Scilly pelagic no 8 - Great Shearwater in the scrum

Great Shearwater have shown amazingly well on this year's pelagics and it's easy to become complacent with just how spoilt everyone on the boat has been! There were 8 or 9 seen today, it was in the Fea's aftermath that this one showed he could hold his own in the rough and tumble of the feeding frenzy with the gulls!

This scrum is not for the faint hearted!

But always giving it a go....

Stunning whilst gliding in to land!

Seen from all angles....

Then pattering over the water.....

Not averse to taking the big guys on!

And frequently just flying in long arcs around the boat!

That gorgeous upperwing, despite the poor light!

But all good things have to come to an end!

Just one more evening to go......

Scilly Pelagic no 8 - Balearic Shearwater

Despite the sense of anticlimax following the Fea's, the day wasn't done yet! We had another Wilson's Petrel (which appeared and rapidly disappeared!) plus approx 40 Stormies and a surprise Black Tern.  From an image point of view a very obliging Balearic Shearwater spent quite a long time in the wash behind the boat. Despite the light still being a bit gloomy, my best opportunity yet for this species!

Occasionally just sitting on the water.

But usually skimming the water, zipping up and over the wake.....

The fly by....

And upperwing view.

And occasionally diving head first in search or titbits!

Never a dull moment today!

Scilly pelagic no 8 - ** FEAS PETREL ***

We were nearly three hours into the pelagic and despite the very light south easterly wind, the mood onboard was upbeat as expectations had already been exceeded! Exceptional views of Great and Sooty Shearwater (to follow) plus a Pom Skua, European Storm Petrels etc. had proven you never know what to expect! Having steamed to the reef near the Sevenstones lightship and a good batch of chum was laying down a slick..... Surrounded by Fulmars, Gannets and Gulls - it was a bit of a lull in pelagic terms?

I had taken a break from scanning the slick - amusing myself photographing Fulmars by the boat (big mistake) but Bob Flood hadn't.... I noticed him looking very intently up the slick! It would be fair to say that moments later, pandemonium broke out and the following 150 seconds will stay with me for the rest of my life. It all started with an urgent call which jammed everyone into gear! "Everyone get on this bird" closely followed by "FEAS PETREL".....

I was soon locked onto it through the bins and watched it approach. OMG, the reason for my extended quest was hurtling towards me! I could pick out the head and upperwing pattern and set about trying to capture a few images, this was suddenly a real pressure situation!!

It was flying really fast, one second over the water...

and then looping upwards!

I was luckily on the 'connecting' side of the boat as the Fea's came closer, breaking the horizon and giving amazing views. Suddenly my side of the boat was packed solid, a few expletives / wows broke the electric buzz of excitement as it gave a really close pass. I was now locked in a personal bubble of concentration.....

Coming ever closer and that monster bill was apparent in the viewfinder!

Banking to show off the grey / brown upperwing...

 It did a couple of circuits close to the boat - heart pounding now and willing the autofocus to keep locked on pleeeeease!! The action moved swiftly to the far side of the boat as the Fea's circled around, soon completing another full circle!

I then got a second chance, even closer - everyone now stood their ground and had views to die for!

Here's that botc moment I tweeted - we must all have been the closest anyone in the UK has been to a Fea's??

The above was posted tongue in cheek - but it was the closest it came! It is a frame filler....

However, close crops aren't everything! I have fond memories of other trips out to Sevenstones and couldn't believe it when a short series had the lightship in the frame - no GPS needed for this image!! An iconic view of such an iconic bird :-)

Eventually the Fea's headed off, the silence was now truly broken amid a flurry of fist pumping, handshaking and huddles over camera backs! There was a residual air of disbelief - did we really see what just happened??

There have been other Fea's off the Scilly Pelagics but never one to match the closeness, prolonged views and in reasonable light! Bob summed the moment up by declaring: "Guys, that's a moment you will never forget"! You bet we wont!!

There was just one regret... the many good friends fropm the previous weekend who sadly missed out - there will be other Fea's, just keep coming.....

Bob Flood's finders account appears here

Scilly Pelagic No 6 - Stormie blow!

A stiff 25mph  north-westerly was not to everyone's liking on board for this evening pelagic but surely this was likely to produce something special?? Read on....

Every pelagic has yielded either a special bird or extraordinary views of familiar subjects in these waters! I don't encounter too many Shearwaters in Shropshire (surprisingly) so it's impossible to tire of these majestic seabirds and as ever this year, several Great Shearwater came to the party! Here's an angle I haven't posted, a nice underwing profile above the horizon.....

And in aviation terms - a 'near miss' for these two!

A few Manx Shearwater also got into the act!

The star act of the evening and undoubtedly in their element was of course the European Storm Petrels! Must have been 100+ and I was determined to get some some better angles of these by concentrating on the windward side of the boat as they passed the boat. Opportunities were much fewer but at least the results were encouraging right from the off.....

Even the sun shone, giving catchlights aplenty!

Underwing shots....

 Hard to decide which of these two were my faves? The elements all came together for these!

As everyone here knows, a pelagic isn't done until you're safely entering the harbour! And how often is the last bird of the day something special?? All the lines had been hauled in and we were just about to steam in when..... "Wilsons" came the cry! Given that we were about to endure the biggest soaking yet from the spray, my gear wasn't to hand but I had amazing views as the Wilsons Storm Petrel came briefly alongside the boat! By the time I got the lens on it, (standing up was difficult enough!) it was more distant but this awful record shot at least shows a nice size comparison!

The perfect start to my second weekend - I've got a good feeling about this one although the winds are forecast to drop off......