Day 2 of Wales

Im in Anglesey, Wales (well, strictly speaking Im sat on the sofa, back-blipping...).
Yesterday was amazing at RSPB Conwy and NWWT's Cemlyn!!

Today Im off to RSPB South Stack with the main aim of seeing the charismatic Chough- a rare member of the Corvid (Crow) family and the only British member that Im yet to see!

I arrived at 8:30. The area was thick in fog and I couldn't even see the lighthouse from the visitor centre! I walked down to the Seabird tower (that wasn't open yet) and was amazed to see thousands of breeding seabirds- Guillemots and Razorbills, the Northern hemispheres version of penguins, Fulmars, an albatross like bird that can fire foul-smelling snot at potential egg thieves, and Kittiwakes, a beautiful gull with wing tips that appear to have been dipped in black ink!

Then, as I was turning away from the cliff to follow the coastal path two medium-sized birds flew over my head. My first EVER Choughs within about 10 minutes of me arriving!!

WOW!! I couldn't believe it! I followed them through my bins and watched them disappear over the cliff edge; i was quick to follow, though I [[just paused to read the last line and realized that it sounds like I jumped off the cliff!!...]] missed them.

The fog was still heavy, visibility poor, in fact it didn't clear up completely when i left at 3:00PM!! The plants around the path were gorgeous though! On the sea I could just about sea small rafts of auks, mainly razorbills. The fulmars were flying really close, they were incredible flyers!

It didnt take long for me to find another Chough. This one was feeding on a grass-covered cliff. It gave me the best views I'd have of one so far. I could see its red decurved beak and scarlet feet, contrasting brilliantly with glossy black plumage. Then it tossed itself i nto the air and treated me to a spectacular flight display involving stoops which I managed to photograph, poorly.. see here.

Then I watched two Peregrines get mobbed by a group of Herring Gulls! I continued on the path and was treated to the wonderful (yet slightly scary..) sound of a Raven which revealed itself. What a big bird- huge, massive, gigantic!! Incredible!

Shortly after i saw two Skylarks, Meadow Pipits, a Shag and a Wheatear. I continued to regularly see Choughs and get even better views of birds in flight and on the ground including the pair that can be viewed on the RSPB webcams- Mr. and Mrs. Mousetrap, so named because they nest in an area know as Mousetrap..

Stonechats, a small group of Gannets, loads of Linnets, a pair of Shelduck, Oystercatcher and two Puffins were also seen!

Although I took photographically better photos of other species, this one of a Chough easily made todays Blip! See more of this weekends pics on my
Flickr account and my Facebook page Monedula Media


I had an amazing day today and can now say I've seen every British member of the Corvid family- YAY!! In fact, i saw every single British member this weekend, excluding Hooded Crow though they did get seen at South stack while I was there.

P.S- Happy Birthday Em!!