September 2018

Not a lot happened on the bird front in October-December. We did a bat catch in the Nailsworth mines on 11 November, and had a walk in Velvet Bottom on 17th November.

29th. Red kite around Table Mountain, Crickhowell.

15th. Juvenile grey phalarope at Cheddar Reservoir.

11th. A calm return journey in murky conditions on the Scillonian. Lots of common dolphins, including distant ones leaping out of the water. 2 great shearwaters and a common snipe seen during mid-crossing.

10th. Raven at Innisidgen, 2 spotted flycatchers Lower Moors. Then an American wader day: juvenile pectoral sandiper on Port Hellick Pool. In the evening we were walking through Old Town when a report came in of 2 buff-breasted sandpipers on the airfield. We headed to see them and got some nice views on a chamomile lawn.

8th. 3 flying common scoter offshore and a spotted flycatcher at Carn Friars.

7th. Our favourite local spot is Pelistry Bay. It's great to listen to the grey seals calling there while Hetty does her oil painting. Heard whimbrel there (and at Porthloo in the evening), and a I heard peregrine from the Kaffehaus. We watched the sunset before dinner at Juliet's Garden.

6th. Kiara found a convolvulus hawk moth on her bike at Lower Moors. Some tame snipe from the hide here. I had a brief glimpse of what was almost certainly a spotted crake at Porth Hellick, and saw a kingfisher there too.

In the evening I went on my second pelagic trip of the holiday, and we sailed 7 miles SE of St Mary's. We saw 7 great and 10 sooty shearwaters (feeding near a few tuna), about 10 storm petrels, 3 bonxies, a pale phase Arctic skua, 2 Mediterranean gulls, and about 10 common dolphins. the fishermen caught and tagged a huge porbeagle and 3 blue sharks.

5th. St Agnes. I found a barred warbler near Nags Head. This is the first one I'd seen in Britain, although I heard one skulking in a bush in Norfolk some years ago. Whinchat also present.

4th. Bryher day.

3rd. I cycled over a brown rat on my way to Hugh town. Today's target was the first winter CITRINE WAGTAIL at Lower Moors. I opened the hide shutters, and there it was! I've seen the species before in China, but this was a first for me in the UK. In the evening we cycled to the orchard near Porth Hellick to eventually catch up with a hoopoe. Two spotted flycatchers and 2 whinchats also there. Spectacular Milky Way and shooting stars at night.

1st. St Marys, Scilly. Spotted flycatcher on walk to Porthloo, Mediterranean gull juvenile Porthcressa, sparrowhawk through Porthmellon. We walked from via Holy Vale to Porth Hellick and Pelistry and saw 2 pied flycatchers above Porth Hellick.