Vismigging at the Nose from sunrise on Sunday [er, that Sunday, in er, October... 😳] didn't give the epic numbers of other sites, mostly due to birds for some strange reason cutting assorted corners [dunno why?!?] instead of properly following the coast. [Won't do, won't do at all]
Though at least I was there at the proper time. Well, almost. Ideally you get there before sunrise, but this is still me we're talking about here...
💤
In 90 mins from Official Sunrise, I had;
Woodpigeon 105+ [5 groups]*
Meadow Pipit 9+
alba Wagtail 3+
Greenfinch 10+
Goldfinch 4+
Siskin 10+
Chaffinch 18+
Linnet 90+
Brambling 1
small passerine sp. [N] 1
Jackdaw 5
The Linnet were in one big flock which then descended on Thatcher Rock and hung around there for some time. The teeny passerine - likely a tit or phyllosc - went over giving a short distinct high 'zi! call, with clear pauses between repitition. There are lots of things than can apparently do that, and without a sonogram [obv.] there's no way I can get anything like an ID. It's not something I've heard before, though. [Though given the way many spp. vary their calls, that's not saying much]
Much more recently - as in this very last Sunday - I was again vismigging at the Nose and in ~60 mins, ~56,000 Woodpigeon came from low down over the land, coalesced into thousand-scale megaflocks, and went off/out to the SE.... 😮😲😍😁 The first of these had a knot of 10 Stock Dove with them, but as it became clear just how many birds were passing, I had no real chance to closely examine the rest for anything.!!
Look over at my
BlueSky for a few pics.*
A movement co-incided with frisky NE winds, and these I think pushed the 'pigs - which normally pass by inland in smaller groups and so avoid giving my poor Patch a spectacle - into using the peninsula as a gathering and jumping-off point.
Also noted passing were 15+ Goldfinch, 19+ Chaffinch, 2+ Siskin, 1+ Meadow Pipit. 12 Brent Geese flew South and later 3 Red-breasted Merganser flew North [those seen from Meadfoot while trying {and failing} to relocate a 'smaller, paler duck sp.' which had passed the Nose with Common Scoter]
Of note, all those +'s knocking around are due to minimum counts; from passage where either birds were unable to be counted or were heard only [then recorded as 1+ unless calls heard to overlap].
I have more to report, including the briefest of BlackReds and an actual November Garganey [though still no dice on Slavonian Grebe....], but that shall have to wait for whenever I get to this again.
[Oh dear.]
Be Seeing You...
[[* Just compare those two figures. I was quite happy with the first one, it's what I'd expect from the Nose; a few flocks in the low-mid double figures, getting over the hundred mark. Then That Sunday happened... Woooooooooh.]]
