Saturday, 26 August 2017

Blackout.....

 4 Roseate and 6 Black Terns passed Whitburn Obs by 10.15 this morning. Magic Mark picked up the first Black Terns feeding distantly and i suspect we missed a few as many Terns were moving north this morning. I called a distant Shearwater as a Sooty but it was on closer inspection a nice dark Balearic as Saint Mark pointed out. The black theme continued as Cormorants started to pour south eventually giving a new day passage record total.  Pink Floyd and Boy Wonder arrived late but soon joined the party. We commented how two days are never alike, yesterday in similar conditions we saw very few birds...today it was none stop a cracking watch
This is what we saw in order of appearance

Saturday 26th August 05.30-10.15  W1 4/8

Common Gull 2n 8s
Black h Gull 150n 31s
Cormorant 457s 60n
Gannet 614n 71s
Fulmar 24n
Common Tern 512n 10s
Black Tern 6n
Oystercatcher 7s
Curlew 4s
Manx Shearwater 24n 13s
Sandwich Tern 61n 16s
Balearic Shearwater 2n
Common Scoter 71n 4s
Porpoise 4
Arctic Skua 2n 10s
Redshank 7n 9s
Red th Diver 2n 2s
Teal 9n 2s
Puffin 2n
Bar t Godwit 2s
Pied Wagtail 1s
Grey Heron 1n 1s
Kestrel 1s
Goosander 12n
Black th Diver 1s
Whimbrel 1n 3s
Shoveler 1n
Wigeon 1n
Eider 1s
Shag 1s
Roseate Tern 4sSanderling 3n 6s
Knot 1s
phew......