Sunday 5th April

What a glorious day it has been today, once the early morning mist had rolled away. I even got the jersey off and worked away out in the garden, making inroads with planting some trees and shrubs and putting guards around them as I went along so the rabbits and hares do not think that I am planting the said plants for their benefit!!! This afternoon, 10 Whooper Swans flew over and in a Northerly direction, no sign of them resting on Loch Gorm so I wonder if they have just kept on flying with the weather holding good...Back on Friday, James had seen his first Wheatear of the year, up at Ardnave. Peter Gill on Friday had gone up the East side of Loch Gruinart where he had a count of 30 Sanderling, a Greenshank and 2 Chough were present too. Over the flats he had a count of over 500 Golden Plover, and he saw 2 Wheatears. Yesterday, he heard a Greater spotted Woodpecker drumming away in Bridgend Woods. 2 Grey Wagtails and a Dipper were present along at The Woollen Mill. On the road up to Scarrabus, close to a "pheasant feeder" there were 20 Yellowhammers. Finally over at Bruichladdich, Peter saw 5 Purple Sandpipers.