Another warm sunny day. The NE wind again shifting to NW mid afternoon.
Middleton Nature Reserve - main pond (Janet)
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| Mallards catching the morning sun |
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| Male Broad-bodied Chaser |
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| Azure Blues |
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| Marsh Orchids on the main pond spit |
Heysham Skear (Malcolm) 09:00 - 10:30
Eider 5
Little Egret 4 - this one fishing on the incoming tide.
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| Five Cormorants heading east |
Curlew 1
Whimbrel 6
Bar-Tailed Godwit 2
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| Bar-Tailed Godwit with Oystercatchers |
Turnstone 1
Dunlin 6 (1 by itself plus 2 and 3 with Ringed Plovers)
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| Dunlin |
Ringed Plover 10 - 3 and 7
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| Six Ringed Plover and a Dunlin |
Gulls, more than 1,200 today
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| Five Whimbrel flying over a few of the gulls |
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| This is only some of the gulls, I must have checked over 300 pairs of legs, but didn't see a single ringed bird. |
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| This young Herring gull has found a Pipefish. They are the same family as Seahorses, and are basically just a straightened out Seahorse. That's its head just above the water |
Unfortunately, it was just too long for the gull to be able to swallow it. Although, it wasn't for giving up and took it away for another try. It would be easier head first, so it might manage eventually.
Heysham Head (Edward Wilkinson)
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| Rock Pipit |
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| Wren |
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| Goldfinch |
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| Common Whitethroat |
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| Linnet |
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| House Sparrow |
South shore (Malcolm)
Shelduck 2
Linnet 2
I wasn't going to go along the sea wall as the wind was again from NW. but there were more gulls on the outfalls than of late so I went to check.
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| Most of the gulls were immature Black-Headed, they seemed to be finding plenty to eat. |
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| Grey Seal dozing between the outfalls |
Rock Pipit 1 near the lighthouse
Swallow 3 north
The only butterflies seen coming in/off were 3 Small White. There were still c20 Common Blue on the scrub near the lighthouse.
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| The Six-Spot Burnet were just emerging, they will be everywhere soon. |
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| This large (18mm) beetle is a Common Burying Beetle. They are not called burying because they bury underground, but because they burry small animal carcasses for them and their young to feed on safely |
