Sunday 3rd December

Some more sightings for you all. Back on Friday, John Nadin had a "great day" spotting rare geese. Early morning, he had 2 Cackling geese on the North shore of Loch Indaal as well as 30 Pale bellied Brents and 22 Pintail. He then saw another 2 different Cackling geese amongst the Barnies at Eorrabus. He went up to Kinnabus after that and met in with David Wood and they saw a Todd's Canada Goose feeding with the Barnies there. John has written a paper on the Canada geese along with Jimmy Steele which is in the September edition of the Scottish Birds.

Distilery Dave had 2 Goldcrests as he walked down to the North hide at Gruinart this morning, he also had a small number of Redwing out in the field s he approached the hide itself. Down on Machir Bay, he had seen an Otter, some Ringed Plover and also some Curlew. Down on the tide line at Bruichladdich, Dave spotted a few Purple Sandpipers, some Dunlin and a few Turnstone there as well. James had a fly over his house at Gruinart of a Golden Eagle early afternoon, and all that I can offer is a fly over of a helicopter mid afternoon!!! The moon outside, at present, is not that spectacular this evening with misty cloud which does not lead to great views of it..
Just hear this evening, that our good friend Dot Street was over on the island with the group from Ribble Bird Tours... Dot very generously gives us a help on the "Islay stand", down at Rutland at the Bird Fair...