A nice variety of shore birds

A light east wind with plenty of sunshine.

Report from Pete Crooks:

Red Nab
1 adult Mediterranean Gull – already moulting out of summer plumage, with some white around the base of the bill
2 Whimbrel – with 33 Curlew
c.200 small waders (probably a mixture of Dunlin and Ringed Plover) on the shoreline off Ocean Edge on the early morning ebbing tide, but too distant for specific identification

Heysham skear - low water 14:20 (MD)

Bar-Tailed Godwit 68 - flew in from the south before settling on the north side of the skear.

The tide was coming in so I had to get past them. I managed it, just, without spooking them, but it meant that I had to get close!

Sanderling 27 - 3 groups, 18, 6 and 3

These are the 18

The group of 6 were in the same area of the skear, but the 3 were closer inshore feeding around the rocks protruding from the mud. They seemed to be finding plenty to eat

The only other waders seen were Oystercatcher

South shore (MD)

A very pleasant early evening stroll. I bumped into Alison and Kevin checking out the insects, which was good, it meant I could focus on the sea. I'll post their tally when complete. But Alison has already provided this very interesting shot.

 a newly emerged 7-spot Ladybird
yet to take on its final colour and still with the pupal case.  

Rock Pipits 4. A displaying male on Red Nab. An adult with food near the waterfall. Two adult near the lighthouse. Their first brood must have failed to fledge, they were taking food to a new nest hole nearer the wooden framework. This hole has a larger opening so should at least give the chicks a chance to stretch their wings before making their first perilous flight.

Rock Pipit on the wooden framework near their new nest hole

Common Tern 1 on No.1 outflow

Common Tern

This young Herring Gull looked fed up with preening!

This Grey seal was having a nap. You can see why it's called "bottling".

This is slightly unusual, it is a small Compass Jellyfish (about the size of a poached egg - they get much larger). It was on the skear.

Compass Jellyfish, you can see at least a couple of invertebrates caught in its tentacles 

It isn't actually stranded but in a small puddle of water, so thankfully I didn't need to move it, they have nasty stings. They are not generally rare, but not common in the bay.