Med numbers increasing

Heavy, but brief overnight and early morning showers. The light early east wind shifted to the west and freshened from mid morning. The sun shone all day and felt hotter in the increased humidity.

Report from Pete Crooks:

A morning walk along the sea-wall on the ebbing tide produced:
7 Mediterranean Gull – 2 adults in full summer plumage on the tideline off Red Nab (Shaun Coyle and Jonathan Stretch), 1 moulting adult (the regular bird with right leg metal ring), 2 2nd summer and 2 1st summer – all around the Stage One outfall / Wooden Pier area or flying past offshore
18 Cormorant – on / around wooden pier
1 Sandwich Tern – offshore
1 female Eider – offshore
1 Grey Seal – off Stage One outfall
1 Rock Pipit – lighthouse / inner harbour wall area
Butterflies on the vegetated area near the lighthouse comprised 2+ Meadow Brown, 2 Common Blue and 2 Small White

Pete Crooks, Shaun Coyle and Jonathan Stretch

I just managed a check of the foreshore, before giving up and heading for home - too humid for me! (MD)

This was interesting though, well I thought so! There were two young Pied Wagtails feeding on top of the vent for the groundwater drain near the slipway. On close inspection, it could be seen to be surrounded by small (drain?) flies. They had obviously been breeding in the largely empty drain, till this morning's groundwater surge flushed them out.

And that was it as far as the shore birds went. Still, the SeaCat was speeding in, you don't have to look you can feel the throb of its powerful turbines from a great distance. This clip it is about 2 kilometres away and still at full speed. You can just about hear it in the clip,

Willow Warbler in the Nature Park, carrying small caterpillars.

Heysham Skear

A mid afternoon check on the rising tide, I wasn't expecting to see much, but it was pleasant in the now quite fresh sea breeze.

Little Egret 2

Great Crested Grebe 2

Red-breasted Merganser 3

Mergansers resting on a sand bar

Eider 1 male - it is trying to prise off some of the smaller mussels. One of the Great Crested Grebes makes a guest appearance.

Oystercatcher c60, Curlew 26

Curlew

Middleton under the microscope!

Almost breathless till mid morning then a steady ESE breeze continued for the rest of the sun filled day.

Middleton Nature Reserve 

Jean provided this report from this morning's Wildlife Trust outing:

Main pond
2 ad Mute Swan with 9 juvs
3 moulting male Mallard, 1 female and 7 young birds that were more or less fully grown
5 Coot and 1 juv
1 Little Grebe “tittering”
2 Moorhen 
3 Swift and 1 Swallow feeding over the pond
1 Reed Warbler singing on the edge of the pond

Around the main pond were several Northern Marsh orchids and Bee orchids. Also a few Common Spotted orchids and some hybrid marsh orchids which were pink rather than purple.

Northern Marsh Orchid

Bee Orchid

It was very dry on the edge of the main pond so many flowers were miniature in size eg Ox-eye Daisies 3cm high, Common Centaury even smaller. The pink flower may be Centaury but it should have 5 petals not 4. The yellow flowers look like buttercups but are in fact Lesser Spearwort and you can see some Cotton Grass in amongst it.

Lesser Sprearwort and Cotton Grass

Four petalled Centaury?

These flowers are typical of wet conditions but it was far from that - more like desert! 

 

A pregnant Alder beetle. Many of the alder leaves had been
ravaged by the larvae of this species.

This looks like an ear of grass is one called Bishop’s Mitre Shieldbug and is found
in dry grassland. It’s common but easily overlooked.

Here is a hoverfly that mimics a white tailed Bumblebee and even buzzes like one. The larvae develop in Bumblebee nests. It has a kind of beak and only has one pair of wings. It landed on a grass stem which bumblebees never do. 

Not a bee!

Pupae of a 5 spot Burnet moth.

Common Blue Damselfly

Female Common Darter - main pond

Black tailed Skimmer
 several on the small dragonfly pools to the west

At least 3 singing Cetti’s Warblers 
1 NW end of main pond
2 N end of No swimming pond 
3 N end of ringing area/near dyke

The best sighting was a line of 5 weasels running across the track just before the little brick building but they were so quick I didn’t get a photo.

