hanging in there

Birding with a hangover is not easy. I'd optimistically left all my gear out ready downstairs so I'd be straight out the door at first light but imbibery of the black stuff the night before put paid to that (4.5 measly pints - disgraceful!) However, I still wasn't up to much a couple of hours later and it wasn't till news of some rares in the south-west came in that I finally got my act together and got in amongst it on patch.  The previous days south-easterlies didn't seem to have brought that much in, but I did manage to stumble into a turtle dove.

A half-arsed scan of the curlew flock by the lake late pm produced a black-tailed godwit (118), which I thought was quite impressive given my still banging hangover! I'm never drinking (murphys) again etc etc.

caps

Flat calm in Dirk Bay this morning so was hopeful of stumbling into something. Four blackcaps (116) and a willow warbler wasn't quite what I had in mind, but better than the usual great tits (which were also still there).

Also discovered I'd forgotton to tick off common scoter earlier in the year - bonus! (117).

twitchy sab's!

After two days of huge south-westerlies and bugger all seabirds (too windy?) news of a juvenile sabine's gull hanging about on patch was most welcome. It was quite a big twitch in the end with 7 people there at its height, and kev even got out of the car (though he was scanning from inside it with the window up when we got there - what's that all about?)

A scan of the seaweed strewn lagoon at Long Strand produced another year tick this evening in the form of turnstone - two in a day, I'm on fire! (115).

all the b's

Another Seatrack morning so up to Galley with the lark. Conditions were once again flat calm, as they've been pretty much every survey morning, still we stuck it out for 2 hours. Highlight waa 2 great shearwaters, one of which was nice and close, plus 5 sooty shearwaters and 3 bonxies. However, the reward came on the way back when a fine bar-tailed godwit flew over calling (113).  Think this was about my 5th for Galley, where waders are never easy. All good.

Back up to the light for the IWDG Whalewatch Day this afternoon. A good turnout, with probably over 200 people there over the afternoon. Not much fish action, but a distant blowing fin whale was seen by quite a few folk.  Better than that was a balearic shearwater, which snuck past with a few manxies, while everyone was looking for blubber (114).  Three sooties and a handful of storm petrels was the rest of it.  However two year ticks in a day at this time of year has to be good!

the autumn starts here!

A puff of south-eaterlies mid-morning so I dragged the bike out of the shed for the first autumnal visit to Shite Lane. Its looking really good just now, with loads of birds jumping around - mostly sparrows and finches but must drag in a rosefinch this year - fingers crossed!

A goldcrest in the sycamores turned out to be a year tick (112), while a willow warbler was also knocking about - a taste of things to come...