Early thrush flurry and SEO

Heysham Obs
Back into early-morning mode for perhaps the last time this autumn.  It was certainly the coldest morning of the year and the crystal dawn clarity did not seem to offer much.  Then Fieldfares were heard, then Redwings and the first half hour of 'proper' daylight was quite entertaining, culminating in a Short-eared Owl.  Downhill thereafter.

Vis mig dawn to 0845
Fieldfare - 98
Redwing - 51
Song Thrush - 3
Short-eared Owl - one low inland, mobbed by crows at 0745hrs
Brambling - at least one (heard)
Chaffinch - 39
Goldfinch - 17
Starling - on flock of 72 SW
Greenfinch - 24

Reserve circuit 0845-0915
Woodcock - one flushed from eastern woodland
Water Rail - 2+
Reed Bunting - one in marsh
Siskin - one grounded
Goldcrest - 5
Redwing - 27 still grounded - flew inland.  c200 grounded on Middleton
Blackbird - c30 grounded

North harbour wall
Guillemot - one far offshore, one close inshore
Twite - 33
Med Gull - 1 ad
Big shoal of medium-sized fish which kept jumping out of the water

Ringing
A few bits:  New birds: 6 Redwing, 4 Blackbird, 3 Chaffinch, 3 Bullfinch, 2 Wren, 2 Long-tailed Tit, Coal Tit, Reed Bunting, male Sparrowhawk, Robin, Greenfinch

Moth
One Feathered Thorn

Butterfly
One Red Admiral

A Blackcap finds it own way to the scope!

Heysham Obs
Jean Roberts had a really strange experience today whilst standing motionless surveying waders.  A Blackcap (not exactly a predictable record in any context in a coastal caravan site in November!) landed on the dangling tripod strap for about 30 or so seconds before jumping into a bush.  Alas no camera (although it would probably take a tabloid newspaper about 10 seconds to "construct" the shot)

Ocean Edge/Red Nab/recording area southern coastline/outfalls
Blackcap - male as above
Little Egret - 2 different birds briefly visited Red Nab
Snow Bunting - vocal apparent male flew low to the south over Ocean Edge shoreline at c1110hrs
Med Gull - 2 adults outfalls/Red Nab/following boats
Knot - 22,500
Rock Pipit - 2
Twite - 31 at the southern end of the recording area with just 6 ringed birds in the flock.  17-19 flew backwards and forwards on two occasions during the morning over Ocean Edge seemingly heading to/from the north harbour wall
Linnet - 5 Ocean Edge saltmarsh (probably more)
Pink-footed Goose - 68+75 south
Regular scans of the outfalls/incoming & outgaoing boats failed to reveal either the Arctic Tern or Little Gull but there were a lot of small gulls flying around offshore in the calm conditions

Middleton Industrial Est
Teal - 17
Snipe - 2
 
Insects
Quite a few bluebottle-type things flying about.  One Red Admiral seen.  Epirrata spp, Brick and Silver Y in the moth trap

Friday 4th November record
Black Redstart - fem/imm type on the perimeter fence of the old touring park along the eastern edge of Ocean Edge saltmarsh 'late morning'.  Described as a "black Robin with a red tail"!

Diverse array of late migrants and odds and ends

Heysham Obs
This was undoubtedly one of the best single-day November species lists I can remember from here without anything particularly 'special'.  The wader flocks on the tideline between Ocean Edge and Potts Corner are spectacular with 3,500 or so Dunlin, 380 or so Grey Plover and up to 2,000 Barwit to add to the 17,000 Knot on this morning's neap high tide

North harbour wall
Twite - 17
Rock Pipit - 1
Meadow Pipit - 7
Dunnock - 2, including one in the mound gorse
Song Thrush - one descended into the gorse
Guillemot - one in the harbour
Med Gull - 2 adults (one Czech-ringed)
Sparrowhawk - 1CY male being a nuisance