A small selection of the 15 people who were on the walk today.
 Steve has got his head buried in the sweep net looking for beetles! 

Janet also visited earlier and took some nice dragonfly shots.

Male Broad-bodied Chaser

Black-Tailed Skimmers mating. You seldom see the lower abdomen
of a female (lower insect). This one is particularly blue

A more typical view of a female Black-Tailed Skimmer

You can see some of the lower abdomen in this ovipositoring female,
just a shade of blue

The Coot are still squabbling, they've been at it all year!

Heysham skear - low water 11:50 (MD)

Little Egret 5

Great Crested Grebe 1

Eider 1 male

Red-breasted Merganser 3 - these two were "snorkelling". They spot their prey before diving for it. I normally associate this feeding method with catching crabs, but if it was crabs they were diving for, they would have caught one (as the gull behind does). Presumably they were after more elusive prey, probably Butterfish.

Oystercatcher 100+

Curlew 10

Sam

Sanderling 1 - flushed by the rising tide from the north side Honeycomb worm reefs.

Emperor Dragonfly 1 north

South sea wall (MD)

I had a walk along just before the tide reached the sea wall at the wooden jetty.

Red Admirals 11, in the last 10 minutes of the walk to the end of the wall 6 flew in off. But I got there at the same time as the tide and after that there was only one more till I was walking back and had reached the point where the tide hadn't reached the sea wall.

This was the only Red Admiral to pause briefly on the sea wall, the rest just piled through.
They are surprisingly difficult to see on the wall when they rest with their wings closed.

There was a Meadow Brown, several Common Blues in the scrub near the lighthouse, but the only other butterfly I saw come in off was a Small White.

Swallow 1 in off

Rock,Pipit 4. 1 displaying near No.1 outflow. 2 near lighthouse, one appeared to fly to a different hole in the wall. 1 near waterfall.

Linnet 5

Curlew 19 flew south

Imperial Rd (MD)

Just a quick stop off on my way home, no sign of any Buzzards.

Stock Dove 2

Clouded Yellow tops a varied bill

A light ESE wind. Sunshine all day

First some shots from yesterday, taken by Kevin Singleton on Heysham Head:

Adult Rock Pipit

Immature Rock Pipits

Female Linnet with nesting material

Common Whitethroat 

South Wall today

I had a walk along the sea wall at low water (MD)

Lots of Black-Headed Gulls again, 78 on beach between the outflows 

Rock Pipit - just 1 displaying near No.1 outflow. None near the nest site near the lighthouse 

Linnet 3

Grey Seal 1

Butterflies 

Meadow Brown 1, Common Blue 5 in scrub near lighthouse. Small Tortoiseshell 1, Small White in off along the sea wall. Also a pale yellow butterfly or moth in off (possibly a Clouded Yellow - one definitely seen later inland).

This is the Meadow Brown feeding on Bird's Foot Trefoil. It shows how dramatic a flash of its false eye can appear.

Kevin Eaves had a walk mid afternoon, by that time Red Admirals (3) were coming in. He also saw a single Six-spot Burnet and the regular selection of Ladybirds.

I checked from Red Nab to saltmarsh at high water (MD)

Curlew 32 on Red Nab

Curlew resting on Red Nab

Lapwing 1 on saltmarsh 

Mediterranean gull 3 - the same first summer bird as yesterday was on Red Nab again. This is the original adult flying beyond Red Nab.

Adult Mediterranean gull with single metal ring

And a new adult on the saltmarsh 

Adult Mediterranean gull 

In the Nature Park

Emperor dragonfly 1

A very fresh looking Mother Shipton moth

Middleton Nature Reserve (MD)

I just had a quick look at the two main ponds at lunchtime.

Mute Swan pair plus 9 growing cygnets

Mallard 3 male 1 female, the chicks almost certainly being kept out of sight.

Moorhen 2

Coot 4 adult, 2 large immature plus 5 new chicks. These are the new arrivals.

Little Grebe 2 adults seen.

