4th September 2024

Arctic Warbler

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Barred Warbler in the trap yard, Skaw

Redstart at Skaw 3/8

An Arctic Warbler was skulking in the Skaw plantation today and it took four hours to get the poor record shots above. Hope its still there tomorrow!

19th August 2024

Great Shearwater influx

Just back from a four week herring season. August has been a really quiet month at home in this time with a female Marsh Harrier at Challister and a Little Stint at Skaw 26/8 the best birds seen by some distance. It has, however, been a really good time for seabirds with a big passage of Great Shearwaters on 19-20/8. The 19th in particular was good with 56! seen from Sumburgh Head with an even rarer Cory`s past the same day. We were fishing a few miles east of Unst at the same time with at least ten Great Shearwaters around the boat and three present 20/8. A juvenile Sabines Gull visited us as we hauled our nets 10 miles ESE from Fair Isle 26/8 but disappeared before I got the camera out.

12th June 2024

Colour ringed Whimbrel

A colour ringed Whimbrel was at the roadside to the west of Grunitaing today with a yellow plastic leg ring with the letters H62 and a metal ring on the right leg and a green plastic one on the left. I later found out it had been trapped at Llansantffraid in Mid-Wales on 23rd of April 2022. It is always interesting to learn the stop off points for our summer breeders.

1st May 2024

Waxwings in the garden

Three unseasonal Waxwings visited our garden today at Hamister. They were really tame and stayed around till Brian came from Skaw and we all got photos off our balcony. There has been a few common migrants around since our return in mid April. A Jackdaw on a Hamister rig has probably been the scarcest visitor in a local context and it is quite a few years since I saw one on here last.

31st July 2023

Hudsonian Godwit at Grutness a first for Shetland

A Hudsonian Godwit was found at Grutness, South mainland on 30/7 somewhat upstaging our Melodious Warbler found the same day! A new bird for Shetland, 3rd for Scotland and 5th for the Uk so when it was still present the following day I took a run down with Brian and got great views on its favoured small pool near the roadside. Two lifers in two days in July cant be bad.

30th July 2023

Melodious Warbler

Steve Jones found a Melodious Warbler in his garden at Skaw today and is only the second island record after one my grandfather found at Hamister on 28thMay 1976! A Whalsay tick for me and Brian too.

16th July 2023

Juvenile Cuckoo

Red Grouse chick at the roadside.

Young Guillemot at the houb

Whimbrel on territory.

After missing a Cuckoo earlier in the spring I managed to catch up with a juvenile at Midfield today. Not much else to be seen at the moment though the Whooper Swans have bred again so we can only hope for abetter outcome this year!

12th June 2023

Red backed Shrike

Brian found a female Red backed Shrike this morning on the roadside fences between Vatshoull and Vevoe. Although I missed it by about thirty seconds it reappeared halfway down the Vevoe road in the afternoon.

10th June 2023

Marsh Warbler

An "acro" type warbler was silently skulking in the Skaw plantation today so Brian came and got the net up. Just for once we managed to trap in on our first attempt!. Wing measurements pointed towards Blyths Reed but it proved to be a Marsh Warbler albeit with wing length shorter than given inthe ringers manual.

30th May 2023

American Golden Plover

Long eared Owl at Symbister since 24/5 photographed 28/5.

May 2023 has been another disaster bird wise. Constant Northerlies being replaced with Westerlies and with no sign of any Easterly winds for the foreseeable future so it has been beyond quiet throughout. Finding a yank on Whalsay doesnt happen often so when Brian phoned about our islands third American Golden Plover in the field on the South side of the North loch of Skaw I was out the door at high speed. A beauty of a summer plumaged adult as well, - a fine birthday surprise formyself!

7th May 2023

Blue-headed Wagtail

Ringed Reed Warbler at Sandwick 7/5

Whinchat at Grunitaing 5/5.

