15th and 16th June


After early morning rain had cleared through it was a pleasant day on the 15th with bright sunshine and easing winds which eventually swung round into the east; the dubious highlight of the day was a flock of 8 Canada Geese which spent most of the day loafing on Gretchen.

                Other birds were few and far between with single Manx Shearwater, Storm Petrel and Great-northern Diver offshore, 7 Collared Doves, 4 Chiffchaff and a Willow Warbler while gatherings of 110 Kittiwakes and 150 Arctic Terns up at Bewan suggested early breeding failures elsewhere.

                A nice day on the 16th with a light SE breeze produced a handful of late spring migrants with the highlight being a female Red-breasted Flycatcher trapped in Holland whilst other new birds included a Grey Wagtail, an extra Collared Dove (8 now!), 3 Chiffchaffs and a Carrion Crow.

                Three Pink-footed Geese were a bit of a surprise as they flew out south while wader totals included some already returning waders with 14 Golden Plover, 24 Knot, 34 Dunlin, 60 Bar-tailed Godwits and noticeably increasing non-breeding flocks of Lapwings, Redshank and Oystercatchers.


Red-breasted Flycatcher

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