Thursday 31 August 2017

Strumble Head (31 Aug 17)

Time: 0600 - 1400
Weather: Sunny
Wind: NW (F3)
Notes: More of the same today.  Lots of feeding flocks and dolphins dotted around.  First Diver of the season.

Balearic Shearwater - 3
Arctic Skua - 13 (9D, 1P, 3J)
Sabine's Gull - 1 (Ad Sum)
Mediterranean Gull - 2 (1stW)
Sandwich Tern - 23
Comic Tern - 17
Little Tern - 1
Black Tern - 1
Red Throated Diver - 1 (Sum Plum)
Common Scoter - 187 (38F, 149M)
Curlew - 1
Redshank - 5
Knot - 30
Sanderling - 13
Turnstone - 6
Dunlin - 1

Common Porpoise - showing well
Common Dolphin - Lots of small groups dotted around - especially in the tide race
Sunfish - 1

Strumble Hobby

Forgive the shots from the rear as I had barely a second to turn and get on it as Cliff spotted it passing.



Wednesday 30 August 2017

Strumble Head (30 Aug 17)

Time: 0600 - 0830
Weather: Cloudy, bright.
Wind: NW (F3)
Notes: Short shift before work today.  Very enjoyable with plenty of action.  Absolutely stonking summer plumage Sabs at close range.

Sooty Shearwater - 2
Pomarine Skua - 1 (P)
Arctic Skua - 6 (2P, 2D, 2J)
Great Skua - 1
Sabine's Gull - 1 (Ad Sum)
Mediterranean Gull - 1 (1stW)
Comic Tern - 14
Common Scoter - 29 (1F, 28M)
Whimbrel - 31
Bar Tailed Godwit  - 1
Dunlin - 5

Common Porpoise - Showing well.
Common Dolphin - Pods of 5, 25 and 30

Tuesday 29 August 2017

Pics of Sunday's WWBT - Thanks to David Flack

David Flack has kindly sent me the following three pics of the WWBT.

Full credit to David for firstly having his camera (I didn't!) and secondly getting pics of the bird given the calm conditions - nothing for autofocus to lock onto.




Strumble Head (29 Aug 17)

Time: 0600 - 1400
Weather: Drizzle early then bright and cloudy
Wind: NNW (F4-3)
Notes: Slow start but then a nice passage of skuas, a few tubenoses at last and still dolphins and bait ball feeding flocks about.

Sooty Shearwater - 2
Balearic Shearwater - 4
Arctic Skua - 20 (8D, 12P)
Great Skua - 5
Mediterranean Gull - 3 (1 Ad, 2 1stW)
Sandwich Tern - 20
Comic Tern - 28
Common Scoter - 56 (18F, 38M)
Whimbrel - 1

Common Porpoise - showing well
Common Dolphin - small pods scattered along the tide race seemed to be feeding rather than playing about.
Sunfish - 2

Monday 28 August 2017

A previous W-wBT

Just to confirm Cliff's memory, together on 1st August 1999 we saw a passing White-winged Black Tern when the sea was calm like a mirror. History has a way of repeating itself at Valhala, sorry Strumble.

Strumble Head (28 Aug 17)

Time: 0600 - 1400
Weather: Cloudy, bright.
Wind: SW (F3-45)
Notes: The wind is back!  ...and with it the birds have gone!  Hard work today with long periods of nothing.  Still a few bait ball feeding flocks dotted around.

Balearic Shearwater - 2
Arctic Skua - 11 (4J, 7D)
Great Skua - 1
Sandwich Tern - 9
Comic Tern - 4
Little Tern - 1
Common Scoter - 88 (15F, 73M)
Tufted Duck - 2
Curlew - 2
Whimbrel - 1
Turnstone - 1
Snipe - 1

Common Porpoise - Showing reasonably well
Common Dolphin - not as many as previous days but pods of 5, 5, 5, 10 and 10 counted.

Sunday 27 August 2017

Different Day out in the Celtic Deep.

I was interested and delighted to read Richard Stonier's account of his day at Strumble as we were out in the Celtic Deep between thirty and sixty miles away from Strumble. We also had lots of Common Dolphins (getting on for about a thousand during our 100 nautical mile voyage so in a way Strumble beat us on dolphins per mile!)   
However what struck me, was the lack of anything other then the kind of bread and butter sea birds one might expect out there at this time of the year, such as Gannets, Manxies and Auks.  Around a dozen European Storm Petrels were encountered and I did check them as far as possible but sadly none of Rich's  Scilly Wilson's had migrated this far north.so far as I could see! I would usually expect the odd sooty out there and maybe the odd Bonxie with a good chance of terns or other skuas but nothing, zilch! I did spot a small looking tern as we motored into the haven but  by then I was a bit knackered and did not give it the attention I perhaps should have! Interestingly If i remember right our GHR's WWBT was similarity spotted on a pretty windless day!

