A fine selection of grounded migrants was noted on the final day of August, while numbers were generally unspectacular there was an excellent diversity of species recorded. The three commonest migrants tallied were 143 Linnets, 140 Meadow Pipits and 100 White Wagtails, with 71 alba Wagtails also seen. In the trees and scrub there had been arrivals of 64 Goldcrests, 45 Willow Warblers, 34 Chiffchaffs and 25 Robins, with an entertaining mix of other species highlighted by an elusive Wryneck around the Obs garden. Nine Whitethroats, nine Blackcaps, four Sedge Warblers and a single Grasshopper Warbler were the best of the Warblers on offer, while 18 Wheatears, four Spotted Flycatchers and singles of Firecrest and Whinchat, the latter the first of the autumn, were also logged. Also of note, and quite possibly indicative of arrivals of both species, were counts of 22 Stonechats and 17 Dunnocks, though both totals are within the margin where very thorough recording of the islands resident birds could account for them.

juvenile Wheatear, Ben Porter; benporterwildlife.wordpress.com

Overhead it was also pretty busy, with 171 Swallows, 63 House Martins, 14 Grey Wagtails, five Tree Pipits and a single Sand Martin moving through. Clear skies encouraged a good selection of raptors to be recorded today, with three each of Sparrowhawk, Kestrel and Peregrine and singles of Merlin and Buzzard.

The sea recieved limited attention today, but enough to reveal that little was on the move. Five Arctic Skuas south were probably the highlight, while 36 Common Scoters south was also our best passage for a few weeks. Otherwise modest totals of 106 Manx Shearwaters, 56 Gannets, 32 Shags, 28 Lesser Black-backed Gulls, 18 Fulmars, ten Razorbills, two Sandwich and one Arctic Tern and a single Black-headed Gull were logged, while four Risso's Dolphins was the only cetacean sighting.

Some of the classic lepidopteran migrants also had a good day, with 30 Red Admirals, 13 Painted Ladies, three Silver Y's and a Hummingbird Hawk-moth on the wing. The moth trap was very quiet apart from a Delicate, the eighth record for Bardsey and first since 2014. Seven Speckled Woods was the highest count of the year, including one at the Obs, away from the main colony at Nant.

The highlight of today was probably the early morning seawatch, a fine variety of species were logged despite the fairly calm conditions; a North-westerly breeze definitely helped though. It was the best Skua day so far this season with 11 Arctic Skuas, an excellent eight Pomarine Skuas and two Great Skuas while following their typical late summer lull Razorbills are on the increase, 47 seen today being the first sign of autumn passage this year. Other highlights were 16 Black-headed Gulls, 17 Sandwich Terns, one Common Tern and a good count of 47 Common Scoters, with the highest counts coming from 58 Shags, 259 Manx Shearwaters 109 Gannets and 809 Kittiwakes,

Wheatear - Elliot's Birding Diaries

Elsewhere in wader news numbers appeared to be building back up again today with five Whimbrels, 65 Curlews, 18 Redshank, 14 Turnstones, three Ringed Plovers, 36 Dunlins (almost all heading south offshore) and 35 Oystercatchers. The most interesting species were all passing through though, with the second Curlew Sandpiper of  the year heading south offshore with, oddly, a group of Curlews, and two Black-tailed Godwits north off the South End; in the theme of odd carrier species they were tagging a group of Oystercatchers! A Knot that passed overhead through the South End restored sanity, order and some sort of decency by choosing a more conventional trio of Dunlins as its travelling companions.

Rounding it all off with grouned passage migrants, where the three commonest species were Linnet (135), Meadow Pipit (133) and White Wagtail (63). 31 Willow Warblers, 25 Chiffchaffs, eight Whitethroats, two Blackcaps and a Sedge Warbler were recorded, with an arrival of 45 Goldcrests and at least three Firecrests amongst them. It was also a good day for Wheatears and Robins, 31 and 20 seen respectively, while one Siskin, one Starling and four Spotted Flycatchers were the best of the rest. 163 Swallows, 57 House Martins, 17 Grey Wagtails and eight Tree Pipits moved through overhead, while three Sparrowhawks and two Kestrels patrolled the island, and the first Raven passage of the year was logged, with a group of nine thermalling over the mountain.

Firecrest - Josie Hewitt Photography

Another day here on Bardsey with more signs of winter on its way with birds continuing to pass through. Out at sea today we were graced with the sight of one Red-throated Diver,  22 Fulmars, one Large Shearwater sp (most likely Great!), seven Razorbill, 74 Gannets, three Arctic Terns, three Sandwich Terns, two Commic Terns, one Great Skua, two Pomarine Skuas, 11 Arctic Skua, 687 Kittiwakes, 21 Common Scoters, and 21 Black-headed Gulls.

