Power walking circuit

Heysham Obs
The moth trap light was accidentally left off last night - a bit of a disaster as pre-frontal weather is excellent for moths.  A walk 'around the Power Stations' from the office via the harbour/seawall/nature park/dog track & back to the office produced the following

Med Gull - ad behind ferry, juv on the mudflats
Little Gull - ad on the mudflats
Whitethroat - one in the rosebay on the south harbour wall - looks good for migrants this area as does the increasingly vegetated mound/Twite area on the other side of the harbour, also about 6 heard elsewhere
Lesser Whitethroat - one by the ofice
Wheatear - one by the wheel
Willow Warbler - 18 heard

Rather unfortunate scenario where the old metal hide used to be (and indicating the reasons for removing it) - masses of discarded fishing line, copy of the Sun, 21 lager cans, 5 fag packets, two lots of excrement and, perhaps appropriately, a discarded high-blood-pressure tablet packet

Reasonable variety

Late news:  Dead juvenile Water Rail under the pylons by the NR classroom - shows just how early presumed British birds can disperse as presume (again!) this was a night migrant

Heysham Obs
Highlighted by a revival in the fortunes of Wall Brown with four seen around the reserve, including one on the office buddliea

Grounded migrants around the office
Willow Warbler - c20, mostly first thing
Whitethroat - c8
Lesser Whitethroat - 1
Spotted Flycatcher - 1
Blackcap - c5

Vis
Very poor with just a mid morning trickle of c25 Swallow and 6 House Martin

Coastal (thanks Sean for much of this)
Ringed Plover - pair with two (second brood) chicks at Half-moon Bay
Sandwich Tern - c20 offshore/on sandbank (also 4 at Skerton Weir this morning)
Little Gull - ad
Med Gull - at least one ad
Whimbrel - one

Moths
Quite a large catch with Grey Chi, late Dingy Footman, 2 Bordered Beauty, Lime-speck Pug new for the year/the highlights

Time to start the early morning vis mig coverage!

Stop press: Hummingbird Hawk-moth on the Heysham NR office Buddliea at at least 1330hrs

Heysham Obs
First of all am a bit ashamed of yesterdays flim-flam about 'not seeming to be many migrants around'.   A couple of minutes of listening as you are opening the office door is hardly 'coverage' - ok conditions were tricky, but the NE winds, and possibilities, should have been acted on - even if just for a Spot Fly.  Note the Walney haul, nothing major, but reasonable stuff.

Today was a different ball-game.  Clear first thing with a slight offshore mist and coverage was pretty good with CES at both Middleton and Heysham Obs.  Trouble was that night migrants first thing were at a bit of a premium with Middleton especially having that 'clear out after a clear night' feeling.   Vis Mig, however, was quite interesting

Middleton IE vis mig 0700-1000
Swallow - minimum of 80 south, 20-30 blogging
Sand Martin - 2 south
House Martin - at least 11 south
Swift - one south
Flava Wagtail - one south at 0705hrs
Tree Pipit - singles south at 0915 (low) and 0955 (very high)
Hobby - what looked like a juv chased Swallows for about 30 seconds before flying towards the golf course at c0917hrs
Meadow Pipit - 3 south
alba Wagtail - 5 seemed to be heading SE (quite early for this spp)

Middleton misc
Grasshopper Warbler - one still singing in the western marsh
Water Rail - one plus
Teal - first 2 of the autumn - didnt stay
Grounded migrants at a premium with a few trickling in from the seaward end after 0900, including a Lesser Whitehtroat & 2 Whitethroat & c5 Willow Warbler.  Only one Sedge Warbler trapped (with a fat score of 4).

