29th Apr

Seawatching was the order of the day with another mammoth 15hr session recorded. Overall numbers were not very high but there were some notable records including two Garganey, three Tufted Ducks, a Velvet Scoter, 309 Common Scoters, two Red-breasted Mergansers, 71 Grey Plovers, 95 Whimbrel, 84 Bar-tailed Godwits, a Common Sandpiper, 50 Knot, seven Little Terns, 44 Arctic Terns, a Roseate Tern, 14 Little Gulls, eight Arctic Skuas, 18 Pomarine Skuas and a Great Skua. 

The land produced a pair of flyover Little Ringed Plovers and just six Lesser Whitethroats.

However the highlight for many was a Minke Whale which moved east, close inshore at around 0900hrs. Ten Porpoise and two Grey Seals were also seen.

28th Apr

A lovely day but very quiet for birds. A mammoth ten-hour seawatching session produced just a Long-tailed Duck, 30 Arctic Terns, six Arctic Skuas, a Pomarine Skua of note. Barely a migrant to be seen on the land although a flock of ten Buzzards over the area and two Yellow Wagtails flew through.

Sixteen Porpoises and two Grey Seals were feeding offshore.

27th Apr

Migration seems to be at a very low level on both land and sea at the moment. A six-hour seawatch saw just three Red-breasted Mergansers, five Whimbrel, 57 Bar-tailed Godwits, four Mediterranean Gulls, 68 Sandwich Terns, three Arctic Skuas, two Great Skuas and a Great Northern Diver of any interest. It was very quiet on the land with just three Yellow Wagtails of note.

26th Apr

Bright and sunny conditions with a fresh NE breeze resulted in very little on the land and a steady easterly passage offshore. A 13hr seawatch from first light produced a Long-tailed Duck and a Puffin of note while numbers and backup were provided by 20 Shelduck, 143 Common Scoters, three Red-breasted Mergansers, 13 Grey Plovers, 63 Whimbrels, 1612 Bar-tailed Godwits, 153 Common Terns, 210 Sandwich Terns, 20 Little Gulls, five Arctic Skuas, a Great Skua, 12 Fulmars and 103 Gannets. 

It was very quiet on the land with our first Common Sandpiper of the year at the Long Pits, a Jay over the area and a small arrival of Lesser Whitethroats of interest.

Two Porpoises and a Grey Seal were feeding offshore.

25th Apr

A trickle of birds moved east during the morning but seawatching improved from mid-afternoon with a final total of 3787 Bar-tailed Godwits of note along with ten Shelduck, 11 Grey Plover, six Knot, 203 Whimbrel, 21 Little Terns, 48 Arctic Terns, 48 Little Gulls, two Arctic Skuas and a Black-throated Diver.

More Swallows passed through and a handful of Chiffchaffs arrived.

Two Porpoises and a Grey Seal were feeding offshore,

A Terrapin sp was seen at the Long Pits.

The first Blue-tailed Damselflies, Azure Damselflies and Hairy Dragonflies were seen.

24th Apr

Overcast conditions and a light NNE breeze failed to produce very much with a steady trickle of birds passing east offshore including three Shovelers, 15 Whimbrel, 328 Bar-tailed Godwits, three Little Terns, just singles of Great and Arctic Skuas and a Black-throated Diver of note. There was a small arrival of Lesser Whitethroats and a Garden Warbler on the land while a Greenshank flew over the Long Pits and 102 Swallows came in.

Three Porpoises were feeding offshore.

23rd Apr

With heavy rain and SE winds at first almost all the attention was offshore where 11 hrs of seawatching was achieved. Most of the birds were seen after the worst of the rain and included two Velvet Scoters, 966 Common Scoters, five Grey Plover, ten Whimbrel, 57 Bar-tailed Godwits, 19 Little Terns, eight Black Terns, 152 Arctic Terns, 260 Common Terns, 2612 "commic" Terns, 68 Little Gulls, 19 Arctic Skuas, four Pomarine Skuas, two Great Skuas, ten Black-throated Divers, 27 Fulmars, seven Manx Shearwaters and 681 Gannets. A Hobby also came in. A brief foray into the trapping area after the rain produced our first Garden Warbler of the year but very little else.

Two Porpoises and a Grey Seal were feeding offshore.

22nd Apr

A ringed White Stork flew over the area along with seven Buzzards. Nine hours of seawatching produced just 357 Common Scoters, 46 Bar-tailed Godwits, eight Knot, two Black Terns, four Arctic Skuas and a Great Skua. 

A Large Tortoiseshell butterfly was seen in the trapping area along with a Grizzled Skipper, a Brimstone and four Green-veined Whites. 

21st Apr

Six hours of seawatching produced 26 Arctic Terns, ten Little Gulls, two Mediterranean Gulls, 14 Arctic Skuas, a Pomarine Skuas and two Great Skuas of note. On the land, two Cuckoos were the first of the year and four Willow Warblers and three Yellow Wagtails were also seen.

Four Porpoises and a Grey Seal were feeding offshore.

20th Apr

A full day of seawatching in fresh NE winds produced 48 Oystercatchers, 54 Whimbrel, 790 Bar-tailed Godwits, a Black-tailed Godwit, a Little Tern, 407 Arctic Terns, 134 Common Terns, 421 "commic" Terns, 39 Little Gulls, six Mediterranean Gull, 15 Arctic Skuas, a Pomarine Skua, a Great Skua, three Black-throated Divers, five Manx Shearwaters and a Little Egret. A few passerines came in including 35 Swallows and a Yellow Wagtail.

Singles of Great and Common Seal and six Porpoises were feeding offshore.