Heysham nature reserve plus vis mig
Common Buzzard - one south (mobbed by Raven and Carrion Crow)
Whooper Swan - 5+ singleton (!) south
Mute Swan - 2 east
Pintail - flock of 22 south, then u-turned and headed north (seen from reserve)
Meadow Pipit - 11 SE
Chaffinch - 38 SW
Brambling - 1 SW
Reed Bunting - 4 S
Mistle Thrush - 1 SW
Skylark - 2 SW
Goldfinch - 20 SW
Greenfinch - 15 SW
Pink-footed Goose - 127 N, 116 S

Grounded
Chiffchaff - 1 (collybita)
Goldcrest - c6
Blackbird - 40-45
Redwing - 20, most flew high inland
Song Thrush - 2
Water Rail - 1+
Long-tailed Tit - flock of 6 unringed birds trapped

Ocean Edge/Red Nab/outfalls
Wheatear - rather small juv Northern with injured left leg
Jack Snipe - one flushed from saltmarsh
Twite - c29 saltmarsh, some flew towards harbour
Linnet - 18
Skylark - one grounded on saltmarsh
Reed Bunting - 2 in saltmarsh spartina
Rock Pipit - one
Little Gull - adult outfalls
Arctic Tern - juv outfalls (amazing it has stayed in this calm weather!)
Knot - 17,000

Insects
Despite the lower temperatures, the wind direction was better for the moth trap: 3 Mottled Umber, 3 Feathered Thorn and 2 Silver Y.  Two worker social wasps seen and a single Red Admiral

Arctic Tern continues to enjoy the balmy weather

Heysham Obs
Sporadic coverage today involved a yomp round the periphery of the reserve (falling into a deep hole!) and a quick check of Ocean Edge.  Completely forgot to check the Twite in the rush to do a late afternoon check of the mudflats off Sunderland!

Heysham NR
Goldcrest - 4-5
Blackbird - c25
Treecreeper - 1
Woodcock - one eastern woodland again
Water Rail - absolute minimum of 6 squabbling (2 by dipping pond, rest in main marsh)

Ocean Edge/outfalls
Rock Pipit - one
Little Gull - adult stage one outfall
Arctic Tern - juv stage one outfall
Med Gull - two adults around

Moth
The solitary occupant, Scarce Umber, is a good record for here

There is only one minutus

Heysham Obs
Brief visit produced:

Twite - 21 (of which, only 4 unringed birds seen).  Unfortunately, at least 3 Feral Pigeons have at last found the food, which could become expensive(!) and unsettle the Twite.
Little Gull - adult outfalls (but no sign Arctic Tern)
Med Gull - ad Red Nab
Lapwing - 151 Ocean Edge saltmarsh area

..........and no moths

Arctic Tern reappears at high tide

Heysham Obs
Just the southern coastal areas covered today in a rather intensive work-related manner!

Pink-footed Goose - flock of 220 south
Rock Pipit - 2
Arctic Tern - juvenile Heysham outfalls at high tide
Little Gull - adult seaward end of Heysham one outfall at low tide
Med Gull - 2 x 1CY briefly on the end of Heysham one outfall, also an adult there for a longer period
Kingfisher - one flew down OE saltmarsh channel
Twite - 23 OE saltmarsh, possibly more
Linnet - at least 15 OE saltmarsh

Insects
Red Admiral - 2 south along the tideline & another south whilst waiting at Moneyclose Lane traffic lights!  Feathered Thorn and Chestnut (the latter scarce here) in the moth trap

Decent coverage

Heysham Obs
Reasonably extensive coverage today with a few bits and pieces:

North harbour wall
Twite - 43 on feeder (& see below) in the morning; just 7 during a short ringing session in the afternoon.  These included a Machrihanish-ringed bird with the following details:

L999067
Ringed:  Machrihanish Seabird Observatory  3M  20/9/11
Recaptured: Heysham     28/10/11 & 1/11/11 (& probably seen mid-Oct)

Vis mig by the office 0730-0900
alba Wagtail - 1
Chaffinch - 55
Starling - 81+37
Redwing - 8
Siskin (H+)
Goldfinch - 13
Greenfinch - 3
Collared Dove - 1
Woodpigeon - 1
Mistle Thrush - 1

