Archive News and Pictures - Slimbridge, Goldcliff and Skomer overnight stay - to 15th July 2008
4th July. The morning's weather looked good and there were reports of Sandpipers around that I had yet to photograph so I headed off in search of a new species. I got down to Goldcliff at 6:20 to meet the high tide and see what was around on the pools. It was quite breezy there but with nice morning sunlight I tried out my digiscoping setup with limited success. Around 20 Avocet were spread around on the two pools by the three platforms but the strong gusts made getting a good quality image difficult. A single male Ruff was also present, if distant, and viewable from Platform 2. Also there was a single second summer Mediterranean Gull, again distant and the digiscoped image not worthy of a website appearance! After a nice chat with the other birders there, it was time to head off up the estuary to try and get a new species, so it was back in the car and up to Slimbridge where I arrived at 9:30, joining as a member of the WWT in the process! There were reports of a good sandpiper presence so I headed straight off to the Holden Tower and after setting up the scope got a new lifer in the form of a Wood Sandpiper. The bird was over 100 meters away and it proved to me how difficult digiscoping is compared to standard SLR photography as the resulting images show. It was a distinctly different bird from the dozen or so Green Sandpiper that were also visible from the tower but gave much better views through the camera from a few individuals that were feeding later in front of the Robbie Garnett hide. Two new photo species in one pool! I wonder if that will happen again?! After a couple of hours wader watching I quickly zoomed to the other hides, ending up at the Kingfisher hides where I got a five second view of a perched Kingfisher before disappearing with a fish into its nest burrow. A quick glance over the fields at the large mixed Jackdaw and Woodpigeon flock revealed a single Stock Dove, a third new photo species for the day and a bogey bird, finally caught in front of the lens!
13th July. After a "gap" of 22 years, the time had finally arrived to stop the drought and remind myself of the complete Skomer experience with 2 days and nights on the island with my father. After lugging our gear to the boat and then onto the island, we ambled up to the accommodation, admiring the Guillemots, Razorbills and Puffins going about their business in North Haven along the way. After a spot of lunch we set off to enjoy the great weather at a more relaxed pace than usual with the knowledge that there was no rush to catch the boat back with the day visitors that afternoon. We first sat in the hide overlooking North Pool hoping to find an owl hunting over the North Valley marsh but with no luck. Only a flock of Canada Geese and numerous gulls kept us company. Walking north to the Garland Stone, we watched the Gannets fishing offshore and I took a few fly by pictures of a Herring Gull but with no cetacean sightings. The first really nice photo opportunity came at Pigstone Bay with a family party of 4 Chough feeding on the grassy banks there. We then walked around to Skomer Head, following the Choughs and when they disappeared from view, back to the accommodation. From there it was over to the hide overlooking South Pool where there wasn’t too much on and around the water other than a mixture of Lesser Black Backed and Herring Gulls, a single Moorhen and a few Pied Wagtails. More interesting was a large family party of Sedge Warblers in the vegetation adjacent to the hide which came very close and gave some excellent views. The young birds responded well to some impromptu "pishing", coming out of the vegetation long enough to get some lovely shots. After being entertained by the Sedge Warblers for a good half hour and with the evening approaching, we decided to go and try and find some Owls. Walking east along the path from the farmhouse down towards North Haven, we were fortunate enough to spot one on the wall. To my dismay, the bird promptly flew away but we managed to locate it again on another wall further down the path after a few minutes. On relocating the bird we discovered it was one of a family party of 4 Little Owls from which I managed to get a lovely set of pictures of both an adult and juvenile birds, only being interrupted by a tame Meadow Pipit. Feeling very content with my first pictures of a wild owl, it was down to North Haven where I had a go at Puffins in flight. Not easy, but I did manage a few nice pictures of some birds as they landed in the early evening light. After a short while watching auks I fancied my chances at doubling my owl count for the day and headed back to North Valley to search again. After chatting to other "owl watchers" and waiting for an hour or so, a bird emerged from the bracken and flew into one of the trees. I scuttled down the path towards where I last saw it and fortunately managed to locate the bird, sitting partly obscured in the tree, but showing remarkably well. Finally a great view and a photograph of a Short-Eared Owl on Skomer after not seeing one there for over 10 years! Walking further along the path I managed to get reasonably close and got some wonderful views, even seeing the ear tufts and cracking views of those amazing eyes. Eventually the bird flew off and disappeared into the bracken and my attention turned to a few Oystercatchers and a single Grey Heron flying overhead in the warm evening light. Now feeling very smug and having photographed the two species that I’d hoped to get it was back to the farmhouse for dinner and to wait for the evening show. The cloud closed in as the sun went down which promised a good night to come. As darkness fell, we weren’t disappointed with the air filling with the haunting noise of Manx Shearwaters calling both from the air and from the burrows. Walking south from the farmhouse again at midnight towards the South Pool hide and then onwards towards the Wick, the air was thick with Shearwaters with many birds on the paths amongst the Common Toads, Frogs, Glow Worms and also huge numbers of black slugs! It was an odd experience being at the Wick at 1 in the morning with it being covered with Shearwaters instead of the usual carpet of Puffins! We retraced our footsteps and headed for bed after a long but perfect Skomer experience.
