Bird Sightings

Strong winds have prohibited any ringing this week. Despite the large westerly weather systems of late, Luke managed to uncover a Yellow-breasted Bunting between the pigsty and airfield associating with Meadow Pipits. This is a bird from the far east, Siberia, and is the third record for Lundy after two in the 1980s. The large gap in records followed the species' catastrophic collapse in range and population when massive over-harvesting reduced the amount of suitable habitat in their Chinese staging/wintering grounds. As a particularly exciting record, a small twitch assembled on the 26th, but unfortunately it hasn't reappeared for anyone other than Luke, the original finder.

Mega record of a first winter Yellow-breasted Bunting with a Meadow Pipit. © Luke Marriner

At least one Red-eyed Vireo has remained in Millcombe, along with one ringed Wryneck, both seen on the 26th. The Rose-coloured Starling appears to have left us now, with no sightings in the week since the 20th.

Ringed Red-eyed Vireo in Smelly Gully. © Angus Croudace

Skylark started moving through in nice numbers at the end of last week with a peak of 56 on the 22nd. We are still recording about 20 birds south of Quarter Wall each day this week, although these are mostly birds that are sticking around the airfield and SW field - they haven't moved on yet, possibly remaining local until favourable weather presents itself again for them to move on. Meadow Pipit counts have been a couple of hundred each day with large flocks around the airfield.

 

The small hirundine trickle continues, and we are still surprised not to have had a big day of passage yet, especially seeing as not too far away on the mainland there have been some large movements recorded. The 26th saw our highest totals since the 22nd, with 120 Swallow, 7 Sand Martin and 11 House Martin.

 

Millcombe has been much quieter since the Blackcap fall last week, with 15 Blackcaps left on the 24th and just two on the 27th. One Chiffchaff has remained in the lower garden, and counts of Goldcrest south of Quarter wall have been around a dozen each day. One Ring Ouzel was picked up on the 24th and 25th. A Spotted Flycatcher has been present since the 25th, with another on the terrace on the 26th. About twelve Crossbills were reported flying low over Millcombe on the 26th. Above Millcombe a Whinchat and Yellow Wagtail remain in Barton's Field, and one Grey Wagtail also flew overhead on the 26th.

 

Spotted Flycatcher, Millcombe © Angus Croudace

 

Strong winds have been a feature of the past week. We watched the weather charts at the start of the week with interest as a fast moving warm front zipped across the Atlantic. Off the back of this system (the remnants of a hurricane) the west coast of UK and Ireland have received a record breaking influx of American vagrants in the past few days, which have all been carried off course by the strong winds. Lundy has shared a small part of the fall with two individual Red-eyed Vireo landing in Millcombe Valley on 20th. One was ringed, and then retrapped three days later having put on one gram of weight. These are the 11th and 12th records for Lundy, the one that entered the nets was the 7th to be ringed, and they are the earliest records by 8 days.

Red-eyed Vireo in Millcombe © Luke Marriner

Red-eyed Vireo in the hand at Brambles Villa © Angus Croudace

Up to four Wryneck continued their stay until the 21st, but haven't been picked up since. The last day the Rose-coloured Starling was seen was the 20th, but there's a good chance it is still here - the focus has been on ringing in Millcombe and covering the rest of the island away from the village on the hunt for vagrants! Other miscellaneous records of note this week include a Sandwich Tern heard calling from Millcombe on the 23rd, a first-year Osprey headed south over Rat Island on the 18th. The first-year Barred Warbler which was ringed on the 17th was still present on the 18th around the Lower Garden. A very smart Wood Warbler was caught in Millcombe on the 21st. A Little Bunting was seen feeding with a small flock of Linnet on the track near the Lambing Shed on 23rd. 

