Bad light (and raptors) stops play

A light SW wind. Overcast with just a few very light showers.

Middleton Nature Reserve (Malcolm)

Just a quick wildfowl check of the two main ponds.

Mute Swan the pair with a well grown cygnet were back on the "no swimming" pond. The other adult replacing them on the main pond.

Coot 22

Moorhen 8

No Little grebe seen

Mallard 32

Gadwall 18

Tufted Duck 6

Female and male Gadwall

Three Gadwall (front) with three Mallard (rear)

Mallard, two Tufted Duck and two Coot

Heysham skear - low water 17:10 (Malcolm)

Checked a couple of hours before low water, mainly as it would be dark at low water, also we are back to spring tides now and the waders can feed on the outer skear at low water, and I can't get there (without chest waders).

Little Egret 5

Great Crested grebe at least 7

Eider 9

Red-breasted Merganser 7

Red-breasted Merganser and Eider

The male Mergansers were displaying. It always seems to me that the males are more intent on impressing their rivals than the females.

Wader numbers as recent. At least two of the Knot had orange flags, but I only managed to read one. Partly because.....

Peregrine Falcon, there were four attacks, likely from more than one bird.

The light was fading, the waders spooked. Time to leave!

Just out of the recording area (Malcolm)

Horse Paddock behind Middleton Parish Hall.

Green Sandpiper.