tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1640796866902301252024-03-12T16:29:26.935-07:00Greenshank birding A blog about my birding and other wildlife trips around Britain, and occasionally furtherAlex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.comBlogger46125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-67964936264404375222021-05-14T12:40:00.028-07:002021-05-14T13:03:43.855-07:00Spring So Far - Mostly Ruislip Lido <p><b><span style="color: white;">With spring slow everywhere around the country, it's not really a surprise I spent most of my hours at Ruislip Lido seeing absolutely nothing. Because the regular migrant hotspots were barely getting anything, looking for migrants at the Lido felt a bit hopeless. However, with all the days and weeks of nothing much, some stuff did appear in the emptiness. </span></b></p><p><b><span style="color: white;">The first interesting bird of the spring was on the part of my patch that I've only recently been visiting. It's part of Ruislip Woods, but the path runs through the woodland alongside some farmland and open fields, with thick hedges and open ground. Unfortunately most of thickest hedges and fenceposts, probably heaving with Chats and Ouzels, is part of the private farmland, either too distant or completely unviewable - in fact that is probably one of the problems with this site - there is so much green space for migrants to spread out into, most of it being impossible to check. However, there is a thick hedgerow that runs alongside the path, easily viewable, yet on private land so it cannot be disturbed. This spot, and as well as a farming machinery area, are the spots I check most, along with an elevated area with good views over the surrounding fields. </span></b></p><p><b><span style="color: white;">The hedges hold plenty of birds, with a load of Chiffchaffs, Blackcaps and a few Whitethroats singing. However, this hedge also managed to draw in the highlight of the Spring so far - a singing Grasshopper Warbler on the 7th of April, complete with the natural soundtrack of the local shooting grounds. Considering they are not too common locally (no clue where the closest breeders are though), it was a pretty exciting bird to have on patch. It stayed all day and into at least the morning of the next, with a couple of local birders managing to catch up with it. </span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzgAZpbTOvJzgCGkdmHkyOQLrk8wY3ec9QeLKm9BfUey4HpipneKs6C44B6Yi1H2aQVn15yjN1RUTB8A8R8gQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Grasshopper Warbler singing - in the excitement I forgot to take my phone cover off, but at least I was able to get a recording of the sound</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2248" data-original-width="4000" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifZI_U9tq3zKLMJH50Hi4Z7rl5IjJ3m3BlPB7HPPHjU_fgvg_q53NnT4zEGpzDAbYTan40l-8kfURb0Z9MBODy38Jo4u5t7uDrV8xN9EJ3EBbjNTNCzQ23gmQDT1Z98jGxAIyaQJFzyw/w640-h360/Bush+.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Grasshopper Warbler Bushes </span></b></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifZI_U9tq3zKLMJH50Hi4Z7rl5IjJ3m3BlPB7HPPHjU_fgvg_q53NnT4zEGpzDAbYTan40l-8kfURb0Z9MBODy38Jo4u5t7uDrV8xN9EJ3EBbjNTNCzQ23gmQDT1Z98jGxAIyaQJFzyw/s4000/Bush+.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><b><span style="color: white;"></span></b></a></div><b><span style="color: white;"><div><br /></div>Aside from that though, these fields didn't really manage to produce anything else yet - although it could be better in autumn.</span></b><p></p><p><b><span style="color: white;">Somehow, I even managed to miss Wheatear this spring as well, despite dozens of miles walked around local farmland, and an influx of them near the start of the spring. However, there have been a few other highlights - nothing too exciting in the standards of any larger of more rural patches, but still pretty decent locally. While other London patches were recording species like Temminck's Stint, Black Tern and Pied Flycatcher, I was patch ticking Reed Bunting, Sedge Warbler and Red-crested Pochard. That's one of the great thing about patching, though - I don't think, other than when I first started birding, I've ever been more excited by seeing an adult male Reed Bunting, or hearing the quiet subsong of a Sedge Warbler - it really makes you appreciate the commoner species more. My first Cetti's Warbler on site also turned up near the start of the spring, along with the first returning Common Sandpiper. </span></b></p><p><b><span style="color: white;">Some more migrants did move through as well, though - there were plenty of large hirundine flocks throughout the spring (Sand Martins, House Martins and Swallows) to keep me entertained, along with the first returning Swifts and Hobbies recently. Hobbies are pretty regular, but can never really get boring. </span></b></p><p><b><span style="color: white;">Other than that though, a showy Yellow Wagtail provided entertainment - the best views I've had of this species here. The Garden Warblers have returned, with about 4-5 singing birds around the area, while Whitethroats and Willow Warbler continue to sing in Poor's Field, including the first Lesser Whitethroat of the year recently. The Redpoll flock is still lingering, along with the occasional flyover siskin and Linnet. Little Grebes are very vocal on the Lido.</span></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2238" data-original-width="3837" height="374" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5cpbXbh7Vw4MQeCNCNK91oWssTm2QlcEWPs7rPlmg9MV0Xhaxyksz_XRWdqhJRH-B33RupgGe34muiIyJLSwuOFywc-TZaUy7NIWJFd0Im3qEvaGMowLwuhYaD0uu9m4O0bINpPiZOg/w640-h374/Yello+wz.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Yellow Wagtail</span></b></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5cpbXbh7Vw4MQeCNCNK91oWssTm2QlcEWPs7rPlmg9MV0Xhaxyksz_XRWdqhJRH-B33RupgGe34muiIyJLSwuOFywc-TZaUy7NIWJFd0Im3qEvaGMowLwuhYaD0uu9m4O0bINpPiZOg/s3837/Yello+wz.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><b><span style="color: white;"></span></b></a></div><p></p><p><b><span style="color: white;">Other wildlife interest came in the form of Slow Worms and Grass Snakes, along with the usual foxes and deer (Muntjac I think). The moth trap was put out once this spring with the enormous total of 2 Moths - 1 Small Quaker and 1 Common Quaker. </span></b></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgchfJ5I2yTTaqIXnxBU_-eDbo1qZxZ5fPzgFA6qvlB17vKRRjBH-5SWHaysRYl7gtdr45-TtbbtUUFDqmBxanR2y07DQvNBUkBoKYlsA-u4LTH0QOYVwdv8r3rEKoFlElDdnWOJIRbww/s3990/SLOW+WPR.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2239" data-original-width="3990" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgchfJ5I2yTTaqIXnxBU_-eDbo1qZxZ5fPzgFA6qvlB17vKRRjBH-5SWHaysRYl7gtdr45-TtbbtUUFDqmBxanR2y07DQvNBUkBoKYlsA-u4LTH0QOYVwdv8r3rEKoFlElDdnWOJIRbww/w640-h360/SLOW+WPR.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Slow Worm </span></b></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p><b><span style="color: white;">I have escaped the Lido a couple of times this spring as well - including a few walks up to an area a couple of miles beyond it to some farmland. A few things have shown themselves here - a large flock of Linnets and, more surprisingly, a random flyover Mandarin Duck - not sure where the closest population even is. </span></b></p><p><b><span style="color: white;">Another outing to Broadwater Lake was in the hope of some passage gulls and terns, as Staines and Walthamstow were receiving huge numbers of Little Gulls, along with many other places in the country. This turned out to be successful, with more than I expected - a flock of 30 Little Gulls, and the first large flock I had seen. They formed a tight flock and worked there way up and down the lake, sometimes with the whole flock disappearing for long periods. </span></b></p><p><b><span style="color: white;">Broadwater also produced an Oystercatcher, a singing Sedge Warbler, a flyover Yellow Wagtail and some Red-Crested Pochards - a great site - shame it and the land around is being massacred by HS2. </span></b></p><p><b><span style="color: white;">I also left London for the first time in 9 months to go to Norfolk for a long weekend - I twitched some Ring Ouzels and saw a summer plumage Spotted Redshank, Whimbrel, Bittern, Crane and Spoonbills - it's always good to be back here. </span></b></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDPoUzm6OM8vtMm3AOiZCkrcOXdgvUBPw1su-Um_fEDdY5UppT_rP3_E5UD6I-26URmavNCpYAy9e0U1OQUewYvxs5rzTWZDYP4XDW95atQHYaDNSVB_Q6oq4ERsXGkQPS2eyvDbI8_w/s3777/Rouzel+.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1690" data-original-width="3777" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDPoUzm6OM8vtMm3AOiZCkrcOXdgvUBPw1su-Um_fEDdY5UppT_rP3_E5UD6I-26URmavNCpYAy9e0U1OQUewYvxs5rzTWZDYP4XDW95atQHYaDNSVB_Q6oq4ERsXGkQPS2eyvDbI8_w/w640-h286/Rouzel+.