Shetland - October 2023

My first-ever trip to the Shetland Isles was unforgettable, with great company and amazing birds! Four of us took the ferry over from Aberdeen on Saturday 30th, slightly jealous that our other two companions were already on the island after flying in that morning! We slept anxiously, hoping that the Veery (at the time our target bird) was going to stick the night.

Day 1:

Arriving in Lerwick at 7:00am, we dashed into the car and headed straight for the Veery, which had been frequenting a small line of Sycamore trees near Lunna. Conditions were pretty grim, and we arrived to news that the bird hadn't been seen by the single birder present in the 10 minutes or so he had been there. However, almost immediately a shout went up and the Veery was spotted hunkering down under a tree. The cold, wet weather seemed to reduce the bird's activity, but it was awesome to see such a rare American vagrant at point-blank distance. We came back later in the afternoon when the weather was much better, and to say it showed well was a massive understatement!

What a bird!

We spent some time in the afternoon around Grutness, watching the showy Greenish Warbler for a while and then catching up with flocks of 10+ Snow Bunting and 20+ Twite near the coast.

I see where it gets its name from!

One of 10 Snow Buntings showing at close range

The day concluded with good if brief views of Red-Breasted Flycatcher at Hoswick, alongside a more confiding Spotted Flycatcher.

Day 2:

Another day of mixed weather, but the birds made up for it! We started with the long-staying Bluethroat at Sound, which immediately showed well on a small pile of grass cuttings.

One of the coolest birds, if not the rarest!

We then took a punt on the Eastern Subalpine Warbler, which we had briefly visited the day prior yet only some of the group had caught up with. Thankfully, after disappearing a few times, good views were had along a garden fence. The bird was a female individual, and quite tricky to ID, but the call (which was heard by some) indicated that it was the eastern species.

One of the few moments the Eastern Subalp came into the open

While some of our group had already picked up the Greater Short-Toed Lark, myself and others hadn't so we headed down to Scatness. Initially, things looked pretty bleak, with huge quantities of mobile Skylark and Meadow Pipits making viewing difficult. However, after about an hour a birder gave a hand wave and we rushed over to see the Greater Short-Toed Lark feeding about 50m away in amongst some Meadow Pipits. It was much smaller than I expected, and rather distinct from the ubiquitous Skylarks.

With time to kill we headed to Quendale, where a report of Marsh Warbler had lured Gary. Slightly hopelessly, we headed up the burn in poor weather, when all of a sudden out flew a Marsh Warbler! However, after moving around the iris beds we soon found out there were two Marsh Warblers! Good views of both were had as they flitted around the iris.

I'm not too familiar with Marsh Warblers, so it took a while to ID them both confidently

The day ended with another brilliant bird in the form of Olive-Backed Pipit at Voxter. The bird was in a small walled garden, with a few stunted trees and grass floor. It took me a long time to get on the bird - with no experience of this species, I didn't expect it to be crawling, almost mouse-like, along the grass!

Day 3:

Over first two days we made several attempts to connect with a River Warbler at Brae, unsuccessfully despite putting in the hours. Today, we decided to try once more but aimed to be there for first light. After half an hour, it was deja-vu, before all of a sudden a birder called out than a passerine had come out of the ruderals and into the adjoining pines. The bird was quickly identified as the River Warbler, and over the next hour we had some really decent views of it as it flitted around. I was one of the few to manage to get a shot of this elusive bird, and was shocked how distinct the bird was from the usual Grasshopper Warblers.

About as good as the shots get in driving rain!

We then made our way to Ronas Hill, noting male Merlin along the way, where a report of the mythical Snowy Owl had come in the previous night. Getting to the location is challenging, requiring a 2-mile hike up effectively mountain tundra, with peat bog, boulder fields and scree slopes. Upon arriving in driving wind and rain, we met the news that the inclement weather had forced to bird into a small cave, which was out of view. Thankfully though, after 10 minutes the Snowy Owl emerged, with just the head visible amongst the distant boulders. Not only was this an absolute mega bird in inspiring scenery, it was also my 300th UK species!

After hunkering down, the Snowy Owl eventually performed a short flight

The day ended with even more crippling views of the Olive-Backed Pipit at Voxter.

Apparently showy by their standards!

Day 4:

What was a quieter day for most still provided plenty of excitement for me! We started at Hoswick, where I quickly picked up a Barred Warbler and several Yellow-Browed Warblers, all of which showed well. Austin then did well to pick out a Red-Breasted Flycatcher showing in a nearby garden.

My first Barred Warbler, so distinctive!

For a pretty non-descript bird they're still one of my favourites!

Later in the day, we connected with the Blyth's Reed Warbler at Voe, which was elusive for periods but did show well on a couple of occasions.

Day 5:

Late the previous night, a report of an absolute Shetland speciality came through - a White's Thrush! We hastily made plans to be at the ferry terminal for first light. After a bit of a fume at the ferry personnel who didn't let our car on the first ferry, we parked the car and dashed up the hill to the small plantation where it had been reported.

