Flurry of early morning migrants

Heysham Obs
A 0715hrs start would have been a waste of time on the NHW yesterday but landfalled Wheatears and 'vis' were in full swing on arrival this morning and an '0600er' might have been worthwhile. We were also anticipating some tern passage, at least Sandwich, in a SEF2-3 - the result - not a single tern seen 0715-0930hrs!

Vis mig 0715-0900 north wall, 1 hr OE foreshore
Marsh Harrier - female north over the golf course, then Heysham Head at 0815hrs
alba Wagtail - 24 north-east, as were all subsequent sightings
Meadow Pipit - 188
Linnet - 40
Siskin - 3
Swallow - 20
Reed Bunting - one
Redpoll spp - 3
Sand Martin - 2

Grounded
Wheatear - 13 north wall/OE foreshore
Willow Warbler - probably 40-50 minimum over the whole site (21 ringed)
Chiffchaff - 2 new birds trapped
Redstart - 2 males caught together

Miscellany
Purple Sandpiper - THREE together on the rocks by the harbour entrance (north side) as the tide was dropping
Black Guillemot - this was sat offshore between the harbour mouth and the yellow buoys
Med Gull - first winter with stand-along 'masks' on the outfalls

Moths
V Pug was new for the year

Elsewhere
Lesser Whitethroat - three Aldcliffe early morning

No reward for the early start!

Heysham Obs
This was a peculiar day with a SE wind kicking in late morning and if the 'vis' from a nearby almost day-long vantage point survey is included, it reveals a significant increase during the day, with Meadow Pipit peaking at about 1400hrs! The other peculiar thing was the complete (as far as we undertand & certainly until at least 1145hrs) non-appearance of the Black Guillemot in "perfect" conditions

Vis mig from the office, later NHW 0700-1145hrs, later Middleton IE late evening
Redpoll spp. - 2 north
Siskin - 4 east
Linnet - 2 NE
Meadow Pipit - just 46 NE
alba Wagtail - 4 NE
Swallow - 5 NE, 51 E late evening at Middleton
Willow Warbler - at least 6 migrants passing through the bushes
Goldcrest - just one
Sandwich Tern - minimum of 4 blogging, then out
Merlin - one eventually flew north out to sea towards Ulverston climbing very high at c0830hrs

Vis from a VP just to the east
Absolutely nothing 0830-1000!

1030-1230, all heading NE as the south-easterlies freshened to F 2-4, 2-3 oktas
Meadow Pipit - c150
Siskin - 30
Linnet - 25
Redpoll spp - 1
Swallow - 18
Sand Martin - 8

1230-1630, (peaking around 1400h) SE F 2-4, 5 oktas
other species dried up but:
Meadow Pipit - c600, heading NE

Middleton IE
Grasshopper Warbler still singing in western marsh - stay on the raised concrete roads please
Stonechat - singing male on territory
Tufted Duck - 5

More info on yesterdays Heysham-ringed Twite seen at NR608209 (c.r. info)
1) one of 10 ringed between 31/10/2008 and 26/11/2008 (narrowed down by final digit of metal ring being visible!)
2) one of 31 ringed between 04/02/2009 and 24/03/2009

Cannot narrow them down any further without full metal ring numbers

Insects
First Holly Blue of the year in Heysham village (also one at the VP site just to the east "miles away" from the 'correct' habitat!)

Elsewhere
Red Kite flew north Langden Valley early afternoon. Spoonbill arrived Leighton Moss late afternoon. Male Garganey Griesdale Hide Leighton Moss. Osprey N over Aldcliffe 1620ish

Early Sedge Warbler & Orange Tip

Heysham Obs
Practically no movement today but a few bits and bobs of interest. Anything else from the coastal observers after 1015am, please? Please post as a 'comment'. Thanks

Twite
Two birds ringed at Heysham between 31/10/08 and March 2009 were seen on 12th April 2009 on spring passage at Machrihanish Seabird Observatory NR608209, near Campbeltown on the Mull of Kintyre. Thanks to Eddie Maguire.

In perfect visibility just the following seen NHW 0700-1015hrs
"Comic" Tern - 2 very distantly in, prob Arctic
Black Guillemot harbour mouth
Sandwich Tern - 4-6 blogging
Little Gull - ad Stage 2 outfall
Jackdaw - one in-off
Red-throated Diver - 2
Single-figure trickle of Meadow Pipit, Linnet and alba Wagtail & 3 Goldfinch

Middleton IE
Grasshopper Warbler - one singing male
Sedge Warbler - one singing male
Mute Swan - 2 nests - both sitting
Tufted Duck - 2
Teal - 2
Pochard - female
Little Grebe - 4+
Coot - 7+
Mallard - 9

Mammals
Roe Deer Middleton IE

Butterflies
First Speckled Wood & male Orange Tip - the latter very early. Brimstone by OE caravan site entrance - first for 45E this year

Elsewhere
Nothing of dramatic interest

Osprey at last & first Grasshopper Warbler!

