Long Tailed Ducks

It was a strange day - weather wise. damp and misty but from a birding point of view we had some cracking views of ducks and waders. Pale bellied Brent at Blackrock - close enough for photgraphs and then a lovely Scaup flock just off shore. Barnacles rose from the grass to settle again as a grey heron flew over. From the Gaelic College we had superb views of Divers, Barwits, Turnstones, Dunlin - two with dark bellies, and a handful of Knot too. Displaying Goldeneye were a delight as well as 3 Scoter, a couple of Slavonian Grebes, one great Crested and a pair of Long tailed Ducks - as we picked them up the sun burst through for a magical moment. We finished at Skerrols with 26 Whooper Swans gently calling to each other amid rafts of Tufted duck.