TonyQ Big Year 2022 - We go again

[TonyQ]

144.     UK.144. Puffin  Fratercula arctica     

Lunga, Treshnish Isles           19.06.22

Lunga, Treshnish Isles           19.06.22

Lunga is a great place to get close to birds, and Puffins are pretty well guaranteed at the right time of year!

[TonyQ]

145.     UK.145. Guillemot  Cepphus grylle   

Lunga, Treshnish Isles           19.06.22

Lunga, Treshnish Isles           19.06.22

Not as obviously glamorous as the Puffin, but still an interesting bird to see. The one in flight is a Bridled Guillemot - same species and subspecies as the first. Apparantly they are more common the further north you go.

 

Lunga has appeared in the Big Year a number of times and it is certainly worth a visit if you are in the area in the breeding season.

[pedro maia]

Great collection of sea birds!

[Galana]

ANYBODY that stands on the deck of m.v.Hebrides with that cold wind deserves more than 'just' some shots of Shearwaters. A medal is not good enough.

Thankfully you got safely on and off Lunga for those photos. A lot of sailings were cancelled in June. But it always repays a landing if you can arrange it.

[TonyQ]

@Galanathe Lunga trip was touch and go. They said we could cancel or postpone if we wanted to. The crossing was very rough, couldn’t land at Staffa. It was sunny on Lunga but still very windy.

[Towlersonsafari]

the journey  to Tresnish is one we have done many times from Mull but the one time we did it from the mainland was so rough Jane was sick and nobody was able to stand up let alone go outside- @TonyQ

[TonyQ]

@Towlersonsafariwe couldn't go outside either on this boat trip (the one we did from Mull was much more pleasant being on the boat!)

[Galana]

18 hours ago, TonyQ said:

@Galanathe Lunga trip was touch and go.

I don't mind the 'going' , it's the 'touching bit' that worries me.

[TonyQ]

Thank you for your comments!

And now onto the final few birds from our trip

 

146.UK.146 House Martin  Delichon urbica  

Polloch, Ardnamurchan          20.06.22

Polloch, Ardnamurchan          20.06.22

I always enjoy watching House Martins collecting mud for their nest building

(Polloch was the general area we were staying in Ardnamurchan)

[TonyQ]

14.7UK.147 Willow Warbler  Phylloscopus trochilus

Polloch, Ardnamurchan          20.06.22

[TonyQ]

148.UK.148 Spotted Flycatcher  Muscicapa striata  

Polloch, Ardnamurchan          20.06.22

[TonyQ]

149.UK.149 Black Guillemot  Uria aalge       

Ardgour, Ardnamurchan         25.06.22

Ardgour, Ardnamurchan         25.06.22

Ardgour is the site for accessing the ferry to Corran - only about 10 mins on the ferry saves a long drive!

This is the last of the Scottish birds, but not the last birds of the trip

[TonyQ]

On the way home we stopped overnight in Lancashire and visited Leighton Moss RSPB.

We were delighted to be ableto meet up again with @Zim Girland Adrian, and we had a lovely few hours with them birding and chatting over a coffee. Thank you!

They are very familiar with this reserve and were able to help us see three new additions

 

150.UK.150 Bittern  Botaurus stellaris 

New bird for us!

       

Leighton Moss RSPB, Lancashire      26.06.22

Leighton Moss RSPB, Lancashire      26.06.22

Quite a quick flypast, photos not good but we were delighted with the sighting - a lifer for both of us so very exciting to see it!

[TonyQ]

151.UK.151 Marsh Harrier  Circus aeruginosus       

Leighton Moss RSPB, Lancashire      26.06.22

Leighton Moss RSPB, Lancashire      26.06.22

[TonyQ]

And finally, a bit more of a surprise (for us) than the Marsh Harrier

 

152.UK.152 Osprey  Pandion haliaetus        

Leighton Moss RSPB, Lancashire      26.06.22

Leighton Moss RSPB, Lancashire      26.06.22

 

So 41 new birds for the Big Year (not including the Hebridean Wren sub-species)

38 for Scotland and 3 in England. Two lifers for us was also very pleasing. We thought it a very enjoyable and productive trip.

[PeterHG]

Certainly a productive trip and an excellent finish with Bittern and Osprey !

[Galana]

A Grand Finale indeed.

[Peter Connan]

Some really wonderful birds and wonderful photos here Tony!

[Zim Girl]

It was a pleasure to meet up with you both again Tony, and very excited you were able to see a Bittern! 

The Osprey turning up was a nice surprise for both of us.

[michael-ibk]

Great seabirds, and nice to read about the GTG. 

[Kitsafari]

a cool final flourish with raptors! a nice haul from the north. 

[TonyQ]

Thank you for the kind comments.The GTG was a treat for us!

 

Birding has been very quiet here, but we did get a nice bird in the garden

The male has already been posted (from the garden) as it tends to overwinter.

Here is a female Blackcap

 

 

Eating berries on the Honeysuckle.

We did see a juvenile as well, so encouraging that they are breeding here!

 

[michael-ibk]

Very nice shot with all the berries!

[TonyQ]

No new birds for quite a while - time of year in UK, weather, laziness...

But at last a new one!

 

153.UK.153 Hobby  Falco Subbuteo

Upton Warren, Worcestershire           01.09.22

About to eat a dragonfly, Upton Warren, Worcestershire           01.09.22

 

This next one is a bad, but I think interesting photo

A very heavy crop, but you can just see four dragonfly wings floating away after being discarded by the Hobby. So they appear to remove the wings befor eating the rest of the insect. I didn't know that they did that (I didn't see it "live", only when I went through the photos)

[Peter Connan]

Lovely capture!