ISLES OF SCILLY
Day 3 | Week 1 | A Speyside Wildlife holiday.

We wake to bright blue skies after a night of high wind and lashing rain. We board the Britannia and take an unexpectedly smooth ride over to St Martin’s.

Flying the flag on the way to St Martin’s


Landing at Lower Town the skipper announces ‘the exit is on the left. Those exiting on the right, the water is only ankle deep . . . if you stand on your hands!’

After a quick watch of a Small Tortoiseshell we head straight up to Tinkler’s Hill and up on to the northern side of the island. Our main quarry is a Pallid Harrier which has been seen around the islands in recent days, and has spent at least the last two days on St Martin’s. Three Ravens rise over the nearby island of Tean. They wheel around the blue sky chasing each other. One bird turns against the wind is suddenly swept across the sound across to our island. It gains height and comes over us like a large flying cross, its thick bill and shaggy neck clearly visible.

Round Island


As we pass by Porth Seal two waders appear in the sky right by us. ‘Bar-tailed Godwit following the Curlew!’ I shout. The light is perfect as the two birds spin around the bay and the lack of wingbars on the smaller godwit is
easy to see.

We continue across to The Plains with only a few Stonechats to show for our efforts. We have to make best of little shelter there is when a squall rips through. At least the gorse helps to keep the driving rain off our legs. After the rain butterflies are quickly back on the wing and we come across Painted Lady, Small Copper and Wall all sunning themselves and feeding on the low growing heather. Five Little Stints come hurtling from a beach below us and pass right over our heads.

With another squall building to the west we loiter at a suitable spot that is sheltered from the strong wind, allows us to take an early lunch in the sun and provides a view of the expansive downs in case the harrier appears. Raindrops fall and we make a quick dash to the only cover on this side of the island, a stand pines under which one of the local birders has already taken cover under. It looks like we were just on the edge of this squall and the bulk of it passed to the east, so we are quickly back on the harrier hunt.

‘Raptor!’ I call, pointing to a dark shape over the western side of the island. ‘Bah! Common Buzzard’ I pronounce very deflated. Still, the Buzzard wind-hovers for us before tipping a wingtip and letting the wind take it hurtling along the sea below us.

As we climb Turfy Hill we look back along Great Bay. Charles picks up a group of waders high up on the beach. We get our scopes onto them. Sanderling, about 40 of them. Normally found scurrying along the tideline, these birds are running around in typical clockwork fashion at the top of the beach probably feeding on sandhoppers.

Sanderlings digging for insects high up the beach


At Chapel Gate a Whimbrel rises from a little field, calling its stuttered whistle call as it gains height. Again the light is fantastic as the bird wheels around, flying off low over the sea before returning to feed in the field. The bird is only yards away and from the cover of a dry stone wall, we get super close views of this all too weary wader. A tick for some, these are certainly the best views we have all ever had of this migrant curlew. We move on to the next field and find another two birds feeding, then another bird, with a fifth eventually coming in. Wow! Whimbrel wonderland. A Whitethroat manages to distract us only for a few moments from our Whimbrel-watching.

One of the five Whimbrel giving great views


As we approach Chapel Down the Buzzard reappears over Little Arthur Farm giving us superb views as it wind-hovers and glides around over the farm. A few more Stonechats are added to the tally, along with Small Heath butterfly.

The walk along the south of the island is windy and pretty birdless bar more views of the Buzzard and some Collared Doves. Nearing the quay for the transfer back to St Mary’s, the news we now didn’t want comes through. The Pallid Harrier had just been seen on the north of the island. Having spent over four hours searching for it we decided another hour was unlikely to prove fruitful given the bird had already been lost again. Smart move! The bird wasn’t seen again and the crossing back was more than a little wet on the Seahorse, and would have been extremely wet on the later boat – the uncovered Guiding Star! As it was, those at the bow of the boat got an absolute drenching, whilst us wimps took shelter either inside or behind the bridge section – nice and dry!

St Mary’s quay during a windy high tide


After dinner we caught up on two days of checklist having missed yesterday’s.

ISLES OF SCILLY
Day 2 | Week 1 | A Speyside Wildlife holiday.

After a hearty breakfast we make our way to the quay and board the Guiding Star for our transfer to Tresco. The shelter of the harbour masked the choppy crossing during which a procession of Sandwich Terns passed by the boat.

We land at Carn Near, or Carn Far as it is known in birding circles – ‘’cos it’s the furthest point from everywhere on the island when you need to get to the ferry in a hurry’ I quip. The wind is getting up all the time and we know its going to be difficult migrant hunting in this. Walking around the edge of the Heliport, Alan picks out a Stonechat on a near Rhododendron bush which we all get good views of before it braves the open space of the landing field and gets blown across it by the wind! We search the Abbey Pool for a Baird’s Sandpiper which has been seen until a couple of days ago (‘it does go missing tho’ Steve was told by one of the local birders). No joy. And no other waders to compensate either! The southern end of the Great Pool holds a Mute Swan and a couple of White Wagtails and Alan picks up a Little Egret overhead battling hard against the wind. Rounding the bushes on to Penzance Road, I spy a movement up ahead. ‘Pied Flycatcher!’ I shout as it disappears into a gap in the bushes. Damn! We reposition ourselves and a short wait later and out it pops. ‘Wonderful’ comments Pam. At the Rosefield crossroads we search a few sheltered edges and Charles picks up a second, much whiter and cleaner, Pied Fly.

We walk along Pool Road with more White Wagtails trotting around the bulb fields and the odd Pheasant scratching around. Under one of the Pheasant feeding bins there is a sizeable flock of House Sparrows and Chaffinches feeding in the spilt grain. ‘Kestrel!’ Steve shouts, and whoosh! It flies straight into the feeding flock under the feeder but comes out empty handed.

