01.01.2024 Pink-footed Goose at the Scrape this morning MD
A day of strong southwest winds in variable amounts of cloud with rain later
A Happy New Year to all, from Jerseybirds. Year lists raised their heads today, so a good range of species were seen.
Early bird of the day was a Great Northern Diver flying west over First Tower in St Aubin's Bay. The usual early rush of auks was on show again at Corbiere. Most were Razorbills today with 4,435 seen, also 38 Guillemots, plus a Red-throated Diver, 2 Red-breasted Mergansers, 27 Gannets, 2 Fulmars, 347 Kittiwakes, 17 Mediterranean Gulls and a Lesser Black-backed Gull. One Purple Sandpiper, a Turnstone and 18 Shags were also seen. 30 Curlews were at Petit Port.
On St Ouen's Pond and at the Scrape were a Pink-footed Goose, 3 Grey Herons, 4 Marsh Harriers, 36 Lapwings, 2 Redshanks, 7 Shovelers, 5 Snipe, a Water Pipit and 2 Stonechats. In the backfields behind St Ouen's Pond were a ring-tailed Hen Harrier and a flock of 40 Linnets and in the Sandpits were 2 Little Grebes, a Black-necked Grebe, a Great Crested Grebe, 2 Pochard, 6 Tufted Duck and a Lesser Black-backed Gull. At L'Etacq and Le Pulec were 183 Oystercatchers, 4 Curlews, a Black Redstart, a Peregrine and 2 Pied Wagtails.
Seen at Le Sente were 2 Shelduck, a Barnacle Goose, 525 Brent Geese, 56 Redshanks, 5 Greenshanks, a Common Gull, 13 Black-headed Gulls, 28 Grey Herons, 30 Little Egrets and 3 Pied Wagtails and at Rue du Parcq were 26 Cattle Egrets, 32 Curlews, 14 Common Gulls and a Sparrowhawk and a further 10 Cattle Egrets were at Grouville Marsh.
At La Rocque were a Great Northern Diver, 2 Black-necked Grebes, a Great Crested Grebe, 12 Red-breasted Mergansers, 112 Turnstones, a Water Pipit, a Black Redstart and 8 Pied Wagtails and at Le Hurel in Grouville Bay, were 126 Turnstones, 10 Sanderlings and 2 Dunlin.
In St Aubin's Bay, 240 Brent Geese including 18 pale-bellied Brent, 3 Blackcaps, a Curlew, a Pied Wagtail, a Grey Wagtail and 44 Black-headed Gulls were at Beaumont Marsh.
Below: Two more images of the very photogenic Pink Footed Goose at the Scrape MD
23.06.2025 A beautiful Lesser Black-backed Gull in yesterday's sun at La Rosiere. Image: MD An overcast start to the day, with a period of light rain, was replaced by sunny skies this afternoon, cooler at 19c in a fresh Westerly wind. In St Ouen's Bay, the Green Sandpiper on the Scrape was joined by a Redshank this morning, and the juvenile Lapwing was still there, with one of the adult birds in close attendance, while in the Sandpits were 43 Tufted Ducks , 3 Little Grebes , a Grey Heron, 2 Little Egrets , 5 Oystercatchers , 140 Coot , 8 Lesser Black-backed Gulls , 5 Great Black-backed Gulls , a Black-headed Gull and 10 Swifts . 3 Black-headed Gulls were at La Pulente and 10 Curlews were at Petit Port. Seabirds were few and far between in today's conditions. Seen at Grosnez were 6 Manx Shearwaters , 3 Balearic Shearwaters , 13 Fulmars , 14 Gannets as well as 10 Choughs and passing Corbiere were 11 Manx Shearwaters , 6 Gannets , 2 Fulmars , 10 Lesser Black-backed Gulls , 12 Great Black-backed Gulls and 38 Shags . 6 Ravens were on the Corbiere headland. At St Aubin today were 30 Black-headed Gulls and 2 Curlews , with 38 Black-headed Gulls and 2 Mediterranean Gulls seen there yesterday.