Heysham Obs
The Rossall Osprey was actually at 0710hrs, not 0610hrs therefore obviously the same bird as that seen at Heysham. The male Black Guillemot returned inshore at 1020hrs.

North wall 0700-1100hrs
Osprey - one north along the Kent channel line at 0725hrs (one NE over Rossall Point at 0710hrs)
Shag - a juv on the pager as being on the wooden jetty around 1000hrs but not before 0945 or after 1025
Black Guillemot - the ad male returned inshore about 1020hrs and remained alongside the wooden jetty to at least 1100hrs
Gannet - 6 in then out, 1 out
Med Gull - 2 x 2CY - one with stand-alone 'masks' , one where obviously joined over the rear crown - generally messing about offshore with Black-headed & Common Gulls
Sandwich tern - at least four, two latterly sitting on buoy
Swallow - one north!
Meadow Pipit - just 17 north
Linnet - 8 north
alba Wagtail - 5 north
Goldeneye - ad male on the sea
Red-breasted Merganser - 12 on sea
Great-crested Grebe - 5 on sea
Purple Sandpiper - a least one below the wooden jetty

Red Nab
Kittiwake - 36 inland over the caravan site at 0830hrs

Outfalls
Ad Little Gull
Ad Kittiwake (high tide)

Middleton IE
Canada Goose - 2
Greylag - 2
Both these pairs on the model boat pond

Evening visit Middleton IE
Grasshopper Warbler 1 in song
Goosander pair North
Great Spotted Woodpecker over
1 Fox

Moths
Good catch for here (32 moths of 10 species): Dark-barred Twin-spot Carpet very early. Shoulder Stripe not common here. Chestnut exceptionally rare here & quite late for this hibernating species which re-emerges at the first hint of warmth! Agonopterix propinquella - first record for here? 13 Early Thorn a record one-night catch

Elsewhere
Tree Pipit Warton Crag. Redstarts Freeman's Pool and upper Hindburndale (but no Pied Flycatcher upper Hindburn). Willow Warblers everywhere after yesterday afternoon's dramatic major arrival during the short but sharp rain belt, including 3 singing males within earshot of Leck View Cottage at High Tatham. Bittern almost certainly left Leighton Moss to the south this evening.

All day interest

Heysham Obs
Coastal coverage 0730-1130 produced not a lot, a bit more later on.

Miscellany
Brent Goose - 16, all appearing to be dark-bellied - on sea mid afternoon, then lost as visibility reduced by rain band
Little Gull - adult almost in summer plumage Stage 2 outfall. Probably a different adult was floating/flying into the bay at 0950hrs
Sandwich Tern - 5 blogging
Little Egret - one Ocean Edge saltmarsh channel - first April record?
Med Gull - last nights 2CY (first winter plumage) on the beach off Red Nab, then later on the outfalls.
Adult summer Med Gull came in-off across the Bay at 1515 and continued south without stopping.
Purple Sandpiper - at least one with Turnstone on the wooden jetty
Kittiwake - adult outfalls

Vis
Meadow Pipit - 105 north-east, then mainly east, nothing after wind swung to light westerly at 1045ish
Siskin - 2 north-east
Linnet - 16 north-east
alba Wagtail (one definite White) - 4 north-east
Carrion Crow - 2 in-off
Jackdaw - one in-off
Red-throated Diver - 6 in, one out
Auk spp - one very distant, possibly the Black Guillemot not in s.p. from two days ago?
Guillemot - 4 floating in
Bar-tailed Godwit - 6 out
Eider - 13 in
Swallow - 1 N
Pink-footed Goose - 12 N

Grounded
Willow Warbler - singing male Moneyclose Lane, 3 onthe reserve (2 silent)
Wheatear - 3 OE foreshore, one heliport
Chiffchaff - 5 (3 silent)
Goldcrest - 2
Blackcap - singing male and silent male
Reed Bunting - male grounded briefly by the NR office

Ringed Plover
3 pairs - one heliport (46A), one Ocean Edge foreshore by slipway (help!), one PS non-operational land in SW corner (both 45E)

Middleton IE 1820-2010 hrs
Willow Warbler c10 in song
Swallow 1 over
Wheatear 1
Stonechat 1

Elsewhere
3CY Yellow legged Gull still Glasson yesterday. At least one Osprey over Aldcliffe/Lancaster just after midday. Male Redstart by Freeman's Pool. 15 House Martin Pine Lake. 1st winter Mediterranean Gull at Leighton Moss.

Migrant Merlin chickens out of Bay crossing

Heysham Obs
A migrant female Merlin decided not to cross the Bay after one trial run and 'hung around' the harbour entrance before flying off inland.