Brian found a smart Blue-headed Wagtail in the Symbister meadow today so I went and got a few long range photos. A ringed Reed Warbler was in the ditch above Sandwick beach in the afternoon and attempted pics only yielded the letters "15" which isn't of much use though Brian reckoned the ring looked foreign! A decent scatter of common migrants has been seen in the last days or two with a Grasshopper Warbler in the Skaw plantation 5/5 plus Brians Cuckoo and Linnet bothin the Lubba area 6/5 which I missed.

4th May 2023

Sandwich Tern

A Sandwich Tern was fishing below the trap area at Skaw this afternoon before a short stop at the houb in the early evening. This is our first island record for five years!

21st April 2023

Moorhen

Trying to hide among some seaweed!

Its been a year or two since my last island Moorhen so it was good to see one along the shore at the houb today. I went over for a few photos when it tried to bury itself among some seaweed and hide behind a wall. A Sparrpowhawk shot through at the same time.

20th April 2023

Hawfinch

Brian trapped a Hawfinch in his garden at Marrister today so I went along for a photo or two. The Tree Sparrow is still visiting our feeders occasionally and could be seen to be ringed though the above photo isnt up to much!. Possibly N2 something?

18th April 2023

A light scatter of migrants

Kinda blurred Tree Sparrow taken out our bedroom window today.

Greenfinch at Isbister 17/4.

Black Redstart at Grunitaing 16/4.

Bathing Goldcrest at Skaw 16/4

Came home to a light scatter of common migrants on 16/4 with bird of the day being a Black Redstart at Grunitaing. A Greenfinch in the Isbister plantation 17/4 was a good Whalsay bird as its a number of years since my last one on here. Today saw a garden first with a single Tree Sparrow at our feeders at Hamister and a Sparrowhawk seen later at Skaw.

24th March, 2nd April and 10th April 2023

Great Shearwaters West of Outer Hebrides

Home again after just over a month at the Blue Whiting fishing which went well. The last three "trips" were taken West of the Outer Hebrides with a few Great Shearwaters seen on each occasion. Two on 24/3 - 56 17`N 9 55`W, 4+ on 2/4 - 57 09`N 9 20`W and at least one 10/4 (with an adult Pomarine Skua) - 9 38`N 9 38`W. There were probably a few more but it is difficult to estimate numbers with the birds constantly circling around.

11th March 2023

Deep snow

Red Grouse near the Vevoe junction

Jack Snipe at Symbister

It has been many years since we had deep snow for a whole week but thats whats going on here at present. The first three days we couldnt get the car out but the road has now been ploughed so you can get around the island with care. A few birds are more obvious in these conditions - the Red Grouse on the hills stick out against the white hillside and Common Snipe are everywhere trying to find any marshy areas not under a blanket of snow! A good few Jack Snipe have been reported around Shetland in the last few days with a single outside our house at Hamister yesterday and the poser (above) in the meadow at Symbister today. In other news the two Long eared Owls at Skibberhoull first seen 15/2 have now become three since 6/3 with Steve Jones finding another Goldfinch at Skaw on the same date.

21st February 2023

Black throated Diver

Maalie photobombing the Black throated Diver (left) and a Great Northern Diver.

Two Pink footed Geese ( center bird and one with its head down) with Greylags.

Pintail also among the Greylags at the Burns today.

A Black throated Diver turned up fairly close inshore below the trap area at Skaw around midday today. Typically it started diving and moving much further out once I went down to the shore for photos but you can still see what it is from the poor long range pics above. A pair of Pink footed Geese were among the Greylags and five Euro White fronts at the burns as well today. We just need one of the Tundra Beans lingering in Shetland to turn up on the island now!

15th February 2023

Long eared Owls

Two of four European White fronted Geese at the burns

Iceland Gull at Symbister

After a quite good month for migrants in January things have quietened down and the first half of February has been typically quiet. The Grey Plover has been seen at the houb a couple of times (6/2, 12/2) with the drake Pintail at the burns (14/2), an Iceland Gull was around Symbister 11/2 with a single Snow Bunting at Skaw the same day and the four Euro White fronted Geese are still among the Greylags at the burns today. I got a message from Gordon Irvine this morning to say a couple of Owls were in the trees at Frankies and sure enough two Long eared Owls were present and even posed briefly for the camera!

