Just like the Farnes...

Fair Isle Bird Observatory

Monday 10th October comments: A quick update from the northern isles. We've (Steely and Jamie) have now been on Fair Isle for a week and its been tough going. The winds have generally been gale force from the west, with occasional switches to the south-west; In other words, not very good for migrant birds! Despite this, highlights have included the islands first ever Lesser Scaup, along with Short-toed Lark, Rose-coloured Starling and a smattering of migrants. However not all is lost, with six ex-Farne Island wardens present, were finding plenty of time to catch-up.

Otherwise it's just like the Farnes except bigger in all ways - a fantastic observatory (with some great staff!), a brilliant island and a real sense of wilderness (with the odd good bird thrown in) - I recommend everyone to visit at some stage. The only thing it lacks is a successful seabird colony. It's been another desperate year for Fair Isle seabirds, as numbers of certain species have dropped and the number of young fledged almost non-existent. It's heartbreaking to hear just how depressing seabird seasons are becoming in the northern isles and will we ever see a reverse in fortunes? I suspect sadly not and it just shows the importance of places like the Farne Islands in a national context to seabirds. Long may our breeding seasons continue to be successful and Fair Isle to have a change of fortune, sooner rather than later.

A Farne-acle Goose Barnanza!

Barnacle Geese pass by the pele tower (Andy Denton)

A Long-tailed duck lingers in the kettle (Andy Denton)

Our first seal pup has a kip under the watch of his mum (Ciaran Hatsell)

A passing skein of Barnacle Geese fly over Inner Farne (Ciaran Hatsell)

Saturday 8th October comments: It’s been lovely weather...for ducks (and geese). Whilst the overcast, damp climate may not be so good for the human denizens of the islands, the migrating wildfowl have been enjoying it greatly.

The wardens recorded the highest ever number of Barnacle Geese on the Farnes, with 1405 of these winter wanderers passing over the islands today. Having finished breeding in their northern territories such as Svalbard, they are now heading south-west to overwinter on the Solway Firth. One skein of 70 also included a first winter Whooper Swan cygnet, tagging along for the ride! 6 pale-bellied Brent Geese were also recorded flying north over Inner Farne.

The day brought in good numbers of ducks as well, with three long-tailed ducks recorded, including a female and beautifully long-tailed male showing well in the kettle. Seawatching also produced 17 Mallard, 7 Pintail, 43 Wigeon, 41 Teal, 1 Tufted Duck, 13 Common Scoter and 2 Velvet Scoter, not a bad haul indeed!

As if not wanting to be bested by the wildfowl, the Islands also produced good records of divers, with 27 Red Throated, 3 Black Throated and 2 Great Northern Divers spotted by the team. A much admired Slavonian Grebe winged its way northwards along the Inner Sound, the first of the year, a cracking winter plumaged adult. Keeping with the firsts of the year, a winter plumage Black Guillemot or “Teisty” briefly landed on the Inner Sound before heading northwards, whilst the first Twite of the autumn was spotted flying amongst Inner Farne’s lingering flock of Linnet. Three late Sandwich Terns were also seen around the islands, possibly the last to be seen before they return to breed next April!

In other news, it appears three is the magic number, as our third grey seal pup has been born on the islands. Found on the North Wamses on the 7th October not too far from pup number 2, he should be in good company as he grows up! Large gatherings of females are now appearing on the rocks and tops of the islands, with only one purpose in mind, it won’t be long until the outer group of islands is speckled white!

Saturday 8th October totals: Whooper Swan 1, Barnacle Goose 1405, Pale-bellied Brent Goose 6, Mallard 17, Pintail 7, Wigeon 43, Teal 41, Tufted Duck 1, Common Scoter 13, Velvet Scoter 2, Long-tailed duck 3, Red Throated Diver 27, Black Throated Diver 3, Great Northern Diver 2, Slavonian Grebe 1, Peregrine 1, Oystercatcher 60+ in roost, Golden Plover 2, Great Skua 2, Arctic Skua 3, Sandwich Tern 3, Black Guillemot 1, Dunnock 1, Wheatear 2, Song Thrush 1, Redwing 2, Chiffchaff 1, Goldcrest 2, Wren 2, Brambling 1, Linnet 8, Twite 1.

Fair Isle update

Flying to Fair Isle (in a gale!)

Not exactly Heathrow - Fair Isle airport

Tuesday 4th October: A quick update from the northern Isles as myself (David Steel) and assistant warden Jamie Coleman are visiting Fair Isle for the week. Its been an interesting start as Jamie touched down on Fair Isle on Saturday but I was delayed on Shetland until Monday. However between that period, the wind had notched up a level and I eventually departed Shetland for Fair Isle in southerly gales on Monday morning. As I'm not the best of fliers, this certainly went down as an 'experience' I'll never forget...

