31 May:  Clear skies with a moderate to fresh south-westerly in the Strait.

30 May:  Clear skies with some westerly cloud in the morning.  Winds moderate to fresh westerly and south-westerly in the Strait.

 A 30min watch in the morning at Europa Point produced three Gannets, 12 Cory's Shearwaters, 40 Balearic Shearwaters and two Swallows.

A trickle of raptors during the day for a total of four Honey Buzzards, eight Griffon Vultures, six Booted Eagles and 25 Black Kites.  Also seen were 45 Common Swifts and six Swallows.

29 May: Mainly clear skies with some high cloud.  Winds moderate to fresh westerly.

An afternoon watch from Europa point produced a Gannet, 15 Cory's Shearwaters, 70 Balearic Shearwaters, seven Sandwich Terns a Common Swift and a Swallow.

Small numbers of raptors consisted of a Honey Buzzard, a Griffon Vulture, a Short-toed Eagle, five Booted Eagles and 28 Black Kites.

A Grey Heron was mobbed by gulls over Vineyards.  A Turtle Dove was seen at Europa foreshore and two Crested Larks were observed on the Gib side of the border.

28 May:  Mainly clear skies with some westerly cloud  approaching the Rock, and some heavy cloud over Morocco in the morning.  Winds moderate westerly but freshening to a south-westerly in the afternoon.

A slow morning with only five Honey Buzzards, three Booted Eagles and five Black Kites.  The afternoon continued with a trickle of Honey Buzzards, Booted Eagles and Black Kites.

27 May:  Levanter cloud at dawn clearing earlier on to a southerly wind.  High cloud with sunny intervals.

A morning watch from Europa Point produced five Gannets, over 325 Balearic Shearwaters, 36 Cory's Shearwaters, and Audouin's Gull, a Black Kite and three Serins.

Two Melodious Warblers were seen along Transport Lane. Another Melodious Warbler was observed along Europa walks.  Five Honey Buzzards and three Booted Eagles were seen mid afternoon over the Rock heading north.

26 May:  Overcast skies with a low levanter cloud in the morning, and continuing cloudy the rest of the day.  Winds moderate easterly.

 A Turtle Dove was observed at Europa forechore.

24 May:  Clear skies with a light variable wind.

A Cormorant flew north over Europort.  An injured Short-toed Eagle was picked up at St. Mary's School and taken to the rehabilitation Centre.  A Little Swift was seen on the Rock.

20 May:  Mainly clear skies with some clouds developing over the Moroccan and Spanish hills.  Winds light variable becoming light westerly in the afternoon.

Peregrine with a prey item, possibly a Quail.                                R Perez 

19 May:  Some cloud in the morning but mainly clear.  Cloudier in the afternoon as storm clouds approached to the east of the Rock.  Winds light variable to light easterly.

18 May: Some high cloud with sunny intervals in the morning, becoming cloudier with thunderstorms to the east of the Rock which intensified after midday.  Thunderstorms with heavy rain and hail at times continued throughout the early afternoon in a moderate easterly wind, becoming gusty and squally in storms.

 A Barbary Partridge with five chicks were seen around the Observatory.

The last few nets of the Spring ringing campaign were removed, and only a few local birds were trapped and ringed, that consisted of a Blue Tit, a Blackcap, a House Sparrow and two juvenile Greenfinches.

Great Tits were present at upper Withams Road, St. Joseph Estate and Anglo Hispano.  A Robin was also observed at St. Joseph Estate.

17 May:  Cloudy skies with some light drizzle mid morning, followed by sunny spells in the afternoon.  Winds light to moderate easterly.

 A Great Tit was seen along Green Lane.  A Common Sandpiper was observed at Eastern Beach.  A White Wagtail was seen at the Airport terminal.

16 May:  Mainly clear skies with some cloud developing in the afternoon from the south.  Winds light variable becoming light easterly in the afternoon.

The Long-legged Buzzard was seen hunting on the east side of the Rock, below Middle Hill.

15 May:  Clear skies with a fresh south-westerly down the Strait, but light north westerly at the head of the Bay.  Winds turning to northerly in the early afternoon, veering to north-westerly later but remaining fresh south-westerly in the Strait.

Small passage of raptors in the morning, picking up around midday, but slowing again in the early afternoon due to northerlies.  A trickle of raptors continued during the afternoon.

A systematic watch from 08:30-18:00hrs produced a Black-winged Kite*, 532 Honey Buzzards, three Egyptian Vultures, 18 Short-toed Eagles, 10 Griffon Vultures, 66 Booted Eagles, 229 Black Kites, a Marsh Harrier, a Kestrel and a Hobby.  Also seen were 48 Common Swifts,  six House Martins and a Swallow.

 The Robin was still present at Commonwealth Park.

14 May:  Levanter cloud early in the morning, clearing by mid morning.  Winds moderate to light easterly turning to light variable in the afternoon and westerly in the evening.

An evening count from Europa Point produced a Cory's Shearwater, an Osprey, 408 Honey Buzzards, a Booted Eagle, 62 Black Kites and a Swallow.

