A Quiet Monday

No records so far from obs.

Moths

Single Dotted Border and March Moth (picture below)

Heysham Obs.

2 Purple Sandpiper on middle section of wooden jetty at high tide; one on top and one on angled beam about halfway down.

Report-writing priorities

Heysham Obs
Getting on with the 2008 Obs report was the priority today - not the least because the county and LDBWS report compilers were "after" the records in an easier form than on this website. Perhaps a good time to ask, with reference to the various report compilations, is there anything of great significance missing from the "public domain" from the Heysham area in 2008..........or anywhere else in Lancashire? You wont be 'named and shamed'!

North wall
Very brief visit saw the back end of some Twite (6+) and a single distant adult Med Gull. Please keep an eye open for the Czech-ringed adult - it will be leaving any day now and we need to inform the Czechs of the limital dates. We think of this bird as 'wintering' but it has been around since at least 18th July 2008 and usually seems to leave about the 6th March........but this spring has suddenly become a little "early" - e.g. three roding Woodcock in Roeburndale this evening - good last gasp "winter" atlas records! Thanks.

Middleton Industrial Est
4 mute
18 coot
5 moorhen
18 tufted
3 pochard
3 goldeneye
12 mallard
0 Teal!
2 little grebe
1 water rail (heard only)
1 snipe
1 heron

Elsewhere
Single Avocet reported Lune Estuary YESTERDAY. Three at Allen/EM Pools and one at Pilling Lane Ends today. Two Long-eared, single Short-eared, single Barn and two Tawny Owls Freeman's Wood/Pool area. The first three were feeding in late afternoon daylight - perhaps to avoid the later Tawny's? NO interesting geese actually reported in the LDBWS recording area but 3 x Tundra Bean in fields adjoining the seawall near Fluke Hall early morning

Quick (but legal!) run round

Heysham Obs
Having wasted a lot of time dealing with a hire car speeding offence which placed me in Nottingham when I was in High Tatham, not much time for birding or indeed 'work work' & dont think anyone else on the prowl today.

North harbour wall high tide
Med Gull - adult on the corrugated roof on the old Fisher's building. NB. due to sand removal, you can see this roof now from your car around the sandworks gate area and also just about see around the waterfall area
Twite - 13 around the feeder
Purple Sandpiper - at least one at long-range on the lower tier of the wooden jetty

South side (high tide)
Ringed Plover - 7 on OE west field

Moth
One Dotted Border in the trap

Elsewhere
Waxwing still at Leighton Drive, Lancaster. 5 Common Scoter off J B Point. Egyptian Goose on the pond at Haverbrack SD488801 (since last Friday). Bean Goose, presumed Tundra, Sand Villa area. Long & Short Eared & Barn Owls Freeman's Wood/Pool area.

Med Gulls get ready for spring and imminent departure

Heysham Obs
No reports of any Kittiwakes over and after the tide from any of the local coastal sites

Coastal area sightings pre-high tide
Wigeon - 97 Red Nab
Med Gull - ad at the seaward end of the outfalls in partial s.p., it or another around the IOM ferry. At least one bird in almost full summer seen along the NHW and a different adult roosting on Ocean Edge saltmarsh [3-4 adult Meds]
Kittiwake - 11 swirling about offshore in tight flock 0935, then landing on sea
Twite - 7-8 seen NH wall in brief flight
Purple Sandpiper - 2 on wooden jetty

Elsewhere
A bad goose day with flocks of PFG very uncooperative in the north Fylde and nothing unusual reported. Brief sighting of probable Rough-legged Buzzard reported from Leighton public hide c1015am (per pager)

Changing seasons

Heysham Obs
North harbour wall
Purple Sandpiper 2 below wooden jetty
Shelduck 2 'in' + 2 'out'
Eider 7 'in'
Twite - 7 on the seed, legs not seen
No sign of any Meds

Kittiwakes
It looked a good day to kickstart the spring Kittiwake passage - a stiffish westerly at the end of February. There is some history of this species being more frequent in spring on afternoon dropping tides (only Storm Petrel of the other regularish seabirds exhibits this pattern and in a totally different context). No time at all to seawatch over/after the tide at Heysham so it was left to the conscientious JBP observers (Tom & Tony) to rein them in:

"Kittiwake 5 + 13 (a long way out) +4 (close in) over the tide + at least 120 minimum feeding on dropping tide at 15:30pm"

Should be some more in the next few days

Heliport
At least a male Ringed Plover on territory

Ocean Edge/Red Nab
Ringed Plover - a reduced flock of just 11 in the high tide roost, including a metal-ringed male trying to chase the rest off. No sign of the Snettisham-nesting c.r. female [one other metal-ringed bird].
Wigeon - 86 Red Nab

Elsewhere
Ad TUNDRA BEAN GOOSE Jeremy Lane (Glasson) along with 1st W European White-fronted Goose. 1st W Pale-bellied Brent elusive in Sand Villa area

Snipe at Red Nab again

Heysham Obs
Red Nab
Snipe 28 flew off Red Nab inland
Wigeon 85

Heliport
Golden Plover - 1 on helipad - first record there?

