The wait continues, Fly Flatts

 

                                    Single Ringed Plover

                                     Low water   SE corner

                                        South shore

                                            Bring on the waders

A strange weather morning with dense fog down in the air valley to the east and fog banks on the tops to the west. Luckily these banks soon cleared leaving full cloud on a light SE>2 increasing 3 at 15 degrees. Heavy drizzle by 0945 hrs.

    A bit of a non descript morning with plenty activity but nothing to get the adrenaline going.

A single Ringed Plover was present as well as 2 Common Sandpiper and 3 Oystercatcher whilst the Lapwing is still giving warnings about the unseen chick/s.

   The female Tufted is still on the water with 3 juvs along with 4 Black Headed gull and 2 LBBs whilst the sky remained empty, other than a Raven over the quarry. The 5 Wheatear must have passed straight through as no signs this morning.

    Otherwise, down to small passerines with good counts of Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit and Goldfinch.

Got to be some Terns about anytime now and a couple of weeks away from Black Redstart time.

     Cloudy sunshine for morning on a light SSW at16 degrees with a thunderstorm warning for p.m.

BS

   

Wheatears starting to move, Fly Flatts.

 

                                            Kestrel with prey

                                    Prey dropped

                                    1 of 5 distant Wheatear

                                    4 juv, 1 ad male

                                    White Greylags fledged

                                        1 of 2 Common Sandpiper

A decent morning weather wise at Fly Flatts with a brisk NW>3 at 16 degrees with a mix of cloud and sunshine after heavy overnight rain.

    Wheatears are starting to arrive with 4 juveniles and an adult male in partial moult but, as always, the first returners are very timid and keep a good distance before settling down. 

    Nothing new in the way of waders as yet with just 2 Common Sandpiper, 5 Oystercatchers and a pair of Lapwing with at least 1 very late chick.

   Plenty Swallows over but no Swifts for a few days now, though I have recorded then through to the end of August on previous years.

     A Kestrel dropped down onto the edge of the moor and came up with a vole in one talon but soon dropped it back into the long grass, I wonder if it survived its ordeal. The Kestrel later tried its luck at the Lapwing chick but was soon seen off with the adults. A Buzzard was on a distant rock to the west of the water.

    Nothing on the water other than the female Tufted and 3 chicks as well as 2 Black Headed gulls whilst the shoreline was, once again, alive with Mipits, Pied Wagtails and Goldfnch.

   The 7 white Greylags a becoming a real distraction, as when they fly, at distance, they look just like Egrets making me grab for the camera.

    A cloudy morning given for tomorrow with a light SE at 16 degrees, hopefully, no fog.

BS

    

   

A windy Fly Flatts

 

                                    Tufted with 3 young

                                        Single Oystercatcher

A very windy morning with a moderate SW>4 gusting 5 with full cloud and light rain showers throughout at a cool 12 degrees.

     A much quieter morning wader wise with just 2 Common Sandpipers on the north shore and 1 Oystercatcher on the south shore. A female Tufted duck had appeared on the water with 3 well grown juvs, all constantly diving, whilst 1 Black Headed and 1 LBB were on the shore. Nothing skyward apart from a single Raven though small passerines were everywhere but very flighty in the wind. 

     Around 30 Goldfinch were present with 3 Linnets in with them, the latter being a rare sighting this year at this site. Meadow Pipit numbers continue to rise whilst around 20 Pied Wagtails were flitting around the shoreline, mainly juvs, though one adult bird stood out as a White but did'nt hang around long enough for me to get the camera on it.

   A family of 3 Kestrel were interacting around the Withins area with a few more Linnets on the walls.

A mix of cloudy sunshine in the morning with chance of an odd shower on a light NW at 14 degrees.

    St Swithens day today where it is said, if it rains today it will rain for the next 40 days , sounds about right.

BS

Birding bart sun, Fly Flatts

 

                                    4 Black Headed gulls present

                                    1 of 5 Stonechat

                                    Around 40 Goldfinch

Much better conditions this morning with the absence of sunshine with a full cloudy, dark sky and damping in the air. Still up at 16 degrees but feeling much cooler in the SSE>2 increasing 3.

     A clear out of waders this morning with just a single Lapwing with chick plus a Common Sandpiper although 3 Snipe were an unexpected pleasure in the lagoon, though they saw me before I saw them so smartly disappeared onto the edge of the moor.

      A single Curlew headed high and >SE whilst 2 Raven and a Short Eared Owl were over the distant moor. Only one LBB gull on the north shore this morning along with a Grey Wagtail and one juv.