Wood Warbler ringed at Millcombe © Brittany Maxted

A record shot of Little Bunting (centre) with Linnet © Angus Croudace

Skulking Pied Flycatcher which has outstayed all others by over a week. © Angus Croudace

Whinchat still above Millcombe most days (here at the allotments) © Angus Croudace

A bit of a Hirundine push midweek with 450+ Swallow and 54 House Martin on the 21st and 250/70 respectively on the 22nd. There were 13 Sand Martin picked up on the 21st and 31 on the 22nd. Swallows continued to move a little on the 23rd with 110 recorded, but single figures of Martins.

 

Water Rail have been calling intermittently in Millcombe, with up to two birds calling each day since the 18th. A Teal is still occasionally picked up around Pondsbury/Quarter Wall. The Grey Heron is still regularly seen, often flying over the castle down to the Landing Bay. A flock of 12 Cormorant were seen heading south off of the east coast on the 18th with an identical sized flock also seen on the 21st. 

 

On the 18th 27 Oystercatcher were picked up moving north along the east coast. A flock of 5 Snipe were in the flash in SW Field on the 20th. A Turnstone was heard and seen flying over St John's Valley on the 21st. Rock Pipits have been sheltering in the village this week, perhaps because of the relentless strong winds on the coast, first from the east, then the west and currently from the south! Five were seen from the Lambing Shed to the church on the 22nd.

There were a lot of rainbows between squalls this week. © Angus Croudace

 

A period of northerly winds overnight saw a fairly substantial fall of Blackcaps on the 13th with over 60 ringed and 76 recorded. However, clear skies and low winds quickly beckoned them onwards and a mass exodus left us with very few birds at the end of the week. Strong easterlies over the weekend brought a few new birds in, but most sensibly hunkered down. In the only short lull on Sunday evening feeding activity resumed, and a stunning first-year Barred Warbler dropped into the slope net in Millcombe.

First-year Barred Warbler ringed in Millcombe on 17th © Anna Sutcliffe

A pair of Teal were present on Pondsbury on the 13th, although just the male has been picked up subsequently at Quarter Wall pond. A Water Rail was heard calling in Smelly Gully on the 13th and 15th. One Cormorant was seen on the 13th. The first-year Grey Heron has still been present each day, with a raiding party of six further first-years riding the thermals along the east coast on the 15th.

Six first-year Grey Heron along the east coast on the 15th © Angus Croudace

In terms of waders, a single Ringed Plover was heard on the 13th. Three Snipe on the 13th including two by Rocket Pole and one at Pondsbury on 15th. A Snipe was also ringed in the night of the 17th. Greenshank single picked up calling as it flew over Millcombe by Tony Taylor on 14th. A Dunlin was feeding on Barton's Pond on the 15th. Two Golden Plover over the Airfield on the 14th and a single calling on 16th and 17th. On the 15th also Joe successfully dazzled and rung a first-year Dotterel at the north end, just the seventh bird ringed on Lundy!

First-year Dotterel ringed at the north end of the island on 15th September © Joe Parker

Whinchat and Meadow Pipit at Barton's. © Angus Croudace

Grey-headed Wagtail m.f.thunbergi in St Helen's Field on 15th. © Shaun Robson

The easterly winds continued over the weekend before switching to prevailing south-westerly on Monday 11th and a moderate northerly on Tuesday 12th.

It's been a rollercoaster of a weekend, burning the candle at both ends (and in the middle) with nets open at dawn in Millcombe and a late night Storm Petrel/Manx Shearwater session in between two nights of dazzling effort which concluded with a Hoopoe and a Common Snipe.

Second year Hoopoe ringed © Adam Day

After a slow autumn on the raptor front, the past few days have seen single sightings of first year Marsh Harrier in off and north at the Terrace on the 10th, first year Osprey in off and then south at Millcombe on the 11th and Hobby briefly around the Landing Bay on 11th. Our visiting ringers Adam Day and Rory Akam are credited with all of these records, so we're very glad to have them on the island.

We continued to swarm with Wryneck, with four individuals ringed to date, and at least a fifth unringed bird observed on the 12th. Stayers in Brambles Villa were even able to admire and photograph a Wryneck from their living room. The Rose-coloured Starling is still present, although there have been no further sightings of the Pintail. 

