However today there was much more diversity with a strengthened SE wind. I was very pleased to add another 21 Pomarine Skuas to my season tally, though an incoming Osprey and two immaculate summer-plumaged Black-necked Grebes offshore provided the other highlights. The potential bird of the morning was a frustratingly distant 'Marsh Tern' that without going into too much detail, had many features resembling that of a Whiskered Tern (that was flying alongside a Common Tern) and was first considered to be a Black Tern.
Still, a very enjoyable four days of seawatching notching my Pom tally up to 169 for the spring, with hopefully a couple more opportunities in the afternoons and evenings next week.
Totals for today between 05.00-14.00 are:
Pomarine Skua - 21
Arctic Skua - 4 (3 l/p)
Great Skua - 1
Tufted Duck - 3
Red-breasted Merganser - 2
Shoveler - 2
Common Scoter - 104
Sandwich Tern - 25
Commic Tern - 289
Little Tern - 7
Arctic Tern - 2
Black-necked Grebe - 2 offshore
Gannet - 62
Sanderling - 22
Dunlin - 1
Whimbrel - 25
Grey Plover - 1
Bar-tailed Godwit - 21
Black-throated Diver - 1W
Diver sp. - 2
Brent Geese - 22
Osprey - 1 in off
Pom Parties/times
1 at 06.35
6 at 06.58
2 at 07.51
6 at 09.02
2 at 09.31
3 at 11.23
1 around 13.00
Highlights for 7/5/16 between 05.00 - 16.00 are:
Roseate Tern - 1 10.36 performed for a few minutes before flying out to sea
Arctic Skua - 10 (4 l/p)
Mediterranean Gull - 27
Manx Shearwater - 1
another Pomarine Skua, not that I'm complaining
Black-necked Grebes off Splash Point
a well earned Cider
a superb sky to start the morning on the 7th
