Orange Tip tops the meagre fare

Heysham Obs
A quick decision not to set any mist nets, followed by 20 mins on the sea, followed by 20 mins on 'vis' by the office produced:

Nothing offshore other than 65 Eider in situ
Meadow Pipit - 27 mainly NW
Collared Dove - flock of 4 NE
Carrion Crow - 2 high to NE
Linnet - 3 NE

Willow Warbler - singing in the tank farm, perhaps the same as the other day

Ocean Edge
The intertidal waders on the incoming tide included:
Bar-tailed Godwit - 410
Knot - 1,950
too heat-hazy to sort out the gulls on the outfalls!!
Linnet - 12 on the football pitch

Butterflies
A male Orange Tip was along Moneyclose Lane early afternoon and a decent number of the hibernating species around the reserve:

Taken around the reserve today by Janet.  Thanks for these.  Bit of a contrast with 1cm of hail in upper Hindburndale later in the day!

Moths
Slightly better than rock bottom with 13 moths including single Powdered Quaker and Early Thorn.  The pug caught on the night of 7/4 was, as expected a Golden Rod and as such the earliest county record - pic will be inserted on posting of 8/4

Bits and pieces of early morning migration

Heysham Obs

Plenty of noisy singing male Chiffchaffs around - have the many females been able to 'get through' the currently unfavourable migration weather?  Thanks Janet.

Office area
Willow Warbler at last - singing at 0715hrs

North wall 0905-0935 (low tide)
Gannet - 3 adults out (distant)
Kittiwake - flock of 26 in then landed on sea (distant)
alba Wagtail - 12 NE, including at least two White which landed briefly
Meadow Pipit - c30 NE
Linnet - 5 NE
loads of gulls on offshore skeers/sandbanks checked

Ocean Edge
Linnet - 27 on football pitch feeding on chickweed (but no grounded wagtails)
Med Gull - 2CY outfalls
Sandwich Tern - one in channel

Watching the grass grow

Heysham Obs
This product of the (welcome) rain was more interesting than the birding today on what was very much a working day after an early morning time-wasting investigation of "possible fall conditions" was quickly replaced by a moth check, followed by sitting in front of the computer screen

North harbour wall 
Half an hour produced 21 Meadow Pipit and 5 alba wagtails north-east and a lot of eye-straining checking the offshore sandbanks/skeers for coffee-coloured gulls

Outfalls/harbour mouth
Med Gull - 2CY seen on two occasions

Office feeder
A visit from a Tree Sparrow which arrived from the north-east

Moths
The day's highlight in the form of a Dark-barred Twin-spot Carpet

Trash birding

Heysham Obs

This morning's very unexpected Golden-rod Pug - by far the earliest county record.  Thanks John

I wonder if litter gathering has ever been considered a necessary part of angling competitions?  Certainly not on the north wall at Heysham last night.  A litter strewn landscape greeted early morning observers who received little encouragement from the blank fare out to sea.  Two bits of seawatching covering the early slot and the incoming tide slot failed to deliver:

Red-throated Diver - 1
Kittiwake - flock of 10

Moths
Considerably more interesting with a medium/largish pug which appears, metathoracically and otherwise, to be Golden Rod but its way too early.  Pics to follow.  Just about to examine three worn Agonopterix-types.  otherwise Herald and yet another late March Moth

A dead calm morning

Heysham Obs
Pretty quiet this morning in a light and variable north to north-easterly with high uniform cloud

Vis mig - flying north-east
Meadow Pipit - 37 (3 ringed)
Lesser Redpoll - 3
Goldfinch - 11
Linnet - 7
Rook - 1
Carrion Crow - 2
Rock Pipit - 1

Grounded
Zero perceptible

WeBS
Wooden jetty:  160 Turnstone, 1 Purple Sandpiper, 1 2CY Shag, 12 Cormorant, 15 Redshank
Fisher's roof: 170 Herring Gull, 53 Lesser Black-backed Gull, 9 Great Black-backed Gull - worth checking this lot for white-wingers in the next few days of wind/rain
Heliport: 92 Oystercatcher, 53 Redshank
Ocean Edge area: no waders on 10m tide but 15 LBBG, 2 Herring Gull
[& out of Obs recording area: Sunny Slopes groyne: 310 Oystercatcher & 2 anglers, Battery groyne: 9 Oystercatcher, 2 Redshank, 3 Cormorant, West End Groyne: 9 LBBG, 6 Herring Gull]

Sea
Dead as regards passage
Red-throated Diver - c7
Sandwich Tern - 8-10
Eider - 141
Black-headed Gull - 72 2CY

Moths
Singles of the usual culprits: Powdered & Common Quaker, Clouded Drab and Hebrew Character

Decision time for northbound migratory Kittiwakes as they enter Morecambe Bay

Seawatch 0715-0900, 0915-0940
Kittiwake - 530 in four flocks, 260 max, the latter a very close, high, overhead flock first detected by hearing them!   This flock went even higher into the sky after swirling around for a bit, then seemed to head to the west, back out to sea, not inland.  The conditions, a moderate north-westerly with spits and spots of drizzle and low cloud on the hills were not very enticing for overland migration
Gannet - 7
Red-throated Diver - 20, some in summer plumage (& see below)
Meadow Pipit - 15 NE
Linnet - 1 NE