21st January 2023

Rough - legged Buzzard

Grim record shots!

Grey Plover at the Houb 19/1

I am now back in the game with the arrival of a new Canon 90D though the idiots guide supplied doesn't tell me much so I have a bit to learn before I can hope to get decent photos. The year has started well with a few island scarcities - 3 Scaup on Sandwick loch from 4/1, a drake Pintail among the Greylags at the burns 5/1, up to 5 European White fronted Geese at the burns from 8/1, a Goldfinch in Skaw plantation 14/1, Grey Plover at Skaw Taing 17/1 with possibly the same bird at the houb 19/1, a briefly seen Great spotted Woodpecker at Symbister 18/1 was presumably the ringed female seen in the same area in late December, a couple of Glaucous Gulls and Iceland Gulls were also seen. Angela and myself were out for a drive in the car this afternoon when I clocked a large-ish bird of prey flying south towards us at the burns. It swept past at medium range showing a pale head, black underwing carpal patches, a black belly and white uppertail with broad black bar at the tip - a juvenile Rough Legged Buzzard! only my 2nd individual on the island and new for the "self found" list. I phoned BM and we attempted to follow it but lost sight down at the houb. Hopefully it reappears for him in the coming days as I am going away on 23rd. I will at some point do a review of 2022 which will basically be a massive rant of a terrible year missing out on two island firsts and a new all time low year total.

22nd November 2022

Still alive

Barnacle Geese at Isbister Photo by Angela Irvine

Its been a very long time since I posted anything on here as I seem to have spent a good portion of the autumn off the island. I was home for a week or so from 19/10 and the unfortunate highlight was getting water in my camera on a very dreich day. I have humped around a camera daily for thirteen years so birding without one seems a bit weird. At least the lens seems intact so santa has been informed that another Canon is required! There has been a decent spell of SE winds lately, a late Yellow browed Warbler in Skaw plantation 14 - 16/11 might have had the decency to have been a Hume`s by now and there has also been a good scatter of Woodcocks seen. Brian found a couple of Tundra Bean Geese at the burns 16/11 and these were soon joined by a drake Gadwall, five European white fronted geese and an Iceland Gull. The Gadwall is strangely rare on Whalsay with only a couple of known records - My grandfather Johnnie Simpson had a small flock of six many moons ago and Brian had a single on the pool at Vaivoe maybe ten years ago so this added another bird to my Whalsay list. Long eared Owls at Skibberhoull 19/11 and Brough 20/11 was new for the year as was todays Barnacle Goose pair at Isbister.

24th September 2022

Yellow browed Warblers and a brief early autumn rarity

Still hopeless conditions for migrants with very little on the island. You can always rely on the odd Yellow browed Warbler getting through whatever the weather with the above bird at Skaw and another in the Sodom plantation today. The best bird seen lately by some distance was the winter plumaged White billed Diver not all that far offshore below the heligoland trap area at Skaw yesterday 23/9. Brian got up to Skaw quickly which was lucky as it completely vanished ten minutes later without getting its photo taken! September records are rare and this may be the earliest autumn record for Shetland though I am not certain of this. Although this species is fairly regular around the Shetland coast in winter it remains a very rare bird on Whalsay, the last record being one moving between Symbister and Suther Ness 11-29/3 2007! This bird unfortunately had a damaged bill and was picked up dead on the last date turning up one day after I went to sea and dying the day before I got home again making yesterdays bird my first individual in about forty years! A juvenile male Blackcap trapped 21/9 had been rung in Prague which is a decent record. Further details to follow.

13th September2022

Late Cuckoo

The winds have now swung North so the fun is probably over (pretty much before it began for me!). A late Cuckoo was around Toft, Isbister today and is likely the same bird from Skaw 11/9. My first Barred Warbler of the year was at Hamister and 20-30 Siskins flew past the same area. A juvenile Common Crossbill was in the Skaw plantation briefly 11/9 and was a year tick for myself.