Summer plumage Little Grebe

A juvenile Black-Headed Gull - first this year. Was having a bath

Dragonflies:

Emperor 1

Four-Spotted Chaser 4

Black-Tailed Skimmer 8

Broad-bodied Chaser 2

Common Darter 2 female/immature 

The spotted Orchids are starting to show well

Clouded Yellow butterfly 1 male, flew through my garden, within the recording area early afternoon (MD). Unfortunately, by the time I'd got back with a camera it was just heading off to the north!

Heysham Nature Reserve (MD)

I just checked the central meadow (hoping to locate another Clouded Yellow).

Meadow Brown 1

Common Blue 7

Narrow-bordered five-spot burnet 3

Burnet Companion 6

Four-Spotted Chaser 1

Emperor 1

I must have passed too close to where this young fawn Roe Deer was resting (Mum's leave them in a "safe" resting place while they eat elsewhere and then return to suckle them). It hid behind a tree, but had enough sense/instinct not to go any further and froze. I walked away at an angle and ended up with this clear view of the still frozen fawn.

Fawn Roe Deer, just losing its flank spots, it was no bigger than a Greyhound

We just looked at each other for a minute then it returned to whence it came.

Janet is still seeing high numbers of Narrow-bordered Five-spot Burnet along the eastern boundary of the recording area.

A new Med was as good as it got

A light ESE breeze, the sun continues to shine.

Heysham skear - low water 09:50

Canada Goose 13 north 09:40. Flight line was inland to the east of Heysham Rd, seen before I set off.

No Eider or Mergansers

Great Crested Grebe 1

Oystercatcher c60

Curlew 42

The mussels have completely reclaimed the skear this year, although storms can change things quickly.

Mussel beds as far as the eye can see

The exceptions being Honeycomb worm reefs flanking both the south and north sides, but the north side ones are largest.

The finger of lighter brown beyond the mussels are some of the north side Honeycomb worm reefs

South shore - high water 15:20 (MD)

Rock Pipits 4 near lighthouse, 1 taking food to the nest hole another stood above the hole and the other two feeding together and not chased off, even though they seem to be adults.

Linnet 3 near lighthouse 

Meadow Brown 1 in scrub near the lighthouse - 1st record this year

Meadow Brown, the fuzzy area at the bottom is the edge of the sea wall.

Second summer Common Gull between the outflows 

Red Nab:

Grey Heron 1

Little Egret 1

Oystercatcher c100

Curlew 1

Black-Headed Gull c60

Mediterranean gull 1 first summer, not the same first summer as seen last week

First summer Mediterranean Gull

Flying, resting and finally, swimming.

Saltmarsh:

Black-Headed gull c50

Lapwing 1 (returned?) 

Lapwing 

BHG numbers growing quickly

The east wind shifted more to SE during the day. Sunny after an overcast start.

South shore

I had a walk along the sea wall on the early rising tide mid morning (MD)

Black-Headed Gull c200 - there were 160 on No.1 outflow and the beach between the outflows.

No Mediterranean Gulls seen today

Common Gull 5

First Summer Common Gull

Common Gull and Black-Headed Gull

The Herring Gulls nesting on the Harbour platform have at least 2 chicks

The Rock Pipits continue to confuse. There were four near the lighthouse, all appeared to be adult. One was taking food to the nest hole. A fifth bird was display calling from the platform near the waterfall.

Red Admiral 1 just behind Red Nab.

This Song Thrush was collecting food in the Nature Park 

Kevin Eaves had a check for insects. 

Six-spot Burnet were emerging from pupae attached to the wall.

Six-spot Burnet moth

Also these two from yesterday:

Red-and-Black Froghopper

Peppered moth

One of the many Four-spotted Chasers on Middleton Nature Reserve today
Picture by Janet

Jay on Heysham Nature Reserve car park fence

Heysham skear (MD)

A pleasant evening stroll as the tide exposed the skear.

Red-breasted Merganser 4 - 2 pairs

Great Crested Grebe 1

Oystercatcher c100

Curlew 28

Whimbrel 2 together

No small waders again today