Brading

Different day with sunny intervals. Nice walk, the usual Yar bridge to the north end of laundry lane:

2 lrp
1 marsh harrier

charadrius dubius

Brading today, (murky and drizzly)

6 little ringed plover and 3 green sands the highlights, plus 1 hobby.

Today

Heard 3 Siskin going over today, my first of the year on the island. Flocks have already been noted locally and generally along the south coast over the last couple of weeks.

Also yesterday from the car spotted a hobby flying over not far from home.

Brading

Stopped at Sandown canoe lake first to check over any gulls but the only really noteworthy one was a lone LBBG that bathed and then headed off north.

On to Brading and parked up near the Yar bridge and walked to laundry lane. Nothing new of note really, but a pleasant walk. Saw a snipe again.

 

Brading

Been back on the IOW nearly a week now.... unreal. Came back to a heatwave.

A snipe briefly seen today was probably recently in, 1st of the autumn. Brief view of a green sandpiper too. Juv buzzard calling. 1 hobby. Gorgeous day.

Letham

Today

 

 

Letham hobby by Graham Sparshott

 

 

The last morning outing was to Letham, a local area my brother keeps an eye on. Attractive to waders, with ruff, redshank (incluing a chick), common sandpiper and snipe to name but a few being present.

However, the undoubted and unexpected highlight was a falcon that gave us two views. The first was a slightly less than certain did we/didn't we encounter. Initially brought to our attention by the sudden reaction of the sand martins rising high above calling vigorously, Graham clocked what he thought and was sure was a hobby, but it soon disappeared low over the adjacent fields and typically out of sight. Jizz and description would've been enough to say it was one, but still we were left kicking ourselves a little for not getting more of it, plus no record shots. So we went off in its last seen direction to relocate it. With no joy on that front we returned to scan over the pool.

Whilst looking at the ruff and a water rail over the back of the pool, the black headed gulls suddenly became vocal and agitated and took to the air: the falcon was back. This time it gave much more protracted views as it was mobbed by said gulls. No doubting this was a hobby. Graham successfully got some pics too. The context of seeing a hobby in Fife is quite unusual, maybe a couple of records annually but not always. Definitely a species I thought I'd left behind on the island, but always a welcome sight and a good local find for Graham.  



tufties

Viper's Bugloss  Echium vulgare

aythya marila

passer montanus

 

 

Early evening went back to Vane Farm/Loch leven with Graham. A huge gathering of tufted ducks was quite a sight and we picked out a rarer lone (greater) scaup with them. Tree sparrows (along with siskin) are for me what I call novelty birds. Very rarely seen on the island esp tree sparrow so great to see them feeding close by. The common sandpiper was just below the hide. Also an osprey seen over the loch was another quality moment.