Birdless outfalls

Heysham Obs
Everything seems to have deserted the outfalls on the evidence of a very brief visit on the albeit less-favourable dropping tide

North wall for 10 minutes circa 0950-1000
Arctic Tern - single 'in' was the sum total of sea passage
Sandwich Tern - 2 blogging
Purple Sandpiper - summer plumaged bird as per recent pic still below the NHW
Black Guillemot - still present
Swallow - 2 NE

Outfalls
Zero

PS non-operational land
A huge male Wheatear

Elsewhere
The most intriguing report was of a radio transmitter on a female Marsh Harrier. Origin? That sets the theme for today: a Red Kite, almost certainly with wing tags, was phoned in to me as it flew SE over Leck JUST AFTER we had also seen a wing-tagged and radio-transmitting Red Kite near Slaggyford just west of Alston en route to work! The singing male Wood Warbler can still be heard if you listen carefully from the region of the top gate on the 5-gate road. It is in the extreme southerly section of Winder Wood over the river. Loads more Lapwing chicks in Roeburn/Hindburn catchments this year with a proliferation of stewardship schemes [34 ringed so far compared to about 4 last year!]

Bits and bobs

Heysham Obs
Very poor visibility this morning and a birdrace team achieved the nigh impossible and dipped out on Arctic and Common Tern this morning.
Nevertheless, Black Guillemot, Sandwich Tern and Purple Sandpiper were available

Heysham north wall early-mid am
Purple Sandpiper
Black Guillemot
14 Common Scoter in transit
14 or so Sandwich Tern blogging
NO Arctic or Common Tern!
The original 1st W-type Med Gull (not yesterdays 'fly-through')

Outfalls etc pm
Arctic tern 6 on end of Stage 2
Turnstone min. 100 Wooden Jetty
Peregrine over Power Station

Elsewhere
Cuckoo Upper Hindburndale. Crossbill heard distantly Thrushgill plantation [Bonapartes Gull still Stocks Res]. Yesterday, single Fieldfare near Botton head Farm and Hobby flew due north high over Lowgill as viewed from Botton Head road at c1730hrs (definitely not the local Merlin!). No sign Temminck's Stint. Ad & 3+ juv Long-eared Owl Leck Fell - latter 'squeaky gating' near dusk

Reed Warbler new in

Purple Sandpiper along the north wall today. Thanks Gavin. After going into print saying the 'wintering population has long gone', two birds wintered in 2007/8 with a third on at least one occasion. The problem is what to say about the recent sightings as previous years have shown that passage birds accompany the Turnstone. Possibly the above is the continuously present wintering bird and a return to two individuals for a short time during the spring passage indicates at least one passage bird. Most views have been distant under/on the wooden jetty, so not able to use subtle plumage differences, bill length etc.

Heysham Obs
A fairly low key morning, as the easterly element in the wind was lost, which included a CBC type survey of the British Energy land. This included two singing male Garden Warbler which do not usually breed here and may just be passing through and a singing Reed Warbler which will probably stay.

North harbour wall/outfalls
Poor visibility and a dropping tide are not a good combination, therefore the single Arctic Skua was a bit of a bonus!

Arctic Skua - dm in at 0955hrs
Arctic Tern - just 45 on outfalls, 19 'in' 1500-1600.
Sandwich Tern - max of 21 blogging
Med Gull - new 1st summer 'in'
Kittiwake - 2 1st summer - possibly following ferry
Black Guillemot around
Purple Sandpiper - one below north harbour wall

No Black Terns amongst reduced numbers of Arctic Tern.
Common Tern - one outfalls, later a high count (for here) of 12
"Trickle" of Swallows - no more than 10 per hour!

