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Devon also gets far more winter records than used to. Not unusual to see on ghe last Dec watches of the year and 1st Jan watches. I’ve seen every month Berry Hd!

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More Manx are staying in the N Atlantic in winter, not unusual to see c100 on a winters watch off Pendeen, same thing Galicia , Spain. May be these birds are starting their moult here as they will stay N Atlantic rather than S?!

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Whooops these should be linked to the pelagic not Berry Head! But still the same area over 2 days😂

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3. Also 1w Common Gull and 1w Med Gull at sea

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2. Its interesting many of the Manx are now in moult

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Pelagic out of Brixham today (28/09/26): Great Shearwater (no photo as distant), 3 Sooty (photo), c50 Balearic (photo with Manx), c200 Manx, 3 Arctic Skuas (photo of juv), 1 Bonxie

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Berry Head 07:00-14:30: 2 juv Long-tailed Skuas, 68 Arctic, 9 Bonxie; 1 Great Shearwater, 5 Sooty, 69 Balearic, 93 Manx; 1 Black Tern, 1 Common, 3 Sandwich; 5 Common Scoter; c2000 kittiwakes, 2 Med Gull, 2 Common Gull; c1500 Gannets; c1500 Auks. Many C Dolphins, 2 H Porpoise. 3 Wheatear

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In how many hours Pete? My few trips to Ireland were v.good, have n't calculated the hourly chance. Otherwise I try and do Devon if S in the wind, only Pendeen when I can. I know PG has best Cornish chance but never go there!

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For @wilsonjaredm.bsky.social . Likelihood of Desertas / Zino’s type at Estaca de Bares, personsl take. I’ve done 3 years there with 450hrs watching seen 20: that’s an average of one in 22.5hrs watching. Home, Devon, 4 in 5700 hrs watching, one in 1425 hrs!! A much higher chance at E d B😉

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From the ferry out from Santander on 24/09/26 at 16:30 we saw a distant flock of c150 duck on the sea, they took off and headed west. Looked mainly Pintail with some Shoveler etc. Interesting that Antonio had c80 Pintail past Estaca de Bares that day, that c324km west.

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Photos off camera now at home, more on the Laredo Kelp Gull. Apparently in its 4th calendar-year. The dark eye points to the Southern Africa sub-species, Larus dominicanus vetula. It arrived in Dec 2024 and is well settled! What with White-backed Vulture, two birds I was not expecting in N Spain!!

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From Ferry (from Santander) E Channel heading back to Plymouth, a couple of big ABF Tuna boils, a few Great & Sooty Shears many Manx and a Bonxie. Only cetaceans Common Dolphins

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Biscay yesterday a couple of Fin Whales, one skua but a nice one! Dark/intermediate juv Long-tailed. Full crops as quite distant.

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Off to catch ferry home. A little diversion to Laredo to see the adult Kelp Gull (southern form apparently!). Smart bird👍

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

As my Spanish friends say almost to Galicia😂

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

The Spanish love their art, it certainly adds something special as you drive through the towns.

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Heading back to Santander dropped in at Villaviciosa. Certainly didn’t expect to see Greater Flamingos, 10, rare in Northern Spain! Distant digiscope.

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Estaca de Bares, we are off ended doing 155 hrs of seawatching, but the last couple of days have been dominated by easterly winds. You still get 4 sp of skua, 4 sp shearwater and 5 sp of tern, but moderate numbers. Although I’d be more than happy with that at home!

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Looking at the waders at Ortigueira, nice Spotted Redshank

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

7 on this holiday and unlikely to get another ! Not as many as I saw in 2023 and 2024.0bviously not a description bird here now, but they are attempting to allocate to Desertas or Zino’s type. Also South Polar no longer a description bird! How things move on!

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

I’ve been over here for 3 weeks so much talk of this bird. Think it is being submitted. It’s Antonio’s video.

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

20/09 Estaca de Bares: 4 skua sp plus 2 probable South Polar ( a bit too far out), 4 shearwater sp and 3 tern sp.

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

19/09 Estaca de Bares, not ideal wind, just watched 1700-2030, but still all four skuas including another ad Long-tailed palescens. 7 species of shearwater including another Yelk type. 5 species of tern. Missed a Zino’s at 08:10 this morning as we weren’t there😩

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

5 sp. of skua, 10 South Polar, many Long-tailed (incl. 7 ad palescens) & nice juvs, many full-spooned Poms, relatively good numbers of Bonxies (with a 97 bird day).👍 6 sp. of tern👍 3 sp. of storm-petrel, & a Band-rumped being debated!👍 A variety of passage waders with Grey Phals, 200+ Sabs etc👍

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Looks like the easterly now sets in so off to do some different birding. So seawatched most of 14 days now, putting in 142hrs. Highlights: 4 Desertas type & 3 Zino’s type Petrel ( 2 videoed)👍8 sp. of shearwater if you include Yelk! 4 Barolo👍

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Estaca de Bares 18/09. Another 4 skua day, nice to quite a few juv Long-tails so may be they had a good breeding year. Also a good run of Sooties and Cory’s, just 2 Great Shearwaters!

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Mark D @seaskywatch.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Especially for @runnelstone.bsky.social , what the area around Estaca de Bares looks like. The watch pint this morning and general area

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17/09 Estaca de Bares another South Polar making another 5 skua day. Great Sooty passage maybe c1400 for day!

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Also picked out a poss Yelk. There was a good passage of Balearics, this slimmer pale bird was doing some head-lifting. The Spanish are seeing more and in the Atlantic, apparently some photographs from a pelagic off Portugal. Surely too many are being seen now to just say they are all ‘Menorcan’!!

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Estaca de Bares 17/09 for the official count I did Sooties 0800-1200, be interesting what the final tally will be, but got to c450 (4hrs), best hr 143, before I left to restock on supplies. Back later.

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Yesterday the two huge dogs that guard the goat herd that grazes Estaca decided to come over and disrupt the seawatch. 1st trying knock over a few telescopes, then a bit of a fight! Before calming down - It all happens here! 😂

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You just need to come here one day Dave!

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