Fly Flatts, 1500 hrs, 75% cloud cover, sunshine and showers on a near gale W>6 gusting 7.
The water today was like the North Sea with waves crashing onto the shore, good to watch but no good for the shorebirds. Very little shore now but just enough in the SE and SW corners to hold a wader or two.
A difficult watch with it hard to even stand on the West bank and near impossible to hold the bins and camera steady.
Understandably things were quiet in the conditions but the object of todays visit was to get some Nyjer seed down as any signs of my last batch had been washed away in the storm.
2 Herring gulls headed >SW along with 11 LBB >NW with several Swallows also heading >NW.
A brown Peregrine flew over the Bumps dropping over to the Oxenhope Res side whilst 2 Wheatear and 1 male Reed Bunting were below the banking.
The only wader to be found was a single Common Sandpiper on the east shoreline and amazing to see how many Canadas have moved from the area from over 300 to around 60 which the boat lads will be pleased about not having to shovel their slipway each time before use.
On the way back a quick walk to the top of Slaughter Gap found a count of 5 adult Wheatears in full Autumn plumage, several Meadow Pipits , and 15 Goldfinch whilst Swifts are now becoming noticeable by their absence.
BS