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Ring Ouzels </span></b></td></tr></tbody></table><b><span style="color: white;">The peak of the Spring feels like it's pretty much passed for my inland patch - the rest of May has some potential but it feels like its mostly about rarer spring migrants towards the end of the month, and given the lack of even a single Wheatear here this spring, I'm guessing none of those will be turning up. But it isn't long before the water levels will fall and return wader passage will start again - any wader other than Common Sandpiper is pretty mega here, so I look forward to seeing what happens in a couple of months.</span></b><p></p>Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-644228446229262622020-09-20T11:07:00.002-07:002020-09-20T11:08:37.214-07:00The Lido in Lockdown <b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">It's been an unusual year all around the world, with the lockdown meaning I had the longest time I've ever had off school, and a lot of other changes going on, with social distancing and the closing down of many businesses. It meant that for a long time I couldn't travel anywhere, including my old patch, Stocker's Lake. Living in a mostly urban area, there aren't really any birding places or reserves within walking distance. </span></b><div><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="523" data-original-width="680" height="481" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjBXhnUY3a48KpYKx2XtXBiNBHQ9PZAEwtBmWNEd2T3_ZI3NuAbVgslD2cZgNy2coqypLBCScyHfJb0oFOLybRKjM4x4_e2RVYltR9V8sxI6LEUZ-4M-yEwKQ_JTnXCEhJJ59iDBxaRQ/w625-h481/EVzEmdnXsAAsAYI.jpg" width="625" /></span></div><div><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">Wheatear with the beach and pirate ship in the background </span></b></div><div><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">But there is one - Ruislip Lido, which I do visit a few times a year to go birding. I have always rejected this place as a patch in the past because it's just an overcrowded tourist site in the summer - it has an artificial beach with climbing frames and a cafe, there are always people swimming in the water here and most of the wader habitat, even though there isn't much already, is disturbed by people breaking open or climbing over the fences to sit by the water on the other side. The site is almost unbirdable in the summer months or 'good' weather, so I spend most of my time avoiding the place.</span></b></div><div><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b style="text-align: left;">However, with the lockdown, the beach has been closed and the grass areas on one side of the water have been completely fenced off. This gave me an op</b><b style="text-align: left;">portunity</b><b style="text-align: left;"> to sta</b><b style="text-align: left;">rt visiting the place again, more regularly than I ever had before. Considering my past experiences, it was a surprise to even see birds at this site, so it was exciting when a Wheatear arrived in the middle of April. I thought this would be the peak of the spring when</b></span><span style="font-size: medium;"><b style="text-align: left;"> a few days later, a Little-Ringed Plov</b></span><b style="font-size: large; text-align: left;">er appeared on the beach, closed off to the public because of lockdown - it was already better than I expected.</b></span></td></tr></tbody></table><div><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="548" data-original-width="680" height="505" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzCiGpI9m5andt9O8Z1MTG_ft_Yhtf4rkH2QlLuhyphenhyphenMWmt3JzfJMdC-ixrM1G5ypGEWkcaFguOhzYjIFi1jwS9sNT2RVeuxFAg6gHBbstsKqtmiiDRyixiUR60icLMBytDre7gyFuHvDg/w625-h505/LRP.jpg" width="625" /><br /><b>Little Ringed Plover </b><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">Apart from my first Swifts of the year, and a few hirundines including Sand Martins, there wasn't much else here all spring, which was disappointing given the way it started. I spent many hours standing around in Poor's Field, one of the fields next to the Lido, to look for migrants, but had almost nothing. Maybe I just didn't visit often enough. </span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><b>It was later in the year, at the start of August, that I had the motivation to visit regularly again. I decided to go every morning and spend 2 - 3 hours looking for migrants in Poor's Field. Poor's Field is a small field at Ruislip Lido, heavily disturbed by walkers, dog-walkers and runners, even in the early mornings, when I visit, although disturbance is limited this early, luckily. It is pretty much the only real passerine migrant habitat at the whole site - while stuff can turn up anywhere, this sort of habitat is the only one similar to the other London parks and migrant hotspots, like Regent's Park or Wormwood Scrubs. </b><img border="0" data-original-height="2240" data-original-width="3994" height="350" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVVRGB8mza8jC4rMxCAncmywvfbshvdb2Oy9vJdj24MfCl-XkzpLydxJo5yEuYcAi3HyVd6tkdulcSPgQeiy1g0P267TT6sUzoMnXK0WMwGhzPVdZ2gQDhyphenhyphengyo9YS0aLsblZkg_97sqQ/w625-h350/WW.jpg" style="text-align: center;" width="625" /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">Even when birding is slow, there are always things like Willow Warbler around to see </span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><b>The habitat in Poor's Field is fine, the only problem is the size of the place - compared to anywhere else I know of that gets migrants regularly in London, it's tiny - you can walk around it in 5 minutes, and can see the whole field by standing in one spot. Because of this, I didn't expect much but I hoped that with all the time I spent there something like a Spotted Flycatcher would eventually turn up, although I wasn't confident. </b><b style="text-align: center;">I started going there every morning - for almost a week there was nothing in the field, but Common Sandpiper, Redshank and Ringed Plover were exciting waders to see during this quiet period. I was close to giving up at this point, with nothing more than a Lesser Whitethroat an</b><b style="text-align: center;">d a few Willo</b><b style="text-align: center;">w Warbl</b><b style="text-align: center;">ers in the field. However, on the 18th August, I arrived to the field and a Spotted Flycatcher was almost the first bird I saw, exactly what I had been hoping for. It was a great bird to see on patch, and gave me the motivation to come back for the next couple of weeks. </b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><b style="text-align: center;"><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">The next day started with a couple of Green Sandpipers flying around the Lido, making themselves obvious by calling constantly. Surprisingly, a Tree Pipit flew over, calling twice - a great bird on patch, which I assumed would be the only one I would see there. </span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1637" data-original-width="2321" height="443" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUKz-S4_WgexNUs29E7QMOLz8ua9uCeovPOBRh0o-1leChOFVo4sAgmGlsoo3obeUCNIIxhHS6mtnwMq7z8TNMD6B9feKvndfkbUBEJC07w_2rUHM_i1vbcHLQF7oubvzJeLZ_Cepvbw/w625-h443/Spotfly.jpg" width="625" /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">Spotted Flycatcher </span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><b>I met up with another London birder, Kabir Kaul (who also patches the site), a couple of days later, where we saw some interesting birds such as an increased number of Pochards and a lot of fresh Willow Warblers. When I was heading back I heard a familiar call from beside the water - a Yellow Wagtail, which eventually emerged from the vegetation and showed itself. This is a bird I expected as a flyover, but to see one perched on the edge of the water was exciting.</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="614" data-original-width="680" height="564" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg2-lXPtUCWCxSE7uAQ0xPLhfIcbs7lJKU1odPvWvMi1J742Rc5VUYLD-KPzoWz3pcmlMtBRiLeNPzxlHNzQl8l8sStgWEfRK9j58xgj5flhd-CvYThHD-5F63jGjHQ-YkULT-hdeWCw/w625-h564/EgBJTaDWoAAqWgk.