Hi Everybody
Here is the remainder of the RSPB Local Group programme for 2013:
Sat/Sun 27th/27th July - Storm Petrel Ringing
A night event led by Alan Leitch to watch the catching and ringing of the nocturnal storm petrel and listen to their eerie calls. Contact RSPB office on 01856 850176.
Weekend 3rd/4th August
Joint event with Orkney Field Club and the Wildlife Explorers Group. Moth traps will be set in Malcolm Russell's garden in Finstown on Saturday night and in the morning the night's catch will be examined while receiving expert tuition. Contact Sydney Gauld on 01856 872468.
Sunday 8th Sept - to Stronsay for Autumn Migrants
Off again to look for migrants on Stronsay - waders, warblers, flycatchers, etc. Contact Dick Matson on 01856 751426.
Sunday 15 or Sunday 22 September - to Sanday for Autumn Migrants
Situated just in sight of Fair Isle, Sanday can be a magnet for migrant birds. Nearer the time the weather forecast will be studied before a final decision on the date is made. Contact Grace Currie on 01856 872742
Other Regular Sessions:
Orkney Mainland Hide Sessions
Visit one of the mainland reserves and watch birds from the hide with RSPB staff who can explain what you are watching and answer questions. The sessions, which take place on most Mondays (whatever the weather), are FREE and you can drop in any time between 9.30 am and 12.30 pm. You don't need to book but for more information call the RSPB Orkney Office on 01856 850176.
The Loons Hide
Join us at this wetland reserve which can host a variety of wildfowl and waders. Meet: The Loons Hide off the B-class road betweenTwatt and Marwick (HY247243).
Dates: June 24; July 8, 22; August 5, 19.
Burgar Hill Hide
The star of the show here is the breeding red-throated diver but a variety of other wildfowl, waders and an occasional skua or raptor can be expected also.
Meet: Burgar Hill Hide off the A966, north of Evie. Follow the signposts to hide which overlooks Lowrie's Water, Birsay (HY345257).
Dates: June 17; July 1, 15, 29; August 12, 26
Orkney Mainland Guided Walks
Watch birds and other wildlife on a guided walk with RSPB staff. Bookings must be made beforehand with the RSPB office on 01856 850176. Duration is up to 2 hours and stout footwear and waterproofs are required. RSPB members go free but the cost is £5 for non-members; £2 children 12-18; under 12 free.
Marwick's Seabird City
Come see, hear and smell the seabird spectacle at this magnificent reserve.Time 10 am. Meet Marwick Bay Car Park (HY230242).
Dates (all Wednesdays): July 3, 24.
Hobbister Coastal Walk
Come for a walk through this moorland reserve and along the Scapa Flow coastline. Time 9.30 am. Meet Hobbister Car Park off the A964 (HY395069)
Dates (all Wednesdays): June 26; July 17.
Brodgar
Learn about Orkney's birds and wildlife on a pleasant, easy guided walk on the RSPB reserve surrounding the Ring of Brodgar.
Time 10 am, duration up to 2 hours. Meet Ring of Brodgar Car Park (HY295135).
Dates (all Wednesdays) June 19; July 10.
Archeology & Birds at Brodgar - two-in-one.
Guided walk around the Ring of Brodgar led jointly by Historic Scotland Rangers and RSPB staff. Learn about the history as well as the birds and wildlife.
Time 10 am. Duration 1 hour. Meet Ring of Brodgar Car Park (HY295135). Free event.
Walks take place on Thursdays to July 4.
Wild Hoy Walks
Use your senses to explore the amazing wild landscape of Hoy by joining the RSPB Warden to learn more about the wildlife and history of the reserve. Duration 2-3 hours. Bring packed lunch & binoculars. Meet: Moaness Pier 10.30 am. Cost £5 adults; £2 children aged 12 to 18; children undeer 12 & RSPB members free. N.B. Extra cost for local bus transport of approx. £2. Booking essential: Warden on 01856 791391.
Dates (All Tuesdays) June 18, 25.
RSPB PapaWestray Guided Walks
Guided walks by the RSPB Warden around the RSPB reserve of North Hill where you can witness life in the seabird city along the cliffs, watch spectacular aerial chases between terns and skuas and enjoy the wild flowers. Booking essential.
Wednesdays & Saturdays to August 31.
(There will be a few dates in this period when there is no walk - please check).
Time 1.30 to 3.30 pm. Meet: Rose Cottage. Cost: free. For info and bookings contact the warden Sarah West: 01857 644240. Donations welcome.
Orkney Field Club events
Here are some of the future activities:
Sun 7th July Wildflowers, Butterflies & Birds of South Walls
A visit to the Hill of White Hammars SWT Reserve in South Walls, Hoy to see an amazing range of plants, insects and birds of wetland and maritime heath. We should find Primula scotica, orchid species including the rare frog orchid, many other wildflowers, wading birds, butterflies and damselflies. Ferry departs Houton at 9am and Lyness at 16.30 on return. Contact Dick Matson 751426 (email: r.matson42@btinternet.com). Booking essential.
Sat 6th, Sat 13th or Sun 14th July Dragonflies and Wildflowers of North Hoy
Taking the spectacular ferry journey from Stromness to Moaness; on foot to Sandy Loch to look at the damselflies and wildflowers of that area; then by minibus to Rackwick and nearby lochans to locate previously undiscovered breeding pools of the (rare in Orkney) 4-spot chaser dragonfly and emerald damselfly. Time permitting we will also have a search for grasshoppers. We return to Moaness by minibus. Ferry departs Stromness at 9.30am and Moaness on return at 18.30. Contact Dick Matson on 751426 (email: r.matson42@btinternet.com). Booking essential.