We arrive at the Great Pool hide for lunch to the sound of a squealing Water Rail which promptly shuts up. Thanks! Along the reed edges there are an assortment of waders probing the soft mud. A couple of Curlew Sandpipers wade belly deep with the heads deep underwater for most of the time. On the odd occasion they lift their bills clear of the water, the long downward curve is very clear. In the shallow water several Dunlin probe with more deliberate action, and about twice as fast as the Curlew Sands. We then pick up three smaller birds on the reed edge with a much faster feeding action – Little Stints. Snipe, Mallard, Teal and several Gadwall are dotted along the reed edge in front of us. One of the trees to our right has a couple of Little Egrets sat in its top. Make that three. No four. Alright – there’s seven!

Out of nowhere a dumpy grey wader appears with the Dunlin. ‘It’s a Knot’ proclaims Steve. The Knot is oblivious to its new found audience as it feeds busily making its way closer, and closer, and closer to us. It’s too close to focus! At such close range the dull grey plumage is transformed with each of the upperpart feathers ending with a thin white fringe and a neat arrowhead which ages it as a juvenile.

About the closest I’ve ever been to a Knot


Amongst the increasing flock of roosting Greenshank and Redshank on the far side, a large, brownish wader stands tall over the shanks – a Black-tailed Godwit.

Searching for Baird’s Sand


Tipped off that the Baird’s Sand sometimes gets on to the beach near the Abbey Pool we make haste. Passing the southern part of the Great Pool again we find the three Little Stints have relocated and we find a lone Little Ringed Plover running around with them. We search the beach. Ringed Plover. Oystercatchers. Various Gulls. More Ringed Plovers. Turnstones. More Ringed Plovers. But no Baird’s Sand.

The wind is beginning to lift sand off the beach and hurl it at us. Time to retreat . . . to the Tresco Gardens café! As we arrive at the café I spot something whizzing around the entrance. Is it a bird? Is it a butterfly? No it’s a large moth, with brilliant red hindwings. It’s struggling in the wind, but eventually settles high up on the wall of a building, almost disappearing with its cryptic markings matching the wall brilliantly.

With the wind strengthening further, and news of a Pectoral Sandpiper on St Mary’s, we head for the earlier boat back. The skipper shows his expertise on the return voyage, hugging the edges of Bryher and Samson for shelter and then riding along the waves rather than slopping through them. A windsurfer speeds past as if he’s powered by rocket fuel. Not to be outdone, a couple of Gannets whiz around, banking with wing tips nearly touching the surface and disappearing in to the troughs between the lines of waves. Fantastic! We see the Guiding Star making its way to Tresco (from St Mary’s), it too disappearing behind the ever heightening waves. It’s more than a little choppy right now! We arrive back at St Mary’s quay. ‘If you’re wet it’s not our fault’ quips the skipper as we climb the quay steps.

We dump our rucsacs at the guesthouse and six of us head off to Lower Moors. With no news since the mornings initial sighting we are twitching in the dark, just hoping that the Pec Sand is still on the pool. We arrive at the ‘new’ hide. Greenshank. Smaller wader – Dunlin. Frantic scanning. No sign. I look across at the other hide where three pairs of binoculars seem to be trained on one area to their right. I try to follow the line of their sight, scouring the reed edge around the hide opposite. I see a movement and ‘got it!’ I announce. I give directions and soon Terry, Bill, Pam, Charles and Alan are all watching a small wader moving through the reeds on the opposite side of the pool. ‘Not great views. Lets get round to the other hide’ I decide. A few moments later we are looking down at an empty reed edge from the other hide. It can’t have flown while we were walking round could it? Did that Grey Heron scare it off? No there it is. But its largely obscured but eventually it comes out in to the open and we all get good views of this American relative of the Dunlin as it pecks away only 40 or so feet from us. It wanders out of view again and it loos like views would be better, albeit slightly further, from the other hide. We nip back round and sure enough, although now 40 or so yards rather than feet, we can see the bird well. I struggle to get a clear view through the tops of reeds to get a good photo, but a few clicks later I’m happy enough given the fading light, moving reeds and a bird which refuses to come out in to the open! We take different routes back, and Charles and Terry are lucky to add Green Sandpiper to their trip lists.

Pec Sand


After freshening up, we take the walk up to Juliet’s Garden for a sumptuous meal and lively banter. What a great way to round off the day!

ISLES OF SCILLY
Day 1 | Week 1 | A SPEYSIDE WILDLIFE holiday.

I meet up with the group at 8.15 am on the quay in Penzance and we board the Scillonian III for our sea passage to the Isles of Scilly. Just as we leave the quayside, we see a Rock Pipit obligingly sitting out on the harbour wall. We are soon heading out following the coastline towards Land’s End and the relative calm of Penzance harbour gives way to increasingly choppy seas and a strengthening south-westerly wind. The sea all around us looking more than a little lumpy with white horses atop the waves as the boat begins bounce, the height of the vertical movement of the stern getting steadily higher! A few of the passengers are looking decidedly green-gilled, but we are all OK and in good spirits, even when one mighty bow splash leaves Wendy soaked and a squall speeds through, heavens opening briefly upon us.

On the Scillonian III


Rough seas usually means good seabirds – bit not today. A few Herring Gulls kept up with the ship, but Gannets rarely approach close by. By the time we have first sight of the islands we have a very disappointing three Fulmars and one Manx Shearwater.

Land ahoy!


With sight of the islands our anticipation is heightened. We pass the Eastern Isles with the long, sandy-beached St Martin’s stretching out behind them. Looking down Crow Sound we can see Round Island lighthouse in the distance, with Tresco to its left disappearing behind the main island of St Mary’s. We turn in to St Mary’s Sound and St Agnes appears on our left, with the small island of Gugh sat in front of it. As we turn towards Hugh Town, the view south down to Bishop lighthouse is breathtaking. The flat island of Annet stretches in front of the jagged peaks of the Western Rocks. The twin hills of Samson come in to view, with Bryher tucked behind them and a closer view of Tresco.

