Bird Sightings

A first year Herring Gull flying aroun Castles eating Flying ants. ©Thomas Weston

A very foggy and dretch day again on the island that lingered throughout the day. However, the evening was nicer and resulted in the emergence of flying ants and so did the large gulls that were feasting on them. This involved predominately Herring and Lesser Black-backed Gulls with flocks of Meadow Pipits present too.

Census was undertaken today, and a small arrival of Willow Warblers were noted in Millcombe this morning. No ringing was undertaken however, it was in evidence there had been a small arrival overnight. However, other sightings to be added very soon.

A trip to the Kittiwake productivity site resulted in a increase in the number of adults at the colony and a big decrease in the number of chicks around the colony with only 5 none fledged chicks remaining in the nests. This is a good sign after a bit of a rollercoaster of a summer for this species. Walking the West coast to the Fulmar productivity survey site is always a great area to wander along. The Fulmar chicks were doing really well and two of them were looking pretty grown up and it is not long before these two oldest ones will think about heading off and fledging.

On the way back, a quick check of Pondsbury resulted in very few birds seen, however, there was a flock of Mallards and a flock of bathing Herring, Great Black-backed and Lesser Black-backed Gulls. A couple of Meadow Pipits and Skylarks were the best on the way back to the Village.

ManxShearwater ringing at our Productivity Site. ©ThomasWeston

Too foggy to see much and it was very windy too. Census counts to be added here soon combined with logbook sightings.

Today was a busy day in the field. The day began windy and breezy from the SW. With the recent Willow Warbler movements the idea was to go down and open the nets but it was uncertain whether Millcombe would be calm enough. However, an hour and a half passed and what was only a single Willow Warbler was caught. The weather looks a little too hit and miss to attempt mist netting in the next few days but we shall see. Census was undertaken but was quiet, there was no standout notable birds seen.

ManxShearwater from our ProductivitySite. ©ThomasWeston

The breeze was strong but not strong enough to stop the productivity surveys. As a result, a check of the Kittiwakes showed there were few juveniles hanging around that haven’t fledged but also a few fully fledged birds in the small adult flock that was present. Whilst watching this site, a passage of Manx Shearwaters and Gannets occurred along the West coast with all birds heading South just offshore. We are still checking for any of the more unusual shearwaters that have been gracing the waters further to our SW. There was no Fulmar checks today, but a check on the Manx Shearwater chicks show that they are all growing really well. The smallest is just starting to grow quick but still looked very downy and small, the majority were fat balls of fluff and the largest was a mix of feathers and down. It will not be long before the largest of the chicks begin to start stargazing and coming out of their burrows to help them navigate across the Atlantic Ocean to their wintering grounds in South America.

Ringing

 Due to the breeze and cloudy conditions, a night survey of the tracks around the Village resulted in ~20 Wheatears noted and a single bird caught and ringed. We then went to the Manx Shearwater colony and caught a good number of birds. This led to one of the most stunning night skies with the milky way and multiple meteorites seen. The number of birds migrating throughout the night may have been quite high but as soon as the stars appeared the Manxies descended into silence and we left the colony.