Predictable trickle of resident gank -- with special guests

And so January trundles merrily on. Luckily, Squince is providing a steady trickle of resident gank to keep the scoreboard ticking over.

Things started well on New Year's Day, when the lone whopper that had been lingering most of last year (before disappearing just before Christmas), returned with a friend. The coot stayed into the new year too, as did the female shoveler. Score!

Always lovely to see a cracking pair of whoppers on patch!

Other than that it's been the usual suspects all the way... with a couple of notable exceptions.

First up, a fine little auk on Blind Harbour on the 10 January -- only my second ever, and quite the find on patch. Picked it up in flight while scanning for divers... first thought was puffin, but it looked awfully small and dumpy. It splashed down onto the water and good views through the scope clinched the ID. Majik!

Alas my rudimentary dodgyscoping skills weren't up to relocating the bird on the phone screen when attached, so no shots. By the time I'd dismantled the dodgyscoping contraption for another look the bird had disappeared. Anyway, it defo was one... so anyone out there of the mindset "if you don't have shots, you didn't see it" can FRO!

The other exception was a great crested grebe on the sea just off Trá an Oileáin yesterday (while looking for coal tits). A full-fat patch tick -- which is hardly exceptional given this is only my second year doing Squince -- but its also the first one I've seen off this stretch of coastline in the 20+ years I've been here. Happy daze.

All of which pushes me to 62.10%, leapfrogging Shakey to take the top spot... for now.

Game on!

All wet... but all right too!

Out and about again today for a while on the bike -- no sign of dipper or kingfisher, but did rack up some more "inland gank" as Seppy likes to call it. I got caught in a deluge half way around patch -- luckily I'd had the foresight to put the waterproofs on, but still not much fun riding through the rain, peering through raindrops on the bins.

That's Irish birding in January for you!

When I finally arrived at the lake the juv mute swan and a little grebe I ended last year with were still there -- RESULT. End of day two and I'm on 47.43% -- with a fair few "sitters" still to come.

Going to run out of options soon though, so good to get a healthy early lead in.