10th September 2022

Woodpecker influx

Redstart at Skaw

Got home late on 9/9 and with the whole family away today was always going to be a big days birdwatching. On opening the curtains in the morning the first two birds seen were a Yellow browed Warbler followed by a Reed Warbler in next doors garden! and on going outside a Great spotted Woodpecker was drilling holes in the side of our house, things were looking good!. Perhaps the rest of the day didnt live up to expectations rarity wise but a good selection of common migrants were seen with a few scarcities thrown in - 3 Great spotted Woodpeckers, 3 Reed Warblers, Red backed Shrike, 2 Rosefinches, 2 Wood Warblers and a Common Sandpiper. Brian trapped a Blyth's Reed Warbler at Skaw 8/9 but unfortunately it appears to have gone.

7th September 2022

Herring fishing

Great Shearwater off Orkney

Sooty Shearwater

Sparrowhawk

The Symbister Spotted Crake Photo by Brian Marshall.

We are on our last herring trip of the season today in an area about six miles east from Start Point Orkney. At least three Great Shearwaters have been in attendance with loads of Sooty Shearwaters and a Sparrowhawk also lurking around. The last few days has seen SE winds at home with a good selection of scarce and common migrants being found. Brian found the best bird so far or he would have done had it still been alive! A very recently deceased Spotted Crake was picked up off the pavement outside the lower shop at Symbister today and would have been an island tick for all. Second place would have to go to the very much alive Arctic Warbler Jon Dunn flushed from the thistles behind his house 6/9 though this bird vanished thereafter. Hopefully there will be a few things left when I get home in a few days.

17th August 2022

Better photos of the Wood Warbler

The Wood Warbler is still present in the Skaw plantation and gave better views for the camera today. Another bird is in Jon Dunns garden along the road since 16/8 and we managed to view both birds this afternoon at the same time confirming that it isnt one bird moving between sites.

14th August 2022

Wood Warbler

Summer 2022 will go down as the worst ever with winds almost always over 20 knots, regular gales and zero percent sunshine. Only in the last couple of days have the winds fallen light and for the first time ventured to the SE though the sun is still playing hard to get! A Wood Warbler and Willow Warbler were in the Skaw plantation this afternoon hopefully kicking off a few migrants but with the forecast already predicting Northerlies for the next few days I doubt there will be a lot seen.

5th August 2022

Twitching the Unst Harlequin

I very rarely chase after other peoples birds unless they are on Whalsay but when Dave Cooper found a drake Harlequin Duck off Norwick beach on Unst and Angela said she fancied a run up there it was too tempting to resist! We got up just after 2 pm and were treated to great views of a very approachable bird even if the weather was crap as per usual. A bird I have always wanted to see and hopefully will find at home one day. No bird news at all in the last month though a Woodpigeon egg below the trees in the Skaw plantation confirms a first island breeding attempt with another presumed family party of five at Sodom also highly suspicious.

5th July 2022

New island breeding species and some suicidal Crossbills

Heron at Vatshoull

A Tufted Duck with six young appeared on Vatshoull loch today, a first breeding record for Whalsay so hopefully some of them will survive! It is a year or two since we had Common Crossbill on Whalsay so when a nice red male was photographed at Skaw on 2/7 by Sue Fermor we were pissed off to miss it. Two more have turned up since then and both hit windows and died, a first summer at Saltness 3/7 and a juvenile today at Symbister. We await a living one any day soon. A Red breasted Merganser with five or six chicks was in the North Voe 26/6 and is our first island breeding record for a number of years. Other migrant news consisted of a calling Quail at Hamister, four Siskins at Symbister and a Hummingbird Hawk-moth at Saeter 2/7 and a late/early Spotted Flycatcher at Skaw 3-4/7 at Skaw and a Magpie Moth at Sandwick 3/7.

25th June 2022

Twitching a rarity and catching up with Quail at last.