Middleton WeBS
8 Little Grebe, 3 Mute Swan, 13 Coot, 4 Moorhen

Heysham NR area
More migrants earlier on than Middleton with 5 Whitethroat and 5 Willow Warbler ringed along with 2 Blackcap, single Chiffchaff and the second Treecreeper of the year/autumn.  Just one Robin - no real kickstart to the (significant) migration of this species yet (imminent on past form)

Moths
The light was switched off yesterday & not reset.  Ooops, but perhaps not a bad night to give it a miss

Butterfly
Wall Brown Middleton (& Brown Hawker in a mist net)

Bread Meds refuse to cooperate

Heysham Obs
Thanks to Evi and Mike & the Morris family for today's coastal records.  Unfortunately a net loss of birds with very few obvious migrants at either Middleton or Heysham NR area or anything of interest on the outfalls apart from 7 Wheatear on the heliport/seawall

The usual two adult Meds were on the north harbour wall area but wouldnt let themselves be satisfactorily photographed

Moths
An Ear spp. was in the trap which looked more saltern that THE Ear but was unfortunately accidentally released by the author! Also two Barred Rivulet and a Dingy Footman

Unexpected moth mayhem & earlyish Whinchat

Heysham Obs
An early start to see if there were any migrants/bit of ringing was thwarted by a wind & rain very much in the north, or slightly east of north - a 'blow on to the brambles' direction for the office mist nets, even when relatively light.  Therefore plan B was an early 'routine' check of the moth trap - surely not many with the wind slightly into the window - and a rather too rapid opening of the door was greeted by a mass flight, largely Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing and assorted grass moths.  Just under two hours later, the catch was logged and released!

Moth trap
Highlights were Toadflax Pug (unfortunately escaped - sorry Brian), Agriphila latistria, Ancylis badiana, Pale Mottled Willow (scarce here), the first Treble Bar & Eudonia angustea of the autumn, Slender & Golden-rod Pugs, Grass Emerald (late worn specimen), Barred Rivulet, Bordered Beauty, Mirificarma mulinella and a Nutmeg.  Cochylis atricapitana and Cochylis dubitana could be compared side by side.  That bane of late evening mist-netting, a Dor Beetle, was an unusual visitor.

Birds by the office
At least four 'ticking' Robins, the first multiple numbers of the autumn, c5 Willow Warbler, 2 Chiffchaff, 2 Whitethroat & Lesser Whitethroat.

Coastal stuff
Med Gull - juv seaward end Heysham one, adult winter Red Nab/Ocean Edge, two adult winter heliport roost
Little Gull - ad on mud by Heysham 2 outfall, then unusually in the heliport roost
Wheatear - 2 Ocean Edge foreshore, 3 heliport
Whinchat - one heliport

Vis mig
Swift - one south
Meadow Pipit - one south

More autumnal signs

Taken today by Janet - the bottom bird is the Czech-ringed Med Gull.  Thanks Janet

Coastal stuff south of harbour
Sandwich Tern - one adult Red Nab - first of the autumn on there
Little Gull - adult outfalls
Med Gull - juvenile outfalls
Wheatear - outfalls seawall
Eider - female by wooden jetty
Turnstone - 44 wooden jetty
Oystercatcher - 2,585 Red Nab
Black-headed Gull - 368 ad, 6 1CY Red Nab

North wall
Czech-ringed Med Gull
Wheatear sandworks

Passage
Swift - 8 south
plenty of Swallow & House Martin but seemd to be blogging

By the office (one hours ringing - wind got up)
Coal Tit - juvenile ringed - most unexpected as not thought to nest locally and early for any movement
Whitethroat - juvenile ringed
Chiffchaff - juvenile ringed
Lesser Whitethroat - at least 2 around

Moths
Mostly noctuids in the fairly strong overnight wind and highlighted by another Ear spp, Lychnis (rare here), Fen Wainscot and the first Setaceous Hebrew Character of the autumn

Two adult Med Gulls in different stages of moult photographed by Mike Watson on 7th August - the upper bird is the returning Czech-ringed adult and this was also on the north wall, with the second bird today.  Thanks Mike

Med Gull - two adults, including Czech-ringed bird, on the north harbour wall, prompted by phone call from Mike Watson!
Little Gull - adult on sea by Ocean Edge
Lesser Whitethroat - unringed bird by the office

Butterflies
Four Red Admiral & 6 Peacock & 2 Small Tortoiseshell on the office buddliea

Moths
Reduced catch included a good total of 14 Silver Y and the gorse-feeding Mirificarma mulnella which was also the unidentified moth from three nights ago!