Gannet - Harry King

 Waders have seemed to of died down in recent days with today's counts coming in at a pretty low score: 35 Oystercatchers, two Dunlin, one Redshank, six Whimbrel, 34 Curlews and six Turnstones.

Convolvulus Hawkmoth - Elliot's Birding Diaries

One thing which was noticed today was raptor passage, with the star bird going to a Red Kite north over the plantation this morning representing the islands 23rd record; with other raptors including five Sparrowhawks, including one group of three heading north over Ty Pellaf, one Buzzard and three Peregrines.

Red Kite - Elliot's Birding Diaries

Grounded migrants included a high count for the year of 110 White Wagtails, plus 100 Linnets, 42 Willow Warblers and 24 Goldcrests as the most abundant species. 11 Spotted Flycatchers was a good count, while also recorded were 20 Robins, 16 Chiffchaffs, five Whitethroats, three Blackcaps, two Sedge Warblers and, to add a bit of quality, two Redstarts and a Firecrest at the Plantation, both first records for the autumn. Overhead passage was light, but totalled three Sand Martins, 84 Swallows, 34 House Martins, two Tree Pipits and three Grey Wagtails.

In non-avian news, not one but two Convolvulus Hawkmoths where discovered today, one on the obs trap and another at Pen Cristin. These two bring the years total to nine, time will tell if we can beat last years record total!

All told, a pretty slow day, with most of the interesting highlights on land. The most notable count of the day was an excellent 86 White Wagtails, our highest of the season with an obvious afternoon arrival on the South End and the Narrows. 26 Goldcrests also represented a significant arrival, but warbler totals were  very modest, with 12 Willow Warblers and three each of Chiffchaff and Whitethroat all that was seen. Other grounded migrants were represented by 134 Linnets, 112 Meadow Pipits (also a decent increase), eight Robins, six Wheatears and a single new in Song Thrush at Nant. Overhead 18 House Martins were the only sighting of note.

Rock Pipit - Elliot's Birding Diaries 

It was similarly quiet out to sea, indeed totals of 34 Kittiwakes and nine Manx Shearwaters were absolutely pitiful! With almost all adult Manxies having left the island now, it seems our peak counts for the year are behind us. 105 Gannets and 196 Herring Gulls were the only noteworthy counts out to sea, with a little bit of low-key variety also noted; 11 Black-headed Gulls, two Razorbills, one Guillemot, three Common Scoters and the lingering Red-throated Diver again being seen.

Stonechat - Elliot's Birding Diaries 

Waders were reasonably well represented, with the day's highlight perhaps the Green Sandpiper that spent much of the afternoon in the Wetlands but was only seen sporadically, the third record of the year. A Common Sandpiper on Carreg Yr Honwy was the first record for over a week, as was a Purple Sandpiper also present there. A single Sanderling was also notable, with counts for the regular species of 64 Turnstones, 61 Curlews, 21 Dunlins, 12 Whimbrels and 11 Redshanks.

Non-avian highlights included an unusual Speckled Wood  on the West Coast, the only sighting this year away from the newly established colony at Nant. Five Painted Ladies were also seen, but little else of note.

A pretty quiet day on the island with only a small scattering of migrants today with star of the show being a Great Shearwater that pasted alongside the boat crossing Bardsey Sound as visitors made their way to the island in the morning. Elsewhere in sea news we had four Sandwich Terns, one Razorbill, 60 Kittiwakes, 205 Herring Gulls, 29 Manx Shearwaters, two Fulmars, 40 Lesser Black-backed Gulls and two Arctic Skuas.

Ringed Plover (Charadrius hiaticula) - Elliot's Birding Diaries 

Waders today were low in both quantity and quality with only ten Curlews, four Whimbrels, six Redshanks, five Turnstones and three Ringed Plovers.

Other migrants for the day consisted of 29 Linnets, one Spotted Flycatcher, seven Goldcrests, 1 Willow Warblers, four Chiffchaffs, one Blackcap, two Sedge Warblers, one Grey Wagtail, one flava Wagtail sp, one Reed Warbler, 14 House Martins, 100 Swallows and rounding it all off was a single Hobby that bolted over the Ty Pellaf  reed bed whilst out ringing the Swallows as they came into roost.

Sand Martin (Riparia riparia) - Josie Hewitt Photography 

The sea kicked up a good range of birds throughout the day with 45 Gannets, 205 Manx Shearwaters, 61 Common Scoters, one Arctic Skua, one Pomarine Skua, 15 Black-headed Gulls, two Sandwich Terns, two Common Terns, ten Razorbills, one Guillemot, two Puffins, one Red-throated Diver and most surprisingly of all a Tufted Duck!

