• 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

Recent ringing and colour-ringed sightings - January to May 2021

YvonneB

OH Bird Recorder
The two Greenland White-fronts with neck collars that I saw yesterday 1st April 2021:-

Both birds had previously been seen associating with each other (I couldn’t get the full letters/number of one of the birds but 2 out of three got a result). Amazingly they had both been caught and ringed in Iceland on the same day in Autumn 2017.

Bird 1 was caught Hvanneyri, West Iceland, autumn 2017, adult male and was present on the Wexford Slobs during winter 2017/18 and 2019/20, then 3rd November 2020 at Bridgend, ISLAY (in a flock of 90 birds), then my sighting, 31st March 2021 Askernish, SOUTH UIST (in a flock of 106 birds), associating closely with Bird 2

Bird 2 was caught Hvanneyri, West Iceland, autumn 2017, 1CY female present Wexford Slobs winter 2017/18 and 2019/20, then 3rd November 2020 at Bridgend, ISLAY (in a flock of 90 birds), then my sighting, 31st March 2021 Askernish, SOUTH UIST (in a flock of 106 birds), associating closely with Bird 1
 

YvonneB

OH Bird Recorder
Whooper Swan, Loch Bee, South Uist, 2nd March 2021

This bird was ringed as a female cygnet on 31st July 2016 in Skagafjordur, Iceland, this is the first sighting since ringing (thanks to WWT for the info).

IN8A4078_CR_Whooper.jpg
 

YvonneB

OH Bird Recorder
Greylag Goose, Loch Branahuie, Lewis, 2nd April 2021

Very quick results from the enquiry about this bird that was reported today. Originally ringed at Dunrobin, Gospie as a 2CY male (age code 5) by Highland Ringing Group in January 2011. The bird has been sighted several times since and was recently overwintering in West Lothian.

Dunrobin, GolspieNC840108/01/2011v5male
Hestwall, Holm, OrkneyHY470215/02/2011vv6male
Crya, Orphir, OrkneyHY330515/11/2012vv6male
nr.Linlithgow, West LothianNT017807/11/2017vv6male
Newbigging Farm, Broxburn, West LothianNT067311/03/2021vv6male
Loch Branahuie, LewisNB473202/04/2021vv6male
 

YvonneB

OH Bird Recorder
Goldfinch, ringing recovery, Askernish, 4th March 2021

Originally ringed in Kent, it had travelled 818km to reach South Uist, but it had taken its time having originally been ringed on 6th November 2016, 1,578 days previously. It had only been seen on one other occasion before appearing here and that was at the same location in Kent a month after being ringed, 4th December 2016.

GOLDF_RingingRecovery.JPG
 

MisterT

Always Birding
The colour ringed Oystercatcher seen on 02-April-2021 at Askernish was originally ring in Dublin Bay and was the first report of the bird since then

Oyc 966).JPG


IN8A4184 colour ringed oyc.jpg IN8A4185 colour ringed oyc.jpg IN8A4186.jpg colour ringed oyc.jpg
 

Hawkeye

Eyes and Ears Everywhere
Black-tailed Godwit

A Black-tailed Godwit seen at Smerclete would appear to have avoided being seen for much of its life with 4 only since 2016

Blackwit smerclete.JPG
 

MisterT

Always Birding
A Black-tailed Godwit, seen on Daliburgh machair on 26th April 2014 was originally ringed on 12th July 2012 in Skagafjarðarsýsla,Fljót,Stóra Holt, Iceland, and subsequently seen 193 times but never in Iceland or away from its preferred wintering areas of the Dee estuary (various locations), Mersey estuary (various locations), until now.