A Chaffinch was heard singing near Princess Caroline's Battery.

13 May:  Clear skies at dawn, but becoming cloudier with heavy levanter cloud and the first heavy rain shower in many months.  Winds moderate easterly but fresh in the Strait.

 Ringing Totals

A flock of 25 Black Kites flew east over Windmill Hill, early in the morning and seven Honey Buzzards were observed along the east side after midday. A Bee-eater flew over the Observatory.

Two Melodious Warblers were seen around the Vineyards Estate, and a Turtle Dove flew out from the Botanic Gardens.

The Ravens have been confirmed as nesting on the Rock for the first time since the 1980s.  They have two chicks at the moment.

 A Barbary Partridge with several chicks were seen near the Moorish castle.

12 May:  Overcast skies with a heavy levanter cloud but some sunny intervals mid morning and clearing in the afternoon.  Winds moderate easterly, becoming light and variable and turning westerly in the evening.

Ringing Totals

 Massive passage of Honey Buzzards in the evening only noticed as passage came overhead over town, so there may have been several thousand over the bay.  In total from 19:30-21:15hrs there were 4196 Honey Buzzards, an Egyptian Vulture, 13 Booted Eagles, four Marsh Harriers, 249 Black Kites and three Kestrels.  

Robins are present at the St. Joseph's area and at Commonwealth Park.

11 May:  Overcast skies with heavy levanter cloud over much of the region.  Levanter cloud diminishing in the afternoon to give sunny intervals.  Winds moderate easterly.

Ringing Totals

A Melodious Warbler and a Spotted Flycatcher were observed at Commonwealth Park in the morning.  The Long-legged Buzzard remained at Middle Hill.

10 May:  Fog to the east of the Rock, clearing mid morning.  Clear skies for most of the day in a light easterly wind.

Ringing Totals

09 May:  Mainly clear skies with some high cirrus clouds.  Winds light westerly becoming moderate and fresh westerly in the Strait.

Ringing Totals

 A trickle of raptors in the morning gave way to steady passage mid afternoon.

Also seen were two Swallows and a Black Stork. 

08 May:  Clear skies with a light variable wind becoming light easterly.

Ringing Totals

07 May:  Clear skies with a fresh south-westerly in the Strait turning to westerly mid morning, and becoming  moderate in the afternoon and evening.

Most of the passage in the morning took place to the east of the Rock, consisting mainly of Honey Buzzards.  Black Kites, Booted Eagles and Short-toed Eagles flew directly overhead at Europa Point.  By mid afternoon passage had shifted to the Rock with most Honey Buzzards heading north overhead, but numbers dropped as winds were forecast to turn easterly overnight.

One of several hundred Honey Buzzard that crossed the Strait today.                                        C. Perez 

Also seen were three Black Storks, 38 Common Swifts, a Swallow and three Red-rumped Swallows, whilst Serins were present around the Europa point area.

A seabird count from this site in the morning produced seven Gannets, six Shags, a Black-headed Gull and four Audouin's Gulls.

06 May:  Mainly clear skies with some high cloud.  Winds strong south-westerly in the Strait with strong gusts at times.  Winds becoming fresh westerly in the afternoon.

A trickle of raptors throughout the day with most of the Honey Buzzards crossing far to the east of the Rock and arriving several miles along the Costa del Sol.  A few Honey Buzzards and some Black Kites crossed over the Rock, with some scattered individuals in the afternoon.

In total there were 138 Honey Buzzards, a Griffon Vulture, two Egyptian Vultures, 10 Short-toed Eagles, 30 Booted Eagles and a Hobby.

Approximately nine Alpine Swifts were counted at the North face colony.  A Chaffinch was heard singing near Princess Caroline's Battery.

05 May:  Fog bank to the east of the Rock, creeping over the airfield and Europa Point in a light easterly wind.  Fog clearing mid morning but remaining along the Spanish Costa del Sol.  Some high cloud with sunny spells over Gibraltar with a sunny afternoon.

 A Crested Lark was seen along the border fence.

04 May:  High cloud and hazy sunshine.  Winds light westerly but moderate in the Strait becoming light mid afternoon.

A trickle of raptors, mainly Honey Buzzards and Black Kites, crossed the Strait in light winds during the morning, with many flying up the Bay.  This continued throughout the afternoon.

 Also seen were 35 Swallows, two House Martins, and 38 Common Swifts.

03 May: Cloudy with sunny intervals throughout the morning clearing in the afternoon.  Winds moderate to light easterly.

Ringing Totals

A visit to the upper part of Windmill produced the following:-

Upper Windmill Hill

02 May:  Mainly clear skies with some levanter cloud.  Winds moderate to fresh easterly.

Ringing Totals

A Night Heron was observed by Europa Walks, and a Hoopoe was seen by the Cable Car top station.

01 May:  Heavy and low levanter cloud throughout most of the morning, lifting after midday.  Winds moderate easterly.

Ringing Totals

 A Kittiwake was observed from Europa Point.