The fog had not shifted this morning and though the winds were now from the opposite direction now coming from the North, it was so still it was hard to tell. On Longis beach there were 4 Shelduck, 6 Oystercatcher, 32 Dunlin 4 Ringed Plover 1 Curlew and 8 Whimbrel, the latter species could be seen on Longis Common at high tide.
Adult Female Firecrest – Longis Nature Reserve, the 96th ringed by the ABO this Spring
From the records we have of the birds of Alderney, this mornings Dunlin flock is one of the largest ever seen here, but I suspect as with much of Alderneys bird life, the species is likely under recorded.
Following our influx of waders this morning, this evening Paul and Catherine Veron had a male Siskin on the sewage works. At the north end of Longis beach they also had 2 Grey Plovers, 1 Golden Plover and 10 Ringed Plovers, 35+ Dunlin and 5 Sanderling. As the waders grouped together ahead of the rising tide a single group remained on the beach below the Obs at 20:20hrs consisting of 57 birds :9 Sanderling , 45 Dunlin and 3 Ringed Plovers. Finally, Mark Atkinson reports seeing a Turtle Dove at giffoine this morning.
Ringing started out slow but picked up and included 1 Firecrest, 1 Spotted Flycatcher, 5 Chiffchaff, 5 Whitethroat, 3 Blackcap, 1 Willow Warbler, 1 Reed Warbler 4 Sedge Warbler and a Chaffinch. A total of 24 new ringed birds / 11 species processed today.
My last mist net extraction of the day early PM was this magnificent Emperor moth
Male Emperor Moth – Longis Nature reserve