Decent stormy weather

Heysham Obs
If its going to be grotty at this time of year, its usually more productive when it goes the whole hog.  Two very different highlights today, both probably a result of the onshore winds and rough sea.  These were a single Storm Petrel and an unprecedented four Pediasia aridella in the moth trap.  P. aridella is a salt-marsh pyralid and cannot possibly have liked being covered by a rough sea/high night tide, so did they disperse as a result? 

North harbour wall 1130-1210ish
Manx Shearwater - 3 together out on th edge of the low cloud
Storm Petrel - one by No 7 buoy jst after the IOM ferry arrived, then the weather closed in & it was lost
anglers blocking the road - one car-full

Ocean Edge/Red Nab pre-tide
Med Gull - 4 x adult, 1 x 3CY
Whimbrel - 3
Arctic Tern - one adult

Moths
Highlighted by 4 Pediasia aridella, some distance from the nearest saltmarsh with previous records here being just the occasional singleton.  Also new for the year/of note were: Eucosma campoliliana, Common Rustic (agg), Southern Wainscot and the iconic Lesser Yellow Underwing

Humdrum WeBS

Heysham Obs
High tide WeBS
Too high for any birds with just seagulls, Oystercatcher and Cormorant above low single-figures.  Enjoyable if you like looking at moulting 2CY argenteus Herring Gulls.

Count within the recording area
Oystercatcher (655 heliport seawall, 4 Red Nab), Black-headed Gull (17 harbour area, 5 Red Nab), Lesser Black-backed Gull (108 in total), Herring Gull (61 in total), Great Blac-backed Gull (3 in total), Cormorant (11 wooden jetty), Redshank (one wooden jetty), Lapwing (one Ocean Edge saltmarsh), Ringed Plover (one Ocean Edge foreshore).  Everything else had been pushed out of sight towards Middleton/Lune Estuary, presumably including a 'wadge' of Meds. 

Here endeth the ultimate 'non-posting'!

Insect day and a few ringing recoveries

Heysham Obs
Ringing recoveries
The two 'vis mig' Lesser Redpolls bearing rings from elsewhere were next to each other in the net, but had very different ring numbers and were not surprisingly from completely separate locations.  A wadge of Twite were from the 'usual' stop-off site at the feeder at Machrihanish Seabird Observatory on the Mull of Kintyre.

Twite

L445310 5F 21.01.11 Heysham
Controlled 4F 15.04.11 Machrihanish Seabird Observatory (Argyll & Bute) 239km

R687796 6F 24.03.09 Heysham
Controlled 4F 15.04.11 Machrihanish Seabird Observatory (Argyll & Bute) 239 km

V240449 3F 25.10.10 Heysham
Controlled 4F 16.04.10 Machrihanish Seabird Observatory (Argyll & Bute) 239 km

V240496 3F 07.11.10 Heysham
Controlled 4F 15.04.11 Machrihanish Seabird Observatory (Argyll & Bute) 239 km

Lesser Redpoll
X948530 5F 17.03.11 Warsop (Nottingham)
Controlled 5 09.04.11 Heysham 148 km

X546179 3M 16.10.10 Orfordness (Suffolk)
Controlled 5 09.04.11 Heysham 370 km

Insects
The HNR butterfly census saw 28 Gatekeeper but no sign of any Grayling.

The moth trap was productive species-wise if not numbers with the following highlights:  single Garden Tiger, Toadflax Pug, Dingy Footman, Beautiful Golden Y (very rare here), Agriphila geniculea and two of the migrant pyralid Rusty Dot Pearl

New morning, new birds

Heysham Obs
The sleep (or lack of) pattern established and the final day of decent weather prompted another early morning session at Middleton NR.  Three interesting casual sightings!