Middleton IE
Two Grasshopper Warbler

Moths
Puss Moth and Red Sword Grass were unusual records for here as the late spring moths emerged en masse last night. Light Emerald, Dark-barred Twin-spot Carpet (4), V Pug and Bright-line Brown Eye were also recorded

Elsewhere

1st S BONAPARTES GULL just outside the LDBWS area at Stock's Reservoir this evening. Temminck's Stint causing problems at the EM Pools late afternoon where the hide juxtoposition in relation to the sun & height c/f heathaze is probably why this species is so scarce thereon.
Little Gull 1st S on Pine Lake but Black Terns seem to have all gone. Osprey Hornby Wood on Wenning. One Black Tern still left on EM Pool. Spoonbill still present Leighton area

Useless frontal edge in the morning, better later.....

Heysham Obs

A quietish day so we'll make up for this by another sparrow pic from Emma taken during the processing:

........It didnt 'drop' anything first thing!

North Harbour Wall

Black Tern - two lingering Heysham outfalls morning at least

Arctic Tern - some early morning movement with 106 'in', otherwise up to 50 on the outfalls

Whimbrel 7 in,

Greylag 4 in

Common Scoter 10 in

Swallow - just 73 in 3 hours & no other passerines/hirundines/swift on the move during the early morning.

Common Tern - at least three blogging

Sandwich Tern - at least 18 blogging

The high tide period

There was no known seawatching over the high tide but JBP was manned during this period:

Arctic Skua - 2 dark morph overland via Jack Scout late afternoon

Otherwise just 50 or so Arctic Tern, 5 Black Tern and a single Kittiwake

of note.

Other inshore/off-passage

Black Guillemot - usual routine, perhaps spending slightly more time than expected off the nhw, as opposed to in the harbour mouth

Purple Sandpiper - single with c130 Turnstone on the wooden jetty

3 Bar-tailed Godwit

3 Knot

Common Sandpiper

Middleton IE

Female Whinchat

Elsewhere

Black Kite - one of unknown origin seen at 0900 and 1015 in the Quernmore valley/Littledale area, presumably the bird over Lancaster late evening of 7th

Wood Warbler - singing male audible this evening, over the other side of the river on the dangerously steep slopes of Winder Wood south, from the Haylot gate at the start of the 5-gate road, upper Roeburndale

Black Tern - maxima at various sites: Heysham (2), Pine Lake (4), JBP (5), Leighton Moss (10) [Pine Lake and 4/5 JBP birds probably the same].

Curlew Sandpiper - one with RP & Dunlin, Halforth, upper Kent.

Short-eared Owl - one Jubilee Tower early afternoon

Cuckoo - Heard/seen at: Jubilee Tower, upper Tarnbrook (there since Monday), Birkbank, upper Roeburndale. Obviously a belated arrival

Spoonbill - still EM Pool

Reasonably good seawatching & Heysham One outfall producing the goods at last!

Heysham Obs
Five observers covered the north harbour wall seabirds 0715-1230hrs and were rewarded with (or missed!) some reasonable fare:

North harbour wall/outfalls observations 0715-1230 (Dan Haywood, someone who should have been at work, Pete Marsh (who also should have been at work), Brendan & Paula Smith)
Avocet - flock of 6 into the Bay - the third ever record & the third this spring!
Pomarine Skua - full-tailed ad light morph in at 1010ish - a bit distant, flying low into the bay
Arctic Skua - single dark and darkish morphs in 0735 & 0743
Marsh Harrier - one across the mouth of the bay heading for the north Fylde at c1135
Arctic Tern - not easy to document. c470 birds involved, mainly after the tide started to come in and invariably after gathering on the outfalls. Many of these headed straight up into the air and either NE over the harbour or high into the Bay. 91 of the total were birds remaining on the outfalls on the incoming tide when the observations ceased. c90 still on the outfalls (same birds??) at 1600hrs, then 50 headed off high into the sky NE (which suggests that they were not the same throughout)
Black Tern - at one stage there were two on Heysham 2 outfall but hard to see through the remnants of the wooden jetty. The accompanying Arctic Terns went off high into the sky and were presumed to have taken the Blacks with them. However, a single Black Tern appeared with more Arctics & remained until observations ceased. Probably 3 birds. One still on the outfalls at 1600hrs and two others flying SE past Red Nab
Common Tern - up to 4 blogging
Sandwich Tern - impossible - somewhere between 35 and 50 birds during the morning
Whimbrel - 5 in
Swallow - 506 in 0715-1130 - probably double this as birds sneaked behind observers! Still moving at about 4/minute late afternoon
Swift - 16 in
House Martin - 19 in
Sand Martin - 1 in
Tree Pipit - one NE
Lesser Redpoll - just 2 NE
Jackdaw - 2 in-off, then NE as yesterday (some moving at Walney this month as well)
Linnet - 2 NE
Meadow Pipit - 2 very late birds NE
Black-headed Gull - notable passage with 100+ flying in and 35 still on outfalls at 1200
Mute Swan - flock of 4 in-off from Walney direction and a flock of 7 across from Ulverston direction - most unusual!
Knot - flock of 40 out

