Wednesday 8 August 2012

'Enjoy your birding' or see it as a challenge?

Heysham Obs
There were 760 small gulls on Ocean Edge beach, mostly asleep, mostly facing in all directions, mostly in various stages of moult, mostly 'into the sun' and all in a shimmering heat-haze.  It took about 8 slow 'pans' with the newly cataract-free eye to sort them out.  All due to a ginger and white spaniel-type-thing flushing them from the more observer-friendly Red Nab

Ocean Edge/Red Nab
Grey Plover - c110 silhouettes along the tideline
Redshank - c230 as above
Oystercatcher - c2950 as above
Med Gull - 5 juvs (these were easy!), 2 ad and 2 2CY
Common Gull - one juv
No sign of Little Gull or any tern spp

Office area
Quite a bit of movement in the context so far of this low-key post-breeding season with 3-4 Whitethroat the first for over a week!  About 40 birds were ringed, including two juv Bullfinch, 3 Whitethroat, 2 Willow Warbler, one Chiffchaff, 4 Swallow and about 15 Greenfinch.  11 Swift recorded flying south in the afternoon

Moths
Quite autumnal with the first Sallow, Rosy Minor and a local speciality Agriphila latistria   

Butterflies & dragonflies
A walk round the reserve saw c40 Meadow Brown, 15 Common Blue and a few Speckled Wood, Gatekeeper, Small White, Green-veined White, Small Skipper.  Best were two Peacock (scarce recently), Red Admiral, Small Copper, Large White.  Single Emperor, Brown Hawker and a notable three Common Hawker

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