Skye Birds - A Birding Guide to the Isle of Skye

Bird sightings on the Island of Skye and the neighbouring area

The objective of these pages is to keep everyone, locals and visitors, up to date with what birds are about. It is therefore dependent on everyone contacting me as quickly as possible to ensure I can update the site so that others might benefit from the observations. In the case of rarer species details would also be passed on the Highland Recorder Peter Gordon (  who may require a full description before the record was accepted. This website will very much be locally focused but has become part of the SOC local recorder system and other networks and we hope we can enhance these systems. We will also have complete discretion as to what information is added to these pages and will try to avoid any details which might reveal breeding sites of vulnerable species.  It is impossible to record everything reported and for the more regularly observed species, we would encourage the use of 'Birdtrack' - http://blx1.bto.org/birdtrack.

Date Species Image Details
27th Feb 2010 Jack Snipe View Image single at Isleornsay (SB)
27th Feb 2010 Barn Owl View Image birds have been very scarce this winter so it was encouraging to see one hunting at Kilmarie, Strath (RMcM)
25th Feb 2010 Skylark View Image flock of 30+ at Dunvegan (R.Wright)
24th Feb 2010 Skye Bird Race the annual bird race will be held on Saturday 6th March. An intrepid team comprising John Phillips, Roger Cottis, Martin Benson and myself will try and record as many species during daylight hours - all going well anything between 65-75 species. This year we plan to donate to the Haiti Disasters Emergency Committee so if anyone out there would like to support our fundraising please get in touch. (Bob)
23rd Feb 2010 Whooper Swan View Image 9 on a frozen Loch na Sguabaidh at the head of Loch Slapin (RMcM)
23rd Feb 2010 Red-breasted Merganser View Image 26 in Kilmarie Bay, Loch Slapin (RMcM)
23rd Feb 2010 Golden Plover 14 at Ardnish + 8 Lapwing & 5 Snipe (A&EH)
22nd Feb 2010 Black-throated Diver View Image 17 in Loch Slapin (RMcM)
21st Feb 2010 Lapwing 9 at Ardnish, Broadford (A&EH) and 12 at Staffin (RMcM)
21st Feb 2010 Golden Plover 23 at Kilmaluag & 9 at Camas Mor, Bornesketaig (RMcM)
21st Feb 2010 Turnstone 36 at Ardnish + 18 Dunlin & 6 Ringed Plover (A&EH)
21st Feb 2010 Bar-tailed Godwit View Image 15 at Loch Portree (RMcM)
20th Feb 2010 Wigeon away from normal areas, 16 at Kinloch, Dunvegan (M.Cullen)
19th Feb 2010 Skylark View Image returning birds now showing with 4 at Lower Milovaig & at Elgol, and a good count of 16 at Roag (AS,RMcM,HW)
19th Feb 2010 Sheduck count of 13 at Roag (HW)
19th Feb 2010 Hen Harrier View Image ringtail at Upper Milovaig (AS)
15th Feb 2010 Redwing View Image c20 at Lower Milovaig singing in the trees - spring is coming? (AS)
15th Feb 2010 Gannet 9 flew past Neist Point where there were 119 occupied Fulmar sites (AS)
15th Feb 2010 White-tailed Eagle View Image juvenile picked up in The Minch flying from the Benbecula direction to Neist, then went on to Waterstein Head where it landed (AS)
13th Feb 2010 Purple Sandpiper View Image still good numbers at Ardnish with 14, + 48 Turnstone, 8 Great Northern Diver & 6 Lapwing (A&EH)
13th Feb 2010 Fieldfare View Image group of 12 at Glasphein - otherwise very few winter thrush groups still around (AS)
12th Feb 2010 BTO Atlas Winter Visits the weather is good for getting out and finishing off any outstanding winter visits to tetrads before the end of the month. However, birds are certainly scarcer and on three single hour tetrad visits to-day I only found 4 species with one tetrad a complete blank. No Robins, Dunnocks or Wrens which had been found in the early winter visits, so perhaps the severe weather has taken its toll (RMcM)
12th Feb 2010 Purple Sandpiper View Image good count of 12 on Ardnish, Broadford (DR)
11th Feb 2010 Common Crossbill View Image a pair in the Eynort forestry (JThomas)
11th Feb 2010 Whooper Swan View Image 6 flying north at 500' over Dunvegan (Rob Wright)
11th Feb 2010 Slavonian Grebe great conditions for counting with 17 between Camas na Sgianadin and Lusa (RMcM)
11th Feb 2010 Great Northern Diver View Image 48 in late afternoon moving to deep water off Lusa (RMcM)
10th Feb 2010 Great Northern Diver View Image numbers building up with 39 at Loch Slapin & 18 Black-throated Diver (RMcM)
10th Feb 2010 Slavonian Grebe 2 off Kyleakin jetty + 24 Eider (A&EH)
9th Feb 2010 Long-tailed Tit View Image a party of 10 during tetrad visits on the island of Soay was an unexpected find - total of 28 species recorded during counts in 3 tetrads (RMcM, KC)
9th Feb 2010 Common Crossbill View Image pair at Strathellen Wood, Plockton (BN)
7th Feb 2010 Common Crossbill View Image 5 in Waternish Forest including a pair display flighting (RMcM)
6th Feb 2010 Black-throated Diver View Image 15 in Loch Slapin + 21 Great Northern Diver (RMcM)
3rd Feb 2010 Reed Bunting View Image pair feeding on the lawn at Carbost with other finches (JT)
2nd Feb 2010 Hen Harrier View Image nice male at The Aird, Balmeanach, Braes (WM)
2nd Feb 2010 Golden Eagle View Image territorial birds are getting active with a pair showing well above Scalpay (JP) and another pair over North MacLeod's table (Rob Wright)

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