Giving thanks to a wind of change

There are few opportunities to see this enigmatic ocean wanderer at close quarters, but strong onshore winds at this time of year, particularly along the west coast, can bring good numbers inshore – there was an impressive count of 524 in one day at Hilbre Island, Cheshire, and others have been seen off recognised watchpoints such as New Brighton, North Wirral Coastal Park, Formby Point and Heysham.

Sometimes, one or two are brought well inland – one was see briefly at Orgreave Lagoon, South Yorkshire, on Sunday, before being taken by a sparrowhawk, while last December one was found dead in Clapham, North Yorkshire.

Others were seen inland at Pugney's Country Park, near Wakefield, in October 2005, and Rother Valley Country Park, South Yorkshire, in September 2003.

If the winds continue to blow from the south-west, more may be discovered.

Leach's storm petrels are found in both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and the world population is put at some two million pairs.

A tiny proportion of these, some 50,000 pairs, nest on remote islands off the Irish and Scottish coasts.

This month and next they move away from the breeding sites, the majority heading into the Atlantic well south of Britain.

Another seabird seldom seen inland, a Manx shearwater, probably originating from one of the Welsh breeding colonies, was found over the

weekend at Cawood's Fishing Pond near Pugney's Country Park.

Two juvenile black terns were on the main lake at Pugney's, others were at Rother Valley Country Park, South Yorkshire, and Astley Lake, Swillington Ings, Leeds.

Two black redstarts, discovered three weeks ago by birder Dave Simmonite as he searched for whinchats, have continued to be seen at the edge of Langsett Moor, South Yorkshire.

It is interesting to speculate if they are on the move from one of the city centre breeding sites favoured by black redstarts, such as the Piccadilly Basin area of Manchester, or have been on the moor all summer.

A juvenile red-necked grebe is still present this week at the North Cave wetlands, East Yorkshire, a first record for the reserve and completing the "set" of all British breeding grebes seen there.

Along the east coast, Lapland buntings have continued to be seen, with four at the RSPB's Saltholme reserve, on Teesside, one at Flamborough Head, one on the putting green next to the boathouse at Hornsea Mere, one at Spurn, and 11 at Saltfleetby Haven, north Lincolnshire.

A Richard's pipit was seen in stubble fields at Barmston, while a barred warbler was at Spurn.

There was a rare sighting of a Fea's petrel – one of the soft-plumaged petrels that breeds on the Cape Verde and Madeira islands – off Kilnsea and Grimston.

There were two probable sightings of Balearic shearwaters from the RSPB's cruise from Bridlington on Saturday, while 16 sooty and two Manx shearwaters were among other sightings.

Two long-tailed and four pomarine skuas were seen off Flamborough Head.

Pink-footed geese continue to move across the region with 60 over Bewholme, East Yorkshire, at the weekend, while there have been the first arrivals of whooper swans in Scotland, with 52 spotted in Aberdeenshire.