Bird Sightings

By Thomas Weston

A busy day on the migration front with some really impressive totals all round, and a couple of new species for the year, which is always exciting. At this time of year, with so much migration going on and a nice number of birders on the island increasing coverage, it does sometimes feel you are ‘clearing up’ some species that may have already passed unnoticed.

I awoke to start census. The gorgeous sunrise this morning was incredible, and there were already Skylark and Meadow Pipits passing in the morning light – a sign of a good day ahead. In the Laundry Garden, a little Goldcrest was calling and actively feeding in the lone tall tree. The morning travel meeting was longer than normal, though these things could have been a bonus for the census ahead. All it takes is a few seconds and something could easily have been missed. In Millcombe, there were more Goldcrest, and I could hear a Firecrest before even reaching the gate. A second was in the Pines, though moved over later in the morning. I heard and saw a nice number of Chiffchaffs and Robins, a good couple of migrants at this time of year, as well as a couple of Blackcap in the bushes. There were not masses of birds in Millcombe, and if this was the case all around census, it would not have been so eventful. However…

Yellow Wagtail in Lower Lighthouse Field by Thomas Weston

…walking up Battlements Corner, it was good to spot a flock of Gannets offshore, a few Shags, one of two Water Rail currently in the valley, and a singing Grey Wagtail from the direction of the pond. St John's Valley held some more Meadow Pipits and some Linnets plus a single Stonechat. Out of Millcombe is when the bird activity and diversity increased. The slight SE wind is always a great one for migratory, and scarce species in the spring, and to some coincidence it seems like a bonus for the autumn too!  Benjamin’s Chair had a flock of Ravens flying overhead, a Rock Pipit (one of three noted today around the route), and out at sea a single auk spp flew by. The sky was alive with Skylark and Meadow Pipits with good numbers of both recorded. There were parties of Linnets, and it felt birdy. Looking at the track back to the Village by SW Field, I noted two obvious White Wagtails sat on the road. Their plumage that extra bit lighter than our Pied Wagtails of which there were two in the Village. I checked the horses' legs in Lower Lighthouse Field and found the Yellow Wagtail showing well, a grey looking bird with the smallest hint of yellow in the vent, an oddball. Overhead, a couple of Grey Wagtails flew by, and a Reed Bunting passed with some Meadow Pipits.

Up at Old Light, I checked the bushes and did not see much apart from a lovely Wheatear on the wall by the Stoneycroft Paddock. The Airfield was alive with passing pipits and larks, a few Swallows too. It was halfway across the runway when I heard a bird that sounded somewhat familiar in Lundy terms. A single bird left a Meadow Pipit flock and began circling overhead. The call, a “pew, pew”, followed by a rattling call was of course a Lapland Bunting! This is now the 4^th I have personally seen this autumn, though there have certainly been a few more with the influx only a couple of weeks ago. The bird looked as though it was going to land, but alas turned around and headed off towards Jenny’s Cove or the Earthquake, though these strong fliers could be ending up at North End.

Female Eurasian Wigeon on Barton Field by Thomas Weston

Approaching Pointless Wall, the Bracken seems to hide some goodies every so often. Today, a couple of Stonechats, a single Whinchat, and a surprise Reed Bunting were the best. A lovely trio of species and all migrants at the moment making it even more special. There was not much of note in Brick Field apart from a flock of Carrion Crows, though the ever-present Meadow Pipits were nice. Quarry Cottages yielded a male Kestrel, a flyover Peregrine and in the bushes a few more Chiffchaff. Walking to the Village I passed the Feral Stock Management Team and checked Barton Field for anything additional. The female-type Wigeon was hanging around with 12 Mallards, casually hunkered down and keeping a low profile. There was a Snipe on Pondsbury, which was new in and hunkered down. Meanwhile, the last little bit of census led to a flock of House Sparrows around Pigs.

The only omissions on census were Woodpigeon, Blackbird and Oystercatcher! However, a call from one of the Housekeepers in Brambles Villa led to me retrieving and disposing of a dead Woodpigeon and seeing the Garden Warbler by the Casbah, first found by Greg this morning.

Grey Heron flock over Brick Field by Thomas Weston

I then did some admin and after some lunch headed up to Brazen with Eleanor. Amazingly, as we stepped outside our house, we saw a very late Swift flying around the Village! The Wigeon was still in Barton Field and before leaving the Village we noted a flock of 10 Grey Herons heading south! Amazing. There was not much else of note to add to such a busy day, but there were more Swallows, some new-in House Martins, and a flock of 9 Skylarks on the way back.

Catching up on other sightings reported, there was a Great white Egret, seen heading west over Old Light this morning by staying guests – the first of the year, a Short-eared Owl at North End – the first of the year too – hunkered in the Bracken and seen by the Game Control team, a few Snipe noted on the pools, a Pied Flycatcher at Tibbetts of all places (there are no trees or bushes here), plus one more at the Terrace, a Spotted Flycatcher in the Quarries, a Merlin at Rocket Pole Pond heading straight south, and an additional Grey Heron seen before the big flock.

WHAT A DAY 😊!

