Friday 12 August 2011

The Hangover

Well here we are, the proverbial hangover, or day after the one before.

There wasn’t much (or anything) new on the land with 2 Wheatear, 2 Whinchat, 2 Garden Warbler, 2 Willow Warbler and 1 Pied Flycatcher all providing better views in the dryer conditions.

Pied Fly chilling in the sun.

Willow Warbler 'looking rare'.

However the sea was where the actions at, with an incontinent trickle of birds passing including 5 Wigeon, 4 Teal, 8 Common Scoter and 5 Arctic Skua. Later in the day wader passage reared it’s frustratingly distant head with 1 Greenshank west, 37 Golden Plover west while the shores held 180 Knot, 2 Whimbrel, 8 Curlew and 4 Purple Sandpipers.

Warden life has changed a lot since my last update on these matters with management work being the main occupation currently. That is strim, strim, rake, strim, rake, discuss, strim, rake. But it’s looking awesome and we’re making great progress (I think!).

The courtyard is sorted, bar the thistle which have been left for nectar and seed.

Check out our piles....of grass. Pied Fly has used it already, will the next species be Red-backed Shrike?

Having been closed due to bad weather (and therefore cut off from civilisation if you can call it that cf riots), today was extremely busy with lots of people eagerly running off boats ready for Puffins – there isn’t any. This makes the job of entertaining them pretty difficult! But there’s plenty to see birdwise in the form of the aforementioned migrant species; however they’re perhaps less charismatic than our parrot-billed friends.


Under-rated:  Red Admiral underwing.

Tonight I trap moths with big light (said in caveman voice). Wonder what we’ll get.


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