3rd to 7th July

Aside from returning Waders and Tern monitoring its been pretty quiet with a couple of staff birthdays, sheep clipping and work on the new heligoland trap the main developments. The Grey Phalarope continues to entertain on Gretchen Loch while Golden Plover numbers are increasing rapidly, having reached a minimum of 632 by 7th when there were also 22 Dunlin. Up to 3 Little Gulls also remain, with a Collared Dove (3rd and 7th) and Kestrel (6th) the only other sightings of any note.

Although a couple of the Arctic Tern colonies have suffered from predation, there's still plenty of encouraging signs. This is 1 of at least 40 Chicks to have fledged in the last few days from the strongest colony at Westness, where another 100+ are close to flying too. 35 more are also now on the wing at other sites where remaining chicks are also growing fast and pairs are laying for a second attempt. While we're still a few weeks away from declaring the season a success, its already been by far the best year for well over a decade!