Leaving Canna

Sorry for the lack of new posts here lately.

The news is, we're leaving Canna in mid October.

Very frustrated with the management of the island, and upset to be leaving behind such a wonderful place, and some truly lovely people.

Thanks to all our new friends on Canna for making the summer so special: to Aart and Amanda, Magda and Joaquin, Gerry, Murdo and Caroline, Winnie, and Nora, you're all great people, made us so welcome, and helped us to fit in with island life. Thanks also to all those visitors who have made Canna so memorable. We'll miss you all!

Not suited to island life? Not at all. We're off to Shetland!

No jobs to go to as of yet, but we'll find something soon, and in the meantime we're looking into various small business ideas.

I'll be setting up a new blog once we get to Shetland, and will post details here and on Twitter, so watch this space!

All for now,

Graham Uney

A Blustery Canna

Just back on Canna after a week away. Had a quick walk around Sanday just now. The skies are very grey out there, rain is threatening, and the wind's blowing hard from the south-east.

There's a good sized mixed flock of finches coming and going in our garden. About 60 birds in total, with Linnet, Twite, Greenfinch, and Siskin making up the bulk of the birds, plus a few Meadow Pipit and Pied Wagtail joining in the fun.

Out along the track to Point House half a dozen Wheatears are looking like they think they should head south (three of them sporting nice new rings - probably mine).

Out in the harbour entrance 9 Grey Seals are snoozing away, while 12 Shags are adorning the rocks below the harbour light.

Eiders seem to be everywhere, many of them obviously males just coming out of their eclipse plumage.

If this wind dies away I'll have a go at ringing some waders later, but it's not looking promising.

Wheatears, Stormies, and Swifts

Not had a lot of time recently to update this blog, so here's a bit of a run-down of what's been going on here on Canna and Sanday in the last few days.

Bob Swann was here for the final one of his week-long visits of the summer. This one was with his family, and we had a great night out on the headland below Tallabric catching Storm Petrels with him and his son Rob. I think we got 12 birds in total, with no retraps, and though I think Bob and Rob were a little disappointed with the numbers, it was the first time I'd handled these fabulous little seabirds, so I was very pleased with the night's efforts.

Waders seem to be really piling in here now, with good-sized flocks of Redshank, Dunlin, Curlew, Ringed Plover, and Oystercatcher present. I've finally taken delivery of a new wader net from NHBS, so I'll be looking at suitable catching sites for them in the next few days. Also, on Sanday, there's been a nice flock of 22 Golden Plover, with a mix of adult and juvenile birds among them.

Also of note at the moment are the Swifts that are now feeding above the trees below Tighard. Swifts don't breed on Canna, so they're obviously just passing through, but these are the first ones of the year for me, so it's good to see them.

The bog behind Winnie's house is now starting to attract reasonable sized roosts of Swallow, Pied Wagtail, and Meadow Pipit, so there'll be a roost catch there sooner or later, and I do want to get in there early one morning for some juvenile Sedge Warblers before they start on their migration south.

Juvenile Wheatear

The numbers of Wheatears on Canna and Sanday have been incredible this year. Bob Swann tells me that they've been doing particularly well here since the rat eradication. I've spent a bit of time out on Compass Hill with a couple of Moudry Spring Traps, and this morning went out to the crags at Greod on Sanday. In total I've ringed 15 birds, plus 5 pulli this season.

Female Wheatear

Hebridean Heatwave Hell!

Well, it looks like those months and months of clear blue skies, temperatures pushing the high 20s, gorgeous sunsets, and dinners outside overlooking the harbour may be over. Today on Canna we have gale force winds, mist, and the high probability of more rain.

I had a quick walk out with Bertie to the Point House to see what's occurring.

Lots of eider families out there in the harbour, the adults keeping a watchful eye as their offspring brave the wavy elements. A red-head Merganser flew over, which is the first I've seen here for a month or so.

There are loads of Rock Pipit fledglings around too, some of them being ridiculously confiding, and good numbers of Wheatears too.

Swallows around Point House look like they think they should have moved on to sunnier climes last week, while a group of young Shags out on the Point itself were trying to work out how to dry their wings in the rain-soaked blast.

A Grey Heron flew up from beneath the Point, looking more than ever like it was never designed to fly, and a Grey Seal bottle-nosed out in the bay. Gannets have come in to the harbour to fish the less choppy waters (they struggle to see fish beneath the surface on wild days out at sea).

Now at home I've had to take bird feeders down for fear of them blowing away, but the Siskins and Greenfinches seem happier feeding from the ground anyway right now. Still got a couple of Collared Doves come in to feed here at MacIsaacs, and a pair of Rock Doves have started bringing along their one fledgling of the year for the free grain.

