| 1st |
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A
sickly Great Skua was found on the beach at
the fishing boats were four Little Gulls
were also feeding along the tideline and 80 Red-throated
Divers and 60 Kittiwakes passed
through.
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Click for larger
image
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A Black Redstart
was seen at the Old Lighthouse Garden.
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| 2nd |
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120
Red-throated Divers and 90 Dunlin
flew west and a Little Gull and three
first-winter Yellow-legged Gulls were
feeding at the fishing boats. |
| 3rd |
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A first-winter Glaucous
Gull was feeding at the beach below the
shingle-shifting lorries and then roosting on the
Point for a while before heading inland. What was
presumably the same bird was later seen dropping
into a large roost of gulls on the open shingle near
the Open Pits. Four Little Gulls were also
feeding along the tideline and good numbers of Red-throated
Divers, Kittiwakes and Guillemots
and were feeding and/or passing through offshore.
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| 4th |
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The first-winter Glaucous
Gull was feeding at the fishing boats again
where it gave excellent views. A first-winter Yellow-legged
Gull and two Little Gulls were also seen.
Large numbers of Red-throated Divers, 238 Common
Scoters and Guillemots moved west and at
least 220 Great Crested Grebes were feeding
offshore.
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Click for larger
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| 5th |
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Three Little Gulls
were feeding off the fishing boats again but there
was no sign of the Glaucous Gull. Very little
else to be seen.
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| 7th |
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Limited recorded
coverage but three Little Gulls were feeding
at the fishing boats again and 500 Kittiwakes
flew west in a couple of hours in the afternoon.
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| 8th |
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A second-winter Yellow-legged
Gull was the only bird of interest.
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| 9th |
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Three Little Gulls
and two Yellow-legged Gulls were feeding at
the fishing boats.
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| 10th |
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Another wet and windy
morning produced very little offshore. There were
about 100 Gannets feeding behind a couple of
fishing trawlers and a first-winter Little Gull
was feeding along the tideline along with a high
total of 101 Turnstones.
Two Goldcrests
were seen in the trapping area.
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| 11th |
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A day of severe winds
and heavy rain reduced observations to a couple of
looks at the sea where the three Little Gulls
were feeding along the tideline again but no sign
anything moving through.
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| 12th |
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Still very windy with
plenty of rain and no change in the birds with just
two of the usual Little Gulls feeding at the
fishing boats.
Of interest, this
image of Comet McNaught was taken on the
evening of 10th at about 1715hrs.
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Click for larger
image |
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| 13th |
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Little to be seen except
for a westward trickle of Red-throated Divers
and auks and a Knot amongst the Turnstones
on the beach.
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| 14th |
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A second-winter Caspian
Gull was seen, in flight only, around the
fishing boats in the afternoon along with two adult Mediterranean
Gulls. Large numbers of Great Crested Grebes
and Guillemots and smaller numbers of Razorbills
were also seen.
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Click for larger images
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A small party of Long-tailed
Tits was also seen at the Long Pits and a Black
Redstart was at the railway station.
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| 15th |
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There were three
first-winter Little Gulls off the fishing
boats in the morning and an adult Mediterranean
Gull there in the afternoon. There was very
little in the way of passage but there were at least
30 Red-throated Divers and 550 Great
Crested Grebes feeding offshore at low water and
106 Turnstones on the beach.
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| 16th |
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An adult Mediterranean
Gull was the only notable bird.
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| 17th |
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A first-winter Little
Gull was the only notable bird on another wet
and windy day.
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| 18th |
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Appalling weather for
much of the day with Force 12 winds and torrential
rain at times during the morning. The only birds
moving offshore were 154 Fulmars and 140 Kittiwakes
west in three hours. An adult Little Gull was
feeding offshore for a time in the afternoon.
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| 19th |
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Other than a
considerable improvement in the weather there was
nothing to report except for a Merlin.
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| 20th |
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A Peregrine Falcon
and a Great Skua were the only notable birds.
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| 21st |
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An adult Mediterranean
Gull was feeding offshore and a Barn Owl
was hunting around the Observatory after dark.
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| 22nd |
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A second-winter Mediterranean
Gull was feeding offshore and 95 Brent Geese
flew east.
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| 23rd |
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A third-winter Caspian
Gull and a second-winter Mediterranean Gull were
on the beach below the fishing boats in the morning.
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| 24th |
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Two Chiffchaffs
were seen in the Old Lighthouse garden.
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| 25th |
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Three Fieldfares
and a Redwing around the Observatory were the
only evidence of any cold weather movement.
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| 26th |
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Large numbers of birds
feeding offshore with 40 Red-throated Divers,
at least 880 Great Crested Grebes, 100 Gannets
and 200 Guillemots but the only auks
appearing to actually go through were 150 Razorbills.
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| 28th |
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A Red-necked Grebe
flew west along with 120 Razorbills in an
hour and a Chiffchaff was
seen in the Old Lighthouse garden.
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| 29th |
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A Great Skua was
seen offshore and 145 Brent Geese flew east
in an hour during the afternoon.
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| 30th |
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A Chiffchaff was
seen in the Old Lighthouse garden.
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| 31st |
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A Marsh Harrier
flew south and out to sea and a Chiffchaff
was seen again in the Old Lighthouse garden.
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