As the days grow ever shorter we bit the bullet and lit the rayburn yesterday! It's not particularly cold by day yet but the nights out here are getting a wee bit chilly now. Despite the arrival of winter thrushes, woodcock and snipe there is one bird that is a welcome reminder of summer. A late chiffchaff is still gracing out garden. They do winter in the UK but we've never had one this late out here. The previous latest record was 16/11 so this one has broken that record by some distance. Will it stay for the duration? It was certainly finding plenty of flies to eat in the late November sunshine today. It seems to be a year for 'new records' for this species on Ramsey - they bred for the first time out here this year too
The late staying chiffchaff in the farmhouse garden this afternoon
For the time of year the weather is reasonably settled from a wind perspective too so we have taken the opportunity to get gas across for the winter and get on with some outdoor maintenance jobs. Derek has been over helping us and today we got the JCB and tractor out to give them both a run as we have some ploughing to do soon but not before swapping the old plough for a new (well second hand) smaller one - hence the need for the JCB! Despite having a combined age of over 100 both machines started first time! People often ask how we got them over here in the first place. Back in the day the Ramsey farmers used to dismantle tractors and such like at Porth Clais, bring them round in boats and reassemble them in the harbour. Thankfully when these needed to come over (in the 1990's) the RAF stepped in and did it as a training exercise, flying them across the sound by chinook helicopter with cargo nets swinging underneath.
GM and Derek with the JCB and tractor (a Massey Ferguson 35)
The grey seal pupping season is drawing to an end but there are still a few pups being born. Its been a good year and Lisa will update you soon