St Mary’s quay


We disembark and head straight for our guesthouse. A relaxing drink and lunch before heading off along the beaches of Porthmellon and Thomas Porth and on to Porthloo. The wind is ever strengthening, and looking across the harbour to the docked Scillonian; the small boats dotted across the harbour are listing from side to side – even in the sheltered harbour side of the island. ‘I wouldn’t like to be heading back to Penzance in this’ remarks Alan. Despite the ferociousness of the wind, the beaches do hold some birds. Black-headed Gulls pick along the wet tide line at items deposited by the crashing waves. Turnstones walk through the litter along the dry high tide line, turning over lumps of seaweed to reveal tasty morsels. A couple of Wheatears brave the openness of the beach, one flitting around the dry seaweed, the other content to chase sandhoppers along the open sand.

With news of a ‘probable Pallid Harrier’ over Bryher then Tresco, I confidently predict that it won’t hang around and it would be either off to St Martin’s or the north of St Mary’s. With this in mind, the plan was to make for the open space of the golf course to look over to St Martin’s and Tresco. But . . . the strengthening wind would probably see us blown over up there, so we switch to Plan B – find some sheltered spots, just as much for ourselves as for the birds!

After grilling the exotica on Porthloo duckpond (Wood Duck, Fulvous Whistling Duck, Chiloe Wigeon etc), we take a slow meander along the Low Moors Nature Trail. House Martins and Swallows feeding over one area in the lea of a large stand of trees indicate a sheltered area, free of wind and in the warm sun. Bliss! Amidst the hirundines we pick out a lone Sand Martin, its small size, faster, jerky flight setting it apart from its larger cousins.

Two very different Speckled Woods



Whilst watching a couple of Speckled Wood butterflies around a bramble patch, I pick up on a Reed Warbler moving along the bracken hedge in front of us. Its pretty much hidden, put after a little while Charles picks it up a little further long the hedge and it eventually gives excellent views sat put on the brambles and bracken stems. It has a habit of hanging upside down and then lurching towards its insect victims which it picks off the plant stems. Other non-avian interest is provided by Long-winged Conehead (grasshopper family) and Small Copper and Common Blue butterflies.

We head in to the tangled, almost mangrove like willows of Lower Moors. At the near-dry Shooters Pool a Snipe gives brilliant views as it bathes in the puddle left in front of the viewing screen. Wendy picks up on a warbler which also comes down for a bathe, albeit out of view for most of us. Steve manages to get in a position to get a clear view and just as he announces it as a Willow Warbler it promptly takes flight and disappears headlong in to the dense willows.

At the first hide overlooking the Pool we get views of Greenshank, Redshank, Snipe and Dunlin – but we are looking straight in to the sun so we relocate to the other hide with the sun behind it. What a difference! Suddenly the near silhouettes are transformed into brilliantly lit birds – and how close are they! They are literally feet away from our line of binoculars. The Greenshank towers over the others, wading up to its belly in search of prey in the deepest parts of the pool. The Snipe have moved over to the back of the pool, but the Redshank and Dunlin pick along the nearest edge to us. The Dunlin is very delicately marked, with its gingery head, scalloped brown uppers and white underparts broken by smudgy chevrons down its flanks. A Kestrel drifts over and a White Wagtail makes a brief appearance.

Lower Moors Pool


Greenshank


Leaving the moors we find a Wheatear sat forlornly on a rock in the middle of a grass field (‘why am I hear?’ its probably asking itself) and on to a deserted Old Town Bay. Just past Nowhere (‘or is it now here?’ asks Charles) we come across a handful of wagtails on the playing field by the school. White and Pied – the white looking so much cleaner and smarter than the dingy, scruffier Pieds.

We are soon back in town and climbing the stairs of our guesthouse to our rooms. An hours rest before dinner, checklist and then off around the corner for Will Wagstaff’s (the Scilly Birdman) Wildlife of Scilly slideshow which simply whets our appetites for the week ahead!

GARDEN EXOTICA
The male Sudan Golden Sparrow, first seen in the garden on 22 Aug, reappeared briefly on Monday and had so far evaded my camera. Today tho, the camera was set up at the upstairs window and SNAP! gotcha! What a star. My only previous encounter wit hthis species was in 1992 when I found one in The Gambia where it is a scarce visitor.

Male Sudan Golden Sparrow. A first for Cambs?!

RED-BACKED SHRIKE @ PRIOR'S FEN
Kev 'Pinky' Du Rose and Prior's Fens do it again! The initial call from Kev on Friday evo was a little distressing as I was actually out of area (aagghh!) and planned not to be back until late Sunday evening. Thankfully I managed to rearrange things and made it to the shrike at one of my fave Peterbirding sites to spend five hours watching it on and off. It was stinking hot in the sweltering sun and the light for best part of the afternoon was crap. With a little perseverance I managed to get some half decent shots out of the 200+ pics I took (the beauty of digital images eh!).

Immature Red-backed Shrike, Prior's Fen, Cambs


Heavily barred unders and scaly uppers age this as a young bird


This takes my 'top birds to perch on bulrush' list to three - this RBS, Penduline Tit (of course) and . . . . Long-eared Owl!


For more Red-backed Shrike photos click here

DRAG ACTION
I spent an hour or so wandering around Woodwalton Fen NNR in search of darters and wasn't disappointed. Common Darters were everywhere, including dozens on the railings of all the bridges, and Ruddy Darters zipped around the reeded dykes.

Male Ruddy Darter Woodwalton Fen NNR.


Female Ruddy Darter Woodwalton Fen NNR.


Pair of Ruddy Darters Woodwalton Fen NNR.


Male Common Darter Woodwalton Fen NNR.


Female Common Darter Woodwalton Fen NNR.

GARDEN MOTHS
A rare run of the trap overnight produced a couple of garden ticks including a fine Dark Swordgrass. Not especially rare with 112 previous Hunts records.

Dark Swordgrass

OF TREEPS AND SLUGS
Well I'm cock-a-hoop this evo, having found two near-fledged broods of Tree Sparrows in the two nest boxes by the house. On seeing an adult come out of one box, I climbed the tree to find a brood of three Treebies, so I decided to check the adjacent box which held another three. Both broods are within a day or two of fledging.


Brood of three Treeps in one of my nest boxes

Expecting all six young to make it out of their homes, this will make it 14 broods for the year totalling 33 young! Fantastic given that this is only the second year I've had them breeding here (and not seen on the fen for 15+ years).



