Holy Shwift!!

Ha, not 24 hours ago I wrote 'migration has pretty much ground to a halt......roll on august'. How very unnecessary! 

This morning Blakeney Point reminded us in spectacular fashion once again to never write it off for producing the rares. We were just watching a Whitethroat in the Plantation, the first migrant warbler for a week or so, when an Alpine Swift zoomed low over the dunes in front of us, went right over our heads and towards the mainland. It being the last day of June and therefore rubbish for birding I had left the camera in the lifeboat house, bugger! The bird was slowing down a little bit and having watched the movements of Common Swift over the last few days I figured that there was a chance it might swing around over the dunes again. I sprinted back to the house in a time that would probably qualify me for the olympics (if there was an event for 200 metres over sand, in flip flop,s with SLC's swinging around your neck), grabbed the camera, and just as I emerged from the door, heart pounding, to my great surprise the bird was streaking past again and I managed a few shaky shots before it disappeared over the harbour. This was only the 2nd record for The Point following one at The Hoods on 14th June 1962.

The only bird of note today was this Arctic Skua harassing Terns between The Point and the array of bird mincers.