Wren on Sumburgh Head

When news broke on the 19th of a Pacific Swift at Sumburgh I couldnt get away and could only hope that this very rare first for Shetland would hang on for a second day. News and photos of the bird zipping around peoples heads was frustrating but me and Angela booked the 7am ferry for the next day and hoped for the best. The morning of the 20th was fresh and SW so we spent a couple of hours looking at Puffins and photographing a family of Wrens, not really what we had hoped for. All was not lost however with its reappearance at the Noup of the Noss on 21st! Me, Angela and Brian had a run across on Phil Harris boat and saw it although it was a long way up and I really shoudnt be ticking anything on views like that (I did of course!).

Quail has for years been my bogey bird on Whalsay, a couple of dead birds picked up in the Hamister valley being the sum total. I was having a look at Skibberhoull on the afternoon of 24/6 and was greeted to the sound of one calling loudly out of a field of long grass below Frankies. Brian came for a look or should I say a listen as we never managed to actually see the bird. I was left with the decision as to whether you can tick something you have never actually seen! This problem resolved itself the very next day when me and the bairns were out for a walk along the shore north of Nisthouse and flushed another individual. It flew low past me giving a decent view before landing in a field of long grass and disappearing. Now I need Marsh Harrier to follow suit and that will be good. I will surely see one eventually without having to twitch one on mainland.

17th June 2022

Nightjar

A Nightjar flushed out of Skaw plantation 15/6, a dark looking bird in flight lacking the white tail corners and white spots towards the wing tips making it a female. Brian came up for a look and we had one more flight view before we lost it. I have always wanted a photo of one of these birds but assumed I had missed my chance again. There was no sign yesterday but it flushed again this morning and sat up on a fence post for about a minute being harassed by one of the local Meadow Pipits. Unfortunately I only got photos from long range which was never going to be great and it flew back into the plantation when I tried to close the distance. It may hang on for another go and I will surely get my, point blank "asleep on a wall" shots some day! This is my fifth island record the first being one on a fence post at Vatshoull on 3rd August 1979. It was seen as a fourteen year old and not by any of the adults so was never submitted to the Shetland rarities committee though there is no doubt about the record.

12th June 2022

Scaup

Red backed Shrike at Skaw 11/6.

Whimbrel on territory at Skaw - late May.

Brian found a nice drake Scaup on the pool at Symbister this morning and I managed to track it down to the Sandwick loch in the afternoon. This species remains a very scarce visitor to Whalsay with the last record being a female on Isbister loch in late April 2018. There has been little news since my last post as things stayed annoyingly birdless throughout. An Icterine Warbler in the Skaw plantation was only seen for a few seconds but not photographed 31/5 though it performed better than the singing Marsh Warbler in the same location 6/6 which was never seen at all! A female Red backed Shrike was at Roadside Skaw last night and I managed a long range record shot before it disappeared, unseen by anyone else - grim.

21st May 2022

Golden Oriole influx

Golden Oriole at Tripwell 19/5/22

Pied Flycatcher at Skaw 11/5/22

Spotted Flycatcher at Skaw 17/5/22

Sedge Warbler 19/5

When Steve Jones found a male Golden Oriole at Skaw on 17/5 and it disappeared before I got there I was getting really fed up with my lot for this year having pretty much missed every decent bird on the island. There is usually a number of years between sightings so the chances of seeing another really wasn't great. On the evening of 19/5 I was out washing the car when I got sent a "whats that bird" phone photo from Tripwell - it was a point blank pic of a female Golden Oriole sat on a window ledge! Me and Brian caught up with it at the North end of the Tripwell council estate and got a few mid range photos from a small garden before it vanished. Two birds were seen the following day (20th) with females at Skaw and Hamister and another female today (21st) videod in a garden at Gardentown. As this species is highly mobile it is hard to be sure how many individuals are involved, the Tripwell, Hamister and Gardentown sightings could all be one bird? So at least three and possibly as many as five have been seen in the last five days which is likely as many as we have had in the last twenty years! Apart from these birds Whalsay has, as usual, been lagging behind the rest of Shetland for decent migrants - single male Linnets at Marrister 16/5 and Vatshoull 21/5, Common Sandpiper at Skaw 17/5, two Mute Swans on Sandwick loch and a Cuckoo at Skaw 18/5 and a Sedge Warbler trapped at Skaw 19/5 was about it.