Next we've got our waders, of which numbers seemed relatively low compared to recent counts, yet they were still out and about with 29 Oystercatchers, two Ringed Plovers, 49 Dunlins, five Whimbrels, 32 Curlews, 17 Redshanks, 28 Turnstones and highlight of the day being an adult Curlew Sandpiper moulting into its winter plumage that flew in close along the south end this morning amongst a flock of Dunlins.

Meanwhile other migrants for the day included two Sparrowhawks, 70 Swallows, 66 Meadow Pipits, ten House Martins, one Grey Wagtail, one Little Egret, 37 White Wagtails, ten Robins, eight Wheatears, three Whitethroat, three Blackcaps, 11 Chiffchaffs, 34 Willow Warblers, nine Goldcrests, six Spotted Flycatchers, one Pied Flycatcher, one Siskin, 192 Linnets and one Long-eared Owl.

Long-eared Owl (Asio otus) - Elliot's Birding Diaries 

Another enjoyable day on Bardsey. While the numbers of migrants passing through remain pretty modest, there was a fine variety of species to keep us busy today.

The day's highlight was, undoubtedly, a fairly distant CORY'S SHEARWATER off the West Coast late morning. While not a brilliant view, this is an excellent bird for Bardsey, and was an island tick for Steve after 20 years here! In comparison, the highlights from the South End of singles of Balearic Shearwater and Black Guillemot seem a bit tame, but were nontheless good reward for two hours seawatching here this morning. The support cast was quite low on numbers, but high on diversity. The usuals logged were 750 Kittiwakes, 495 Manx Shearwaters and 133 Gannets, while gull passage through the island was particularly noticeable. 154 Lesser Black-backed Gulls headed south, with many of the 117 Herring Gulls logged today being amongst them. 48 Black-headed Gulls was the largest count of the autumn so far, mostly in small parties heading south offshore, and a single Mediterranean Gull was also off the South End early on. The extended roll-call for today also includes nine Arctic Terns, five Sandwich Terns, two Pomarines, one Arctic and one Great Skua, five Fulmars, three Common Scoters and a four-auk day, with nine Razorbills and singles of Puffin and Guillemot alongside the aforementioned Black Guillemot.  The only cetaceans noted today were two Harbour Porpoises.

Dunlin (Calidris alpina) - Harry King

Meanwhile it was a pretty modest day for waders, 37 Curlews, 34 Turnstones and 25 each of Oystercatchers and Dunlins provided the numbers, and amongst them were just 13 Redshanks, four Ringed Plovers and three Whimbrels.

Grounded migrants were, again, more impressive in terms of diversity than sheer numbers. Yesterday's Wryneck was seen briefly above Ty Capel, while the most notable arrivals were significant increases to 16 Chiffchaffs, 15 Goldcrests and seven Whitethroats. 20 Willow Warblers were logged in total, with other warblers being three Sedge Warblers and singles of Blackcap and Reed Warbler, with 14 Robins, four Wheatears and three Spotted Flycatchers the highlights of chat movement. The 21 Stonechats logged today was also a notable increase on recent days, and may well have included the first few migrants of the autumn. Around the Narrows and the South End there were also 67 Meadow Pipits, 17 White Wagtails, 95 Linnets and a single Goldfinch that was new in.

White Wagtail (Motacilla alba) - Eliot's Birding Diaries

Overhead passage was reasonably modest, with 165 Swallows, 40 House Martins and a good count of 15 Sand Martins, plus nine unassigned "Alba" Wagtails. However a good number of migrant insects were logged, such as 28 Red Admirals, eight Painted Ladies, six Silver Y's and one Migrant Hawker. A good count of six Speckled Woods was made at Nant, with other notable sightings being seven Small Coppers, six Small Tortoisehsells and a Common Blue.

Late August is normally pretty good on Bardsey, and after a very slow start to the autumn it's finally starting to deliver. Today was kicked off with three Sabine's Gull scattered along with west coast this morning with two summer plumaged adults and a 1st winter bird being picked out amongst the Kittiwakes. The sea was, in fact, very busy, with stacks of Kittiwakes (2758 counted), plus healthy counts of 1090 Manx Shearwaters and 119 Gannets. There was also a fine variety of species logged out to sea, headlined by the strongest tern passage of the year; 93 Arctic Terns, 37 Common Terns, 70 "Commic" Terns and three Sandwich Terns. Also logged out to sea were ten Common Scoters, 11 Whimbrel, two Bar-tailed Godwit, three Fulmars, six Black-headed Gulls, two Common Gulls, one Mediterranean Gull, seven Razorbills and singles of Puffin, Red-throated Diver and Arctic Skua. 77 Lesser Black-backed Gulls were also on the move today, in small parties moving south through the island.

