Almost breathless early on, what breeze there was stated from the southeast. Sunshine all day.
Another frosty start at Middleton with no wind and clear sky. A very light southerly breeze got up during the morning.
A nice selection of birds trapped and ringed:
Meadow Pipit 1
Blackbird 1
Blackcap 2
Willow Warbler 10
Goldfinch 2
Siskin 1
Lesser Redpoll 8
Little else seen and any migrants would have been very high and out of my (poor) hearing range.
A Roe Deer appeared on the centre road about ten metres away from my ringing position and shot into the western marsh when it saw me.
A check in the early evening also heard:
Cetti's warbler 2
Sedge warbler 2 - I couldn't quite get a clip of one singing, this is as close as I managed, just a glimpse of "a" warbler but at least the Sedge Warbler song is clear.
Pete checked the north shore:
Mediterranean gull - 1 second calendar year (with almost full black head) out from the north wall.
Great Crested grebe 9
Red-breasted Merganser 15 including a flock of 9
Teal pair
Whooper swan 19 lingering in the middle channel
Low water this morning was 08:30, Pete located the Whooper 08:00. I was on the skear later, but it's not possible to see the middle channel from the shore, but at 10:00 19 distant white necks began rising up through the heat haze. By 10:20 they were fully visible, albeit still quivering through the haze. By this time the tide was flooding quickly and taking them in towards the Stone Jetty. They were still on the water at 10:40 when I left. Not much of a video, but an indication of location.
Eider, not counted but numbers looked similar to recent countsHeysham Nature Reserve
Janet had a walk around late morning. Records included a Sparrowhawk and this Blackcap
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| Male Blackcap looks to have caught a parasitic wasp. |
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| You will need to open these images to see the insect details. |
