After all the fog and murk while others basked in the heatwave we finally had a scorching day last Thursday - the mercury hit a whopping 26C, hot for out here, and didn't drop below 18C that night, the highest night time temperature logged in 15 years of regular recording.
Today however has been muggy and wet with steady rain falling from mid morning onwards. It didn't stop the birds though with migrants on their way to Africa for the winter stopping off and using the island as a crucial refueling station. Most numerous today were willow warblers, with 64 logged across the island. There were smaller numbers of whitethroat and a single spotted flycatcher. A pied flycatcher was probably the 3rd different bird in the past 2 days, part of a notable movement of this species down the western coast of Wales with Skomer, Skokholm and the nearby mainland also recording good numbers in recent days. Hopefully this is a sign of good breeding season in the ancient oak woodlands of mid Wales this year.
It's not only land birds on the move. With hardly a breath of wind at sunrise (not that there was a sunrise!), the rasping screech of Sandwich terns making their way south over a glassy calm Ramsey Sound pierced the still morning air.
Chough numbers remain high (I'm sounding like a stuck record now!) - the largest flock in the past few days has been 50 (with 62 logged in total that day). Despite the rain 48 were logged today.
More grey seal pups are popping out but more on that next time!
Willow warbler in the rain (not looking best pleased)
Pied flycatchers using the washing line as a insect catching perch
(click on photos to see them at larger size)