Manx Shearwater (Puffinus puffinus) - Elliot's Birding Diaries

Next up, in wader news one Greenshank was picked up on call at 05:50am over the obs whilst on net rounds, meanwhile one Lapwing was flushed from the north end at 02:36am. Meanwhile an excellent 90 Curlews were logged, alongside 22 Oystercatchers, five Ringed Plovers, 18 Dunlins, 35 Turnstones, 16 Whimbrels (11 already mentioned as seen on seawatches) and 11 Redshanks.

Wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe) - Elliot's Birding Diaries

And on land, it was another decent day of passage, highlighted by a Wryneck and a Great Spotted Woodpecker, both around the Nant area. Overhead there were 230 Swallows, 34 House Martins, two Sparrowhawks and a single Flava Wagtail, with 20 White Wagtails on the Narrows. 11 Wheatears and nine Robins were seen, while it was a modest day for Warblers, with Willow Warblers numbering just 16, plus four Goldcrests and singles of Chiffchaff, Whitethroat, Garden Warbler and Reed Warbler. 108 Linnets were also logged today.

Wryneck (Jynx torquilla)- Elliot's Birding Diaries

Another two Convulvulous Hawk-moths were found today, one in a moth trap at Ty Pellaf and one in the Obs Heligoland Trap. Five Painted Ladies and eight Red Admirals were on the move, with a single Speckled Wood around the Nant area. The blooming Bell Heather on the Mountain is proving irresistible to Bees, with a huge count of 182 Common Carder-Bees on our monthly transect today. The only mammal-related sighting of note today was three Common Dolphins off the West Coast.

It was, all told, a pretty reasonable day today as autumn slowly gathers some pace. Most sightings of note were land-based, with the standout highlight a single Wood Warbler at Nant. It was brought in alongside an arrival of 46 Willow Warblers, while four Goldcrests and singles of Whitethroat, Chiffchaff and Garden Warbler were also seen/trapped. 11 Wheatears and two Spotted Flycatchers also arrived, while nine Robins could have been the remnants of the arrival of the last two days. Meanwhile, around the Narrows 16 White Wagtails was the best count of the autumn so far. Overhead passage was busy in the morning, with 282 Swallows and 78 House Martins the bulk of what was logged, alongside an excellent count of 11 Tree Pipits, a single Grey Wagtail and two Sparrowhawks passing through the island. 94 Linnets and 55 Meadow Pipits rounded off a good day for passerine migration, while a high count of 40 Woodpigeons suggested some local immigration from the mainland.

Willow Warbler (Phylloscopus trochilus) - Steve Stansfield

The sea was, by comparison, a poor relation today. High counts were of just 241 Kittiwakes, 91 Manx Shearwaters and 47 Gannets, but a good passage of 61 Lesser Black-backed Gulls headed south through the island in small parties. 27 Shags and 11 Cormorants were dotted around the coast, and three Sandwich Terns passed off the west coast, with one of these plus a 1st-winter Arctic Tern spotted feeding in Henllwyn on the early afternoon guided walk. The 20 Black-headed Gulls seen today, mostly on the Narrows early in the morning, was the highest count of August so far, though no doubt thousands will be descending upon us relatively soon.

Wader passage has hit a bit of a slump in recent days, with the only notable count today being 45 Curlews. 14 Dunlins and 11 Redshanks were the only other double figure counts, while astoundingly, Oystercatchers only numbered a meagre six! Making up the rest were six Turnstones (also a massive decline on recent counts) and four Ringed Plovers. A single Grey Heron continued to hang around the Narrows and the West Coast, while some undoubtedly have passed through the island, it's tempting to speculate that one second calendar-year bird could be responsible for the majority of the near daily sightings since March.

Ringed Plover (Charadrius hiaticula) - Steve Stansfield

A modest arrival of birds coincided with a modest arrival of butterflies, with Red Admirals increasing to 18 and four Painted Ladies also seen, plus a single Silver Y. Four Graylings and a single Gatekeeper were the most notable amongst the resident species recorded today. The moth trap is still pretty quiet, though Square-spot Darts are becoming one of the commonest species in recent traps, with five being recorded today. Four True Lovers Knots were also a notable increase on recent traps, but all other sightings were of expected species in low numbers.

