9th - 10th April

A return to brisk, cold easterlies brought a few birds into the island on the 9th including a female Sparrowhawk, a Dunnock, another Wheatear, two Rooks, four Snow Buntings and two Reed Buntings while the Lapland Bunting was still in the Kirbest area.   A few sharp showers through the day on the 10th helped bring some more variety into the quality of migrants with a Black Redstart at Neven, two more Wheatears, three new Robins, 50 Meadow Pipits with small groups dotted along the coast, a Sandwich Tern off The Links and the first Great Skua of the year flying low over the West Banks - one of the returning breeding birds or just a migrant?   Other counts through the day included 145 Sanderling, 130 Purple Sandpiper, 255 Turnstone, 175 Black-headed Gulls and 167 Common Gulls mainly feeding on the exposed east coast where the high tide churned up the seaweed on the beach.