Med numbers increasing and RVD still around.

East breeze till after lunch then switched to NW. Steady rain from 09:00 -10:30. The sun broke through just before lunch and then sunny for the rest of the day.

South shore

I checked from Red Nab to saltmarsh just before high water (MD)

Mediterranean gulls 10 - 3 adult plus 7 first summer - all on Red Nab

One adult and three of the first summer Mediterranean gull
(The bird far right is a first summer Med, although not obvious on this shot)

Another adult and first summer Med. 
The third adult was the metal ringed bird.

Saltmarsh 

Lapwing 1

Goldfinch 2

Linnet 8

Common Whitethroat 1 

Common Whitethroat 

Howard checked out the lighthouse and resolved what the Rock Pipits were catching for their nestlings. (Howard's, and Peter+Rosemary's and Janet's pictures below are all high resolution and should be opened to appreciate the details revealed)

Nice to see those busy little pair of Rock pipits. They were taking food in almost every 5 minutes, looks like an abundance of grasshopper down there.

Rock Pipit with a bill full of grasshoppers 

Just I was going through the gate back to my car this bushy tailed tree rat faced me off.

Male Grey Squirrel 

Middleton Nature Reserve 

These shots from Peter and Rosemary Silvester were actually taken yesterday, but all seen again today.

Common Bluetail Damselfly

Male Black-Tailed Skimmer

Male Red-Veined Darter

Janet checked late morning today, before it had really warmed up, the Red-Veined Darter was not showing at that time, but there was still lots to see, including this "smooth tailed tree rat"

Brown Rat climbing to where the bird feeders are hung

The male Mute has now decided to take umbrage at the Coot!

Two Silver Y moths

Lattice Heath moth

Ringlets continue to be the dominant butterfly and it looks like 
We'll have plenty next year too.

We're getting good at spotting Bumblebee Hoverflies

I checked late afternoon (MD). By that time the male Red-Veined Darter was showing well on the east side of the spit in the north side if the main Pond.

Red-Veined Darter, same behaviour pattern as yesterday, resting a while before
flying out over the pond, then returning to the same resting area.

This Broad-bodied Chaser was ovipositoring

As was this Emperor, but a completely different operation 

Warblers:

Cetti's Warbler 4, also Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff, Blackcap,and Common Whitethroat 

Stock Dove 1 seen twice

Stock Dove

Common Buzzard 1 soaring over the eastern side

Something for everyone

The heavy showers from yesterday evening continued till 07:00. After that it remained dry, overcast in the morning then largely sunny. A light SW breeze.

South shore (MD)

I checked again on the rising tide, but today there were no gulls on the beach next to the wooden jetty.

Mediterranean Gull 6 - 3 adult including the metal ringed bird. 3 first summer. Initially there was one adult on the seaward end of No.1 outflow. Later 2 adult and a first summer on the beach between the outflows then all six on Red Nab.

Adult Mediterranean gull feeding on the seaward end of No.1 outflow

The metal ringed adult and a first summer Med arriving at Red Nab

There are three adults and two first summer Meds in this shot. Unfortunately,
the first summer on the left is hiding its head and partly obscuring the adult behind it

This is the third first summer Mediterranean gull

This is where the Red Nab gulls were resting, this shot from Ocean Edge foreshore 

Curlew 18

Whimbrel 1 

Curlew and a latish Whimbrel (right), just poking its head above the rocks

The Rock Pipits are taking larger portions of food to the lighthouse area nest. Not sure what these morsels are, it reminds me of a Puffin with a bill full of sandeels! The clip pans out to show the vertical wall that the young have to surmount on their first flight........there is no second chance. 

Rock Pipit feeding a growing second brood after the first failed to fledge.
Good luck this time!

Middleton Nature Reserve (MD)

I did two short visits, one late morning, it was still overcast and the only dragonflies showing were Black-Tailed Skimmers and Common Darters. However there was plenty going on:

Cetti's Warbler 2 singing

Chiffchaff 3

Reed Warbler 1

Reed Bunting 2 lurking in the willow scrub near the water's edge.

