Creeping back to post storm "normality"?

A mainly dry day with just the odd shower. A light SE wind.

Heysham skear (Malcolm) 09:30 - 10:30

Still very little, but slightly more than yesterday 

Pale-bellied Brent goose 22 feeding amongst the rocks quite a way out from the play area, more were closer to the shore.

Pink-Footed Goose 14 west

Red-breasted Merganser 2

Red-breasted Merganser

No Shag seen but there were two Cormorants today.

There was a handful of Herring gulls, but no Black-Headed gulls. Also no Little Egret and only two Redshank. It seems like the supply of tiny shrimps has vanished. The shrimps can't have gone, possibly the recent storm has altered the direction of drains further north. There were some Black-Headed gulls feeding in a drain closer to the Stone Jetty.

Gulls feeding closer to the Stone jetty. It seems as though there is a spit
of mud preventing it draining past the skear. If so it will likely stay like 
that till the next spring tides or possibly longer

Oystercatcher 2,000

Curlew 30

Knot 13 in one small group

Turnstone 40

Grey Plover 1

Ringed plover 28

The above two both high up the shore

Grey Plover

Ringed Plover

South shore

Janet checked early afternoon 

There was hardly any small birds about in the nature park except for a couple of Goldcrest in different areas from each other.

Goldcrests 

Moorhens also in the Nature Park

Rock Pipit exploring the fresh water run off at Red Nab.

That's gutweed growing on the rocks. It doesn't look very appetising at
the moment, but it is very buoyant and lifts off the rocks when the water
covers it. It is what both the Brent geese and Wigeon come to feed on

I checked later in the afternoon (Malcolm)

Pale-bellied Brent goose at least 44 came in to Red Nab

They came in on a much more typical low flight path today.
That's No.2 outfall superstructure that they flew over yesterday 

Wigeon 120

Shelduck 12

This Carrion Crow was cleaning out what looks to be a fish head

Middleton Nature Reserve (Janet)

Tufted Ducks

The Gadwall were finding plenty of pondweed to feed on

Imperial Rd (Malcolm)

Just one check today, the water table has significantly reduced from its peak, possibly why there was at least one Water Rail squealing.

Teal 2

Teal

Grey Heron 1

Stonechat - just the female seen feeding on the distant Reedmace, the male was probably somewhere close by

Female Stonechat 

Kestrel 2 - were trying to have a rest, but the Magpies weren't happy!

Both Kestrels in this shot

Honeycomb worms have an Achilles' heel!

A mainly dry day with just the odd light shower. The SW wind was still quite fresh.

Heysham skear (Malcolm) 09:00 - 09:45

I've never known the skear to provide such little diversity! No Gulls at all, nothing on the sea except a couple of Red-breasted Mergansers. The only waders were Oystercatcher, Curlew, Turnstone and 24 Ringed Plover high up the shore.

South shore

I checked along the sea wall this morning and returned after lunch as the tide was reaching Red Nab (Malcolm)

Kingfisher 1 flew out from the freshwater culvert on Red Nab this morning.

Nothing of note on the outfalls 

Plenty of young Herring Gulls. None of the ones ringed at the Power Station
this spring seemed to have stayed in the area. Some have been seen elsewhere
including Manchester and Merseyside 

These are the Honeycomb worm beds at the end of the sea wall. These are the
only ones that I am aware of on the south side of the harbour. Last night's storm
has removed a layer of mud from the base of the beds.

I have never seen anything trying to extract a worm. They are only small and
the clumps of Honeycomb are quite strong, despite being made of no more
 than grit and spit.

But this Turnstone saw an opportunity today......

........and extracted this worm from the newly exposed base of its tube.

Wigeon 146

This morning the Wigeon were strung out along the waterline

This afternoon they were on Red Nab

Pale-bellied Brent goose 82. They arrived in three groups from the north side, 64, 13 and 5 about 90 minutes before high water.

This is the first and largest group arriving, flying unusually high over
the top of No.2 outfall superstructure 

These were the last to arrive

Janet checked later as the tide was covering Red Nab

The Brent geese were still feeding

But not for long

Oystercatcher 

Turnstone 

Curlew

This Cormorant was the last to leave.

Imperial Rd (Malcolm)

I looked in twice, this morning I saw or heard nothing, it was the same this afternoon at first, then the two Stonechats turned up. I think it was more a case of them finding me, rather than me finding them.

Female Stonechat

Male Stonechat

Both in this shot

Wind blown warmth!

Showers, some very heavy throughout the day, but at least there were some dry spells in between. A very strong SSE wind which was moving to SW by evening. It was unseasonably warm, Kevin's weather station records an overnight low of 9.7°C and the temperature peaked this afternoon at 14.7°C!

Just my stuff so far (Malcolm)

South shore 11:15 - 12:00

Just a quick walk along the sea wall and back. The rain held off as I walked out, but I got a soaking on the way back.

Wigeon 134 - most resting in the lee of the outfalls until the tide reached Red Nab.

Wigeon

Redshank 48 in one flock along the wall.

Redshank

Shag 2 juveniles were in the harbour, 1 was feeding around the fisherman's wharf on the far side of the harbour, and was out of sight for most of the time.

The other had presumably done feeding and was having, what can only be described as, a thorough spruce up!

One spruced up Shag

Middleton Nature Reserve - main pond

There was an increase in ducks 

Gadwall 18

Tufted Duck 12

Mallard 25

Imperial Rd

I couldn't see the Stonechats looking from the road.

Kestrel 1

The waterlogged fields to the east of the road were bringing the worms to the surface, which attracts the gulls. Mainly Herring.