Sat 20th July BSBI Field Event
OFC members are invited to join BSBI outing to record plants for the Atlas 2020 project around Carness/Head of Work/Bay of Meil on Saturday 20 July. Contact John Crossley on 831507 (email: john.crossley@uku.co).
Sun 28th July International Bogs Day
An exploration of the nature and beauty of an Orkney bog. Bogs look dull and brown but they are full of life! This includes insectivorous plants, brilliantly coloured mosses, insects and birds. This special outing will involve artists and naturalists giving their own insights into this ancient landscape. Come along and be inspired. The venue will the burn of Lushan (off the Hillside Road). Meet in Dounby main car-park.
Come & see the Hen Harrier chicks!
The eggs are now all hatched and proud mum is looking after 4/5 chicks (when I was last on duty at the Kirkwall Visitor Centre I did my best to count the bobbing heads but it was very difficult!) Dad provided a small bird for the family which the fluffy youngsters devoured greedily and mother had to make do with the legs! Hen Harrier chicks grow very quickly so I would advise members to go along soon to the Kirkwall Visitor Centre and take a look at the fascinating live footage.
It's not such good news from the puffincam from Sumburgh Head in Shetland I'm afraid. After watching the puffins take turns on the nest, staff at the Visitor Centre were dismayed to switch on the camera one morning to find just an empty nest! What a great pity.
Bag-packing at Tesco
I know it's a long way off yet, but here's a reminder about the RSPB Local Group bag-packing on Fri/Sat 18th/19th October. It's a fantastic opportunity to raise funds for local conservation here in Orkney. Last year's volunteers raised over £1300 and I hope to match this amount in 2013. However, to do this I need plenty of willing people to lend a hand for an hour or two on either day. My list is open now so if you feel able to help I would be grateful to hear from you. Either email me or phone 01856 741382. Many thanks in anticipation!
Local Group AGM
More advance notice - this time of our group's Annual General Meeting which will be taking place on Wednesday 13th November at the St. Magnus Centre. The AGM is usually over quite quickly and this will be followed by A Report from the Orkney Reserves which will be particularly interesting this year with the 'Enjoy Wild Orkney' project on the go.
Corncrakes
A reminder that the RSPB Cornrake Initiative Officer Amy Liptrot is keen of hear of any reports of calling corncrakes. Her contact details are:
Amy Liptrot, Project Officer - Corncrake Initiative 01856 852 029
You can also email her: Amy.Liptrot@rspb.org.uk. Please let her know the location of the corncrake (grid reference) if possible and the time and date you heard the bird.
I have no news just yet about how many birds are in Orkney although but hopefully I will hear the latest from Amy very soon.
I do have some Corncrake news however, as just last night I had a phone call to say one has been heard here in Deerness so I have passed on the news to Amy.
Shapinsay outing appreciated
On the trip to Shapinsay at the end of April we welcomed Bruce & Cathleen Wheatley all the way from Alabama in America who have since sent me the following email about their holiday in Orkney:
Hi Pauline. We enjoyed meeting you and the others. It was very nice of Julie to get hold of you and your group and to have us tag along. We saw another otter at the pier on Rousay. Finally saw some hunting arctic terns off Papa Westray, puffins up close on Westray. Very impressed with the flying abilities of fulmers on the cliffs of Noup and elsewhere. I thank you very much for the use of your binoculars. They were most useful and that was very nice of you. We are having summer weather already as it is 90 degrees and very humid with much worse to come. I can imagine the fields of wildflowers coming up soon in Orkney. Our best to all, Bruce & Cathleen.
It's great when visitors to Orkney are able to join in our local events and gain enjoyment from this.
Orkney Bird Report
Jim Williams has sent me an email about the difficulties he is encountering in producing the latest Bird Report:
The 2012 report should have been published this week.Unfortunately I’ve just been told that the company ‘sooth’ which binds the reports has ceased trading. I suspect it will be in the same situation as Ortak recently, so they may be able to restart while they find a buyer. In the meantime this is leaving us in limbo as the company has the cover page which is printed at The Orcadian.
It’s out of my control obviously, but Orcadian are in process of seeing what they can do – if the company is able to restart production then all will be well albeit delayed. If not they will look to find another binder to do the work. This could mean a delay of weeks – who knows. I’ll be in touch when I have any further information. Cheers Jim
I hope Jim is able to get things sorted out very soon, especially in view of all the work he and others put in to produce this most interesting book of Orkney bird sightings each year. This latest one is to be special, I understand, as colour is to feature, thanks to the generosity of Tim Wootton who sold some of his artwork towards the costs of production.
Good news at last for Stonechats
I was delighted to read Steve Sankey's email early in June about 3 recently-fledged Stonechats at Hobbister. Here's hoping this is just the start of a change in their fortunes and we will be seeing a lot more of this tiny bird again.
On that cheerful note I will sign off. I am looking forward to a trip into The Gloup tomorrow with Sue Whitworth and other friends then it's off on the Orkney Bus with our eventual destination being Lancashire and Yorkshire. I hope to visit the Marsh Hide in Southport to look at the Avocets and go to Fairburn Ings near Castleford where they do a great line in Tree Sparrows and a chance to spot the Kingfisher. A couple of years ago I saw two Spoonbills here so you never know.
I'll be in touch when I get back.
Best wishes Pauline W/RSPB Orkney Local Group Sec.