22.06.2025 A young Herring Gull doing wing stretches in the safety of La Rosiere today. Image: MD An overcast and cool-feeling morning gave way to a brighter afternoon, with winds now back in the West. A Green Sandpiper was on the Scrape this morning with the Shelduck family still present there but little else of note. Yesterday evening, the Pink-footed Goose and Barnacle Goose re-appeared there after some time without any sightings of them. 2 Puffins were seen carrying food off the north-west coast this morning, while odds and ends passing Corbiere included 3 Manx Shearwaters , 2 Balearic Shearwaters , 5 Guillemots , 37 Gannets , a Fulmar , 3 Mediterranean Gulls , 8 Lesser Black-backed Gulls , a Curlew , a Grey Heron , a family of 4 Swallows, a newly fledged Blackbird , 5 Linnets and 2 Ravens . At or over La Rosiere, as well as the breeding Herring Gulls and Lesser Black-backed Gulls breeding there included a female Marsh Harrier , 4 Choughs , 4 Jackdaws , 4 Ravens , 2 Swifts and 2 Swallows and nearby, on the Railway Walk were 3 singing Chaffinches and a Jay .
21.06.2025 One of our locally bred and colour-ringed Marsh Harriers paid a brief visit to the lighthouse rock at Corbiere this morning and was rapidly repelled by breeding Oystercatchers there. Image MD Some showery spells this morning cleared to another fine and warm day ( 29c) with a brisk south-easterly wind. Counts from Corbiere before the showers arrived included 21 Manx Shearwaters , 3 Balearic Shearwaters , 5 Guillemots , 31 Gannets , 2 Fulmars , 6 Cormorants , 22 Mediterranean Gulls , 9 Black-headed Gulls , 5 Lesser Black-backed Gulls , 24 Great Black-backed Gulls, a Grey Heron , 4 Little Egrets , a Curlew , 2 Ravens , 2 Choughs and the local Marsh Harrier , with 2 Bottle-nosed Dolphins passing eastwards. Yesterday's Green Sandpiper was not seen on the Scrape this morning, but present were the family of 5 Shelducks , 2 adult Lapwings with their juvenile which was wing flexing today and looks close to fledging ( fingers crossed).Also seen on the Scrape of flying over were 2 Grey Herons, 2 Little Egrets , 2 Oystercatchers , 2 Pochard and 8 Swallows . At Gorselands were 2 pairs of Dartford Warblers and a new pair of Stonechats and at the Desalination Plant were 4 Ravens . A Little Egret was in Rozel Bay.
20.06.2025 Curlews at Petit Port. Image: MD A mainly fine day, very hot at 31c in a fresh Easterly wind There are some hints of return migration starting to appear now, including a Green Sandpiper on the Scrape today. In the Sandpits were 3 Little Grebes , the male Wigeon , 14 Tufted Ducks , 132 Coot , 8 Oystercatchers , a Black-headed Gull, 4 Grey Herons, 3 Little Egrets , 50+ Sand Martins and a Cetti's Warbler . At Corbiere, small gulls are starting to show up with 20 Mediterranean Gulls and 20 Black-headed Gulls seen there this morning, also 3 Sand Martins , 4 Swallows and 48 Swifts passing overhead. Other birds passing Corbiere included 4 Manx Shearwaters , 2 Balearic Shearwaters , 8 Guillemots , 50 Gannets , a Fulmar , 5 Cormorants , 14 Lesser Black-backed Gulls , 38 Great Black-backed Gulls with 2 Bottle-nosed Dolphins seen offshore moving East. On the Ecrehous were a Whimbrel , a Curlew and 5 Swifts seen passing overhead this afternoon.
19.06.2025 This White Wagtail was a brief visitor to Corbiere this morning Image: MD A sunny and hot day, with temperatures reaching 29c in a fresh Easterly wind. There was a good level of activity at and passing Corbiere this morning. Seen passing offshore was a flock of 45 Common Scoters, a Shelduck , 92 Balearic Shearwaters , 23 Manx Shearwaters , 10 Guillemots , a Razorbill , a Fulmar , 35 Gannets , 7 Cormorants , 2 Roseate Terns , 6 Sandwich Terns , 6 distant t ern sp , 5 Kittiwakes , 14 Mediterranean Gulls , 6 Lesser Black-backed Gulls , 32 Great Black-backed Gulls and a Curlew . Moving overhead there were 11 Swifts , 15 Swallows , a White Wagtail, 5 Linnets , 3 Peregrines including an intruding immature bird which was rapidly escorted off the premises and 2 Choughs . 9 Curlews roosted at Petit Port. Seen from the GaP Hide at the Sandpits were 4 Pochard , 20 Tufted Ducks, 40+ Mallards , c100 Coot , a Grey Heron , 4 Little Egrets, 11 Great Black - backed Gulls and 6 Lesser Black-backed Gulls . On Les Ecrehous yesterday were a Whimbrel , 2 Black-headed Gulls , 2 Little Egrets , a few Sandwich Terns and 100+ Common Terns , with 4 Sandwich Terns also seen there today.
