Whoopers lead migration charge....

37 Whoopers and 85 Pink feet went south past Whitburn Obs this morning. I joined Magic Mark after sleeping in and immediately called 8 Whoopers south,  and it was migration all the way with Grey Wagtail south calling as i left.
Long tailed tit, Coal tit, Great Spot, Mistle and Song Thrush, these are scarce birds from the Obs. Long tailed Tit was a year tick. Sadly no Crossbill yet for me

Sunday 25th October 06.35-10.50 W2 mainly cloud cover

Great northern Diver 2n
Red th Diver 12n 25s
Shag 7s
Whooper Swan 37s
Pink footed Goose 85s
Shelduck 1s
Wigeon 1n
Teal 4n 2s
Common Scoter 5n 6s
Velvet Scoter 3n 5s
Eider 4n 8s
Goosander 3s
Knot 14s
Kingfisher 1n
Great spotted Woodpecker 1s
Long tailed Tit 19s
Coal Tit 1s
Mistle Thrush 3
Song Thrush 1
Redpoll 2s
Siskin 1s
Curlew 8n 1s
Black h Gull 11n 66s
Common Gull 7n 50s
Grey Wagtail 1s

bring on hurricane Patricia.........

Pom Skua and Velvet Scoter passed Whitburn Obs by 11am. Magic Mark joined me but was unable to conjure up a decent sea watch. Bring on that hurricane it might shake things up a bit
This is what we saw in order of appearance

Saturday 24th October 07.30-11.00 SSW3 cloud cover

Eider 4n
Common Gull 13n 37s
Black h Gull 5n 28s
Curlew 3n 2s
Common Scoter 8n 5s
Shag 1n
Red th Diver 1n 2s
Arctic Tern 1s juv
Grey Heron 1s
Kingfisher 1 below obs
Golden Plover 90s
Bonxie 1n
Pom Skua 1n ad
Velvet Scoter 1n
Brent Goose 2n db

Surfs up........not

2 Great northern Divers and an Arctic Tern passed Whitburn Obs by 11am today. Hoggie, unlucky Dave and Sir Ian contributed during the morning.
It was quiet after the usual early movement, this is what was seen in order of appearance

Friday 23rd October SW1-2 cloud cover

Black h Gull 15n 162s
Eider 8n 4s
Common Gull 11n 39s
Red th Diver 3n 8s
Common Scoter 9n 2s
Great n Diver 2n
Grey Heron 1n 1s
Curlew 7n
Shag 1n
Goldeneye 1s
Arctic Skua 1n
Redshank 2s
Pink footed Goose 95s
Goosander 2s
Ringed Plover 1s
Turnstone 1s
Arctic Tern 1s

Pallas's stops Shagfest....

7 Littls Gulls and a Bonxie passed Whitburn Obs by 10am this morning. Hoggie joined me (early for him) and he helped me see very little. He did explain to me at length why yesterdays OBP could only have been a tree pipit
He received a phone call and off we dashed to see the Pallas's Warbler in Sunderland , we arrived just as it showed well briefly
This is what we saw in order of appearance

Monday 19th October 07.30-10.00 NNE2 mainly cloud cover

Bonxie 1n
Curlew 32n
Red th Diver 6n 3s
Arctic Tern 1s
Little Gull 7n
Common Scoter 36n 3s
Common Gull 40n 6s
Eider 2n
Brent Goose 1n pb
Goldeneye 1n
Shag 15s
Sanderling 12s
Pallas's Warbler 1 nth dock Sunderland in OBP trees

OBP on the OYL........

6 Little Gulls and a Pom Skua passed Whitburn Obs by 11.30 this morning.We still have the northerly but it was a lot quieter than yesterday. The early morning Olive-backed Pipit was a mega addition to my Obs year list, many thanks to Magic Mark. We had an unexpected visitor when Skinny Dipper turned up, and yes she had been skinny dipping early morning in our uplands, she managed to get two lifers on today's watch.
This is what we saw in order of appearance

Sunday 18th October 07.15-11.30 NE3 cloud cover

Eider 5s
Fulmar 2n
Olive-backed Pipit 1s
Snow Bunting 1s
Red th Diver 2n 9s
Common Scoter 25n 7s
Mallard 2n 2s
Bonxie 6n
Manxie 2n
Goldeneye 1n 3s
Little Gull 6n
Porpoise 3n
Long tailed Duck 1n
Wigeon 17n 9s
Sooty Shearwater 6n
Arctic Skua 1n juv
Curlew 1n
Sparrowhawk 1n
Puffin 1n
Tufted Duck 2n
Redshank 1n
Pom Skua 1n

Comes in threes.....

Black throated and 2 Great northern Divers passed Whitburn Obs by midday. They say good things come in threes, and they did today,  three species of Diver, Shearwater, Auk, it was just the Skuas that let us down, couldnt find an Arctic for love nor....
The usual Saturday gang was in from before first light and we had fantastic views of some quality birds. The big Divers for me stole the show passing at a distance that gave quality and prolonged views, followed closely by the Long tailed Ducks and Velvet Scoters and the Shearwaters....
This is what we saw in order of appearance

Saturday 17th October 07.15-12.00 NE2-3 cloud cover and rough sea

Black h Gull 89n 15s
Common Gull 26n 18s
Eider 1s
Red th Diver 10n 19s
Fulmar 4n
Sooty Shearwater 10n
Velvet Scoter 5n 3s
Common Scoter 23n 7s
Goldeneye 14n 7s
Manxie 5n 1s
Wigeon 18n 3s
Bonxie 1n 6s
Teal 4n 1s
Brent Goose 7n pb
Red br Merganser 3n
Mallard 2n 2s
Black th Diver 1n adult
Long tailed Duck 3n all drakes
Great northern Divers 2n
Balearic Shearwater 1n
Little Gull 1n
Heron 1n
Short eared Owl 1s
Curlew 1n
Pom Skua 3s
Med Gull 1n
Goosander 1n
Shag 1s
Porpoise 1
Ringed Plover 1s
Puffin 1n

Any Shrike will do......

16 Sooty Shearwaters and 4 Pom Skuas passed Whitburn Obs by 1pm. Magic Mark joined me for first light to make the most of the northerly, we had a good selection of birds. Eventually Unlucky Dave and Pink Floyd joined us and Dave lived up to his name by missing all of the Poms.We were discussing the good birds on the east coast south of us and agreed that on the Durham coast just now any Shrike would do ....
This is what we saw in order of appearance

Friday 16th October 07.00-13.00 NE2-3 cloud cover

Black h Gull 234n 10s
Common Gull 73n 21s
Teal 8n
Wigeon 36n 3s
Kestrel 1n
Dunlin 2n
Lapwing 24n
Manxie 5n
Red th Diver 8n 11s
Common Scoter 21n 11s
Sparrowhawk 1n
Eider 3n
Grey Wagtail 1s
Pintail 3n
Velvet Scoter 1n
Sooty Shearwater 16n
Little Gull 4n
Goldeneye 4n 2s
Short eared Owl 3s
Curlew 4n 1s
Peregrine 1n
Bonxie 4n 2s
Arctic Skua 2n 5s
Tufted Duck 3n
Fulmar 1n
Brent Goose 3n pb
Red br Merganser 3n
Pom Skua 4s ads
Gannet 376n