Bardsey's Wildlife

Friday, 14 March 2014

March 13th

The day dawned chilly and with a dense layer of fog carpeting the island. This did, however, gradually lift during the day, enabling the usual census of the island to take place in rather pleasant conditions. Four Redwings, six Wheatears, a Merlin, and a Lesser Redpoll were noted around the coast in the early hours, the latter of which is new to the year. As the day progressed, a few warblers arrived, with a total of 11 Goldcrests and eight Chiffchaffs recorded.

Chiffchaffs continue to trickle through, although no large arrivals have occurred yet. However, the misty conditions in coming days might prompt some larger numbers 'grounding' on the island

Migrant Meadow Pipit numbers are on the increase, with large flocks amassing together around the lowland areas and around the coast.

The sunny and dry conditions has meant that many wet areas around the island are already drying out at an amazing rate. The retreating water bodies around The Narrows has left some rich muddy scrapes for birds such as Oystercatchers, Rock Pipits and Pied Wagtails (can you see any more?!)

Apologies for the rather gruesome image...this is what remains of the Magpie that was taken by the female Sparrowhawk last Wednesday (you can see the post here if you haven't already). Interestingly enough, the female Sparrowhawk was flushed off the carcass on the 13th, indicating that the bird is still feeding off it, even after eight days.

March 14th

Although the day started with freezing fog covering the island for the majority of the morning, the weather gradually improved during the day, and many migrants began arriving onto the island in the afternoon. The first Sand Martins of the year flew southward over the island, with two first seen over the Ty Pellaf Wetlands, and another two seen over the South End. Chiffchaff and Goldcrest numbers increased as the day went on, with birds arriving in off the sea and moving north over the island. A total of 28 Chiffchaffs and 27 Goldcrests were recorded by the end of the day. A large total of 242 Meadow Pipits was the highest total so far this year, and included a single flock of 180 in the wetlands. Other passerine migrants noted during the day included eight Wheatears, one Blackbird, one Skylark, one Goldfinch, three Siskins and a Reed Bunting. In other news, a Merlin was seen on the South End, the Hooded Crow remained on The Narrows, and one Jack Snipe and three Snipe were flushed from the wetlands.

With all the mist nets now up around Cristin garden, a small number of birds were trapped during the afternoon...

The first Siskin of the year was trapped and ringed, along with a handful of Goldcrests and Chiffchaffs. The first Chiffchaff showing pollen hornes was also trapped, indicating that these birds have come from Africa and Europe

A brief drag-netting session was made mid-afternoon, in an attempt to capture the Jack Snipe. Unfortunately, a Sparrowhawk almost managed to catch the snipe, and so the bird promptly flew off into the distance (understandably!)

Wheatear numbers are increasing, with about six birds seen around The Narrows alone today.

It was a very pleasant afternoon after the freezing fog had lifted

No comments:

Click to see inside!

Edited by Mike Archer, Mark Grantham, Peter Howlett and Steve Stansfield and published by T & AD Poyser, this fabulous book describes how much has changed since the first edition of Bird Observatories in Britain and Ireland was published in 1976. There are detailed accounts of the history and work carried out at each of the 18 observatories, with personal accounts by wardens and staff of the excitement of discovering a rarity, watching thousands of migrants attracted to a lighthouse after dark, and the pleasure and experiences that working at some of the country’s most remote and beautiful locations can bring. Click the picture of the book to see inside or to buy your copy.

Migrants

Being sited on the main migration route of many species, Bardsey (or Ynys Enlli in Welsh) is a well-known site for migrant birds, turning up many scarcities and rarities, as well as large numbers of common migrants. The island’s list now stands on 326, after the recent addition of Citrine Wagtail in October 2012.

