• 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

Hawkeye

Eyes and Ears Everywhere
Outer Hebrides / Western Isles bird sightings for today, 25th March 2018. Updated throughout the day.

Stornoway, Isle of Lewis
3 juvenile Iceland Gulls and 12 Glaucous Gulls were in the harbour area today.

Loch Branahuie, Isle of Lewis
A juvenile Iceland Gull there today

Borve, Berneray
The Snow Goose is still to be found on the machair and the *Common Crane* was nearby at the North end of Loch Bhrusda along with 1600 Barnacle Geese. At the east beach there were 57 Purple Sandpipers, 385 Sanderling and 11 Long-tailed Ducks offshore.

South Glendale, South Uist
The male Brambling is still to be found in a garden there

Eoligarry, Barra
A *White-billed Diver* was seen offshore this morning (see Bruce's post below). A drumming Snipe was heard at Bolnabodach.

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White-billed Diver, courtesy of Ian Ricketts
 

Bruce

Senior Member
Good to see what is presumably the returning white-billed diver on Barra today. It's back a day earlier than in 2017 and was visible distantly off Eoligarry jetty and very, very distantly from Ardmhor ferry terminal (where the id was clinched from after the glare on the sea became too bad from Eoligarry). If last year is anything to go by, high tide or immediately after is the best time to see it. Hopefully it'll stay til early May as it did last year. Aside from the diver, a juvenile Iceland gull was at Ardveenish and it or another was at Traigh Mhor later. 5 whooper swans were on Loch and Duin and 23 brent geese were at Traigh Mhor.

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