Bird of Prey species no 7!

After working on some dry stone wall on Smaull Farm, myself and David take a little time to walk the nearby cliffs. As we approach we notice a white bird perched on the seaward side of the top of one of the nearby high points. Our first glance is a casual one, but it looks like a bird of prey. Is it really that white, or is it somehow shining in the sun?

It seems to be facing us and it looks like a Falcon of some sort, but neither of us has seen anything quite like it before. We take it in turns to watch it whilst the other one moves into a closer position, with a better view.

Eventually David has climbed the hill between us and the bird. It still hasn’t moved, but from my position I can see that it isn’t just the front that’s white. It’s turned to the side, and it has pale wings, with dark flecks down them and it’s front. At the bottom of each wing is a darker tip.

David is in place so I make my dash for the hill. As I get to the top he’s standing up. Apparently, in the small amount of time it took him to shift position, the bird has flown, and we don’t know where.

We head over to the house of Ian & Margeret Brooke, local RSPB volunteers, and author of an Islay bird blog. Ian has some photos that he shows us from the last time such a visitor was seen nearby, and it confirms David’s suspicions that we have been watching a Gyr Falcon, the white form, probably a visitor from Greenland.

On the way back to the farm we see two Hen Harriers and numerous Buzzard and a decent sized group of Geese (although the groups about now are small in comparison to the numbers that arrive together, in Autumn).