First year Wryneck from Brambles Villa Living Room © Clive Couzens

Two Golden Plover separately at opposite ends of the island on the 11th, a Ringed Plover over the east on the 11th, Dunlin on Barton's Pond on 10th and around High Street on 12th, single Snipe everyday except 11th and finally a Common Sandpiper heard from North Light in the night of the 8th make up waders observations for this period. Small Herring Gull movements noted with 23 on the 11th. At this time of year our breeding Herring Gulls have dispersed, leaving birds roaming between feeding groups. Small movements such as this are typically recorded throughout the autumn before our local birds return on in a couple of months to over winter around the island. Two first year Grey Heron were present on the island on 11th.

Ringed Plover south of Half-way Wall. © Clive Couzens (Photograph taken on 7th Sept)

Hirundine counts remain as a trickle thus far, with peak counts of 15 Sand Martin, 10 House Martin, 12 Swallow on the 11th. There were three Swift feeding over the airfield all afternoon on the 9th too.

Nice arrival of 24 Chiffchaff, 26 Common Whitethroat on the 9th along with a Hoopoe over by Quarter Wall. A couple of Sedge, Garden and Reed Warblers have been picked up most days and a Grasshopper Warbler was ringed on the 10th. Blackcap have averaged 20 most days, except for the 11th which was much quieter with only six detected. Willow Warbler were similar in their abundance, with c.40 most days, but only a dozen on the 11th. We're still picking up Firecrest, with a peak of four on the 11th. There was a small arrival of Goldcrest on the 12th with 21 recorded. A Treecreeper, the first for the year, was also recorded on the 11th. A Bonelli's Warbler sp. showed very nicely on the Terrace on the 10th. No call was heard and so it is very difficult to nail it as western or eastern based on plumage alone.

Bonelli's Warbler sp. Terrace. © Angus Croudace

Common Redstart were present on the Terrace everyday. Flycatcher numbers have slowly been dropping off, with 16 Spotted Flycatcher and 10 Pied Flycatcher on the 9th, and just 3 and 5 respectively on the 12th. Whinchat have also been moving out with only three on the 9th and a single on the 10th. Along with the noticeable influx of Whitethroat, Northern Wheatear were abundant again on the 9th, with a count of 15 recorded likely an underestimate. The same Wheatear was caught and ringed in SW field on the 9th and 11th whilst dazzling and it's weight had increased by just over 2g, which is just under 10% of it's overall body weight. It's great to see hard data evidencing these birds feeding up before they embark on the next leg of their migration, which is only possible with the insights of the BTO ringing scheme. Some of the Wheatears were of the Greenland race leucorhoa, which are noticeably chunkier and well-marked in the field.

A Yellow Wagtail was present on the 9th and 10th, with the first two Grey Wagtail of the season around on the 9th-12th. A couple of Tree Pipit continue to be picked up each day. A large flock of 180 Linnet has been seen for several days feeding around Pondsbury and a visitor captured a sound recording of a Nightingale in the Bracken below the Terrace on 12th.

It's also that time of year where young Manx Shearwaters are successfully fledging and leaving the  colony. However, for a few the lure of the Marisco Tavern is too much! Between dusk and midnight (after which the diesel generators switch off for the night) the lights of the Tavern attract a handful of birds each year. Upon landing in the vicinity of the Tavern, the flat ground makes it difficult for them to alight again - the steep cliffs of the colonies are a vital part of getting them airborne when they fledge. They scuttle into cracks, crevices or corners around the Tavern buildings when dawn comes, but they're not always as well hidden as they might think! These birds are rescued when found in the morning. We take the opportunity to ring them and then that evening return them to a burrow in the colony to aid them in their next flight attempt. They would naturally filter down to the cliffs again themselves under the cover of darkness, but our helping hand gives them a shortcut (they are famously awkward when manoeuvring on land), and also moves them out the way of the daytime pedestrian traffic in the busy village.