Orange form of the Large Black Slug

Some would say its weather for ducks, but it sure is weather for slugs! They love these damp days, and this evo I counted 22 orange Large Black Slugs in the back garden. I rarely see the black form of the Large Black Slug, and so far this year, I ahven't seen any Leopard Slugs which I've seen in the garden before.


Three orange Large Black Slugs on over ripe bananas

GARDEN MOTHS
A rare moth-trapping session overnight yielded only a small catch, but included a new garden tick in the form of Bulrush Wainscot.


Bulrush Wainscot - a common species but still new for the garden

GARDEN DRAGON
On a rather dark, stormy looking day I was pleased to be entertained over lunch by this fine male Southern Hawker which has been perched on the leylandii hedge outside my office window.


Male Southern Hawker

GARDEN BIRDS
I nearly choked over breakfast when a Sudan Golden Sparrow visited the garden feeders. Looks like I'm gonna have to start an exotics garden list as well. Unfortunately, by the time I got the camera set up with the scope it had done a bunk and wasn't seen again. I did managed to get a couple of snaps of a couple of garden favourites.


Female Great Spotted Woodpecker on garden nut feeder.


Juvvy Treep looking for Mum and/or Dad to ram some seed down its throat.

LOCAL PATCH BIRDING
Spent the afternoon walking around the fen, and it was one of my best days on the fen to date. The tracks and dykes were stuffed with dragons and damsels - Migrant and Brown Hawkers, Common and Ruddy Darters, and loads and loads of Emerald Damsels. A couple of juv Marsh Harriers were out-performed by two scrapping juvvy Hobbies over our heads. Flushed a family party of Grey Partridges, plenty of juvvy Reed Warblers, Skylarks, Whitethroats etc - fab time.

MY NEW BABY BINS
This weekends British Birdwatching Fair saw the launch of the new LEICA Ultravid 32 series of binos. Along with the 8x20 and 10x25 series, this now completes Leica's Ultravid range.


The new LEICA Ultravid 8x32 - gorgeous or what!

As a member of Leica's Optical Innovation Team I'll obviously be seen as biased, but I'm on the OIT for one reason - I'm a birder. I use bins every day of my life and talk to birders all around the world about optics and their needs.

As a community, birders continue to challenge optical manufacturers to produce better birding products. For the last 15 years I've been helping Leica do just that, and I think two of the most recent introductions in particular, the Televid 62 scope and the Ultravid bino range, directly respond to the needs and challenges set by birders.

The 8x32 Ultravids are simply outrageous. They are incredibly light (525g on my scales) and tiny (116mmx116mm) and optically superb (you would not expect anything else from Leica!). Can a 32mm bino get any smaller than this? And where do we go from here? Wait and see!

The pick of the other optics on show at the Bird Fair had to be Nikon's new High Grade 'lights'. Weight was the main reason why this range never caught on (along with possibly the shallow depth of field and slighlty narrow fild of view at this level) - so will the new lighter models now catch on? Lets hope so. I believe that every truly great product deserves its day, and the Nikon High Grade Lights rank amongst the best of birding optics.

GARDEN DRAGONS
I've had a couple of Migrant Hawkers in the garden most days for the last few weeks, but today an influx of at least 16 males hawking around the back garden including these four chaps. The top photo shows just how unterritorial these guys are and often forming large feeding groups in woodland rides and along sheltered field edges.

SOUTHERN EMERALD DAMSELFLY
News of a number of Southern Emerlad Dams at Sandwich Bay (Kent) was more than welcome, so I joined friends Tim & Margaret Benton for a dash down to see witness only the second ever sighting of this species in Britain.

We arrived at Sandwich Bay to be greeted by some familiar faces and both male and female SEDs on view. We located at least two different females and at between 5-7 males. The differences from (Common) Emerald damselfly is very obvious, in particular the bi-coloured pterostigma (the small coloured panel near the tip of each wing) and the ante-humeral stripes. The females are really robust with very thick abdoments.



Male Southern Emerald Damselfly Lestes barbarus Sandwich Bay, Kent. Note the bi-coloured pterostigma and green stripes down the thorax.




Female Southern Emerald Damselfly Lestes barbarus Sandwich Bay, Kent. Note the thick, robust abdomen, bi-coloured pterostigma and thorax stripes

Southern Emerald Dams were only added to the British list last July when a small number were found at Winterton Dunes in Norfolk having been predicted only a year before by Adrian Parr in Atropos. Rumour has it the Kent individuals were found in mid-July (the Norfolkf onesl ast year were found on 30 July) and it is likely, given the two locations, that these are recent arrivals from the continent where the species is known to be expanding its range.

We also found several Wasp Spiders while searching for the damselflies - fab eh!




Wasp Spider - dig the zig-zag web

FARCET FEN BIRDING
It was one of those great mornings to be out in the field - still, sunny and warm and the fen was leaping with birds and drags.

32 Treeps is the highest count to date and included most of the seasons youngsters, and a flock of 37+ Yellow Wags in one of the stubble fields was likewise a new record count for the patch. Add 170+ House Sparrows, a juvvy Marsh Harrier, Hobby, a couple of Sprawks, Reed Warblers, Whitethroats, etc - great stuff.

In the garden the Treeps bullied the other birds off the feeders and the seemingly now resident Zebra Finch (remember him - turned up the same evening as my Pied Fly last week!), was reasonably approachable with my camera hand-held - well, I can't be fussed trying to digiscope a cage bird!



Ziggy the Zebra Finch - a new garden resident?

GARDEN BIRDS
A newly fledged Tree Sparrow in the garden today is the 25th fledged youn seen this season. This years six pairs have now raised 11 broods (three pairs raised six broods, 18 young last year).




The latest baby Treep in the garden - the 25th fledged young for the year

UGLY DUCKLINGS
I spent the evening in Ely on BOURC business checking out the city's Muscovy Duck population. I found 25 adults and 38 young - is this species destined for admission to the British List?