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;" width="625" /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">Yellow Wagtail </span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: white;"><b style="font-size: large;">Another morning on patch, and I assumed that</b><b style="font-size: large;"> all the best birds had passed, and that it would get quieter again. Opening the local chat to check what others had seen around London that day, I saw a message about a couple of grounded Tree Pipits at a site not to far away. In the middle of reading this message, something flew up from my feet, called and landed in the nearest tree - amazingly, a Tree Pipit! I'd always thought of flyover Tree Pipits as a possibility, but to see one on the deck was so much better. </b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1088" data-original-width="1014" height="625" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW1B-dkNV1ipRyivJiGHuBM4GxVYam_VbzY-jdOvI6anyEQ5K-PX5wERv4ZscqSG8Q-e52O5pNjQOD6JSnkNQQQrU97AoFi0uS1FYC4r6JhXIlEqfj6PrBJHPPAdsbXAyQ_00FkGLNUw/w583-h625/Tree+Pipit.jpg" width="583" /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">Tree Pipit</span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">The bird then dropped onto the path, where it was immediately flushed by walkers. It then spent the next 10 minutes circling the field, landing briefly in a few trees, before moving on, calling constantly. I, once again, thought birding couldn't get better than this here. The following day proved me wrong. </span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">I woke up early, expecting nothing, walked to the field and stood in my favourite spot, facing a line of trees bordering the woodland. There were a couple of singing Willow Warblers and a few Chiffchaffs in the bushes, so I stayed here a bit longer. I was watching a Chiffchaff when I noticed more movement at the bottom of one the bushes - I checked a bird sitting on an open branch, expecting another Chiffchaff, to see the unmistakable white wing bar and jet-black legs of a Pied Flycatcher! I took a quick record shot before watching the bird feed and fly-catch in the closest trees, allowing for some great views. </span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="382" data-original-width="680" height="351" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZvqbpxX3vZy7J9HvvMXHjP1WKavmTfGcrhrQ3WomnsTM8FVC-zzJJmCkk6qkY6-rZcr75yb-MsjkpI_Nc-eCuwfiqml196FVa_7Xoxj1FvtkOj4CiQ2CzSa81o7tfOnuN1zfQ52hShg/w625-h351/EgK1E60XgAEw5RG.jpg" width="625" /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">Pied Flycatcher</span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">It had been a good year for Pied Flycatchers, and for the the whole of August I was seeing records of them in all the typical places, like Regent's Park, and from a few new sites as well. Because of this, I always hoped one word turn up here, but never actually expected it - in fact I spent most of my mornings at this site before the bird turned up thinking about Pied Flycatchers, and how great it would be for one to appear in this field. Looking at past records, it looks like this is the first one seen here for 20 years as well. <span> </span></span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">But this wasn't the end of the day - a few other local birders turned up, but I unfortunately couldn't relocate the Pied Flycatcher, except once briefly and distantly. However, while looking, another Spotted Flycatcher appeared with a tit flock, the 2nd one of the year. Even more excitingly, a Redstart briefly sat in the same bush the Pied Flycatcher was in, reappearing later and calling constantly. A lesser Whitethroat joined the Chiffchaffs, and when I was about to leave, a couple of Yellow Wagtails flew over. </span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">It was a strange thing that on that day of patch birding a London tourist site, I saw more migrants than I did when I took the 7 mile round walk down to Spurn Point and that, for the first time, I would have preferred to be on my patch than anywhere else in the UK. I was even motivated enough to finally submit sightings on the London Bird Sightings website. </span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">There is no doubt this day was the highlight, but the next few days were still great. Another Redstart and flyover Tree Pipit appeared the next week, with my first Whinchat for the patch appearing soon after as well, along with an even better looking Redstart. Another Spotted Flycatcher was sighted by other birders, and the Green Sandpiper re-appeared a couple of times. In between these days, Willow Warblers, Whitethroats, Blackcaps, Swallow passage, flocks of Siskin, Chiffchaffs, Kingfisher, Hobby, Kestrel, Green Woodpeckers, Swifts and many other birds were around to to keep me entertained.</span></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2214" data-original-width="3953" height="350" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8ZDNYk3E7aaHkivT5gcknnk7pQjD0FvwpHLAF5X9H8kRB35T7Rgx7D_OmjbdgEEgsJ3NLWU98LiUV9pMuzWLleCub15GV6ErrO5hxvGlnXHaFmj7Tu_Fk3v8RyAHiNXFhHhyaSfiYRQ/w625-h350/whinchat+2.jpg" width="625" /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">Whinchat</span></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: white;"><span><b><span style="font-size: medium;">An amazing year on patch (so far!), starting with me being amazed that a Wheatear turned </span></b></span><b><span style="font-size: medium;">up, and ending with a variety of migrants that equalled the most watched migrant hotspots in London. I never expected this small, heavily disturbed field to get such a variety. There are still problems with the site - dozens of off-lead dogs running around the field, with a few attacking the resident cows, people breaking open the fences to sit by the water and the fact the place is only birdable in the early morning or in heavy rain, but I have finally started to actually like the place.</span></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1791" data-original-width="3053" height="368" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg79p_zEpodOcnUs7sVN6hyQfnAXVHAPSoG_Ut7n8ocuJTMScIu0gBd6FpZI4Nz391cb2a_l5KA5lXjc7BpBuHvbKpde6tA2X0DEX7JyOdQwIxrfI4L95TeVEMlqpe5NftJjpFb0bCQVQ/w625-h368/redtsrat.jpg" width="625" /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"> Redstart </span></span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="color: white; font-size: medium;">I am excited to visit regularly for the rest of the year, although it will be harder with school. With everything I've seen recently, I don't really need to see anything more to prove the place can be good for birding though.</span></b></div></td></tr></tbody></table></div>Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-64072103352008997792019-09-17T12:33:00.000-07:002019-09-17T14:41:51.504-07:00Migfest 2019 <b><span style="color: white;">After a a great and successful Migfest last year, I had, once again, been looking forward to another one. Once again, I had made it through to the finals of this year's 'Young Birder of the Year Competition', which was great, as last year's competition was so enjoyable.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
After arriving on the afternoon of the Friday, we briefly visited our accommodation in Welwick, before heading down to Spurn. The first stop was Kilnsea Wetlands, where it didn't take long to see the long-staying <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">White-Rumped Sandpiper</span></i> showing distantly, but clearly. Always awesome to start the trip with a lifer!</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />There were loads of other waders here as well, including <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Knot</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dunlin </span></i>and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Redshank</span></i>. Others birds of interest were<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Mediterranean Gulls</span></i> and quite a lot of<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Pintails</span></i>, which surprised me for this time of year.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
Next, although there wasn't much time left, I had a brief walk around the Triangle to see what was around, which was rewarded with close-up <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Whinchats</span></i> and a few flyover <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Yellow</span></i> <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Wagtails</span></i>. I met David Walsh at the end, who informed me of a potential Hobby he had seen fly through.</span></b><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicIJXmikqyHQrvMWMmkw0gxdDk6uLeex0Ee99i7HT0XEsw7ig5-FAn6I5uYuTDCNc8Ljc9IF7Q7r-H_q3L_40o2aAi8R2FTUaWPC5rJklVuIY2AVi-ZBa9esA8PapEmz3PfNBXKYxzNA/s1600/Whicnaht.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="899" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicIJXmikqyHQrvMWMmkw0gxdDk6uLeex0Ee99i7HT0XEsw7ig5-FAn6I5uYuTDCNc8Ljc9IF7Q7r-H_q3L_40o2aAi8R2FTUaWPC5rJklVuIY2AVi-ZBa9esA8PapEmz3PfNBXKYxzNA/s640/Whicnaht.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Whinchat</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">This was pretty much the end of the day, although I did attend the talk by David Lindo about Urban Birding in foreign countries, an interesting talk, accompanied by an introduction to this year's Migfest. I travelled back to the pub I was staying at, preparing for the next day, not knowing what to expect in this year's Migfest young birders competition.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
I got up early the next day, and made my way down to the seawatching hut. Once again, David Walsh was there, with a few other finalists, as well as Jack, one of the people who had won the competition last year. I arrived to the news that I had missed a couple of Pomarine Skuas, which would have been new for me, but there was compensation in the form of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Great </span></i>and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Arctic Skuas</span></i>, a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Manx Shearwater</span></i> and a<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Red-Throated Diver</span></i>. A <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Merlin </span></i>was also a great bird to see as it whizzed past.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
