September still just around the corner...

 Yes indeedy, before we can even get to September, there's been some more good stuff turning up at Galley. First off, Old Spoons banged into a hippo briefly down Dirk on Thursday, but we weren't able to get a decent look at it till Friday, at which point it was ID'd as a melodious warbler

A melodious warbler, on Friday

And then this morning, while still half asleep, I was gawking at the lake, when I noticed a nice juvenile black tern flying about - only my 3rd evah on patch, and my first since October 2013!

A black tern, er, today

So there we have it. A check of the totaliser and prediction win-dicator for the rest of the year shows me needing just 21 more species to break the by now almost mythical 150 species barrier - I'd best get back out there!

September just round the corner!

 Yes indeedy - the autumn fun is just about to start! Seawatching thus far has been a pretty lame affair, with only a handful of the larger shears and little else of note, including decent winds! However, 11 (count 'em!) wigeon on the lake this morning, and an unprecedented five coot was indicative of some movement, plus small waders have been belting over in small numbers for the last couple of days - things is picking up at last!

Evening update: Fast forward to late afternoon when a very heavy spell of rain seemed to land some migs on Galley. I found two pied flycatchers and a nice imm male redstart, while old spoons found another redstart and a tree pipit, which I was able to validate. Which was nice! Hopefully get a few more bits tomorrow...

Hoopoe Hoax

 Feels like a race for second place this year (and it is not going to compete for Old Snowy) but a Hoopoe on patch this morning was very welcome. Crap phone pic attached (typical to be the day to forget the camera). 

Spring is done and dusted

 Highlight of the year so far turned up in the carpark on the morning of 3 June in a fine showy and very vocal marsh warbler.  A first for the patch which stayed for a week and was enjoyed by many.

Aside from that a quietish month with a quail arriving on the 15th, a second for the patch.

Totals are crawling along with a modest total of 82 species: 66.31%.  There's absolutely no way of catching the Procs so could just give up and stay at home.

June is the old June

The quiet days have started but still they fall. Today we had our first grey partridge for 12 years. And there were two of dem. Other highlights since that moorhen include breeding sedge warblers and a fine on patch cuckoo. I might add some photos at some point but getting the scores up is the important bit. Anyway, we is over 100% already. 109.3% to be precise and 86 species.

June is not the new July

 Yes indeedy - with the wind in the south-west, I figured I'd chance a look at the sea this am. Gave it 2.5 hrs but it was a bit slow (it aint July yet!) although did produce a nice, close-in great shearwater and three (count 'em) arctic terns for the year. An all-white looking fulmar mid-distance fairly got the pulse racing till I twigged what it was.

All to play for then! The seawatching starts here!

Full-on, fun-packed, full fat

 Yes indeedy, the last few days of spring have been pretty full-on and fun-packed with a whopping two (count 'em) full fat patch ticks in three days! Absolute scenes! Let's catch up....

Thursday was pretty wet. Old spoons was on his way back from his favourite coffee place and decided to have a quick squizz for scoter off Cloghna Head (just off patch). Whilst scanning, he picked up a nightjar coming in off the sea. He rang me with the good news. I was, naturally, delighted for him and immediately invited him over for a cup of tea so that he could tell me all about it.

Eventually he left, after all the grisly details had been divulged and he left to drive home. Two minutes later he rang me again....

"Hobby! Might be coming your way"

"Wonderful", I replied. Or words to that effect. I rushed to the Majik Patio (tm) but to no avail. Flips sake - was I really going to miss another hobby on patch? On top of being gripped by the nightjar?

I left the gaff hurriedly, and headed for Shite Lane, catching up with Old Spoons who told me all about the hobby, in full grisly detail. Awesome. But just then, I noticed a falcon fly into view, as we headed down Marsh Lane. Was that it? It flew behind a house. We ran to the other side of the house. It swooped behind a farm shed....

There followed several slightly frustrating minutes of this japery before it finally did the decent thing and gave some proper views. At long last, my most-wanted patch bogey had fallen! Happy days!

A hobby, yesterday

After returning home for a light salad and a lie-down, I headed out again late pm when the rain had finally gone off. And bumped into two spotted flycatchers, common sandpaper, sanderling and two ringed plovers. All regular enough but a bonus to bang 'em in all at once.

common sandpaper, yesterday

A turtle dove, yesterday

A spotted flycatcher, yesterday

Friday was quieter, but I refound the turtle dove from last weekend in exactly the same bush, which was nice. And then yesterday there were two whinchats in the weedy field at Shite Lane, and I twitched a pied flycatcher in Dirk. Loafing at home in the sunshine mid-pm when I suddenly noticed two geese coming in high over the lake, heading west. All geese are pretty mega on Galley, so after very nearly botching the ID by having a scope-fail, I was delighted to clinch 'em as greylag geese, another long-awaited patch gank gold moment! No shots I'm afraid but you can't have everything! And I'm up into second in the standings too! Hello below me!

A whinchat, yesterday

Two greylag geese, yesterday