Grey Seal passing by, this clip shows both.

A check in the afternoon to see what insects were coming in off the sea, didn't find much. About 1 butterfly every 2 minutes were coming in off near the lighthouse, but only Small Tortoiseshell and Small White in a ratio of 3-2 in favour of Small Tortoiseshell.

Plenty of insects in the nature park behind Red Nab

Red Admiral 4

Large White 2

Comma 1

Small White 2

Small Tortoiseshell 4

Meadow Brown 2

Speckled Wood 5 

Migrant Hawker dragonfly 2