30 Jan:  Overcast skies also with levanter cloud over the Rock, town and harbour.  Winds moderate easterly with some strong gusts.  Sunny intervals late evening.

Ringing Totals

A late afternoon visit to Europa Point produced nine Gannets, eight Cormorants, three Shags, 17 Black-headed Gulls and a solitary Mediterranean Gull.

29 Jan:  Overcast skies and light drizzle at dawn.  Levanter cloud over the Rock, town and harbour in a moderate easterly wind.

Ringing Totals

At Europa Point there were 22 Gannets, five Cormorants, six Shags, a Common Sandpiper and 40 Black-headed Gulls.

28 Jan:  Overcast skies and levanter cloud over the Rock, town and harbour in a moderate easterly wind.

Ringing Totals

 A Sparrowhawk was seen hunting along Signal Station Road.  Other  birds along this site were two Barbary Partridges, 12 Feral Pigeons, two Ravens, a Blue Tit, two Chiffchaffs, three Blackcaps, nine Sardinian Warblers, six Wrens, four Robins, a Black Redstart and a Greenfinch.

In the afternoon at Europa Point there were 32 Gannets east, 27 Balearic Shearwaters west, two Cormorants, five Shags, 105 Black-headed Gulls, a Mediterranean Gull and a Sandwich Tern.  Also seen on Europa foreshore were single Turnstone, Chiffchaff, Black Redstart, Stonechat and Meadow Pipit.

27 Jan:  Some wisps of levanter cloud throughout the day.  Winds a moderate easterly.

 At the rocky shores of Seven Sisters there were 10 Cormorants and three Shags and two Grey Wagtails.

26 Jan:  Clear skies in the morning with increasing high cirrus clouds in the afternoon.  Winds light easterly.

Ringing Totals

A 2hr watch from Europa Point produced a steady passage of Gannets west, with flocks of up to four individuals for a total of 50 birds.  Also seen were two Cormorants west, three Shags, 50 Black-headed Gulls below the Point and a Sandwich Tern.

 A visit to North Front Cemetery produced a Kestrel, eight Chiffchaffs, a Robin and eight Black Redstarts.

25 Jan:  Clear skies with a fresh and gusty easterly wind.  Warm and sunny in the lee of the Rock.

Ringing Totals

 At Western Beach there were single Black-headed Gull and a Sanderling.  A Thekla Lark was observed close to the frontier fence.

24 Jan:  Clear skies with a moderate easterly wind.

Ringing Totals

A morning watch at Europa Point produced eight Gannets west, three Balearic Shearwaters west, a Cormorant, three Razorbills east, 90 Black-headed Gulls, three adult Mediterranean Gulls and a Sandwich Tern.

A visit to Camp and Little Bays produced nine Gannets, three Cormorants, two Shags and two Sandwich Terns.

The Eagle Owl and Little Owls were heard calling again from the cliffs behind Catalan Bay in the early evening.

23 Jan:  Levanter cloud over the Rock, dissipating by midday.  Winds moderate easterly.

Ringing Totals

In the afternoon there were three Turnstones, two Shags, two Cormorants, six Gannets, 12 Black-headed Gulls and two Chiffchaffs seen at Europa foreshore.

22 Jan:  Levanter cloud over the Rock, town and harbour with sunny intervals away from the Rock.  Winds fresh easterly becoming south easterly in the afternoon.

A Hoopoe was seen along Signal Station road. A morning visit to Europa Point produced 13 Gannets, three Cormorants, a Shag, 120 Black-headed Gulls, two Mediterranean Gulls, and two Sandwich Terns.

In the afternoon there were seven Gannets, three Balearic Shearwaters, six Shags, eight Cormorants, 80 Black-headed Gulls and three Mediterranean Gulls.

21 Jan:  Overcast skies with levanter cloud over the Rock, town and harbour.  Light rain showers throughout the morning.  Very dull with a moderate easterly wind.

 A morning visit to Europa Point produced 27 Gannets, four Cormorants, seven Shags, a Razorbill,  120 Black-headed Gulls, three Mediterranean Gulls and a Sandwich Tern.

 An afternoon visit to Western Beach produced two Gannets, three Cormorants, two Common Sandpipers, nine Black-headed Gulls , two Collared Doves and three Goldfinches.

At Europa Point in the late afternoon there were 11 Gannets, 12 Balearic Shearwaters, 10 Black-headed Gulls and two Sandwich Terns.

A Cormorant and a Common Sandpiper were seen by the GSLA Pavilion. Two Little Owls and an Eagle Owl heard calling on the cliffs behind Catalan Bay.

20 Jan:  Clear skies with a moderate north-westerly wind.

Only single Chiffchaff and a Blackcap were ringed in windy conditions.