As I was walking away, however, I soon became aware of a mass of birders following, all having come from the seawatching hut. One of them walked past quickly and informed me there had been a Marsh Warbler caught in the nets at the observatory, and that it would be shown in a few minutes.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
Kindly, this birder offered me a lift, which I accepted (one of the great things about Spurn, people often offer lifts to other birders). If no-one had given me a lift, I would have missed the bird as well, so it was lucky, and generous, that they did.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
We arrived to see a gathered crowd of birders waiting for the bird to be shown. Then the <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Marsh Warbler </span></i>was brought out and shown, with all the key features being seen clearly. The bird was released quickly, and flew in to the surrounding bushes.</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz8aYPqs4BUmJ4NHeGdgvSR24DjnuRRHqFNBihnVvMGsgTWgcMperd14bBsHEpuUK1L7ecWXZE5UokJJYEr3gz0MNUS3ilR0s9V8Es3-kULReQZRPOK-4-Pn1kXSeJPYMjDTM53uckZw/s1600/Marsh+Warbler.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz8aYPqs4BUmJ4NHeGdgvSR24DjnuRRHqFNBihnVvMGsgTWgcMperd14bBsHEpuUK1L7ecWXZE5UokJJYEr3gz0MNUS3ilR0s9V8Es3-kULReQZRPOK-4-Pn1kXSeJPYMjDTM53uckZw/s640/Marsh+Warbler.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Marsh Warbler</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">I arrived at the observatory, joining the other young birders in the competition. We had some time birding from the Spurn viewing platform before going on our first assessment.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
The competition involved things like identifying bird calls, as well as showing our understanding of bird conservation, answering question and birding in the field. It was also good to get close up views of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Spotted Flycatcher</span></i> during this.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
The whole thing was, once again, enjoyable, and was won by James King in my category, and Corin Woodhead in the younger one. We had lunch at the observatory, with the winner being officially announced at the evening talk.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
Once again, I would like to thank the volunteers, organisers and sponsors for putting this amazing competition together, and keeping it running from year to year.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
After the competition, I watched a Peregrine over the observatory, then stopped at Kilnsea Wetlands, seeing the same species as I had done the day before, but again, getting views of the White-Rumped Sandpiper, and better views of Yellow Wagtail.</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEWbYymDwDXz1R_jzZnrZ-8YJo3r1S2eUxF5rs6KiLRsFBa8QGFytZF5O0ZlEtZSnngTOm6OgQ6TuhBjNHikIos3W_BeSXH8Ki2rY80_FC59pSO6NqwFfRoPUi_WxYQ354O9O0jsTczg/s1600/WRS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEWbYymDwDXz1R_jzZnrZ-8YJo3r1S2eUxF5rs6KiLRsFBa8QGFytZF5O0ZlEtZSnngTOm6OgQ6TuhBjNHikIos3W_BeSXH8Ki2rY80_FC59pSO6NqwFfRoPUi_WxYQ354O9O0jsTczg/s640/WRS.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">White-Rumped Sandpiper </span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">I met David Walsh and some other young birders - Oscar, Fraser and Josh, to attempt some seawatching, although there weren't many birds; a few more Arctic and Great Skuas and another Red-Throated Diver. I decided to go and try to find some flycatchers that were seen earlier, and was directed to a field with a thick hedgerow filled with berries.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
Amazingly, this one hedgerow probably contained more migrant passerine species in one place than I had seen all weekend. There were a couple of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Lesser Whitethroats</span></i>, a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Common Whitethroat</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Goldcrests</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Blackcaps</span></i> and, best of all, Spotted(3 or 4!) and a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pied Flycatcher</span></i> sitting next to each other, with good views of both.</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNj06z91T913qYt0gTxK2vrg5v7NBFA-zTon79RdzvbxUAYirFHbhbGbe_PquXnFFwCWea-8qFtAqbTHfrd-jPuQN_nUQ-ejR5P2QJaECyrsJxzoM8GF08FfNpEJeVEuJaeAaiKkBoLg/s1600/Pied+Fly.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="899" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNj06z91T913qYt0gTxK2vrg5v7NBFA-zTon79RdzvbxUAYirFHbhbGbe_PquXnFFwCWea-8qFtAqbTHfrd-jPuQN_nUQ-ejR5P2QJaECyrsJxzoM8GF08FfNpEJeVEuJaeAaiKkBoLg/s640/Pied+Fly.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Pied Flycatcher</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">After this was the hog roast and talk, which was by Per Alstrom. It was a fascinating talk about species differentiation and migration, which he clearly put a lot of work in to. The awards ceremony also took place for the young birders.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
After this, I went back to the accommodation, thinking of how to make the most of my last day at Spurn.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
Once again, I got up early the next day, although clearly not early enough, as I found out I had missed a Long-Tailed Skua past the seawatching hut!</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
Most of the day was spent doing a bird race, but a<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Mandarin Duck</span></i> was seen at the seawatching hut while we were nearby, so we went for it and luckily saw it in flight. I also went in to the canal scrape hide, seeing <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Reed Warbler</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Snipe</span></i> and an amazingly close and showy <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Kingfisher</span></i>.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
Another highlight of this bird race was getting great views of 3 <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Curlew Sandpipers</span></i> on the Humber, one of which was colour-ringed. There was some expectation when a report of a Honey Buzzard further up the coast, heading south, was thought to be on its way to Spurn, but it never did turn up.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
Unfortunately, we had to head back pretty soon after this, after eating lunch. Even more unfortunately, as always happens in birding, a Barred Warbler was caught and ringed at the Warren, probably while I was eating lunch in the Crown and Anchor, and I had no idea until about 8 hours later!</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />There is always something I miss, but it didn't really matter, as the quality of birds over the course of the weekend had compensated for this.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
Another awesome Migfest and even more encouragement to go again next year. I might as well try the Young Birder competition application again as well, as even if you don't win, it is a highly enjoyable competition that tests your bird knowledge.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br />
Thank you to everyone who organised and volunteered at he Migfest, I found it even better than last year and I hope the next one will be just as, if not even more, enjoyable!</span></b>Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-43199249344625105422019-05-28T11:34:00.000-07:002019-07-08T15:15:03.965-07:00BTO Bird Camp 2019<b><span style="color: white;">This was the event I've been waiting for - and from what I'd heard, it was going to be one of the highlights of the year. The BTO runs an annual camp for young birders, based at the BTO headquarters at the Nunnery, Thetford. This was the first time I had been and it definitely won't be the last time I go.</span></b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDiEeSxUU4BMpGeP8zcJRJKWCf5JINfxSoeqsWKi24rBcrYfQaeVJqd_w2QP-C1D0r_tA-isOxBbXHdR1-wHS6PwzecyeEJ900E9OggwhlKfM03QLX3lfRKP5uB2u9Dm_7NcRh7GReQg/s1600/aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="778" data-original-width="1600" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDiEeSxUU4BMpGeP8zcJRJKWCf5JINfxSoeqsWKi24rBcrYfQaeVJqd_w2QP-C1D0r_tA-isOxBbXHdR1-wHS6PwzecyeEJ900E9OggwhlKfM03QLX3lfRKP5uB2u9Dm_7NcRh7GReQg/s640/aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><br /></span></div>
