8th-11th February

Not much to get excited about in recent days. When its not been wet and windy outside its been cold or snowing! A juvenile Peregrine on 8th was the first for nearly a month, but would have been better if it had been the big white Falcon currently residing on mainland Orkney! On 9th a count of 48 Bar-tailed Godwits from the north end was good, while 9 of the Black-tailed Godwits lingered on Gretchen and 2 Grey Plover were on the Links on 11th. Twite have been ever present throughout the month in the Observatory crop fields and 50 have been caught and ringed so far at a baited site. Occasional Linnets have also been with them, but the 34 on 11th could have been early migrants as a result of a strong south-easterly wind?