Birds are blooming across the isles! In our wetlands, marshland, and farmland young chicks are leaving their nests to enter the world! Marking the occasion, our monitoring officer, Matt Marsh, has ranked his top five favourite birds to see in Orkney!
5. Black Guillemot ‘Tystie’
“You might hear their quiet ‘tsseee’ calls as they gather together close to our shores for breeding. They’re one of the first to return to Orkney to do this. They don’t nest in dense colonies like our other seabirds, instead they’re found all around the coast. 15% of the UK’s breeding population of Black Guillemot’s are found in Orkney!”
4. Lapwing ‘Teehick’
“These are common to wetlands and fields in Orkney. Their local name comes from the ‘teehick’ sound males call when performing their swooping flight displays in spring. They’re one of the first wading birds to breed each year, and always a great sign of spring! Their nests are by far the most common species we find when monitoring - but that doesn’t make them any less special!”
3. Hen Harrier ‘Ketabelly'
“Before moving up here I had seen maybe two or three hen harriers in my life. Now I could see that same number in just a morning! You’ll see the ghost grey males coursing over heather as they hunt voles or meadow pipits. I’m yet to see them sky dancing, and must put more effort into watching them next spring! Up to 20% of their breeding UK population lives in Orkney.”
2. Great Skua ‘Bonxie’
“I know it’s controversial, but they’re one of my favourite Orcadian species! Perhaps having not grown up amongst them, I never had the misfortune of being dive-bombed - they are fiercely protective parents! I was lucky enough to count most of their colonies on Orkney last year to determine how they’d been affected by bird-flu. Unfortunately the results were clear, with some colonies, like their stronghold on Hoy, suffering more than an 80% decline.”
1. Curlew ‘Whaup’
“These are beautiful and enigmatic birds with a long bill and haunting call! They’re typically associated with uplands and moors down south, but you’ll find them all over the islands in Orkney. They are also long-lived - some have been found around 30-years-old! Orkney is a stronghold for Curlew populations when compared to the severe declines they’re experiencing in the rest of the UK and Ireland.”
Unfortunately some of these incredible bird species also face a serious risk of decline in Orkney due to the arrival of non-native stoats. Stoats are skilled hunters, need to eat a lot, and breed very quickly. Because they are not native, they face no natural predators on the islands.
If you’ve seen a stoat, report it to us at orkenynativewildlife.org.uk/report.