<b><span style="color: white;">I was driven up on Friday afternoon but, due to heavy traffic, I arrived quite late, while most had already arrived. I chose my tent and unloaded my stuff. In this tent was Michael Sinclair, Calum Mckellar, Wilum Johnston, Rowan Wakefield, Kabir Kaul and Sam Newcombe. We went off to eat pizza, then went inside for the introduction speech, but not before I heard a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Treecreeper</span></i> singing from the woodland.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">After the introduction, we took part in a workshop and heard a speech by Faye Vogely about careers in conservation. We picked a job that we might want to do in the future and wrote down what steps we would need to take to get there. Nick Moran gave a speech and we were introduced to one of the volunteers, Ben Porter.</span></b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpCngMjXKtLc_bGLE_tUPf9TNsAlr61MBdlN2Kg6ivzLqQKNhdo5Ndu_LJFBjwploWH6ZFKLV-hbSxcacUUHq_688oZcS6km6w1epJ1_bXDhlT15VKOsvjTeWE1PtcUjhi7Pd_ViemIQ/s1600/Cuckoo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="899" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpCngMjXKtLc_bGLE_tUPf9TNsAlr61MBdlN2Kg6ivzLqQKNhdo5Ndu_LJFBjwploWH6ZFKLV-hbSxcacUUHq_688oZcS6km6w1epJ1_bXDhlT15VKOsvjTeWE1PtcUjhi7Pd_ViemIQ/s640/Cuckoo.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Cuckoo</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">We then returned to our tents, supposedly to sleep, but after 5 hours of talking, this never happened, which was fine until the next day, when I fell asleep multiple times.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">In the morning, we got out of the tent early to search the ground for birds, where there were Singing <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sedge</span></i> and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Reed warblers</span></i>, as well as many other species.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">It wasn't long before we checked the moth trap, with some amazing species in it such as Small Elephant Hawk-Moth, Lime Hawk-moth, White Point and many Treble Lines. I thought the moth trap was great and it has encouraged me to construct my own and see what turns up in my garden.</span></b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhXUb0V6x27_ManNvMCwVB3DuwPGXKR5r_y2WMGExNSS8fnll4o_Vjw8XiyHeGLSM0nn0LDMXjvwYKwgjHbrQjv8stji4uBYzu0mV2h0jEIYF0AUsbodoE3UJz9OAEPPpMW7EgZ-W1kA/s1600/ELEPHANT+HAWK.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhXUb0V6x27_ManNvMCwVB3DuwPGXKR5r_y2WMGExNSS8fnll4o_Vjw8XiyHeGLSM0nn0LDMXjvwYKwgjHbrQjv8stji4uBYzu0mV2h0jEIYF0AUsbodoE3UJz9OAEPPpMW7EgZ-W1kA/s640/ELEPHANT+HAWK.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Small Elephant Hawkmoth </span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiZuWMKaYXgau7Wm8XFp51mAX6V7_YBpbevTEYZ2EAXLPKE13irvhRDqeJagTuVYG7oIPegfMLHI7ngv7uYSuURIceXsxxy-CR8-msfjxT29ZF8M2lJe9y6s69t_rOhoUrA1puJcROZw/s1600/LIME+HAWK.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiZuWMKaYXgau7Wm8XFp51mAX6V7_YBpbevTEYZ2EAXLPKE13irvhRDqeJagTuVYG7oIPegfMLHI7ngv7uYSuURIceXsxxy-CR8-msfjxT29ZF8M2lJe9y6s69t_rOhoUrA1puJcROZw/s640/LIME+HAWK.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Lime Hawkmoth</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Next, we headed to Lakenheath, where we were joined by volunteers, including David Walsh and Chris Mills. We were split into groups and looked for wildlife around the reserve. It wasn't long before we had seen Scarce Chaser dragonfly and many bird species including <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Marsh Harrier</span></i>.</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg45lpBy61uH6vMq6Mbcm7DO4FqIy2ksRB6IPJJqJ0z6lu9Dmzz2hF28QHFPJ_wkJss-uo7CWhgAHgGdprrk38scXtkZNUw_0tmIm0uCvK5Qt6Z-nlrSyT8C2Ml58ZWt9lhzYff4X9MLQ/s1600/Scarce+Chaser.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg45lpBy61uH6vMq6Mbcm7DO4FqIy2ksRB6IPJJqJ0z6lu9Dmzz2hF28QHFPJ_wkJss-uo7CWhgAHgGdprrk38scXtkZNUw_0tmIm0uCvK5Qt6Z-nlrSyT8C2Ml58ZWt9lhzYff4X9MLQ/s640/Scarce+Chaser.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Scarce Chaser</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">We walked along the various paths and found a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Garden Warbler</span></i> and a Variable Damselfly. We entered the hide, where there was, apparently, a Bittern showing well, but it had escaped in to the reeds, unseen by our group. A<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Hobby </span></i>that flew past was a good species to see, though.</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp4_FE3cfEQcPBDu3ADlozRtt_WnIOblT4G7B2jwi9x2h4c6WtnvdgcBsExw00ZQsUWuoEDpPyz6tl3VexE3R5oDwa801dHTqMYlL0P_kC0ZDEkt0XdM3plBWEpqhhJDLz8wGDwvwkog/s1600/Varibable.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp4_FE3cfEQcPBDu3ADlozRtt_WnIOblT4G7B2jwi9x2h4c6WtnvdgcBsExw00ZQsUWuoEDpPyz6tl3VexE3R5oDwa801dHTqMYlL0P_kC0ZDEkt0XdM3plBWEpqhhJDLz8wGDwvwkog/s640/Varibable.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Azure Damselfly </span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">After this, we were given a talk by Dave Rogers about the reserve.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">We then went off to do some woodland birding, first stopping off to see <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Stone Curlews</span></i> at Weeting Heath, then going to a nearby forest ride, where we saw <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tree Pipit</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mistle Thrush</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Firecrest</span></i>, and a Dingy Skipper butterfly.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">We headed back to camp briefly to eat, and hear a talk about Nightjars before we went out to see them. Unfortunately, being awake for over 24 hours was finally starting to catch up with me, so I fell asleep during the whole talk, only waking up when everyone was getting on the bus to head to the Nightjar site!</span></b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmyFNg7RohDjaMjaaX5x3Krf7gAIuf-t4FMQcficoCVdU7QAK9cn4TUk5k9ExjHDnUPKvMaSF48EJ6ntde3bP-oYtw6jR6eVCFE8ejENoAkaqNGoA5Ym0lj08DR38Fab05wgdiF_APRQ/s1600/NIGHT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmyFNg7RohDjaMjaaX5x3Krf7gAIuf-t4FMQcficoCVdU7QAK9cn4TUk5k9ExjHDnUPKvMaSF48EJ6ntde3bP-oYtw6jR6eVCFE8ejENoAkaqNGoA5Ym0lj08DR38Fab05wgdiF_APRQ/s640/NIGHT.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Nightjar</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">After this though, I was fine, and ready look for the birds. At first, we were seeing <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Woodlarks</span></i> and Tree Pipits, then <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cuckoos</span></i> flying over constantly. We attempted to get the Cuckoos into the nets for ringing, but they kept flying very near, and not into, the nets.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">It wasn't long before<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Nightjars</span></i> were churring and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Woodcocks</span></i> were roding. The Nightjars gave good views as they floated around and, very soon, a male was caught in the net. It was brought up to us and we were given the chance to study these amazing birds up close. Another one was caught, this time a female, not as colourful, but still very interesting - this event was probably the birding highlight of the weekend.</span></b></span><br />
<b><span style="color: white;">That night I was so tired, I actually got some sleep, so was better prepared for the next day.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">In the morning, we were transported to the Nunnery Reserve, where we saw Hares and a Stone Curlew on the drive up, as well as a couple of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Eurasian Curlews</span></i> and many Cuckoos. The first stop was at the CES (Constant Effort Site) bird ringing station, where we saw <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Blue Tit</span></i>, Reed Warbler, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Chiffchaff </span></i>and a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Blackbird</span></i> ringed.</span></b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg59sKLkhaNsGcoFctqAlN16fC4YQUO3C8dloK_boBYTyDLxbBB3KUhrndEwhdjSvECLwxMDt67D78Ui72-mpDv4kYn1xwGW2i8ltXwbrMvfhRt7amgxWzntiP0m-8DgCxpbqrbe-2WYA/s1600/Reed+Warbler.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg59sKLkhaNsGcoFctqAlN16fC4YQUO3C8dloK_boBYTyDLxbBB3KUhrndEwhdjSvECLwxMDt67D78Ui72-mpDv4kYn1xwGW2i8ltXwbrMvfhRt7amgxWzntiP0m-8DgCxpbqrbe-2WYA/s640/Reed+Warbler.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Reed Warbler</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">We moved on to bird-territory mapping, where there were many species including <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Willow Warbler</span></i>, Garden Warbler and better views of Stone Curlew. Lastly, we looked for bird nests, with a Blackcap's nest found, and many abandoned Woodpigeon nests.</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUfMe6rk9f_3viY2RcCRxAU27odf9w_J8hc1LYgXJSF33C79YetFOexpK6eW_TTryXXh8qZy-oDcwbCTt3VeTXdto2wADOk0qBiqjJkSNfHYQq3tnqX3B6g1OGreuWWNG0GPpBU21zHQ/s1600/STONECURL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUfMe6rk9f_3viY2RcCRxAU27odf9w_J8hc1LYgXJSF33C79YetFOexpK6eW_TTryXXh8qZy-oDcwbCTt3VeTXdto2wADOk0qBiqjJkSNfHYQq3tnqX3B6g1OGreuWWNG0GPpBU21zHQ/s640/STONECURL.