Muscovy Ducks in central Ely including babies

GARDEN BIRDS
Wow! What a day. Hot on the heels of garden tick no. 99, Red kite last week, last night I found a fem/imm Pied Flycatcher in the front garden - garden tick no. 100! It performed well until a thunderstorm moved in.

I awoke to heavy rain and in a brief respite mid-morning I couldn't see the Pied Fly, but the buzzy call I first heard last night (which went un'IDed) was pinned down to an escaped Zebra Finch.

Late morning the rain stopped, the sun came out and insects were suddenly on the wing. The garden was hoochin' with birds, including a couple of new baby Treeps. I soon located the Pied Fly in next door's garden feeding from one of the large weeping willows. It was on the house side, so I was able to watch it for about 15 mins from one of my bedroom windows. Whilst hanging out of the window, garden tick no. 101 flew over - a noisy Grey Wagtail. And within half an hour, a Reed Warbler bounced through the garden - garden tick no. 102!! Unbelievable, three garden ticks within the last 24 hours! The Reed Warbler appears to have taken up residence for hte afternoon and judging by the amount of juicy items its finding, it ain't going hungry!

To add to the garden tally, a Willow Warbler performed well early afternoon and a Common Sandpiper (from the nearby irrigation res) was heard a couple of times - presumably flying around the fen when disturbed from the res.

GARDEN WILDLIFE
Another warm, sticky day, with the garden again alive with insects. The second Wall butterfly of the week, and hundreds of hoverflies and irritating thunderflies. The house is covered in dead hoverflies - in every room - and at one point I had nine live hoverflies sat on my keyboard! And I didn't get a photo!

This evening saw three dragonfly species hawking in the garden for insects - two Brown Hawkers plus Southern and Migrant Hawkers. One of the Brown Hawkers tangled with the Southern a couple of times - top stuff!

I found one of the Brown Hawkers roosting in a leylandii hedge in the back garden. The light wasn't good, and it was under the over hanging branches, so I had to use flash - something I don't like doing.



Brown Hawker - one of two in the garden this evening


I also found this Comma roosting on the side of one of my window boxes.



Comma roosting on window box

GARDEN WILDLIFE
The garden continues to be heaving with insects (and a few birds!).



Wall - only the second for the garden




Hoverflies - part of the massive invasion in recent days




Female Emerald Damselfly - a garden regular

GARDEN WILDLIFE
The garden remains my bird and wildlife tonic during my hectic work periods (this year seems to have been nothing but one long hectic work period so far!).

Today the garden was hooching with stuff. Tree and House Sparrows did their usual battles over the seed feeders, and a new batch of juvvy Greenfinches are quivering in order to attract the attention of the their parents. A Green Woodpecker heard calling early morning is only the second garden record.

As the day heated up the garden insects took centre stage. A Small Skipper evaded my camera and it was simply too warm to get anywhere near the Brown and Southern Hawkers which seem very happy with the aerial soup of insects over the front and back gardens.

One species did sit around long enough for the camera, and that was the first record of Ringlet for my fenland garden. I've not seen this species on the fen previously, although I suspect nearby Conquest Drove (1/2 mile away) has enough tree cover to hold this species. If it ain't wandered across from there, then Conquest House (1.5 miles) or Holme Fen (2.5 miles) are the next likely spots.



Ringlet - a new garden butterfly

GARDEN
It's been non stop since I got back from Orkney and no time to get out birding or insect watching. Still, the garden provides plenty of entertainment. Today a Small Skipper has been bombing around sipping from any flower it can get to, and the couple of juvvy Great Spots are still bouncing around the feeder trees defending the peanut feeder!

No sign of any second broods of Treeps, but a dozen or so birds feeding the garden daily with the usual couple of Turtle Doves. Its actually quite nice to be back!

ORKNEY - BIRDING
Day ten of my Shetland & Orkney trip for Speyside Wildlife with fellow guide Ray Nowicki.
 
Guests: Liz, Chris, Joan, June, Daphne & David , Mary & John , Margaret & Terry.  
 
Our last day on the beautiful islands of Orkney, and true to form this week, another overcast one. After breakfast we head into Kirkwall and spend a relaxing couple of hours enjoying the distinctive Orcadian jewellery of Okran, Ola Gorie and in particular, Sheila Fleet, whose studio workshop we visit after the town. At the studio we get to see how they enamel the jewellery which is applied in liquid form using a quill.
 
After many of us have succumbed to the delights of Orcadian jewellery, we go to find a lunchtime picnic spot. On route we come across another Short-eared Owl hunting the rough grassland of the airfield. The owls of Orkney are surely to be one of the everlasting memories of the holiday. We arrive at the Taing of Clett where we have our lunch. Some go for a short stroll around the bay before the inevitable – transfer to the airport. At the airport we check-in our hold luggage and while enjoying a cuppa, we hear an announcement: “can passenger Liz Holder come to the luggage reconciliation office please”. Oh no! What has Liz done? Off she trots and within a few minutes she is walking back towards us to much ribbing about what the airport authorities had found in her luggage. Then comes another announcement rings out: “can passenger Steve Dudley come to the luggage reconciliation office please”. Cue laughter!
 
The mood is sombre as we face the journey home. Postcards are written and posted and we go through the final holiday rituals. For Orkney, Short-eared Owl is voted as species of the trip, Skara Brae as the place of the trip and Chris’s Mid Howe hat episode (sorry Chris!). But for the trip as a whole, Shetland sweeps the boards, with Storm Petrel (species), Noss (place) and Mousa (magic moment) taking the honours. When asked who preferred Shetland over Orkney, it was 11 votes to Steve’s (always different!) one.
 
We take the short flight to Inverness where we bid each other farewell and safe journeys.

ORKNEY - BIRDING & ARCHAEOLOGY
Day nine of my Shetland & Orkney trip for Speyside Wildlife with fellow guide Ray Nowicki.
 
Guests: Liz, Chris, Joan, June, Daphne & David , Mary & John, Margaret & Terry.  
 
Rain! It's the first morning we've woken to a crying sky, and with it howling wind. Mary is the latest member of the group to be stricken with the lurgy, so after breakfast Steve runs her into Stromness for some cold remedies.
 
