There must be a problem with Google blog, it won't allow me to upload images today, which is a shame as I have some interesting ones. Bizarrely it will allow me to upload videos. Hopefully the problem will soon be resolved, I'll try again later.
Almost breathless early on with what breeze there was from the south. It drifted round to west and freshened slightly. Sunshine pretty much all day
Seawatch report from Pete:
Just one hour of flat calm:
2 Gannet in
25 Sandwich tern out
20 plus 1 Common Scoter out
2 Harbour porpoise
2 Grey seal
Cinnabar moth in-off!
Heysham skear - low water 07:10 (MD)
Eider 9
Red-breasted Merganser 3
Great Crested Grebe 16 - there were 13 feeding in the channel run offs on the south side plus 3 on the north side.
Curlew 4
Whimbrel 3
The only small waders I saw on the middle skear were 6 Turnstone and 3 Sanderling, but as the incoming tide flushed the birds off the outer skear there were more!
Turnstone - two flocks 11 and 18 both flew east inland
Sanderling - three flocks 41, 14 and 48 so 106 in total. These headed north into the bay
<flock>
The largest flock had a rest before setting off north
<jelly>
Middleton Nature Reserve
Janet did the morning shift, and I checked in the afternoon.
Mute swan - pair with 9 cygnets on "no swimming" pond, 1 adult still hiding in reeds on main pond plus 2 on Tim Butler.
Coot pair with 2 chicks on main pond + two others
Mallard 2 male 2 female one with 10 chicks
Little grebe 1 adult on "no swimming" pond
Cetti's warbler - central marsh bird singing
Insects:
Lots of Damselflies including: Common Blue, Azure and Large Red.
Dragonflies:
Four-spotted Chaser 2
Broad-bodied Chaser 1 mature male, 2 female
Butterflies:
Common Blue
Small Heath
Green Veined White (this was the most common species)
Speckled Wood
Orange Tip
Moths:
Mother Shipton
Orchids:
Marsh sp
