A calm low tide at South Landing

A very calm, sunny and mild day at South Landing. The tide was completely out on arrival. The usual Pied Wagtails and Rock Pipits fed by the stream and on the tide line. At the other end of the beach, where the tiny waves were lapping the beach, a curlew and some Oystercatchers searched for food.

Pied Wagtail on the stream.

Curlew with ragworm.

Curlew.

Robin on the beach.

South Landing low tide.

Carrion Crows mobbing something atop the cliff.

A cacophony of harsh crow calls called my attention. Over 40 crows were circling and calling low over the cliffs. I kept looking in their direction hoping for a raptor to appear, but I had no luck. The crows settled a bit and then I noticed they were breaking shells at the top of the beach (something I have watched previously at Sewerby beach, nearby, see this blog post). They were collecting periwinkles at the bottom of the exposed beach, then flying to the top, where there are large exposed flat rocks and dropping them, the impact audible, immediately flying down to reap their reward: an exposed, cracked periwinkle. I know that's what they were eating as I collected lots of freshly broken common periwinkle (Littorina littorea) shells, their shards very sharp plus a clam and a mussel. 

The moment the crow drops the shell.

Crow eating periwinkle.

An intact periwinkle and lot's of broken fragments collected at the top of the beach.

Freshly Broken mussel shells.

Broken periwinkle shells on flat rock.

It was almost an hour later, when the crows started gathering and cawing insistently again, I looked up, and the profile of a fox showed at the top of the cliff. The crows would fly low and pester him. The fox moved across the cliff giving me a chance to record a video of it before it walked out of sight.

My first sighting of the fox.

Fox. Video here:

It went quiet again, but not for long. As I walked on the beach in the direction of Danes Dyke I heard the cackling calls of fulmars. I would have completely missed them if I hadn't heard them, sitting on the cliffs. There were nine of them, some in pairs, which called and billed and gently nipped each other. Two of them kept circling, landing occasionally, and then leaving again to circle the cliffs.

Fulmar pair.

Fulmar pair.

Four Fulmars on the cliffs and two came from circling.

After lunch with the fulmars, I headed back to the landing. A Turnstone was digging the soil between the cracks in the rock. A clear element in coastal erosion, turnstones!

Turnstone on the cliff.

There was a Common Seal perched on a rock near the landing. The tide was starting to come in, and the rock where the seal was was quickly becoming submerged.

Common Seal.

Trying to keep flippers dry.

Barely any rock left!

On the sand, six sanderlings stopped for a few minutes to rest from their constant races.

Sanderling.

As I was leaving I noticed a bird washing on the stream. It was a Stonechat.

Stonechat bathing.

Here it is again, now mostly dry

A wonderful day out, plenty of mild sunshine and a great assortment of birds and mammals on South Landing today.