By Eleanor Harris

As both me and Thomas were on a Tavern shift later, we decided to go for a walk. As it was a sunny day, we decided to head along the west coat stopping along the way at Jenny’s Cove to watch the dramatic scenery. A few birds were seen, including Linnets, Meadow Pipits and Skylarks but it was largely pretty quiet on this side of the island.

We decided to check Pondsbury but changed our plan when we saw Tom the farmer driving the tractor near the area, so we crossed over to the east to check the Terrace and Quarry area. It was notable that there was a bit of warmth in the air which had not been present on the west. It is crazy to think how on one side of the island it can be rather breezy whereas on the other it can be a hot summer's day. Walking along the Quarries the bushes were alive with Blackcaps, with a Pied Flycatcher being one of our highlights. Along the way we bumped into Kirsty who had some exciting news that a new seal pup had been found on Quarry Beach.

Checking the time, we decided to head back for an early lunch and then head to work.

Among other island finds of the day was a Wigeon, the first of the year, found by Greg. There was a Little Egret passing the island which was the third record of the year. A Reed Bunting at the top of Millcombe was the first since the spring and a Merlin was found by the Feral Stock Management Team at North End was also the first since the spring.

By Thomas Weston

The day was nice and calm, a slight breeze passed and I awoke to start housekeeping today. One of the first birds seen was a Sparrowhawk, casually passing by in the breeze being mobbed by some Swallows. Greg was on census and was also on housekeeping but starting at 10am, rather than 8am. There was a noticeable passage of birds; to begin the sound of Skylarks and Meadow Pipits filled the air as birds attempted to move south. Greg noted a Snipe and 2 Pied Flycatchers in Millcombe, a Firecrest above the Casbah, as well as 4 Redstarts, a Golden Plover, and a Whinchat all on the plateau.

Whilst Greg, Eleanor and I were moving between accommodation cleaning, it seemed as though there were lots of birds about.  When driving between Millcombe House and Brambles, a Spotted Flycatcher, a Redstart, and 2 Pied Flycatchers were on Battlements Corner. A somewhat of an oak woodland vibe, it was nice to see them flitting between the canopy. There were a couple of flyover Ringed Plover whilst in Brambles and then the Swallows started streaming through. At first there was a big pulse, maybe 100 per minute, equating to 1500 birds in 15 minutes at least. However, when the boat arrived and some guest birders arrived, they estimated passage to be 1 per second. They watched for two and a half hours, gaining more than 7500 Swallows passing their watch point. It was obvious passage did not die down between Brambles and Old Light, with an additional 1000 birds noted by our driving team.

Eastern Lesser Whitethroat at Stoneycroft by Greg Lee

At Old Light, we finished cleaning and moved to Stoneycroft. It seemed the best day of the autumn so far for migration and species diversity. When peering into Stoneycroft’s garden, it was nice to see a Lesser Whitethroat. Wait, a Lesser Whitethroat?! This is not only an island scarcity, but we had to remind ourselves it was the end of September and not the end of July when most think of, or already start, migrating. The bird was preening and seemed quite tired too. It also did not fit the ‘usual’ slaty grey head and generally grey kind of bird. This one was a sandier colour, brown sand that went to the head and merged in with the grey of the forehead. It was a bird with white outer tail feathers, almost certainly an Eastern Lesser Whitethroat and highly likely ‘blythi’ if we were to determine subspecies from the field. Greg got my camera and got some pics. All of a sudden, a second Lesser Whitethroat joined the party. This one your more typical-looking bird and presumably a late nominate migrant.

After we completed housekeeping and additional tasks, plus dinner, it was already 6pm and not long before sunset nowadays. The trio of us decided to try and catch the island scarcity, for a better and more scientific understanding of the subspecies we were debating. With a bit of luck, some behaviour watching, and some great teamwork, we managed to catch and ring the bird and take some much-needed biometrics and photos too to help. All this information pointed towards it being an Eastern Lesser Whitethroat as first thought, but determining subspecies will have to be left to those with more knowledge.

Elsewhere, a Quail was seen, the first since the big summer influx.

By Greg Lee

I was rather looking forward to census today with the calm winds on the forecast. However, I had failed to take into consideration Thomas’s words of wisdom which detailed the arrival of fog in slack high-pressure systems. So, when I peeled back the blind in the morning in my room, I was greeted by a thick fog outside the Lodge window. Nonetheless, census still needed doing and, in truth, it was quieter with little to be seen although some Robins were ticking in Lower Millcombe along with the now almost staple of morning census, Water Rails squealing. A Tree Pipit buzzed over St John's in the company of some Meadow Pipits, whilst out near Rocket Pole I flushed a Grey Heron which flew towards Benjamin's Chair, only to then flush another five minutes later at Old Light. Clearly these birds didn't fancy moving in the fog either! 

Great Black Backed Gull flock at North Light by Thomas Weston

Fortunately, Thomas and Eleanor had more luck up at the North End which was out of the fog. There they reported 10 Great Black-Backed Gulls, a small hirundine movement coming in off the sea with 75 Swallows and singles of House and Sand Martin logged. A few Meadow Pipits were also noted, with probably a considerable number more hiding away in the fog.