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Stone Curlew</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Back at camp, we went through the previous night's moth trap, which had a Brimstone Moth, Turnip and Figure of Eighty. </span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">We packed our stuff up and went inside for a summary of the camp and speeches from some of the young birders. The final bird of the trip was a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Swift</span></i> that had flown in to the building, which was picked up and set free by the volunteers, after it was shown to the crowd of participants and their families.</span></b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi56V9rCsMeJlKfaTKhXWiJBP8sI6NxtXG9t-z8q6qXwLR5o253gxwRxEf1KDycHnC74o1YbPMDbAPoQg96i2hPu3s8odeONyDnYbU5j9HVMr0tFoxac1aYoul43PqS0IRTbo0slday9A/s1600/White+ermie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi56V9rCsMeJlKfaTKhXWiJBP8sI6NxtXG9t-z8q6qXwLR5o253gxwRxEf1KDycHnC74o1YbPMDbAPoQg96i2hPu3s8odeONyDnYbU5j9HVMr0tFoxac1aYoul43PqS0IRTbo0slday9A/s640/White+ermie.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">White Ermine</span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8sSQky3aolhq-yhByh1KDoobfgfzsb06UHUSgQqz0mInABeXiJeyPn0J55dOGZr-OwvD4rM_xhzJFtrnfERzMpZzIdPE8hI3ZLIm4wbH3UiHjLIAGagrA8-t0IADoJotKuc-x2XT_og/s1600/fig+80.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8sSQky3aolhq-yhByh1KDoobfgfzsb06UHUSgQqz0mInABeXiJeyPn0J55dOGZr-OwvD4rM_xhzJFtrnfERzMpZzIdPE8hI3ZLIm4wbH3UiHjLIAGagrA8-t0IADoJotKuc-x2XT_og/s640/fig+80.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Figure of eighty</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Overall, this camp was a great experience to see wildlife and meet new people, as I have met few wildlife enthusiasts near my age. I will, hopefully, be applying to come back next year, and meet up with people from the camp again at other events, including the Birdfair later in the year. The 'bird camping' isn't over yet though, as I have another one next weekend in the New Forest, which I hope will be equally as good!</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Thank you to the many volunteers who helped organise and run the camp, the Cameron Bespolka Trust for supporting it and the BTO for creating it! One of the best parts of the camp was meeting and talking to all the young birders - some who I will probably meet again.</span></b></span><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-68970703906698220422019-05-27T11:05:00.001-07:002019-05-27T11:06:47.892-07:00WAXWINGS and Other Local Birds<b><span style="color: white;">With the news of Waxwings at Wimbledon in early March, I decided it was finally time to track down this species which I have wanted to see for a long time. The next day was a Saturday, so I travelled down to Wimbledon on the train early in the morning, and arrived at the location where they had been seen.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>However, it was immediately evident that I had messed up - after an unsuccessful search for them, I checked Twitter again to see that the only time they were coming to this park was to roost, but spent the day in some other unknown location.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5XBEdEfat-X-fJHQoVR-9vAK3vS8LrwqqKTOHhfwVvmyeAW1LYb-4r9VySPYHjbxZbZyBjyNa5VOuQ1895YA99tiQyrSl_SDUJn3fs4yJqCpRQqmiMzvCSJ7nA1_fHcqvebnFzT5VsQ/s1600/MED+GUll.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="899" data-original-width="1600" height="359" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5XBEdEfat-X-fJHQoVR-9vAK3vS8LrwqqKTOHhfwVvmyeAW1LYb-4r9VySPYHjbxZbZyBjyNa5VOuQ1895YA99tiQyrSl_SDUJn3fs4yJqCpRQqmiMzvCSJ7nA1_fHcqvebnFzT5VsQ/s640/MED+GUll.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">I twitched a Med Gull at my patch, Stocker's Lake - an unusual bird for the lake, usually with just a single record a year</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">I searched the surrounding area hopelessly, with no success in finding the Waxwings, and had to give up. But there were some interesting species in the park, including <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Redwings </span></i>carpeting the floor, including some singing ones, and a few <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mistle Thrushes</span></i>. </span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I decided the best thing to do was to go birding somewhere local and return in the late afternoon, so I went to London Wetland Centre, where there is always a chance of something good. I made straight for the Peacock Tower hide, the best one for viewing a wide range of habitats. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I couldn't find much except a Snipe over a long period of time, so I went to check the Gulls from the hides on the other side of the reserve. There were, however, a couple of problems. Firstly, many of the Gulls were sitting on distant islands and rafts, and I didn't have a scope with me, so judging any plumage details was difficult.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Secondly, and worst of all, my camera was out of charge, so I knew that if I did return to the Waxwings later, I would have to stick with views (usually, I prefer watching birds over photographing them, but its always good to get at least record shots of interesting species).</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b><b>I did have some luck in the hide, with a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Snipe </span></i>coming right up to the window, and I found a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Yellow-Legged Gull</span></i> on one of the tern rafts, thanks to one of the volunteers letting me borrow their scope to scan briefly. </b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqTosyRixOqMw4DF8z0RLbPgApfCLgCoZ0gBU35DXAtbHIYDcwZRNWsJ8FxHlFDKpOiwURVg-BtMriyuY7_N2AutGMAj4s9Bq-mwXsjcMToFQ-WR43vELK1pfWm5WprWT6jyuBNfBOvA/s1600/YLGKKKK+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1042" data-original-width="587" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqTosyRixOqMw4DF8z0RLbPgApfCLgCoZ0gBU35DXAtbHIYDcwZRNWsJ8FxHlFDKpOiwURVg-BtMriyuY7_N2AutGMAj4s9Bq-mwXsjcMToFQ-WR43vELK1pfWm5WprWT6jyuBNfBOvA/s640/YLGKKKK+%25282%2529.jpg" width="360" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">YLG taken through a volunteer's scope</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">It was a good, distinctive bird, clearly bigger and chunkier than herring gulls, with clean plumage, but I can't say everyone else in the hide shared my excitement with this big brown immature gull.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>By the time I was finished here, it was the evening, and I decided to head back to Wimbledon to try again with the Waxwings. I met up with Kabir and Arjun at the site, and there were lots other birders, although most of them were trying hard not to make themselves visible. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I was talking to Arjun and Kabir when a high pitched, piercing sound made everyone turn their heads at once, and walk over to the source. It was clearly a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Waxwing</span></i> call, and it wasn't long before we saw the birds fly in and land at the top of a bare tree. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>For the next half hour we enjoyed reasonable views of the birds, at the top of one of the trees. Although the light wasn't great, once would occasionally shift position and sit against the tree, giving great views of the plumage.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b> I, annoyingly, couldn't take any photos with my camera, but tried for a couple of phone record shorts through my binoculars. Honestly, with the end results, I don't know if they're good enough to be classed as record shots. </b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEittgJx2ZYEW0EWgbIytgu8pftu54eXmGWmc1kf7mQhAJ9H14i_lyS8IhQMbsXAP3zZPfokfKnCoQbHtpK3YXNAlZOqOceUDZLD-DMy-EPnHsEiz9IaUDwcKzw75VAWfgVU7iaq7NwuQw/s1600/Other+Waxwing+photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEittgJx2ZYEW0EWgbIytgu8pftu54eXmGWmc1kf7mQhAJ9H14i_lyS8IhQMbsXAP3zZPfokfKnCoQbHtpK3YXNAlZOqOceUDZLD-DMy-EPnHsEiz9IaUDwcKzw75VAWfgVU7iaq7NwuQw/s640/Other+Waxwing+photo.JPG" width="480" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Artistic Waxwing shot</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Both Arjun and Kabir got much better photos than me, even though the conditions for photography were challenging. This was my second lifer of the year - new birds are becoming harder to find now. </span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Other local birding was done in the period leading up to the Easter holidays, including a few visits to Maple Lodge, producing Snipe, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Water Rail</span></i>,<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Green Sandpiper</span></i> and <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Oystercatcher</i></span>, and a visit to Stocker's Lake to successfully twitch the <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mediterranean Gull</span></i>. </b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUtaXVW5g-eOS27dg93mA_kL0YKVOKRDTIqZlGpmjx4OV35wX-Fn3Pu5SgWehtvmgSTGqv7arzqCLuDQ8KTE3AVPsGS1YAdTXxfv8qxg4G6QfPupKnBizKFoas3ljRDmppcIfVihr0Og/s1600/WR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUtaXVW5g-eOS27dg93mA_kL0YKVOKRDTIqZlGpmjx4OV35wX-Fn3Pu5SgWehtvmgSTGqv7arzqCLuDQ8KTE3AVPsGS1YAdTXxfv8qxg4G6QfPupKnBizKFoas3ljRDmppcIfVihr0Og/s640/WR.