Shetland Day 7

Today was a beautiful day with light North Westerly winds. I spent it in West Mainland not seeing a great deal but in beautiful scenery. Some images from the day:

Great Northern Diver - Sandness

Shetland Wren

Twite - Muckle Roe

Birds of note today included Red Grouse at Sandness, 2 Slav Grebes, 2 Red Throated Divers and 1 male Crossbill at Lower Voe.

Shetland Day 6

By Day 6 the winds had turned into a North Westerly direction resulting in a clearance of any remaining birds. Birding was becoming very slow. Took to trying to photograph Fulmars in Sumburgh Quarry:

Shetland Day 5

Another day of South West winds but coupled with rain from 11am.

Started at Veensgarth where an American Golden Plover was showing well with c15 European Golden Plover:

AGP

From then on the day very much went down hill. I could not locate the drake Surf Scoter at Foula Wick nor the Spotted Sand at Lower Voe although the scenery was nice:

Lower Voe

From there I checked Brae and Busta House in increasingly poor weather and saw nothing.

Shetland Day 4

The journey to Unst from Lerwick is about 60 miles and is essentially done in 4 parts:

1. Drive from Lerwick to Toft.
2. Ferry from Toft on to Yell (Ulsta)
3. Drive straight across Yell to Gutcher.
4. Ferry from Gutcher to Unst (Belmont).

The whole journey takes about 2 hours and the ferry (one passenger and a small car) for the very reasonable price of £ 10 (return). This is extremely good value when you consider what Scilly boatmen charge.

Anyway, the Pipit was at Norwick which is almost at the top of Unst and so nearly at the last outpost of Scotland. Last reputedly having flown into a weedy field and unlikely to show itself any time soon. Myself and another couple of birders waited and watched but it quickly became apparent that the only way to see this bird was to flush it. Trouble was that the owner of the field had 'banned' birders from entering it. What about Scotland's Right to Roam ? The trouble had apparently been caused the previous day when up to 20 birders had entered the field without permission and this had resulted in an injury to one of the owners sheep.

So we waited and waited and saw nothing of the Pipit, the mood only being enlivened by several Greenland type Redpolls and Snow Buntings. I had had enough and wandered away in search of the other star of Norwick an awesome Hornemann's Arctic Redpoll that showed at times to a few feet and appeared completely unconcerned by human presence. Unfortunately, I did not have the DSLR so had to make do with a digiscoped image:

Arctic 'Snowflake'

Events turned for the better in the mid afternoon when access for 2 birders to enter the field was negotiated with the owner. As such a flush was organised and sure enough the Pechora Pipit was seen briefly in flight and even more briefly on the fence. Not the most satisfying of twitches but I'm having it anyway !

Shetland Day 3

Another day of South Westerlies started at Hoswick for another look at the Siberian Stonechat.

News that the Buff Bellied Pipit had been refound at Scousburgh Sands was the next obvious place to go and sure enough:

Buff Bellied Pipit

A Lifer - Wohoo

Distinctive bird wth pale lores and eyering.

The bay also held 4 Great Northern Diver as well as Bonxie and Kittiwake. Being sheltered from the wind it was also quite photogenic:

Loch of Spiggie was also close by and held 2 Whooper Swan and Barnacle Goose.

 

Loch of Spiggie

 Onwards to Quendale I spent quite a time unsucessfully trying to photograph a Yellow Browed Warbler, a Spot Fly was a bit more obliging:

 

With confirmation of a Pechora Pipit on Unst, it was off to Scotland's most Northerly outpost tomorrow.

Shetland Day 2

The day started at Eastern Quarff in light South West winds and had my first Fieldfare of the Autumn. Onwards to Hoswick where a Siberian Stonechat showed quite well :

Sibe Stonechat

With the winds in the wrong position birding was beginning to be a bit of a struggle with not a lot to look at increasingly I was resorting to 'landscape' photography :

Channerwick

Channerwick looking towards Hoswick

Channerwick looked a really promising place in the right conditions but today there were just a few Goldcrests and a possible Redstart.

Later on in the day I had 9 Barnacle Geese and a Great Northern Diver at Scatness.

Shetland Day 1

The wind is South Westerly and has been for a few days. Long gone are the Easterlies that prevailed last week and as such I am not expecting many new birds. However, the remnants of last week's 'fall' include an Olive Backed Pipit at Toab in South Mainland. I am well armed with 3 OS maps so even I can't get lost. My only concern is with the Ford Ka and will it make it up any hills I encounter.

I park up at Toab and immediately see a huddle of birders peering into the back garden of a house in St Ninians Avenue. Now I am not particularly comfortable about staring into someones back garden with a pair of binoculars but nonetheless I glimpse the OBP in the garden before it lifts off over the houses apparently back to the playground which is its favourite site.

The 'crowd' follow it round and eventually find it in someone elses's back garden where it shows for a prolonged period alowing a record shot:

Olive Backed Pipit

This is a good start. I have seen one before on Scilly but not nearly as well as this one. The white spot on the rear cheek emphasised by the adjacient black spot are very striking. After this the bird disappears and birders arriving in the afternoon dip it.

Following this I give up twitching and attempt to find my own birds:

This isn't nearly as much fun so I bugger off to Quendale Mill in the search of Rosefinch in some quarry. I can't even find the quarry and resort to photographing Twite that appear very common in Shetland:

A very mobile Isabelline Shrike has been relocated back at Toab so I head back there and dip it but have the compensation of seeing a Yellow Browed Warbler and a Hawfinch.

Curlews over Toab

By now the wind is increasing and I head over to the Pool of Virkie to see a selection of waders including a Black Tailed Godwit before calling it a day fairly early and heading for my B&B in Lerwick.