21st January

Arrived back on the island on the middle flight  where it was bright and dry with a brisk, cold SW wind; the highlights of a few hours round the south of the island included the drake Green-winged Teal on Gretchen where there were also 2 Shelduck, 7 Shoveler, and 3 Pintail, an adult Eurasian White-fronted Goose and 2 Pink-footed Geese with the Greylags and 2 Hen Harriers floating around while over-wintering Passerines lingering from last year included c88 Twite, 3 Common Redpolls, 5 Chaffinches, 9 Skylark, a Meadow Pipit, 2 Fieldfare, a Redwing and 42 Snow Buntings.  

                Other birds included 5 Red-throated Divers, 3 Great-northern Divers, 5 Long-tailed Ducks, 239 Golden Plover, c25 Dunlin, 47+ Curlew and 52+ Redshank.   A little drive up the island as it was getting dark then produced 2 Whooper Swans, another Shelduck and Pink-footed Goose, 4 Gadwall and another 20 Snow Buntings at Bewan.

Green-winged Teal                                    Simon Davies

Fulmars were all around the coast playing in the wind