• When here in the Outer Hebrides and looking at a bird, have you ever wondered how rare it is? The status of all species can vary enormously from island to island. How rare is Shoveler on Barra, has Stock Dove been seen on Harris, does Dotterel occur on Benbecula in the autumn, and how common is Blue Tit on North Uist? Well, fret no longer! The Status and Distribution of birds here on the Outer Hebrides has been completely updated and summarised for every species and each of the main islands and outliers. Available as an online resource at https://status.outerhebrides-birdreports.org/ or via our shop

    New - now available as an ebook

Local Rarity 24th December 2017

Hawkeye

Eyes and Ears Everywhere
Borve, Berneray
The Snow Goose and *Crane* are still to be found on the machair there

Ness, Isle of Lewis
7 Snow Buntings there today

Ruhba Ardvule, South Uist
A one hour seawatch this morning produced 1 Eider (N), 1 Long-tailed Duck (S), 1 Gannet (N), and 1 Shag (S). Aslo present in the area were Greylag Goose 43, Shelduck 4, Wigeon 75, Teal 34, Tufted Duck 13, Goldeneye 2, Red-breasted Merganser 1, Great Northern Diver 1, Cormorant 36, Bar-tailed Godwit 34, Purple Sandpiper 70, Hooded Crow 2, Raven 8, Meadow Pipit 1, Rock Pipit 4, Twite 55

South Glendale, South Uist
The Brambling is still in a garden there

DRz9NmlW0AAg07j.jpg
Snow Buntings courtesy of Samantha Hawkins
 

YvonneB

OH Bird Recorder
Ringing today and a mixture of new birds and recaptures. The most interesting being a control Greenfinch which i'm assuming was ringed in Barra as it is the same ring string and just a few numbers different to The Barra Sparra.

A Grey Heron was overhead and i heard Whooper Swans but couldn't see them to see how many there were.
 

BrianR

Senior Member
On North Uist In the Rubh' Arnal area this morning there were 52 pale-bellied Brent Geese, single Iceland and Glaucous Gulls, at least one Lapland Bunting and 32 Corn Buntings. Bruce tells me that the Tràigh Mhor, Barra flock of Brent Geese disperses/moves in late December and it is possible we get them at Rubh' Arnal at this time. We need some colour-ringed birds to prove this. At Balemore the leucistic Common Gull was seen again.

_DSC1511.JPG _DSC1522.JPG Iceland Gull

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Buzzard on Craig Hasten
 

Bruce

Senior Member
On Barra today, juvenile Iceland gulls were at Ardveenish and Traigh Mhor. The brent goose flock at the latter site had reduced to 48. 22 snow buntings were again feeding along the strandline by the airport.
 
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