My near yearly visit to the Ythan Estuary at Newburgh and it was very quiet, with a few Little, Arctic, Common and Sandwich Terns, even the seals were missing, I only saw three. They may have been out of sight on the beach to the north or out at sea, it was high when I was there.
I hoped to see a reported Buff-breasted Sandpiper but it wasn't in the flock of small waders near the lifeboat shed, and as I arrived back for a second look the waders were flushed by a dog - no owner seen for another five minutes! The bird was seen later upstream, not by me as it had flown again when I looked. I left to go to Strathbeg, and of course it flew back in after I'd parked up at Starnafin.
Just to rub in my pain, a Pacific Golden Plover was also found, could it have been the "Golden Plover" I'd seen and thought it was odd at this time of year. It goes on. I didn't look at Meikle Loch for a single Temminck's Stint, I'm not keen on driving up the track when 70 miles from home, and later found there were two. Knowing my luck they'd have been sleeping out of sight and I'd break a spring in the car.....
Yi couldnae make it up!
Little Tern, Ythan Estuary
with a tiny translucent fish
Arctic Tern
Sandwich Tern
I lost the Common Tern photo
Sand Martin
Eider drake, no ducklings seen on the day
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