Inshore/off passage (see above for tern species)
Bar-tailed Godwit - 2 - scarce here
Common Sandpiper - 2
Turnstone - 166 (no Purple Sands noted)
Black Guillemot
Guillemot - 2 floating in quite close (1st summers)
Common Gull - 287

Insects from north harbour wall
Large White - 13 in-off/NE
Small White - 6 in-off/NE
unspec white spp 22 in-off/NE
[no Red Admiral or other butterflies seen]

Elsewhere
Ad male Red-footed Falcon 'in-off' at JB Point - seen by two experienced observers. Just outside LDBWS area: 5 Dotterel on Little Ingleborough. Black Kite over Lancaster YESTERDAY evening.

Back to 'normal'....then afternoon Marsh harrier

Heysham Obs
The only year tick today was two queen wasps in-off during the seawatching. A scattering of interest from the north harbour wall, but very few seabirds. The only incentive was to hope for a Red-rumped Swallow! Then after the above was written, a Heysham year-tick flew NE over the edge of the golf course in the form of a female or imm male Marsh Harrier, on size, probably female at 1337hrs


North harbour wall 0730-1200
Flava wagtail - one NE at 1100ish - normal flavissima-type calls i.e. mellow, not harsher like Grey-headed, but bird not seen
Jackdaw - two together in-off and purposefully NE - unusual [not resident in this area]
Sanderling - 4 in
Arctic Tern - 14+8 in
Swallow - 441 NE (MANY missed going 'behind')
Swift - 9 NE
Sand Martin - 1 NE
House Martin - 10 NE
Redpoll - all appeared to be Lesser - 33 NE
Linnet - 1 NE
White Wagtail - 3 NE
Gannet - ad behind IOM ferry
Kittiwake - 5 adults (flock) in with the second AT flock
Common Scoter - 2 out
Whimbrel - 8 in
Wheatear - one in-off

Inshore/off-passage
Purple Sandpiper - one with c85 Turnstone
Black Guillemot - around wooden jetty & off NHW
Common Sandpiper - one briefly on rocks
Med Gull - 1st W (same as the other day)heading towards outfalls
Sedge Warbler - one briefly on mound

Ringing/reserve
Nothing much as too windy for most net sites (3 Lesser Redpoll trapped). No sign of White-throated Sparrow but no (visiting) birders at all looking!

From the office
The autumnal vis mig seat outside the office produced a Marsh Harrier NE at 1337hrs. Surprisingly not noticed by the local gulls - perhaps the flightline was far enough to the east.

Insects
2 queen wasp spp. and 3 queen bumble bee spp. in-off

Elsewhere
Spoonbill still Griesdale mere. Osprey along Lune valley by Aughton Woods 1500hrs. No sign of the Chough at Warton Crag since Friday despite consistent observer presence. 7 Common Scoter of JBP but nothing else to 1300hrs at least. The two skuas off Knott End (one dm Pom) did not reach Heysham.

