Still some movement - birds and insects

Another warm sunny day with a predominantly east breeze.

Heysham skear (Malcolm) 08:45 - 10:15:

Eider 10

Eider

Little Egret 3

Sandwich Tern 1

A few more species of wader today

Oystercatcher 1,200

Curlew 2

Whimbrel 8

Knot just a solitary bird

Solitary Knot with Oystercatchers 

Turnstone 2

Summer plumage Turnstone 

Ringed Plover 6

All six in this shot

Gulls c1,200 again, but no ringed birds were seen today.

Swallow 3 in/off

Painted Lady 1 in/off

Middleton Nature Reserve - southern section - (Janet)

These shots with Janet's mobile, showing that you don't need expensive cameras, especially for insects.

Broad-bodied Chaser

Four-spotted Chaser

Common Toad, clearly not enjoying the dry weather

Main pond (these shots with a 65mm lens)

Female Broad-bodied Chaser ovipositoring, with the male watching over

Pete checked from the back of the harbour  1125-1225 

Red admiral 7 in

Painted Lady 2 together in

Small White 11 in

Common scoter flock of 19 

A single Sandwich Tern 

South shore (Malcolm)

From saltmarsh to lighthouse and back 15:15 - 16:30

Shelduck just 1 resting on the saltmarsh 

Linnet 2 each saltmarsh and lighthouse 

Meadow Pipit 2 - one on foreshore and 1 on Red Nab

Foreshore Meadow Pipit

Rock Pipit, just one seen standing above the waterfall

Curlew 1 on Red Nab

Eider 3 between the outfalls

Eider on the sea, and I just happen to have caught a passing dredger in the frame.

In some respects I couldn't have timed this walk any worse. By the time I reached the sea wall, the breeze had shifted to NNW for the only time in the day! East winds are required to draw the insects in here, and sure enough I didn't see a single insect come in/off anywhere along the wall. There were some butterflies remaining on the scrub near the lighthouse.

Common Blue 17

Common Blue

Painted Lady 2

Painted Lady

In another respect of course, I couldn't have timed the walk any better. No point in having an hypothesis of requiring an east wind to bring the insects in if you don't test it. When Pete checked earlier the breeze was almost due east. When I checked the NNW breeze would have drawn the insects in and across the bay.

This is another of Janet's shots of yesterday's Heysham Head Rock Pipits.
Even the shadow shows it to be carrying food.