October 12th 2014

 

The crossing was pretty lively, with good numbers of Balearic shearwaters on show, and a nice supporting cast of great and pomarine skua, little gull, several Mediterranean gulls, a flock of 8 shoveler, and a handsome peregrine sat on top of a rock as we pulled in at Molene, before we finally crossed over to Ouessant. One of the highlights of the trip was to come just as we arrived at the island, with a raft of 150 or so Balearics rafting in the mouth of the bay where the harbour lies. As we steamed towards this raft they took off and wheeled around the boat, showing fantastically well, albeit a little too quickly for my camera.

 

After a spot of shopping and lunch, I headed out to do a loop around some of the better spots around Lampaul in the wind and rain. There were clearly migrants around, but everything seemed to be a robin, a chiffchaff or a blackcap. Water rail, stonechat and goldcrest were also noted, but all in all, it was a bit of a damp squib. I had my fingers crossed that a lot of stuff wasn’t playing ball due to the conditions.

 

October 13th 2014

 

Things were certainly a little better weather wise – with wind and rain reducing to just wind. In the morning I checked a loop to the north of Lampaul, and while it continued to be hard work there were a few more promising migrants such as spotted flycatcher, firecrest, bullfinch, and two jet black backed yarrellii pied wags, which I guess is quite notable. The resident Dartford warblers were also showing well (for Dartford warblers, anyway) which is always good to see.

 

After lunch, I headed towards the east of the island to have a look around the Stang a Stiff. This is small patch of wooded cover (small by Ouessant standards) with easy access allowing you to get in about the bushes, and crucially, out of the wind. It proved to be a good move as once I got down under the cover, it became alive with firecrests, with a group of 15 buzzing around at one point. In among these was an elusive yellow-browed warbler, and this little lot provided a good hours entertainment, with the firecrests coming ridiculously close from time to time.

 

From here I headed south to Penn Ar Land, a wooded valley that held several more firecrests, a sparrowhawk, and two flyover great skuas, and from there I cycled back towards Lampaul, passing yet more calling firecrests on the way, and arriving to watch a hooded crow sail past the church. Bit of a goodun for the island and a France tick for me, not that I take those things particularly seriously. Firecrests were definitely the theme of the day, and if the numbers experienced at the few sites that afternoon were representative of the island, there must have been well over 300 firecrests present that day.

 

October 14th 2014

 

First up was a trip to the NW corner of the island, and at last there was a little variety among the migrants. Song thrushes were notably more numerous, and there were still plenty of firecrests and blackcaps around. Up in the air there was a steady passage of finches, almost exclusively chaffinch and siskin, but with the odd bullfinch thrown in for good measure, and around Cost ar Reun there were reed warbler and a ring ouzel among the commoner stuff. Also here was a hooded crow –which I had assumed at the time was the same bird that I saw briefly the day before. It turned out that there were two birds present though and they were both remaining pretty faithful to their own liitle areas, so this one was a second bird.

 

The finch passage continued for the whole day, and looking (and listening) up got me tree pipit and hobby on the way down to Porz Doun in the south west. Here in the little seaweedy bays plenty of common pipits, wagtails, and the odd wader fed, with more notable things including whimbrel, and little grebe. The day ended at Prad Meur in ‘town’, where a garden warbler lurked among the chiffs, blackcaps and firecrests.

 

October 15th 2014

 

It was a particularly grim morning so the cover saw very little attention – although perhaps it should have received a little more as there were still plenty of firecrests calling, as was the yellow-browed warbler at Stang a Stiff. Cycling north past here out to Cadoran the first redwings of the trip were picked up, and out on the heath 2 lapland buntings showed well. There were more thrushes going over, including the only fieldfare of the week, and a group of four ring ouzels, and an extremely frosty looking whinchat sat out on top of some brambles.

 

The afternoon brightened up a little but was still a tad windy, which continued to make things difficult. The only willow warbler of the trip was at Niou and there were 2 black redstarts at point de Pern.

 

October 16th 2014

 

The unpleasant weather continued, as did the poor run of migrants. Remaining birds included the willow warbler at Niou and a reed warbler at Cost ar Reun that was likely to be the same one as earlier in the week. Firecrests remained reasonably prominent but the only new bird for the trip was a pied flycatcher that perched up briefly on a roof in Lampaul.

 

October 17th 2014

 

Just as we thought the weather could get no worse, it does, with both the wind and the rain getting heavier. Nothing of note really on this day when we mainly did family things. Indoors! A peregrine was the best of it.

 

October 18th 2014

 

As is often the case, things begin to look up on the day of my departure. A longish walk around lampaul and surrounds provided YBW, black redstart, and the only stock dove of the trip, as well as a brown and buff chiffchaff that I’m pretty sure would have sounded Siberian, if it had made any noise at all...

 

The afternoon was spent cleaning and vacating the house, before heading off to get the return ferry to the mainland. Balearic shearwaters were much more difficult to come by than on the way over, and on the whole it was very quiet, aside from the odd bonxie, razorbill, and the single grey phalarope that showed in flight and briefly on the water as the boat went by.