18.06.2025 An adult Grey Heron receiving the full Lapwing welcome on the Scrape today. Image: MD Hill fog and poor visibility spoiled the start of the day, but readily cleared to fine and warm conditions by mid morning, with winds from the east-northeast. Seen through the morning murk at Corbiere were 16 Manx Shearwaters, 2 Balearic Shearwaters, 5 Guillemots , 2 Fulmars , 39 Gannets , 5 Cormorants , 9 Swifts , 2 Swallows , a Grey Heron , 2 Peregrines and 4 Ravens . The vegetation in front of the Scrape Hide has been trimmed, allowing a clearer view of the water and confirming that there was little on it! Seen there was the family of Shelduck including 3 juveniles, a Grey Heron , 2 Oystercatchers , 6 Lapwings including one large, and 2 very small young and overhead were a flight of 7 Ravens , 30 Sand Martins , 10 Swallows , 3 Swifts and the usual Marsh Harriers and Buzzards . A Skylark was in full song near the Scrape car park. At Le Pulec were 11 Curlews , a pair of Shelduck , a Little Egret and 2 Swallows while on the Blanches Banques were 4 Dartford Warblers and a Linnet carrying food. 2 Puffins and 2 Razorbills were seen at Plemont as well as 4 Swifts and this afternoon, 15 Swifts were over Beauport. On the North coast a Stonechat with a juvenile and a juvenile Meadow Pipit were at Wolf's Caves and at B & Q on St John's Road was an alba Wagtail .
17.06.2025 Razorbills surfing off the North coast recently. Image: MD A fine and warm day in a moderate north-easterly wind Despite light winds early on, some seabird movement was in evidence off Corbiere early morning. Seen there in three hours were 52 Manx Shearwaters , 8 Balearic Shearwaters , 16 Guillemots , a Razorbill , 2 Fulmars , 45 Shags , 7 Cormorants , 42 Gannets , 2 Kittiwakes , 14 Lesser Black-backed Gulls and 48 Great Black-backed Gulls , also 5 Bottle-nosed Dolphins . 22 Swifts flew in from the South and 2 Peregrines were in the area. At Petit Port were 8 Curlews and 65 Oystercatchers . Seen at Les Ecrehous were 45 Turnstones , 60 Oystercatchers , 100+ Common Terns , 2 Sandwich Terns and on the crossing, one auk sp and a Bottle - nosed Dolphin . At Plemont were 2 Puffins , 6 Razorbills , a Marsh Harrier , 6 Swifts and 2 Sunfish , while 11 Chough flew over Crabbe and another Chough plus 6 Ravens were seen at Greve de Lecq. On Grouville Common were a Firecrest , 6 Swifts , 4 House Martins and a Greenfinch , and in Grouville Bay were 44 Black-headed Gulls , 3 Mediterranean Gulls and 7 Little Egrets, at Beauport Common were a family of 4 Stonechats , also 2 Dartford Warblers and over St Helier Harbour were 7 Swifts . Near to Surville Manor were a Marsh Harrier , a Sparrowhawk , a Buzzard , a Kestrel , a Reed Warbler , a Firecrest and a Goldcrest and in flight over Red Houses later this afternoon were 3 Buzzards , a Sparrowhawk and up to 20 feeding Swifts .
