Snorkelling on St Mary's

One of the highlights of last week on the Isles of Scilly was this Red-throated Diver which spent a few days snorkelling in the surf just yards off Hugh Town Beach. The bird was first discovered by streetlight on a high tide one evening. We were staying on the Strand which overlooks the beach, so I was up early next morning to get it on the bedroom window list and take some pictures. The light was poor and remained so all day, but with such a confiding bird, there could be no complaints. The Diver - until recently, a rare enough species on Scilly to require a description by the records committee - commuted between Town Beach and Porth Mellon, and was still there as we boarded Scillonian III to come home last Saturday.