Middleton NR
Not as many Willow Warbler on the move this morning and 'only' one new Grasshopper Warbler ringed.  However, far more Whitethroat than yesterday with 7 ringed and the first two young Reed Warbler of the year appeared.  Unusual for this site was a recently-fledged Bullfinch along with perhaps surprisingly unringed parents.  Totals of newly-ringed birds comprised:  Bullfinch (3), Reed Bunting (2), Reed Warbler (2), Lesser Whitethroat (1), Great Tit (2), Whitethroat (7), Sedge Warbler (4), Willow Warbler (4), Long-tailed Tit (3), Blue Tit (1), Blackbird (1), Blackcap (2), Grasshopper Warbler (1)

Tree Sparrow - one landed briefly then headed inland (not sure where it came from!)_
Skylark - on flew very high to the north - bizarre in July!
Kingfisher - one on the fence pond briefly

No time for any coastal birding today

Moths

P coronata new for the year. 

A couple of pics from Middleton (thanks Janet)

The summer migrants appear to be leaving earlier than usual

Heysham Obs
Arrival for the Middleton and Heysham CES's was greeted by 'hooet' calls from Willow warblers on the move, rather like a calm morning in early August, not mid-July.  Unfortunately the north-north-easterly then freshened (very mixed bag of forecasts as to how strong it was going to be this far north and west) and combined with the unrelenting sun to impair both ringing sessions

Middleton & Heysham CES
The most notable features at Middleton, apart from the Willow Warblers tricking through, was an obvious exodus of Common Whitethroat where the only one caught was a surprise - ringed as an adult on 4th September 2007 - and a marked reduction in the number of Sedge and Reed Warblers.  Indeed, the latter species does not appear to have done well, despite a record number of singing males, with not a single juvenile to date.  In contrast, Grasshopper Warblers are having a perhaps surprisingly good year, giving the hammering from the weather their nest sites must have had.  Four more were caught this morning and last year's record ringing total almost reached (24 ringed so far & one returning male from last year).  The Heysham NR CES also revealed a small passage of Willow Warbler

Red Nab high tide
Oystercatcher 557, Redshank a surprising 128, Curlew down to 31, Black-headed Gull 240 and Med Gull 2 adults

Heysham Link Road
Barn Owl - 1 seen  05.00 to east of road approx opposite radio mast.

Moths
White Satin the best of a small catch.  First Udea lutealis of the year seen in the field and a hairy caterpillar agg. which, so far, is not proving easy to identify.  Thanks for todays and yesterdays pics Janet:

Where did the LRPs nest?!

Heysham Obs
A family party of four LRPS appeared on the model boat pond in the late afternoon - there is plenty of grotty industrial wasteland in the area, especially noting records earlier in the spring of at least a male visiting the model boat pond

Red Nab
Med Gull - 2 x adult and 1 x 3CY

Insects
Some decent numbers of butterflies including:

More Meds and moths

Heysham Obs
Ocean Edge/Red Nab
Curlew - 117
Whimbrel - 1
Med Gull - 2 x ad, 1 x juv

Moths
A slightly disappointing catch highlighted by Meal Moth with Dingy Footman and White Satin the best of the rest.................unless an obscure minute thing is new to science!

The Blackneck invasion continues apace

Heysham Obs
Middleton NR
A one-ringer effort at Middleton today with two nets on both sides of the road included the following new birds:  Sedge Warbler (10), Reed Warbler (1), Willow Warbler (6), Grasshopper Warbler (3), Whitethroat (3)

Moth trap
3 Blackneck this morning and a good variety of species without any major highlights 

Saturday 9th July

Heysham Obs
Sorry for the late posting

At least one Med Gull, a juvenile, still off Red Nab in very poor light conditions

The moth trap held Dingy Footman, Straw Underwing which were new for the year, also White Satin, Blackneck, and the plume S. zophodactyla

More autumnal firsts

Heysham Obs
Ocean Edge/Red Nab/outfalls
Med Gull - First 2 juveniles of the autumn (both unringed on at least 3/4 of the legs!), adult and 3CY
Whimbrel- one

Moths
A poor catch saw Dotted Clay and second brood Early Thorn open their accounts

There have been a few migrant moths in the last few days, mainly Silver Y, but also including a Small Mottled Willow (the dreaded 'Beet Army Worm') in my home trap at High Tatham.  Also an influx of Red Admiral butterflies and one or two Painted Lady and Humming-bird Hawk Moth, including one on the NE periphery of the Obs recording area in a garden adjoining Heysham Moss.  Thanks for the pic Janet