The sea today produced one or two surprises, reduced visibility and low winds meant only 14 Manx Shearwaters and ten Gannets were picked up. However the first Red-throated Diver of the season was found drifting up the west coast past Solfach this morning, while two Arctic Skuas and two Great Skuas were also noted heading south. Elsewhere on the Irish sea eight Cormorants, 16 Shags, six Mallards, one Teal and one Sandwich Tern were also of note. A few small parties of Lesser Black-backed Gulls, totalling 35, headed south through the Narrows during the day and were a clear sign of migration.

Red-throated Diver (Gavia stellate) - Elliot's Birding Diaries

Wader wise the days counts came in at four Ringed Plovers, 83 Oystercatchers, 43 Dunlins (highest of the autumn), seven Whimbrels, 81 Curlews, 17 Redshanks, four Common Sandpiper, 58 Turnstone, one Snipe and three Purple Sandpipers.

Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus) - Elliot's Birding Diaries

Besides that already mentioned, the island also held host to nice range of migrants today. Overhead there were an excellent three Sparrowhawks and nine Tree Pipits, with 81 Swallows, ten House Martins and seven Sand Martins logged. A repeat sighting of the Long-eared Owl was the days highlight, followed by the second Spotted Flycatcher of the autumn, while a decent supporting cast featured a noticeable arrival of 12 Robins, plus ten Wheatears, one Blackcap, one Whitethroat, two Chiffchaffs, 31 Willow Warblers, six Goldcrests, one Lesser Redpoll and 129 Linnets.

After what seemed like an age of waiting for migration to happen, today, at long last saw a half-decent arrival! The biggest movers were 210 Meadow Pipits, our first obvious movement of the autumn. Linnets saw an increase to 185, and 27 Willow Warblers were  new in. Other Warblers were nine Goldcrests, three Chiffchaffs, two Blackcaps and two Whitethroats. 23 Wheatears was an obvious increase on previous days, including one of the Greenland race "Leucorhoa", while the five Robins seen were all suspected migrants. Most unusual amongst this decent selection of grounded migrants was a cracking male Ring Ouzel on the West Coast, a very early record! It was also a busy morning overhead, with 205 Swallows, 86 House Martins, 10 Alba Wagtails (one flock, of which three of were identified as White Wagtail and the others almost certainly were too), seven Sand Martins and six each of Grey Wagtail and Tree Pipit.

"Greenland" Wheatear (O.o. leucorhoa) - Elliot's Birding Diaries

A dark morph Pomarine Skua seen offshore early in the morning was the highlight of seawatching. Otherwise Kittiwakes usurped Manx Shearwaters as commonest species, with 1290 of the former and 830 of the latter. An excellent 77 Shags were tallied, alongside 43 Gannets, with some variety in the form of 13 Fulmars, six Sandwich Terns, four Black-headed Gulls, one Mediterranean Gull, two Little Egrets and seven Common Scoters. Four Risso's Dolphins were also spotted offshore late in the morning.

Gannet (Morus bassanus) - Elliot's Birding Diaries

72 Turnstones was a significant increaase, with the only other numerous waders being 41 Oystercatchers and 39 Curlews. Otherwise Dunlins and Redshanks numbered 19 and 16 respectively, there were six Ringed Plovers and four Whimbrels, and a little bit of quality in the form of singles of Knot and Snipe.

Golden-haired Lichen (Teloschistes flavicans )  - Elliot's Birding Diaries 

The only butterflies of any note were three Speckled Woods at the Plantation. In the Obs moth trap Rhomboid Tortrix and Parsnip Moth were the most notable of a pretty limited selection of 15 species and 30 individuals, but it was nontheless a vast improvement on a very poor few days.
3 Speckled Wood,

Today we waved farewell to this years Next Generation Birders, and by the sounds of it we'll be seeing many of them returning for next years trip!

Saying farewell to this years Next Generation Birders, a trip that most likely would have never happened if it wasn't for the hard work put in by the BBFO Staff and the BTO for providing the YBOVF - Ben Porter Photography 

Shortly before they were due to leave a Sooty Shearwater (a 2nd was seen in the afternoon!) was picked up on the rough sea passing south, and fast along the west coast which several managed to pick on. Preparing the lodge for the weeks new visitors kept the obs staff busy but migrants where still being noticed. Out to sea another Sooty Shearwater was seen in the late afternoon, with a Arctic Skua, two Sanderlings and five Dunlins moving past in the morning and two Mediterranean Gulls offshore in the evening. Most numerous were Manx Shearwaters, with 3385, while 220 Kittiwakes, 93 Gannets, 21 Fulmars and three Razorbills were also logged.

Pied Wagtail (Motacilla alba yarrellii) - Elliot's Birding Diaries

A more limited selection of waders than in recent days was present on the Narrows, including 49 Turnstones, 38 Curlews, 11 Whimbrels, eight Redshanks, three Ringed Plovers and a single Purple Sandpiper. Very little was grounded though, with tallies of just two Willow Warblers, a single Goldcrest, five Wheatears and 131 Linnets.

