15th December 2012
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Shetland storm |

A driver chances it as breaking swell throws
stones onto the road |

JCB clearing away debris |
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Two terrible record shots of a male Goosander at the Houb |
The first real storm of the winter hit us last night with 80mph
winds, business as usual. Quite a high sea running today with the
ferry service cancelled and a large swell breaking over the north
beach, tossing stones across the road. A male Goosander
turned up at the Houb adding another bird to the year list
with two Greenland white fronted Geese at Skaw and a
Glaucous Gull at Vatshoull. |
21st November 2012
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Winter |

Iceland Gull at Symbister |
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Tonight's sunset looking south from our garden.
Photos by Angela Irvine |
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You know winter is here when the white winged
gull photos start to appear. The Iceland gull above was at
Symbister today with a Woodcock at Skaw and a Robin and Blackcap
still at Symbister. Also on the white winged front, a first winter
Glaucous Gull was at Hamister on 19/11. Little else to report, a single Blue and
Great Tit are still doing the rounds with both birds seen
together on 17/11 in Caths garden at Symbister, with a Waxwing also there
the same day. A Peregrine was at Brough also on 17th and was
an addition to my year list. As I am still six species behind last
years total its not looking good as December approaches. |
8th November 2012
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Blue Tit again |
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With news of large numbers of Pine Grosbeaks
passing through Norway at the moment I spent a bit of time looking
in some likely areas on the isle today. This was always unlikely to
succeed but a Blue tit at Saltness was quite nice. Whether
its a new bird or the one found last month still raking around, who
knows. A couple of Waxwings were at Gardentown, Blackcaps
at Saltness and Gardentown and seven Chaffinches at
Skibberhoull. |
4th November 2012
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Hoopoe back in the garden |
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Waxwing on our garden wall |
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This one was at Symbister |

Fighting over apples at Hamister |
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I decided not to bother going out bird watching
today, its much easier when the birds decide to come to you! A
very photogenic Waxwing was in the garden giving me a few
decent photos at last of this species. I went out on the balcony a
bit later to have another go only to flush the Hoopoe
from point blank range. After a bit of a yomp around I eventually
got a few reasonable shots as it fed in a neighbours garden.
Six Waxwings were at Hamister today with another five seen at
Symbister when en route to the shop. |
3rd November 2012
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Hoopoe |

Hoopoe at Norrendal. Photo by Stewart Simpson |

Waxwing at Saltness |
The Hoopoe turned up around the Norrendal
council houses today and thanks go to Stewart Simpson for emailing
the very good photos he took out his sitting room window. I was on
the mainland but did manage to refind the bird in the same
area in the afternoon. A few poor quality pics were taken at long
range but my attempts to get closer only flushed it back in the
direction of our house so I may yet get its photo in the garden. |
1st November 2012
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Garden tick |
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Waxwing at dusk |
Had two birds new for the year list today bringing the total
up to 144, seven
behind last years effort. The second of these was perhaps
predictable with a female Pochard on Vatshoull loch but the
other one certainly wasn't on the radar.
I was coming back into the house after mucking out our guinea
pigs cage and rounded the side of the house only to come face to
face with a Hoopoe twenty feet away on the centre of the
lawn! With both camera and binoculars indoors I had to attempt to
sneak past it at fairly close range but surprisingly it didn't seem
bothered, only moving up the garden a few feet. A photo of such a
nice bird in your own garden at point blank range would have been
outstanding but on my return it had lobbed off somewhere and I never
refound it. Hopefully its still in the area and every effort will be
made to track it down tomorrow. Loads of
Waxwings on the move in Shetland at the moment. Eighteen were
reported at Gardentown today by J L Simpson and this is the biggest
flock seen on Whalsay so far. |
28th October 2012
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Great Tit |
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I was having a look in one of the Saltness
gardens this morning when my uncle Bobby Irvine pulled up with the
news that he'd had a tit in his garden earlier in the morning.
Potentially even more interestingly there had been a pair of Redpoll
a bit later with one "a bit bigger and whiter" than the
other. I caught up with the Great Tit at lunch time but didnt
see any Redpolls. |
27th October 2012
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Eagles and Whales |

Juvenile White Tailed Eagle Selje, Norway
26/10/12. |
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An adult too. Crap angle unfortunately. |

Killer Whale off Ronas Voe 21/10/12, one of at
least 50. |
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Just back from the mackerel fishing. Little to report bird wise, a
single Sooty Shearwater off Ronas voe on 21st was my only
sighting of this species in Shetland waters this year with at least
fifty Killer Whales also in attendance. On our last landing at Selje
in Norway on the 26th three juvenile and one adult White tailed
Eagle were on view. After baiting them with mackerel a few
reasonable photos were obtained.
While I was away BM had a
Hornemans Arctic Redpoll at Vatshoull from 18 - 22/10 plus a
few Waxwings and various other bits and pieces. A walk along
the Skaw road this afternoon with Angela and the dog produced a
Slavonian Grebe on the north loch. A good few years since I last
saw one on here and I cant recall ever having one on a loch before.
The light was going so my photos were pretty dire, will have to hope
its still there in the morning. |
16th October 2012
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Blue Tit |
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Got a call this morning from Peter Stronach and
Andy Seth, they had found a Blue Tit at Saltness. This is the
first record for a good few years so I set off quickly. The bird was
quite mobile and was in four different gardens in the short time I
got to see it. It soon disappeared and BM missed it by seconds.
Other news concerned a Waxwing seen briefly by Linda Marshall
at Marrister and the tail-less Red Backed Shrike first seen
at Hamister on the 14th was refound at Symbister.
Am off to the fishing at 10pm tonight so there
will be no more updates for a bit. |
15th October 2012
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Lesser Spotted Woodpecker twitch |
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News came out about 2:40 pm that a Lesser
Spotted Woodpecker had been found in Scalloway. BM and myself
caught the 3:30 ferry and just as we appeared to be out of luck the
bird was refound at about 5:40 in the now fading light, allowing a
few dodgy pics to be taken. OK not a Whalsay bird but when a first
for Scotland turns up you kinda have to give it a mention. |
12th October 2012
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Dusky Warbler |
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After a very lean period we now have perfect
conditions which seem set to continue for a few days yet. Things
looked promising this morning when opening the curtains a flock of
forty plus Redwing lobbed into next doors garden. After a period of
mist netting common migrants in the plantation with BM and JA I
decided to try the south end of the island. This paid off
handsomely with a Dusky Warbler in the Maillands garden at
Symbister. Although quite vocal it was hard to get decent views but
was finally mist netted in the afternoon. This was a ringing tick
for Jason and will hopefully be some compensation for a very
birdless weeks holiday. |
6th October 2012
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Patience |

Wren at Skaw |
Since the Bluetail on the 27th of September all
has fallen quiet on Whalsay again. A Hawfinch was in BMs
garden 1/10 and was considered a duller individual to the one seen
there a few days previously. Another Red Breasted Flycatcher
was in the Skaw plantation on 3/10 and bird of the period was a
Grey Plover on the shore at the north end of the golf course
5/10. I was quite happy with this as bizarrely this was a bird I had
never found before and a few years since I had last seen one. My
good humour was short lived however as a Little Bunting had
been seen at Vevoe the same day. To find out about a bird not annual
on your home island on the local website at midnight is more than
slightly annoying and needless to say was not to be found the next
morning. This is understandable of course as incoming birders
are never going to rush to put out something like that. Oh well
plenty of time for another one. |