Mothy morning

Heysham Obs
Two Dotted Border in the Heysham trap
Siskin flock now up to 80-85 (flight only)
Skylark - one flew north over HNR at about 1330hrs

North Harbour Wall
Twite - 47 including only about 3 unringed birds.

Middleton NR
2 Little Grebe (one fence, one no swimming ponds), 4 Mute Swan, 25 Tufted Duck, 17 Teal, 18 Mallard, 1 Goldeneye, 9 Coot, 2 Moorhen
Mammals
Roe Deer - 1 roadkill on verge of Heysham link road just east of Trumacar roundabout.

Elsewhere
The first Small Brindled Beauty of the year at Millhouses along with the first March Moths

Peripheral Pinkfeet

Heysham Obs

At least 600 Pinkfeet this morning on the edge of the recording area along the first section of the bypass.  Here they are as seen from Middleton yesterday if you want to count them! (thanks Janet)

Heysham NR

Siskin - the flock commuting between the dog walk conifers and HNR alders is now 38 with at least one ringed bird (not from here, havnt ringed any for three years)

Goldfinch - 12 as above, staying separate

Raven - two over

The owl and the bumble bee

Heysham Obs
Heysham NR
Mist net ride maintenance by the dipping pond revealed:
Tawny Owl - one called twice from dense tree/scrub just to the south of the entrance gate
Siskin - flock of at least 12 in the alders

North harbour wall
Twite - c50
Med Gull - ad

Insects
Bombus terrestris by the dipping pond is really early!  Dotted Border in the moth trap.  A few 'flies' and winter gnats by the dipping pond

There's only one Twite

Heysham Obs
A very quick trawl both sides of the harbour revealed:

Twite - one came down to a fresh lot of seed late afternoon - the previous lot had either been eaten or washed away
Med Gull - ad harbour mouth
Ringed Plover - 14 Ocean Edge foreshore (two metal-ringed, including the usual aggressive male)

Heysham NR
Siskin - 2 north
Song Thrush, Chaffinch, Dunnock, Robin singing

Gales and high tides churn up wader distribution

Heysham Obs
The post-gale/flood tide 'dust-settling' coincided with Sean's day-long vigil and there were some surprises

Purple Sandpiper - THREE roosting on the wooden jetty
Bar-tailed Godwit - c2,000 on the low tideline
Knot - c20,000
Twite - c50
Med Gull - the usual two adults, one with quite advanced summer head plumage

More later

There is stuff out there..................

Heysham Obs
Really wild and woolly this morning, but without the rain.  The sea was covered for about half an hour after an instant result with a flock of Kittiwake

North wall 1000-1030ish, then 1300-1330hrs
Twite - 35-37
Kittiwake - flock of 42-44 in, then landed on sea and 'invisible', 11+17 out mid-afternoon
Little Gull - perhaps the same adult seen from OE side and later in harbour mouth briefly, then later presumably the same feeding in the surf by Half-moon Bay

Elsewhere
Another good catch in the sheltered Millhouses trap included the first Ypsolopha ustella and Tortricodes alternella of the year.  Nothing in the obs trap!

Mega moth

Heysham Obs
After I risked life and limb emptying the moth trap at Millhouses in driving rain & with twigs and small branches flying overhead (86 moths of 4 species, but not Small Brindled Beauty as yet!), Alan checked the warm sheltered Heysham toilet trap with a very surprising result (the only moth!):

Grey Shoulder Knot - first for SD45 and at least 12km south of the cluster around Silverdale/Warton/Dalton.  The only other area where it ocurs (in small numbers) is around the lower Hindburn/Roeburn oakwoods, but e.g. only 3 records from the abovementioned well-recorded superb site at Millhouses

Woodcock - 1 to rear of reedbed
Twite - 37 on the seed early morning
Little Gull adult outfalls late pm
Kittiwake - 1CY 'out' north wall late morning

Decent coverage reveals Middleton wildfowl influx

Heysham Obs
Horrible wet useless weather this morning, not strong enough winds (as yet) to e.g. 'keep' the Little Gull on the outfalls & offshore visibility poor.  Wonder if we will get the Fylde Ring-necked??

North wall
Twite - 27
Purple Sandpiper - one wooden jetty, then flew to north harbour wall

Middleton NR
Tufted Duck - 24, Pochard - 10. Mallard - 10, Goldeneye - 1
Teal - 2, Moorhen - 11, Coot - 5, Mute Swan - 4

Ocean Edge
Lapwing 257
Wigeon - 89

Stormy bits and pieces

Heysham Obs
Assembling the 2010 report today - wish I'd done this as we went along as it ain't easy extracting loads of records from the blog in perhaps the best recorded year ever (except June)!

A few birds were seen:
Little Gull - adult offshore in the morning, presumed same on the outfalls from mid-pm
Pintail - flock of 33 out
Wigeon - flock of 4 out
Common Scoter - male in, landed, then out
Twite - 41 on the seed in the morning

The first Kittiwake flock of the 'spring' was off JBP at about 1300hrs (c80) - in these conditions, they often pass the Heysham sea area sitting on the water and very hard to see

Thanks to Tom & Jean

Depressing small moth

Heysham Obs
A depressaria in the form of the wildly exciting Agonopterix heracliana graced the moth trap this morning, the first life form therein for a week or so

Ocean Edge shingle beach, incoming tide
Med Gull - adult
Knot - 650
Dunlin - 230
Bar-tailed Godwit - 18
Grey Plover - 11

Middleton NR

Pochard (6 male, 2 female), female Goldeneye, Tufted Duck, 2 overflying Raven and these Teal (thanks Janet):