SHETLAND – DAY ELEVEN!

I have now added all iPhone pictures SLR pictures and YouTube videos up to the 23rd October on all my Shetland posts. Pictures take so long to sort through! Will make a start on the 24th tomorrow!

The best way to describe the weather in Shetland is volatile! Sun one minute, rain the next, rainbow, black skies, sun, blue skies, rain, rainbow and so on! That is how today was, but it also meant it was considerably better weather to go out in than yesterday!

Birded south today and started at the Virkie Pool – it was high tide so not the best time, but saw 2 Knot, 4 Black-tailed Godwits, several Turnstones and Ringed Plovers. At West Voe Beach which is stunning, I watched Turnstones feeding along the shore. At Grutness I saw Teal and Mallards in the small pool just opposite the pier and a Wren amongst the boulders. Oppositie the quarry I counted 113 Greylag Geese feeding with 40 Redshanks near the Sumburgh Farm.

At Sumburgh Head I only saw a Starling in the largest quarry, but in the smaller one I had far more birds including 6 blackbirds, 3 Redwings, 1 Robin, 1 Wren and the best surprise was a Common Redpoll that I flushed from the ground. At the lighthouse I managed to phone-scope video a Purple Sandpiper on the rocks below and saw Black Guillemots on the sea, Fulmars, an Eider, Cormorants, Hooded Crows, Starlings, Blackbirds and Ravens. There are still fairly good numbers of Redwings around too. Sat in my car and had lunch in the RSPB car parking spots in the midst of another downpour. Took pictures of Fair Isle as I left here. At the Sumburgh Hotel I saw Blackbirds, Redwings and Robins.

At Toab I took another picture of Fair Isle in beautiful light. The best and most exciting birding today was watching lots of Redwings, a few Blackbirds, Starlings and Robins feeding amongst sheep in a sugar beet field – I wonder what else was lurking in there?! At Exnaboe on a flooded muddy ploughed strip, there were 2 Snipe, 1 Lapwing and a Blackbird feeding.

Back at the Virkie Pool it was now low tide and there were big numbers of waders there, including lots of Redshanks, Black-tailed Godwits, Curlews, Turnstones, Sanderlings and Ringed Plovers. It was seriously cold now, so headed back to Levenwick. Had a quick look round the gardens and fields by Levenwick beach – still good numbers of Redwings, Song Thrushes and Blackbirds in the fields below the cemetery.

News arrived too late in the day for me at 17.24 of an Eastern Stonechat at Sandwick – hopefully will see this tomorrow. Spent the evening watching Strictly and downloading photos.