Today is a real archaeology day, with as many birds as we can find slotted in between the sites.
 
Our first stop is within spitting distance of the hotel and is from this site that the hotel draws its name. The Stones of Stenness are around 5000 years old and four of the original 12 stones still encircle a square hearth. This small henge whets our appetite for the major monument we are to visit later.
 
Maesehowe is next. As we wait for our guide, we admire the tranquil setting, looking across grass and barley fields to the nearby lochs, an Arctic Skua drifts over us and a couple of Linnets bounce around noisily.

We enter the tomb by stooping along the long, low passageway. The tomb itself is large and high and is simply staggering. In each corner stands a 'mini' standing stone around which the walls are built. Three chambers lead off the main tomb, and the weight of some of the slabs which form the roofs of these chambers are immense - over 15 tonnes! The tomb has a history of being broken into, and there is no knowledge of what happened to the burial remains from the tomb - this has been lost to time.

The tomb has other secrets to reveal, though. Around the tomb is the graffiti of Norsk raiders. Writing in runes, they reveal their lives and wit of their age. We are told about how on during the winter solstice, the sun sets between the two great hills of Hoy, and aligned directly in the suns path is the nearby Barnhouse Stone, over which the suns rays pass and lead directly up the passageway and rests on the back wall of the tomb. Wow! Now that must be something to experience, and thanks to the wonders of modern technology we all can from the comfort of our own homes this winter - live on the web!
 
After some considerable retail therapy (well, they have such a good selection of books!), we head off to the Ring of Brodgar. Pulling up in the car park, Ray spies a young Linnet sat on the roof of the car next to him! Quite bizarre.

We enter the ring and walk round this impressive, huge stone circle. Only 36 of the 60 original stones remain standing. Each stone was set 6 degrees from its neighbours in a perfect circle surrounded by a 9m wide ditch. It's huge! The stones themselves can rise over 3m from the ground and are immense when stood alongside them. Its quite crowed during the day time, so Steve promises a less crowded visit for those interested that night to experience the sunset at the circle.
 
We head north-west and at the Loch of Skaill we find a good selection of duck including the trips first Pochard and quite a lot of Goldeneye sat amongst the Tufted Duck.
 
We are at Skara Brae, and after talking to the centre staff, decide we just have time for coffee (and cake!) before we visit the site before the arrival of the afternoon coach parties. Good move!
 
In the replica house, Steve gives the group a brief introduction to the house of man living here around 5000 years ago. And what a house! Directly opposite the entrance is an impressive and dominating, two-tier dresser where the family would have placed their most treasured possessions. The hearth was set in the floor in the middle of the room, around which seating stones were arranged, including the 'master' seat in front of the dresser, facing the entrance for the head of the house.

Around the edges of the room are the sleeping compartments. Stone slabs set up right in the ground defined the separate sleeping areas for each member of house. Little chambers in the walls, including one for each sleeping cell, would have been used for storage, and the three water-filled 'baskets' set in to the ground, made from stone and clay, would have been used for soaking limpets for fishing bait and possibly as a means of keeping some items cold.
 
Everyone is knocked out with the site itself. No one expected man to be so advanced as they were 5000 years ago, with their intricate houses and building.
 
And what a move it was to get in before the coaches. As we are leaving the settlement, a constant procession of people is filing in - hundreds of them! Most pay a visit to Skaill House before we join up again for lunch in the car park spread out on one of the grassy areas (sheltered from the wind by the minibus!).
 
After lunch we revert to birds and head for The Loons RSPB reserve and spend an hour in the new hide. The pools right in front of us hold Coot (including lots of young) and Moorhen, and several Sedge Warblers are seen banging around the reed fringe opposite. On the water a group of young Black-headed Gulls beg constantly to their parents who seem to be taking not a blind bit of notice! There are Curlews and Lapwings in all directions, lifting occasionally, sometimes a ghost, other times reacting to a passing Bonxie (well wouldn't you!). The odd Teal wings its way across marshes.

Over to our left there is a constant mobbing. The Common Gulls seem to have taken a disliking to something which by the looks is sat on the ground. The gulls mob it constantly and have been doing so for over half an hour when we leave the hide. We stop further along the road to see if we can see what they are so concerned about - a Great Black-backed Gull, that's what - who pays no notice at all to the Common Gulls' constant kerfuffle!
 
At the nearby Loch of Banks, we find a single Little Grebe and two Grey Herons standing sentinel-like along the reed edge. Just as we are leaving, a great mob of birds is chasing something across the marsh. It's a Hen Harrier, which doesn't hang about in light of its pursuers!
 
We arrive back at the hotel early to give everyone some extra time to unwind and at least think about packing! To our amazement, the single table (not there at breakfast) has been reinstalled by the hotel staff for us.  
 
After dinner some of us brave the chill wind to visit the Ring of Brodgar at sunset. What an experience! The light is fantastic, with clearing sky to the west, turning fiery pink and red providing an impressive backdrop for photographing the stones. There's no doubt about it, it's a completely different experience visiting the stones at dusk than in broad daylight, and this is surely when ceremonies would have been performed, in the half light. Very eerie. We eventually draw ourselves away and back to the hotel. To the astonishment of some, the hotel bar is closed (and it's only 11.15pm!).





The Ring of Brodgar at sunset - one of the most magical places on the planet

ORKNEY - BIRDING & ARCHAEOLOGY
Day eight of my Shetland & Orkney trip for Speyside Wildlife with fellow guide Ray Nowicki. 

Guests: Liz, Chris, Joan, June, Daphne & David , Mary & John , Margaret & Terry.  
 
Overcast and windy seems to be the weather pattern for Orkney. After breakfast, we head southwards across Mainland and at Tuskerbister stop to view the moorland area. Over the next 45 minutes, two plus Short-eared Owls put on a five-star performance. Once bird in particular likes to hunt around an old ruin, landing frequently to despatch its prey head first down its wide mouth. Chris is enthralled by this bird and stays glued to a scope watching its every move. A female Hen Harrier joins us and it too hunts the open area right in front of us before delivering an item of prey to a fledged youngster on the opposite hillside. Fantastic! A nearby hovering Kestrel is our first for the trip!
 
