Been chipping away so far this year and have so far amassed a steady 68 species. The two highlights to date have been two (count 'em!) velvet scoter and three (count 'em again!) purple sandpiper. T'was only the 2nd time I've scored velvet for the patch, last time being one bird back in 2013. On both occasions the birds have been approx. 3km off patch and I've had to do some careful scanning on a calm day to get them.
I first ticked purple sandpiper at the same sort of ridiculous range,whilst standing on the picnic table on the Magic Patio back in 2012. However, I since discovered that they do occur at this end of the beach, actually properly on patch, although I haven't had them here since 2018. T'was good to bang them in again, and I must remember to check those particular rocks again next winter - they are probably getable every year with a bit of effort. Great to still be learning about the birds on the patch after 19 years!
