Rain

Finally got out onto the patch, after a day of stupidly heavy rain - so bad that the foyer of the hotel was a foot deep in water ! The patch was fantastic though, even if it meant stopping and sheltering every now and then. All seen in a 2 hour period - 1 River Warbler, 1 Booted Warbler, 2 Nightjar, 1 Black-headed Bunting, 12 Ortolans, 1 Sedge Warbler, 40 Reed Warbler, 15 Willow Warbler, 4 Whitethroat, 2 Lesser Whitethroat, 4 Barred Warbler, 3 Lesser Grey Shrike, 25 Red-backed Shrike, 1 Little Crake, 10 Yellow Wagtails, 15 Isabelline Wheatear and 4 Little Gulls.

Lesser Grey Shrike

Nightjars

Red-backed Shrike

River Warbler

Black-headed Bunting

Even More Shrikes

More rain overnight and more migrants on my new temporary patch - 23 Hoopoes, 1 Great Reed Warbler, 4 Ortolan Bunting, 2 Spotted Flycatcher, 25 Reed Warbler (none yesterday), 40 Barred Warbler, now 96 Red-backed Shrikes, 10 Willow Warbler, 2 Chiffchaffs, 1 Red-throated Pipit, 3 Citrine Wagtails, 15 Yellow Wagtails, 3 Lesser Grey Shrikes, 40 Isabelline Wheatear, 6 Lesser Whitethroat and 10 Common Whitethroat.
A Great Crested Grebe offshore was a bit of a surprise. Also 27 Black-winged Stilt flew over heading south mid morning.

Barred Warbler

Citrine Wagtail

Isabelline Wheatear

Lesser Grey Shrike

Red-backed Shrike

Reed Warbler

Belated Update

Now that the broadband seems to be moving a bit quicker, time for a quick update from the last few weeks.
A day out dipping the Alpine Swift at Laxo on the 29/9, was salvaged a bit with Lesser Grey Shrike nearby,
A Brambling and a Jack Snipe were patch year-ticks on the 30/9 and so was Greenfinch on 2/10, a day when there were Olive-backed Pipits all over the place, apart from Scatness that is, where I managed to find a Tree Pipit instead !!!
A quick dash up to Cunningsburgh on the 1/10 and Alpine Swift gripped back - putting me on 349 for Shetland !
The big 350 fell soon after with an adult Sabine's Gull in front of the house - county tick, patch tick and house tick !
Bits and pieces around the patch included 4 Grey Plovers and 7 Snow Buntings on 10/10, and another patch tick, Little Grebe on the 14/10 and 2 Short-eared Owls on the 16/10.
A few interesting Moths at the end of September, the best being Red Sword Grass and Dark Sword Grass.

Alpine Swift at Cunningsburgh and Lesser Grey Shrike at Laxo (Phots - Jim Nicolson)

Grey Heron

Greenfinch

Grey Plover

Redwing

Whooper Swans

Little Grebe

Short-eared Owl

Snow Bunting

Red Sword Grass

Dark Sword Grass

Lesser Grey Shrike.

Turns out that spring has got at least one last surprise - a Lesser Grey Shrike, found on Bressay this afternoon - perfect timing for the 6 o'clock ferry after work. A fairly straight forward piece of island twitching - Go to Lerwick, catch the ferry, go to the site, look up at the overhead wires and there's the bird !

Lesser Grey Shrike.