Black-tailed Godwits!

This evenings Glaucous Gull by the fish hut found by Dave Bunney

Probably my last silly o clock sea watch of the spring started well but soon died as the visibility deteriorated causing some unusual optical illusions that had fishing boats seemingly suspended in the sky.

The highlight for me was the 2 flocks (90 & 80)  of Black-tailed Godwits that flew high west, I have absolutely no idea where they were going.

05.00-10.00 with AJG, DS, MH,CP et al
Shelduck: 2E
Shoveler: 1E
Garganey: 2E
Common Scoter: 132E
Red-throated Diver: 4E
Great-crested Grebe: 29 around
Fulmar: 2E   1W
Manx Shearwater: 7E    2W
Gannet: 32E     24W
Oystercatcher: 9E
Grey Plover: 6E
Sanderling: 34E
Whimbrel: 25E
Bar-tailed Godwit: 21E
Black-tailed Godwit: 170W  (flocks of 90 & 80)
Arctic Skua: 5E
Pomarine Skua: 4E @ 05.15
Kittiwake: 12E
Sandwich Tern: 407E
Common/Arctic Tern: 823E
Little Tern: 41E
Swallow: 5 in
Harbour Porpoise: 10+
Grey Seal: 1
A short stop at the ARC was again disappointing due to the lack of summer migrants, where are they all! A Cuckoo was again on the wires opposite my house but no sign of the Yellow Wagtails that usually nest in the field.
A short visit to the sea watch hide this afternoon to collect a chair saw 2 flocks of Oystercatchers totalling c50 birds fly west, an Arctic Skua marauding off shore and an Osprey, unfortunately the latter was an American aircraft.
This evening Dave Bunney found a juvenile Glaucous Gull at the fish hut, many thanks to him for getting the news out to the locals so quickly.
It seems that another 5 or 6 Pomarine Skuas were seen this afternoon.
With a few days left of the Pomarine Skua season, it seems that it is going to be a poor year them, I personally have managed to see 50 birds so far, well short of last years personal total of 249.

This evenings Glaucous Gull