16.06.2025 A Meadow Pipit at Les Landes this week, one of our breeding birds. Image MD There was an overcast start to the day, which gradually cleared to fine conditions by this afternoon, in light west-northwest winds. A selection of species seen from Corbiere this morning, in the light wind conditions, included 6 Manx Shearwaters , 4 Balearic Shearwaters ( or Mediterranean Shearwaters as they will now become known - see below), 5 Guillemots , 4 Fulmars , 32 Gannets , 37 Shags , 8 Cormorants , 3 Mediterranean Gulls , 7 Kittiwakes , 7 Lesser Black-backed Gulls , 23 Great Black-backed Gulls , a Swift , a Raven , 2 Peregrines , 13 Bottle-nosed Dolphins and also a Hummingbird Hawk Moth . At Petit Port, Curlews had increased to 7, with one pair of Shelduck also present. At Plemont, 3 Puffins were feeding actively ( also seen there yesterday evening), 2 Razorbills , and 3 Grey Herons which flew over in formation, also 12 Swifts , 3 Swallows and 5 Great Black-backed Gulls . 12 Choughs , including some juveniles, were at Grosnez. At St Aubin were 20 Black-headed Gulls and 10 Swifts. Seen from the Wetland Centre at St Ouen's Pond were 30+ Swallows , 40+ Sand Martins , 5 House Martins, and the usual Marsh Harriers , Reed Warblers , Cetti's Warblers and a Wren carrying food. Evening update : Counts in the Sandpits this evening included 120 Sand Martins with many fledged young, 2 young Marsh Harriers , 110 Coot , the male Wigeon , a Pochard , 18 Tufted Duck , 3 Little Egrets , a Cetti's Warbler , 2 White Wagtails and 10 Oystercatchers , A unified global taxonomy has been published for the first time, this week, with the launch of Avilist and should provide a long overdue standard reference for the first time. One or two of our locally appearing species are affected by some list changes and full details can be found at: https://www.birdguides.com/news/unified-global-taxonomy-published-for-first-time/ ....and for comparison with the Meadow Pipit above, a Rock Pipit at Grosnez . Image MD
15.06.2025 Clearly there is an ambitious building project in progress near to Corbiere. Great Black-backed Gull today . Image: MD A mainly fine day with a cool westerly wind. The slow times continue, with breeding in full swing. A few birds not involved, passing Corbiere this morning, included 2 adult Mediterranean Gulls still in Summer plumage, a Kittiwake , 6 Guillemots , 2 Fulmars , 2 Cormorants , 18 Shags , 30 Gannets , 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls and a Swallow heading off South. A family of 7 Ravens , 5 Choughs and a Marsh Harrie r were on the headland while roosting at Petit Port were 2 pairs of Shelduck , but no signs of any young, and 6 Curlews . Seen at Plemont were a Puffin , 8+ Razorbills , 2 Gannets , 3 Buzzards , a Kestrel and 5 Linnets , with 2 Storm Petrels and a pair of Stonechats having been seen there late yesterday. North of St Ouen's Pond this morning were at least 4 Skylarks , 2 Marsh Harriers , 5 Ravens , a Buzzard and several Swallows and at Kempt Tower pools were a male Tufted Duck , a Little Grebe , 2 Marsh Harriers and 2 Buzzards . 3 adult Lapwing were in the Scrape field and the family of 5 Shelduck was on the Scrape. Elsewhere, unusually, a juvenile Long-eared Owl was seen in flight at Les Blanches Banques this afternoon and a pair of Stonechat was on Beauport Common.
14.06.2025 A Swift over Les Landes this morning. Image: MD A clear and mainly sunny day in a moderate west-southwest wind. It was just odds and ends passing Corbiere this morning which included 8 Manx Shearwaters, 4 Guillemots , 40 Gannets , 3 Fulmars , a Kittiwake and a Curlew , while in Petit Port Bay were 5 Curlews and the pair of Shelduck and 8 Choughs were by the radio tower at Corbiere. At Grosnez and Les Landes were a Guillemot , a Mediterranean Gull, 8 Swifts , 2 Stonechats , 30 Linnets and 7 Choughs . Seen along the northwest coast were 23 Razorbills , another 8 Swifts , a Swallow and 2 Choughs , which were near to Crabbe Farm. A further 2 Choughs were seen over Rue de la Roulerie in Trinity. In St Clement, between Pontac and Le Hocq were 3 Buzzards and 2 Marsh Harriers and a Great Crested Grebe was taken into care, having been picked up near Havre des Pas pool. On Grouville Common were a singing Firecrest , several Chiffchaffs , a Blackcap and a Linnet while both Buzzard and Marsh Harrier were near La Rue de Grouville, where 4 male Cetti's Warblers , 3 singing Reed Warblers , 3 singing Chiffchaffs , 4 singing Blackcaps and a male Sparrowhawk were also seen or heard in a marshy area there. Yet another Buzzard was at Rozel and 9 Swifts were in flight near Le Hurel, in Grouville Bay.
