RSPB Bird Reports
ORKNEY BIRD RECORDS
October 2008
Following the excitement of September, October was a bit of an anti-climax as westerly winds dominated the weather. However, the storm on 25th resulted in an amazing influx of Grey Phalaropes, followed shortly afterwards by a conspicuous irruption of Waxwings.
The White-billed Diver remained in Water Sound all month with considerable numbers of Great Northern Divers and Red-throated Divers also coming into the Flow after the storm. The only Black-throated Divers noted were six off Swanbister on 14th and two in Water Sound on 29th. The Red-necked Grebe returned to Water Sound being seen on 6th and 9th. Slavonian Grebes are much commoner winterers and, again, became much more conspicuous after the storm with up to 12 in Echnaloch Bay, 19 on the Harray Loch and 14 on the Swannay Loch.
A heavy passage of Fulmars off North Ronaldsay on 6th included 14 ‘blue’ birds, a colour-phase much commoner in the Arctic; another was logged on 17th. Sooty Shearwaters peaked at 20 on 6th and 22 on 17th off North Ronaldsay while one was seen as late as 31st. The only Manx Shearwaters of the month were seen from the same island with 11 on 6th and one on 29th. The only Storm Petrel reported was a juvenile that came aboard a boat off Eday on 7th. Everyone has been commenting on the large numbers of Gannets around the islands at present. Numbers do seem to be unprecedented with, for example, at least 500 fishing in Hoy Sound on 2nd along with at least 600 Shags – they, at least, seem to be finding enough food! The largest Heron count of the month was of 24 at Lyness on 6th.
Whooper Swans began to arrive in force with a very large count of 240 on Stronsay on 13th, 122 on Sanday, up to 75 on Shapinsay and up to 48 at several other sites. A juvenile Bewick’s Swan, a rare visitor from Siberia, was found at the Tankerness Loch on 26th. Passage of Pink-footed Geese continued in the early part of the month the largest count being 280 on Stronsay on 2nd. Greylag Geese began pouring in behind the Pink-feet but it will be careful counts in November and December that will reveal how many we’ve got this winter! The first White-fronted Geese were eight in Rendall on 8th while 12 were at The Loons on 12th and one on North Ronaldsay on 20th. An adult Snow Goose appeared in the Windwick area of South Ronaldsay on 29th. The South Walls Barnacle Goose flock numbered 700 on 8th; elsewhere there were up to 73 on North Ronaldsay and 68 at the Skaill Loch. There were ten reports of Pale-bellied Brent Geese, all of parties of one-four except for a flock of 34 over Kirkwall Harbour on 20th. An Egyptian Goose was at The Loons on 8th, perhaps the same bird that was seen off the Green Holms in June.
Shelducks are rare at this time of year as they are away on their moult migration but one was on North Ronaldsay on 22nd and two at Mill Sand, Tankerness on 26th. As Wigeon numbers grew a hybrid Eurasian x American Wigeon was found at Mill Dam, Shapinsay on 22nd. Gadwall are now much commoner than they used to be but a count of 87 on the Stenness Loch on 17th was double the size of any previous gathering. Other duck counts of note were 502 Tufted Ducks on the Boardhouse Loch on 29th and 164 Scaup on the Harray Loch on 8th. One-four Velvet Scoters were seen at Echanloch Bay, Rerwick Head and North Ronaldsay while, unusually, one was on the Ayre Loch, St. Mary’s on 18th. Common Scoters are usually decidedly scarcer but 13 were off North Ronaldsay on 19th with four on 20th and 29th and two were in Evie Bay on 26th while a strange sight was of one on the Peedie Sea from 10th – 25th. Two Goosanders were at the Finstown Ouse on 5th and another on North Ronaldsay on 17th/18th.
Two Buzzards were on South Walls on 8th while singles were seen regularly in the Finstown-Rendall area and also on South Ronaldsay , Shapinsay and Sanday. Merlins were quite conspicuous during the month, North Ronaldsay recording a peak of five on 13th.
The biggest Golden Plover flock was 2000 at Herston but others of between 800 and 1600 were noted at three sites. Purple Sandpipers numbered 271 on North Ronaldsay on 22nd. The only Little Stint was one on Westray early in the month while one-four Ruff occurred at four localities. American waders were represented by Pectoral Sandpipers on North Ronaldsay on 2nd and on Sanday on 6th and by a Buff-breasted Sandpiper at Rerwick, Tankerness from 8th-12th. Woodcock can be numerous in October but the only reports were of one at St. Mary’s on 21st and two in Rendall on 30th. Jack Snipe were, similarly, in short supply, all the records coming from North Ronaldsay with one-two on four dates. The same island also recorded the peak Snipe passage with 199 on 14th. What was presumably last year’s wintering Whimbrel returned to Burray and was noted on three occasions; another was on North Ronaldsay on 19th. The highest Bar-tailed Godwit count was at St.Peter’s Pool with 86 on 12th. Black-tailed Godwit passage continued with 30 on Sanday on 26th, up to 22 at the Brig o’ Waithe and one-five elsewhere. A very late Common Sandpiper was on North Ronaldsay on 13th.
The real wader spectacular, however, as noted above, involved Grey Phalaropes. Four singles occurred off North Ronaldsay up to 18th while another was off the Brough of Birsay on 2nd. However, as the wind began to blow during the third week of the month up to 10 appeared at North Ronaldsay and another at Lamb Holm. Following the big storm of 25th, the eastern part of the Flow became alive with them, at least 130 being found between No 1 Barrier and St. Margaret’s Hope. Others occurred off Westray (one), Eday (seven), Evie Bay (five), Birsay Bay (two), Ness, Stromness (12), Sandoyne, Holm (14), Deerness (one), Carness (33), Peedie Sea (one), Inganess (five), Davy’s Brig (two), Fara (one), Weddell Sound (one). The total of well over 200 birds compares with a total of only about 80 having ever been seen in Orkney previously.
