Bits and bobs on the sea

Heysham Obs
A bit frustrating as one observer had long-range views of what appeared to be a juv Sabine's Gull following the 1600 freight ferry but it was not possible to reach the other side of the harbour quickly and this remains just a possibility.

Seawatching
Two lots produced the following:
Black Tern - juv gradually making its way into the Bay early afternoon
Sandwich Tern - 9 offshore late afternoon
Kittiwake - 1+3+1 in

Vis
None recorded - no early morning visit possible in poor weather

North wall
3 x 2nd W and at least one adult Med Gull cruising around

Red Nab
3 Sandwich Tern roosting late afternoon (in addition to offshore birds)

No sign of the Chough in a thorough search of the non-operational land.

Elsewhere
Great White Egret, 2 Little Stint, 3 Curlew Sandpiper Leighton Moss/EM Pool. Guillemot off Stone Jetty

Medfest but no Chough reports in poor coverage

Heysham Observatory
Non-operational land/Ocean Edge
A brief check by car in driving rain this morning confirmed that the Chough was not at yesterday's location, as the 1415 sighting suggested it wouldn't be. Quick check of Ocean Edge foreshore area at low tide drew a blank. Plenty of suitable habitat on the un-covered Middleton IE site.

Red Nab
Adult Med at low tide

North harbour wall
FIVE Meds during an early afternoon seawatch, including one flying in-off out of the murk (2 x Ad, 3 x 2nd W). The seawatching was just that.

Grounded
Wheatear around the reserve car park and another at Red Nab

Vis
Non-existent other than 5 Swallows south during a short break in the wet weather

Elsewhere
Great White Egret, 2 Little Stint, 3 Curlew Sandpiper, c15 Little Egret EM Pool late afternoon. No wildfowl of interest during a thorough check of the Dockacres complex, so the female Ferruginous x Pochard was, on current info., a one-day bird. Definitely not at Leighton?

"Pull back" after 30 years!

Heysham Obs
In 1977, Tony Riden photographed a Chough on Heysham Head following severe November storms. Today, another was found on the Power Station non-operational land this morning. Unfortunately, current security measures meant non-inductees had to remain outside the site and the bird proved technically possible to see from the perimeter fence near the 'dog walk' pond (between reserve and Ocean Edge) but the only connection from there was a call at circa 1200hrs. When last seen it was presumed to be feeding on the Tank Farm, the raised area south of the nature reserve and notoriously un-viewable (e.g. Icterine Warbler most recently=2005). Therefore if you wait around long enough you should see it. It was later=1415hrs seen flying over the screening planting at the south of the BE properties towards Ocean Edge but 'not found thereon'

Ring details:
Ringed: NW Anglesey (site confidential) Pullus male (1/4) 29/5/07
Read in field: Heysham Power Station non-operational land 18/9/07

Heysham north wall

THREE second winter Med Gulls coming to bread/bananas etc. along the north harbour wall - this was the scenario reported the other day but wrongly thought to be an error. The usual adult was not seen and tends to be a high tide bird these days

Vis

Not really concentrated on with the Chough scenario and mist/whoosh nets out but upwards of 250 Meadow Pipit (prob many more), 4 Grey Wagtail and 4 flocks of Pink-footed Goose totalling about 140 individuals

Ringing

Unfortunately tractor activities early morning were a necessity and this led to a delay before Meadow Pipits could be taped and ringed. 3 Grey Wagtail, 15 Meadow Pipit and 2 Robin were ringed along about 5 Greenfinch

Moths

Green-brindled Crescent new for the year

Elsewhere

Great White Egret Leighton Moss.

Pinks but not a lot else

Heysham Obs
A funny morning with conditions much windier on the coast than for e.g. on Caton Moor. Therefore the lid was put on intended ringing other than 7 Meadow Pipit caught in the whoosh net.

Vis
Poor other than PF Geese with c20 Meadow Pipit & 4 Grey Wagtail in two hours. Pink-feet totalled 320 (4 flocks) with 'others' casually noted later on

North wall
A brief visit produced one of the 2nd W Med Gulls and a single Meadow Pipit on the mound! A single Wheatear was grounded at the Half-moon Bay end

Moths
No sign of the Rustic spp (see yesterday) and nothing new.

Elsewhere
No sign of the Sabine's Gull today. Yellow-legged Gull still at Glasson. Great White Egret still present at the EM Pool (I think!)