One of our NGBs Luke Anderson enjoying not only his first visit to the island, but also thrilled to be

experiencing a Manx Shearwater chick! - Image Steve Stainfield 

On the final day of NGB Trip both the NGB and Staff had eyes fixed on the coast with a grand total of 7394 Manx Shearwaters hugging the islands coast; the most exceptional count of the day, though, was 83 Fulmars, the first large movement of this species all year. 1412 Kittiwakes and 246  Gannets provided the other numbers, with a good selection of other species including one Great Skua off the North End, three Black-headed Gulls, six Razorbill, six Guillemot, four Sandwich Terns, one Common Tern, two Arctic Terns and one 'Commic' Tern.

Common Tern (Sterna hirundo) - Elliot's Birding Diaries

Meanwhile waders were in good numbers the day consisted of 74 Oystercatchers, seven Ringed Plovers, 13 Dunlins, four Purple Sandpipers, one Snipe, 17 Whimbrels, 17 Redshanks, 65 Turnstones and 47 Curlews. Nine Sanderlings were also logged moving south while seawatching.

Purple Sandpiper (Calidris maritime) - Elliot's Birding Diaries

Other migrants dotted about the island today included two Sparrowhawks, one Buzzard, three Sand Martins, one Reed Warbler, ten Willow Warblers, three Goldcrest, two Chiffchaff, one Chaffinch and 146 Linnet.

With our Next Generation Birders leaving tomorrow, we'd like to say a massive thank you to the BTO for providing this years young ornithologists with the money to be to pay for the trip via the YBOF Grants.

Both NGBs and Staff enjoying Chilly Night at the observatory

The sixth day of the Bardsey NGB week was a rather quiet one for birding, though much enlivened by a quiz at day's end, compered by Steve Stansfield and competed by NGB's, staff and guests alike! Covering such broad bird-related topics as identification, sexing and ageing, Latin names and general birding knowledge, it stretched us all to wits end, with the eventual champions, after a tie-break call quiz, being the "Bardsey Dazzlers" team, comprised of Ben Porter, Emma Stansfield, Harry King and Jacob Spinks. Steve and Emma also cooked a mean chilli for all, and therewere plenty of celebrations for Ben Porter's 21st birthday!

Mr Porter enjoying his birthday treat - Image Steve Stansfield 

Earlier in the day, the standout birding highlight was the relocation of the Long-eared Owl at Nant. The excitement of seeing this bird for several NGB's was, however, tempered by the frustration of having it bounce out of a mist net! On a day of could-have been's for raptor ringing, a Sparrowhawk did the same! Otherwise grounded migrants were very modest in number, numbering six Willow Warblers, two Goldcrests and singles of Chiffchaff, Sedge Warbler and Reed Warbler, the latter the most unusual and seen in the Obs garden. Overhead two Sand Martins were the only sightings of any significance, with hardly any suggestion of the other two hirundines being on the move.

Manx Shearwater (Puffinus puffinus) - Ben Porter Photography 

It was also pretty quiet on the sea, with only 907 Manx Shearwaters, in comparison to counts of several thousand on most recent days. 804 Kittiwakes and 176 Gannets provided the extra numbers, with variety coming with little more than singles of Common Scoter, Arctic Skua and Black-headed Gull.

Curlews were up to an excellent 85 today, and there were 43 Turnstones, but just 38 Oystercatchers were around. Otherwise the only waders logged were ten Redshanks, five Ringed Plovers, three Dunlins and two Whimbrels.

A sunny day saw a few good butterfly counts, notably 16 Small Coppers, five Painted Ladies and a single Common Blue. A single Darter sp. seen at the Plantation could not be identified to species.

Today the Irish sea was alive with Manx Shearwaters, with 5121 noted (evening counts reached an excellent 100per 1min when the visibility was good enough to see the sea!), and amongst them a single Balearic Shearwater headed south along the West Coast. Furthermore 33 Shags, 15 Cormorants, 152 Gannets, 28 Common Scoters, one Arctic Skua, 4 Black-headed Gulls, 841 Kittiwakes, 3 Sandwich Terns and 1 Puffin were also noted. With Puffin being an uncommon autumn migrant, each sighting now could well represent the last of the year.