Quick run round 1000-1100hrs
Meadow Pipit - 110 north (some probably missed)
Linnet - 16 north (ditto)
alba Wagtail - 2 north
Red-throated Diver - flock of 3 north the only remote interest from 25 minutes seawatching
Black-headed Gull - 67 outfalls
Common Gull - 18 outfalls
No Purple Sandpipers discerned amongst a tightly packed Turnstone flock on the wooden jetty and no sign of the 'usual' Black Guillemot

Seawatching from Heysham head
Seemed to confirm the lack of activity off the NHW
Mute Swan - 2 out

Seawatch early-mid pm
RTDiver 1
Diver sp 1
Gannet 1 N
Eider 3
Rb Merganser 4
Common Guillemot 2

Outfalls late afternoon
Med Gull - 2CY, still basically in 1st W plumage
lots of gulls on seaward end of S1 outfall at low tide

Moths
First Powdered Quaker of the year

Mammals
Stoat in car park

Elsewhere
Pair of Garganey Leighton Moss plus 2 Jack Snipe. NO sign Garganey Freemans pool

First Manx Shearwater record and a different Black Guillemot

Heysham Obs
A decreasing westerly in increasingly clear conditions saw a reasonable passage of seabirds (J Roberts, P Marsh, J Mason, J Girdley, J Wood):

0715-1115, then 1215-1250 north harbour wall
Gannet - 70 out, 6 in
Black Guillemot - what was presumably a 2CY with (at least) traces of 1stW/winter plumage flew out of the bay at c1225hrs. Too far out to see any detail.
Fulmar - 16 out
Manx Shearwater - one out 1050hrs, same? in 1058hrs [then blogged around the Morecambe Stone Jetty]
Kittiwake - flocks of 30+6+4+5+5+75+6 in, 3+12 out
Bonxie - one in, close inshore, at 0813hrs
Red-throated Diver - 1+2+2+1+1+1 in, 3 out
Common Scoter - 11 in, 5 out
Razorbill - one in
Auk spp - one in, 4 out
Sanderling - 1 out
Bar-tailed Godwit - 8 out
Grey Plover - 6 out
Eider - 9 in
Goldeneye - one out
Little Gull - 5+2 out
Mute Swan - 2 headed across the bay from Ulverston towards & over the wooden jetty, then inland

Purple Sandpipers not looked for

Ocean Edge foreshore
White Wagtail - male with 19 Pied Wagtail

Half Moon Bay (dusk)
1 Wheatear

Elsewhere
Presumably the above Manx Shearwater blogging around the Stone Jetty at lunchtime. No news from JBP area.

Excellent early season seawatch

Heysham Obs
Good conditions for a few seabirds - nice SW wind, a bit of cloud cover and an incoming tide. Anyone here before 0900hrs (unfortunately had to return hire car)?:

North harbour wall 0910-1100hrs (Pete Marsh (0910-1020) & John Wood (1010-1100))
Puffin - one flew out fairly close inshore (yellow buoy range) at 0923 - a very scarce and erratic visitor here and indeed in the county as a whole
Great Skua (Bonxie) - One flew fast and low over the water from the Ulverston direction and then swung towards the direction of Knott End, circling twice, before continuing quickly low over the water: 0955hrs
Arctic Skua - a dark morph adult flew low and fast 'out' down the "centre" of the bay at 1015hrs and presumably the same bird headed back into the Bay, close inshore, at 1047hrs

Perhaps surprising the above two birds did not attempt to migrate overland from the inner bay in what were fairly clear conditions and not an excessive wind.

Razorbill - 20 out
Guillemot - 2 out
Auk spp. - 17 out (most seemed to be Razorbill or completely unidentifiable)
Sandwich Tern - one out
Red-throated Diver - flock of 6 'in' quite high at 0910hrs, 2CY out close inshore at 1010hrs, 2 out c1045hrs
Gannet - 2 (1 2CY)+3+1+1+2 out - all very distant
Meadow Pipit - 6 north

No Kittiwake!

Wooden jetty
Purple Sandpiper - at least 2
Turnstone - c180
No sign of the Black Guillemot (still havent seen it (Pete)!)

Mammals
Grey Seal off the NHW 1030ish

Lapwing return

The only coverage today involved recording a pair of Lapwing on territory on the PS non-operational land after missing out on last year due to heavy plant activity

Quick posting

Heysham Obs
Not sure of any further coverage today but:

Black Guillemot on the pager as being next to the wooden jetty early morning

Very few grounded migrants in the clear conditions e.g. just one new Chiffchaff and two new Goldcrest in the mist nets

Pretty quiet.....

Vis 0930-1100 hrs 

Pied Wagtail 1 North

Siskin 3 NNE

Black guillemot also visited 'its' hole on the wooden jetty.