Well here we are at the end of the second week in March and it does now feel like spring is on the way. Oystercatchers are back in force with quite a few back in areas where I've seen them breeding over the last few years. Only today (13th) I saw one bird which has returned to the same nesting area for the fourth year - I know this as it is ringed (assuming it is the same ringed bird!) - and the pair were getting down to re-bonding and displaying etc. Also today, I noticed there seems to have been a large arrival of Common Gulls as there have been lots of flocks around the island feeding in the short grass fields. Lastly, today I saw my first Lesser-blackbacked Gulls of the 'spring' here in Baltasound, I'm happy to be corrected, but I think most leave Shetland during the winter months.

  At the end of last week, I went down to Westing as we'd had a bit of a storm. I was hoping for some gulls to be feeding there in the breakers and found a handful of Commons', 2 Icelands and a few Blackheads. One of the Blackheaded Gulls in particular looked rather splendid in that it had possibly the pinkest hue to its breast that I've ever seen on one of these birds...........

  Blackheaded Gull

  Inevitably, while I'm parked there, the local seal population will always come and inspect me - or maybe the car - depending on the state of the tide and how rough the sea is.

  A short way along the beach was a dead ewe on which at least a dozen Ravens were feeding when I arrived. These birds are so wary and as far as they're concerned the long lens may as well be a gun - it was almost 45 minutes before they first landed and then only briefly. If I turn up with the window up, they will often stay put, if it is down they are gone in seconds. From time to time a bird or two will soar or glide towards me along the beach, on reaching the car, they turn and go back to the far end of the beach again and perch - they are sussing me out..................

  At the weekend, I saw my first spring passerine for this year in the form of an early Reed Bunting at Haroldswick.............

Male Reed Bunting

  As is usually the case, it was the weather that dominated things here again. Over the last week, we've had a mixture of some ok days, a nice day and some pretty foul days. On top of this, the last week there has been quite a lot of auroral activity - but not seen here by me ! Some of the recent activity from one of the sunspots has apparently been the best for 5 years - in Iceland they've had almost 2 weeks of auroras. Just after sunset over the last two nights, Jupiter and Venus have only been around 3 degrees apart at sunset, it was something I was hoping to see but again it was cloudy. Looking at the local forecast we are due for a nice day and clear night at the end of the week - which will be a nice change..................

One of the nicer days at Skaw  taken with the camera phone

  Work around the house etc continues with the main focus last week being on getting the stables more water tight. I think I may have mentioned it before, but the stables were built directly on to the concrete without a course of bricks first. This has meant that when it rained (which it does very frequently) the water just ran straight under the bottom timber sole plate. Hopefully with work I've now done it will prevent that happening. Also the boards need painting with some timber treatment as when the rain is combined with a strong wind (most of the time) you can stand inside and see the water soaking through the 1" boarding as though it was a sponge. The stables are now my workshop as I manged to persuade the girls to give up their 'den' which was in one of them (I've made them another one in the other shed) So, by taking out the timber dividing wall, I now have one shed around 12ft x 20ft which is great for working in. The other jobs I have on the go at the moment are getting the cottage ready for renting out (having a gas cooker fitted etc) and starting to organize having the roof re-slated this summer - scaffolding, slates etc etc. It's going to be a busy year - but I'll still find time for the wildlife - I hope.