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.