Purple Sandpiper

There was a heavy drizzle in Aberystwyth when I arrived this morning,  Tide well in so I checked the wall, finding nothing.

So it was down to the harbour where my first Purple Sandpiper of the autumn was perched on the large rocks next  to the wooden jetty. 

Over the past four years the first arrival has been on the 29th or 30th October.

By 9 o'clock the sky had cleared, enabling a short seawatch.  Result, five Gannets, a Red-throated Diver and a close female Common Scoter.