Barred Warbler and a Crane

A Common Crane has been around the upper Ythan yesterday and today ranging between Inchgeck island and up river from Waulkmill. The 3 Little Stint were seen again in the Waulkmill area on Wednesday 10th.
The very light SE winds have brought fog and a small number of migrants, with 2 Whinchats and a Pied Flycatcher being the highlights in Hightown yesterday. Today a Barred Warbler showed very well early on though was mobile ranging from the near corner of the Sandloch mire, into the gardens of Hightown.
Along with it was a small smattering of Willow Warblers, Goldcrest, Wheatears and Robins. Whether much more can be expected in the very light winds remains to be seen.
Swallows continue to move through the area in fairly large numbers.

Barred Warbler in the fog, Collieston

Ythan worth a look

There were 3 Little Stints yesterday morning at the Waulkmill hide, along with 10 Curlew Sandpipers. Later that day the Little Egret count currently for the Ythan rose to a new record of 5.
The estuary is packed in all directions with waders frantically feeding up just now and is well worth a look, as Ospreys continue to patrol overhead.
Winter has been suggested though by the first Pink-footed Geese arriving back in the area.
This morning a Spotted Flycatcher was feeding at Kirkton. The pictures are of some of the waders seen at the weekend.

Curlew Sandpiper, Ythan

Curlew and Crab, Ythan

Black-tailed Godwit, Ythan Sept 14

Migration news

Great end to last week with Cotehill, and colleagues, Blyth's Reed Warbler as per the last post.
This weekend started with a small build up of commoner migrants, with Willow Warbler's scattered around the Collieston area. The best bird was maybe a Wood Warbler in the back road plantation at Mains of Slains. There was also Spotted Flycatcher and a number of Whinchat, including 3 at Sandloch yesterday. Back a bit further, a Grasshopper Warbler showing unusually very well at Kirkton on Monday 1st was also a highlight.
On the Estuary there have been up to 3 Little Egrets in various locations including at the Snub today. Curlew Sandpipers have been in this area and Waulkmill, with 11 there on Tuesday, and 4 seen today.
A Slavonian Grebe has been seen on and off at Meikle Loch for the past 10 days or so.
A record count, for me at least, of Common Sandpipers, on Meikle Loch, with 19 there this morning.

Blyth's reed warbler

There's only been a few migrants in over this last week with some pied flycatchers and whinchats being seen in the village.  However, this little beauty was caught at a regular ringing site at Logie Buchan on the 30th August.

It's a Blyth's reed warbler.  This species breeds as close as southern Finland and up until recent years was considered to be an extremely rare visitor to the UK.  However, it's a species that's expanding its range westward and is now being found regularly in Shetland each autumn.  In North-east scotland it is still an extremely rare bird with only two previous records.

Blyth's Reed Warbler

Then the haar rolls in

Meikle held  a Green Sand this morning, but whilst the rest if the UK basks, the haar rolls in...

Hotting up

More movement birdwise locally over the last couple of weeks. With even some Willow Warblers seen around the village over the weekend,  perhaps dropped in after the thunder storms moved through the area. Almost like early Autumn!
Mainly evident are the building wader numbers on the estuary and on Meikle Loch. One observer  (PAAB) had a count in excess of 30 Common Sandpipers on the Ythan on Sunday for example. Lapwing numbers on Meikle are giving some counts of around 50 birds which is unusual. The main other highlights are a bright , adult Little Stint that was first seen on Saturday 19th, and it was seen again on Monday. Very poor images of it shown. There was two Green Sandpipers there as well that day.
A short seawatch on Sunday yielded a single Sooty Shearwater going north late afternoon, 30 plus Manx Sheawaters and a single Great Skua.

Little Stint, Meikle Loch

Lazy summer days

A well overdue update for the area. Wader numbers are gradually increasing again on the Estuary with a Little Ringed Plover reported this evening. Dunlin and Ringed Plover numbers have been gradually increasing over the last week or two. This has been reflected on Meikle Loch where Dunlin, Common Sandpipers and Greenshanks have all been seen in small numbers in the last week. This evening a Water Rail was associating closely with a Greenshank there, somewhat bizarrely.Some warm and still days see good numbers of Ringlets, Common Blues and Meadow Brown butterflies in the meadows around Meikle Loch.

Water Rail and Geenshank, Meikle Loch

Ringlet, Meikle Loch

On the fields the Slains area has done very well this season for breeding Lapwing, with multiple pairs being successful. This probably reflects the failed drainage attempts this winter.

Fulmar

On the sea the main impression is the constant stream of Common, Arctic and Sandwich Tern shuttling back and forth. On the bright days especially an impressive sight. Only the occasional skua just now to stir them up.

Ythan Seals