We met the news that the bird hadn't been seen yet, and judging by the small size of the plantation, things didn't look too hopeful. We did note a Hawfinch shooting out of the plantation, before all of a sudden a burst of shouting from the other side alerted the group to a bird on the edge of the plantation, which suddenly took flight - the White's Thrush! The underwing pattern was incredible as it flew past the group at close proximity. We enjoyed several more flight views in the next hour or so, before we also got a couple of views of it flitting around the group below the pine trees.

One of those mythical Shetland birds!

After leaving Bressay, I managed to dip the supposedly showy Siberian Stonechat at Hamnavoe, though there was consolation as I managed to accidentally self-find a Barred Warbler! We also got really good views of a Minke Whale close to shore, in addition to a couple of Harbour Porpoises.

I've seen a couple of Minke Whales but never this close!

We swapped one stonechat for another, heading for the newly reported Amur Stonechat. The bird was mobile, though we were lucky to catch up with the Amur Stonechat on a fence line, albeit distantly. The bird was quite distinct from our regular Stonechats, though never really came close enough to be satisfied!

We ended the day with a small group of three Slavonian Grebes and associated auks on the sea in a sheltered bay.

Day 7:

After a washout on Day 6, we started Day 7 with a Barred Warbler and Yellow-Browed at Hoswick. Me and Austin then made our way back to Bressay, where after a long wait we had better views of the White's Thrush on the ground, albeit not as well as others later in the week!

Day 8:

Our final day was quite a quiet one, though I did catch up with the Siberian Stonechat, which ended up showing just as well as others had said!

Actually a really cool bird!

I ended the trip with 14 lifers, and 89 species in total (103 for our group as a whole). Five birds stood out - the mythical Snowy Owl, showy Veery, jaw-dropping White's Thrush, crippling Olive-Backed Pipit and elusive River Warbler, though in reality I loved every second!

Trip List:

1. Oystercatcher

2. Herring Gull

3. Raven (common across the island)

4. Starling

5. Hooded Crow (common across the island)

6. Greylag Goose

7. Snipe

8. Common Gull

9. House Sparrow

10. Wren

11. Veery (Lunna)

12. Curlew

13. Turnstone

14. Red-Breasted Merganser (common around coast)

15. Lapwing

16. Pied Wagtail

17. Great Black-Backed Gull

18. Feral Pigeon

19. Shag

20. Robin

21. Goldcrest

22. Greenish Warbler (Grutness)

23. Meadow Pipit

24. Gannet

25. Blackbird

26. Barnacle Geese (several flocks around the island and overhead)

27. Dunlin (several)

28. Fulmar

29. Snow Bunting (10+ at Grutness)

30. Kittiwake

31. Rock Pipit

32. Twite (20+ at Grutness and several other small flocks)

33. Wren

34. Mallard

35. Teal

36. Wheatear (quite a few around)

37. Spotted Flycatcher (one in garden at Hoswick)

38. Red-Breasted Flycatcher (several at Hoswick, one at Swinister)

39. Swallow (a few late ones over)

40. Blackcap (so many false alarms from these!)

41. Garden Warbler (one at Hoswick)

42. Sparrowhawk

43. Merlin (one at Brae, one near Ronas Hill)

44. Great Spotted Woodpecker (an island mega! Self found at Brae, also at Swinister)

45. Grey Heron

46. Brambling (one in Lerwick)

47. Collared Dove

48. Lesser Redpoll (a few around)

49. Redwing (plenty arriving by end of week)

50. Bluethroat (in field at Sound)

51. Black Guillemot (quite a few on the sea)

52. Magpie (another island mega! Self found in Lerwick, also seen on Bressay)

53. Eastern Subalpine Warbler (at Wester Quarff)

54. Skylark

55. Ringed Plover

56. Linnet

57. Lesser Black-Backed Gull

58. Greater Short-Toed Lark (at Scatness)

59. Siskin (small flock at Quendale)

60. Marsh Warbler (two at Quendale)

61. Willow Warbler

62. Olive-Backed Pipit (at Voxter)

63. River Warbler (at Brae on 4th attempt!)

64. Snowy Owl (at Ronas Hill)

65. Yellow-Browed Warbler (several around, mainly at Hoswick)

66. Barred Warbler (a couple at Hoswick, one at Hamnavoe)

67. Lesser Whitethroat (a couple around)

68. Kestrel

69. Blyth's Reed Warbler (at Voe)

70. Woodpigeon

71. Great Northern Diver (two on sea off Hoswick, possibly elsewhere)

72. Eider

73. Hawfinch (briefly in plantation on Bressay)

74. White's Thrush (Bressay)

75. Red-Throated Diver (several on sea)

76. Slavonian Grebe (several on sea)

77. Stejener's/Amur Stonechat (at Norby)

78. Golden Plover (a few decent flocks around)

79. Razorbill

80. Guillemot

81. Red Grouse (a few flying over moorland from the car)

82. Whitethroat

83. Chaffinch

84. Black-Headed Gull

85. Cormorant

86. Siberian Stonechat (at Hamnavoe on second attempt)

87. Peregrine (over car)

88. Whooper Swan (a couple around)

89. Tufted Duck