An Osprey was observed over the top of the Rock.  At Europa Point in the morning there were 20 Gannets, three Cormorants and two Shags.  In the early afternoon a flock of 16 Cormorants flew south.

A Swallow and five House Martins flew north over Jews' Gate Observatory.

19 Jan:  Overcast skies with heavy rain showers throughout the day.  Winds fresh south-westerly becoming strong to gale force by mid morning, and continuing strong westerly in the evening.

There were 10 Cormorants sheltering at the New Harbours Marina.  At least 30 Gannets were fishing off Eastern beach.

18 Jan:  Cloudy skies with some sunny intervals and rain showers.  Winds fresh westerly.

Ringing Totals

Only four birds were ringed this morning in windy conditions and consisted of a Blackcap, two Robins and a Greenfinch with two retrap Sardinian Warblers and a Song Thrush.

The retrap Song Thrush, a wintering individual,  was ringed at the Observatory the previous year on 22^nd November 2022.

The Eagle Owl was calling from the east side cliffs.  A flock of over 200 White Storks flew north over the Rock.

Two Sandwich Terns were observed at Western beach.  At North Front Cemetery there were four Chiffchaffs, four Black Redstarts and two White Wagtails.

17 Jan:  A stormy night with heavy rain showers and thunderstorms with strong to gale force westerly, clearing by early morning to give sunny intervals with winds dropping to fresh west-north-west.  Winds picking up late morning to strong to gale force.

A visit to Europa Point proved unfruitful with only two Cormorants west, a Shag east, eight Gannets west, 15 Black-headed Gulls and a Sandwich Tern west.

16 Jan:  Overcast skies in a light variable to light westerly in the morning, increasing to moderate and fresh westerly in the afternoon with rain showers.

A Purple Sandpiper was observed at the Europa foreshore.  A Razorbill and a Common Sandpiper were observed at Camp bay in the afternoon.

Ringing Totals

15 Jan:  Mainly clear skies with thin high cloud.  Winds light westerly becoming light north-westerly.

 A morning visit to Europa Point produced eight Gannets west, five Balearic Shearwaters east, three Cormorants south, a Shag, 130 Black-headed Gulls feeding and a Sandwich Tern.

 The Ringing team is back at Jews' Gate Observatory.  A Blackcap and a Greenfinch were ringed plus one retrap Robin in the morning with the pond nets only.

14 Jan:  Low levanter cloud reaching below the Moorish Castle, with low fog in the bay and Strait, clearing late morning to give clear skies and a light variable to light westerly wind.

This count was postponed due to windy conditions the previous day.

Windmill Hill:-  Two Cormorants high overhead west,  two Kestrels, five Feral Pigeons, 60 Crag Martins, five Chiffchaffs, a Blackcap, 26 Sardinian Warblers, 12 Blackbirds, a Wren, 10 Spotless Starlings, 11 Robins, 13 Black Redstarts, two Stonechats, a Blue Rock Thrush, three Meadow Pipits, two White Wagtails, a Greenfinch, a Chaffinch and a Goldfinch.

Jacob's Ladder area:-  eight Barbary Partridges, five Chiffchaffs, four Blackcaps, 10 Sardinian Warblers, a Blackbird, a Wren, a Black Redstart, four House Sparrows and a Greenfinch.

Two Razorbills were seen offshore south-east from Europa Point.

 The area of Seven Sisters and the south side of the South Mole produced 14 Cormorants, four Shags, two Grey Herons, seven Turnstones, 122 Yellow-legged Gulls, four Sandwich Terns and three Grey Wagtails.

At Europa Point there were two Balearic Shearwaters, eight Gannets, three Cormorants, five Shags, 44 Black-headed Gulls, a Sandwich Tern and a Black Redstart.

13 Jan:  Heavy levanter cloud over the Rock, town and harbour in a moderate easterly wind.

The annual Winter Bird Count was held over this weekend and produced the following:-

Town Area:- 94 Feral Pigeons, five Blue Tits, a Blackcap, a Blackbird, three Black Redstarts, 26 House Sparrows and a Chaffinch.

Commonwealth Park:- 11 Feral Pigeons, a Blue Tit, three Blackbirds, two Robins, three House Sparrows and a Grey Wagtail.

Upper Nature Reserve roads from Jews' Gate to Prince Phillip's Arch:- five Feral Pigeons, two Ravens, three Blue Tits, two Chiffchaffs, four Blackcaps, 11 Sardinian Warblers, seven Wrens, five Blackbirds, seven Robins, a Blue Rock Thrush and a Black Redstart.

