The heavy showers from yesterday evening continued till 07:00. After that it remained dry, overcast in the morning then largely sunny. A light SW breeze.
South shore (MD)
I checked again on the rising tide, but today there were no gulls on the beach next to the wooden jetty.
Mediterranean Gull 6 - 3 adult including the metal ringed bird. 3 first summer. Initially there was one adult on the seaward end of No.1 outflow. Later 2 adult and a first summer on the beach between the outflows then all six on Red Nab.
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| Adult Mediterranean gull feeding on the seaward end of No.1 outflow |
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| The metal ringed adult and a first summer Med arriving at Red Nab |
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There are three adults and two first summer Meds in this shot. Unfortunately,
the first summer on the left is hiding its head and partly obscuring the adult behind it |
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| This is the third first summer Mediterranean gull |
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This is where the Red Nab gulls were resting, this shot from Ocean Edge foreshore
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Curlew 18
Whimbrel 1
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| Curlew and a latish Whimbrel (right), just poking its head above the rocks |
The Rock Pipits are taking larger portions of food to the lighthouse area nest. Not sure what these morsels are, it reminds me of a Puffin with a bill full of sandeels! The clip pans out to show the vertical wall that the young have to surmount on their first flight........there is no second chance.
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Rock Pipit feeding a growing second brood after the first failed to fledge.
Good luck this time! |
Middleton Nature Reserve (MD)
I did two short visits, one late morning, it was still overcast and the only dragonflies showing were Black-Tailed Skimmers and Common Darters. However there was plenty going on:
Cetti's Warbler 2 singing
Chiffchaff 3
Reed Warbler 1
Reed Bunting 2 lurking in the willow scrub near the water's edge.
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| Reed Bunting |
Great Spotted Woodpecker 1
Common Buzzard 1 south
Little Grebe 1 trilling
Mallard 2 male 2 female with 8 and 6 large young. Bizarrely the male Mute Swan now happily tolerates them.
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| One of the Mallard families resting next to the Mute Swan family |
Gadwall female with 5 growing chicks on "no swimming" pond.
My second check was 15:45 in the hot afternoon sun.
Red-veined Darter 1 male
This first shot is a location shot. On the west side bank, it's taken from almost the same place as the mallard and swan shot above, but looking north not south. You can see it resting on the patch of sedges just before the large reed bed starts.
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| It was resting here, then flying out over the water surface, but kept returning to this corner. |
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| Red-veined Darter |
Heysham Nature Reserve
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| Bumblebee Hoverfly |
These Rudd were swimming near the surface of the dipping pond. Rudd will routinely take food from the surface of the water, but nothing found during this clip. The red fins are perfectly normal, unlike those hybridised with goldfish in the dog walk pond.
Just out of the recording area - ref Dan Haywood Red-veined Darter1 male West Shore near Sambo’s Grave
Clouded Yellow 1 NW (this, almost certainly would have crossed into the recording area)
