Colour ring day - well, yesterday actually

Another frosty night followed by a sunny day. Very light variable breeze.

Howard went down to the skear yesterday afternoon, to try and locate any colour ringed Knot. He did extremely well, managing to read and photograph eight birds. These are just some examples. You will need to open these images to clearly see the rings.

These orange flagged birds are from a scheme
based at Ainsdale beach Merseyside 

These unmarked flags with four colour rings are part of a scheme 
based in the Netherlands 

They are all, and probably more, in this flock

Coincidentally, I managed to spot a colour ringed Grey wagtail on Middleton Nature Reserve yesterday afternoon  (see scheme details on sidebar). This bird was ringed at Middleton last year and has already been seen once previously in the area this winter, so possibly going to hang around a while. It's always worth checking any Grey Wagtails for colour rings. It seems to be finding food very readily here, but these remnants of a shallow puddle would have been frozen over in the morning, presumably killing the various larvae that it is now picking up. A feast, but soon to be followed by a famine?

Today's records are from the north shore

Pete had a scan on the dropping tide from Knowlys Rd

Red-Throated Diver 1 (on sea and diving at Kent Channel range)

Great Crested Grebe 10 inshore 

David Kaye checked from Heysham Head late afternoon 

Red-Throated Diver 1 in (possibly same as Pete's)

Plenty of Knot (if you open this shot you can see one of the birds - bottom left - is ringed. Looks like the Merseyside scheme).

Knot with a few Dunlin

I managed the last hour of daylight on the skear (MD)

Eider 45 at least

Red-breasted Merganser 3 - this male was having a washing frenzy!

Shag at least 1

Cormorant, as well as the 5-6 normally feeding here, this flock of 16 were heading north.

It was a lovely evening, but it was time to leave!