8th September

A calm day with an eagerly awaited increasing south-easterly wind by late afternoon raising excitement levels among all those at the obs. The Citrine Wagtail again spent the day commuting between Hooking Loch and the beach but otherwise most of the interest was again on the sea. 6 hours of tea and biscuit consumption in the hide also saw totals of 93 Sooty Shearwaters, 19 Manx Shearwaters, a Storm Petrel, 205 Gannets, 4 Red-throated Divers, a Great Northern Diver, 6 Arctic Skuas, 26 Great Skuas, 305 Kittiwakes, 7 Puffins and 546 Auk sp. pass by, while a sample 2 hour count for Fulmars yielded an impressive 2489 birds - 2 of which were blue phase. Other species recorded today included 3 Grey Herons, a Shelduck, a juvenile Marsh Harrier, a Wood Sandpiper, 2 Robins, 4 Whinchats, a Wood Warbler trapped and ringed at Holland gardens, 3 Willow Warblers and 7 Snow Buntings. What will tomorrow bring...