Scilly Day 6 - Yellow-browed Warbler

Spent the morning getting wet and watching cows watching me!

It was all in aid of the elusive Rose-coloured Starling tick!

It never happened and apart from a couple of Firecrests in Holy Vale, this Yellow-browed Warbler in Pelistry Cove was the only bird to trouble the camera!

Tomorrow, tomorrow, it's all going to happen tomorrow??

Scilly day 3 - Barred Warbler

What an amazing start to the day! I was travelling light but after ticking Barred Warbler (271)  in a hedgerow near the Hospital in Hughtown, the battery died :-( Rather than replace it, I nipped back to the Band 500mm lens - good decision as on return, it was showing amazingly well in a nearby garden!

Often totally obscured, things improved so that only odd branches were in the way!

And then in clear view!

Certainly showing far better than any Barred Warbler I've ever seen!!

And even getting up to some Waxwing like acrobatics as it feasted on the berries!

Scilly Day 3 - Snow Bunting

The Barred Warbler was pretty impressive but it became more and more elusive so time to move on.... With Penninis just up the road, I gave the Snow Bunting 30 minutes or so!

It had relocated from King Edward's Road over the gate and wasn't doing anything exciting! Other than eating.....

And there were only a few variations on the theme of posing!

News then broke of a Richard's Pipit on the airfield......

Scilly Day 3 - Blyth's Pipit

I was on my way off Penninis when news came out that the Richard's Pipit had flown and had been refound in a field just outside Old Town! Birders leaving the site reassured me it was still there (but elusive) - I settled in with the gallery.....

What did become apparent after I got a few fleeting views was that it didn't exactly behave like a Richard' s Pipit. It rarely, if ever stood erect or with bill pointing upwards. It looked small too and the constant backdrop of comments became summarised by the simple statement: "it can't be a Richard's"!!

I've more to sort but these three images show most of the id features for the eventual conclusion - we were looking at a Blyth's Pipit!! First lifer of the trip and another one for the year list (272).

I'm indebted to Brian Bland for talking me throught the 'pro Blyth's features'

Short legs and short angled hind claw, distinctly streaked mantle and white conspicuous wingbars....

The short triangular bill - as seen here, nearly always held horizontally! Fine streaking to the breast

Short tail, buff wash to flanks with little contrast to the buffy underparts and short white supercilium - more prominent behind the eye.....

Crucially, when eventually it flew , it called and it wasn't a typical Richard's call

Scilly day 2 - Bryher

With not a lot of action likely on St Mary's the Shrops/Staffs team decided to head for Bryher whilst crossings were still on? Some severe weather was blowing in over the next few days (including some birds hopefully!!)

The main aim: Little Bunting was another bird to go missing but with a few other bits and pieces including Hooded Crow, Whinchat and Pied Flycatcher plus glorious sunshine, it was a worthwhile session!
A dash up to Penninis on return to St Mary's produced numerous Northern Wheatear. Here's a cracking male......

plus a Snow Bunting. (Better images from the following day!)

We can 'do better' just need some eagerly anticipated migrants to drop in!! Please :-)

Scillonian crossing

After a brief 'night on the town' in Penzance, I joined shipmate Dave Blakeman for the crossing to St Mary's. Not a lot of action with a few Gannets most of the way, there were a few decent seabirds: 3 Bonxies, at least 3 Balearic Shearwater, 2 Sooty Shearwater and 1 Storm Petrel.

Arriving at midday, just a question of dropping off the bags and getting stuck in to day one (of 21!!)

I'll try and keep vaguely up to date with what's happening but check back - the images may well take a while to sort / upload!!

Scilly day 1 - Carreg Dhu - Firecrest

A quick check of sites near to Hughtown didn't turn up much of note although a single Reed Bunting was unexpected,  not common birds in these isles! Lower Moors produced a Greenshank where the hoped for Bluethroat appears to have now disappeared...
The only decent bird, keeping the year list ticking over was a Firecrest  (270) in Carreg Dhu gardens..... A shaky record shot was all I could manage!!

The first of many to come?? Hopefully!!