Sedge Warblers continue move through

29th July 2014 – overcast/rain at times W3/4
Offshore
Slightly more variety than of late with 142 Common Scoter, 16 Gannet, 14 Sandwich Tern and 2 Little Tern logged.
Wildfowl and Waders
The Pintail remains and waders included Greenshank and Common Sandpiper.
Ringing
The single mist net erected across the small wetland area continues to provide extraordinary numbers of Sedge Warbler with over 115 individuals now identified over a 10 day period.
Moths
The trap held 318 moths of 61 species with the highlight the first Dark Marbled Carpet for 10 years.

Low key migration

26th July 2014 – sunny spells E2
Wildfowl and Waders
The 2 Shoveler and single Pintail remain and waders included 7 Black-tailed Godwit and 2 Common Sandpiper.
Grounded Migrants
A few Willow Warbler continue to trickle through.
Diurnal Migration
Again a few southbound Swift were logged.
Miscellaneous
Little Egrets continue to stalk the eastern shore and the hirundine roost held 250 Swallow and 30 Sand Martin.

Returning Wheatear and Sand Martin control

25th July 2014 – bright and sunny W2
Offshore
Offshore sightings provided 10 Sandwich Tern, 10 Little Tern and 9 Common Scoter.
Grounded Migrants
The first returning Wheatear were logged and Willow Warbler and Whitethroat trickled through.
Diurnal Migration
A few Swift continue to trickle through.
Wildfowl and Waders
Wildfowl included 2 Shoveler and the long-staying Pintail while waders included 4 Black-tailed Godwit, 3 Whimbrel and a Common Sandpiper.
Miscellaneous
At least one Water Rail remains and the hirundine roost held 450 Swallow and 50 Sand Martin.
Ringing
Amongst a small catch of Sand Martin was a control - the first for the island.
Moths
A total of 325 moths of 63 species were attracted to the light trap with Dunbar new for the year.

Little Ringed Plover reappears

24th July 2014 – bright and sunny E2/3
Offshore
A flock of 30 Little Tern were feeding offshore early evening.
Grounded Migrants
Willow Warbler continue to trickle through.
Diurnal Migration
A few Swift continue to trickle through.
Wildfowl and Waders
Waders included single Little Ringed Plover, Common Sandpiper, Greenshank along with 11 Black-tailed Godwit and 4 Whimbrel.
Ringing
An exceptional 88 Sedge Warbler have been ringed so far this month.
Moths
Broad bordered Yellow Underwing and Straw Underwing were new for the year.

Moths provide the main interest

21st July 2014 – bright and sunny NW1/2
Offshore
Early morning observations produced 70 Little Tern and 14 Common Scoter.
Grounded Migrants
Another Willow Warbler was logged.
Wildfowl and Waders
Waders included 30 Grey Plover and 2 Common Sandpiper.
Moths
The light trap attracted 515 moths of 60 species overnight with Evergestis pallidata the highlight.
Images
Evergestis pallidata.

Little Terns and Arctic Skua

20th July 2014 – sunny spells NW1/2
Offshore
Slightly more activity than of late (0800-0900) provided 70 Little Tern, 70 Sandwich Tern, 28 Common Scoter, 20 Gannet, 7 Arctic Tern, 2 Kittiwake and a dark phase Arctic Skua.
Grounded Migrants
A solitary Willow Warbler was logged.
Wildfowl and Waders
Waders included a Little Ringed Plover and 3 Common Sandpiper amongst 75 Dunlin, 20 Sanderling and 15 Grey Plover.
Miscellaneous
Single Stock Dove and Little Egret were logged.
Images
Sand Martin – a rather infrequent visitor to the ringing hut.