Rosia, Camp and Little Bays:- 11 Cormorants, four Gannets,  eight Shags, three Sandwich Terns, a Common Sandpiper, a Collared Dove, four Sardinian Warblers, a Blackbird, a Wren, two Black Redstarts, a Meadow Pipit,  11 House Sparrows and 14 Greenfinches.

Europa Point and foreshore:- 19 Balearic Shearwaters, 22 Gannets, five Shags, a Common Sandpiper, 130 Black-headed Gulls, 27 Collared Doves, two Chiffchaffs, a Sardinian Warbler, two Blackbirds, 31 Spotless Starlings, three Black Redstarts and a Goldfinch. 

Europa Advance Road to Hole in the Wall:- four Gannets, nine Shags,  two Peregrines, 83 Crag Martins, five Chiffchaffs, three Sardinian Warblers, a Blackbird, two Black Redstarts and 41 House Sparrows.

A Common Sandpiper was observed at Little Bay beach, and a Grey Wagtail was seen at Commonwealth Park.

A Long-legged Buzzard was reported from the Rock Gun area.

10 Jan:  Mainly clear skies but overcast with high cloud in the afternoon.  Winds moderate westerly.

A Sparrowhawk was observed over Windmill Hill, and a Griffon Vulture was observed on the east side of the Rock, just off Mediterranean Steps.

A visit to Windmill Hill produced a Kestrel, 11 Chiffchaffs, 11 Crag Martins, 27 Sardinian Warblers, a Dartford Warbler, 10 Blackbirds, 18 Black Redstarts, six Stonechats, a Blue Rock Thrush, two Spotless Starlings, 21 Meadow Pipits, a House Sparrow,  five Greenfinches and three Goldfinches.

The Eagle Owl was heard continuously on the cliffs above Catalan Bay.

09 Jan:  Overcast skies with levanter cloud developing and covering most of the Rock.  Raining continuously, with thunder and lightning throughout the afternoon.   Winds light to moderate north-easterly.  Very dull.

A 30 min watch in the early morning at Europa Point produced 55 Gannets west, four Shags east, 15 Balearic Shearwaters west, 35 Black-headed Gulls and three Sandwich Terns.

08 Jan:  Clear skies with a moderate westerly wind.

Long-tailed Tits were heard along Bruce's farm area, and one Sanderling was present at Western Beach. 

07 Jan: Clear skies with a moderate north-westerly wind.

At least 150 Black-headed Gulls were below Europa Point in the morning with two Sandwich Terns. In the afternoon there were 13 Gannets, three Turnstones, a second winter plumage Common Gull two Lesser Black-backed Gulls and three Sandwich Terns.

Common Gull in second winter plumage. R. Perez

Common Gull in second winter plumage. R. Perez

Five Cormorants were observed on the Detached Mole, with another two and two Shags at the east side reclamation. A female Marsh Harrier was observed heading west over Lathbury area, with a Sparrowhawk over Hole in the Wall in the evening.

06 Jan:  Clear skies with a fresh north-westerly wind.

A feeding frenzy of Gannets off eastern Beach with at least 30 birds involved. Two Little Egrets and two Cormorants were present at Mid Harbours Marina. A Kingfisher was observed at the North Mole.

05 Jan:  Mainly clear skies with some westerly cloud.  Winds fresh and at times strong northerlies.

An Eagle Owl was heard calling on the east side of the Rock.

04 Jan:  Overcast skies with light drizzle throughout the morning and afternoon.  Winds light to moderate westerly.

Two Cormorants and a Grey Heron present at Mid Harbours Marina.  At Europa Point there were three Gannets, six Turnstones, a Little Egret and 12 Black-headed Gulls.

03 Jan:  Clear skies with a light north-westerly becoming light to moderate south-westerly in the afternoon.

A Little Owl was seen on the east side of the Rock.  A mid afternoon watch at Europa Point produced six Gannets, three Shags and 12 Black-headed Gulls.

02 Jan:  Mainly clear skies with a light north-easterly wind.

At Europa Point there were two Shags, 10 Gannets, 65 Black-headed Gulls, two Black Redstarts, two Chiffchaffs and two Sardinian Warblers.

A Little Egret was present at Mid Harbours Marina.

01 Jan:  Clear skies with a light north-westerly wind becoming moderate south-westerly in the afternoon.

There were four adult Gannets offshore at Europa Point and 140 Black-headed Gulls resting on the cliff below the Point in the morning.

Along Sandy Bay to the rocky shoreline south of the beach there were two Barbary Partridges, single Grey Heron, Common Sandpiper, two Cormorants and two Black Redstarts.

At western Beach two Cormorants and two Sanderlings were present. A Little Egret and eight Turnstones were seen at Europa Point.