Bloody Midges...

Well I'm still here (no thanks to AOL), and the proud owner of a new email address too!

Bird wise, the highlights lately have been Merlin, Common Tern and a small flock of Siskins. Nothing too earth shattering I know, but with the dreaded midge plague we are experiencing just now, being in the 'field' is quite a pain at times!

Mammal wise, the best has been a few Otters and a bull Killer Whale. The pic of the Killer Whale is distant and fuzzy, but I think you can get the idea... It was feeding in the Yell Sound, and many thanks to Brydon for the tip off.....again! (I've got to get a job on the ferry!)

Common Tern fishing off Busta

(I did tell you the Orca pic was crap!)

Crossbills and Orcas!

A trip to Brae for building materials provided a good mornings entertainment!


Now anyone who knows me well, will know of my love of Crossbills. So finding 5 birds feeding in the plantation at Sullom, provided more than enough interest to keep me busy for a hour or so (photos & recordings). Then on the way back home, the ferry journey was made far more enjoyable than normal by the sighting of 4 Orcas. To my eyes they looked to be 1 Bull, 2 Cows and a Calf.

Most of the Crossbill recordings proved to be 'Glip' or '4E' depending what classification you want to use!

With one of what looks like the 'Parakeet' or '1B' variety showing up in the sonogram. (If this is the case, then it's only the third record for Shetland, with the other two being recorded by myself on Unst last year! ) any comments on these recordings are most welcome!

And can anyone guess what this is meant to be?

answers;

a, Shed. or b, Digger.

More Orcas...

Brydon strikes again with more Orca sightings, this time off Ulsta, Yell. (I'm going to have to get a job on the ferries!) So off I set again, but this time the sighting I had was brief, but a bit closer than yesterday, so a few long range 'dodgy' shots were obtained of what was at least 3 individuals. Not the best I agree, but you can tell what they are this time! They seemed to move quickly up the Yell Sound, and I lost them about a mile North of the initial sighting, as they headed back out to the deeper water. Some of the Orcas up here in Shetland, seem to feed close to shore, but these beauties always seem to be feeding far out, and not great for watching.

Orcas & Seabirds

Thanks to a text from Brydon this morning at 08:30, I spent an enjoyable two and a half hours watching Orcas in the Yell Sound. Though mostly distant, they did provide decent scope views, but alas too far for the cameras (I'll not embarrass myself here by posting the pics I took as they were truly awful!)... The pod was made up of at least 4 individuals, with one bull and what looked like 2 cows and a fair sized calf. I even tried to get ahead of the traveling pod and position myself on a headland, but to no avail... Oh well maybe next time. But a great experience all the same, and it saved me from the house work too ;)

A visit to my local seabird city was done this afternoon, and a chance to record the barrage of sound echoing round the cliffs was too tempting, even in the Strong breeze! The birds breeding on the cliffs include; Puffin, Razorbill, guillemot, Shag, Fulmar, Kittiwake and Twite... and I've captured quite a few in the recording below... (just press play and shut your eyes, you could almost be there!)

Whole lotta bull...

Well, the 'bull' in question refers to a male Killer Whale, and it was putting on a show around the South of Yell for most of the day on Tuesday, along with what looked like his 'family'! (4 Orca's in total). The following crappy pics were taken from the ferry on my way to work. A massive thanks to the ferry crew who decided to take us on an impromptu trip up the Yell sound to get a look at these beautiful animals. This turned the normal 15 minute ferry journey, into a 35 minute journey, but I didn't hear anyone complain!

The light and distance were n0t the best for taking pic's, but you can just about make out what they are!