Manx Shearwater (Puffinus puffinus) -  Elliot's Birding Diaries 

Amongst the waders counted on the Narrows, undoubtedly the most notable sighting was a total of 29 Whimbrels, a very high count for an already above-average autumn. Also noted were 56 Oystercatchers, six Ringed Plovers, five Purple Sandpipers, six Dunlins, 28 Curlews, 29 Whimbrel, 11 Redshanks and 43 Turnstones

Passerine migration today was again poor. Overhead 63 Swallows and 15 House Martins were noted, with 133 Linnets, 12 nominate-race Wheatears, two Greenland Wheatears, two Blackcaps and singles of Willow Warbler, Whitethroat and Sedge Warbler noted on land. A Little Owl was heard calling too.

Next Generation Birders out at Nant Valley assisting the observatory's studying of Manx Shearwaters - Image Steve Stansfield

In other news, the night before whilst NGB's George Dunbar & Elliot Montieth (our autumn intern), were presenting their fantastic talks about "Birding Iberia" & "Birdinghead" to the BBFO Staff, NGB's & BBFO committee members, a fall of 5 Convolvulus Hawk Moths invaded the island. Other sightings from the moth trap included a Purple-bar and the second Orange Swift of the year (and first to be recorded in the trap), but otherwise little was noted.

NGB George Dunbar presenting his talk about his recent birding trip to Iberia with fellow NGB Jacob Spinks - Image Steve Stansfield

Convolvulus Hawkmoth (Agrius convolvuli) - Image George Dunbar

Another blustery day saw scopes pointed out to sea for most of the daylight hours. However, rewards were rather less than yesterday. Kittiwakes numbered a season high of 1948, while Manx Shearwaters were down to just 1405, with 200 Gannets a good count. Variety came in the shape of 19 Fulmars, four Arctic Terns, three Common Terns, two Sandwich Terns and singles of Great Skua, Arctic Skua and Guillemot, the latter becoming more notable in August as Auks generally have become thin on the ground!

Manx Shearwater (Puffinus puffinus) - Elliot's Birding Diaries 

A decent selection of waders featured as it's most notable member a single Black-tailed Godwit, found on the South End and relocating to Carreg yr Honwy. 51 Curlews and 37 Turnstones were the most numerous, with Oystercatchers down to a remarkably low 27. 17 Whimbrels was a pretty good count for Bardsey in the autumn, with the best of the rest being 11 Dunlins, six Ringed Plovers, five Redshanks, four Purple Sandpipers, three Snipes (flushed from a wet patch on the South End), and two Common Sandpipers.

Rock Pipit (Anthus petrosus), trapped and ringed in the Heligoland trap as part of the island

colour ringing project (Image - Ben Porter)

BBFO Staff out with NGBs  Jacob Spinks, Kate Fox, Luke Ozsanlav-Harris & Eleanor Grove showing them the island portable Heligoland Trap used for trapping and studying the Rock Pipits & Waders (Image - Ben Porter)

A Great Spotted Woodpecker trapped at the Plantation was the highlight on the land, with the commonest migrant again being Linnet, numbers were again on 117. 12 Willow Warblers were mostly at the Plantation, with three Sedge Warblers and a Blackcap the only other warblers noted. Three Goldcrests and three White Wagtails were also on the deck, while overhead were 78 Swallows, 38 House Martins and a single Tree Pipit heading south. Singles of Kestrel and Sparrowhawk, the latter an immature female, were also new in.

NGBs out ringing Manx Shearwater chicks as part of the BBFO census work (Image - Steve Stainfield) 

A quiet day for migrant insects did see two Migrant Hawkers and singles of Painted Lady and Silver Y encouraged by a slight improvement in the weather. One Speckled Wood at the Plantation was the most notable of the resident Lepidoptera to be seen.

Sea-watching proved quite productive today with 3760 Manx Shearwaters logged, as well as 1089 Kittiwakes, an excellent 290 Gannets, 14 Fulmars, ten Common Scoters, four Razorbills, two Sandwich Terns, one Common Tern, 11 Arctic Terns, one Guillemot, four Razorbills and three Arctic Skuas. Three Teal heading south was a good record, while the highlight was a Storm Petrel off the South End early in the morning. While we catch good numbers during the summer months this is a species logged very infrequently while seawatching, but our second record of this year. While not what you might think of as a migrant, 26 Great Black-backed Gulls logged today included twelve heading south out to sea, which presumably indicates some movement.

Manx Shearwater (Puffinus puffinus) - Elliot Birding Diaries 

A variety of waders were seen today: 55 Oystercatchers, 56 Curlews, 40 Turnstones, 34 Redshanks, eight Whimbrels, seven Ringed Plovers, four Purple Sandpipers, eight Dunlins, one Greenshank (heard calling overnight) and one Sanderling.

