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Another day of strong and cold north-westerlies, with little new of note. In the first two hours of light seawatching at Grosnez produced 5 Common Scoters, 7 Manx Shearwaters, 3 Kittiwakes, 3 Razorbills, 2 Guillemots and 90 Gannets.
The two male Shelducks were again on station, one at Le Pulec and one at the St Ouen's Pond Scrape. A male Shoveler was also on the Scrape and 5 Little Egrets plus a Curlew at Le Pulec.
2 male Mandarins were at Queen's Valley, also Moorhens with well grown young there. A good movement of Swallows and a few House Martins were passing overhead there.
Picture: This Linnet was feeding in the shelter of the slipway at Le Pulec this morning. 
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A strong northerly wind spoiled an otherwise reasonable day. Sea-watching at a very windy Grosnez produced 44 Manx Shearwaters, 228 Gannets, 66 Fulmars, 9 Kittiwakes, 9 Guillemots and a Shelduck. A dead Puffin floated past on the tide there, presumably another victim of PIB poisoning but hopefully, not one of our tiny breeding population.
The pair of Shelduck was at Le Pulec early this morning, also 2 Whimbrels and 5 Little Egrets.
Another Shelduck was at the St Ouen's Pond Scrape and 8 Tufted Duck were at Kempt Tower. A female Wheatear was at La Pulente and 2 Marsh Harriers plus a male Pochard were in the Sandpits.
Picture: Thanks to Romano for this image of last night's juvenile Long-eared Owl at Noirmont, as it peers out through the vegetation.
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On a fair day with a light north-west wind, seawatching from La Coupe produced good sightings in the form of 2 Great Northern Divers in summer plumage and 2 Balearic Shearwaters moving north. Also passing were 3 Guillemots, 10 Gannets, 3 Fulmars, 2 sparrow sp ( probably Tree Sparrows), 138 Swallows, a Sand Martin, 63 House Martins and 5 Goldfinches. 5 Bottle-nosed Dolphins moved south. A Yellow Wagtail was at Sorel and 2 drake Mandarins at Queen's Valley.
Evening update: An adult and a juvenile Long-eared Owl were seen at Noirmont this evening.
A late record is of a Richard's Pipit, seen on Petit Plemont last Sunday
Picture: Another view of the Wigeon at the St Ouen's Pond Scrape.
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The current run of cool weather has made migrants very scarce. A trickle of Swallows and House Martins continued along the west coast and a Wheatear was at Grosnez. A pair of Stonechat was carrying food at Grosnez this morning too.
At the St Ouen's Pond Scrape, the drake Wigeon was again very settled, with the drake Shelduck seeing off all comers. Also there were 3 drake Shovelers, a Yellow Wagtail, 2 White Wagtails, Lapwings still with 2 chicks and 20 Swifts. 2 drake Pochards flew over. and the Shelduck was again at Le Pulec.
A single Puffin and 14 Razorbills were in evidence between Creux Gabourel and Grand Becquet, also a pair of Buzzards, and at Sorel were 3 Whitethroats, a Garden Warbler and another pair of Buzzards.
39 Oystercatchers were in Grouville Bay on this afternoon's rising tide, also 34 Dunlin, 32 Sanderlings, 96 Ringed Plovers, 8 Turnstones and a female Red-breasted Merganser. 26 Tufted Duck were at Grands Vaux and 3 Garden Warblers in Les Ormes Valley
Extras for yesterday were 30 Common Scoters and 5 Manx Shearwaters passing Grosnez.
Picture: the male Stonechat at Grosnez, picture courtesy of Sarah Scriven.
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It was still cold and overcast today, but at least mainly dry. Most birds seem to have moved on to get away from the weather. The drake Wigeon was at the St Ouen's Pond Scrape for a second day, along with 3 drake Shovelers, 2 Yellow Wagtails, 2 White Wagtails and a procession of Swallows and House Martins plus a few Sand Martins and 15 Swifts. At least one Lapwing chick had made it to another day. In the Sandpits were 2 Pochards, 25 Sand Martins and 120 mixed Swallows and House Martins. The male Shelduck was at Le Pulec.
A selection of warblers in Les Ormes Valley included a Garden Warbler, 2 Blackcaps, 3 Whitethroats, a singing Dartford Warbler and several Chiffchaffs. 40 House Martins and 30 Swallows were feeding in the shelter there and a Raven flew by.
An early check at Grosnez saw a single Manx Shearwater, 8 Guillemots and a Peregrine, plus the usual Gannets and Fulmars.
Evening update: In Grouville Bay this evening were 8 Ringed Plovers, a Grey Plover, 10 Dunlins, 8 Sanderlings and 7 Little Egrets, with a Wheatear there on the seawall earlier.
Picture: This Garden Warbler was at Sorel two days back.
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It was a reasonably disgusting day today, with rain all through and a cold northerly wind. Sightings were at a premium, so a Short-eared Owl perched on a post at Noirmont at first light was a good start.
At the St Ouen's Pond Scrape there was no sign of yesterday's pair of Garganey, but a drake Wigeon had appeared. 4 drake Shovelers were also there, along with the pair of Shelduck. A single Snipe remains there and 8 Lapwings included two half-grown chicks. Maybe the rubber geese are providing some protection from predators as they guard their goslings.Others at the Scrape were a Grey Heron, a Water Pipit, a Yellow Wagtail and a White Wagtail. Swallows struggled through at the Pond with nearly 200 at one point along with a few Sand Martins and Swifts.
