May 29th

Still lots of arctic terns close in at Fife Ness

We have had cold weather since Friday, with temperatures around 7 degrees and a chill light haar coming in morning and evening. Kilminning and Fife Ness remains quiet migrantwise this weekend. The breeding common whitethroats and sedge warblers are still trying to make up for it with their exuberant song flights. At sea there are still arctic terns everywhere. Of note today was a large flock of common scoters going north and a pair of teal going south – both species I usually expect much more in the winter rather than in late May. The sea was calm this morning – winds have been light to non-existent all weekend – and so a pod of 10 or so bottle-nose dolphin passing the Ness was very obvious. Whenever I encounter dolphins, or any cetaceans, I always feel for my colleagues that study them – at least I get to see my study animals and don’t have to try to work out what they are doing from a fleeting glimpse of their back once every week, if they are lucky.

Bottlenose-dolphins passing Fife Ness

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