Sunday 26 August 2012

Migrants?

Flushed a couple of Northern Wheatears by the road to Aberdaron this morning - was it a sign of hordes of migrants passing through? Checked Aberdaron briefly to see a couple of Sandwich Terns on the beach and a Grey Wagtail around the stream.

A few hours wandering around Mynydd Mawr/Uwchmynydd in beautiful weather - sunshine, blue skies with some fluffy cumulus and a refreshingly cool northerly breeze resulted in very little.

The garden at Safn Pant proved tempting so I sat on the heath above it and waited for the migrants to appear. Result - zilch! The 'flycatcher' I staked out turned out to be a juvenile Robin and a Goldcrest called from the trees but that was about it. I've said it before but will reiterate, as one of the last small patches of cover on the peninsula I reckon it must have paid host to some great migrants. Within a few hundred metres of here there have been Tawny Pipit, Alpine Swift, Shorelark, Hoopoe etc in recent years despite very sporadic visits (plus that funny flyover passerine with the totally unfamiliar call I had a few years ago!).

Anyway, the only presumed migrants this morning were a single alba wagtail, 15 Meadow Pipits that seemed to be moving and a couple of Wheatears.

Four Red-billed Chough swirled around the hill and dropped out of sight towards the seacliffs. A (family party?) of three Kestrels were hunting over the heather then a fantastic female Peregrine buzzed me along the clifftop then returned for another look. Offshore 40+ Northern Gannets were feeding.

Butterflies and other insects were out in force including several Graylings, Gatekeeper, Red Admiral and many Small Tortoiseshells.


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