Sooty Shearwater

Long-tailed Skua

Black-tailed Godwit

Great Shearwater

Bonaparte's Gull

Hello

We were on holiday in Lewis during August and I did the walk from Tolstsa to Ness on the Costal footpath.

Wednesday 22nd August about 2.45pm

About midway on the walk from Tolsta and about a mile from the headland with the ruined temple structure I heard the sound of a corncrake.
A few hundred yards later a corncrake jumped out of the grass in a little gully less than a metre in front of me and scullted off about 10 metres and then kept still in the grass. I watched it for a few minutes. I continued to here the sound for a further half mile along the path.

Leslie H

Lots of Sootys passing this last couple of days: 30+ sometimes, 80+ another several hundred altogether just at Labost Saturday - less Sunday but was the recorder there for as long??

"i tried to catch up with the snowy owl at mangersta as i had a friend staying with me a couple of weeks back who would have loved to have seen it .To no avail but i did find a pellet on one of the tumps on the macair with the remains of a rabbit so it had obviously been feeding at this stoop. I have included some new pics for you if you would like to use them the eagle pics were taken in the last couple of weeks the juvenille willow warbler was snapped yesterday in the croft at garrabost and the black throated diver last week at eiskein .There are photos of a young golden eagle on the ground and white tails."

Andy l

• only 3 UK records a year
• 1958 - 2004 total 122 UK records
• Wet meadows, marsh, often with grazing animals
• feeds mostly on insects
• separate Cattle Egrets from Little Egrets by their short, yellow rather than long, black bills

Cattle Egret at Steinish - 1st for islands

(See also Chris's report 2nd July - same bird?)

What has been about the last week or two:

The Bonaparte's Gull at Ardvule South Uist was around for most of July and early August. (Last reported Saturday 11th August).

A Slavonian Grebe has been visiting Coot loch on Benbecula Late July to Early August, (last sighting Sunday 12th August).

Lots of Pomarine and Arctic Skua , (plus a few long-tailed and great skua) sightings at sea-watching points during the second week of August .

A little Stint was at Ardivachar in South Uist on the 7th August.

Saturday the 4th August large numbers of Manx shearwater (400+) from Mangersta in Lewis.

Sooty shearwater (plus a few Baleric) and storm petrels sightings throughout July and early August

Long-tailed duck at loch Brannahuie, Stornoway in early August

A few whimbrel and green sandpiper about...