21st -24th May

The past few days have been a much quieter affair compared to the excitements of the previous blog post. Clear skies and bright sunshine has meant birding has been frustrating at times, but the odd migrant here and there kept things ticking over.

The highlight of 21st was the Subalpine Warbler remaining in Ancum Willows throughout the day, showing nicely at times in the sunshine feeding on plenty of flies. Otherwise the day was quiet with the only other sightings of note being two Sparrowhawk, 30 Knot, one Whimbrel, one Woodpigeon, four Collared Dove, one Tree Pipit, one Blackcap, three Chiffchaff, one White-fronted Goose and one Woodcock which was trapped in a mist net in Holland Garden in the morning.

22nd was a bit busier, with a year tick of Crossbill being found early on in Ancum Willows giving us hope for what else might be waiting to be found. A morning nets session produced one Long-eared Owl, one Sparrowhawk, one Garden Warbler, one Lesser Whitethroat and one Willow Warbler. The four Collared Dove from the previous day were also present. A Quail was flushed from Funny Park shortly followed by a flyover Siskin nearby. A Cuckoo was seen at Greenspot before it flew to Howar, a Redstart was found at Bewan, and another Garden Warbler joined the first in the Holland garden. A male Ring Ouzel was at North Gravity. In the late afternoon four Jackdaw were seen flying out south over Lurand. We were briefly excited by news of Orca headed our way from Fair Isle, but unfortunately they did not materialise, meaning we will have to wait a bit longer for our first sighting of this cetacean this year.

Crossbill - TG

23rd and 24th were quieter still with an increasing westerly wind putting the brakes on migrant arrivals and making birding more challenging. Highlights over the two days included 7 Whimbrels, 9 Jackdaws, the Crossbill from 22nd and best of all an adult Little Gull, which flew south past the Sea Watch Hide.

Sparrowhawk - TG

The westerlies are set to continue for a few days at least, meaning it is likely to be slim pickings on the migration front. However, late spring is not a time to lose hope and can throw up some huge surprises, so we'll keep looking!