The lull continues, Fly Flatts.

 

                                        1of 2 Tufted

                                        Single Kestrel

                                    Juv Wheatear.

Poor conditions this morning with a light WSW>2 turning SW>3 with very dark clouds and rain by 0930hrs at 10 degrees.

     My alternate good day, bad day, did'nt work out this morning but changed to bad day, very bad day, with very little of interest and not a single wader to be found.

    A good count of 72 LBB gulls were on the NE shore as well as 5 juv Herrings whilst 2 juv Tufted and a single Canada goose were on the water. A few Swallows headed >N along with 3 House Martin and the south shore held 3 adult and 1 juv Wheatear as well as 2 juv Pied Wagtails.

   I seem to be missing out on Flycatchers and Warblers passing through the compound area so far this year and its getting late now for a Tern species.

   A cloudy day tomorrow with the wind back to a very light SE and smelling like fog at 11 degrees.

BS

  

A steadier morning, Fly Flatts.

 

                                        1 of 4 Wheatear

                                        Yellow Legged Herring Gull

                                    Good count of LBB.

                                    2 Ringed Plover present.

                                        Sparrowhawk over the Flat Moor.

A pleasant morning weather wise with full light cloud on a cool NE>2 at 10 degrees with good visibility.

    A bad omen to start with when I picked out 2 Ringed Plovers on the south shore. This is usually a sign that waders have been flushed from the north end which a walk on the west bank soon confirmed with not a wader in sight.

    A specially good LBB gull count of 123 along with the usual Yellow Legged Herring, 4 Herring and 5 Black Headed. A few Canadas had returned to the water with 16 present.

   With wader watch quiet it gave me chance to check the compound and feeding area which produced 

2 Grey Wagtails down by the beck as well as a pair of Stonechat. Just a handful of Meadow Pipits present as well as 4 Wheatear whilst 28 Swallow headed >S, closely followed by a Sparrowhawk but not showing any signs of a problem to them.

    If my run of alternate days of good and bad continue I should be over-run with waders in the morning, he says, hopefully !!!

     A cloudy morning tomorrow with a turn about of the wind to a light WSW at 12 degrees.

BS

Wader Wonderland, Like being in Morecambe Bay, Fly Flatts.

 

                                    Scarce at Fly Flatts, Sparrowhawk

                                Another scarce bird at this site, Snipe

                                        SE corner

                                    1 Herring among the LBBs

                                    Juvenile Turnstone

                                The previous Turnstone was an adult.

                                    A mass of waders

                                   

                                juv Ringed Plover, Turnstone and Dunlin

                                    Juv and ad RingedPlover

                                    1 of 3 Golden Plover

                                    One of 3 Wheatear.

Another good morning weather wise though no for photography with early mist and drizzle clearing to full dark cloud on a moderate NE>3 at 14 degrees.

  With a cold and moderate easterly blowing along with drizzle I did'nt really want to tackle the west bank again, but at this time of year its got to be done. First 2 birds seen as I started on the south shore were a Sparrowhawk on the wall and a Snipe in the lagoon outlet, both of which have been scarce sightings for me this year at Fly Flatts.

    Arriving at the NW end of the west bank, the first scan through the bins revealed a single Ringed Plover as yesterday, which I suspected that to be it. Up with a very shaky scope facing straight into the wind I picked up the Ringed Plover, followed by another, then another, then another, ending up with a count of 5 adults and 2 juvs, along with 3 Dunlin and, top of the shop, another Turnstone with was a different bird than the previous one 2 days ago, which was an adult, whilst todays bird was a juvenile.

    Shortly after, 3 Golden Plover came in to land in the waters edge making the NE corner look alive with waders darting about the shoreline.

   A small group of 12 LBB gulls were on the east shore along with a single adult Herring and 6 Black Headed. Meanwhile, back at the south end, 3 Wheatear were down on the shore.

   Hopefully this is a sign of things to come over the next couple of month and I'll get something different to add to my wader list, still half expecting, Little Ringed Plover, Sanderling, Knot, Grey Plover, Spotted Redshank and Whimbrel.

     Having said that, waders are very unpredictable. Yesterday I got 1 Ringed Plover and no photos whereas today I took 232 photos.

    Tomorrow is showing cloudy sunshine on a cold but light NNE starting off at 9 degrees.

BS

     

Windy and wet, Fly Flatts

 Dark, damp, windy and cold was the order of the day at Fly Flatts this morning, after overnight fog, with a moderate to strong ENE>4 gusting 5 at 11 degrees with full cloud and light drizzle.

     A very blustery walk on the west bank this morning with little reward, other than a single Ringed Plover on the north shore along with 19 LBB and 8 juv Black Headed gulls.

    Only half a dozen Canadas left now on the water along with 2 juv Tufted whilst several Canadas were in the fields along Cold Edge Road.

  A single Wheatear was on the south shore along with 4 juv Pied Wagtails whilst a single Kestrel and a few Mipits were present.

    Cloudy sunshine for morning with the same moderate to strong ENE at 12 degrees.

BS

    

Another wader for the list and a 1st returner, Fly Flatts. (Permit Only)

 

                                    First returning Redshank

                                Turnstone and 1 of 3 Ringed Plover.

                                    Very distant in the mist

A hard work morning with a very low cloud base covering the top of The Nab and swirling mist over the water on a moderate E>4 at 14 degrees with constant light drizzle. Perfect wader conditions but poor visibility. Dense fog by 0930 hrs.

    All quiet at the south end so another trek on the west bank with limited visibility with the mist banks moving over the water.

   First scan across the water to the north east shore revealed 3 Ringed Plover with a slightly larger wader behind so up with the scope to find a cracking Turnstone which was on my list of low expectations. 

   Impossible to get anything other than record shots due to the distance, poor light, and drizzly mist as it worked the east shoreline along with one of the Ringed Plovers.

   A shrill call up in the low cloud and then a single Redshank dropping down on the west bank cobbles briefly, before moving over to the inlet area, this being a first returning bird.

   A single Stonechat was below the west bank whilst 21 LBB and 6 Black Headed were on the east shoreline with the 3 juv Tufted returned to the water.

    By the time I'd walked back on to the south bank the fog had come down so with 'lights out' it was head for home.

    Another cloudy morning for tomorrow with a light ENE at 12 degrees so sounds perfect but fog dependant.

BS