RBF

So being as it was blowing a 50mph southerly gale, I thought that I would head out onto the 'Island' for a seawatch, besides hundreds of Gannets, after 3 hours all I had seen was 15 Black-tailed Godwits, so I headed back home. I had already checked the garden a few times this morning - 1 Goldcrest and a female Blackcap, so I wasn't expecting much when I checked it again, and there in front of the kitchen window - Red-breasted Flycatcher, the 3rd record for the garden and only the 4th I've seen at Scatness.

Red-breasted Flycatcher

Black-tailed Godwits

New Birds

South-easterlies overnight, but it was late afternoon before any birds turned up, and then it was just a small fall. Thrashed the patch between 4pm and 8pm  - 3 Willow Warbler, 1 Garden Warbler, 1 Lesser Whitethroat, 1 Pied Flycatcher, 12 Black-tailed Godwit and a Ruff.

Black-tailed Godwits

Pied Flycatcher

Willow Warbler

After the storm

After a few days of gale force westerlies, checked the patch for any waders - Little Stint and 2 Ruff on the Loch and a Black-tailed Godwit in one of the fields.

Black-tailed Godwit

Geese

Out on the patch in the first south-easterly that has coincided with my time off work, I managed to get a good couple of hours patching before the rain came in. Although birding was difficult at times in the 50mph winds, there were still quite a few migrants about - 11 Song Thrush, 3 Goldcrest, 7 Blackcap, 4 Wheatear, 1 Brambling, 1 Swallow and a Woodcock. A bit of a surprise was 295 Pink-footed Geese and 131 Barnacle Geese all on the deck at the back of the Loch, also a bit unusual was a Black-tailed Godwit in front of the house.

Blackcap

Black-tailed Godwit

Barnacle Geese

Pink-footed Geese

Wheatear

History

A few shots from the patch taken earlier this week.

Black-tailed Godwits

Short-eared Owl

Find Tick, Patch Tick, Year Tick

Light winds all day so there had to be something on the patch, the day started quite well with 8 Greenfinch in the garden (until the postman sent them packing), then, for some reason, I decided to do my usual walk around the patch in reverse today, starting at Sanblister beach. The beach held the usual 2 Redshank along with a fly by Red-breasted Merganser, next stop was Scord beach, after walking through the dune remnants, 3 small waders flew in and landed briefly - 2 Ringed Plovers and something a lot smaller, as soon as I raised my bins they took flight - 2 Ringed Plover and a White-rumped Sandpiper ! I managed a few record shots and the phoned POV, who relocated the Sandpiper on Virkie 30 minutes later. The rest of the patch was a bit of a disappointment after that - 3 Blackcaps, a Lesser Whitethroat, a Merlin, 2 Whooper Swans, a single Redwing and 3 Black-tailed Godwits.

White-rumped Sandpiper

Blackcap

Black-tailed Godwits

Greenfinch

New Arrivals

The south east gales from the last couple of days have finally blew themselves out, replaced today with a light (ish) southerly with some rain - the result - a fresh set of migrants on the patch. Totals for today - 1 Chaffinch, 1 Redstart, 1 Yellow-browed Warbler, 4 Blackcap, 5 Goldcrest, 5 Robin, 8 Song Thrush, 4 Wheatear, 6 Redwing, 1 Dunnock, 1 Reed Bunting, 3 Black-tailed Godwits, 46 Lapwing, a Water Rail and a Moorhen. Meanwhile, there's a Thick-billed Warbler at Geosetter and I just can't be arsed going for it - seen plenty in India and had porno views of the spring bird on Fair Isle in 2003.

Black-tailed Godwits

The 2003 Thick-billed Warbler on Fair Isle - photo courtesy of F.I.B.O.

Back to normality

With the wind now firmly in the west, it's not that surprising that the patch has quietened down somewhat, although I have still got a Yellow-browed Warbler and a Goldcrest in the garden along with a colour ringed Starling, presumably from Fair Isle. A walk around all the sheltered bits on the patch added 2 Wheatears and 3 Song Thrush, and on the beaches were 2 each of Little Stint, Black-tailed Godwit and Sanderling.

Black-tailed Godwits

Little Stints

Colour Ringed Starling

Here they come...

Some migrants at last and no westerly wind (no wind at all in fact !), The first bird of the day was a Yellow-browed Warbler in the garden, quickly joined by a second bird and a Lesser Whitethroat, a Reed Warbler and another Lesser Whitethroat were in the private plantation along with a flyover Lapland Bunting, out around the Loch the Little Stint and Black-tailed Godwit remain.

Yellow-browed Warblers

Reed Warbler

Little Stint and Sanderling

Black-tailed Godwit

Blown

Not only has the patch been blown to pieces with the wind, my computer has now blown the hard drive - disaster, I'm currently using a 10 year old laptop ! Anyway, down to earth and back on the patch, there at least seem to be more waders knocking about now, with 8 Knot, 18 Dunlin and the resident Black-tailed Godwit, not a lot else beside a Guillemot sheltering off Moast Beach.

Black-tailed Godwit

Guillemot

Black Wits

Despite a northerly wind, got up this morning to find Willow Warbler and Pied Flycatcher in the garden, inspired by this went out and checked the rest of the patch - sod all ! The only things of note were 12 Black-tailed Godwits and a single Wigeon (the first returning bird of the autumn).

Black-tailed Godwits

More Waders

Waders on the patch today included 1 Whimbrel, 10 Ruff, 3 Common Sandpipers, 9 Black-tailed Godwits and 60 Knot, migrant passerines present were 5 Willow Warblers, juv Crossbill and a Garden Warbler.

Black-tailed Godwits (with Knot)

Common Sandpiper

Black Wits

After the fog had cleared, went out onto the patch, and there were new birds in. 7 Willow Warblers, 1 Whinchat, 1 Garden Warbler and a Lesser Whitethroat were around various gardens, and a Ruff, 2 Common Sandpipers and 6 Black-tailed Godwits were on the beaches.

Black-tailed Godwits

Hyperborea.

Despite a reasonable thaw setting in over the weekend, today it was back to normal, with more snow coming in. A fairly decent few hours on the patch - the Water Rail was still in the ditch before doing its usual trick and running up a drainage pipe, the Glaucous Gull is still about and showing pretty well (in daylight this time !), 175 Greylags are now in the field in front of the house and 42 Wigeon are on the sea, surprise of the day was a Black-tailed Godwit in with the Lapwings.

Glaucous Gull.

Black-tailed Godwit.

Greylag Geese.