North Ronaldsay recorded the last Arctic Skua on 6th but a Bonxie was there as late as 31st. Pomarine Skuas were noted off Birsay on 1st and North Ronaldsay on 17th. Single Little Gulls were on North Ronaldsay from 19th and at Dingieshowe on 26th while a Mediterranean Gull was in the Kirkwall Harbour area from 25th. An Iceland Gull was on North Ronaldsay on 2nd while the stormy weather towards the month’s end brought others to that locality and to Stromness, Carness and Egilsay. Glaucous Gulls followed a similar pattern with one on North Ronaldsay on 2nd followed by six more after 17th. Surprisingly, the only Little Auk was one off North Ronaldsay on 31st. The last Sandwich Tern was at Evie Bay on 26th while late Arctic Terns were off Shapinsay on 18th and Deerness on 26th.
A Barn Owl was a very rare visitor to Stronsay on 4th. Long-eared Owls have been very scarce of late and only three were noted during the month, at Binscarth on 1st, Egilsay on 14th and North Ronaldsay on 21st. The last House Martins reported were 12 at Binscarth on 19th and Swallows hung on only a little longer with three being noted on 21st and the last, at Finstown, the next day. North Ronaldsay continued its exciting late September run of rarities with a Buff-bellied Pipit (from North America) from 3rd-13th, a new species for the Orkney list. The only other pipit of note was a Tree Pipit on Westray early in the month. A Short-toed Lark paid a brief visit to North Ronaldsay on 17th. One-two Grey Wagtails were noted at six sites throughout the month but records of White Wagtails all fell before 8th with singles on North Ronaldsay on three dates, three on Stromness Golf Course on 2nd and one at Crantit on 4th.
A marked arrival of Waxwings began on 29th with up to 30 in Stromness, 25 in Kirkwall, 12 at Binscarth and up to three elsewhere. Wheatears quickly became much less numerous, six on North Ronaldsay on 15th being the highest count and the last there on 26th. The only Whinchats were on that island on four dates to 16th with another on Egilsay on 2nd and 6th. The only Redstarts were two on Stronsay on 8th. It was a poor month for thrush arrivals. Some 1700 Redwings passed through North Ronaldsay on 15th but no more than 180 were noted elsewhere. The largest Fieldfare count came also from North Ronaldsay with 360 on 23rd but apart from 50 on Hoy on 17th, other records were of single figures. Single Ring Ouzels were on South Ronaldsay on 7th and North Ronaldsay on 12th.
A Grasshopper Warbler was on North Ronaldsay on 10th and a Reed Warbler there on 13th. The same island had two Lesser Whitethroats on 4th while another was at Feold, Firth from 5th-11th. The only Garden Warbler was one on North Ronaldsay on 2nd and even Blackcaps were scarce with no more than three on North Ronaldsay and five singles elsewhere. A Barred Warbler was in Finstown on 1st while another, first trapped in Rendall on 6th, remained until 28th. Willow Warblers were seen on North Ronaldsay until 4th and one was at Herston on 2nd but one in Stromness on 30th was very late indeed. Up to five Chiffchaffs occurred on North Ronaldsay (peak on 29th) but singles were noted at only five other sites. As has become the norm in recent years, Chiffchaffs were outnumbered by Yellow-browed Warblers, a species that breeds no nearer than the Ural Mountains of Siberia: singles occurred at 11 localities up to 8th with a later bird on North Ronaldsay on 15th. Like Chiffchaffs, Goldcrests were relatively scarce the largest count being 27 on North Ronaldsay on 29th.
Five Spotted Flycatchers were noted up to 18th while single Pied Flycatchers were in Stromness to 10th and on North Ronaldsay on the very late date of 29th. A Red-breasted Flycatcher was reported from Herston on 20th. Coal Tits are very scarce visitors to the islands but after one on Rousay on 6th others occurred at Berstane, Deerness and St.Margaret’s Hope after 12th. An enormous eruption of this species appears to be ongoing throughout Scotland and northern England and our birds are likely to originate from this source. Possibly connected with this movement was a record of six Long-tailed Tits in Hoy’s White Glen Plantation on 22nd. The Woodchat Shrike found on Papay last month was still present on 1st while a Great Grey Shrike was in Deerness on 15th.
Small numbers of Bramblings arrived with up to 25 on North Ronaldsay (13th) and 15 on Stronsay (9th) but Siskins were very scarce with no more than five at five sites. The best Linnet flocks numbered 250 at Craebreck, Holm and Dale, Costa while Dale also had the largest Twite gathering, 120 on 27th. Common Redpolls were relatively numerous with up to 12 at half a dozen localities; both Greenland and Mealy birds were noted. The only Crossbills were in Rendall with two on 12th and one on 20th.
North Ronaldsay reported the only Lapland Buntings with one-two on four dates to 16th. By far the best Snow Bunting count was 162 on North Ronaldsay on 12th other double figure counts involving 34 on Shapinsay on 30th, 26 on South Ronaldsay on 31st and ten in Deerness on 12th. The best Reed Bunting flocks each numbered 40, at Dale, Costa and at Viewforth, Swannay.
Eric Meek
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