Now on Fair Isle the birding has been generally quiet (due to westerly winds) although it's been great to catch up with lots of friends. Ex-Farne Islands warden David Parnaby is now the main warden of Fair Isle whilst Jason Moss works alongside him as assistant. Other Farne Island connections included visiting ex-wardens Chris Dodd, Micky Mahar and Matthew Smith, so we're not short of topics to discuss. I'll keep you updated from the northern isles but keep tuned into the Farne Islands and more news about our Grey Seals.

Here we go again...

The Yellow-browed warbler sits in the Brownsman vegetation (Ciaran Hatsell)

Yellow-browed Warbler showing well (Graeme Duncan)

A Redwing takes shelter on Inner Farne (Andrew Denton)

Our first grey seal pup doing well! (Ciaran Hatsell)

Tuesday 4th October comments: Old man westerly has awoken once more, with forecasts showing at least a week of strong winds from our least favourite direction! The change in direction has quashed any hopes of further rare migrants for the time being, and will put a stop to the passage of Scandinavian migrants such as Redwing and Song Thrush, as they get pushed into the European Continent.

Monday, however, brought another Siberian surprise to Brownsman island, as yet another Yellow-browed Warbler was found by the pond. This tame individual was viewed well by the two resident wardens. Inner Farne played host to the first Jack Snipe of the autumn, and a lingering Yellow-browed Warbler from the previous day.

A welcome addition was a second seal pup, discovered on the North Wamses, and most likely one day old. Our first seal pup is still going strong on the South Wamses, and has put on quite a bit of weight; he can often be seen being suckled by his attentive mother on the shingle beach. With many pregnant mothers now congregating on the islands, and bull seals hauling themselves onto the rocks keeping an eye out for potential opportunities, it won’t be long until the seal breeding season is well underway.

By this morning, most of the birds have gone from the islands, though a few Brambling and thrushes remain, along with Wheatear and Willow Warblers. The warden team is hoping that the westerly winds will break sooner rather than later, bringing an opportunity both for viewing migrant birds and for getting supplies and showers on the mainland!

Hopefully the strong westerly winds bring our head warden David, Jamie and all the Fair Isle team some rare American vagrants...

Monday 3th October totals: Redwing 13, Song Thrush 12, Brambling 2, Goldfinch 2, Redpoll 3, Linnet 23, Siskin 2, Blackcap 2, Whitethroat 1, Chiffchaff 5, Willow Warbler 7, Yellow-browed Warbler 1, Goldcrest 9, Pied Flycatcher 1, Skylark 4, Wheatear 10, Pied Wagtail 2, Meadow Pipit 23W, Tree Pipit 1, Reed Bunting 2, Jack Snipe 1, Dunlin 9, Manx Shearwater 1N, Kestrel 1, Peregrine 1.

A Smattering of Siberians

Redwings heading south (Will Scott)

A Song Thrush takes a rest (Ciaran Hatsell)

Female Blackcap rescued from inside Brownsman cottage by warden Ciaran

A Yellow-browed Warber sits amongst the vegetation (Ciaran Hatsell)

The female Hen Harrier shows well (Graeme Duncan)

Sunday 2nd October comments: Well, what a weekend we’ve had. Light easterly(ish) winds and damp misty conditions gave the islands perfect weather for a fall of migrants and it didn’t disappoint!

The Saturday morning sunrise dawned on our resident Kestrel roosting on the Brownsman sticks, surrounded by a plethora of migrant passerines including two male Blackcaps and 11 Brambling, whilst the ever-present female Peregrine watched from the south end of the island. It wasn’t long before the Kestrel was off hunting for butterflies and snatched a red admiral out of the air 5 meters away from the Brownsman team, an awesome sight!

As the (human) visitors arrived on Inner Farne, thrushes in their hundreds began to pour over the island, with over 700 Redwing and over 120 Song Thrush recorded both flying overhead and resting on the ground. The sight was a welcome bonus for the visiting public, who enjoyed the spectacle, a true Farnes experience! It truly was a sight to behold, a full-on demonstration of migration in action.

Then, as the team gave the island a proper walk-around after visitors left, a call went out on the radio. Not one, but three Yellow-browed Warblers had been found in the Lighthouse garden on Inner Farne! These tiny Siberian sprites were contentedly feeding around the dock stalks, providing excellent views to the admiring warden team. The team were relieved to finally get a fall of these beautiful birds after jealously watching them crop up on the Northumberland coast all autumn!

