Ellen's Leftovers

Back to usual service, with a post over a week after the event. This was written over many days, as you may be able to tell...
[[I'd say 'getting on with it', but that won't apply for quite a way down, I'm afraid...]]


With Ellen peskily turning up midweek, I was once again vexed of a good seawatch. Fortunately, she felt like hanging around for a while throwing fronts about the place.

So it was that I was able to do another straight from work routine* [in the style of the classic Day Of The Sooties, way back when] on the Friday. Of course, this was afternoon seawatching, but the wind was most definitely blowing, squally showers were passing, and it was all very 'gwarra minus the numbers for a while.. Really!

:D

But I get ahead of myself.

So, The Nose. Nobody else there [birding, anyway; assorted deranged fishers, attempted swimmers-with-seals-ers [reallly.....] and would-be wave-watchers, of course..].

At least it's a nice pose.

Spot the Balearic 1

Spot the Balearic 2

[It's an all-dark one, if that helps?]

Ahem...

Vintage conditions..?!?

And yet, note greyness in clouds and roughness in sea..

When a shower didn't miss

"Feed me feed me feed me feed me"

Only the gulls came even vaguely close enough for photos, really.. [Just look at that Balearic, FFS]

Half decent photo [nm the gull]

Hmm...

Yup, itsa gull

Shock terrestrial Kittiwake!

[compare size with GBB]

Another gull

Let's be educational... [Groan]

Shearing with Gannet 1;

show underside to wind and let it lift you.

This is towering.

Shearing with Gannet 2;

tip over into the wind and turn altitude into airspeed

Shearing with Gannet 3;

staying low to the sea to avoid worst of the wind,

use gained airspeed to glide in desired direction.

When impetus runs out, repeat step 1.
Depending on what you are, and how hard the wind is blowing, more or less flapping may be needed to pull this off. Most gulls need flapping in all stages, albatrosses none!
Likewise, towering extent and style [from a low gentle bank to way up and 90°+ to the sea!] ranges from the Big Shear 'skater going down a halfpipe' to the Pterodroma 'marble in hamster ball'!

Small wasp

At least there's one thing in focus...

Lady's Bedstraw

Ok, two things.


So, enough 'pretty' pictures, on with spherically-stored woven thread numbers.

Things started far better than the sunshine [ok, yes, sun in gaps in the clouds, but still] implied, with first bird in the scope being a Balearic! Not a bad opener. Things then got a bit silly, as the good birds kept coming and made me wonder a) what the bleep had I missed in the morning?!? and b) what else might be out there and could I last until dark??

As it happened, it wasn't quite like that either way. Lots of spp., including plenty of good ones, but no numbers. Odd? Well, time and date relating to weather; plenty brought up into the area, but only the stragglers left to pass.

What can I say? It's been an odd year all-in [and I don't mean that dratted virus, either].

So it was that I felt like past times at Porthgwarra; sitting in a right hoolie but with waterproofs not needed as the big showers missed, while a fairly steady set of good birds trolled by. Main difference being the lack of vast streams of other birds; down there you'd get rivers of Gannets and Manxies, plus assorted gulls and so on in the thousands an hour on a good day, with the funky stuff in amongst them.
[Try doing proper timed counts and a) not get distracted when you hit a Cory's at minute 7!! and b) actually get them all when there's 3 to 8 streams at ranges from right under your feet to a couple of miles out...].

Imagine 'gwarra with the flood gates shut to a trickle and you're on the money. Also, you're much lower down, so birds can hide in troughs, but you've got far more depth of field in a scope view.

As the weather 'improved' - I got rained on! - the good birds dried up, and then so did the nice ones. After a quiet hour, I considered stopping at 4 or so, but then a little flurry of quality made me give it another hour.. Zip. What can you do?


1315-1715
Gannet 204
Kittiwake 109 [8 juv]
Fulmar 15
Manx 54
Balearic 10 [all in first hour]
Sarnie 5
Med Gull 1 [adult]
LBB 17
Arctic Skua 2
Pomarine Skua 1 [1443, dark, chasing Kittiwake]
Bonxie 1 [1400, chasing Gannet]
Long-tail 1 [1319+, battling the wind and doing quite well for the sp.!]
Great Shearwater 1 [1326]
Cory's Shearwater 1 [1326, following the Great; nice comparison view and brought on the 'Gwarra thing :) ]
Large Shearwater sp. [1423, probably Great]
Shearwater sp. [1317, probably Sooty]
Wader sp. [1552]

Cetaceans;
Common Dolphins 1+, 1 sighting
Harbour Porpoise 1-4+, 4 sightings

A 4 skua probably 5 shearwater watch is not bad going at all, especially for an afternoon well after the main action.
[I cannot help but think about Francis this last week... And once the teeth stop gnashing, wonder what could have come to the SWBCM??]

Right.


Be Seeing You...


[[You can stop laughing now]]







[[*It should be noted that I never leave valuables in my li'l car. Except at work, as the car park is behind assorted protections such as razor wire, cameras, and an actual security patrol {they really patrol, 24/7... It's shocking, I tell you}. ]]