22/10/2020

 .                            Merlin hunting over beach behind the fishing boats this morning

07.10-09.40 from the fishing boats with SP and AJG who collated the numbers:

Dark-bellied Brent Goose: 1E

Velvet Scoter: 1W drake

Common Scoter: 1W    2E

Red-throated Diver: 4W  

Gannet: 485W   

Cormorant: 680 pushed from Lade Bay by the Range Boats

Peregrine: 1 out

Merlin: 3 hunting around the beach

Sparrowhawk: 1 in off

Oystercatcher: 2W

Turnstone: 18E

Kittiwake: 2W

Black-headed Gull: 17W

Mediterranean Gull: 4W

Common Gull: 42W

Herring Gull: present n/c

Great Black-backed Gull: 149W

Lesser Black-backed Gull: present n/c

Sandwich Tern: 181W

Arctic Skua: 2 o/s

Great Skua: 1W

Razorbill: 9W

Skylark: 15N

Swallow: 31S

Alba Wagtail: 4 on beach

Rock Pipit: 2W

Goldfinch: 525W

Grey Seal: 1

Harbour Porpoise: 2+

Another 90 minutes at the fishing boats this afternoon was very poor with juat a handful of Terns and Gannets.

German ringed 3rd calendar year Caspian Gull preening moments before being flushed by another Merlin

Life history of the 3rd calendar year Caspian Gull that was in the roost by the track to the VC this afternoon. Also an adult Yellow-legged Gull present.

At Boulderwall the 2 Glossy Ibis and 3 Cattle Egrets were still present this afternoon, along with a Great White Egret. 4 Black-tailed Godwits on Burrowes were the only notable birds seen there.

The islands on the ARC are disappearing quite quickly, so no surprise that it was very quiet avian wise there.