Fierce seas at Filey

A cold, and mostly cloudy day with strong easterly wind at Filey. We walked the exposed beach and rocky shores to the Brigg with leaky wellies, rock-pooling and birdwatching along the way. It was low tide and a group of Herring Gulls, a Curlew a couple of Redshank and a few Turnstones fed on the sandy beach.
The waves were breaking on the Brigg, squadrons of Gannets steadily passing south, low over the water with the occasional Fulmar and Guillemot. A few Shags were fishing very close to the rocks, where a mixed flock of Knot, Purple Sandpipers and Oystercatchers had to rush from the breaking waves every now and then.

This Redshank looked particularly handsome.

Common cockle, Cerastoderma edule.

Common Hermit Crab, Pagurus bernhardus. 

This Turnstone was checking underside seaweed. 

Common periwinkle, Littorina littorea. 

Beadlet Anemone, Actinia equina. 

Rough periwinkle, Littorina saxatilis.

Sea Foam at the Brigg. 

Flat periwinkle, Littorina obtusata 

Fulmar. 

Blue-rayed limpet, Helcion pellucidum on kelp.

Breaking waves on a sunny spell. 

Dunlin. 

Shags. 

Rock Pipit. 

Knot. 

Fulmar calling. 

Hazy winter sun at South Landing

This is the last Monday in the year that was going out, after some deliberation I opted for a trip to my favourite place in East Yorkshire. I was held out by some incident in Beverley, so I had to take a long detour, and I had to drive back all around Beverley but shortly after 10 am I was parking by the Living Seas centre. I was surprised that the feeders had been removed and the centre shut for the winter, including the toilets. There were few small birds around the centre. The tide was going out at the beach. A loose flock of Oystercatchers and a Curlew were feeding on the sandy strip, while some Turnstones fed at the tideline, with a few squabbling Rock Pipits.

 I walked towards Danes Dyke. A Carrion Crow had found a flatfish and flew with it to a safe place to feed on it. It hit it with the bill to break the skin and get to the flesh. A Great Black-backed gull watched from a distance, but respected the crow's ownership.

 I saw a Fulmar circling, they are back at the cliffs! I even managed a flight shot. There were 6 individuals on this stretch of coast. Two sitting in pairs in possible nest sites and much cackling ensued every time a circling individual got near. A selection of Fulmar photos follows. They are very photogenic, the low cliffs allow great views and the light was lovely today.

A crab pincer to ID.

Posing Turnstone. These were very approachable and kept feeding a couple of meters from me.

These Fulmars were on the other side of the cliff towards the Headland. Another six were present, in two sites.

Cliff fall.

Low tide looking towards the headland.

There was not a high number of bird species today, 26 species on two km2, the winter regulars.

This was the only invertebrate, a Winter Moth Operophtera brumata, on a wall by a light in the Living Seas Centre.

Danes Dyke

A half term day trip with the kids to the beach. The weather was promising, dry, still and mild.
As we get out of the car, the calls of pinkfoot fill the air and a flock in V formation of around 100 fly high on their south migration.

 We walk through the woodland path, at the bottom of the ancient ditch that cuts across the Flamborough Headland, at its southern end towards the beach.

It's full low tide as we arrive, which exposes a wide and golden sandy beach. We camp at the bottom of the cliff and while the kids run around on the beach chasing a football and Pokemons, I do a spot of seawatching.

There is a group of about 20 Common Scoters not too far offshore, feeding in the calm water. They do the sequential diving as Tufted ducks do, one after the other. The whole flock disappearing for a few seconds and then appearing one after the other.

A large, dark and powerful bird flies fast across the sea. It's a Peregrine! It eventually disappears from sight towards South Landing before I can take a photo.

 We upturn a few boulders revealing seething masses of jumping beach hoppers. One of them has just moulted and not quite ready for jumping yet!

There are plenty of Robins and Wrens on the cliffs. 

At the bottom, they are joined by a Redshank, keen to feed on the tideline.

 There are also Rock Pipits, hard to count, but about five of them. They are a bit of a photographic challenge, as they like to feed on the very dark kelp, which contrasts massively with the very white chalk boulders.

As I go for a little walk up the beach, I meet a group of very hurried sanderlings, running their usual race by the waves. They are very entertaining to watch.

The Yorkshire Belle passing by.

After lunch, we head back through the path in the woods. The woodland has large beech, ash and sycamore, with a few garden ornamentals around the car park such as an Araucaria.

A view of the wooded ravine.

The woodland floor was very dry, even under logs. We only found five large White-legged Snake Millipede, Tachypodoiulus niger, on a decomposing log.

Back to the other side of the ravine across the bridge.