14th July. All my good intentions of an early start were extinguished by a blanket of mist and light drizzle so I enjoyed another few hours in bed! My father caught the Dale Princess over to Skokholm while I remained on Skomer to appreciate the Monday feeling when the island is closed to day visitors. After watching a Swallow collecting mud and nesting material at a puddle by the farmhouse, I retraced the walk of the previous day, hoping to get a few nice pictures in the constantly fluctuating light. The Gannets were fishing again around the Garland Stone which alerted me to several Porpoise that were cresting in the racing tides. A Peregrine flew overhead and the same family party of Chough as the previous day kept their distance, eventually flying towards North Haven. Walking west along the path, I saw two Ravens sitting on a rocky outcrop that allowed me to get quite close. Finally a picture of our largest crow that wasn’t a flying silhouette! Ascending a hill whilst walking towards Pigstone Bay, a single Buzzard flew beneath me which gave an unusual topside view instead of the standard underside. With Grassholm not visible from Skomer Head and the lower half of Skokholm poking through the murk, I headed back towards the Wick, meeting up with the first people I’d seen in an hour and a half. After pointing out a Kittiwakes nest with a chick and checking out the Guillemot colony from Tom’s House with the scope, it was on to the Wick and a few more attempts at Puffins in flight. With a strong breeze and flat light it was still a challenge but some of the numerous shutter clicks were worthwhile! The Chough party returned from nowhere and flew down the Wick, giving nice views. I then headed back to the farmhouse for lunch via the hide at South Valley, where a couple of Common Lizards were basking on the boardwalk. After lunch I headed down to North Haven, seeing another two distant Little Owls on the way, and sat virtually at sea level at the base of the embarkation point, watching the auks swimming in the Haven. It was a wonderful two hours sitting in the sun with Puffins, Guillemots and Razorbills swimming sometimes only 10 feet away, curiously investigating my presence, only to demurely paddle away a few feet if I looked directly at them! The only thing to really spook the auks was a Peregrine which flew over towards South Haven at a rate of knots. With another few hundred auk shots in the camera I climbed back up the path and over towards North Valley and back to the Farmhouse. A lone Willow Warbler was feeding amongst the Goldfinches and Linnets in the garden. I then plonked myself overlooking the North Valley to hopefully find another Short-Eared Owl. This time I needed more patience but one eventually showed, if only briefly. I had been talking to a family who were also hoping to see it, and offered to take the eldest child down through North Valley to hopefully get a better look. After 5 minutes the owl flew and we both got a few nice sightings of the bird in flight before it landed deep in the bracken not to re-emerge. My father had returned from his trip to Skokholm so we had dinner and chatted to the other guests for some time. The cloud cover at night was not as complete as it had been the previous night but being on the island after dark it was still obligatory to see the Shearwaters. We went out to share the night time Skomer experience with the family we’d met earlier and showed them the sights and sounds, again with wonderful views of the Manx Shearwaters, Toads, Frogs and Glow Worms.
15th July. Another misty morning meant a leisurely breakfast, chatting to the other visitors and packing up our stuff. As we planned to get the midday boat back we decided the best value option was to head down to North Haven and watch the auks there. We went down to the slipway and watched a Grey Seal lazing in the waters, with hundreds of Puffins wheeling around the Haven overhead. A few Fulmar and Oystercatchers were also present and the Chough family reminded us of their presence yet again. Soon the first few boats arrived bringing the first of the day's visitors and we waited and watched the wildlife from the assembly point at the top of the stairs. A single Peregrine again whizzed past too quick for the lens while the Chough returned for a quick fly past. Noon arrived too quickly and we boarded the boat to return to the mainland with two others who had also stayed on the island. Camera packed away, we of course had a nice Gannet flyby which had to remain un-snapped! Overall it was a thoroughly enjoyable few days and highly recommended to everyone who loves wildlife and the romanticism of island life. If you want more information on Skomer follow this link The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales - Skomer Information.
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