In Grouville Bay near Fauvic were 15 Oystercatchers, 2 Grey Plovers, 2 Ringed Plovers, 15 Dunlins, 8 Sanderlings and 2 Little Egrets, with a trickle of Swallows overhead to convince the observer that it wasn't February! At Grouville Marsh 5 Sedge Warblers were present while at Grands Vaux were 250 Swallows and 150 House Martins.
Picture: Today's Wigeon.
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A fine day with a cool northerly. A pair of Garganey was new to the St Ouen's Pond Scrape this morning. The male Shelduck, a male Shoveler and 15+ Swifts were also there. Extras there for yesterday were a Whinchat and a Yellow Wagtail.
A Little Grebe was again at the Kempt Tower pond along with 8 Tufted Ducks, a male Pochard and 3 pairs of Coot with a total of 9 young. A second male Shelduck was again at Le Pulec and an immature female Peregrine at Grosnez. 2 Marsh Harriers were hunting at Les Landes and a Willow Warbler was singing by Maison des Landes.
At Sorel early were a Wheatear, 2 Whitethroats and a singing Garden Warbler. Another Garden Warbler was in Mourier Vally with a Grey Heron, several Blackcaps and a Bullfinch also there. Another Bullfinch was at Durrell, where a male Sparrowhawk caught a Blackbird but let it go to escape apparently unharmed.
Evening update: In Grouville Bay today were 67 Ringed Plovers, 4 Sanderlings, 40 Dunlins, a Grey Plover and 20 Oystercatchers. Additional birds at the Scrape included a Water Pipit in summer plumage, a Snipe and a Greenland Wheatear. 2 male Shovelers were on the Pond and 2 pairs of Tufted Ducks, a pair of Pochard, 50 Sand Martins and 50 Swifts.
Picture: This nearly fledged Song Thrush was on the path down to Eddie's Hide at the Scrape today, from where it was ushered to a safer spot nearby ( Magpies on hand ), with the parents watching closely.
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Migrants continued to fly through the Island in today's clear conditions, with good numbers of Swifts, Swallows and House Martins seen, also a single Sand Martin at Grosnez. A Black-tailed Godwit and a male Shelduck were at the St Ouen's Pond Scrape and 2 Water Rails were calling at Kempt Tower. Another male Shelduck was again loafing at le Pulec, also 2 Curlews were there.
A Wheatear was at Grosnez, as well as a male Stonechat and another Wheatear was at Noirmont, where a Hobby flew through early morning.
Back to yesterday, with a Short-eared Owl seen again in the evening near Maison des Landes. At St Ouen's Pond in the evening, 15 Marsh Harriers were present including 7 males, 300 Swallows roosted and 40 Swifts were overhead. A Reed Warbler with a brood patch was seen, also a Sedge Warbler, 2 Pochards, 6 Shovelers and 3 Bearded Tits.
Picture: One of today's Swifts, feeding at Kempt Tower ( finally got one in focus!)
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One significant extra for yesterday is one Short-eared Owl carrying a rodent in the area they have been seen in recent weeks, at Les Landes. A Spring like start to the day saw some visible migration at Noirmont which included 227 Swallows, 84 House Martins, 4 Swifts, 4 Wheatears, a Yellow Wagtail, 3 Turnstones and a Guillemot offshore.
A further 3 Wheatears were by the Desalination plant at Corbiere and 2 at Les Landes, near Grosnez, where a male Stonechat and 2 Whitethroats were also seen.
A Whimbrel was with 45 Oystercatchers at Petit Port.
Reliable reports of Puffins off the south-west coast on recent fishing charters, including 6 today and several times over recent days, are intriguing.
Evening update: A Short-eared Owl was hunting at Les Landes racecourse today with 3 Wheatears and 3 Stonechats also seen. 4 Pufffins and 10 Razorbills were at Plemont and eastwards and a large movement of Swifts and hirundines was reported on the west coast, many hundreds of birds being involved. The House Martins at Beaumont are back, busily inspecting the nests today and a Mandarin was seen at Queen's Valley.
Yesterday at the St Ouen's Pond Scrape, a male Shelduck was seen to attack a Mallard duckling ( which escaped), in a display of territorial behaviour.
Picture: Yesterday's Short-eared Owl in evening light, captured by Romano da Costa.
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Overnight gales cleared to a bright and breezy afternoon. The pick of seawatching at Grosnez were 93 Manx Shearwaters and a Pomarine Skua, all heading west. Other birds there included115 Gannets, 9 Kittiwakes, 8 Guillemots, a Sandwich Tern and a Whimbrel, with 15 Swifts, 156 Swallows and 114 House Martins heading off to the north.
A male Shelduck was loafing at Le Pulec and another on the St Ouen's Pond Scrape, where a Yellow Wagtail, 10 Swifts and about a hundred mixed Swallows and House Martins were present. Reported from the Scrape yesterday was a Wood Sandpiper, a Snipe, 2 Shelduck and 2 Yellow Wagtails.
At Gorey were 2 Wheatears, a Whimbrel, 15 Ringed Plovers and 5 Dunlins.
Picture: Lesser Black-backed Gull at Grosnez today.
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