4th - 7th March

The weather seems to have finally broken! Another very windy day on 4th gave way to a light breeze and sunshine by 6th and 7th, allowing for some much needed outdoor jobs to be completed.

Bird wise, 4th was very quiet, with no new additions to the year list and the only bird of note being the remaining Long-billed Dowitcher on Ancum. An evening of dazzling produced a Common Gull, Turnstone, Lapwing, Snipe, Oystercatcher, and a re-trap Curlew.

On 5th there were notably more Skylark present on the island. with a total of 177 recorded in just two census areas. A Lesser Black-backed Gull on Gretchen was the first of the year, and the Long-billed Dowitcher was still present on Ancum.

Another year-tick on 6th came in the form of a male Stonechat at Brigg, and the Chaffinch that has over-wintered around the obs crop was also noted. Skylark numbers remained fairly high, with a group of c.85 in the Nether Linnay stubble field. And as always, the Long-billed Dowitcher remained. 

The 7th was a day for outdoor jobs to be completed, with the compost heap wall that had blown down over the winter being reinstated, and the first of the mist nets being put up in Holland. A few net rides and paths had to be cleared to allow us to get the nets in, but this is always expected after a winter without TLC. An evening nets session produced a few Blackbirds, Redwing, and Song Thrush, with an over-wintering re-trap Robin also caught. The surprise of the evening came when a female Merlin was trapped just as we were closing the nets. Elsewhere, Pied Wagtail was added to the year list, with a bird at Hooking and two birds at Holland.

Common Gull (Maddy Hine)

Merlin (Maddy Hine)

Long-billed Dowitcher (Maddy Hine)