North West Scotland, 18-25 May

A week's Munroing with Jen and Matt, plus birding added in, based at Ullapool. The weather overall was cool, cloudy and breezy, with the tops shrouded for most of the week except for 21st (when we were on Handa for the seabirds) and the afternoon of 24th. I managed to see a good selection of Scottish specialities during the week, starting with Wood Warbler and Pied Flycatcher in the bird woods near Aviemore. The mountain walks yielded several Ptarmigan sightings, more surprising was a trip of four (presumably migrant) Dotterel on the summit of Am Faochagach in the Fannichs. Needless to say, I did not have the camera in my bag..... A singing Ring Ouzel on Ben Hope, 2 Red- and 3 (brief) very smart Black-throated Divers on coastal lochs in Assynt and Dunlin and Ringed Plover on the beaches allowed good views. The ornithological highlight was a visit to the important seabird colony on Handa Island - one of the biggest in the UK with an estimated 200,000 birds. Both Great and Arctic Skuas breed here, the latter declining and in small numbers, their rakish falcon-like profiled distinctive amongst the lumbering Bonxies which are the bullies of the island. Large numbers of Guillemots breed including some of the bridled form, together with good numbers of Razorbills and small numbers of Puffins. Jen and Matt had never seen a Puffin before and were delighted with their views of 20 or 30 birds on the clifftop, behaving in their usual comical fashion. Altogether a very memorable experience, an added bonus being the views of the mainland and in particular the Assynt mountains rearing up into the sky in the primeval landscape, where the exposed rock look like the skeleton of the earth. Other species seen during the week included Rock and Tree Pipit, and a group of Twite around our chalet, but one of the most memorable aspects was the sheer number of singing Cuckoos - they are everywhere in the North West, presumably becuae of the numbers of Meadow Pipits that they can parasitise - and this is such a contrast to the south of England where the Cuckoos song has become something of a wetland speciality.

CWP - Black Terns and Grasshoppers

16 May - A couple of visits to CWP this week during the spell of hot, fine spring weather. An early morning and a late evening visit to pit 82 produced not one, but two, reeling Grasshopper warblers - with a couple of perched and flight views that were quite obliging, especially early in the morning. Reed and Sedge Warblers also much in evidence, with singing Cetti's warblers and Cuckoos as a backdrop. The easterlies also resulted in a marked passage of Black Terns, with 4 at pit 57 on 15th and 4 (same?) at pit 74 the following day. Always special birds to see, very graceful and striking with their jet back summer plumage.

Hobbies .........

13 May - A midday visit to pit 57 on hot, sunny conditions revealed the remarkable total of 13 Hobbies hawking high above the pit, some invisible to the naked eye, with Gulls and Terns hawking lower down on the insect hatch, mainly Mayflies. The Hobbies graceful as always, gliding and swooping with typical Falcon profile, either rakish or with tails flared as required. These birds will shortly disperse to breed and become much more elusive. Cuckoos calling soporifically in the sun.

Point Pelee 6-11 May

6-12 May - A spring trip to this North American migration hotspot on the north shore of Lake Erie, with Chris Dodds Canadian photographer. The second week of May sees the Warbler passage at its peak with the potential for falls of these charismatic, colourful species if southerly winds encourage their migration and the weather turns contrary - these birds then become exhausted crossing the water, and drop into the Point to feed, allowing close views. The weather in Ontario has been unsettled and wet his spring, and the showery conditions continued during my visit - indeed, on the 9th, regular visitors described the fall as one of the best days for a couple of decades - the Point was crawling with migrants, with birds dropping into the trees and also landing on the beach where they fed at close range along the tide line, oblivious their human admirers. Amazingly colourful in their vivid breeding plumage, they afforded stunning views - Blackburnian Warblers with flame-coloured throats glowing, multi-coloured Chestnut-sided, Cape May and Bay-breasted Warblers, stunning American Redstarts, together with confiding Vireos, and more skulking Warblers such as Mourning and Kentucky - all these species and more were seen at close range, though with such active species photography is always a challenge - I achieved reasonable pics of most species - as well as the above, good looks also at Black-and-White and Northern Parula, amazing views of Ovenbird, and the glowing male Prothonotary Warbler, along with skulking Thrushes. Wader passage at Hillman Marsh was poorer than average apparently due to widespread flooding dispersing the shorebirds, though I had very good views of Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, as well as views of Short-billed Dowitcher and Wilson’s Phalarope. Altogether a very successful week, at least 25 Warbler species seen with great views of most of them. North American birders are very friendly compared with their UK counterparts.

Good local birding doubled!

4 May - An excellent though unexpected day. Firstly, I headed early to Grimsbury reservoir in north Oxfordshire where a Red-rumped Swallow has been seen for the last couple of days, feeding low over the water with a mixed flock of newly-arrived hirundines. With the current cool northerly winds, the bird was unlikely to move on from a ready source of insects until the weather improved, and so it proved, with excellent views of this vagrant hirundine as it fed up and down the reservoir, giving good views of the distinctive flight pattern and striking buff and orange coloration. Large numbers of House Martins present for comparison with smaller numbers of Swallows and Sand Martins, a few early Swifts, also an obliging Lesser Whitethroat. Most unexpected news mid-afternoon was of a "trip" of 3 Dotterel on the Wilts boundary west of Castle Combe. I got there fairly fast and was treated to excellent views of this rare and beautiful Plover, a denizen of high altitudes and high latitudes - one bird, presumably a female being very brightly marked, together with two slightly duller companions. A real bonus in the evening sunlight, and at fairly close range, and my first in Wiltshire for over 20 years. A very good day!

CWP update

May 1 - regular checks on CWP recently have produced a variety of waders including Greenshanks at Eysey and 200, LRPs still present, and Common Sandpipers and Whimbrels. Common Terns are now back in good numbers. A visit to Lower Mill área showed spring in full flow - the highlight being 3-4 Hobbies back - always a thrill to see the first of these each spring hawking for insects, one of my favourite birds, elegant and rakish in shape and behaviour with the added lure of being uncommon and fairly elusive. And simply a beautiful bird! Warblers now in very good voice, lots of Garden Warblers now pouring out their guttural song, with Whitethroats and Lesser Whitethroats, Sedge and Cetti’s Warblers. Good numbers of Cuckoos seem in evidence this year, and, icing on the cake, at least 20 Swifts over Pit 74 during a rain shower, bang on cue on the first day of May.