    All the action this morning was small passerines in the boatyard with 5 Stonechat, 4 Reed Bunting, around 40 Goldfinch and a high count of Meadow Pipits.

   The 2 pair of Pied Wagtail, which have already reared 18 young between them, are now taking food back to their nest sites for a third brood. The shoreline is already alive with juvenile Pied Wags.

     A cooler start to the morning tomorrow at 12 degrees with a good chance of rain on a moderate SSW.

BS

    

One of those better mornings but not for the camera. Fly Flatts

 

                                    Distant drake Common Scoter

                                    Yellow Legged Herring Gull, Michahellis

                                Very distant in heat shimmer

                                    Possibly NKs Ogden adult bird.

Another of those 16 degree mornings but saved with a nice, cooling E>3-4 with full clear sky and sunshine.

    With the good easterly wind blowing it was well cool enough for the dogs and me to walk the west bank to check the northeast shore. What a good move this turned out to be with the first sighting being a drake Common Scoter way out on the water, replacing yesterdays female. A group of 3 adult Dunlin flew over the water, landing in the NE corner.

    With the scope set up near the end of the west bank I started to scan the shoreline and waters edge where 12 LBB gulls were on the mud and shallow water along with 2 juv Herring and an adult Yellow Legged Herring gull.

   Several waders were scurrying around on the shore though viewing at high mags was terrible with a ton of heat shimmer distorting everything, which were all at distance.

   A single, 1st returning, juv Ringed Plover was present along with the 3 Dunlin and 2 Common Sandpiper, with what I believed to be the 3 chicks in among several juv Pied Wagtails. 

    A larger pale wader was moving in and out of the ditches which I finally managed to get onto as it walked on the shore, this being a Greenshank but unable to tell, in the distortion, if it was a juv or not, which is more likely at this time of year.

    Another 21 LBB gulls flew over >NE whilst 2 Black Headed landed on the water. Unfortunately, on the way back, the Scoter was further away than ever, being near the east bank.

   Plenty Swallows over and Meadow Pipit numbers increasing, so all in all, a cracking morning.

Out of 140 photos this morning trying to get the waders etc I salvaged the above 7 which are terrible but better than nowt. When Arthur Morris, top USA bird photographer, was asked what could be done about taking photos in heat shimmer, his reply was, " leave your camera at home".

A cloudy morning for tomorrow with chance of light rain on a light SW strengthening after midday but still starting off at 16 degrees.

BS

It all happening now ! Fly Flatts.

 

                                    1st returning juvenile Dunlin.

Another 19 degrees morning but slightly more pleasant with a nice cooling E>2 with full sun in a cloudless sky.

      A nice surprise to get a first returning juvenile Dunlin using the islands along the south coast. Just 2 Common Sandpipers but no sign of the 3 juvs, whilst a Lapwing is guarding a very late chick by the lagoon.

   A single Herring gull was on the water along with 3 LBB and 2 Black Headed, and as it was getting near to knocking off time a scope of the water produced a single female Common Scoter, very distant and very hard to pick out on the glistening water. I don't know if I had missed it earlier or if it had just arrived, but more luck than management that I found it.

   Another day of the same tomorrow, hot, hot, hot, with a light easterly, hopefully enough to cool it as it did this morning on the tops.

BS

  

   

Turn down the thermostat. Fly Flatts.

 

                                    Up to 18 Pied Wagtails present

                                4 of 7 white Greylags almost fledged

                                    Inquisitive Weasel 

                                    1 of 2 Common Sandpiper

With the temp up to 19 degrees early morn it was more a case of keeping in the shade rather than the usual walk about though a nice cooling WSW>2 made it more bearable. Full sun in a clear blue sky.

     Most birds anchored down in the heat this morning with near empty skies other than a single Raven, 3 LBB gull and a Kestrel as well as several Goldfinch and Meadow Pipits.

   A good year for Pied Wagtails with 2 pairs breeding  in the compound and now at least 18 birds along the shoreline all frantically feeding.

  Wader wise, just 2 Common Sandpiper, 2 Lapwing and 5 Oystercatcher on the shoreline but no sign of the Blackwit which recent sightings could be the same bird hanging around, though conflicting reports yesterday whether 2 birds or 1. A single bird was still at Leadbeater Dam around 1800 hrs near the island reported from an Oxenhope birder.

    Another moorland fire this morning looking to be over the Manchester area.

    The nasty hot stuff continues tomorrow with full sun kicking off at 16 degrees on a very light easterly.

BS