The deep freeze begins to abate

Another freezing night. A clear calm start, clouding over by lunchtime when there was a light shower. The SSE breeze freshened during the afternoon.

Just my stuff so far (MD)

Saltmarsh to Red Nab 

It was -6C when I started at 08:30, another very difficult night for the birds.

Saltmarsh:

Common Snipe 3

Starling 8

Greenfinch 10

Reed Bunting 2

Black-Tailed Godwit 3 - The creek through the saltmarsh is now beyond the current tide reach. Even so the trickle of ground water draining through it had kept an ice free ribbon open. These birds were feeding as yesterday, whatever they were finding was tiny and must be depleted after three days.

Red Nab:

Shelduck c150

Meadow Pipit 1

Rock Pipit 1 - the Rock Pipit not so benign today and was trying to chase the Meadow Pipit off its patch.

Blackbird 2 - this clip is actually from yesterday, but similar tactics were being used today. They are working very hard for whatever invertebrates they were finding.

Heron and a couple of Wigeon hogging the only ice free pool on Red Nab

Heysham skear - low water 10:40

Just a short walk, the tide doesn't go out very far on these low neap tides.

Eider c50 most quite distant and diving for food, but this male was gathering what he can from an inshore rock.

Great Crested Grebe 1

Shag 1 immature 

Shag on the barely exposed conger rock at low water

No waders other than the Oystercatcher, Curlew, Redshank and Turnstone - it struck me again just how "cruel" these low neap tides are in freezing conditions, not only do they not rise far enough to thaw out the upper shore mud, but they fail to expose the lower shore feeding grounds. The only saving grace is that some shore is exposed all day.

Pale-Bellied Brent goose 3 - these arrived from the west at low water and headed to the SE skear corner to feed.

Pale-Bellied Brent geese

Saltmarsh to Red Nab

A second quick check in the late afternoon. It was above freezing now, the lunchtime rain had melted much of the standing frost, but the ground was still sub zero and the rain and melted frost had turned to a layer of ice.

Teal 4 (2 each on Red Nab and Saltmarsh ground water run offs)

Black-Tailed Godwit 1 - none in the saltmarsh creek, that larder must have been empty. This one was feeding out from the foreshore. It was finding something to eat, but again, just pea sized molluscs.

Black-Tailed Godwit with a small mollusc

Grey Plover 1

Passerines as this morning.

This wader initially confused me. At first, I could only see it in silhouette, no plumage details but it seemed to have a long slightly downturned bill and feeding in a similar fashion as the godwits. But when I moved to take the sun out of the sight line, I could see it was an Oystercatcher. It does seem to have a longer than average bill and a suggestion of down curving, possibly giving it additional feeding options in these difficult conditions.

This made me smile, it was this morning before the cloud cover. The jet leaving this contrail appears to have made a "U" turn, as though the pilot had forgotten something! (Probably just some sort of holding manoeuvre)

At the time of writing, the night sky is clear and the temperature is hovering just above freezing. But overnight rain is forecast, which will be good for the birds as it will mean a warmer night, but it may leave the roads and pavements treacherous with ice in the morning. Take care.