Dotterel, its a lifer!!

Today whilst sniffing about the net I happened to check out the all about Orkney site and was pleased to find the blog now included in their new wildlife blogs section. This might account for all the extra hits the counter seems to have been accruing this week. Anyway I returned to the site to show the OH what’s been happening there and to have a look at another local bird blog , Literate herrings, this way…(an excellent blog and my first read of it) when I noticed that orkbird had a notification that there were four Dotterel out in Tankerness. They were in the ploughed field behind the old school just past the tip. This is a bird that I have never seen before so it was a case of jump up and shoot off. I am damn glad I did as well!! There were showers on the way and a good strong wind blowing from the north however I was not going to be put off. On arrival I parked in the yard of the old school house and a quick chat with the owner who was building a new shed soon saw mt tucked away in a corner of his yard out of the weather. It took a moment to find the birds but we were soon both enjoying views of this beautiful and elegant bird. It was a lifer for me and once again orkbird shows it’s worth. The photos struggled a bit in the conditions with distance and bluster I hope you enjoy them. The north wind is going to continue for the next few days so there is a possibility that these excellent birds may remain so if your out and about I would urge you to have a look at these rare visitors whilst they are about!!