North harbour wall
Med Gull adult not ringed
Red-throated Diver 1 offshore
Purple Sandpiper 1 wooden jetty lower tier of outer section

Outfalls
A visiting observer reported seeing a 2nd W Med Gull

Moth Trap
Two Dotted Border

Elsewhere
Sand Villa geese at various times included: 3 x Greenland Whitefronted, Barnacle, TUNDRA BEAN & both Light and Dark-bellied Brent Goose. Both Long & Short-eared Owls seen at Freeman's Pool area

WeBs day

Heysham Obs
........didnt produce anything startling

North harbour wall area
Med Gull - 2 adults
Purple Sandpiper - 2 on lower tier of outer wooden jetty section
Red-throated Diver - probably 2 offshore
Twite - no sign

Red Nab etc.
Snipe - 4 Red Nab
Wigeon - 117

Moth trap
Single Dotted Border


Elsewhere
Barnacle, Ad Dark-bellied Brent, 1st W European White-fronted Geese with large numbers of PFG Sand Villa. Ad Med Gull with metal ring (probably ex-36W) Broadway area but no sign of any Scaup off north Morecambe. Long & Short-eared Owls hunting at Aldcliffe area this evening by Freeman's Pool.

Nothing new

Heysham Obs
Not a lot happening today so a bit of rambling. Extraneous wildlife interest this morning included 'cabbie attacked by hoodie' on Trumacar stores billboard, which was obviously not in the least amusing. In contrast, I enjoyed the following from the difference between men and women discussion on 5-live: "Men always stop to outstare monkeys at the zoo whilst women walk on and ignore them".

North harbour wall & area
Med Gull - 2 adults patrolling
Pink-footed Goose - 16 East quite high from across the Bay
Purple Sandpiper - one on the lower tiers of the outer section of the wooden jetty

Ocean Edge
Ringed Plover - 20 off Ocean Edge

Moths
Another Hebrew Character

Elsewhere
Great Grey Shrike just SE of trig point at Dalton at SD556774 at 1410hrs but not seen by scanning the slopes from the road late afternoon. The Sand Villa Pink-footed Geese, within the LDBWS recording area, included single 1st W European Whitefront, 1st W Pale-bellied Brent and Barnacle Geese. No sign of Smew at Leighton Moss, Pine Lake or Haweswater. Polish-ringed adult Med Gull P96 on Giant Axe football field, Lancaster and another unringed ad nearby at Greyhound Bridge. Both Long (alongside/in Freeman's Wood) and Short (by Freeman's Pool)- eared owls Aldcliffe area late afternoon. NNEW on Leighton Drive Waxwing last two days -presumably gone?

Whistle stop

Heysham Obs
North wall
Med Gull - ad
Purple Sandpiper - at least one on the rocks next to the wooden jetty with c30 Turnstone

Middleton Industrial Est
4 mute
14 coot
4 moorhen
2 little grebe (still in winter plumage, but together and calling)
3 pochard (2 male)
27 tufted
8 teal
12 mallard
3 goldeneye (1 male)
4 snipe
1 heron (frogging season!)


Ringing details of Pink-footed Goose
This bird was 1/2 km east of the Obs recording area boundary when this ring was read and therefore easily "seen from"! The closest the bypass PF geese came to landing in the recording area - most were 1-3km to the east

Bird ID: CGTJT
Metal ring: 1428053
First Ringed
16/12/2007
Loch of Lintrathen, ANGUS, Scotland

Re-sighted
30/12/2008
Cockerham Moss Edge
LANCASHIRE

08/01/2009
Preesall Park, Preesall
LANCASHIRE

08/01/2009
Cockers Dyke, Pilling
LANCASHIRE

09/02/2009
Head Dyke Lane, Pilling
LANCASHIRE

15/02/2009
near Heysham
LANCASHIRE

Moth
First Hebrew Character of the year in the hut trap (contrasting with 93 moths of 11 species at Millhouses MV trap!)

Elsewhere
Great Grey Shrike still Dalton Crags by trig point - a good run of sightings of this often very elusive/'impossible' to find bird. Redhead Smew Leighton from mid-morning, but very mobile spending quite a bit of time in the main dyke & visiting Public & Lilians meres. Tundra Bean Goose with the Sand Villa PF flock = in LDBWS recording area. 8 Whooper Swan still between Gressingham bridge & Melling. Additional male Mandarin of unknown origin with free-flying collection at Ashley's Farm, High Tatham