Quickfire bird coverage & more slow-slow moths

Silver Y on ragwort today.  Thanks Janet

Heysham Obs

A couple of mist nets were up for an hour before the wind got up, 5 minutes were spent scanning Red Nab/outfalls, the distant horizon by the windfarm was scanned for 5 minutes ('seawatch' tick box), the outfalls were scanned again in the early afternoon wind/rain for 5 mins and the moth trap was again a fairly lengthy job with about 200 therein.

Ocean Edge/Red Nab/outfalls
Med Gull - adult
Whimbrel - 1
Little Gull - yesterdays ad on stage 2 outfall early afternoon

Office area
Just two Willow warblers calling & an hour's ringing only produced a new Whitethroat & Wren and a retrap Lesser Whitethroat.  Two Raven flew over, the first for a bit as they dont seem to have nested at 'this end' of the bypass this year

Moths
Highlighted by the fourth record of Yellow-barred Brindle and the very localised (and getting scarcer here?) Agriphila latistria, with the next level of interest comprising Barred Rivulet, Nutmeg, Bordered Beauty and another 'plume 1523'.  Straw Underwing seems to be closing out for the year after a bumper crop of about 420 in the trap!

A small day

Heysham Obs
The outfalls/Red Nab far from 'dead' today with a moulting adult Little Gull (just starting inner primary moult & head moult half-complete) new in.   New for the year was a Small Wainscot in the moth trap

Outfalls/Red Nab/Ocean Edge incoming tide
Med Gull - 2 juvs (which flew off together towards Sunderland) and two winter adults.  The juvs were unringed, not sure about adults
Little Gull - moulting adult
Whimbrel - 1
Turnstone - 16
Ringed Plover - 9 (no sign of (potentially) returning colour-ringed bird)
Greenshank - one Ocean Edge saltmarsh - flew off south

Migrants
No birders/ringers first thing today and an arrival at 1000hrs produced 5 Willow Warbler, a Sedge Warbler and a Lesser Whitethroat in the vicinity of the office in deteriorating weather.  Probably too clear & calm at dawn for new arrivals and plenty of departure weather overnight for yesterdays birds!
Wheatear - 3 Ocean Edge foreshore (2 yesterday at the heliport)

Moths
Much reduced catch with Small Wainscot highlighting.  Two actinics left in the northern part of the reserve produced a Juniper Pug but none of the wetland specialities

More early migrant landbirds

Heysham Obs
Small ringing efforts at both Middleton NR (east side) and the nets by Heysham NR office revealed a passage of Sedge and Willow Warbler.  The operator of the NR office nets got up a little too late (as yesterday!) & again arrived to 20+ Willow Warblers calling in the surrounding vegetation with 6 ringed as soon as the nets were set and the rest then disappearing into thin air pretty quickly, as is often the case with a migrant 'should-have-been-here-an hour-ago' fall.  The Middleton NR people were more conscientious and ringed 12 Sedge Warbler in the early morning (a good total for August, by which time the locals have departed).   Unfortunately, the weather was by no means 'safe' with large black clouds around and the number of nets at each site was carefully limited and taken down rather early as the wind increased from the west.  Warbler spp ringing totals were: Sedge (12), Willow (9 + 2 retrap), Grasshopper (1+1), Reed (1), Blackcap (2+1), Whitethroat (3+1), Lesser Whitethroat (1)

Middleton NR
Grasshopper Warbler - 2 singing males (one retrapped) and an unringed juvenile caught
Reed Warbler - one juv caught

Heysham NR
Willow Warbler - at least 20 around the office at 0655hrs
Sand Martin - one south
Swift - 2 south
Green Sandpiper - one south at 0830hrs (appeared to come out of the NR marsh which is good enough for the BTO Business challenge!)

A birder reported the outfalls area as 'dead'

Moths
Over 50 species of 'macro' is really good for here and these included Fen Wainscot, Sallow Kitten, Bordered Beauty (2), Barred Rivulet (3), Dingy Footman (2), Silver Y (13) and Golden-rod Pug (2).  The micros were highlighted by another 'plume moth 1523'.  Would have been even better if I had left some egg boxes under the window, instead of all being piled up at the door end after yesterdays haul!