Seawatch over high tide (thanks Mike)

Razorbill - one out
Common Scoter - 8 out
Red-throated Diver - 4
Shag - 2CY still in harbour


Grounded
Bearing in mind the first bird I heard when I arrived home late afternoon (High Tatham on the northern edge of Bowland) was a singing Willow Warbler, we maybe should have done some first thing checking for grounded stuff when the wind, by all accounts was quite light.  In other words, don't dismiss north-westerlies when accompanied by some lowish cloud and murk.  However, there were none singing on the reserve or along Moneyclose Lane/dog track from at least mid-morning

Ocean Edge foreshore
Wheatear - 2
Linnet - 25
Knot - 3,100
Bar-tailed Godwit - 825
Dunlin - 110

Moths
Singles of Powdered Quaker, (rather late) March Moth, Hebrew Character and Clouded Drab

Bits and bobs day

Heysham Obs

Wren at Ocean Edge - thanks Janet

One of those days where lots of things tried to happen but the results were meagre to put it mildly.  For example, four blank mist net rounds and a second morning of zero moths.  The highlight was the lack of manic panic at nearby ASDA petrol pumps

EDF Energy challenge
There is an internal challenge between the EDF sites replacing the unfortunately unsponsored BTO/Business challenge.  Please keep an eye open for megas on the EDF properties such as a Coot or Little Grebe brave enough to visit the dog-walk pond - they don't count on Middleton ponds.  I'll publish a list of what we still "need" soon e.g. the likes of Stock Dove.  In this respect, note the finger of land which runs along side Middleton and the golf course - this is EDF property (see map in office)! Also note that any seabirds which traverse the outpourings from the Power Station outfalls count as does anything on Red Nab.  Anything on the north harbour wall/mound area, however, needs sending to the other side of the harbour mouth.

Ringing recoveries
Included a colour-ringed Grey Wagtail from autumn 2011 was recorded at Carne sewage works in Wiltshire during December, but somewhat mysteriously identified as an adult male (ringed as an 'obvious' youngster)

Offshore
A sample 25 minutes produced:
Red-throated Diver - 2+1 'out' in the "heat" haze

Heysham office area
The birds on the feeders melted away as soon as the nets were set, but a single Chiffchaff was a bit of a surprise in the conditions and this remained the only tangible evidence of night migration (no Wheatear seen)

Inshore
Big reduction in Knot but a small increase in Dunlin south of the harbour in a single (high tide) check
Knot - 390
Bar-tailed Godwit - 320
Dunlin - 220
Mallard - pair on Red Nab
Purple Sandpiper - one on the outer section of the wooden jetty

Nice to meet the birder/angler who is involved with the Shell Carrington reserve - hope the fishing was better than the birding and/or you connected with one of the two northbound Ospreys which may have flown over the Bay en route to Leighton.  More birder/anglers very welcome, especially during the spring seawatching period and winter months!

Internationally important Knot, nationally important barwits and unimportant Sandwich terns

Heysham Obs
Ocean Edge/Red Nab
Knot - 5,750
Bar-tailed Godwit - 825
Sandwich Tern - 8
Med Gull - 2CY lunchtime above Heysham 2 outfall

Harbour/north wall
Shag - 2CY by wooden jetty - first sighting for a bit

Knot remain in internationally important numbers

Heysham Obs
Seawatch 0830-0900, mixture of north wall and scans from Ocean Edge
Kittiwake - flock of 17 'in', then landed on water
Red-throated Diver - 2 flew 'in' very distantly

Ocean Edge/outfalls
Knot - at least 9,500 to the south on the tideline
Bar-tailed Godwit - c400 with above
Common Gull - 49 strewn along the visible tideline/on outfalls
Black-headed Gull - just 9 as above

Heysham NR
Blackcap - singing male NE corner
Water Rail - one calling in marsh

Moths & butterflies
At last a reasonable number (for here) of Common Quaker which has hitherto been incredibly scarce here - the dizzy height of 8 individuals!  Also single Powdered Quaker, Shoulder Stripe and a late March Moth of minor note.  Speckled Wood east side of reserve and about 5 Small Tortoiseshell on afternoon walk

Not quite dead

Heysham Obs
Just a few things to keep this site going in the dreaded north-westerly winds.  Nots a bad week of weather coming up as there is a lot of work not to be distracted from.  Again loads of gulls on offshore sandbanks & Eiders tricky in choppier seas but at least 75

Sea early morning
Sandwich Tern - 4 on buoy then out, further 2 out
Red-throated Diver - 1
Common Scoter - pair flew in
Linnet - 6 nearby
Dunnock - singing in the sea buckthorn clump

Ocean Edge/Red Nab
Wigeon - pair hanging about
Redwing - flock of four in nearby bushes headed east
Meadow Pipit - at least 6 north
Mistle Thrush - one appeared to come in-off and head high inland

Moths
Third Powdered Quaker of the year