26th and 27th April
Sunshine and showers again
on the 26th but they became fewer and further apart in the afternoon
in favour of bright and sunny conditions; there were two main highlights
through the day with a smart male Grey-headed Wagtail on the beach at Brides
(not a classic bird with some greeny patches in the dark grey head and some
little white flecks on the lores) but this was pushed into second place when a LITTLE RINGED
PLOVER was found, also on Brides beach by someone trying to twitch
the Wagtail! A regular bird throughout the
southern UK but a real island mega, as it was only the second record after one
in May 1994!
It was quiet otherwise across the island as totals
included lingering Pink-footed Goose and Whooper Swan, 2 Merlin, the Kumlien’s Gull again, 2 Woodpigeons, 2 Sand Martins, 8 Swallows, 44
Wheatears, a Fieldfare, 3 Redwings, a Lesser Whitethroat, 2 Blackcaps, a
Chiffchaff, 4 Rook, 4 Carrion Crows, a Siskin and 2 Common Redpolls.
A glorious day on the 27th with hardly a
breath of wind throughout and plenty of sunshine; it was (unsurprisingly) again
quiet for grounded migrants but the first Arctic Tern of the year was off The
Links and a pair of Garganey on Hooking
also made it on to the year list.
Calm seas allowed the Nouster Black-throated Diver to be seen again along
with 19 Great-northern Divers and 11 Red-breasted Mergansers while the first
little arrival of 12 Knot were on The Links together with 108 Sanderling, 121
Purple Sandpipers and 8 Black-tailed Godwits.
Also of note was another big wave of 862 Black-headed Gulls counted
across the island but predictably concentrated around Hooking.
Landbirds were again thin on the ground but included
a Short-eared Owl, 10 Sand Martins (seen prospecting on the sand cliffs of The
Links where they bred last year), 7 Swallows, 3 Dunnocks, 49 Wheatears, a
Fieldfare, 2 Redwings, 3 Lesser Whitethroats, a Blackcap, 6 Chiffchaffs, a Rook
and a Brambling.
Little Ringed Plover Simon Davies
Grey-headed Wagtail Simon Davies
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