Reed Bunting 

Great Spotted Woodpecker 1 

Common Buzzard 1 south

Little Grebe 1 trilling

Mallard 2 male 2 female with 8 and 6 large young. Bizarrely the male Mute Swan now happily tolerates them. 

One of the Mallard families resting next to the Mute Swan family

Gadwall female with 5 growing chicks on "no swimming" pond.

My second check was 15:45 in the hot afternoon sun.

Red-veined Darter 1 male

This first shot is a location shot. On the west side bank, it's taken from almost the same place as the mallard and swan shot above, but looking north not south. You can see it resting on the patch of sedges just before the large reed bed starts.

It was resting here, then flying out over the water surface, but kept returning to this corner.

Red-veined Darter

Heysham Nature Reserve 

These shots from Janet:

Ringlet one of many - currently the most common butterfly in the recording area.

Very worn Common Blue

Gatekeeper 

Small Skipper - first record this year

Red Admiral 

Six-spot Burnet

Azure Damselfly

Pellucid hoverfly 

I had a quick look late afternoon (MD). Neither myself or Janet saw the fritillary. But while we are on hoverflies, I learnt something from Jean's report from the Wildlife Trust outing (see post 10/06/23). The Bumblebee Hoverfly looks like a white-tailed bumblebee, but bees never settle on a grass stem. So when this one did just that, I knew exactly what it was!

Bumblebee Hoverfly

These Rudd were swimming near the surface of the dipping pond. Rudd will routinely take food from the surface of the water, but nothing found during this clip. The red fins are perfectly normal, unlike those hybridised with goldfish in the dog walk pond.

Just out of the recording area - ref Dan Haywood  

Red-veined Darter1 male West Shore near Sambo’s Grave

Clouded Yellow 1 NW (this, almost certainly would have crossed into the recording area)

Red-Veined Darter still the star of the show

The light east wind continues. Some early morning showers then the day became increasingly heavy till the rain resumed at 19:00 and was still falling at the time of posting, marking the end of the prolonged arid spell.

South shore (MD)

I walked down the wall early in the rising tide to check what gulls, if any, were after the sandmason worms on the beach between the wooden jetty and No.1 outflow. There were quite a few, but only....

1 Mediterranean Gull - the metal ringed adult. The mud is still thick here, but that isn't a handicap for the worms who just build their tubes higher.

Mediterranean gull, surrounded by the tips of Sandmason worm tubes.

In fact, the thicker mud seem to favour the worms as the gulls find it more difficult to catch them. I suspect that the softer mud allows the worms to sense the gulls presence earlier. This is an even bigger problem for this Med, as it has a walking difficulty, which leaves it far from stealthy!

There were 21 other gulls, 19 Black-Headed and 2 first summer Common gulls. The Black Headed gulls weren't after the Sandmason worms though, they were paddling in the muddy pools and picking off the small invertebrates that they disturbed.

One of the Black-Headed Gulls was colour ringed - details awaited

The Mediterranean gull eventually got fed up of trying to catch Sandmason worms and moved over to the rocks next to the outflow, where there are always small invertebrates to be found, particularly in the absence of the Turnstone and Redshank that normally feed here.

There were lots more gulls feeding on the outflow, but only Black-Headed, Herring, Lesser Black-backed and Common (feeding at the seaward end).

Rock,Pipits 3. 1 near the waterfall and 2 near the nest site.

One standing guard

The other delivering food to the nestlings

Linnet 26 -  8 near the lighthouse and 18 on the saltmarsh, including several juvenile.

Juvenile Linnet

They are feeding on the seeds of this plant. I think it is Sea Arrowgrass.
But please correct me if you know otherwise (MD)

Unfortunately the vegetation is quite dense and you can only really tell how many are feeding when they take flight. Only three visible here, but ten took flight when one did, the Wood Pigeon are also tucking in.

Goldfinch 7 feeding together in the scrub next to Red Nab.

 

Middleton Nature Reserve 

Janet checked the main pond area late morning:

Male Red-Veined Darter

Female Common Darter

Ringlet

Six-spot Burnet

Common Bluetail Damselflies 

One of several toadlets