An overnighter in my favourite Llandudno hotel last night following a long day
on Anglesey yesterday, so I was up at sunrise today and headed straight for
the Great Orme. It was a very different day to yesterday, bright with light
winds and no rain. Lots of good stuff today especially on the water below the
cliffs on the east side. Undoubted highlight however, was a cracking male wheatear
which sat on the wall on Marine drive near the boulder strewn gully. It didn't
give me enough time to get my camera out before it dropped down on the seaward
side of the wall and I didn't see it again, despite spending an hour in the
area searching. Plenty of stonechat activity around the gully to keep me
entertained as I waited, with several males in full song which is always a
pleasure. Amazingly, the wheatear is the first recorded in the UK in 2026, or at least the
first reported to Birdguides. Certainly it's my earliest ever by two weeks and
the first I've ever seen in February.
A couple of weeks ago I reported that auks were gathering on the water under
the cliffs ahead of the breeding season, but I was referring to guillemots and
razorbills. I didn't see any black guillemots at the time, but that all
changed today with at least 14 on the water. Odd that there were no black
gillys last time, since they are much more coastal than their cousins so I
would have thought they'd be around all winter.
I don't see common scoter that often from the Great Orme so this close flyby
was a very welcome sight.
Razorbills.
The wheatear was on this wall when I saw it but it dropped down to the left
and I didn't see it again.
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