Happy New Year to all the readers of the blog.
The first day of 2026 was cool, with northerly buffeting winds and sleety rain showers.
However, some of us got out for some New Year's birding. I started things off with a couple of White-tailed Eagles sat out as usual on the flats of Loch Indaal at Bridgend. Andy Clements came by a little later and found three in the same place. We drove on to Bowmore where we found 5 Brent Geese, Andy Webb finding 20 there shortly after (photo below)! We then went on to The Oa and said hello to Ed Burrell at Cornabus who, shortly after we left, saw another White-tailed Eagle chasing Woodcock over his patch. At the RSPB The Oa car park it was too windy and wet to think about doing the walk out to the American Monument, so we had a coffee, lunch and watched the 25+ Twite at the feeders (my friend, Ken Chapman, with me from Sandwich in the SE of England mentioned that this species now requires a rarity description when see in Kent!). Andy Webb joined us here and managed to see a Golden Eagle on his way back to Port Ellen that we managed to miss! Andy then popped up to Ballygrant loch to "year tick" the three Ring-necked Ducks there.
