Cuckoos have had another good breeding season on Barra with at least 18 juveniles recorded so far. #birdingscotland
Bruce Taylor
@barrabirder.bsky.social
Birder, beachcomber and all round naturalist living on the Isle of Barra, Outer Hebrides.
Found our first Violet Sea Snail of the year washed ashore on Vatersay today following a moderate arrival of By-The-Wind Sailors over the past week. #beachcombing
This has been a fantastic year for orchids on Barra and it's not over yet! Irish Lady's Tresses are now coming into flower, while Frog, Lesser Butterfly, Pyramidal, Northern Marsh, Common Spotted and Common Twayblade are still putting on a fine display. @ukorchids.bsky.social
By-The-Wind Sailor on Traigh Eais, one of many hundreds washing ashore along with thousands of Moon Jellyfish on Barra today in a fresh westerly breeze. #beachcombing
Great Yellow Bumblebee coming in to feed on Kidney Vetch. It's a really good year for both on Barra's machair. #bumblebees
Young Cuckoos are popping up in all sorts of odd places around Barra at present, keeping their Meadow Pipit foster parents busy! #birdingscotland
Big thanks to Ulf Berthelsen for amazing news about the ringed Little Tern I saw on Barra last week. Turns out it was ringed on 30th March 2025 4635km south of the Isle of Barra at La Langue de Barbarie National Park, SENEGAL! #birdingscotland
Our evening wind-down took an unexpected turn when a Honey Buzzard flew south past the lounge window! A genuine rarity on the Outer Hebrides, this is the third I've found on Barra and a house tick too (no.154). #birdingscotland
Northern Colletes solitary bees are currently very active on Barra's sand dunes. This cluster on Knapweed presumably contained a female!
After years of checking Little Tern legs on Barra I finally found one with a ring! Appears to be Z10 on a green ring. Record submitted and awaiting details about where and when it was ringed. #birdingscotland
We've had unusually high numbers of Kittiwakes feeding off the east side of Barra for the past week. At one point this afternoon we had c1100 in view from the headland at Leanish with numerous feeding flocks stretching away into the distance. #birdingscotland
Our first returning flocks of Icelandic Black-tailed Godwits were dropping in on the rainy Barra machair today. A few Dunlin flocks and some extra Redshanks on the beaches too. It's starting to feel a bit like autumn... #birdingscotland
Juvenile Cuckoos are starting to appear around Barra just a few days after the adult Cuckoos departed. Last year we recorded 21 youngsters; hoping for similar success this season. #birdingscotland
After a poor season in '25, Frog Orchids are having a far better year on Vatersay with many hundreds currently in flower. @ukorchids.bsky.social
Non-native Gunnera, Isle of Barra. From 1 plant in the late 90s to 700+ today, this wannabe Triffid is thriving in the damp peaty soil but shading out native flora including rare Irish Lady's Tresses. There's talk of an eradication scheme; it can't come soon enough. #InvasivePlants #wildflowerhour
Painted Lady taking a rest at Eoligarry jetty this afternoon, one of dozens of these freshly arrived migrant butterflies around Barra and Vatersay today.
A lovely brood of Red-breasted Mergansers out and about on Barra today: the first chicks we've seen this season, with hopefully more to come. #birdingscotland
Whinchats don't often nest on Barra, in fact the most recent territorial bird that I'm aware of was in 2022. Pleasing therefore to have 2 pairs breeding this year in close proximity to each other. #birdingscotland
It's been a very poor spring for Spotted Flycatchers on Barra with far fewer birds than usual, but despite this a pair have established a territory and look set to breed, something that only occurs once every 4-5 years here. #birdingscotland
Juvenile Wheatear from the class of '26: one of many out and about on the hillsides of Vatersay this afternoon. #birdingscotland
The Cuckoos are still in fine voice on Barra this evening but the season's passing all too quickly and there's only a fortnight until the adult depart. #birdingscotland
Always a good bird to find on Barra, this female Red-backed Shrike livened up our visit to Nask this morning. #birdingscotland
Mistle Thrush has never been more than a scarce migrant on Barra, most records occurring in March and Oct/Nov. We were surprised therefore to find a breeding pair in a pocket of conifers high up a hillside today. A new breeding species for Barra. #birdingscotland
This Common Sandpiper has been hanging around in front of our house an awful lot just lately, calling frequently. We're fully expecting to hear the patter of tiny sandpiper feet before long! #birdingscotland
Better late than never, our first Spotted Flycatcher of the year on Barra. Truth be told though, as lovely as flycatchers are, this was poor consolation for missing Barra's first ever Red-rumped Swallow at Traigh Mhor this morning, an outstandingly good find by James Heal!
After a quiet spell, some new migrants on Barra today, best of which was a Golden Oriole at Nask. Just about annual here, mostly in late spring, today's bird was typically elusive and only seen briefly in flight. This Grasshopper Warbler nearby showed a whole lot better. #birdingscotland
This spell of strong north-westerly winds has so far failed to bring any Long-tailed Skuas our way, but it did bring this Grey Nickar in to Vatersay, the first sea bean we've found in months and one that's drifted 4000 miles or more since falling from its parent plant in the Caribbean. #beachcombing
It seems to be another excellent year for Sedge Warblers on Barra with birds belting out song wherever we go. Our highlight today though was a Hobby flying south past Brevig, a barely annual species here. #birdingscotland
Last summer a rogue Oystercatcher on Barra developed a strange infatuation with cars, especially those in Oystercatcher colours. Got back to our car today to find it's up to its old tricks again... #birdingscotland