Too Busy for Birds!

A very busy week on Canna. Had the seabird ringers here from the Highland Ringing Group, and although I had originally planned to take the full week off work to help them out, things just didn't really go to plan. I had my head of department down from NTS HQ for the first three days of the week, then we had the NTS cruise ship in on Wednesday with nearly 400 passengers on board. This was all great fun, but it did mean that the ringing had to be pretty much left to Bob Swann and his group.

Still, I did manage to get out with them onto the north side of Canna last Sunday, when we processed a few hundred Guillemot, Razorbill, and Shag, plus a few Puffin, Fulmar, Kittiwake, Herring Gull, and Lesser Black-backed Gull. A great day out - thanks Bob and the team!

On Saturday the ringing group left the island, with instructions for me to mop up any remaining gulls, and to see if I could find any Bonxie chicks that they'd missed.

Today (Sunday), started with a great view of a Peregrine being mobbed by a couple of Arctic Terns in Canna Harbour - viewed whilst having a morning cup of tea, in bed! Later in the morning, whilst walking Bertie, a female Sparrowhawk was a first for me on the island.

In the afternoon I had a walk around to the lighthouse on Sanday to see if I could find any of those Bonxies (Great Skuas). Lots of parental activity, but I only found 2 chicks which were far too young to ring, and a single egg still in the nest. Also found a few Herring Gull chicks, all but one of which had already been ringed by the HRG.

On the way home I almost stepped on a Short-eared Owl, another Canna first for me!

Back at home, I've now got the drop net set up below the feeders in my garden. Catching a few Greenfinches, one of which (TL42353) was originally ringed by Sean Morris on Rum in April. There's also a couple of Twite out there, but they seem to be avoiding the trap, and 6 Collared Doves, one of which is sporting a ring, but will they wander below the trap? Nope!

Eagles

A great day out on Canna yesterday. Back up onto the central ridge for some eagle photography.

Good views of both White-tailed and Goldies.

White-tailed Eagle

More pictures to follow!

Canna House Garden ringing

A bit of garden ringing before work this morning.

Best bird was a possible control Swallow - a female with a brood patch, so nesting somewhere near by, but at the moment I'm not sure if she was ringed on Canna, or possible on one of the other nearby islands (Rum, Eigg, or Muck). Ring number X955972.

Totals for the hour's ringing were:

Swallow 1 (1)
Robin 1
Blackbird 1
Whitethroat 1
Willow Warbler 3
Chaffinch 4
Greenfinch 1
Goldfinch 1

I also found out just now that three Greenfinches I've caught here in the last few days were originally ringed on the island of Rum.

Seabirds hatching

A great day on Sanday today.

Confirmed breeding of 6 pairs of Bonxies (Great Skuas) on Sanday, with another pair I haven't checked out yet on Canna.

Adult Bonxie

Newly hatched Bonxie chick

Also, found another 4 nests of Herring Gull, 2 with young chicks, plus 2 more nests of Great Black-backed Gulls, both with 3 chicks each. The adults of the 2nd pair were particularly keen to escort me off the premises!

Great Black-backed Gull with three chicks

Mum telling me to sod off!

This Puffin has obviously had better days!

Puffin remains

Other seabirds are faring well though...

Fulmar

Kittiwake, one of many nesting on Sanday

Guillemots on Sanday, including a few 'bridled' individuals

Razorbill on Dun Mor on Sanday

And nice to see a good mix of wild flowers out now, including Mountain Everlasting, Bog Asphodel, Butterwort, Milkwort, Sea Campion, and Northern Marsh Orchid

Sea Campion

A really great day. Of course, it all started with an hour's bird ringing in my own garden. 3 Linnet, 1 lovely male Twite, and a juvenile Greenfinch were caught, all new birds.

Male Twite

Oystercatchers

I got started on ringing a few of the Oystercatcher chicks that are out and about now on Canna.

I have found 8 Oystercatcher nests over the last week or so, and have been monitoring them for the BTO. The only problem is timing their hatching, as like all waders, they do leave the nest very early. This isn't a problem from a ringing point of view, as with a bit of patience and good luck, you can find downy, flightless chicks that can be ringed once they've left the nest, but from a productivity point of view it would be good to see how many eggs actually hatch, and what the survival rate of those chicks is.

With only 339 pulli (chicks) ringed in the whole of the country last year, I hope to be able to increase our knowledge of these birds by making a study of the Canna breeding population. And as the oldest ever recorded Oystercatcher reached an impressive 40 years old, a huge amount of useful data can be generated from ringing these birds.

