24th October

Having spent the last few days working around Ventnor sites, counting visible migration, I decided to head for St Lawrence - and am very pleased I did!

Starting at Steephill Down, I heard the distinctive ring ouzel call from up to my right, the tussocky, ungrazed downland above the golf course lane. I walked closer to watch as five smart ring ouzels lepped up onto patches of bramble and low hawthorns! Nice start.

I then hurried down Whitwell Road and into Pelham Wood where, in the murk of fog little was in evidence so I decided to hurry on to St Lawrence.

I headed down Woolverton Road and on to the path that cuts through the Glass Centre. As I skirted round the back towards the path that leads down to the top end of Puckaster Cove glen, a small pipit flew low straight over my head and called once - a drawn out, psiih, something vaguely yellow-wag about it but not at all like that if you get my drift! I sort of knew what it was and only confirmed this later when I headed back to listen to bird calls. A nice RED-THROATED PIPIT! I then phoned the news into Birdguides (not yet having any local birder phone numbers). An island tick for me....

I carried on west to Puckaster Glen where 14 chiffchaffs and 7 goldcrests fed in the sallows and willows over the stream.

Moving on, I sat briefly at Puckaster Cove enjoying the on-going viz mig (more details of which to follow), then on, east along the cliff top. After about 200m, I got onto a small falcon sheltering on a ledge at the top of the cliff face. Through bins, it was clearly a RED-FOOTED FALCON! It took off pretty much immediately but luckily showed at various points, drifting a bit further east as I sneaked up on it. After about half an hour I cut inland across the fields to avoid flushing it, called Birdguides and the two birder's numbers I do actually have, then headed as quickly as possible back home to do a web search for other contact details. I also listened to pipit calls, so confirming the red-throated, then headed back to St Lawrence where I re-located the falcon, this time sitting on one of the rocky outcrops in the cliff-top fields. I spotted it too late and again flushed it, whereupon it drifted back to perch on a cliff ledge. It then dropped east out of view, so I again decided to cut inland to avoid disturbing it and await the unlikely arrival of other observers. Ian Riddett did appear as did another Ian who's second name escapes me, but we failed to re-locate the bird by dusk.

Hopefully it'll remain for tomorrow.....

Incidentally, I had what was probably the pipit fly east calling at the coastguards some time between 3 and 4 (just before Ian arrived).