The Thrill of Autumn Migration

The last week has been great with all kinds of birds turning up on the British east coast. A run of east/east south easterlies have in particular drifted unprecedented numbers of Yellow Browed Warblers into Britain. I decided to jam in on some of the action at Barns Ness yesterday.

As soon as I got out of the car I heard one & got on it straight away. There were at least 6 at Barns Ness yesterday, possibly many more.

A YBW from Shetland last year....

.... and another

The other feature was the number of Goldcrest, particularly in the morning. There were dozens.

Goldcrest

Other migrants included Blackap & Chiffchaff.

Chiffchaff in the late afternoon sun

On and off during the day I spent c6 hours at the campsite wood trying & failing to see the Pallas's Warbler. My back is still killing me today with all the standing. This bird was so elusive it was untrue. If I hadn't seen some pictures of it on the day I would have seriously doubted it existed.

For a break I ventured down to Torness but aside from Goldcrest & 1 Wheatear it was quiet.

On the way home I had a Merlin chasing a small bird adjacent to the A1 at Longniddry.

This morning I ventured down to the Barr Loch to see an apparently unringed Hooded Merganser that has been present since Thursday. Overall it looked a good candidate for acceptance.