Shortie

Definitely a clear out on the patch with just 2 Whimbrel, 4 Swallows, 20 Purple Sandpiper, 33 Sanderling, 1 Brent Goose, 1 Short-eared Owl and a Chiffchaff.

Purple Sandpiper

Short-eared Owl

March

Apart from a fly-through Hen Harrier on the 31st, most of March was pretty much a waste of time. The usual fare managed to sneak in though with Song Thrush on the 11th, Chaffinch on the 12th, Goldcrest on the 18th, Pied Wagtail on the 26th,Moorhen, Shelduck and Bar-tailed Godwit on the 28th and a Siskin on the 31st. Despite there being Stonechats on areas outside the patch this month, I still managed not to find one!

Goldcrest

Chaffinch

Siskin

Purple Sandpiper

Fulmar

Sunset with Fitful Head

Hebrew Character

Looking southwest from the garden

Another Stonechat and another Green Flash

Went around the patch again today, nothing new, just 6 Fieldfare today and Skylarks, Blackbirds and Purple Sandpipers have all increased. At the very last beach on my circuit (Sanblister) found another Stonechat late afternoon, and then waited until sunset and was rewarded with another green flash.

Stonechat

Hooded Crow

Purple Sandpipers

Shag

Signs of spring - Crocus in the garden

Tonight's sunset

And another green flash

Last of the good weather

Being as today is forecast to be the last fine day for a while with more typical Shetland weather returning tomorrow, I thought I'd get out and just take a few pics of various bits around the patch. I did manage a year tick though in the form of a Woodcock - well there may have been 2, I had flushed a bird by the end of the road and 90 minutes or so later flushed it or another from by Sanblister beach. Cracking views of 2 Merlins at Stinky Geo as they tried to get at the Starlings that had sought sanctuary in there to avoid the attack.

Merlin

Oystercatchers

Purple Sandpipers

Rock Pipit

Early evening from the house

Velvet Scoter

The first calmish day for a while, and the Velvet Scoter in West Voe finally came into camera range. Also in West Voe were 70 Long-tailed Duck, 9 Goldeneye and 2 Tysties. On the rest of the patch there were 85 Wigeon, 2 Tufted Duck and 40 Teal on the Loch, 1 Oystercatcher, 1 Purple Sandpiper and a Jack Snipe out on the headland, plus a fly over flock of 100+ Lapwing with a single Golden Plover in amongst them. The goose flock in front of the house had a reappearance of the 2 Barnacle Geese.

Velvet Scoter

Barnacle Geese

Eiders

Oystercatcher

Purple Sandpiper

Looking south from the headland

Simburgh Head from Scatness

Mammatus clouds - the first time I've seen these on Shetland

PWC 2014

Day one of the 2014 Patchwork Challenge, ended up with 31 species and 41 points - not too bad for one and a half square kilometres in Shetland in mid winter.

Hooded Crow

Oystercatchers

Purple Sandpiper

Wigeon

The End

It looks like the autumn is over now (always a sign that there's bugger all on the patch when Purple Sand photos start appearing), around the patch today were 2 Robins, 2 Whooper Swans and 78 Snow Buntings (in 3 flocks heading north).

Purple Sandpipers

Redshank

Whooper Swans

Last Week

Sporadic visits to the patch over the last week, highlights include a Wood Sandpiper on the Loch on the 11th along with around 250 Arctic Terns and 40 Purple Sandpipers, a Lesser Whitethroat in the garden all week, 6 Willow Warbler on the 11th, 4 Carrion Crows and 13 Great Northern Divers on the 12th,  Tree Pipit in the garden on the 14th and 2 Garden Warblers and another Tree Pipit on the 17th.

Arctic Terns

Great Northern Diver

Purple Sandpiper

Wood Sandpiper

A week of year-ticks

A week sat at home with a knackered foot was pretty productive with a few patch year-ticks - 2 Song Thrush, 4 Fieldfare, ad Iceland Gull, 1 Sanderling, 7 Dunlin, 3 Guillemot, a Siskin and 2 Woodcocks were all the first for the year on the 14th. A Collared Dove was new in on the 17th along with a Common Tern and 2 Carrion Crows on the 18th.
Along with all this were a scattering of other migrants, including 6 Robins, a Dunnock and a few Redwings, plus a few Twite visiting the garden.

Dunlin with Purple Sandpiper

Iceland Gull

Siskin

Twite

Woodcock