We move on, but within a mile, and alongside the Loch of Kirbister, we are stopped in our tracks by another hunting Short-eared Owl right by the road. It's making its way towards us, so we pull off and wait for it to flap lazily, effortlessly past us. As it gets level with us it stares right at us! Eye to eye with a Shortie at 50ft is pretty cool!
 
The loch itself holds only a handful of Greylag Geese so we move on to Waulkmill Bay. A couple of young Stonechats give us the run around but several eventually see them, but parking up for the loos, the bay below us dotted with birds. Tystie, Red-throated Diver, Red-breasted Merganser, and . . . a Black-throated Diver! Wow! A summer-plumaged bird actively fishing. So its all out, scopes up and watch away. What a corker!


A spanking, if a little distant, Black-throated Diver
 
We pass through Hobbister RSPB reserve, adding another female Hen Harrier and a Kestrel to the days total and on to Scapa. It's out of the vans again to check the beach, where Ray soon picks up a lone Bar-tailed Godwit and four Sandwich Terns sat on the beach.
 
We lunch at the Italian Chapel on Lamb Holm, and crossing the other Churchill Barriers we head for South Ronaldsay clocking up another couple of Short-eared Owls.
 
Our main destination is the Tomb of the Eagles. On arrival we are given a brilliant introductory talk during which we get to touch some of the excavated artifacts (over 4000 years old!). We learn how tough life was for Neolithic man before going down to see the tomb itself. En route to the tomb, we stop off at the Bronze Age house also found on the site and are told about how Bronze Age man cooked meat by placing hot stones into a ground vat of water.
 
At the Tomb of the Eagles, we take it in turns to enter the tomb along the low and narrow passage on a trolley! It's an ingenious way to get people in to the tomb, and soon half of us are inside this breathtaking chamber. The tomb is stalled with three chambers. After excarnation (using the local White-tailed Eagles), the skeletal remains were placed on the tomb floor. They would later be ‘tidied’ with the skulls places in one of the three chambers, and the remaining larger bones in the other two. The claws of eagles were used as totems with the burial. One skull chamber has been left with some of the original skulls inside which certainly adds to the atmosphere.
 
We walk back to the car park along the coast enjoying the auks and cliff-nesting Rock Doves.
 
After money is spent in the gift shop, we are off back northwards. We pick up a House Martin as we pass back through Scapa, but as we approach Maeshowe, one of the finds of the day drifts past us – a male Hen Harrier. Stunning! It drifts off westwards across the hillside opposite our hotel! We wonder if we’ll see him again?
 
We again arrive back at the hotel in good time for people to unwind and have a drink before dinner. No single table as requested, so Steve and Ray take things into their own hands and soon, a single table spans the far end of the dining room! As the group arrives for dinner there are disapproving looks from the hotel staff at Steve and Ray’s handiwork, but much appreciation and words of thanks from the group.

ORKNEY - BIRDING & ARCHAEOLOGY
Day seven of my Shetland & Orkney trip for Speyside Wildlife with fellow guide Ray Nowicki.
 
Guests: Liz, Chris, Joan, June, Daphne & David , Mary & John, Margaret & Terry.  
 
“Happy Birthday Steve!” was the chorus at breakfast, as the group gave Steve a warm birthday greeting and a lovely card of his favourite Orcadian archaeological site – the Ring of Brodgar.
 
After breakfast we headed for a winding drive across country to Tingwall, taking in some of the standing stones to get our bearings. Just past Brodgar, Steve tells his car to look out for owls, and as if pre-ordered, a Short-eared Owl lifts from the lochside grass and begins to float around the open grass fields. What a start! And only minutes later we are watching a female Hen Harrier quartering fields near Dounby. This is great!
 
We arrive at Tingwall and board the ferry – backwards! Our vehicles are boarded first and we have much fun watching others nervously reverse on to the ferry. “Just how much room does a small car need?”. We stay in our cars for the crossing, watching the less than wave-dynamic front of the ferry slopping against the sea and water rushing under its ramp onto the car deck! We pass close to Wyre Skerries which is covering in lounging seals – masses of them.
 
We dock at the pier on Rousay and pay a visit to the heritage centre by the quay. This is a great centre covering many aspects of the island’s history and wildlife.
 
We make our anti-clockwise way round the island, passing under the dominating Knitchen Hill. The island is lush and green with wooded areas here and there. The hillsides are heather-covered and dark at a distance, but glow purple with small flowers on closer inspection.  

We head up to Ervadale on the east side of the island and take a track westwards in to the interior. We pass a mown field which has a round central area still standing, Steve explains that this is one method used to protect nesting Corncrakes, a handful of which still occur on Orkney. We find a suitable spot overlooking the Suso Burn and west up to the Goukheads (Orcadian for Snipe). There are Skylarks and Meadow Pipits all around us.

A couple of Pheasants pick around the fields but the real interest starts when Steve finds the first of two family parties of Red Grouse on the nearby heather moor. Ravens bounce around the moor, often sharing the old and crumbling buildings dotted all over with Hoodies and Rock Doves. Oystercathcers decorate fence posts – lines of them in places.

A female Hen Harrier is glimpsed in the distance before a Short-eared Owl begins a grand performance. It starts of distantly and disappears before returning much closer. At one point it is pursued by Common Gulls which drive it closer to us and we can see its orange eyes. “I’m happy,” comments Chris. “I just wanted to see their little faces,” she adds. Just after the owl is lost, John asks Steve to look at a speck above the hill opposite “Peregrine!”. Although distant, we all get on to it but they can hardly be called great views. Shame.
 
After lunch we venture up to the Wasbister in the north of the island. The fields are green, have grass or barley, and the cut fields (for silage) are stuffed with birds. Hundreds of Oystercatchers, Rock Doves, Lapwings, gulls and Starlings – it’s a beautiful wildscape. At the loch we come across another one of those flocks of freshwater bathing Kittiwakes – like butterflies dancing over the loch. A pair of Mute Swans have cygnets and a sleeping swan draws “that isn’t a Mute” from John. And he is right. It lifts its head and it’s a Whooper! Well done John!
 
