Carreg (near Aberdaron) - 21st -29th Oct

Although based in Shropshire, I spent a week on the coast of the Lleyn between 21st - 29th October. We have a holiday home there and visit pretty regularly throughout the year.

Having spent the last ten or so years trudging up and down Porth Meudwy with limited success, I decided to try and find a new passerine site. In previous years I had thought the small (around half a hectare at a guess) woodland at Carreg (near Porth Oer) looked promising so concentrated my efforts here. Although access to the interior of the wood isn't possible, you can walk the perimeter which affords generally sufficient views.

It was immediately obvious that the site hosted a decent number of migrants with about six chiffchaff present and a few blackcap. After a couple of hours on Monday 24th I had my first notable bird at the site - a yellow-browed warbler. In fading light, photos were difficult.
The next couple of days didn't produce anything exciting, although chiffchaff numbers built (or birds became more obvious) up to about ten. These included one incredibly pale bird which looked good during brief views for Siberian, but frustratingly didn't call. A dodgy pic below.

Having not seen the yellow-browed warbler for three days, I located presumably the same bird on 29th. This time, it called occasionally which it hadn't previously.

While watching the y-b warbler a small tit flock passed which included this little gem.


I found the key bird areas to be a small stone wall-enclosed yard adjacent to the road, just before the farm, the chiffchaff certainly favoured the ivy covered walls and hawthorn trees here. The yellow-browed warbler and firecrest were both seen from the field to the north of the woodland.

Also when driving to Carreg on 27th a ring-tail, presumably hen, harrier briefly from the car over clear fell at SH20021 30805. It had disappeared by the time I stopped the car and a brambling with chaffinch in a field near Carreg.