A fresh and gusty west wind. Showers in the morning.
Heysham skear - low water 09:00 (MD)
Red-breasted Merganser 3
Great Crested Grebe 1
Eider 17
Pink-Footed Goose 174 in 3 skeins
Little Egret 8
Carrion Crow 8 chased off...
Raven 1
Oystercatcher 300
Curlew 25
Redshank 50
Turnstone 120
Ringed Plover 7
Knot 1500 - these seemed to be eating small mussels or snails, either way they were going down whole.
Howard checked the Heliport and managed to read one ringed Knot, despite many being obscured by the long grass.
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| Colour ringed Knot on the Heliport |
South Shore
Report from Pete:
Little Gull 2 - 1 adult on outfalls plus 1cy behind ferry then into bay. No tern species.
Mediterranean Gull 5 behind ferry at lunchtime and at least 5 red nab
Kevin also saw the adult Little gull later on in the afternoon, but by this time, also...
Common Tern 2
I was busy till it was almost dark (MD)
Common Tern 1 juvenile on No.2 outflow.
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| Juvenile Common Tern |
Mediterranean Gulls there were 18 adult/2nd calendar year and a 1st calendar year on the beach near the wooden jetty. It's very difficult working out when this beach is going to be good for the gulls. It must be very good at the moment as a large group feeding after a full day of feeding opportunities, including this beach earlier, must mean that the pickings are easy.
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| This is how busy it was with just a tiny corner of the beach exposed |
There were two white ringed adult....
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| This white ringed med has been seen several times this year, but the shot does show how prominent the Sandmason worm tubes are at the moment. |
The other white ringed med was a new bird for Heysham - details awaited
This young gull was eating, or rather preparing to eat, a crab, when a 1st calendar med flies in to pick up the pieces, I was hoping it was the ringed bird seen the other day, but it wasn't, perhaps just as well as it was quickly moved on by a 2nd calendar year med.
Janet was exercising a dog over Heysham Barrows - she had a distinct feeling of being watched from above........
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| Not only by this Kestrel...... |
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| .......this fox had a high vantage point too! |