Canna Shearwaters

Had a walk around the western end of Canna with Bob Swann and two of his ringing group mates, Martin Carthy, and Ronnie (?). A brilliant day, if somewhat hot.

The great news is that the old Manx Shearwater colony at The Nunnery, that was completely wiped out when the island was infested with rats, have started to return. We found two occupied burrows, one with a pair present, the other with a single bird which Bob managed to extract for me to ring. This is really exciting news, and is the first step towards this colony becoming re-established again. The other thing to note with regard to this colony is that we only walked across the rough slopes at one level, so there could easily be more than the two occupied burrows we found.

Bob also managed to hook a Fulmar, albeit an already-ringed one. He's sure that this bird is quite old, as he can't remember using that ring string for a number of years.

Hopefully Bob will be able to provide original ringing data for the Fulmar, and will send though pictures of my first Manxie. I'll post details on here in due course - now updated!

Other birds of interest where a number of other nests of seabirds recorded, including Shag, Fulmar, Common Gull, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Great Black-Backed Gull, Herring Gull, and Oystercatcher.

Also of note, on the northern side of the island at Garrisdale was a single Whitethroat singing, and a single Spotted Flycatcher.

French Ringed Sedge Warbler

A bit of ringing before work this morning brought in three Sedge Warblers in 'The Bog' behind the school on Canna.

One was a new bird, another I ringed last night, so was a next-day retrap. The final bird was wearing a French ring - Number 6786576 - Museum Paris.

Sedge Warblers

At least 5 pairs of Sedge Warblers in the boggy ground behind the school on Canna tonight.

Put up a 18m net through the sedge, and caught a single bird

First of the season for me, so very pleased to get one here on this remote isle!

Also had a male Hen Harrier do a fly past, and 2 drumming Snipe overhead.

Nests on Canna

Wheatear chick

A quick check of nest sites today on Canna revealled a good mix of gulls, waders, and passerines:

Nests so far:

Common Gull: 4
Herring Gull: 6
Great Black-backed Gull: 1
Oystercatcher: 4
Chaffinch: 1
Robin: 1
Great Tit: 1
Wheater: 1 (5 chicks ringed in the nest today)

Busy day on Canna

The day started with the arrival of the Ocean Nova. Lots of people around on Canna, some of whom were into birds. Had a good chat with many of them about sea eagles, buzzards, waders, skuas, shearwaters, and the like.

This afternoon heard a Sedge Warbler and a Blackcap singing in the garden at Canna House. Also met Geoff Sample, who's here on the island with a team looking into a music project involving bird song. Very nice to meet their team.

On the way home, spotted a Whooper Swan out in Canna Harbour.

Would have liked to have put a pic here, but for some reason blogger keeps stopping me putting pics on my blog. Anybody know why?

Seabird nests

Common Gull and Oystercatchers on eggs around Point House on Sanday.

Oystercatcher

Common Gull

Common Dolphins

Had a lovely evening walk out over Sanday with a group of NTS Thistle Camp volunteers today.

A couple of Bonxies guarding heathery knolls, and a mass of Wheatears still on the moor, while on the sea cliffs at Dun Mor the Kittiwakes are now on the nesting ledges along with a few Guillemots. A few Puffins too!

Lots of Gannets diving out in the Sound of Canna, as well as a couple of small rafts of Puffins. Around 18.30 a pod of between 50 and 60 Common Dolphins spent about half an hour feeding at a mackerel shoal, then moved SW through the Sound. Magical!

Canna Chicks

Hoping to ring my first Canna pulli in the next couple of days.

I've got a couple of Song Thrush nests on the go, both on eggs, and a Robin nest with 5 pulli in at the moment. Also a nest box with at least 7 Great Tit pulli in, and a Chaffinch on 3 eggs.

Be nice to have some time to go check out possible Wheatear and Meadow Pipit nests - might do that at the weekend.

On the wildflower front, the Spring Squill is just coming through in one or two places on the island, and Mountain Everlasting is poking through in a few spots too on Sanday.

First Canna Cuckoo

A quiet day working around home and my own garden, with 15 Linnets, a single Greenfinch, and a single female Siskin on and below the feeders. The Siskin was a first for my garden! Also 2 pairs of Wheatear looking like they may be nesting nearby.

Early afternoon I nipped over to The Mainland (Canna, as opposed to Sanday!) to try a bit of mist netting in the wood where John Lorne Campbell's buried. Only a single Willow Warbler caught, but the first of the year for me. Also in the same wood I found three nests, 2 Song Thrush, and 1 Robin.

This evening, after a visit to check on my creel, we sat in our garden with a glass of wine, listening to a Cuckoo calling from across on Canna - the first of the season for me.

