And they're off....

Migration was in evidence this morning, although the evidence was only slight.  There may well have been more birds flying overhead but they were difficult to hear because the ferries in the harbour were really noisy:

North Harbour Wall 0800-0900
Vis (all NE or NNE following the coast):
Meadow Pipit 8
Pied Wagtail 6
Carrion Crow 8
Siskin 1
Greenfinch 1
Grey Wagtail 1

Twite 18 at least

March Moth at last!

Heysham Obs
Insects
That spectacular thin brown species, March Moth, made its rather belated debut this morning along with an Early Grey (not very common at Heysham) and a Common Quaker.  Contrasts with 205 moths in the Millhouses trap!

Birds
No obvious early morning vis migration, although Blackbirds were subtely more noticeable than usual on the reserve with two unringed (and one very lightweighht) bird caught.  Typical murky early morning to 'drop' a few on their rather hurried mid-March return passage
Twite - c55 but flight views only
Goldfinch - definite influx with 5 ringed at the office feeder net (unprecedented in spring!) and a 'sizeable flock' in the alders by the dipping pond, seemingly replacing the similar Siskin gathering of two weeks ago
Long-tailed Tit - a seemingly 'endless' supply of retraps at the feeder net indicates they have wintered rather well

Non-existent early morning migration

Heysham Obs
Walks around the mound and then Ocean Edge foreshore revealed the following grounded birds, all on the north harbour wall:

Rock Pipit - one
Twite -  at least 56 with at least 3 unringed (out of c20 examined) plus a metal-ring-only bird
Pied Wagtail - 2

Early afternoon (thanks Sean)
Purple Sandpiper - 2

Flutterby time but the 74th consecutive day without an auk

Heysham Obs
Insects
3 Small Tortoiseshell (and another butterfly with dark underwings glimpsed) along the south-facing slope below PA Way & another very tatty one on Middleton NR.  4 Hebrew Character and yet another Chestnut in the hut trap

Middleton NR
Stonechat - female by the no swimming pond

North harbour wall
Twite - a small catch first thing contained all or most of the unringed proportion seen in the last few days with 9 unringed birds out of 17 caught.  An attempt to check later in the afternoon saw a sheepdog tethered rather too near the feeder (angler)!
Red-throated Diver - one offshore afternoon
Duck spp - dreadful light and even though they were watched for 10 minutes crossing the bay, they could only be narrowed down to 'probable Mallard' - a rare bird indeed as seen from the north wall

Late news yesterday afternoon
Male Wheatear Ocean Edge foreshore

Little change during the morning session

Heysham Obs
No obvious evidence of vis mig passerines etc in the morning (see Elsewhere).  Morning coverage by Alan, John and Mike Baron

Office area
Wood Pigeon -  6 together on grass by Hut
Moorhen - 1 by Hut

N Harbour Wall
Twite -  c70, scurrying about and impossible to count accurately.  c10 unringed
Linnet - 1+
Goldeneye - 3 offshore
Eider - 53+ offshore
Moths
None, following the first Clouded Drab of the year the previous night

Elsewhere
Given the weather and temperatures, a very unexpected mass arrival of Sand Martins with at least 20 involved in sightings at Crag Foot and Pine Lake, probably 40

Purp cooperation for a change

Heysham Obs
Thanks to Tom, Jenny & Chris, John for coverage today

Purple Sandpiper - 2 on the outfalls fence 1300-1330hrs, then presumably the same alongside the north harbour wall c1400:

Thanks Chris (one of two birds)

Twite - c65 seen in flight north wall area

First Meadow Pipit of the year!

Heysham Obs
North Harbour Wall 0725-0925
Kittiwake - 78 (3 flocks) in (and then up!)
Gannet - 2 in, 2 different ones out
Red-throated Diver - 1 in
Peregrine 1 SW along sea wall terrorising the Twite
Twite - c75, a definite increase with c15 unringed birds out of a sample of c50 checked and one ringed at Machrihanish, the first for a bit

Outfalls
Little Gull - ad winter Stage 2 outfall on incoming tide early afternoon

Vis
Meadow Pipit 1 NE (over the sea)
Pied Wagtail 2 NE

Early Red-throated Diver flock

Heysham Obs
North harbour wall seawatching c0830-1000
Red-throated Diver - flock of 22 flew 'out' very high
Gannet - 9 out and 2 in
Kittiwake - 218 in, 62 out
Little Gull - 2 distant adults out
Twite - 24 on the seed

Middleton model boat pond
Goldeneye (one female), pair of Teal, 3 Tufted Duck
Male Lapwing has returned on to territory on the spit

Kittiwake passage kickstarts in dramatic fashion

Heysham Obs
North harbour wall
Kittiwake - 1028 in, 254 out 0830-1010, 1030-1115, mostly during the first session.  The last flock (of 35) came in towards Heysham and then spiralled up and flew NE inland, very high - shades of some of the Arctic tern flocks
Eider - 168 offshore
Little Gull - 2CY out
Common Scoter - flock of 9 out
very low-flying large grey aircraft - one 'in' c1000hrs (what was it doing???)
Grey Seal - one blogging

Twite - 27 with 4/13 examined unringed
Linnet - one with above

Little Grebe sets its territory out at Middleton (thanks Janet)

Heysham Obs

Just a few moths today comprising a late Chestnut (not common here anyway & certainly not in March), Common Quaker opening its account and a Hebrew Character

Elsewhere

The 'hot' news is the reappearance of the Great Grey Shrike at Dalton Crags - definitely not there Saturday in a careful search anticipating its presence, but appeared yesterday - the bad news is that the weather is not very good for seeing it in the next few days!