Arrived a bit late! Aiden and Peter Branch had beaten me to it and already seen a pale-phase Arctic Skua lazing on a sandbank.
North Harbour Wall 0640 -0840
Clear, calm, 2/8 cloud (cirrocumulus overhead, cumulus out to west).
High tide 8.3m at 10:20hrs
Arctic Skua - 2. Both dark-phase, floating in on sea at 0650 and 0730. The earlier bird flew off north at 0800.
Arctic Tern - 51 (14, 10, 17, 10)
Red-throated Diver - 1 in
Sandwich Tern - 12
Whimbrel - 1
Ringed Plover - a flock flew over but weren't located. Sounded like 10 or more.
Swallow - 9, all after 0810hrs
Yellow Wagtail - 1 at 0800hrs
Wheatear - 2 (male and female)
Turnstone - 21
That was it. A strange morning but glorious weather for sitting around, which is what most birds were doing.
