Peregrines causing disruption again, and RVD still around

A freshening SW wind became strong in the afternoon, dry till lunchtime then the rain started, very heavy rain!

These shots by Rosemary and Peter Silvester are from around the main pond at Middleton Nature Reserve yesterday lunchtime.

Male Red-Veined Darter near where the Swans rest on the west bank

Female Common Blue Butterfly 

Male Common Blue Damselfly

South shore (Malcolm) 09:00 - 10:30

Mediterranean gulls 4 adult, 1 2nd calendar year and 1 3rd calendar year 

One of the adults was ringed. It is a German scheme bird. Details awaited 

As the beach by the wooden jetty became exposed the gulls and Oystercatcher 
moved there to feed

3cy Med in flight an adult on the mud

Then two Peregrines turned up, likely juveniles as they began by chasing a small passerine, possibly a Rock Pipit. After failing with that one turned its attention to the gulls and Oystercatchers.

The only thing they succeeded in was to clear the shore!

When I checked the middle platform in the harbour there was no adult Herring gull and no sign of the chick. But when an adult arrived the chick emerged from hiding.

It is clearly being well cared for, it seems to have grown significantly.

Curlew 157 north in several flocks

Rock Pipit 2 near the waterfall 

This young Rock pipit still has hints of its gape

Roebuck 1 briefly in the Nature Park 

A Comma on brambles in the Nature Park.
The archetypal image of autumn!

I couldn't resist another walk along the sea wall this evening (Malcolm). The heavy rain was relentless and there was nothing to see. Us masochists really know how to enjoy ourselves! 

We'll see what the morning brings.

An old friend returns

Sunny spells and a light SW wind

South shore (Malcolm)

I was busy this morning and didn't manage to get out till 11:45. The tide was well out and the gulls scattered and flighty. I only managed to spot 9 adult, 1 3rd calendar year and 1 2nd calendar year Mediterranean gulls.

Gulls between the two outfalls, there were 6 Meds amongst these

Adult (bottom left) and 3cy (bottom right) Mediterranean gulls

There were another 5 Meds on the beach by the wooden jetty including this
veteran. Ringed as a chick in the Netherlands 2010. First seen at Heysham in 2018
it has visited every year since. Unfortunately, since 2022 it has not been recorded 
wherever it has been wintering/breeding. Hopefully it will have been seen since it
left us last year. But either way, it is always good to see an old friend.

In the Nature Park:

Ringlet 2

Meadow Brown 2

Small White 7

Large White 7

Red Admiral 3

Small Tortoiseshell 1

Small Skipper 1

Large White

Small Skipper

This clip shows the Skipper drinking nectar from this Greater Knapweed

Imperial Rd (Malcolm) 15:30

Kestrel 2 both the male and female were hunting.

The female landed on the road with this kill. Unfortunately a passing vehicle
moved it on before I could see what it was

Raven 4 drifted north

Two of the Ravens

Middleton Nature Reserve (Malcolm) 16:00 - 16:45

I really went to check on the Red-Veined Darter status, unfortunately this was the only time in the day when there was a light shower. I only saw two dragonfly species.

Common Darter 2

Black-Tailed Skimmer 5

This female Black-Tailed Skimmer was ovipositoring 

It all looks very sedate, but it really wasn't - don't blink!

Red admiral 1

Meadow Brown 1

Green-Veined White 5

Comma 1

Speckled Wood 1

Mute Swan pair plus 7 cygnets 

Mallard 13

Gadwall 1 female on the fence pond, with at least one chick. 

The chick, was keeping out of sight, this was the best shot I managed.

Female Gadwall

Coot 6 adult plus 4 young and 2 older chicks

Coots with 4 young chicks 

Moorhen 4

Little Grebe 1 on the main pond. I tried to get a shot but it was only surfacing briefly. So I took this short clip, it shows twice mid frame.

Grey Heron 1

The resident Heron

Weasel 1 ran across the path in front of me.

It felt like autumn!

A dry day with a freshening west wind, some sunny spells.

South Shore (Malcolm) 08:00 - 09:30

Grey Wagtail 1 on Red Nab

Grey Wagtail

Young Pied Wagtail along the sea wall 

Whimbrel 1

Whimbrel between the outfalls

Curlew, having a bad hair day!

