Great Tit! Great Tick! - Birds & Birdwatchers

Great Tit Parus major

 The Great Tit is truly great to see on Fair Isle. Would you run for a Great Tit? I did, and I don't run anymore. Still I dipped it! not seeing the bird the first day. Luckily it has stuck around and we have had a chance to catch up with this rare bird. Great Tits are common birds on mainland Britain but to put it into local perspective this is the 1st member of the Tit family I've seen on Fair Isle in the past 6 years. Among all the amazing rare birds seen this Autumn this Great Tit was only my 2nd Island tick... The other being the North American - Magnolia Warbler. Yesterday with no guests left to cook for I did have a chance to do some birding myself, I had a self found & garden tick in Woodlark. Plus an Olive Backed Pipit, 3 Jackdaw, 120 Snow Buntings, etc. and best of all, better views of the Great Tit. Below are assorted photos from the past week.

 

Henry photographing the Great Tit   -   Henry's photo at the same time as mine... 

Shetland Wildlife Autumn Tour - Fair Isle Group
What Stars!

Henry's photos of Great Grey Shrike at the Obs.

Young Birdwatchers... Logan & Henry
South Harbour finding House Martins, Longtailed Ducks, Etc...

the boys refound the sculking Lancy - Lanceolated Warbler

Twite

A Robin!

Super Fly!

Redpoll

4 Scoter in the South Harbour

Sarah - Jane - Judd - Corinna - Martin
"The old birdwatchers"

Thumbs up! with yet another keen young birder.

Great Stuff!

Red Breasted Flycatcher in Hand & Ringing Room

Red Breasted Flycatcher Ficedula parva
1st Winter?

Caught and ringed by the Fair Isle Bird Observatory
Oct. 11, 2012

As viewed from above... check out those bristles!

Spring Male - Red Breasted Flycatcher I saw ringed at the Chalet. June 9th, 2009

Sweet things...Once I had one eating flies of my window-sill while I was doing the dishes.

What does the Aurora really look like?

The camera gathers more light and colour in a time exposed image than a the eye can process from moment to moment. So many people are a bit disappointed to see the northern lights after seeing magical coloured saturated images from photos. So below I have taken out the colour by desaturating the photo above more accurately depicting what we saw last night. Still it's amazing, but better in real life.

Aurora over Skerry Holm Croft, Fair Isle, Shetland

Photo by credit to me & Martin Booth - Oct. 8th  2012

Matin Booth Photography - http://www.martinhbooth.co.uk/

Black Throated Thrush Twitch Oct. 6, 2012

Black-Throated Thrush Turdus atrogularis

Twitchin' Rainbow

then we got rained on....

Fair Isle knitting in action...
Hat by Elizabeth Riddiford.

Most of the views were quite distant and in tall grass, it was best to have a sight though some ones scope. I saw it sit on the fence for a few seconds... but later it was flushed and landed just behind me... I got a lucky click! & a second personal Black-Throated Thrush Tick.

Last night I got this photo of a Lesser Whitethroat... sweet!

Pechora Pipit... PG Tips... any birds about?

Pechora Pipit Anthus gustavi

The Pechora twitchiers evening call...
Seen much better in the morning in the daylight.

Pechora Pipit in the field by Midway.
Fair Isle's Jimmy (Midway) Stout found the 1st Pechora for Britain in 1925...
Jimmy is 101 and now living in Shetland to see more about Jimmy's birding adventures follow this link: http://fair-isle.blogspot.co.uk/2011/03/living-legend-james-stout-100-years-of.html

Any birds about? This is what I call the Fair Isle hello... this is the most familiar greeting on the isle and my most asked question from birdwatchers as they pass my Auld Haa. "Mel" is a common migrant birdwatcher who has been coming to Fair Isle for many years now, far longer than I've lived hear that's for sure.

Auld Haa House



PG Tips tastes so good!
The lucky Shetland Wildlife Tour Group have seen 5 Fair Isle specialities in 3 day! 

Pallas's Grasshopper Warbler
Lancelated Warbler
Pechora Pipit
Paddyfield Warbler
& Blyth's Reed Warbler



Pallas's Grasshopper Warbler Locustella certhiola

Spotted Flycatcher

Blackcap

Lesser Whitethroat

Northern Lights, Aurora Borealis & Merry Dancers

Fair Isle's Sheep Rock under the Northern Lights & lit by the Harvest Moon.

The Aurora Borealis was the best ever about 2:30am after the rain and clouds cleared. The Moon lit up the ground and made for interesting long exposure photos. What a stunning sight to see!

Fair Isle number 5 on National Geographic Top 10 Islands List

check out this link...

National Geographic Top 10 Islands.

Fair Isle is number 5 on the list.

http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/top-10/islands/#page=1

 

Richard's Pipit & other Birds & Jellyfish

Richard's Pipit Anthus richardi

Deryk caught this bird by hand! After watch a following the bird for some time. The bird was seen entering a hiding spot in the Wali Burn near my house, he stuck his hand in under the overhang and like a magician and his hat he pulled out the rare bird. The bird was caught & ringed yesterday evening and seen again today. 

Besides Richard's Pipit there was plenty of other interesting birds around...

Paddyfield, Lanceolated, Arctic Warblers, Olive-backed Pipit, etc.

 but no further sightings of the Magnolia Warbler...

Little Bunting

Roadside Lapland Bunting

Redpoll in Driveway

Female - Blackcap

Can I log into my Facebook?
Inquisitive Lesser Whitethroat at my window.

South Harbour Shags

Jellyfish invasion in the North Haven Henry found 2 species we still have to research.
If you can help with the ID please let us know?

I had another major lifer tick this week! The Big Five Oh!