So,with this in mind i headed over to my fave seaside town,Scarborough and with the added interest of the resident flock of Black-necked Grebes i was in for a good day.
I arrived bright and early and parked at Marine Drive and after bumping into fellow birders Justin Carr and local birders Micky Mcnaghten and Chris Bell,we began to watch the sea for the first few hours of the day.
The wind was still blowing from the north,but a lot calmer than the previous day,but the day was going to be a wet one,with banks of wintry showers throughout the day.
As hoped for it wasn't long before we logged our first of the days north bound Little Auks as several birds passed by,most of which were nice and close in,with one actually landing on rocks close by,briefly,before carrying on its journey.This cracking little bird is one of the commonest seabirds in the world and is always a privilege to see.
Other north bound birds included a cracking Red-necked Grebe close in,probable Great-northern Diver,several Red-throated Diver,Red-breasted Merganser,Guillemots and Razorbill and a group of 4 Black-necked Grebe just off the Harbour.
Other interest in between watching the seabirds was provided by 3 Harbour Porpoise and 2 Grey Seal,always great to see.
After this great start i made my way down to the harbour and this is where i spent the remainder of the day.
After arriving at the harbour side along with Chris,it wasn't long before i was enjoying my closest views of Black-necked Grebe ever,with some amazingly close views of 2 individuals,1 an adult and 1 a juv/1st winter.It was a tad worrying watching them diving in amongst all the rubbish and diesel polluted water.
It wasn't long before we were joined by other hope full photographers and birders which included birding friends,Mike Robinson,Steve Race and Alex Meek and the first of at least 7 Little Auk in the harbour area.This,as the Black-necked Grebes,included some cracking close up views of this super little seabird and other species observed in around the harbour included 39 Purple Sandpiper,Rock Pipits,Turnstone,2 adult Med Gulls and a drake Eider.
So what a great day today,despite the weather,with some excellent bird encounters and good banter along the way.
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| Early morning off Marine Drive. |
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| North bound Little Auks off Marine Drive. |
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| A slightly closer north bound Little Auk off the harbour. |
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| Black-necked Grebe in the harbour. |
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| Black-necked Grebe in the harbour. |
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| Purple Sandpipers roosting off the east pier. |
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| A brief spell of sunshine at the harbour. |
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| Little Auk in the harbour. |
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| Little Auk in the harbour. |
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| Little Auk in the harbour. |
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| Little Auk in the harbour. |
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| Close up of one of the Little Auks in the harbour. |
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| Some familiar faces watching one of the Little Auks in the harbour. |
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