As if this wasn’t enough, a pipit was discovered on top meadow. After brief views led to the initial assumption of Tree Pipit, further glimpses allowed the team to confirm that it was in fact the fourth ever Olive-backed Pipit to be seen on the Farnes! The bird gave brief but good views, allowing all present to appreciate the finer points of its identification. Breeding in Siberia and wintering in south Asia, a few of these birds fly the wrong way due to winds and inexperience and end up on our coastline.

Sunday brought in more surprises, with Brownsman playing host to a variety of birds of prey. Two Kestrels, a Peregrine and two Short-eared Owls graced the skies above the outer group of islands, playing havoc with the passerines. The real star of the show, however, was the female Hen Harrier. This upland wanderer quartered above both Staple and Brownsman for most of the day, providing spectacular viewing, before finally heading west (once the mist had briefly cleared) over Inner Farne and on to the mainland. Later on in the day, although the Olive-backed Pipit was no longer present, the Yellow-browed Warbler count on Inner Farne increased to four. Cracking stuff!

Saturday 1^st October totals: Redwing 768, Song Thrush 129, Blackbird 16, Brambling 53, Redpoll 4, Snow Bunting 1, Reed Bunting 4, Tree Pipit 2, Olive-backed Pipit 1, Yellow-browed Warbler 3, Blackcap 2, Goldcrest 2, Red-throated diver 11, Velvet Scoter 1, Black Tern 1, Peregrine 2, Sparrowhawk 1, Kestrel 2, Great Skua 3.

Sunday 2^nd October totals: Redwing 92, Song Thrush 71, Blackbird 10, Brambling 21, Redpoll 11, Chaffinch 6, Linnet 4, Siskin 2, Reed Bunting 5, Tree Pipit 7, Meadow Pipit 125, Dunnock 4, Yellow-browed Warbler 4, Chiffchaff 4, Willow Warbler 6, Blackcap 6, Goldcrest 8, Robin 2, Skylark 8, Swallow 2, Wheatear 6, Lapwing 2, Black-tailed Godwit 1, Hen Harrier 1, Short-eared Owl 3, Kestrel 2, Great Northern Diver 1.

Shetland Day One

Shetland update: Saturday 1st October comments: Its Shetland time! The Farne Islands blog is now in the capable hands of Graeme Duncan and the team on the Farnes Islands as head warden, David Steel and assistant warden Jamie Coleman have travelled up to the northern isles.

The pair will bring news and views from Fair Isle, as they are staying in the world famous Fair Isle Bird Observatory. For those who are not aware, the bird observatory is now being run by ex-Farne Islands warden David Parnaby and his wife Susannah, whilst another ex-Farne Island warden Jason Moss is also employed there. The week will also see at least three other ex-Farne Islands wardens present on the island, so its rather a 'bus mans' holiday for Mr Steel and Coleman. We'll bring you the news of any wildlife sightings, seal pup births and how the northern isles compared as a seabird breeding against the Farnes this season this year. Its exciting times and keep reading....

A Scattering of Scandinavians

A passing Kestrel on its way west (Graeme Duncan)

Female Wigeon takes a break on Inner Farne pond (Graeme Duncan)

A Song Thrush on Brownsman Jetty (Graeme Duncan)

A visiting Redwing lingers on Inner Farne (Will Scott)

Friday 30th September comments: Our glorious leader and head warden David Steel left the islands today at 11am to visit Fair Isle for two weeks, in the company of several ex Farne wardens (his holiday blog posts to follow!) No sooner had he left than the islands sprung to life with visiting birds (as usual). Easterly-flavoured winds brought several passage thrushes and finches to the islands from Scandinavia.

Inner Farne's good autumn duck records continued, with a male Pintail passing west over the island, and a female Wigeon lingering on the pond, accompanying the resident female mallard and her newly born late brood of ducklings!

The islands also experienced their first real fall of Bramblings this autumn, with 11 of these cracking birds recorded across the islands, calling confidently and showing well to admiring wardens. 10 Redwing were recorded on the Farnes along with 3 Song Thrushes, hopefully a good sign of things to come. It won't be long until the Farnes hopefully experiences another year of busy thrush passage, as thousands of these birds come over the islands to spend the winter in Britain!

Today's Sightings: Pintail 1, Long-tailed Skua 1, Brambling 11, Linnet 14, Redpoll 2, Redwing 10, Song Thrush 3, Whinchat 1, Wheatear 3, Blackcap 2, Garden Warbler 1, Chiffchaff1, Willow Warbler 1, Skylark 3, Black Tern 1, Grey Plover 1, Kestrel 2, Peregrine 2, Sparrowhawk 1.