Saturday 12 October 2013

Can't see the trees for the wood!

Invasion of the Woodpeckers (Graeme Duncan)

Stunners on wood (Graeme Duncan)

Our third Little Bunting of the autumn (Ciaran Hatsell)

Little but mighty (Ciaran Hatsell)

Predator on the rocks; a resident Kestrel (Ciaran Hatsell)

Autumn arrival; Twite (Ciaran Hatsell)

Sea sickness tablets at the ready; no boats today (Ciaran Hatsell)
Saturday 12th October comments: Welcome to the Farne Islands, one of the most important woodlands in the north, which boasts important numbers of Great-spotted Woodpecker, Wood Pigeon and Goldcrest (Please note we are still an important seabird reserve and don’t have any trees!).

It’s been another crazy day with plenty happening including eight (yes EIGHT) Great Spotted Woodpeckers. These birds are migrating from Scandinavia to winter in the UK and we are now cashing in, with three yesterday increasing to eight today; six on Brownsman and singles on Staple and Inner Farne. Despite being a relatively common bird on the wooded mainland, a Great Spotted Woodpecker is very much a scarcity on the treeless Farnes, and a very special bird to drop in….let alone eight of them!

Other highlights included our third Little Bunting of the autumn, the Pallas’s Warbler for a second day, two Long-eared Owls alongside a Short-eared Owl and three Mealy Redpolls. This was only the tip of the iceberg as the true story of migration on the Farnes today was even more impressive if you chuck in everything else from 30 Goldcrests to twenty Robins. It's all go and I haven't even started on the Seals…

1 comment:

Ipin said...

Send me that shot looking towards inner farne with the turbines in it to my work email ta.