NGB Kate Fox happy after ringing her first Storm Petrel on Bardsey

Elsewhere a Long-eared Owl found in Cristin Withy was the third record of the year, while the first White Wagtail of the autumn was on Solfach. 50 Swallows, 20 House Martins and two each of Sand Martin and Swift moved south. On land 16 Wheatears included one first-summer male of the Greenland race Leucorhoa, with a small selection of warblers including one Grasshopper Warbler in the Obs garden, and a bizarre sighting of a Reed Warbler on the rocks at Henllwyn! Two each of Willow Warbler and Sedge Warbler were also noted, plus a single Whitethroat. Meanwhile Linnets had increased to 117. The only insect sighting of note on a blustery day was a single Hummingbird Hawk-moth in the Obs Garden, while even the Moth trap was quiet.

Purple Sandpiper (Calidris maritime) - Elliot's Birding Diaries 

After a long night ringing Manx Shearwaters and Storm Petrels, this morning our NGBs were set out in force for a combination of ringing and census work.

Migrants for today came in all shapes and sizes, with an increase in migration signalled by a good selection of birds on the move on land and sea. Overhead 386 Swallows, 80 House Martins, 24 Sand Martins and four Tree Pipits were logged. 37 Willow Warblers was the best count for some time, while an obvious increase to 194 Linnets was logged.

A calm sea provided ideal conditions for viewing cetaceans, with a total of 19 Risso's Dolphins, three Common Dolphins and nine Harbour Porpoise. A good diversity of seabirds were recorded, the highlights being singles of Great Skua and Arctic Skua. 65 Common Scoters, one Mediterranean Gull, eight Black-headed Gulls, 106 Gannets, 637 Kittiwakes, 32 Sandwich Terns and one Arctic Tern were also logged, representing reasonable reward for a good day's coverage of the sea.

On the Narrows, Curlews were up to 67, but recent Oystercatcher counts reveal something of an exodus of late, with just 45 seen today. Whimbrel passage this autumn has been better than usual, and 13 today was a fairly good count for the time of year. Other waders included an excellent 52 Turnstones, as numbers continue to build. 47 Redshanks was another high count, and 20 Black-tailed Godwits moving south was probably the most notable sighting. Ten Ringed Plovers, seven Dunlins, two Purple Sandpipers and a single Common Sandpiper completed an excellent day for waders, capped by an overnight Golden Plover heard at 03:45.

Sedge Warbler (Acrocephalus schoenobaenus) - One of the birds from the mist nets in the withies this morning that was ringed by NGB Kate Fox 

Eight members of the Next Generation Birders (NGB) arrived on the island today for their week-long trip. After an introductory talk and some lunch, they were taken on a guided walk. The route went from the Obs up to Nant, where a moth trap was checked, then headed west through the NW fields, and south towards Solfach, before returning to the Obs.

NGBs checking the contents of the Nant moth trap (Image - Josie Hewitt)

After the guided walk, the NGBs were treated to a BBQ to give them lots of energy for Storm Petrel ringing up on Pen Cristin. Ten Storm Petrels were ringed, providing a great opportunity for the NGBs to see them up close.

NGBs watching Porpoise off the North End (Image - Josie Hewitt)

Highlights of the day's sightings were two Razorbills, one Mediterranean Gull in Henllwyn and a count of 900 Manx Shearwaters off the West Coast.

Storm Petrel (Hydrobates pelagicus) - Image: Josie Hewitt

NGB Trip 2017

Tomorrow, the island welcomes eight Next Generation Birders (NGB) for their annual week-long trip to Bardsey, where they will experience life at one of the UK's 19 fully functioning and registered Bird Observatories.

For the past 4 years NGBs have been coming to the island, with most of the trip costs paid for by the BTO's Young Bird Obs Volunteer Fund. During the trip, the NGBs will be carrying out a range of tasks to gain an insight into life at an observatory. This will include assisting with census counts, bird ringing and monitoring the Manx Shearwaters.

Long-term monitoring of bird populations and migration is one of the Observatory’s primary aims and so the daily bird counts recorded by the NGBs during their stay will be contributing to this. Bird ringing is also an integral part of the Observatory’s work, and those NGBs with appropriate licenses will be able to assist with the various ringing activities that will be going on throughout the week.

Manx Shearwater (Puffinus puffinus) - Image: Sorrel Lyall

From the 12th to the 19th August the BBFO blog will be managed by two of the NGBs currently staying at the observatory: our autumn intern Elliot Montieth, and volunteer Josie Hewitt, who have both returned to the Obs after falling in love with the island on previous visits.

Storm Petrel (Hydrobates pelagicus) - Image: David Hunter

To see what our NGBs are getting up to throughout the week make sure to follow the hastags #YBOVF and #BardseyNGB on Facebook and Twitter.

NGBs on Bardsey in 2015