Power walk around the coastal circuit
Guillemot - one in the harbour by the intake
Twite - 15 'in-off' from the Walney direction, then flew across the harbour towards the mound
Little Gull - adult Heysham one outfall
Yet again we may have been denied a November Arctic Tern as there was no sign at low tide
Med Gull - two adults
Blackcap - male Nature Park but no other evidence of migrants on the dog track/nature park
Extra vis mig recorded during this walk (0915-1015) comprised 27 Chaffinch and 2 Meadow Pipit

Heysham NR late afternoon
Woodcock - one flushed eastern woodland
Blackbird - more than yesterday with c25 on circuit
Goldcrest - one NE corner along with another crest spp. nearby which refused to show itself in the gorse and might be worth a follow-up
Song Thrush - 3

Middleton NR (thanks Malcolm)
Water Rail - 2
Snipe - 2
Tufted Duck - 2
Teal - 5
Blackbird - 40+
Redwing - 7

Insects
Red-line Quaker in moth trap.  Rusty Dot Pearl disturbed from the Nature Park. Red Admiral dog track.  Single Common Darter, 2 Red Admiral and single Comma Middleton NR

Catching up with work................

Heysham Obs
................or trying too after a lengthy check of a surprising 189 moths of 24 species at my mega-site at Millhouses (migrants = Dark Sword Grass, Rusty Dot Pearl and Silver Y (2)).   Very rapid coverage at Heysham produced:

North harbour wall
Twite - 24
Linnet - 6
Meadow Pipit - 2 grounded

Stage one outfall low tide
Arctic Tern - juv
Little Gull - ad

Heysham NR
Dead - c10 Blackbird, one Song Thrush!

Heysham Moth trap
One each of the scintillating Agonopterix heracliana and Brown House Moth (wind needs to be in SW for this trap)

Routine coverage ignoring GMT as you have to

Heysham Obs
Vis mig from dawn(ish)
Greenfinch - 41
Chaffinch - 64
Goldfinch - 32
Reed Bunting - 1
Meadow Pipit
Woodpigeon - 7+4
Meadow Pipit - 6 (inc flock of 4)
Brambling - 1
Redwing - 22
Bullfinch - 2
Jay - 2
Mistle Thrush - 1
Skylark - 2
Linnet - 3

North harbour wall/Ocean Edge
Twite - c25
Med Gull - 2 adults
Arctic Tern - juv Heysham one outfall
Twinnet - c22 of each Ocean Edge south beach at high tide

Grounded HNR
New Goldcrest and Chiffchaff ringed, Chiffchaff still in NE corner
Blackbird - c35
Redwing - 5
Wren - one unringed bird now ringed

Insects
Late Brimstone male NE corner, two Red Admiral & single Common Darter on circuit of reserve.  Single Feathered Thorn and Red-line Quaker in moth trap

High speed front

Heysham Obs
A good morning to get the birding out of the way and on with some work.  A clear slot ahead of a rapidly approaching front, with little in the way of 'pre-frontal' cloud, produced a corridor of mainly finch vis mig

Vis mig 0730-0845
Greenfinch - 49 SW
Chaffinch - 71 mainly S/SW
Goldfinch - 11 SW
Brambling - 1+1 SW
Meadow Pipit - 1+1 SE
Redwing - 9 SW
Linnet - 1 SW
Starling - flock of 72 SW (plus ex-roost birds heading east)
Twite (see below)

North harbour wall 0850-0915
Twite - 27 (14 seen well showed 50% unringed); total included 2 "in-off" just before the rain
Linnet - 4
Meadow Pipit - 1 grounded
Arctic Tern - juv seaward end Heysham one outfall
Little Gull - ad offshore in the outfalls slick
Med Gull - adult harbour

Mid-afternoon HNR circuit after the news broke from Sunderland
Chiffchaff - 2; one in osier bed by dipping pond, the other in NE corner (one also heard first thing by the office)
Blackcap - male in the blackthorn scrub on the eastern edge of the marsh
Blackbird - only 20 or so
Goldcrest - one

Ocean Edge foreshore high tide
Linnet - flock of 22 on the south beach (no Twite with them)

Moth
One Feathered Thorn