Haliaeetus, Harrier, and Hairstreak

A great couple of days birding on Canna.

On Saturday 28th April:

On Sanday at Dun Mor, 69 Puffins now in rafts below the stacks, as well as a few Guillemots, Kittiwake, and Fulmars on the cliffs already. On the high-point of the seacliffs between Dun Mor and Dun Easubric we had a great view of a female Peregrine.

At least 10 Great Skuas on the moor around the eastern end of Sanday, and the first damselfly of the season on Thrift in the cliff tops (a single red).



Bonxie, or Great Skua on Sanday



Back home at MacIsaacs, 11 Linnets now feeding in front of our living room window, and these have been joined by 6 Twite, and 3 Greenfinches. Also a pair of Swallows flying round the house.

In Canna House Garden two very juvenile Blackbirds, clearly just out of the nest, with at least 6 Willow Warblers singing from the woods behind. I just love that song!

Today, Sunday 29th April 2012:

6 Red-breasted Mergansers outside our house, and now 21 Linnets feeding in the garden. No sign of the Twite today, although the Greenfinches are still around.

At dawn I went over to a dark geo (I've named it Cuddy Cove on account of the Eiders that like to feed and shelter there) on the south side of Sanday where I have a prawn creel. 4 Shore Crabs, and 4 unidentified red eel-like fish. Any ideas anyone? They are about 8-9 inches long, and an inch thick.



Unknown Fish - Help!

Up on Carn a' Ghaill in the afternoon had good views of 2 Golden Eagles, 1 White-tailed Eagle, and 1 Hen Harrier (the same male that was on Rum recently?).



White-tailed Eagle above Geug-sgorr



Also of note, 25 Green Hairstreak butterflies on the flanks of Carn a' Ghaill.

On the flora front, Common Spotted Orchids, Milkwort, Lousewort, Tormentil and Dwarf Willow are all flowering now, and Butterwort and Round-leaved Sundew are also through.



Rum from Carn a' Ghaill's summit - the high point of Canna

 On our return home, a pair of Common Sandpipers (the first for the season) were on the shore under the bridge between Canna and Sanday.

On Canna at last...

We arrived on Canna last Monday. Still haven't got an internet connection at home, thanks to BT, but the lads at Avanti are doing everything to get us connected. So, thanks to Stewart for letting us use the office connection!

Loads of Wheatears on the island as well as big flocks of Meadow Pipit and Pied Wagtail moving through.

Sea birds are now moving in, with Puffins rafting up below the breeding cliffs, and a few Bonxies checking out nesting and scavenging locations!

On the ringing front, I haven't really got going yet, but did manage to drop-trap a couple of Linnets in our front garden this morning. I'll keep you posted!

Birds on the move...

Awoke in Mallaig today ready for the ferry out to Canna. Packed up the house at Wyken, and spent 11 hours yesterday driving the long road north.

Birds on the way included:

A pair of Red Kite above the A1M near Grantham.

A male Wheatear on the A66 near Bowes.

A Barn Owl just outside the village of Arisaig.

And Willow Warblers singing at Scotch Corner services!

This morning, a Willow Warbler singing in scrub in Mallaig.


This could be the last post on here for a few days, until we get an internet connection established on Canna.

The nets are down!

Well, as of this evening they will be. I've had a few nets up pretty much permanently in the garden at Wyken for a few months now, so that I can just unfurl them whenever I have time and the weather's right. They'll come down for the last time at Wyken, ready for the move up to Canna over the weekend. Not sure how often I'll get to do any mist-netting once I'm up there - the wind sure does blow on those Scottish Islands!

Might have to invest in some spring traps! Be good for the Rock Pipits down on the shore if nothing else.

Last bit of southern ringing...

Just one week to go before we move to Canna, where I hope the birds I'll be nest recording and ringing will include Oystercatchers, Lapwing, Curlew, Snipe, Twite, and a host of seabirds.

For now though, I'm just enjoying a few warblers down here in Suffolk.

Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs are everywhere, and we're now seeing the first Garden Warblers, and Lesser Whitethroats arriving. Swallow numbers are building too, with up to a dozen regularly feeding around the meadows at Wyken.



Chiffchaff in Suffolk. Hope there'll be plenty when I arrive on Canna!



Bird Ringing on Canna

I'm a C permit holder for Bird Ringing in the UK. I've ringed all over Britain, but am really looking forward to getting to grips with some of the great species of birds present on Canna and Sanday.

The Highland Ringing Group have been ringing seabirds on the island for over 40 years, so obviously the first thing I did was to join the group.

I'll keep you up to date from here on my activities on the island, once we've settled in.