Welcome July

Puffin chicks have started fledging 

 Sandwich Tern young will soon be on the wing

Shag chicks starting to fledge 

Cow Seals fattening up

Sunday 1st July comments: Where has time gone and what really has happened to our summer? It’s now the 1st July and the seabird season has peaked with lots of youngsters getting ready to take to the wing for the first time. So what can a July visit to the Farne islands bring you?

The Farnes will be experiencing yet more change as the first Fulmar chicks will start hatching during the first week, Arctic and Sandwich Tern young will be flying by the second week, whilst Guillemots and Razorbills will continue to lead young off to the safety of the open sea and almost the entire population will have departed by mid-month. Young Puffins will start fledging under the cover of darkness (to avoid predation) while the cliff tops will be a buzz of activity as young Kittiwakes and Shags will be fledging.

As well as the seabirds, the islands will have good numbers of Grey seals loafing around as pregnant females continue to fatten up whilst July should signal the start of potentially even more exciting things like our first Minke Whales of the year. Its never dull on the islands and well worth a July visit.

So keep on following the blog and I ask only one thing, can we have some better weather please?

Set dryer to the rain

Chicks in the rain (Ciaran Hatsell)

Friday 29th June comments: That was an epic few hours last night, and looking elsewhere in the north-east we may have got off lightly, as the Newcastle region was hammered. Above is a montage of videos taken during the storm of our Arctic Tern chicks and the 'storm salon'. Sadly this morning we have had casualties with small numbers of Kittiwake, Shag and Arctic Tern chicks not making the night. However it could have been a lot, lot worse...

Storm salon

Down pour: the Farne Islands 5pm Thursday afternoon 

Tern chick looks on - the pathway has become a river 

Trying to shelter under mother 

No escape for the adult and chick Kittiwake 

Looking bleak for the Arctic Tern chicks 

Time to step in - hair dryer treatment for the chicks!

Back from the brink;  fluff balls and ready to go back out

Thursday 28th June 7pm update: In the last two hours we've had everything thrown at us. Thunder and lightening has battered the island and rain has fallen like never seen before. Everything has suffered and its been a battle but the ranger team have clicked into action and have been working their magic.

Armed with a hair dryer, we've managed to help over thirty Arctic Tern chicks by drying and warming them and releasing them back to their parents. Its worked a treat as we've brought some from the verge of death, back to full life, kicking and screaming as we released them. This season has had it all and now I have seen it all. Thanks rain, thanks.

Hello rain my old freind...

Ringed Plover chick on the way to fledging (and now ringed!) Laura Shearer 

Oystercatcher chick hiding in the undergrowth (Graeme Duncan) 

Arctic Tern chick growing up! 

Kittiwake youngster with parent

Friday 28th June comments: Another day and yet more bad weather - it's what we expect now from this summer so I might even stop talking about it one of these days, maybe. On Tuesday evening the islands experienced some heavy downpours with some flash flooding...sadly a typical scene this year which has and unfortunately will be repeated this summer. With heavy rain forecast over the next few days, we'll hold our breath as this dreadful season continues.

On a lighter note, the resilient seabirds are raising young and it won't be long before we have more on the wing. The first fledgling Kittiwakes are not far away from taking their first step off the nest whilst both Sandwich and Arctic Tern chicks continue to grow ever bigger and stronger. However it's back to that weather and we'll start getting prepared. Hello rain my old friend...

Peak season

Let's go son...Guillemot chick with Father heading out to sea 

Success all the way - Guillemot chicks on the way! 

Like father, like son... 

It's a tough life being a Farnes Grey Seal... 

Icterine Warbler number five for the spring

Tuesday 26th June comments: It’s an exciting time of year on the Farne Islands as thousands of seabirds are feeding hungry youngsters as the season has reached its peak. All the seabird species on the islands have young and ever some are fledging now with young Shags and Cormorants on the wing. It won’t be long before the first tern chicks are flying and learning from their parents on what to do best – peck heads!

Guillemots and Razorbills continue to lead their small young out into the open sea as numbers decline on a daily basis – by mid-July the entire Guillemot population will be gone – a real contrast to the current scenes on the islands. Puffins have suffered with the excess rain, but where they’ve been successful, their young are growing up strong and fast ready for life at sea.

Even to do this day the Farne continues to surprise us, as our fifth (yes 5th!) Icterine Warbler of the spring arrived on Brownsman – a bright adult which showed well before departing overnight. The Farne is a great place and I recommend a visit if time and money allows.

Mixed weather again!

Sunset from the Farnes 

Proud parent - adult Guillemot 

Nearly time to go - Guillemot chick 

 Showing well - ranger Will checking out the roosting Hobby (Andy Denton)

Turbulent seas - the 'norm' this year (Will Scott)

Saturday 23rd June comments: Where has time gone? We've already passed the longest day of the year and yet we feel we are still waiting for our summer to start! The week has brought the usual mixed weather

as we've had rain, wind and glorious sunshine. The week began in sunshine, with heavy rain later in the week and we finished with strong winds. Great! As I said, the 'usual' weather.

The breeding birds are having mixed fortunes throughout all of this, as food supply remains very good so for those birds which have young, things are going well. However it's not all been good news as Puffins continue to struggle especially on Brownsman.

Although its generally quiet for birds migrating through the islands at this time of year, the adult Hobby roosted overnight on the Pele Tower and was still present the following morning (showing well from its roost point!). Eventually the bird departed west towards the mainland and joins the catalogue of good birds we've seen out here this year.

However what will next week bring? I suspect rain, wind, sunshine..... snow anyone?

Sodden Subbuteo

Roosting out of the rain on the Pele Tower...adult Hobby (Will Scott)

Turn with a difference - adult Hobby over Inner Farne (Will Scott) 

Hawking over lighthouse (Will Scott)

Thursday 21st June comments: Well another day and another blog post about the weather. Following three stunning days of bright sunshine (was that our summer?), we were back to ‘square one’ today as heavy rain and easterly winds swept the islands. The visitor boats found themselves restricted once again and the ranger team were confined to the indoors. However, the weather forecasts suggest it’s calming and it can’t come quick enough.

However every cloud has…you know the rest, and today the only positive came in the form of another good bird for the islands. Late afternoon, an adult Hobby was discovered on Inner Farne, which delighted the team (celebrating only the sixth ever Hobby for the islands) but the same couldn’t be said about the local seabirds, which were not that impressed by its presence! I’m glad to say that the Hobby was no real threat to the nesting birds and as dusk arrived, the bedraggled visitor was roosting on the Pele Tower hoping, like us, that tomorrow will bring some better weather…