Spring has arrived!

Spring weather hasn't arrived but this Wheatear photographed by Janet has made it to Red Nab.  It may well be the one reported yesterday.

North Harbour Wall
Twite 69
Rock Pipit 1
Robin 2

Whoopers chill out

Heysham Obs

South of harbour
Wigeon - 89 Red Nab
Gadwall - pair on Red Nab
Whooper Swan - 10 arrived from the south and landed on the tidal edge at 0930 and fell asleep for at least two hours, despite the receding tide leaving them high and dry
Meadow Pipit - off-passage gang of 10

Middleton NR
Little Egret - 1
Goldeneye - female model boat  pond

North harbour wall
Twite - c100 but flighty
Red-throated Diver - one casually seen offshore (no lengthy seawatching)

Thanks to Pete Antrobus, Janet Packham for today's records

Counting the lingerers

Heysham Obs
Completely dead in terms of coastal new arrivals/sea passage

North harbour wall
Absolutely nothing moving over the sea in 30 minutes watch
Twite - 87 (just enough time to count them before flew off)
Goldfinch - 3

Ocean Edge inner foreshore
Knot - 2300
Dunlin - 670
Bar-tailed Godwit - 1850
& more of the above species plus Grey Plover further to south.  Justifying the new notices!

Outfalls/Red Nab
Black-headed Gull - 374 - 80% s.p. ads
Wigeon - 47

The beast from the east continues

Heysham Obs
Made it today after 45 mins drive-clearing and negotiating the 1 metre snowdrift on Millhouses hill (thanks to the snow ploughs). Heysham was cold and snowless.

Ocean Edge/Red Nab
Little Gull - ad seaward end of stage 1 outfall
Black-headed Gull - loads, many in full breeding plumage but still in winter feeding mode
Stonechat - male Ocean Edge saltmarsh edge
Wigeon - just 39 seen

Thanks Janet -  taken this morning at Red Nab

Middleton NR
Skylark - flock of 3
Snipe - 1
Gadwall - 2
Teal -21
Goldeneye -  1
Mallard - 1
Pochard - 1
Tufted Duck -11
Coot - 5
Mute Swan 2+2 juv

North wall
Red-throated Diver - 2 together on sea
Twite - 67, 6 unringed, usual Machihanish bird, 9 ringed pre-winter 2012/13

A winter's day in spring

Snow in the air but not on the ground at Heysham this morning. 

North Harbour Wall
The strong easterly wind had caused a few drifts of nyger seed in the gully between Centrica and the sandplant so the 67 Twite were a little bit spread out.  One Twite sported a racing red ring, presumably one of the Machrahanish birds.  Only one unringed bird seen.  Robin and 2 Linnets.

Ocean Edge
The new interpretation boards have gone up.  They look pretty smart! 

Middleton Nature Reserve - model boat pond
A female Lapwing was back on the spit.

Other species on and around the pond:
Oystercatcher 1
Magpie 2
Carrion Crow 6
Jackdaw 2
Moorhen 1
Coot 1
Mute Swan - Mum, Dad and the 2 kids as usual.
Tufted Duck - 2 pairs and a spare male
Gadwall - 2 pairs
Goldeneye - female
Black-headed Gull 52
Lesser Black-backed Gull 10
Herring Gull 3

Bits

Just two bits!  34 Meadow Pipits over and 49 Twite on the seed.

Whooper highlight

Heysham Obs
The only remotely interesting new birds today were a flock of 15 Whooper Swans heading north over the bay

North harbour wall
Twite - c65
Eider - 206
Red-throated Diver - 1
Whooper Swan - 15 north at 0950hrs

Heysham NR office area
Robin - 2 unringed birds caught
Meadow Pipit - c65 NE
Chaffinch - 15 NE
Goldfinch - 2 NE
Greenfinch - flock of 6 NE
alba Wagtail - 4 NE
Grey Wagtail - 1 NE
Sparrowhawk - 3 displaying over the ringing rides for 25 minutes early morning

More dribs and drabs

Heysham Obs
Pretty good coverage this morning in a nice calm slot, but things were still desperately slow and certainly no sign of Portland's 5,000 Meadow Pipits reaching us

Long-tailed Tits are still in small flock/feeder visiting mode in this cold weather.  Thanks Janet

Office area
Robin - two unringed birds caught
Blue Tit - two unringed birds caught
Dunnock - two unringed birds caught
Meadow Pipit - c75 NE (but only 3 over north wall), half a dozen or so ringed
alba Wagtail - c6 NE & 7 more over north wall
Goldcrest - 1 poss 2
No obvious finch passage
No obvious thrush arrival

North harbour wall
Kittiwake - flock of 14 high to the north at 0840hrs
Red-throated Diver - 2 on water
Great-crested Grebe - 9+ on water
Eider - just 72
Purple Sandpiper - harbour end of the north wall
Twite - 94 - at least 3 unringed but no sign of Machrihanish bird
Linnet - four including singing male on mound gorse
Grey Wagtail - 1 NE

Middleton model boat pond
Redshank - 1
Gadwall - 2

Mammal
Grey Seal close inshore

Bits of movement

Heysham Obs
Office area
Meadow Pipit - 2 north
Goldcrest - 2 unringed birds
Canada Goose - four heading north then circling round and heading south

North wall
Twite - 63
Linnet - 3
Goldfinch - 3
Eider - c180
Red-throated Diver - 1
Black-headed Gull - still c170 around, including many s.p. adults

Outfalls/Red Nab
Wigeon - 101
Little Egret - 1

Moth
The drought is ended with a March Moth!

Just a trickle of Meadow Pipit and Pied Wagtail

Heysham Obs
North harbour wall
Pretty dead with just:
Rock Pipit - 1
Eider - 181
Twite - c70-75
Med Gull - 3CY present in the afternoon

Heysham NR
Meadow Pipit - 12-15 NE (2 ringed)
alba Wagtail - 4 NE
Possible influx of Blackbird (5+) and Song Thrush (at least 2 apparent migrants)

Half-moon Bay
Common Buzzard - one flew south at 1035hrs (local?)