http://seabirdwatchireland.blogspot.com/ seawatching news from the bridges of ross - astounding numbers lately

another great ventnor seawatch - 8 scoter, 6 sandwich terns and a skua sp.

walking along the seafront at sandown a calidris shot past me straight into the driving rain, couldnt react quick enough, was prob a dunlin but you never know. a 2hr seawatch at ventnor once the rain had cleared was ok i spose for the iow, but still frustrating given what's about in the channel lately. 1 manx, 3 sooty, 3 balearic, 3 fulmar, 4 razorbill, 4 shag, 2 sandwich tern, 140 gannets, all west. freshwater bay would be a good bet.

gluten for punishment i was back at ventnor, early to see if anything was heading back out after yesterday's gale. watching from the bandstand there wasn't much on the go - more gannets than yday, a common tern, 4 shags and a mega distant excuse for a sooty/bal. then at 8.25 a beautiful juv sabine's gull drifted by at point blank range. while i scrambled for the camera i lost it but it must've cut in right beneath me cos i spotted it gliding away low over the heads of the gulls roosting on the beach! was looking like it was gonna land but changed its mind and continued along the cliff towards steephill. a short while later it was back, circling the west end of ventnor bay, then headed straight in for the cliffs, up and over the old park and lost to view behind the trees. lil bugger, happier heading inland than resting on the beach - not funny! just hope it's not a 13 year wait till the next county record :-0. sab's is defo a birder's bird - so clean, so contrasty, all triangles and pointy angles, a small slim body underslung beneath a set of big arched wings - love 'em!

typical iow seawatching in a sw gale - 9 gannets and 3 fulmars in 3 hrs, spared a little by a flock of 7 manxies. it's all happening at estaca!

have yet to get into autumn mindset. posted on birdguides yday was a gripping pic of a r-c starling from someone's garden locally. a blocker for the iow, they're always in gardens or single obs.

news for july 24th, yeartick 2 green sands at bembridge lagoon and a hobby chased a finch across the harbour entrance. pulled this bass out of the water. cant believe it's august already.