hammer time

Still quiet at Galley this morning, with spotted flycatcher and a couple of chiffchaffs  knocking about shite lane, plus a yellowhammer over there, which was only my 2nd of the year. A male blackcap was down marsh lane.

lesser whitey

Today's new migrant was a lesser whitethroat in the blue house garden, with yesterday's spotted flycatcher, blackcap and a few chiffchaffs knocking around shite lane.

ybw

Only time for a quick look at galley this am, but scored the first yellow browed warbler of the autumn in sycamores by shite lane crossroads, with a spotted flycatcher and a blackcap also there, and then jammed a brent goose on the beach at Long Strand briefly on the way home (127) - result!

rosefinch

Warmer this morning but still quiet, with a male blackcap and a chiffchaff in Dirk, and 1 willow warbler, 1 whitethroat and a few siskins & redpoll over at Shite Lane. An immature male rosefinch was seen and heard singing a bit at Strawtown before flying towards Ardfield.

breakback!

Quiet again at Galley this am, with just 1 whitethroat, 1 willow warbler, 1 chiffchaff and a few siskins knocking about. Things improved later when a fine brace of coal tits flew over the garden at lunchtime, straight onto the patch year list (125).

jays on the move

A flock of 5 jays flew south over Galley this morning (123), before bailing out and heading back inland again - that's only the second time I've seen them here, but both times have been in autumn. I've seen magpies doing the same kind of thing in autumn, in big flocks of 50-60 birds. They head right to the lighthouse and then turn round and fly all the way back inland again - why do they do do that?

Otherwise, it was quiet on the mig front, with 3 wheatears, 2 willow warblers, 1 chiffchaff and a few goldcrests. A 1st w med gull was at Long Strand this morning. and a green sandpiper flew over the house mid-morning - bonus year tick (124).

a few more migs

A few more things around this morning - at least 7 wheatears, 1 chiffchaff, 1 willow warbler, 2 redpoll and a sedge warbler were knocking about shite lane.

hen harrier

A ringtail hen harrier heading south over Long Strand being pursued by a gaggle of corvids was a bit of a surprise first thing (122). Elsewhere it was quiet in a brisk northerly, with 1 golden plover and 2 siskins over.

coal tit dip

Dipping on a coal tit at the top of Dirk Bay this morning could prove costly for the year list challenge - there aren't many at Galley in a year. Consoled myself with a flyover golden plover (121), chiffchaff, c15 siskin, and 2 redpoll over. A late swift and a white wagtail were seen this afternoon.

long tails

Seemed pretty quiet this morning around Galley, although a party of 12 long tailed tits knocking about Marsh Lane livened things up a bit (120).  Mig-wise there was only 2 wheatears and 2 siskins over, plus a collared dove over too. A lapwing at Long Strand this evening was only the second one seen this year.

back to earth

A 3 hour morning slog revealed a skulking pied flycatcher and a chiffchaff at shite lane, 2 blackcaps (m & f) down marsh lane and at least 3 willow warblers in dirk.

good to be back

Another calm & still morning produced 1 chiffchaff, 1 willow warbler, 1 male blackcap, a couple of goldcrests and 2 siskins over. All a bit different from the last 2 days at Spurn where we were bumping into heaps of redstarts, pied flycatchers, whinchats, tree pipits, lesser whitethroats, 2 wrynecks and a red-backed shrike. These are all species that you don't read about on here very often (or at all, in the case of rb shrike) but, I know where I'd rather be!

 

Late pm news of an american redstart at mizen prompted a swift twitch down there, just in time for very brief views of it up the top of a tree. It fanned its tail, revealing the all-important yellow panels before flicking off, and we couldn't find it again before dusk!

more year ticks

A sunny, calm morning looking for migs produced 2 reed warblers - 1 at shite lane & 1 in the gulley down "marsh" lane. A flyover siskin was also new for the year (119), with 2 wheatears also knocking about. A melodious warbler was found at Red Strand this pm, with a reed warbler there, and 2 more reed warblers at Strawtown, and a spotted flycatcher in Dirk Bay.

another fea's

A "gorgeous but distant" fea's petrel was seen off Galley Head this morning, at about 8.15, landing twice on its way through.  Also seen throughout the day were 2 long-tailed skuas, 5 cory's shearwaters, 10 great shearwaters, 7 sabine's gull, 2 balearic shearwater, 110 sooty shearwaters, 28 bonxie, 8 arctic skuas, 1 pomarine skua and 200 storm petrels.

not much at sea

One arctic skua and a minke whale seen in an hour this evening off Galley. Two pied flycatchers were present, one at Shite Lane and one in Dirk Bay.

ooo migrants

Caught up with yesterday's pied flycatcher at shite lane this morning (117). Loads of finches knocking about marsh lane but didn't manage anything better than a couple of sedge warblers.

sorted for sanderling

A flock of 90 sanderling on Long Strand this afternoon was a relief for the patch year list (116). Continuing the wader theme, 1 bar-tailed godwit and 3 black-tailed godwits were in amongst the curlew flock around Kilkeran Lake too. A juvenile pectoral sandpiper was in Clonakilty Bay this evening, with dunlin on the shore near the turn-off to the cul-de-sac pool, while Clogheen had 3 ruff.