National Rarity 30th March 2018

[Hawkeye]

Outer Hebrides / Western Isles bird sightings for today, 30th March 2018. Updated throughout the day

St. Kilda
The ***Hooded Merganser*** is still to be found on the fire pond, Hirta


Hooded Merganser, St Kilda courtesy of Soay Sheep Project

Butt of Lewis
An Iceland Gull seen there today

Sound of Taransay, Isle of Harris
The drake Surf Scoter was still there today

Loch Sandray, North Uist
The drake *Green-winged Teal* was again present today (See BrianR's post below)

Ruhba Ardvule, South Uist
Weather: Wind ENE F4-5, 8/8 cloud, dull. Temp 4.2C.
A 2 hour seawatch this morning produced 4 Whooper Swans (N), 29 Eider (7S 22N), 1 Long-tailed Duck (N), 1 Red-throated Diver (S), 11 Gannets (2S 9N), 35 Shag (1S 34N), 3 Cormorants (2S 1N), 1 Curlew (N), 2 Black-headed Gulls (N), 1 Glaucous Gull [3CY] (N) and 4 Razorbills (N).
Also present in the area were Greylag Goose 9, Wigeon 46, Tufted Duck 4, Red-breasted Merganser 8, Red-throated Diver 1, Great Northern Diver 4, Shag 15, Cormorant 12, Bar-tailed Godwit 13, Redshank 19, Turnstone 97, Purple Sandpiper 48, Black-headed Gull 15, Pied Wagtail 1 and Twite 2

Borve, Berneray
Late news for yesterday, 29th March 2018
The Snow Goose, 160 Twite and 8 Snow Buntings were on the machair but no sign of the Crane.
62 Great Northern Divers and 39 Long-tailed Duck were off the south and west shores of the island. A flock 180 Greylag were seen high, heading NW late morning.
40 Great Northern Divers, 5 Slavonian Grebe, 248 Eider, 340 Long-tailed Duck (which included one raft of 320), 1 Great Skua and 43 Black Guillemots were seen from the Berneray - Leverburgh ferry

 

[BrianR]

For the past few years it has been presumed that only a single ♂ Green-winged Teal was involved in sightings on North Uist between Loch Sandary and Balranald NR. This year there have been three different birds - two were still present this morning on Loch a' Roe (Mike Bell) while the Loch Sandary bird has not moved in the last few days (David Henshilwood).