At least the music was good

Heysham Obs
Seawatching
The highlight today was a perpetuated seawatch from 1315 to 1400. The seawatch itself saw a pair of Common Scoter out and a balloon with a tag floating in. Ensemble 415 and the renditions of Vivaldi etc from the Edinburgh baroque festival seemed to be the perfect music to accompany the empty wilderness which represented the sea and the three (Ad & 2 x 2nd W) Mediterranean Gulls feeding on an overripe banana. A Guillemot recorded early morning at low tide was unexpected

Red Nab
Two Sandwich Tern at high tide but no (further) Meds.

Moth trap
A bit of a disaster but the description may be good enough. 'What looked a bit like an Uncertain' was accidentally released with subsequent investigation pointing towards Vine's Rustic [one previous from Heysham & just one other (recent) Lancs claim]. Definite new species for the year were: Black Rustic (3) and Pink-barred Sallow (2) . Lets hope the VR goes back in tonight and is confirmed

Elsewhere
Mixed messages from the EM Pools with one report of GW Egret (written in LM book) amidst several negative ones........along with a reduction in Little Egret (18). 6 Little Stint & 4 Curlew Sandpiper reported by reliable observers. No sign of the female Ferruginous x Pochard hybrid on Pine Lake but may have been too early (still at Leighton Moss=roosting site now the Fountain Pool is disturbed with the main Pochard flock??). Juv Sabine's Gull located late evening at Halforth (Upper Kent Estuary), initially in a ploughed field, then surface feeding on the estuarine mud. Remained to at least close to dusk but was latterly a bit flighty.

Pink-foot day

Heysham Obs
Bits of coverage today - thanks to Malcolm, Mark and Doreen.

Outfalls/north wall
Ad & 2 x 2nd W Med along the north wall. 2 Sandwich Tern on Red Nab

Middleton IE
10 Teal & a high count of 32 Mallard

Vis
2 flocks of c70 Pink-footed Goose S

Butterfly census
Heysham nature reserve: 40 Speckled Wood, 1 Red Admiral, 1 Comma, 1 Small Tort, 1 Meadow Brown (surprisingly no Common Blue)

Mammals
Weasel Middleton

Elsewhere
Wood Sandpiper Aldcliffe. Pale-bellied Brent still at Hest Bank. Adult Meds at Battery and Broadway areas. Great White Egret and 24 Little Egret EM Pools plus 20odd wandering Emperor Geese.

First decent Knot assembly

Heysham Obs
More north-westerly rubbish therefore almost all the day's interest was contained within the WeBS data. Brown Rats and quality birding seem to go hand in hand these days (e.g. Leighton Moss feeder) and about 2,100 Knot were spooked into a superb aerial display by a terrified 1st W Brown Rat which was forced out of the heliport rocks by the tide and ran all the way along the seawall pursued by Herring Gulls. However, surely these sort of observations should be eulogised over in winter when there is nowt else to look at, not at supposed peak migration time! All observations nearish high tide.

Red Nab/outfalls/OE foreshore
No sign of the Little Gull but a single 1st W and adult Med Gull

North harbour wall/wooden jetty
Juv Shag flew on to the wooden jetty where there was a high count of 42 Cormorant and a most unusual roost of c280 Redshank accompanying the more usual 110 Turnstone. An adult Sandwich Tern flew out of the Bay

The Czech-ringed adult and two 2nd W Med Gulls were gathered around the solitary angler near the sandplant gate giving superb views

Grounded
Not really! One Wheatear on OE foreshore.

Vis
28 Pink-footed Geese SW (80 were reported over the reserve late yesterday afternoon which certainly fits in with observations elsewhere). 6 southbound Meadow Pipit casually noted but certainly no major vis pasage

Moths
Bulrush Wainscot in the hut trap but it looked very like the one from the reedbed two days ago which was released yesterday! They have occurred naturally before

Elsewhere
Continuing the Med theme on the WeBS: two unringed adults by the Morecambe Battery/new Grosvenor groyne and the Belgian-ringed adult on the Strathmore groyne. The veteran wintering Spotted Redshank was also on the Strathmore groyne with 510 Redshank. New in for the autumn was the female Ferruginous Duck x Pochard back on Pine Lake (Pochard influence perhaps one generation back - again the wingbar looked pretty white). It is definitely not, however, a pure Ferruginous Duck. "Usual" stuff on the EM Pool in the form of the Great White Egret, 24 Little Egret and 1-2 Little Stint & 2-3 Curlew Sandpiper. Pale bellied Brent Goose at Hest Bank high tide roost and later seen from Teal Bay on the ebb

Small 'fall' during early morning thick cloud

Heysham Obs
Taken by surprise by the early arrival of a weak weather front which produced arthritis and crackling pylons but no rain as such. Two nets were set next to the office and it became quickly apparent that there had been a small arrival of Chiffchaff with 3 trapped and ringed (no tape used) and at least another 10 or so around.