We then switch to archaeology with a visit to Mid Howe. Here is a burial chamber to impress. The 4000 year old tomb now lives within a modern building to protect this important treasure form the elements. The 23m long tomb is divided into 12 compartments known as stalls by dividing stones up to 2.5m tall. When excavated in the 1930s (when the building was put up around it), human bones were found along with pottery artefacts.

It’s a truly awe-inspiring place, and visitors view it from both ground level by the tomb’s entrance, and along an overhead gantry which allows us to look right in to the tomb (which is roofless). The overhead gantry also allows those clumsy enough to drop things onto the ancient tomb! Oh dear. Whose is that hat? “Is that my hat?” shrieks Chris. I’m afraid it is! A slight feeling of horror grips the group before the funny side kicks in and “prehistoric man wore bobblehat” headlines emerging. But how are we going to get it out? We can hardly stomp across a 4000 year old structure to rescue a hat. Nor could we leave it.

Terry grabs Margaret’s walking pole and extending it to full length, leans off the gantry to flick the hat, expertly, off the top of the wall to where it can be safely retrieved later. Phew! Whilst we are at it, we relieve the tomb of a couple of items of litter using the spike on the pole. Good show chaps!
 
Next to the tomb is an unrelated Iron Age broch. This is another fascinating Neolithic site showing the amazingly advanced building of 3-5000 years ago. The inside of the broch is sub-divided into working, living, sleeping and storage areas, demonstrating an advanced cultural structure and social definition of the different facets of life at the time.
 
Catching our breath after the hike back up the hill to the cars, Ray spots a Peregrine taking a Starling. We all get good views as the Peg heads along the coastline and out of view, presumably to a nest where the Starling will be despatched to its young.
 
We make our way to Trumland Wood where from the road we listen to the trees in the hope of adding some woodland birds to the trip list. A couple of Robins (new bird!) tick from below the undergrowth, and one bird is glimpsed. A Wren dances around the shadows by the stream.
 
Arriving back at the quay we find a noisy, bustling place. It’s been the annual Rousay Island Boat Race and there are people and all sorts of floating craft everywhere! Some grab a cold drink to quench the thirst in the warm sun before we reverse back on to the ferry for our transfer back to the Mainland.
 
We arrive back at the hotel an hour and half ahead of dinner, so there is plenty of time to relax, grab a drink at the bar before going in to eat. Unfortunately, our request for one table has been ignored and we eat at three separate tables. Maybe tomorrow!

SHETLAND - BIRDING
Day six of my Shetland & Orkney trip for Speyside Wildlife with fellow guide Ray Nowicki.
 
Guests: Liz, Chris, Joan, June, Daphne & David , Mary & John , Margaret & Terry.  
 
Our last day on Shetland dawns a very fine one, with bright sun and bright blue sky. We drive south across Mainland to Sumburgh where on arrival, two Twite bounce over uttering their buzzy calls. We spend an hour seawatching for cetaceans with no success. There is plenty of activity, though, as auks, Fulmars, Kittiwakes and Shags to and fro from the nearby seacliffs which are patrolled by large predatory gulls and skuas.
 
Liz and Chris venture up the lighthouse road in search of Puffins and come back with smiling faces, comments such as “they are literally feet away” and some stunning digi-pics.
 
We retire to the Sumburgh Hotel for a cuppa (and the odd cake) before back out to the Head for more seawatching. We walk up to the lighthouse where the seabird city is at its busiest. Puffins are by far the main feature and most of us spend most of our time with them. A couple of slopes are covered in these little, brightly coloured stars and their antics are wonderful.

Nearby, we see our only Guillemot chicks of the trip, and several Shag nests with young (of various ages) and some still on eggs. Just off the cliffs, an Arctic Skua was patrolling, pursuing anything with food which it invariably managed to eject from the carry. It was more than obvious than none of the Puffins coming in were carrying food. In total only 3-4 birds were seen successfully bringing in anything to their burrows. Another indicator of a very bad season.
 
At the lighthouse, the staff have put some seed out for the birds and two Twite are feeding among the sparrows. The Twite are flitting around us and come as close as 15 feet! Fantastic!
 
We walked back to the car park for lunch and more seawatching. Out to sea, there was an increasing ‘hurry’ of Kittiwakes and terns building up. They initially formed two small groups, but over about 40 minutes a great long line of feeding birds stretching along the length of the headland had been formed. We concentrated our efforts on this area in the hope that whatever the birds were feeding on may attract a dolphin or whale. But nothing. Margaret and Terry take a walk to the top of cairn overlooking the car park and spread themselves out on the soft grass in the sun. Very summery!
 
We pay a quick visit to Grutness Pier for the loos (and for an Arctic Tern to defecate on Steve and Terry – hey, thanks) before heading to Lerwick and transfer straight to the ferry. We won’t go into David’s dealing in out of date sea-sickness pills!
 
The five and a half hour crossing yielded few avian highlights, although Ray and David bag a couple of Storm Petrels and Ray and John a lone Manx Shearwater. The coastline views of departing Shetland, the sail past Fair Isle and arriving at Orkney though are breathtaking, and most of us spend much of the time on deck. Nothing prepared us for the contrast between the high and rugged Shetland profile to the much flatter islands of the Orkney Isles.
 
During the crossing we are treated to a delightful meal (waiter service and as much pud as you can eat!) and do our last Shetland checklist of the holiday. Storm Petrel is voted species of Shetland, Noss as place of Shetland and our night time visit to Mousa as everyone’s magic moment of Shetland.
 
Arriving in the Orkney group, we first past North Ronaldsay, Sanday and Shapinsay with the clifftop lighthouse of Copinsay to the south in the distance. We swing in to the Bay of Kirkwall and dock at the new terminal at Hatston. It’s 11.00pm, so it’s quickly to the hire cars and by 11.20pm we are at the hotel ready for new adventures on a new group of islands.