Sunday 28 August 2011

Bridges of Ross 28th August 2011

UPDATED: 29th August

Time: 06:10-20:20
Weather: F2 NW in the morning, turning F3 N-NW in the evening. Dry & bright.

Sooty Shearwater: 8
Manx Shearwater: 280 (15:30-19:45)
Grey Phalarope: 1
Great Skua (Bonxie): 17
Arctic Skua: 65 (incl. 5 juveniles)
Long-tailed Skua: 2 adults (Niall T. Keogh & Neal Warnock)
Sabine's Gull: 2 adults
Sandwich Tern: 20
Arctic Tern: 21
Puffin: 5
Common Scoter: 6
Wigeon: 1

Hard going all day until about 17:50, when skua passage started up at an excellent rate for August (numbers recorded today are more typical of mid-September). The Arctics were going by in groups of 3-5 with one group of 10 seen also. Nice to see some juveniles mixed in there too. One cracking adult Long-tailed went by at close range at 18:42 with another seen late on, at 20:15, circling high with 2 Arctic Skuas, seemingly looking for a nearby bay to roost in. Awesome!

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