Although Bardsey’s reputation for rare birds may not quite match that of some observatories, it is almost certainly the best site in Wales for rarities. Among Bardsey’s rarer visitors are the first Summer Tanager (1957) and Yellow Warbler (1964) to have been recorded in Britain and Ireland, as well as American vagrants such American Bittern, Sora, Kildeer, Spotted Sandpiper, Grey-cheeked Thrush, American Robin, Song Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, Red-eyed Vireo, Black-and-white Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Rose-breasted Grosbeak and Blackpoll Warbler. To add to this impressive list of rarities, Black-winged Stilt, Lesser Yellowlegs, Lanceolated Warbler, River Warbler, Western Orphean Warbler, Booted Warbler, Blyth’s Reed Warbler, Eyebrowed Thrush, Thrush Nightingale, Red-flanked Bluetail, Isabelline Wheatear, Black-eared Wheatear, Collared Flycatcher, Blyth’s Pipit, Pine Bunting, Rock Bunting, Yellow-breasted Bunting and White-throated Sparrow have all been recorded.

Besides the rarities, Bardsey regularly attracts large numbers of weary migrants during 'fall' conditions in Spring and Autumn, largely a consequence of the fully operational Bardsey Lighthouse. In 2011, for example, a single grounding of migrants resulted in over 1000 Willow Warblers making groundfall on the island in August. In the not-so-distant past, a single attraction of 40,000 Redwings occurred in late October at the end of the last century.

Breeding birds

Bardsey is home to some 26, 000 pairs of Manx Shearwaters, which can be heard on dark nights from mid-March to August. They breed in their excavated burrows, which are scattered all over the island. Chough is the most important species of conservation concern, with between four to eight pairs nesting around the coastal cliffs most years, and a wintering flock of up to 50 individuals. A pair of Peregrines breed on the island, and a 1-2 pair of Ravens also nest most years. There are several species which nest only occasionally, such as Sparrowhawk and Little Owl, along with Afro-Palearctic migrants like Sedge Warbler, Blackcap, Chiffchaff and Willow Warbler. Up to ten pairs of Stonechats can nest in the isolated gorse patches around the island, along with many Linnets and Meadow Pipits. Corncrakes were once a common breeder on the island, although since 1970 there have been no confirmed pairs nesting. In recent years the likes of Lapwing, Yellowhammer, House Sparrow and Starling have also all become extinct as breeding species. In contrast, Shelduck, Puffin, Long-eared Owl, Grasshopper Warbler and Goldcrest have been added to the breeding bird list since 1998.

Ringing

Ringing is a very important part of the observatory’s role on the island. Since 1953, the observatory has ringed over 315,00 birds of 198 species. The highest number ringed in a single year was 1988, with a total of 11, 301 birds ringed of 93 species. There have been many days in the observatory’s history when several hundred birds have been ringed in one day; these occasions have mostly involved breeding seabirds, although these numbers can also easily occur with migrant species.

Lepidoptera

A total of 561 species of moths have been recorded on the island. Bardsey is not an overly good location for scarce moths, although the existence of Thrift Clearwings (Nationally scarce) has been established on the Thrift plants around the coast in recent years, after first being recorded in the years 1980 and 1996. Migrant moths arrive in small numbers every year, for example the annual arrival of Hummingbird Hawkmoths in the autumn; rarer immigrants in the past have included Death’s Head Hawkmoths, Vestals, Crimson Speckled and Red-necked Footman.

In recent years, a greater emphasis has been placed on recording and identifying the so-called ‘micro-moths’, which has resulted in the finding of 41 new species for Bardsey since 2011. In 2012, the coastal subspecies of Eana penziana (E.p.colquhounana) was re-found on the island, which was the first time that this Nationally Scarce species had been recorded on Bardsey since 1966. Apotomis semifasciana is also amongst the scarcer species of micro-moths to inhibit the island (also Nationally Scarce).

Butterflies are present on the island in small numbers, with species such as Common Blue, Small Copper and Small Tortoise-shell being the most common. A scarcer breeding species is the Grayling, which can be found in small numbers on the top of the mountain. Migrant butterflies such as Painted Lady can arrive in their hundreds, although other migrants such as Clouded Yellow and Dark-green Fritillary are quite rare.