Briefly on top

Its been a while since we last updated our score. The return of summer migrants has boosted our total a bit, including garden warbler in the garden and an early swift. Other news includes the now regular occurrence of house sparrow on the patch. This species is barely annual but it appears to be making a small come back, foraging beside its arboreal cousin. We await being knocked off the top spot by Bushvelt, and whatever he has found of late...

Big Royzah's Fully Fat

Not to outdone by Senor Bushveld, Big Roy was delighted to report that it has only taken him 20 whole years (count 'em) to actually manage to see a bluetroat on the Don - verification provided below....

A male bluetroat yesterday

Not that he bothered to focus the image before taking it, nor could he be arsed downloading it off the camera but hey, you get the general idea.

I myself failed to see any bluetroats, but did manage a swift and an amazeballs flyover grey plover, which was only my 5th evah at Galley or something equally amazin....

Easterlies...

Just managed to get the seven patch ticks yesterday.

A couple of bluetroats were a full patch tick and a nice honey buzzard was a second for the patch.  The others were spot fly, redstart, common sand, whimbrel, black-wit.  Having added a few other odds and sods during the last week or so, my total of 91 species and 85.85% puts me comfortably in poll position.

Happy days.

Bushveld.

Catching up

Not to be outdone by those in the Norf-east of Scotland who are currently enjoying cripplers on patch, I too have been banging them in at Galley, its just they've all been gank. Still, collared dove was one I missed last year, whilst bankers like spotted flycatcher, gropper, and sarnie tern have also all been bagged.

87 species or 65.58% - gettin there....