2 Manxies and nearly 500 Sandwich Terns passed Whitburn Obs by 09.00 this morning. Skinny Dipper turned up and Stoney was in the house on a mish mash of a sea watch. Star bird was a Mute Swan that Stoney called, a real obs rarity last year i had to wait till October to see one. Add to this the handful of Swifts moving and my Obs year list leaped to 144, as many as id seen by the end of August last year.
This is what we saw in order of appearance
Friday 20th May 04.50-09.00 W1-2 broken cloud
Sandwich Tern 16n 479s
Common Gull 7n 16s
Puffin 13n 2s
Manxie 2s
Common Scoter 5n 8s
Shoveler 2s
Gannet 62n 21s
Common Tern 4n 46s
Arctic Tern 12n 11s
Whimbrel 5s
Sand Martin 35s
House Martin 1s
Shag 2s
Turnstone 1s
Black h Gull 5n 5s
Shelduck 1s
Mute Swan 1n 1s same bird
Eider 7s
Oyster Catcher 3s
Red br Merganser 1s
Red th Diver 6n 1s
Greylag Goose 2n
Pink footed Goose 1n
Sanderling 14n
Porpoise1s
LBBGull 1n
Swift 6s