15th May 2022

Colour ringed Knot

A small flock of nine Knot were at the Houb today with a colour ringed bird in their midst. I managed a few reasonable photos and later found out that it had been rung as a first winter on 22nd January 2022 by Highland ringing group at Ardersier near Inverness. Thanks to Peter Stronach and Bob Swann for the quick response. A few common migrants have started trickling through with a Grey Wagtail 14/5 at Skaw as interesting as it has got so far.

28th April 2022

Short Eared Owl

A couple of grainy images of a Short eared Owl Brian found at the roadside just south of the Vevoe junction today. At least it waited tillI got up to see it!

24th April 2022

Glossy Ibis - A second new bird missed in three weeks!

At 12:45 today I was getting sunday lunch ready when I received a text, Steve Jones had found a pair of Glossy Ibis in the sheep field on the south side of the golf clubhouse at Skaw. The same pair had been on Fair Isle and then Hillswick in previous days, and as a new bird for the Whalsay list it was one I really wanted to see. Angela took over the dinner, I did a "wallace and gromit" into my boots and shot out the door. My attempts to get to Skaw were hampered by a safe driver who, needless to say went the whole way to Skaw at 30mph and in the only safe place to overtake I was foiled by oncoming traffic. I missed the birds by minutes, a car had flushed them to the east and walks from Isbister to the Skaw Taing and beyond were a waste of time. Our last island first was the Great Reed Warbler in May 2019 so to miss two new birds in three weeks is a real sickener.

3rd - 11th April 2022

Snow Geese - an Island first missed.

All photos by Angela Irvine

On the 4th of April Angela had a phonecall from Carleen Hughson - three white geese with black wing-tips had flown from Creadyknowe North towards Myrtle Cottage/Challister and after consulting her field guide wondered if they might be Snow Geese! As I was west of Ireland in a boat I texted Brian to check it out though she had already phoned him and he was on it. Sure enough she was quite right, an island first. Angela took on the role of local Papparazzi, catching up with them in the parks on the north side of Myrtle Cottage and got a few pretty good photos with her small camera on full zoom at quite long range. Norman Poleson came out for a look and said they had been there since the previous day (3rd). As you can see on Angelas photos above, the birds had an orange wash to their faces making it likely to be the same three that had spent a few months (January till 31/3) at Slimbridge Gloucestershire. As there are feral populations of Snow geese in Germany and Holland it is possibly unlikely that these birds will be accepted as wild, apparently an effort was going to be made to get a few feathers for DNA analysis to try to work out which bit of the world they came from but I am unsure what came of this (and as I never saw them couldnt really give a -). As I was due home around 20/4 it was always going to be a long shot that they would hang on that long and sure enough they departed on the 11th.

There has been little seen since my last post in late January- I also managed to miss a Black throated Diver Brian found offshore below Marrister 16/2. Likewise the Stonechats at Skaw in March on 11th and 14th and a Jackdaw at Vatshoull 12th. Things can only better as the song says!

30th January 2022

Glaucous Gull

Great Northern Diver off Symbister.

It is surprising, given the amount of gales this month has produced that there hasnt been more white winged gulls on the island. It has been a rare calm day today so a walk around Skaw Taing produced our first Glaucous Gull of the year. A single grainy image was captured as it flew south past me. Not much to report since the last post - a Water Rail ran across the road at the Burns 4/1, 3 Knot have been at the houb for most of the month and probably best was the 2 Little Auks which lifted and flew South from the harbour enterance at Symbister 12/1.

3rd January 2022

Jack Snipe

2022 has begun pretty quietly for birds, a few common thrushes and very little else so far. Both the best two birds were seen out the window of our house at Hamister! - a Pink footed Goose was among the Greylag flock on new years day and a Jack Snipe was in a ditch today so I took a few mid range photos off the balcony.