Monday 25th March

Here on Islay, the electric board boys are winning the battle, with praise coming from all around. It is still rather cool, think the phone lines will take longer to restore as they do not appear to have the same number of back up crews...The Bolton birders had seen 24 Oystercatcher, 12 Twite and 6 Redwing in a field over at Ardtalla. In Ardtalla Bay, they had 8 Red breasted Merganser, 2 Mute Swan, 4 Eider, 4 Shelduck and 6 Turnstone. On Loch Indaal, just out of Bowmore, 8 Pale bellied Brent Geese and a female Goldeneye were present. Coming home, they counted 70 Teal at Carnain with 2 Mute Swan in the pools there. Along the flats at Gruinart, a male Stonechat was seen, and at Ballinaby the Golden Plover, Ringed Plover and Lapwing were still there from yesterday, but today 6 Whoopers were also there along with 22 Curlew. Betweeen Saligo and Coull, a Barn Owl was out early at 6.15pm! Finally at Coull roadend, they counted 46 Curlew. Today Mick saw a Dipper at the mouth of Glen Logan on the Sound of Islay. Wally and Jude had a Greenshank and their first Barwit (this visit) over past Bun an Uillt. They also reported that another visitor saw a White tailed Sea Eagle over close to Port Ellen. James had a juv. WTSE over at Gruinart yesterday and later on a Peregrine Falcon over his house. Early this evening James counted 10 Whoopers over at the ponds on the flats at Gruinart. I saw 2 Whoopers fly in from the sea heading towards Rockside around midday.