Black Red

Three year ticks on the patch today - Wheatear, Pied Wagtail and Black Redstart. Still quite a few birds kicking about, today's totals are - 3 Goldcrests, 4 Chiffchaff, 5 Brambling, 2 Chaffinch, 1 Linnet, 1 Robin, 4 Pied Wagtail, 1 Song Thrush, 1 Wheatear and 1 Black Redstart.

Black Redstart

Brambling

Chiffchaff

Chaffinch

Goldcrest

Pied Wagtails

Sumburgh Head from Scatness

Yuksom Day One

Headed over to Yuksom, and what a place, just did around the village for the afternoon and got this lot - 2 Roufous-gorgeted Flycatcher, 3 Grey Treepie, 2 Verditer Flycatcher, 2 Oriental White-eye, 1 Small Niltava, 4 Red-billed Leiotherix, 1 Red-tailed Minla, 3 Chestnut-tailed Minla, 2 White-tailed Nuthatch, 20 Russet Sparrow, 1 Blue-fronted Redstart, 2 Common Green Magpie, 10 Grey-hooded Warbler, 7 Black Bulbul, 1 Little Pied Flycatcher, 1 Asian Barred Owlet, 1 Large Niltava, 1 Black Redstart, 4 Blue Whistling Thrush and a Bar-winged Flycatcher-shrike.

Asian Barred Owlet

Black Redstart

Blue Whistling Thrush

Large Niltava

Oriental White-eye

Rufous-gorgeted Flycatcher

Red-tailed Minla

Attack of the Killer B's

2 Bean Geese on the patch this morning and the Black Redstart is still about and as flighty as ever.

Bean Geese

Black Redstart

Caspos

Had a walk along the banks of the river Wisla up to Katy and back - 2 Golden Orioles, a Green Woodpecker, 4 Great Reed Warblers, a Common Rosefinch, 20 Caspian Gulls, 3 Common Sandpipers, 5 Black Redstarts and a Buzzard - stinkin' hot all day until a massive thunder storm early evening cooled things down a bit.

Black Redstart

Caspian Gulls

Common Sandpiper

The Fall

From the 19/4 until the end of April, there was a bit of a fall on Shetland, and the patch did quite well out of it (for a change !). Highlights included Black Redstart and Great Grey Shrike in the garden on the 20th, 3 Ring Ouzels, a Reed Bunting, 2 Wood Pigeons and 57 Robins on the 21st, White-tailed Eagle over on the 29th and a Sedge Warbler on the 30th. Plus Goldcrests and Dunnocks most days, a Sparrowhawk on the 22nd and 2 Iceland Gulls on the 19th - a pretty good 10 day spell.

Sparrowhawk

Black Redstart

Dunnock

Great Grey Shrike

Goldcrest

Iceland Gull

Ring Ouzels

Sedge Warbler

Wood Pigeon

White-tailed Eagle

Back in Black.

Sod all, all week, apart from this Black Redstart in the garden today.

Return of the King

The plan was to thoroughly do the patch before the Grand Prix started, but this didn't happen, as I started at West Voe, the King Eider was showing pretty damn well about 50 yards offshore, so it seemed prudent to take advantage of this (a Common and 3 Velvet Scoters also in West Voe). So after about 90 minutes of pissing around with the camera headed back home, and on the way finding the surprise bird of the day - a Black Redstart, which was being chased about the place by a Robin, adding to this a Waxwing turned up in the garden as well - a pretty decent day for very little effort ! Especially as the King Eider has been over the other side of the Voe for the last few days (and therefore not on the patch !).



Waxwing.

King Eider.

Common Scoter.

Black Redstart.

2G, 2B -

Too Good - Seeing Vettel get the drivers world championship, anyone would have done as long as it wasn't the moaning Spaniard !

Too Bad - A bit of 'heart in mouth' stuff seeing Schumacher almost get decapitated in the first lap, I know the man can be something of a prick at times, but the incident was pretty bloody close to being a blood bath !

Don't lose your head !