5th and 6th May
A decent day on the 5th albeit with a chilly
easterly breeze saw the Red-winged Blackbird following
her usual routines for the still steady stream of admirers; the rest of the day
saw a varied mix of other species across the island as landbird migrants
included a Woodpigeon, 2 Tree Pipits, 2 Sand Martins, 2 Robins, 2 Song
Thrushes, 2 Redwings, a new Grasshopper Warbler, a Whitethroat, a Blackcap, 18
Chiffchaffs, 10 Willow Warblers, a Brambling, a confusing Redpoll sp. trapped
at Holland and 2 Goldfinches.
A
cracking summer plumaged Black-throated
Diver was in Nouster, with the advanced state of its summerness suggesting
that it could be a different bird to the regular individual while other birds
of note included the first 2 Pintail for a while, the drake Garganey, 19
Shoveler, 2 Sparrowhawks (including a female who thought it would be a good
idea to land right next to the Ravens nest – it wasn’t!) and a Peregrine. Waders also showed some increases with
counts of 70 Sanderling, 125 Purple Sandpipers, 18 Dunlin and 425 Turnstone
while 13 Lesser Black-backed Gulls and 170 Arctic Terns were also counted.
Dunlin having a bit of sing, photo Simon Davies
Thick
fog shrouded the island first thing on the 6th (resulting in some
very nervous Blackbird twitchers!) but this soon burned off leaving a lovely,
sunny day albeit with an increasing, cold NE wind producing an excellent Red-winged
Blackbird performance through the
day. With taxiing duties and breeding
wader surveys taking precedence, coverage was slightly reduced but it did seem
like there had been a bit of a clear-out of migrants as totals were much
reduced but did include a Sparrowhawk, 2 Kestrels, 2 Ring Ouzels, a Lesser
Whitethroat, 2 Whitethroats, 2 Blackcaps, 9 Chiffchaffs, 5 Willow Warblers and
a Brambling.
The
day’s star bird though, was a stunning summer plumaged Red-necked Grebe on the sea off Quoybanks in the morning – a bit of an
island mega, albeit the second of the year following one in Nouster in March. Waders also increased again, especially counts
of 152 Sanderling, 66 Dunlin and 379 Turnstone.
Tree Pipit, photo Simon Davies
Redpoll sp. photo Simon Davies
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