Strumble Head (27 Aug 17)

Time: 0600 - 1400
Weather: Cloudy, bright.
Wind: AM - Calm.  PM - SW (F1)
Notes: I should re-draft the "best conditions for Strumble guidelines - Strong SW followed by Strong NW => No wind at all."  Another very enjoyable watch with lots of birds and dolphins on view for the whole watch.  Lots of bait balls so obviously lots of food out there.  Highlight of course was the moulting summer plumage WWBT.

White Winged Black Tern - 1 (Moulting adult summer).  (0800 - 0930). 

Three visiting birders joined me shortly before 8am.  Just after 8am one of them said he had "something a bit different close in".  As I was looking for it he said "I think it is a Black Tern".  I got onto it shortly after and said - yes well done... but almost immediately the alarm bells started to go off:  White tail / lower rump, back darker than upper wings "saddle effect" and then it showed the under side - clincher - moulting black under wing coverts.  I grabbed my Collins Bird Guide to double check my suspicions and then declared to the three birders that it was a WWBT not a Black Tern.

It was feeding only about 100yards offshore just right of "1230" in typical marsh tern habit.  Over the next 1.5 hours it fed just in front of us in between 10-15min rests on one of the bouys - often precariously - seemed to struggle to keep balance.  At about 0930 we got distracted by a Skua and lost track of the Tern.  We suspect it may have gone into the bay.

One of the birders got some photos and I have asked him to email them to me - I will post up here when I hopefully receive them - possibly Tuesday when they get home.

Arctic Skua - 7 (3J, 3D, 1P)
Great Skua - 1
Sabine's Gull - 1 (Juv)
Mediterranean Gull - 2 (1stW)
Sandwich Tern - 12
Comic Tern - 14
Black Tern - 1
Common Scoter - 221 (46F, 175M)
Teal - 3
Pintail - 2
Curlew - 2
Whimbrel - 1
Redshank - 3
Dunlin - 21

Common Porpoise - Lots across the whole vista and for the whole watch.
Common Dolphin - Again lots of animals.  I did some early pod counts of 15, 15, 20, 25 and 30 but gave up as we were seeing them on every scan.  Maybe 100-200 animals in total.
Sunfish - 2

Saturday 26 August 2017

Strumble Head (26 Aug 17)

Time: 0600 - 1400
Weather: Sunny
Wind: Calm
Notes: A much better day than expected given no wind!  Sea was like a glass sheet and there were feeding birds across the whole vista.  Excellent visibility.  Common Dolphins probably under estimated and were ever present.

Long Tailed Skua - 1 (Ad Sum with complete tail streamers.  Passed through inside of tide race - superb!)
Pomarine Skua - 2 (Juv)
Arctic Skua - 17 (13P, 4D)
Great Skua - 2
Mediterranean Gull - 1 (1stW)
Sandwich Tern - 20
Comic Tern - 8
Black Tern - 1
Little Tern - 1
Common Scoter - 158 (61F, 97M)
Teal - 13
Whimbrel - 1
Dunlin - 11
Snipe - 1

Common Porpoise - showing very well
Common Dolphin - conservative estimates of pods of 5, 10, 20, 20 and 50+.  The largest pod of 50+ had lots of very young individuals and one adult with no dorsal fin so very distinctive!

Friday 25 August 2017

Strumble Head 25th August 2017.

Time: 07.45 - 10.30
Weather: Bright, some cloud
Wind: SW2

Common Scoter - 38 ( 34 Males )
Grey Heron - 1
Whimbrel - 1
Arctic Skua - 7 ( 1 Pale, 3 Dark, 3 Juv )

Common Dolphin - A small pod of about 5 seen twice.

Porpoises showing quite well. 

Saturday 19 August 2017

Strumble Head 19th August 2017.

Time: 06.00 - 15.00
Weather: Some cloud but generally bright
Wind: WSW 5/6

Common Scoter - 58 ( 38 Males )
Sooty Shearwater - 1
Balearic Shearwater - 2
Storm Petrel - 8 ( Probably a few more )
Ringed plover - 19
Dunlin - 3
Whimbrel - 5
Redshank - 3
Turnstone - 3
Grey Phalarope - 2
Pomarine Skua - 2 ( Pale Adult & Juv )
Arctic Skua - 8 ( 3 Pale Adult, 5 Dark Adult )
Long Tailed Skua - 1 ( Juvenile )
Bonxie - 10
Sabines Gull - 1 (Full Slate Hooded Adult )
Sandwich Tern - 12
Little Tern - 2
'Commic Tern' - 1
Puffin - 1

Common Dolphin - 12+
Porpoises showing occasionally
Ocean Sunfish - 4

Up to 10 present, with 2 having come from Liverpool for the day !


