As I write this in mid March another season is coming up fast. I have already done one walk, for a private group, and will be starting properly with the 'Walk Scilly' event on Sun 28th March. Following that weeks walks I will continue my usual programme until some time in October.

There are a few weeks this season that I have private groups and therefore will not be running my tours when they are here. At present they are on 17th-29th April; 8th-15th May; 20th September - 2nd October. Those at the end of season are to be confirmed as yet, so please check with me to see if I am available at that time if interested. There will also be a few days here and there that I have bookings for private groups but these will only be for single days. I am also planning to be away at the British Birdwatching Fair at Rutland Water in Leicestershire between 19th and 23rd August.

As everywhere in the UK this winter it has been a very cold season, although we managed to avoid any of the heavy snowfalls even though it did get as far as Lands End! We did get more than our fair share of frosts but as yet they seem to have done little severe damage to the islands flora. The cold snaps did bring many birds to the islands with Redwing, Fieldfare, Snipe, Golden Plover and Lapwing reaching Scilly in greater numbers than in mild winters. Unusual birds included a Black Duck from North America which frequented the Abbey Pool on Tresco alongside a Long-tailed Duck from northern Europe. More elusive was the white Gyr Falcon that has been around for a while but has rarely been seen although the remains of its prey are widely scattered. A very early Hoopoe flew over the Golf Course at the end of February and a Waxwing was sadly killed by a cat in Hugh Town. 

I have just returned to the islands after a couple of months working as ornithological lecturer on one of the Expedition Cruise ships in Antarctica which enabled me to get many more photographs of penguins, whales, seals and icebergs so look out for some of them turning up in my weekly slideshows about Scilly's wildlife!