One of those days

Photos by Emma Garston

Heysham Obs

Heysham Nature reserve ringing
2CY White-throated Sparrow of the tan colour-morph trapped and ringed at 0910hrs by Alan Draper & Andrew Cadman. The high fat and muscle scores (3 & 2 respectively) indicate that it has been around for a day or two and indeed it was trapped in an "inland" net site by the dipping pond. Texted Walney with "1-1 after 43 years!". Very little else caught! The only other grounded bird of interest was a Garden Warbler, only the second of the year for a species which does not breed here

North harbour wall 0630-0911 then 1200-1300
Pomarine Skua - adult light morph in close inshore at 0836hrs (hugging the water). Attempts at Coolpixing it produced fresh air and sea. The timing suggests it may have been the bird seen 'heading for the outer reaches of Morecambe Bay', as seen from Walney during the previous 45 minuts or so
Arctic Skua - dark morph in at 0710hrs
Black Tern - one in at 0720hrs, another blogging around the end of the outfalls with 8 Arctic Tern at 0845 but they did not pass the NHW & had gone by 0900hrs
Arctic Tern - NONE past the NHW into the Bay! (see above) until 15 in 1200-1300hrs
Common Tern - one blogging
Swallow - 276 NE 0630-0911, many probably missed, 70 from 1300-1400.
Lesser Redpoll - 9 NE (& three ringed)
Linnet - 4 NE
House Martin - 2NE
Whimbrel - 4+11 in
Sandwich Tern - 11 in, 5 blogging
Manx Shearwater - 30 in, 2 out all 1200-1300hrs

A flock of 15 possible/probable Little Gulls distantly in the haze at 1330ish

Inshore
Black Guillemot & single Purple Sandpiper

Mammals
Grey Seal off NHW at low tide. [No observations later in the tide cycle at 'Harbour Porpoise time' but one seen off the SJ over the tide]

Elsewhere

A well-publicised Whinchat at Aldcliffe. 10 Greenland-type Wheatear on Ward's Stone plateau and 2-3 lower down, but only one Golden Plover on territory on the plateau. Several people wishing they had taken an extra day off! No news on anything from Leighton Moss e.g. current Spoonbill status but it appears there have been no Chough sightings since at least the 2nd May.

Skuas and sunbathing!

Heysham Obs

North harbour wall 0650-1100
A half-decent morning in 'deckchair' weather. Light variable wind turning SE and the early stages of the incoming tide at the optimum time of the morning. Puzzling lack of observers with only three enjoying the Pomarine Skuas.

Pomarine Skua - Three light morphs in distantly at 0915, only one of which had a full tail (this caused initial confusion). Two light morphs giving excellent views as they flew in at 0950hrs - they were well above the sea and unfortunately could not be found in the camera viewfinder!
Arctic Skua - 2 dark morph together + light and dark morph together + single light morph [& 3 additional Arctic Skua after midday as seen from JBP - one inland via the Kent, two via the Keer]
Arctic Tern - 45 in
Pink-footed Goose - 80+150+120+40+13 NNW in that order
Med. Gull - 1st winter in (very large-billed individual with no hint of summer plumage on head - not the bird seen the other day)
Little Gull - 1st S in
Red-throated Diver - 1 in, another on the water
Guillemot - one in on the water
Sandwich Tern - 9 purposefully in & c9 blogging
Mute Swan - 5 imms in (having been on the sea off Red Nab)

Inshore
Black Guillemot around wooden jetty but flew offshore at 1050hrs. No conscientious check for Purple Sandpiper. Just a single Knot remaining on the heliport roost!

Outfalls
Common Tern - 1

Grounded
Very little but did include a Spotted Flycatcher at Red Nab. Just one Wheatear seen.

Insects
Red Admiral 'in-off' as leaving the north wall at 1105

Mammals
Harbour Porpoise - 2 still around

Elsewhere
Hardly anything in this area! Two Spotted Flycatcher Upper Hindburn and Short-eared Owl along Silly Lane, Hindburndale.