Common Sandpiper 1 

Common Sandpiper 

A solitary Redshank

Rock Pipit 2 - one trying to chase the Grey Wagtail from Red Nab and one on the lower tiers of the wooden jetty

Sandwich Tern at least one heard but not seen

Mediterranean gull at least 20 including 4 2nd calendar year and 3 3rd calendar year 

Mediterranean gull coming in to land with other Meds and Black-Headed gulls

Osprey 1 it arrived at 09:00, marked by all the gulls lifting off the beach

All the gulls that were on the shore took to the air.

I was on my way back by this time, I didn't see it catch anything while I was there.

Still three chicks on the far platform 

And one on the middle platform, you can just see it sheltering from the wind
behind the box. There is always an adult keeping and eye on it.

One of two Little Egret

Peregrine Falcon being chased by gulls

Not a great shot, but it does suggest juvenile plumage 

I returned to watch the tide reach Red Nab, this normally allows a more accurate count of Meds. But as soon as the gulls began gathering two Peregrine buzzed them and lifted everything except the large gulls. After this happened twice, both the gulls first, then I, gave up.

Curlew 150+ in three flocks from the north side, only one of the flocks landed on Red Nab, but c130 lifted when the Peregrines zipped past. So at least 200 altogether.

In the Nature Park

Young Dunnock

Red Admiral 4

Common Blue 2

Large White 2

Comma 1

Red Admiral

Comma

Imperial Rd (Malcolm)

A quick check after leaving Red Nab early.

Buzzard 1

Kestrel 1

Buzzard, being mobbed by a Kestrel and a gull

The only warbler heard singing was a Cetti's warbler 

No sign of any Stonechats

One of two Moorhen chicks seen,  there were likely more

Green-Veined White 8

Meadow Brown 3

Common Blue 2

A couple of puzzles (oh.....and another Osprey)

An overcast day, the threatened rain holding off till evening. a very light west breeze

Heysham Nature Reserve 

Report by Jean:

I did some ringing at the reserve this morrning. I caught 31 birds between 10am and 1:30pm, 26 new birds and 5 retraps. Only 2 birds were adults (a male Goldfinch and a female Blackbird). 

Great Tit  11 (inc 3 retraps)

Blue Tit  4 (inc 1 retrap)

Goldfinch 4

Bullfinch  3 

Dunnock 3 

Greenfinch 2

Robin 2

Whitethroat 1

Blackbird 1 (a retrap from 2024)

South shore

Shaun Coyle had a walk along the sea wall 07:00 - 09:00

Osprey 1 caught a smallish fish and settled on the post at the seaward end of No.2 outfall to eat it. It wasn't seen which direction it left.

Mediterranean gulls 15 minimum, likely 18 adult,  4 2cy and 2 3cy

Black-Headed gulls 135 including 7 juveniles

Little egret 4

Eider 3

Rock Pipits 3 around the lighthouse area

Pipits sp 10 were on the wooden jetty, but not possible to confirm species with a scope in two halves!

I checked 09:30 - 10:30 (Malcolm)

Mediterranean gulls confirming at least 24

This is the beach between the outfalls, all but 2 of these are Med gulls.
There were at least 5 more on the seaward edge of the beach next to the
wooden jetty

Just one white ringed bird, but it is the one already recorded this year

These are the three Rock Pipits near the lighthouse, all adult or sub adult.

I couldn't see any Pipits on the jetty. The adult Rock Pipits often feed their fledglings on the jetty, but 10 is a high number. It will have to remain a mystery, for now at least.

Rock Pipit on Red Nab after a bath

I knew a Herring gull was sitting on the platform furthest from the waterfall,
she has now hatched three chicks, possibly more.....

This is the middle platform, I haven't seen any gulls sitting here, and there
is no sign of a nest. But this Herring gull has a chick there, and it certainly 
didn't fly there by itself.

Solitary Herring gull chick. I wonder if a Great Black-Backed has grabbed 
it then been forced to drop it again. If so, extremely lucky! But more problems 
lay ahead. One to watch out for.

This Herring gull was cleaning out a mussel shell.

Peregrine Falcon 2 over the Power Stations

Juvenile Whitethroat in the Nature Park

Janet is away for a well earned break, so we're a bit thin on the ground for the next three weeks.