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Water Rail</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Lastly, I visited Burnham Beeches, where I was unsuccessful in finding any Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers, but did manage two flyover<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Lesser Redpoll</span></i>, two <i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Bramblings</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Siskins</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mandarin Ducks</span></i>,<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Nuthatches</span></i>, a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Treecreeper </span></i>and a couple of<i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Woodcock</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">.</span></span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvFJRER3KTTW_D-JioOcUIK1si-rCd_kOM9BNGSSyMCQ89uMJmGhZ57uBvEMOeSZ1UYKUCCXihFqalb6NDItrdLMLL8pQkIarY1ZXh2VLGK4EinA79VLWETaN4yfuSUeTB1s9fEXQysg/s1600/SNIPE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="899" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvFJRER3KTTW_D-JioOcUIK1si-rCd_kOM9BNGSSyMCQ89uMJmGhZ57uBvEMOeSZ1UYKUCCXihFqalb6NDItrdLMLL8pQkIarY1ZXh2VLGK4EinA79VLWETaN4yfuSUeTB1s9fEXQysg/s640/SNIPE.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Snipe</span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0UCWNtnWm33eDNEKtc6xrTany3Ae07hiGPdtBzUM7dFuCcq7j-BsG2pzt5GwxtzMXclKc3V70Xuks0AVyOh4aakT2MnhN9s7ejiENzthob2_Jr642A6ZqF4RJKtAFSSFmtzG_Na2LlQ/s1600/OYSTERCATCHER.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0UCWNtnWm33eDNEKtc6xrTany3Ae07hiGPdtBzUM7dFuCcq7j-BsG2pzt5GwxtzMXclKc3V70Xuks0AVyOh4aakT2MnhN9s7ejiENzthob2_Jr642A6ZqF4RJKtAFSSFmtzG_Na2LlQ/s640/OYSTERCATCHER.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Oystercatcher</span></b></td></tr>
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Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-8241907380861565152019-05-27T10:56:00.001-07:002019-05-27T10:56:55.956-07:00The Brecks In February<b><span style="color: white;">After staying local for most of the February holidays, I decided to head further to see some Norfolk specialities in the Brecks. I spent the weekend around Thetford in Norfolk, and had a day guided by Carl Chapman again, who I had been guided by several times before.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I met him early on the Saturday, and we travelled to the first site of many for the day. The first birds included <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">G</span></i></b><b><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">oldcrest</span></i></b><b>, a singing <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mistle Thrush</span></i> and a large finch/bunting flock which included <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Linnet</span></i>, Y<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">ellowhammer</span></i> and dozens of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bramblings</span></i>, which were calling constantly.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>However, the fog was too thick to look for any Goshawks, so we went to the next site. Birds here included Goldcrest, <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Coal Tit</i></span> and Yellowhammer. The best bird though was the <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Woodlark</span></i>, which was song-flighting and gave great views, showing off ID features such as the short tail.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBLeDY9FfcYmctGjOF-AbjSCKshSOde5CssDod5g_xOivsmxdg6mERih17WKK4fpZN7yGPaw18HQvOWjOzSU_tikXBbh96sS8Bnsvhn7XEoiKAFadMkqep80bysImT2sJ2n9OafwTOLw/s1600/Brambling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBLeDY9FfcYmctGjOF-AbjSCKshSOde5CssDod5g_xOivsmxdg6mERih17WKK4fpZN7yGPaw18HQvOWjOzSU_tikXBbh96sS8Bnsvhn7XEoiKAFadMkqep80bysImT2sJ2n9OafwTOLw/s640/Brambling.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Brambling</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">After getting good views of Woodlark, we looked for more birds around the area, including <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Green Woodpecker</span></i>.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>We went back to the original site to look for Goshawks, as the fog had almost cleared, and viewing conditions were good enough. We arrived at a site full of people, and set up the scopes. Very soon, I noticed a raptor flying over the distant pines, and was sure it was a Goshawk.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b><b>I got Carl on to the bird, and he confirmed it was a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Goshawk</span></i>, while putting everyone else on to the bird. Only the second I've seen in Britain, with both at this site.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The goshawk was in view for a while, and a second appeared, drifting closer until it was almost right above us, giving amazing views.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>We headed to the next site at Santon Downham, where we were unsuccessful in the search for Lesser Spotted Woodpecker. However, there were loads of other good birds seen, including Brambling and<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Siskin</span></i> on the nearby feeders. The other highlight here was a couple of Otters, which came within a metre of us and showed very well, undisturbed by the many admirers.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicPYlIRk_s10K3OdiKgMxsa3Repq-LRs-pjgG9_OfhB7dCmVIHIsZ-vW-jwXqVJqrSOWEwZsM1AsYQUUeS2wL99ovbtybFAHOMvOqCRkT8oddemEXxFw1W2_PtHopilaGk62pOhEjB2A/s1600/Otter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="899" data-original-width="1600" height="359" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicPYlIRk_s10K3OdiKgMxsa3Repq-LRs-pjgG9_OfhB7dCmVIHIsZ-vW-jwXqVJqrSOWEwZsM1AsYQUUeS2wL99ovbtybFAHOMvOqCRkT8oddemEXxFw1W2_PtHopilaGk62pOhEjB2A/s640/Otter.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">The Otters showed well...</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">The final site of the day was at Lynford Arboretum, where we searched for the regular flock of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Hawfinch</span></i>. We found them feeding on the floor below a large tree, with a few males giving good views out in the open. I watched these for a while, until they flew in the tree, then seemed to somehow disappear, without anyone seeing them go.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>There were loads of other good birds seen here, including male <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Crossbills</span></i> giving prolonged views, a fearless <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Water Rail </span></i>that came very close, and dozens of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Marsh Tits</span></i>, singing and showing well.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The highlight, however, was probably the <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Firecrests</span></i>, tracked down from their high-pitched song. One individual showed well, coming out of the dense trees to give unobscured views on open branches.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>We finished the day waiting for a murmuration of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Starlings</span></i>, but it must have been the wrong conditions, as the only Starlings I saw were in small groups. It had been a successful day, and I started to work out what to do the next day.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEVg1mndbpUNxxTMBCCeayMU3aDD79GJhf9TApmU2_pag1Wcs4xGLOBV-EAE1md3MTF72e1dwxpvBrhEuSSHCae4ZG1ZsIZeMcHIHSnZCU1bNiZkASGIMeeH7c2sWDWGbyGQSsJCmatg/s1600/Woodlarks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="899" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEVg1mndbpUNxxTMBCCeayMU3aDD79GJhf9TApmU2_pag1Wcs4xGLOBV-EAE1md3MTF72e1dwxpvBrhEuSSHCae4ZG1ZsIZeMcHIHSnZCU1bNiZkASGIMeeH7c2sWDWGbyGQSsJCmatg/s640/Woodlarks.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Amazing picture of a couple of Woodlarks</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">I started the Sunday off at Santon Downham again, where I tried for <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Lesser Spotted</span></i> <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Woodpecker</span></i> for the second time. After some waiting, I heard its hawk-like call from nearby in the woodland, and I began scanning the trees for it.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b><b>Eventually, I noticed it at the top of a nearby Alder, and tried to put everyone else nearby on the bird, although my directions were pretty confusing.