1st-3rd May
It's been a superb few days here with winds swinging into the east and producing good early migrants with at least two species setting earliest spring records. A mixture of drifty conditions and hazy weather seemed to ground migrants en-masse on the 2nd and its been fairly full on birding from then on it.
The 1st was not the main event by any stretch but a smattering of Blackcaps, Chiffchaffs, Willow Warblers and a lone Pied Flycatcher were a sign of what would follow the next day.
The 2nd started off with a bit of a surprise in the shape of the islands 6th record of Great White Egret feeding in amongst the rocks on the beach behind Gretchen. Incidentally a tanker that had left from Bilbao a few days previous had not long passed the island making for a potentially interesting vagrancy route, but this could of course just be a coincidence, either a superb start to what would be a superb day! A few Lesser Whitethroats milling about and the first Red-backed Shrike of the year completed the morning. The day rumbled on and up until lunchtime things remained fairly quite, it wasn't until a Wryneck found at the observatory at about 2pm that it was clear what was about to happen. A second Wryneck was quickly followed by a third and then it seemed that all hell broke loose. A second Red-backed Shrike was at Brigg and the first Wood Warbler and Spotted Flycatchers of the year fell just minutes after. It was very clear at this point that something was happening, but perhaps a little later in the day than we would have liked. With some staff still out birding beyond 9pm it will go down as one of the best spring birding afternoons in recent years despite the limited coverage. It also saw us break a few records with the earliest Red-backed Shrike, Wood Warbler and Spotted Flycatcher by nearly a week.
The 3rd was met with keen anticipation and everyone headed out full of optimism and the day didn't disappoint, especially when you remember its the 3rd May! A third Red-backed Shrike was found at Rue but it was largely a day of sifting through Pied Flycatchers, Willow Warblers, Lesser Whitethroats and other expected migrants, both of the previous days Shrikes remained and between netting sessions and heliogoland trap rounds the observatory ringed 59 birds. It was also a day of unbroken sunshine which made birding pleasant and with plenty to see it was a highly enjoyable day all round. The final surprise of the day was an Icterine Warbler caught at dusk around the obs.
Another highly anticipated day followed on the 4th and again it was good birding, the previous days Icterine Warbler and now very long-staying Mediterranean Gull were still around the obs in the morning and a warm start to the day was abruptly ended as a big bank of fog rolled in from the north and put a stop on birds moving. It cleared in patches but for the most part the day remained shrouded in fog. There were no new additions to the year list but good numbers of commoner migrants kept interests alive with some cracking Wood Warblers at the southern end of the island, with plenty to sink our teeth into, however by 3pm the fog had set it properly making birding a difficult and soggy task.
The next few days seem to show a change in the wind so we will see what that brings!
Year List: 148
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