Sedge Warbler control

19th July 2014 – rain at times
Offshore
A group of 12 Little Tern provided the offshore highlight.
Grounded Migrants
A solitary Willow Warbler provided evidence of movement.
Diurnal Migration
Small numbers of Swift continue to move through.
Wildfowl and Waders
Waders included 4 Whimbrel and 2 Common Sandpiper.
Ringing
A single mist net erected across the small wetland area continues to provide extraordinary numbers of Sedge Warbler with over 60 individuals now identified including a control with ring sequence Y470*** .
Moths
The trap held 529 moths of 88 species but only Narrow-winged Pug was new for the year although a Buff form Poplar Hawkmoth was interesting.

Little Egrets begin to build

17th July 2014 – sunny spells W1/2
Offshore
Morning observations (0730-0830) again only produced small numbers of Gannet, Arctic Tern, Sandwich Tern and Common Scoter.
Wildfowl and Waders
Waders included 15 Whimbrel and single Common Sandpiper and Black-tailed Godwit.
Miscellaneous
Little Egrets increased to 4 birds.
Moths
The trap held 577 moths of 65 species including 165 Dark Arches and 113 Large Yellow Underwing while Bordered Sallow was new for the year.

Nothing new!

16th July 2014 – rain at times
Offshore
Early morning observations again proved to be very disappointing with just small numbers of Gannet, Manx Shearwater, Sandwich Tern and Common Scoter recorded.
Diurnal Migration
Small numbers of Swift moved through.
Wildfowl and Waders
Waders included 6 Greenshank, 3 Common Sandpiper and 2 Black-tailed Godwit.
Miscellaneous
A single Little Egret was logged.

Sedge Warblers have a good breeding season

15th July 2014 – bright and sunny NW4/3/2/1
Offshore
Early morning observations proved to be very disappointing with just 4 Gannet recorded.
Wildfowl and Waders
The drake Pintail remains in residence and waders included 7 Black-tailed Godwit, 3 Whimbrel and a Common Sandpiper.
Ringing
An evening visit to a small wetland area on the island to target a newly formed Swallow and Pied Wagtail roost also revealed a healthy Sedge Warbler population with 31 birds trapped and ringed.
Moths
Overnight rain dampened the attraction to the light trap though The Crescent was new for the year.

Whimbrel and Curlew return in force

13th July 2014 – sunny spells NW3/4/5
Offshore
Morning observations provided 116 Manx Shearwater, 72 Common Scoter, 50 Gannet, 40 Little Tern, 16 Sandwich Tern and a Red-breasted Merganser
Wildfowl and Waders
A total of 27 Whimbrel were amongst 2390 Curlew while the drake Pintail and 6 Black-tailed Godwit remain.
Miscellaneous
Several Little Egret have now returned to the island’s saltmarshes.
Moths
A quieter night than of late with just 278 moths of 72 species recorded – highlights involved the first V Pug of the year.

Water Rail breeding confirmed

12th July 2014 – overcast SE1
Offshore
There was little evidence of movement early morning (0645-0745) with just 10 Common Scoter, 5 Gannet and single Sandwich Tern and Kittiwake logged.
Grounded Migrants
A few Chiffchaff and Willow Warbler are beginning to head south.
Diurnal Migration
Again a trickle of birds were in evidence with 12 Swift, 7 Sand Martin and a Grey Wagtail logged.
Wildfowl and Waders
The drake Pintail is now moulting into eclipse plumage and waders included 6 Black-tailed Godwit, 6 Whimbrel, 5 Greenshank and a Common Sandpiper.
Breeding Birds
Two juvenile Water Rails provided evidence of breeding – a rare event on the island.
Miscellaneous
Several Barn Owls were about early morning and a Stock Dove was an uncommon island sighting.
Moths
A total of 450 moths of 75 species were attracted to the light trap overnight, however only Feathered Ranunculus was new for the year.

