The unexpected gap in the year list falls at last

Heysham Obs
Black-tailed Godwit is oddly scarce here, yet plenty at Leighton Moss, regular around Teal Bay and common enough on the Lune Estuary........and therefore not something a casual visitor to Heysham would think to report.  A quick search failed to find any log entries this year until today

Ocean Edge/Red Nab 1000 onwards
The most significant feature was the complete absence of the usual heaving flocks of Knot/Dunlin/Grey Plover/ Bar-tailed Godwit which make intertidal count work so difficult here
Med Gull - at least one adult outfalls
Little Egret - 4
Black-tailed Godwit - flock of 9 flew south from the Red Nab area over Ocean Edge before 'u-turning' and landing briefly at Red Nab before heading off north

Office area
Blackbird - 25+
Chiffchaff - one still by the pond

Return of Czech Med Gull confirmed

Heysham Obs
Czech ringed Med Gull north harbour wall

Chiffchaff: One calling by office early am

Twite/Linnet - c23 early am north harbour wall

Belated Tree Sparrow

Heysham Obs
Very little coverage from the regular observers this week, so please excuse any blog gaps and there are some easterlies coming up after the weekend for a last chance of a late autumnal stray.  Check the rocky beaches/sandworks and e.g. south harbour wall!

A Tree Sparrow was around the office feeder at lunchtime - the first record in the 'winter months'

Adult Med Gull outfalls late afternoon and at least one Meadow Pipit by the Near Naze (45+ Ringed Plover

Late record of significance: drake Shoveler Middleton model boat pond at least three days ago

Two December Moths in the moth trap

Working weather

Heysham Obs
Lots to do in the office today and just two brief forays by two observers:

1) The office feeders
Largest number of birds I have seen this year with 50-60 finches disturbed when refilling the feeders, mainly Green and Gold.
Chiffchaff - one calling from the willows surrounding the pond up the hill from the office

2) Moth trap
Two x December Moth new for the year and a Feathered Thorn had migrated into the kitchen!

3) The north harbour wall
Nothing seen on the seed there in very brief mid-morning visit

Early Birds

Heysham
North Harbour Wall
A catch of mixed finches almost immediately after setting the whoosh net early this morning comprised:
Linnet - 3 new and 1 retrap
Goldfinch - 3 new, 2 retrap
Chaffinch - 1 retrap
Twite - 8 new, 6 retrap

Subsequently a further 6 Twite seen but did not take advantage of the seed.

Obs
2 nets set for a couple of hours resulted in only 3 greenfinches, 1 chaffinch and 2 blue tit plus a few retrapped birds.

From Malcolm:
Ocean Edge Saltmarsh - on the rising tide
Snipe - 10
Jack Snipe - 1
Twite - 1

Red Nab
Little Egret - 1
Green Woodpecker - 1 in bushes

No Moths in hut trap

ajd

No Twite

Heysham

North Harbour Wall
Early visit this morning saw only 23 finches, comprising mostly Linnets and a few Goldfinch. No Twite identified.  The early morning light makes positive separation of Twite/Linnet surprisingly hard.  No attempt made at catching owing to the usual human disturbance in the area on a fine Sunday with a late morning high tide!

(A small flock of 19 Twite present at Askham in Furness this morning included 2 birds ringed at Heysham last winter plus 2 returning birds ringed at that site previously)

ajd

Overdue year tick? Not quite!

Heysham Obs
There were no records of Purple Sandpiper during the first half of the year and the future looked bleak.  However today's WeBS count produced one on the heliport seawall.  One of the phone calls indicated that one had been seen on the wooden jetty on 28th September, but not since, by an observer who doesn't 'do' the internet and wasn't aware of the lack of records.  Suspect a passage bird followed by hopefully a future winter resident - wintering birds seem to regularly first turn up in early November following a few scattered earlier autumn records

WeBs count included:
Purple Sandpiper - one on heliport seawall
Ringed Plover - excellent count of 47 heliport seawall
Knot - 650 on heliport seawall
Cormorant - 56 wooden jetty
Med Gull - one adult fisher's roof

Has anyone seen the Czech-ringed veteran Med this autumn? - very little effort spent on north wall in absence of seawatching conditions - this will change in the next few weeks as passerine distractions dwindle away

Ten small finches seen in flight north wall feeder area

Moths
Amazingly good with a late Figure of Eight, Feathered Thorn, Red-line Quaker and Angle Shades.  So much for thinking the year has ended apart from the odd Winter moth, Mottled Umber and perhaps Chestnut/Dark Chestnut

Bits and bobs

Heysham Obs
A little bit of ringing during a calm slot early morning.  No vis mig of note


Office area
Chiffchaff - one ringed
Goldcrest - one ringed


North harbour wall
Twite - 16 - 3 with white rings and one with older red/blue split ring, 12 unringed
Linnet - 2
Goldfinch -3


The Cetti's Warbler caught at Middleton on 28/9/14,  bearing a ring from elsewhere, was caught as a juvenile at Wintersett Reservoir, Wakefield on 22nd July 2014 - a dispersal of about 100km to the NW.

The Middleton c.r. Grey Wagtail was still at Connah's Quay yesterday 

Nice timing

Heysham Obs
An intended early start to clear the backlog of paper work meant we were in place for a rather unexpected load of vis mig ahead of the weather front.   Plan B was 1.5 hours of vis and coastal coverage.  This weather front, when it arrived, ensured that conditions were just right for getting on with the work.


Vis mig by the office (but see below) 0740-0910
Fieldfare - 2601 mainly S then W
Redwing - 90 with above
Starling - 284 SW
Chaffinch - 30 SW
Goldfinch - 13 SW
Blackbird - 3 high-flyers SW
Mistle Thrush - 3
Greenfinch - ? = possibly all bloggers
Twite - 1 S
Redpoll sp - 1 S
Meadow Pipit - 2 SE
alba Wagtail - 2 SE
Collared Dove - 1 south (scarce these days)
Woodpigeon - just 2 south
Cormorant - 1 S


Grounded by office
Goldcrest - 4
Chiffchaff 1


NHW mound area
Linnet - 9
Twite - 14
Goldfinch - 4
Song Thrush - 1
Meadow Pipit - 2
No sign of Stonechat or any Rock Pipit


Red Nab
Included 750 of the vis mig Fieldfare heading high out to sea to west
Little Egret - 3
Med Gull - ad

Tree rat influx, in-off Twite and a Stonechat

Heysham Obs

Hey NR circuit
Grey Squirrel - 5 - record count!
Goldcrest - 4
Chiffchaff - 3 (at least one unringed)
Blackbird - 30
Water Rail - 2
Coal Tit - 1
Redwing - 6
Treecreeper - 2 NE corner

North harbour wall
Stonechat - female sandworks
Twite - 5 with Linnet early on then 3+8 in-off.  Later 14 on seed
Linnet - 21
Song Thrush - back in the gorse (4th winter in this 'extreme' location!)
Meadow Pipit - 2
Rock Pipit - 1
Med Gull - adult

South harbour area
Checked - zilch

Moth
Mottled Umber

Butterfly
Red Admiral

Still plenty of wasps with 10/minute entering/leaving nest in NE corner