Just a few waifs and strays

A light SE wind in the morning, freshened as it switched to SW in the afternoon. Rain all morning, but a fine and occasionally sunny afternoon.

South shore (Malcolm) 10:30 - 11:30

A wet walk from the saltmarsh to the end of the sea wall (and, of course, back again)

Linnet 70+ feeding on the saltmarsh and Ocean Edge grass

Wheatear 4 along the foreshore and 1 near the lighthouse 

This is yesterday's Wheatear near the lighthouse, I didn't manage 
any decent shots today

Rock Pipit 7 - 2 along the foreshore, 3 on Red Nab, 1 along the sea wall and 1 near the lighthouse.

Golden Plover 1 juvenile, initially on Ocean Edge grass but moved onto the shore when it saw me. Suggesting that even at this late hour I was the first person daft enough to be out here! These are a very common species just south of here in the river Lune estuary, but surprisingly rare here, some years there are no records at all (worth getting my camera wet for).

Golden Plover with Linnets on Ocean Edge grass

Golden Plover on the shore

Kingfisher 1 at the freshwater runoff culvert at Red Nab, unfortunately it flew off before I could unstash my camera.

Some of the Redshanks along the sea wall, the upper bird in familiar 
winter plumage, the lower one not

Summer or juvenile plumage Redshank

We have had some feedback for a couple of UK ringed Mediterranean gulls seen recently. Both ringed at Langstone Harbour Hampshire. One juvenile was its first sighting beyond Hampshire, but an adult bird has had a busy year!

Ringed in 2021, it wasn't seen again till it was resighted in Hampshire February 2024.
But this year it has been seen 8 times in 6 locations. France, Sussex, Devon,
 Swansea, Ceredigion and Heysham.

Heysham skear (Malcolm) 14:30 - 15:30

Very low neap tide today, it barely exposed the skear, but it was nice to have a walk in the sunshine after this morning.

Eider 3 males

Male Eider moulting out of eclipse

Great Crested grebe 2

Little Egret 13

Some of the Little Egrets

Guillemot 2

This one was on the south side, and I left without disturbing it

This one was on the north side, it is just setting off here, it swam out to the area where most of the diving birds feed.......after a brief scare from a Herring gull.

Gulls <100 mainly Herring

Surprisingly, no Shags seen

Oystercatcher 600

Curlew 15

Redshank 120

Turnstone 40

Ringed Plover 3