Tuesday 12 May 2015

Another below par seawatch

Heysham Obs
Not quite right this morning with no hefty squalls, just some layered high-ish cloud which eventually cleared. A better day, however, than yesterdays disaster when I got absolutely soaked retrieving moth traps early morning and then, when we wanted some heavy showers, not a drop of rain fell for the  rest of the day

Sea 0550-0740
Arctic Skua - light and dark morph lifted off the sea and headed quite leisurely into the Bay at 0610
Great Skua (Bonxie) - one wheeled in very quickly at very long range (any other skua spp would have remained exactly that) at 0622
Gannet - 7 out
Canada Goose - rarest birds of the morning - 5 flew north at about 0720
Dunlin - 85 out
Whimbrel - 2 north
Swallow - just one north!
So nearly two hours without addition to the patchwork challenge (I still need Fulmar, Common Scoter, Manx Shearwater, Common Tern and any identified auks!!)

That's me for 10 days or so - my first holiday at migration time for a bit - hopefully others will find some stuff of interest as the sea looks promising e.g. Thursday early am

Monday 11th May

Heysham Obs
Just 11 Wheatear on Ocean Edge with a couple of brief and blank looks at the sea