Sunday 27 April 2014

An Invasion Materializes

After yesterdays 2 Black-tailed Godwits and 12 European Golden-Plovers reported from across the island anticipation was high for even more european vagrants today.

And even though I'm writing this at noon there have already been numerous reports of more euro shorebirds!

As of noon, there have been 5 more European Golden-Plovers, and 2 more Black-tailed Godwits!!!

I was lucky to find 2 of those 5 with Peter Shelton at 6:45 this morning:


The next 7 days are going to be insanity... and frustrating as I have to prepare for an exam on Monday (May 5)...

Here's a short list of species that have been found at the same time of year following similar winds:

Pink-footed Goose
Graylag Goose
Garganey
Little Egret
Eurasian Oystercatcher
Spotted Redshank
Common Redshank
Common Greenshank
Whimbrel (Eurasian subspecies)
Northern Wheatear
I will be surprised if at least 1 of of these is not found in the next 7 days.

And probably the most wanted of all, but never previously recorded is:
Meadow Pipit

There has been a lot of chatter about pipits in the last 48 hours...
This could be the time.


This is what the wind is looking like right now (noon, Sunday):

+24 hours and the winds continue to stretch from Iceland to Newfoundland...

This can only be the beginning.