Multiple Black Tern passage

Heysham Obs
Another morning & subtely different fare - today included multiple Black Tern, a fly-by Avocet (first north harbour wall record, following on the first site record in April) and confirmation of two Harbour Porpoise which was suspected the other day

North harbour wall 0600-1100
Black Tern - 7+2 in with Arctic plus another off Red Nab, then towards the Lune with 44 Arctic Tern [10 in total] [plus one - see below]
Arctic Tern - 89 in plus 44 as described above [see below]
Avocet - one out close inshore at 0914hrs - see above
Gannet - 1
Red-throated Diver - 1
Razorbill - 1
Swallow - good passage: 70 per hour, increasing to 120 per hour (from?) mid-morning
House Martin - 6
Sand Martin - 1
Swift - 3
Greylag - 3 out
Goldfinch - 2
Lesser Redpoll - 1

Black Guillemot by wooden jetty, but no obvious sign of any Purple Sandpiper amongst an increase to 235 Turnstone, but plenty of hidden sections of wooden jetty

Red Nab/outfalls
See above re-Arctic/Black Tern
Common Tern - 1 on outfalls
Common Gull - 161
Black-headed Gull - 24
Black-tailed Godwit - 1 within BTO challenge area
Whinchat - 1
Wheatear - 2

Late afternoon low tide trawl
Single Black Tern, 35 Arctic Tern and a 1st S Little Gull off the seaward end of Heysham 2 outfall or along the channel to the south just before a large shower

Mammals
2 Harbour Porpoise

Elsewhere
Spoonbill still EM Pools. Single Black Tern new in (NOT 'still'!) at Leighton Moss public mere (the three flew off high to NE, as they usually do if clear, last night. 3 more this evening plus another on Borwick Waters.

Trickle of migrants

Heysham Obs
A 'nearly' morning with a wind which did not have quite enough east in it, clouds which did not produce the requisite short sharp shower or two and visibility which was a little too clear. Nevertheless a steady trickle of migrants. This is the sort of morning where Stage One outfall is missed - there is no warm water coming out at the moment & therefore no cooked invertebrates to produce a large gathering of gulls/passage terns at the seaward end. These can usually provide 'entertainment' if the sea passage is slow

Grounded
An arrival of Common Whitethroat as judged by singing males with at least 15 scattered around the recording area, following just 2-3 (more on Middleton) on previous days. The mist nets were operated for CES which meant no Willow warbler or Redpoll tapes and the result was a sprinkling of migrants including the first Garden Warbler of the year. Wheatears were fairly prominent with at least 18 counted, including at least one by the office. A Willow Warbler was on the rocks at Red Nab but, as indicated by the biometrics of trapped birds, this was 'female time' and they are very elusive and unobtrusive, as well as moving rapidly inland, once the now leafy vegetation has been reached. Therefore impossible to put a figure on Willow warbler this morning.

Sea/vis, mainly from the north harbour wall
Common Tern - the 'highlight'! - 2 birds close inshore, one of which ended up on the outfalls
Arctic Skua - LM in
Sandwich Tern - c8
Arctic Tern - flock of 7 in & 3
Gannet - 4
Manx Shearwater - 1
Pink-footed Goose - flock of 60 N
Swallow 15NE
House Martin - 2 NE
Linnet - 13 NE
Lesser Redpoll - 8NE
Goldfinch - 5 NE
Meadow Pipit - 5 very late birds NE
Tree Pipit - 1 NE

Off-passage/inshore
Common Sandpiper - 1
Black Guillemot - around & on the wooden jetty
Purple Sandpiper - one still on wooden jetty
Mute Swan - pair on the sea by Ocean Edge saltmarsh
Guillemot - one on sea
Common Gull - 82 off OE/Red Nab
Black-headed Gull - 16 of OE/Red Nab

Reassessment
Following a conversation with another of the observers, the Pomarine Skua seen two days ago has been 'firmed up'. This additional information on this bird was not available at the time of the posting

Elsewhere
Belated mega JUST outside the area: DARK-EYED JUNCO in an garden at Newby, near Ingleton 13th April, the first Nearctic passerine anywhere near the LDBWS recording area! Predictably no sign of pratincole spp.. Three Black Tern arrived at Leighton Moss c0930 and left high to the NE at 2010; 2 were on Borwick Waters "this morning", but not there at 1500hrs.