Friday 18 August 2017

Strumble Head 18th August 2017.

Time: 05.45 - 14.15
Wind: W4 then SW 5/6

Common Scoter - 20 ( 17 Males )
Sooty Shearwater - 1
Balearic Shearwater - 5
Sanderling - 18
Dunlin - 56
Whimbrel - 9
Grey Phalarope - 1
Pomarine Skua - 1 ( Juv )
Arctic Skua - 7 ( 1 Pale, 6 Dark )
Bonxie - 5
Mediterranean Gull - 2 ( Both Adult )
Sandwich Tern - 3
Commic Tern - 12
Black Tern - 1
Puffin - 4

Risso's Dolphin - 7 ( Including 1 calf )

Chris Grayell





Sunday 13 August 2017

Strumble Head 13th August 2017.

05.45 - 12.45
Wind: very Light W until 10 Then S

Wigeon - 1
Common Scoter - 101 ( 73 Males )
Dunlin - 17
Whimbrel - 5
Turnstone - 1
Arctic Skua - 6 ( 2 Pale, 4 Dark )
Bonxie - 1
Sandwich Tern - 8
Common Tern - 2
Puffin - 1

Common Dolphin - 100+

Chris Grayell 

Saturday 12 August 2017

Strumble Head Early Evening Shift 12th Aug 2017

Time: 16.00 - 18.00
Weather: Sunny
Wind: W 3

Common Scoter - 59 ( 53 Males )
Black Tailed Godwit - 8

Common Dolphin - 2
Porpoises showing occasionally

Wdigbirder & Graham Powell ( AKA Tall Twitcher ! )

Strumble Bonxie

Following on from Chis's report here's some images of the Bonxie that he recorded this morning. First one I've seen an quite a while. Autumn is coming!!!




Strumble Head 12th August 2017.

Time: 05.45 - 12.45
Wind: W 3/4

Common Scoter - 75 ( 51 Males )
Balearic Shearwater - 2
Grey Heron - 1
Whimbrel - 14
Arctic Skua - 2 ( Both Pale )
Bonxie - 1
Mediterranean Gull - 1 ( Juv )
Sandwich Tern - 4

Common Dolphin - 20/25 

Chris Grayell

Sunday 6 August 2017

Strumble Head (06 Aug 17)

Time: 0515 - 0900
Weather: Sunny spells.
Wind: SW (F4)

Storm Petrel - 2
Arctic Skua - 1 (D)
Great Skua - 1
Mediterranean Gull - 2 (AdW, AdS)
Sandwich Tern - 3
Common Scoter - 151 (64F, 87M)
Whimbrel - 1
Dunlin - 13

Common Dolphin - 2 pods of 5 and 15
Common Porpoise - showing quite well.

Saturday 5 August 2017

Strumble Head (05 Aug 17)

Time: 0515 - 0900
Weather: Sunny spells.
Wind: NW (F3)

Common Scoter - 459 (136F, 323M)
Mediterranean Gull - 2 (1stW, AdW)
Sandwich Tern - 2
Curlew - 1
Whimbrel - 1
Common Sandpiper - 1

Common Dolphin - c.15
Common Porpoise - showing occasionally

Friday 4 August 2017

Gadwall

8 Gadwall on the pond at Llanychaer this evening before taking off and heading up the valley.

Strumble Head 4th August 2017.

Time: 06.00 - 09.30
Weather; Bright, Sunny
Wind: WSW 3

Gadwall - 2 ( The first since 2012 )
Shoveler - 1
Common Scoter - 262 ( 244 Males )
Dunlin - 2
Curlew - 2
Arctic Skua - 4 ( All Pale )
Sandwich tern - 2
Puffin - 3

Common Dolphin - A pod of approx. 12 to 15 animals east to west about half way out.
Porpoises showing occasionally.

Thursday 3 August 2017

Strumble Head 3rd August 2017 ( 2 Watches )

Time: 05.45 - 12.45
Wind: SW ( Howler )

Common Scoter - 14 ( 9 males )
Balearic Shearwater - 1
Storm Petrel - 1
Puffin - 1

( Chris Grayell )

Time; 16.30 - 18.00
Weather: Bright, clouding up towards end
Wind: SW 5/6

Common Scoter - 1 ( M )
Storm Petrel - 7
Puffin - 1

Porpoises showing well considering the sea conditions.

Tuesday 1 August 2017

Strumble Head 1st August 2017.

Time: 16.00 - 18.00
Weather: Bright, some cloud.
Wind: SW3

Common Scoter - 13 ( 11 males )
Dunlin - 6
Sandwich Tern - 2
Puffin - 1

Porpoises showing all through the watch.

Manxies numerous & a large number of Guillemots with young on sea.