the twitching

Well, the autumn fizzled out without really ever getting started hereabouts! Haven't really been out and apart from a well-timed whooper swan from the jax, and a goldeneye on the lake, there's been nothing in the way of year tick action either (126).

So it was with great excitement and anticipation that I found myself on the shores of Lough Gill, County Kerry yesterday for a spot of dirty twitching. And the target? Ireland's 4th ever american coot, no less!

An american coot yesterday (not the bird on the right)

What. A. Bird. It was great! No really! I'd nearly say Awesome but thats frowned upon these days.

A good bit smaller than european coot, of which there were at least 13, so picking it out took a lot of skill and dedication. I noted the smaller shield,  more curved bill, and white undertails, which were surprisingly hard to see when the bird was actively diving, which it was a good bit. With a bit of time, all the key salient features could be seen, and all are visible in the above shot. I would say record shot but I'm too modest.

The male lesser scaup was nice too, but I'd run out of film by the time I got on it.

A grand afternoon out in the Kingdom altogether!

Mid-October

Blimey - a month since I've been on here! Apart from a rather bird-packed few days on Shetland, I've seen very little. Not that I haven't been out slogging round Galley most days, its just there's been very little to see. Thus far into October I've managed siskin and redpoll for the year at Galley. A bit pants. Until today.

With the wind finally in the south-east, I was quietly optimistic that there'd be a bit more around today. And so it proved, with a fine yellow-browed warbler gracing Shite Lane - its not a proper autumn without one of these on the patch! Dirk held very little, and I was struggling to find anything out on the head when two pipits flew over, one calling like a meadow pipit and one calling like a tree pipit (121). I was rather pleased with this. I reckon that was probably only about my 6th tree pipit in 10 years here - tricky enough, and easily less regular than YBW.

That was my lot for the day though, however, with the south-east wind due to pick up, and rain overnight I'm hoping there'll be a proper fall tomorrow! We shall see!

What I saw on my holidays

You've got a fat neck, fat neck

Out again for another slog round Galley - the wind was still in the east, but there'd still been no rain and I wasn't sure if there'd be much new in. Wandered down to "Sibechat corner", so-called because this once happened, and spotted a bird-shaped lump on the stone wall. Quick check with the bins and ker-ching - wryneck! Once he realised he'd been rumbled it flew off into a nearby garden but I was lucky enough to pick it up again a few minutes later, sunning itself on another wall. Fortunately KC was close enough to hand to be able to verify it for me. Although I had no camera, it looked a little like this...

Here's one i prepared earlier

Didn't manage to see a whole lot else - still 2 whinchats in the Shite Lane area, plus a couple of willow warblers and 4  wheatears knocking about. Still, a kwality mig at Galley is not to be sneezed at!

south-easterlies

After a week of east winds, and a few empty slogs around Galley, this morning looked more promising, with a bit of drizzle and low cloud around. It was obvious that there were more wheatears around, with at least 40 knocking around throughout the day. A few willow warblers and chiffchaffs were flicking around in the hedges, while a goldcrest and a sedge warbler were occupying the magic bush.

Bird of the day had to be the flyover osprey which appeared near sibechat corner and flew out over the sea, heading south-west out past the Galley light at 8.55am. An osprey was seen on Dursey today too, so I wonder if it was the same individual? Its about 80 km in a direct line, so I guess thats no great distance for a migrating raptor to travel. Only my second Galley record, and a finds tick for me!

Shortly after the osprey had disappeared, I banged into another kwality migrant, in the form of a pied flycatcher. Again, this was flitting about in a hedge, suggesting it was not long arrived. Couldn't find anything rarer in the hedges tho, and with a spotted flycatcher in the Shite Lane sycamores, that was my lot for the day. Bit galling to discover that I missed a whinchat in the garden while in town between thrashing the place for migs, but its good that the winds are finally starting to produce some bits and bobs at last! Let's see what next weeks easterlies blow in!

A sedge warbler, yesterday (ish)

bleary

Back for more after the school run this am, but very little doing in comparison to last night. Managed to glean half a dozen each of cory's shearwaters and great shearwaters, with 8 sooty shearwaters too. But nothing else really doing.

Headed back up again this evening, as I'd convinced myself that the wind hadn't swung round to the west and was glad I did as a fine balearic shearwater flew by nice and close. Very welcome for the year list (109).