Sunday 24th Septembr

A better day with the weather again, but really dry enough to allow the farmers to get their combines kittled up again...

Mike had been down at Frenchman's Rocks for a spell of sea watching, his tally came to 139 Gannets, 27 large Auks, 2 Wigeon, a Common Scoter  and a RTD. On his way back home he saw 2 Wheatears and also a male Hen Harrier. Out on Loch Indaal from his house in Port Charlotte, he saw 36 Common Scoter, 3 RTD, a BTD with over 50 Swallows hawking over the water. Mike also saw a Harbour Porpoise there as well. Here at home, there was a Wheatear on the garden wall this morning.

The above is an image of the Starlings which I took yesterday, I think my "count"  was rather low as there are the best part of 650 in this image alone, not counting the birds on the overhead wires...

WEdnesday 22nd March

Got a bit of a shock when I looked out the bedroom window this morning, not snow but the grass was white with frost which we do not get here that often...

This morning on the bird table we saw 3 Greenfinches, the first for a long time, in fact the first this winter...A Sparrowhawk zipped through the garden just after lunch. Later on, coming home a male Bullfinch flew into the trees beside Foreland House and a short while later on, a pair of Golden Eagles were added to the list. Over at The Woollen Mill, many Great Tits, Blue Tits, Coal Tits and Chaffinches were present on the feeders there, a great sight to see... I read last night that a Blue Tit was seen on Fair Isle, only the FOURTH ever record of one present there!!!

Gary today had 2 Siskin on his feeders at his house along the road from the turn off to Finlaggan. Along at Emeraconart, he had seen a Sparrowhawk. A visitor had been telling Gary of seeing a Wheatear at Machir Bay while Tom and Mike, the 2 longterm vols at Gruinart, had spotted 2 more Wheatears along at Saligo today as well.

Wednesday 23rd November

Gary had carried out his WeBS count from Bruichladdich round to Blackrock earlier this week, a great variety of birds seen, so here goes... 53 GND, 37 RTD, 21 R b Merganser, 48 Cormorant, 35 Shag, 40 Slav Grebe, 20 Guillemot, 22 Tystie, 164 Eider, 6 Common Scoter, 53 Oystercatcher, 15 Curlew, 1 Redshank, 1 Barwit, 105 Ringed Plover, 6 Dunlin, 30 Turnstone, 4 Purple Sandpiper, 9 Snipe, 14 GBB Gull, 195 H Gull, 152 C Gull, 52 BH Gull, 150 Barnies, 70 Greylag, 4 Heron & 19 Pale bellied Brent. Gary had gone to Machir Bay to look for the Little Egret, but no joy, instead he made do with 32 Ringed Plover, 30 Oystercatcher, 20 Twite, with 3 Snow Bunting in the dunes and then a Northern Wheatear in the field next to the car park!

Ciarin and his girlfriend Bex who works on the Isle of May, had seen a flock of 74 Whitefronts at Kilnaughton and then a further 340 at Cornabus valley. A juv. White tailed Eagle was spoofing the 64 Greylags closeby! From Blackrock, they counted 18 Scaup, 4 Long tailed Duck, 2 Goldeneye, 13 R b Merganser, 8 Wigeon, 2 Teal, 6 Sanderling, 1 Dunlin, 6 Ringed Plover, 124 Barwit, 164 Oystercatcher and 2 Curlew. Down at Bruichladdich,  4 Pale bellied Brent, 6 Purple Sandpiper, 2 Turnstone, 2 Ringed Plover, 2 Redshank & 25 Curlew were present.