January 10, 2006
Welcome to 2006
It's all been a little quiet on the birding front up here for the past few weeks. Not even a hint of the white-winged gull influx of last winter either to sustain me. Still, undaunted I set out on January 1st to try and smash the island New Year's Day record; to be fair, there's no such thing that I'm aware of, and on the showing of the other day, that's no great surprise...
Anyway, it wasn't as bad as I make out. In fact, a really fine day to be out and about birding, sunny and still after a fairly rough preceeding 24 hours of blustery south-easterlies and heavy rain. Started off with the usual suspects around the croft, Blackbird, Herring Gull, House Sprog and Starling.
Things improved markedly a short way down the road, with 6 Snow Buntings on and around the croft above the plantation. Later they moved to the field outside my conservatory window. Whooper Swan fell easily, and then a prolonged session with the scope looking out to sea turned up the goods - single Little Auk and Red-breasted Merganser, and small numbers of Gannet, Great Northern Diver, Eider and Long-tailed Ducks. Meanwhile keeping an ear open for flyover waders produced Golden Plover and a pair of Oystercatchers.
Back home to have breakfast, and then out again with E on board for a spin around the island - some more waders, Ringed Plover, Purple Sandpiper and Dunlin - and then the first of 4 Greylags. The Long-tailed Duck count went up sharply with a flock of 33 near B's house, but try as I might I couldn't find anything scarce or rare in his garden - the ultimate indignity for his being away from the island.
The massive Eider flock just outside the harbour was equally unproductive. In my mind's eye I could just picture a fine drake King Eider bobbing amongst them... but no such luck. Still, the days only Guillemot was another species, and then off to check the ducks at the SW end of the island. All the usual suspects (Teal, Wigeon, Tufted, Goldeneye), and just as I muttered to myself "a Scaup would be nice"... a female Scaup swam into the field of view. Shame that doesn't work every time.
Couldn't go yomping across the moor for Red Grouse with E, so forgo those and searching for Twite, but a long walk with P & E down the golf course yielded some more seabirds, Rock Pipit, and finally a pair of Merlins pratting about overhead back at home. Final score 45 species - a total I reckon I'll struggle to better in future, given this is the first new year's day in 3 years that one would even contemplate stepping outside.
What else to tell? Until someone finds a nice Spectacled Eider in one of the voes, probably not much!
Follow the Weather Starling for a forecast, or see Shetland live on the NAFC webcam… 
Today's North Atlantic chart
An Icelandic Birding Diary (Iceland, funnily enough)
Nature in Shetland website - all the up-to-date bird, insect, cetacean etc news for Shetland, plus photos... indispensable.
>
>
Come back soon!