Routine fare

Heysham Obs
...............or take your pick of the 'nothing new' clichés - watch out for "slim pickings" in the near future


Med Gull - ad north wall - Czech ringed
Linnet - 15 north wall feed
Goldfinch - 21 north wall feed


Moths
Yesterday there were 2 x Mottled Umber and 1 x Winter Moth, this morning there were two different Mottled Umber


Late news for yesterday:  2 x ad and 2 x juv Whooper Swan on sands off Middleton, also c5500 Knot and 2600 Dunlin

Teal surprise - Thursday 27th

Heysham Obs


A small amount of time spent monitoring dog walkers at Red Nab saw a preliminary visit registering a male Teal - very unusual here unless inland waters frozen


Ad Med Gull north harbour wall and a selection of Linnet/Goldfinch, but no apparent Twite on the seed here

Dank day delivers

Heysham Obs
...............the commonest bird we just do 'not get here'?  Just the one previous of Nuthatch, which refuses to colonise the 'tasty' Heysham Head, and the second was found by Justine on Middleton NR this afternoon along with "the"? wandering Green Woodpecker

A bit of ring-reading today to knock any accusations of presumptuousness on the head concerning a Med Gull 'with a ring above the tarsus'.  'Ex78' and the word 'Praha' were revealed on the 'metal above tarsus' Med Gull on the north harbour wall - the Czech-ringed veteran which has been present since 2003 outside the breeding season

Chiffchaff by office but could not see the legs to see whether it was yesterday's bird

More late migrants

Heysham Obs

Blackcap - female ringed by office

Chiffchaff - one ringed by office

Goldcrest - one ringed by office

Whooper Swan - 3 heading towards Heysham at lunchtime as seen from both Walney and Foulney!

No black tern

Heysham obs
Work related stuff produced

Negative on black tern on outfalls

Purple sandpiper - high tide on heliport seawall in small mixed wader flock

Rock pipit - two ocean edge

Little egret - at least eight Potts corner to Heysham head!

Twite - at least five in 50 mixed finches north harbour wall

Moth
Winter moth in trap

Black tern

Still there this morning

Updates gratefully received for next two days please as we are in uncharted territory as regards latest ever lancs record. Thanks


Also Purple Sandpiper on heliport seawall until disturbed at high tide by dog walkers

Saturday daytime!

Heysham Obs

Black Tern - still Heysham two outfall at least 0930 and again at least 1315

Shag - juv possibly a new bird in the harbour on stanchion by waterfall

Purple Sandpiper - on heliport seawall until 99% of the birds displaced for the rest of the tidal cycle by a dog walker

Heysham NR
A single mist net round before I had to leave the site produced an unringed Goldcrest and unringed juv female Great Spotted Woodpecker.  This takes the ringing total for the year over 4,000 for the first time and this is with unremarkable numbers of the two most numerous species, Swallow and Greenfinch

Grey Wagtail
The long-stayer at  Connah's Quay, ringed at Middleton in early September, was still there on at least the 19th November

Butterfly
Red Admiral by the office during a sunny midday period 

Black Tern and Purple Sandpiper remain

Heysham Obs
The juvenile Black tern remained on Heysham 2 outfall

The Purple Sandpiper roosted along the heliport seawall at high tide

A Hey Nat reserve circuit produced 3 Redwing and 5 Goldcrest and c20 Blackbird

At least 45 finches on the north wall seed but nothing definite on species composition

Black Tern remains

Heysham Obs
A few decent sightings today included in this lot:


Black tern - still on Heysham two outfall at least 0830hrs
Pink-footed Goose - 5700 over office at dawn heading for Heysham moss area
Purple Sandpiper - one with a rather mobile group of Turnstone on heliport seawall pre-high tide but seemingly not later
Med Gull - unringed adult north wall
Red-throated Diver - one casually noted offshore
Reed Bunting - one office feeder
Meadow Pipit - 6 heliport
Rock Pipit - one briefly at the near naze

Most unexpected sighting of the year?

Heysham Obs
More coverage of Red Nab area after yesterday's lengthy session also included a quick check of the outfalls at high tide and there was a small dark thing flying about - obviously a Black Tern spp.

Thanks to Pete Cook

It was soon confirmed as a late juvenile 'niger' and I suppose they do turn during ESE winds.  It is the latest in Lancashire by about a week according to the avifauna.


Red Nab area
Black Tern - one juv
Little Egret - 4
Wigeon - 92
Rock Pipit - 1
Meadow Pipit - 2