Grounded
Chiffchaff c15, Wheatear c10, Blackcap 2, Robin 'several', Sedge Warbler 1

Vis
Predictably non-existent other than one Grey Wagtail, TWO Meadow Pipit, c20 Swallow and a group of 4 Greenfinch which were also trapped and found to be unringed.

Moths
Pale Mottled Willow and an unknown micro (watch this space!)

Middleton IE
Female Wood Duck still present

Elsewhere
Great White Egret, 2 Little Stint 1+ Curlew Sandpiper, 19 Little Egret EM Pool. Ad Yellow-legged Gull visible from Sunderland over the Glasson side (c1730hrs) but no Curlew Sand. at Sunderland. Shag reported at Morecambe Stone Jetty at 0800hrs

Unhelpful fog

Heysham Obs
As on Sunday, extensive fog, especially offshore, inhibited any early trans-Morecambe Bay vis mig and the "Grey Wagtail mist nets" failed to produce any! Fog is not helpful when it occurs during a north-westerly airflow as opposed to an easterly, when loads of birds often make landfall on reaching the 'curtain'. No doubt we will be spending October cursing the clear weather! It did clear about 0830hrs and a reasonable variety trickled through:

Southbound vis 1000-1130hrs by the office
Swallow 46
Meadow Pipit 15
Lesser Redpoll 1
Siskin 3
Song Thrush 1
Skylark 2
Goldfinch 38
Chaffinch 1
House Martin 16
Grey Wagtail 4
alba Wagtail 2

In addition, two Blue Tit flew quite high to the south

Grounded migrants
The only obvious thing was a Willow Warbler, the first for a few days!

Middleton IE
The noisy female Wood Duck was showing well on the fence pond and seen to be unringed!

Insects
New for the year in the moth traps were Frosted Orange (hut) and Bulrush Wainscot (reedbed actinic). Good numbers of late butterflies by the NR office including 3 Meadow Brown, 5 Common Blue, 3 Small Copper and 6 southbound Red Admiral.

There were the following during a very quick check of Middleton IE: 2 male Emperor, 6 Brown Hawker, 11 Migrant Hawker and 2 Emerald Damselfly (presumably many more).

Moneyclose Lane (reserve to Ocean Edge) saw 14 Migrant Hawker with at least 2 others around the office

Elsewhere
3+ Curlew Sandpiper on the Lune still, also 2 on the EM Pool. Ad Yellow-legged Gull still off Glasson. Great White Egret and 24 Little Egret still EM Pools. Late news for yesterday - a Hobby targeting the Swallow roost near the canal bridge with traffic lights on the Borwick-Over Kellet road (at the same time as the Melling bird)

First decent autumn vis.........but very high and 'challenging'

Heysham Obs
A bits and pieces day which added up to quite a reasonable one, despite more rubbish weather from the north-west

Ringing
An early morning ringing session 0615-0800 specifically targeted Grey Wagtail as part of a colour ringing programme and eleven southbound migrants were caught, the highest number ringed here in a day, all 1st winter birds. It was not possible, however, to 'do' vis at the same time. Two lightweight migrant Robin were the only other captures in what was a short and very sweet visit!

Vis/grounded
About 12 Chiffchaff and a minimum of 6 Wheatear but no sign of any sylvia warblers. Vis was undertaken c1030-1130 and comprised 45 Meadow Pipit (but some perhaps missed at great height), one Grey Wagtail, 5 alba Wagtail, 11 Swallow and 2 House Martin. This was very similar to the results from earlier vis. on Caton Moor and Ashley's Farm (Tatham)

Outfalls/Red Nab
Adult Little Gull, adult Med and juv/1st W Med but not many BHG at all.

North harbour wall
Didnt have time to check the wooden jetty and just saw (one of still??) the 2nd W Med in a very short visit.

Elsewhere
A juv Curlew Sandpiper influx to the Lune Estuary saw a report of 11+ and perhaps including these was a later flock of 5 at Sunderland and two on the Conder side. Not reflected at the EM Pools, but small waders difficult to observe, with just one juv Curlew andpiper. Yesterdays apparent reduction in Little Egret was a false alarm and there were 24 today along with the Great White Egret. The adult Yellow-legged Gull was still at Glasson. Finally a Hobby successfully targeted the Melling swallow roost again this evening (c1,200 Swallow).