The 2 Iceland Gulls were seen distantly around the salmon cages off Uyeasound and a Merlin was seen hunting nearby. We then made our first visit of the year to Yell. Just a single Great Northern Diver seen from the Bigga and the usual Long-tailed Ducks, Eider and Black Guillemots. A flock of 4 Goosanders were a nice surprise whilst driving alongside Basta Voe. It was then great to see Jim & Lynn who very kindly invited us to Moarfield where we enjoyed their hospitality to see their presumed hybrid Sparrow that they first saw last November.
sunrise aboard the Bigga
Black Guillemot in the Bluemull Sound
Goosanders at Basta Voe, Yell
presumed hybrid Sparrow at Moarfield, Cullivoe, Yell
Superficially similar to Italian Sparrow in fresh plumage (see image in Shirihai & Svensson (2018)) it shows an extensive grey centre to its crown, it doesn't have a grey rump and it lacks a narrow white supercilium. A number of similar-looking Sparrows have been noted in the UK in recent years but nobody seems quite sure whether they are hybrid Spanish x House Sparrows or some other hybrid combination?