colour ringed black-wit DSCN0326.jpg
 

MisterT

Always Birding
It has been very noticeable that there has been a marked increase in the number of Goldfinch visiting the garden here in Askernish during the winter months which has continued to the present day. Apart from one controlled in March (see earlier post above), another ringed in Askernish has been controlled at Hungladder, Skye. Originally ringed on 15th December 2020, it was controlled there on 1st April 2021, having travelled a distance of 79 km (49.9 miles), a duration of 107 days

goldf - highland recovery.JPG
 

MisterT

Always Birding
Two recent ringing controls: A Lesser Redpoll controlled at Askernish on 10th May was originally ringed at Middleton Nature Reserve, Lancashire on 20th April this year and had travelled 452km in 20 days. A ringed Willow Warbler that had unfortunately flown into a window and died in South Glendale yesterday had been ringed on Lundy Island, Devon on 4th May and travelled 683km in 12 days. The maps show a definite movement south despite the weather

lesser redpoll control map.JPG 1620753493664.png
 

Hawkeye

Eyes and Ears Everywhere
A colour ringed Sanderling, seen at Kilpheder on 18th May by John Kemp is one of the very few birds ringed in Greenland. Originally ringed in 2016, after which it was recorded during the following 10 days and then never seen again - until now!

colour ringed sanderling.JPG c-r sanderling history.JPG
Sanderling, when ringed in Greenland (C) Jeroen Reneerkens, South Uist (C) John Kemp
 

Hawkeye

Eyes and Ears Everywhere
Some colour ringed sightings of Sanderling seen by Peter Gray during his recent visit to the Uists. Thank you Peter for the information

(i) Metal ring DKC 8261514. Colour ring B1YWBY. This bird was ringed as an adult in July 2013 in north eastern Greenland (75.150 degrees north!). Since then it has only been seen at Balranald in May 2019 and May 2021. It has not been seen elsewhere! Photo below.

(ii) Metal ring DKC 8218532. Colour ring G5GBWY. Ringed as an adult in north eastern Greenland in June 2019. It was then sighted on the Brittany coast on three occasions in August 2019. Our sighting at Balranald was the first then.

(iii) Metal ring ISR 8109453. Colour ring G3RWWB. This bird was ringed in May 2016 in western Iceland. It was in Brittany October and December 2016 and was back in Iceland in May 2017. Our sighting on 10 May was the first in four years.

(iv) Metal ring ISR 8109520. Colour ring G4YWBR. Ringed in western Iceland in May 2016. It appeared in Brittany in October 2016. It was sighted in Orkney in May 2017 and was back in Brittany in October 2018. We saw it at Balranald in May 2019 and again this year 2020. Between 2019 and now it has somehow lost two colour-rings but we were lucky enough to get a clear photo showing two of the digits on the metal ring. This information was enough for the research team leader to re-identify the individual.

Colour ringed sanderling Pter grey Greenland. DKC8261514.jpg
 

MisterT

Always Birding
Inter island movements of the more common birds are always intersting. A 1CY male Greenfinch ringed in Askernish, South Uist on 27-August-2020 was seen in Brevig, Barra today (24-May-2021).

Askern - brecig - grefi.JPG
 

Hawkeye

Eyes and Ears Everywhere
This colour ringed Sanderling found on Askernish Beach in April 2021 was ringed as an adult in Holland in August 2012 so is an old bird. It has a well documented history having been seen on 24 occasions in Holland, 11 in France and twice in Mauritania. It was last observed in France, having spent March 2021 at Beausoleil. Today's sighting is the furthest North it has been seen to date.

3710-c9aa6313abedde79a714afa9323f75ea.jpg Colour ringed sanderling askernish April 2021.jpg
 

Hawkeye

Eyes and Ears Everywhere
A ringed Reed Bunting on a Vatersay beach seen on 16th May took the interest of Bruce Taylor. After some 300 images and a great deal of investigatory work, it was found that the bird was originally ringed at Ottenby, Sweden on 27th September 2020, a duration of 231 days and a distance of 1,469 km. This is thought to be the first Scotticsh spring recovery of a Scandinavian Reed Bunting and, most unusually on the west coast. It is interesting to note that Vatersay is further north than Ottenby.

DSCN5036.JPG Reed Bunting, Otenby to Vatersay.JPG
Reed Bunting (C) Bruce Taylor
 
Top