Meds and end of the moth trap

The seemingly simple process of changing the security lights on the office to motion sensor has been lost in a tangle of bureaucracy/inertia somewhere in Manchester.  The security lights on full blast all night renders the moth trap completely useless.  A few moths were coming through the window but not worth a special journey to check a handful and obviously not on to leave them in there to die, so the window was boarded up and the room will be extra storage space.   Very frustrating example of a subcontract where there are no obvious appraisals in place (comment by pete marsh as lancashire county Moth recorder)

Med gull - four adults by Heysham  one power station outfall

Ringlets reach the dog walk track

Thanks to Janet and Malcolm for info

Med Gull - 6 x ads on drop tide evening the max count - including right leg metal ringed bird

'Thinly spread' sums up Ringlet status with presence along the dog track for the first time

Green Sandpiper still present

Green Sandpiper still on Middleton Tim Butler pond

Little Grebe plus at least one young still

Obvious Otter activity on Middleton overnight targeting signal crayfish

Very quick negative check for Rock Pipit otherwise no coastal coverage

White plume moth in moth trap

Mixed bag of action

Rock Pipit - seen on power station fence

Shag - the 2CY in wing moult in harbour

Med Gull - 10 x Ad including metal ringed bird, 1 x3CY with either orange or red darvic, 2 x 2CY

Green Sandpiper - one Middleton Tim Butler pond for large part of day

Ringing at Middleton - a real mixed bag, mainly Willow Warbler and Whitethroat.  Oddity was an adult male Swallow ringed as a juvenile in a Middleton roost in August 2015 and a female Cetti's Warbler with a brood patch is the nearest we have got to breeding this year so far.  One juvenile Grasshopper Warbler but it looks like a lot of the Sedge Warblers have moved off

Ringlet drifted along the track between central and western marsh  

More meds

Rock pipit seen very briefly by wooden jetty

Med gull: - 5 ads and two 2cy.   Only ring seen was on the presumed regular metal ringed ad

Whimbrel - 1

Ringlet -  4 plus middleton

Nothing of note in Moth trap

Rock Pipit again

Single Rock Pipit frequenting the west quay and the area above the waterfall, hopefully the off duty male as the other bird should in theory still be sitting

Little Grebe with at least one young Middleton

Med Gull:  3 x ad and 1 x 3CY - no real build up yet with Heysham one outfall birdless during the latter stages of the outage

Depressaria badiella in the moth trap; best of rest a Common Emerald but trap not really fully operational yet due to the tortuous process of resetting the security lights to motion sensor

30th June - Male little ringed plover photographed by oe slipway

Wandering insects

Gatekeeper was definitely new for SD35Z as it wandered around the sparse brambles by the wooden jetty.  Also 10+ Meadow Brown, possibly as many as three Painted Lady and numerous whites

Med Gull - 3-4 ad and a new 3CY
Curlew - at least 208

Nice mixture for Malcolm's rounds

Rock Pipit - what is hopefully the off-duty male was around a moored boat on the south quay today before slipping away:

Little Grebe - pair with two young Middleton no swimming pond
Stock Dove one flew east over Middleton NR
Gadwall - 6 adult, 16 young
Curlew - 280 Red Nab incoming tide
Med Gull - 2 x ad Red Nab incoming tide
Shag - 2CY wooden jetty (PM)

Porpoise poss two offshore

No sign of yesterdays probable White-letter Hairstreak along the golf course edge between the reserve entrance and the five barred gate.  Gatekeeper yesterday at Middleton = early

Meds think its still spring!

Just received this pic from Heysham head in my in-box!   Live-rug rat.

Returning Meds were still displaying on the sandflats off Ocean Edge this morning

Med Gull - 3 x adult - one metal-ringed on right leg - and one 3CY - all four in lower photo

No sign of any Rock Pipit activity as viewed from along the seawall (none expected in the time available if female is sitting)

Grey Seal inshore feeding on mullet

Grey Heron in-off

Ringing by office
A surprising number of juvenile Great Tits which were unringed - nine caught, otherwise a few finches and a couple of warbler fledglings.  Missing from the Middleton session and this morning were the (on arrival dates) the earliest nesters - just one Chiffchaff and Blackcap and no Lesser Whitethroat from the two sessions - have they dispersed already/too dry to attract them into the trapping areas/failed?

Young Birds are about at Middleton

Post for Sunday 24th:

A ringing session at Middleton NR this morning produced a decent number of juvenile captures including:

Blackcap 1, Blue Tit 1, Chiffchaff 1, GreatTit 3, Reed Warbler 1 (+3 adults), Robin 3, Sedge Warbler 5 (+4 adults), Whitethroat 6, Willow Warbler 3 (+1 adult in primary moult).

ajd