Little Ringed Plover

10th July 2014 – bright and sunny NW3/4/5
Offshore
Morning observations (0530-0730) produced 246 Common Scoter, 25 Gannet, 21 Manx Shearwater, 24 Sandwich Tern, 2 Guillemot and a Red-throated Diver.
Wildfowl and Waders
A Little Ringed Plover was the pick of the waders while the drake Pintail and 4 Black--tailed Godwit remain.
Miscellaneous
Post-breeding flocks of finches are starting to build with 110 Linnet and 25 Greenfinch logged.
Moths
A total of 474 moths of 65 species were attracted to the light trap overnight. Immigrants involved Diamond-backed Moth and Dark Sword-grass while a Coast Dart was the pick of the local species.

Early morning scoters

9th July 2014 – bright and sunny NW3/4/5
Offshore
Morning observations (0530-0715) produced 560 Common Scoter, 47 Gannet, 17 Manx Shearwater, 15 Sandwich Tern, 2 Red-throated Diver, 2 Guillemot and a Fulmar.
Wildfowl and Waders
The drake Pintail remains and waders included 14 Black--tailed Godwit.
Moths
Flounced Rustic was new for the year.

First Red-throated Diver of the autumn

8th July 2014 – rain clearing NW1/2/3/4
Offshore
Morning observations (0070-0800) produced 70 Common Scoter, 44 Sandwich Tern, 35 Gannet, 11 Manx Shearwater, 9 Little Tern and a Red-throated Diver.
Wildfowl and Waders
The drake Pintail remains and waders included 53 Bar-tailed Godwit.
Moths
Grey Dagger, Barred Yellow, Yellow-tail, Dingy Footman, Sand Dart and Fen Wainscot were all new for the year.
Mammals
Calm seas early morning revealed 2 Harbour Porpoise.

Southbound Cuckoo

5th July 2014 – sunny spells NW3/4
Offshore
Morning observations (0630-0900) recorded 135 Gannet, 160 Common Scoter, 4 Manx Shearwater, 3 Fulmar, 3 Kittiwake, 2 Sandwich Tern and a Guillemot.
Grounded Migrants
The first Cuckoo of the autumn was logged.
Wildfowl and Waders
The drake Pintail remains in residence and waders included 6 Black-tailed Godwit and 2 Common Sandpiper.
Moths
Short-cloaked Moth was new for the year.

Little change

4th July 2014 – overcast rain at times SW3/4
Offshore
Observations (1300-1330) during one of the days few dry spells produced 33 Manx Shearwater, 27 Common Scoter, 8 Gannet, 3 Sandwich Tern and 2 Little Tern.
Wildfowl and Waders
The drake Pintail remains in residence and waders included 5 Black-tailed Godwit and the first Snipe of the autumn.
Moths
The first Double-lobed of the year was attracted to the light trap.

Early autumn doldrums

3rd July 2014 – overcast WNW4/5
Offshore
A quick check over the sea produced 21 Little Tern and 2 Arctic Tern.
Wildfowl and Waders
The drake Pintail remains in residence and waders included 5 Black-tailed Godwit.
Moths
The first White-line Dart was attracted to the light trap.

Good June ringing total

2nd July 2014 – overcast WNW4/5
Offshore
An evening check over the sea provided 100 Manx Shearwater, 36 Gannet, 2 Kittiwake and a solitary Sandwich Tern
Wildfowl and Waders
The drake Pintail remains in residence and waders included 5 Black-tailed Godwit.
Ringing
The June ringing total was dominated by Starling as post-breeding dispersal took place. A total of 318 birds of 12 species were trapped during the course of the month, individual species totals were as follows with the figure in brackets referring to retraps. Starling 137 (19), Goldfinch 13 (111), House Sparrow 7 (1), Blackbird 4, Greenfinch 4 (8), Chaffinch 3, Dunnock 2 (1), Stonechat 2, Linnet 1, Whitethroat 1 (1), Reed Bunting (2) and Sedge Warbler (1) .
Moths
Swallow-tailed Moth, Antler Moth, Mother of Pearl and Mullein Wave were all new for the year.