Sunday 31 July 2016

Back home......

Roseate Tern and 3 Arctic Skuas passed Whitburn Obs by 09.30 this morning. I was as happy as a 1966 World Cup winner to be back in the Obs after a canny family week in Majorca. Pink Floyd beat me in after sleeping int obs and Magic and Saint Mark joined us for a pleasant watch in pretty crap conditions
The highlight, after having just discussed the chances of one, was a Cuckoo flying south close in front of the Obs. Bringing my year list to154, to put that in context it was 145 at the end of August in 2015
This is what we saw in order of appearance

Sunday 31st July (already) 04.45-09.30 W2 4/8 cloud clearing

Eider 1s
Mallard 2n
Oyster Catcher 12s
Common Gull 6n 5s
Sandwich Tern 21n 462s
Shag 5n 7s
Common Tern 28n 15s
Dunlin 1n
Common Scoter 34n 1s
Grey Plover 1n (only the 3rd of the year)
Golden Plover 11s
Arctic Skua 3n
Black h Gull 3n 2s
Manxie 1n 11s
Puffin 2n 2s
Turnstone 6n 2s
Redshank 1n 3s
Whimbrel 2s
Curlew 2n 3s
Grey Heron 1s
Roseate Tern 1n
Shelduck 6n
Arctic Tern 3n 1s
Swift 4s
LBBGull 1n 1s
Kestrel 1n
Siskin 1s
Ringed Plover 3n
Sanderling 1n
Cuckoo 1s yeahhh
House Martin 1n