There was 14 mm of rain last night and some easterlies: this morning the redwings were streaming in on the pulses of remaining rain. This evening it is incredible: redwings calling constantly over Crail as they come in their hundreds and thousands. Tomorrow morning may be quite exciting. But today, still no yellow-browed warblers. It was still again so they should have been easily detectable. I may have heard one call distantly, but it wasn’t repeated and there were several coal tits calling around Upper Kilminning to provide confusion. There were more blackbirds and song thrushes at Upper Kilminning as well, and probably a new chiffchaff. But again, the best of the birding was to be had at Fife Ness. Visibility wasn’t so good, so it was only the closer in birds I saw. My first Arctic skua (an adult pale phase) for a week or two, chasing a kittiwake, before heading off strongly south again. Another couple of black-throated divers headed south. The passage of little gulls was reduced to just a few birds, still heading south, but I picked up more kittiwakes today and a single adult Mediterranean gull. The best bird of the day was a late common sandpiper, initially on the rocks below the hide at Fife Ness. They are normally a late summer passage bird, rather than a late autumn bird: late enough for me to double check for a spotted sandpiper (the American version of common sandpiper).
Wild Crail 
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