A decent variety

Light east wind, mainly overcast but a few sunny spells.

Just my stuff so far (MD)

Heysham skear - low water 11:00 

Pale-bellied Brent goose - at least 25 amongst the rocks out from the children's play area - only checked at distance looking back from the skear.

Shag 1 flew from south side to the north west of the skear and began fishing with the Cormorants 

Red-breasted Merganser 4 (2 pair)

Great Crested Grebe 4 individuals

Eider c130

Teal 1 female - I could see a small duck off the west end of the skear, always promising! Fortunately, it waited till I could get close enough to identify it, before it flew off north. Unfortunately, it was the "least exciting" of the small duck options that I had considered. Still, nice to see out here. At the end of this clip I zoom out to allow size comparison with a couple of male Eider.

Waders:

Oystercatcher c2000

Bar-Tailed Godwit 3 briefly on water line to south of skear

Curlew c50

Knot c200

Redshank c200

Turnstone c30

Dunlin c30

Middleton Nature Reserve 

Just the usual 5 minute check - hoping for a Pochard before the year ends, not today!

Mute, Coot and Moorhen unchanged

Gadwall 41 (24 on main pond still)

Wigeon 2 (pair)

Mallard 11

Tufted Duck 3 male

Shoveler 1 male

Teal 2 (pair)

A nice size comparison shot: Wigeon, Coot and Shoveler 

South Shore "late" afternoon on rising tide

Pale-bellied Brent goose 33 - 15:05. They flew from the north side right over my head, then on to Red Nab

You can see from the above clip that I was stood by the lighthouse. This next clip was shot from the same spot, but looking towards the waterfall.

Shag 1 juvenile feeding alongside 3 Cormorants at the waterfall. This clip starts with the Shag underwater, watch for it surfacing on the right hand side near the harbour wall. It has a reasonable sized fish, but wastes no time in swallowing it today. The Cormorants would have tried to pinch it, if it had faffed around as much as the bird I filmed on 16th December. 

Easy pickings, I suspect it will be back for more.

So, not a bad viewing spot at the lighthouse. I only stayed here for 5 minutes today.

Wigeon c100 arriving at Red Nab as I walked out, there seemed more on my return.

Shelduck c20

Kingfisher 1 - it was fishing today and caught one as I walked back

Peregrine Falcon 1 cruising around

Rock Pipit 2 along sea wall

Just out of recording area, information from Pete:

Mediterranean gull 1 adult on lamppost just north of Oxcliffe Rd traffic light junction mid afternoon 

Black Redstart still near blue building mid morning