Sea watches (Poms)

Some recent sea watches (bright easterlies) at St Cath's were fairly productive.

April 24th (evening 16:50-19:50): included 4x Pomarine Skua (together) east at 17:20. And 69 Manxies and smallish flock of barwits (x22) was all I could muster...

May 1st (Morning 06:00-11:00 with nine! observers, GAH, MB, IMR, OD, SS, IO, DS, DJH, NW): a steady mix including another four Poms and eight Arctic skuas, and a single Bonxie; the latter skua type being the only one I've seen this year...Routine fare but with good company..

Silver Y at Haddon's Pits

CIRL BUNTING

Not something you hear everyday, emberiza cirlus, especially on the Island....Singing (unseen) for a few minutes in the lighthouse grounds (SCP) - I just managed to get a recording before it fell silent.

jonspar · Cirl Bunting20260420_064458bb

Lesser throat for comparison

Migrants Luccombe area

Nice morning and walk around Luccombe: including (East side) downs, Village, farm, and Haddon's Pits. Aside from an obvious fall of willow warblers (50+): a single Redstart, three Groppers (Luccombe Down and Haddon's Pits), and a Whinchat...Plus, back on territory Lesser and common whitethroats, chiffchaffs, blcakcaps, and a Swallow over the farm. Numerous Firecrest singing too...

Nightingale Luccombe Down

This morning, a common Nightingale briefly singing and calling atop the downs (before melting away). Blackcaps and whitethroats aplenty. And a late-ish Redwing heard. Little moving overhead tho...

SERIN

St Cath's Sea watch (light SE and bright conditions) this morning with George, Steve, Mark, Naomi, and Andrew, produced a few bits moving eastwards: common scoters, sarnies, and an Arctic Skua etc. But yet to get really going in that respect. The highlight was a calling Serin just after 7am: came in from the west and landed next to us in the tamarisk - for a time calling away and just visible - before (typical of most serin encounters) departing and disappearing eastwards....

Puffin

Unfortunately I found the remains of an (Atlantic) Puffin today, not far from SCP. On the back of quite a few washed up birds found around the Island's coast and beyond: thought to be a consequence of the recent stormy conditions. IOW Puffin sightings are usually during spring with the odd one or two seen passing by St Cath's/Ventnor etc. 

Heartbreaking: Right now, thousands of Puffins are washing up along our coasts and further afield. It is devastating to see. These birds are Red-listed in the UK and already under serious pressure. Mass deaths like this, known as a “seabird wreck”, can take years for colonies to recover from...

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— RSPB (@rspb.bsky.social) February 19, 2026 at 11:53 AM

Wheatear

Signs of early spring migration recently: today the first Wheatear near Watershoot Bay (SCP). Also, mipits and alba wags over and the odd siskin. Sea passage (light SE winds) was limited to a reasonable sum of common scoters (x24 East) and a few RTD.....