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Another bird joined it, and they began chasing each other around the woodland, calling constantly, until they flew over the other side of the river, and deep in to the woods. While I was walking back along the path, I heard one of them drumming, before they fell silent.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Other birds seen here were another obliging water Rail, a Marsh Tit, Bramblings and many Siskins.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1kOtPnhURQtWzmwjEOvPkxKjXjNuHeoBkJxJCNUnUDDrODDVh5QjdTLFEd5PyY5BpDbHAt4kK5P9yop7W_owa2usM8r2LdTukv9MkI0WV8clXErvuIaXJmjQjgzfbb6Xr6m2IOT4tqg/s1600/WATER+RAIL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1kOtPnhURQtWzmwjEOvPkxKjXjNuHeoBkJxJCNUnUDDrODDVh5QjdTLFEd5PyY5BpDbHAt4kK5P9yop7W_owa2usM8r2LdTukv9MkI0WV8clXErvuIaXJmjQjgzfbb6Xr6m2IOT4tqg/s640/WATER+RAIL.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">This Water Rail showed well</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">The decision for the final site of the day was hard, as I didn't have long left. At first I considered Burrel Way - the gull site in Thetford - but decided that, while in the Brecks, there were better things to do than stare at gulls, so I tried a new site to look for Willow Tit instead.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I found the feeder that had been set up for them when I arrived, and stood a few metres back to set up the scope, while birds were still coming to the food. Birds on the feeder included <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Blue</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Great</span></i>, Coal and Marsh Tit, but no Willow Tits.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b><b>I met a group of birders who said one had been heard singing further down the path earlier in the day, but I had just a few minutes before I had to catch a train back to London. So I had to abandon the Willow Tit search (though probably not for the last time) and head back to London.</b></span>Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-12127511227241895942019-05-27T10:44:00.001-07:002019-05-27T10:44:29.449-07:00Cliffe Pools and Some Local Stuff<b><span style="color: white;">During the week-long holiday in February, there isn't always masses to do except looking for local stuff around the Colne Valley, which is what I did for most of it. However, I always try to organise more long-distance trips over holidays, so, on the Wednesday, I decided to head to Cliffe Pools in Kent, hoping for waders and, importantly, the many grebe species they had recently had.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I got up early to begin the train journey to Cliffe, not too bad, but still too long to do regularly. I arrived at a a place which was different from what I expected, and began to scan the first pool. There was a <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i>Little Grebe</i></span>, many<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i> Mediterranean Gulls</i></span>, and some waders such as <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Redshank</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Lapwing</span></i> and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Golden Plover</span></i>.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The pools had the same range of species on them, but one had a pair of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Goldeneye</span></i>, and someone told me they had a Spoonbill on one, before it had been scared off by a raptor.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I spent the next couple of hours wandering around random paths, trying to find the Alpha Pool, with no luck, seeing nothing but a Marsh Harrier, and constantly thinking I'd found the right path until I realised it was a construction site, or an overgrown path that led nowhere. However, I eventually found the correct path and reached the Alpha Pool, where there were dozens of<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Teal</span></i> on the Thames, and a couple dozen Grebes on the pool.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTxeb10nrfe9WY-jzdst5u4XwpjP1dBH3cbRSuXwAufjaoAAj3uko1On1EBU7UBtdG-qP4Z8gh0mIEYYWFP1o1RcizXS1kOyAHdn-LTuIO6Ujv5EjmpWDF6BXEiOVorj_3R4l7DOAutQ/s1600/RNG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="789" data-original-width="1405" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTxeb10nrfe9WY-jzdst5u4XwpjP1dBH3cbRSuXwAufjaoAAj3uko1On1EBU7UBtdG-qP4Z8gh0mIEYYWFP1o1RcizXS1kOyAHdn-LTuIO6Ujv5EjmpWDF6BXEiOVorj_3R4l7DOAutQ/s640/RNG.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Red-Necked Grebe</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Most were Little Grebes, with a few <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Great Crested Grebes </span></i>mixed in. I scanned but could find nothing else, until I noticed a Grebe closer than the rest, which was immediately recognisable as a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Red-Necked Grebe</span></i> - my first lifer of 2019. It showed well - better than most of the other Grebes, but was unfortunately swimming away.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I scanned for more birds, and found the flock of four <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Black-Necked Grebes</span></i>, more distant than the Red-Necked Grebe, and not the best view I have ever had. But these were amazing views compared to what I had of the <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Slavonian</span></i>, right at the other end of the pool, which was so far away that it was barely visible in the scope.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>For many of the other days of the holiday, I stayed local, visiting Stocker's Lake to look for Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, but had no success. However, there were <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Treecreepers</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Siskins </span></i>and displaying Goldeneye.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b> I also visited Broadwater with Kabir while he was doing the his WeBS survey, where we saw many species of wildfowl, including Goldeneye, and some other birds such as large flocks of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Siskins</span></i>.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFCXQHJOiVk5ayxmJjZUFdRKS6eUUkJ54LtYTgt8P5yfpWta6Ql2lKCZLqoiEWvhkAIVhpPV59fvqYK5-SXumEXBrhewq1DBadEcxTX_ttzntIO05KPwaDDsLOu3lTzpadWqP-iBSadg/s1600/TREEEEE.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFCXQHJOiVk5ayxmJjZUFdRKS6eUUkJ54LtYTgt8P5yfpWta6Ql2lKCZLqoiEWvhkAIVhpPV59fvqYK5-SXumEXBrhewq1DBadEcxTX_ttzntIO05KPwaDDsLOu3lTzpadWqP-iBSadg/s640/TREEEEE.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Treecreeper</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">However, the best bird of the holiday was probably in Wendover Woods, where I had planned to spend all day looking for Crossbills. I thought it would take all day to find them, so I didn't expect to hear them calling from the car park when I opened the car door - before I had even got out!</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I took the scope out and managed to find an adult male <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Crossbill</span></i> on top of a pine tree, and had good views in great light (for once). Meanwhile, one was singing from deeper in the woods, and they were constantly calling.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Since I had seen my target so early, I decided to visit College Lake briefly, mostly to see what it was like. It looks like a good reserve, but is far from local, so I'll only visit occasionally. On this visit I managed to see my first inland <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Oystercatcher </span></i>of the year.</b></span>Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-34557979470396759932019-05-27T10:35:00.001-07:002019-05-27T11:16:41.921-07:00Short Summary of EXTREMADURA <b><span style="color: white;">I recently birded Extremadura with Heatherlea, a bird-filled region in Spain, with countless new species, and good views of many of the commoner species. Even the hotel grounds had lifers for me, and the most colourful birds were often the most common. This is just a short summary about a trip I could write a lot more about but, over a month after I went, I've fallen behind on blog writing. </span></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">One highlight included the variety of raptors, including mating Spanish Imperial Eagles, hunting Short-Toed Eagle and abundant Booted Eagles. I also had more distant views of Bonelli's and Golden Eagles, but ID features were seen well on both species. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">There were also smaller raptors, such as the Lesser Kestrels nesting in towns, and a distant Black-Shouldered Kite flying high in the sky. Griffon Vultures were common, with Black seen most days and Egyptian seen a couple of times. Other species included many Black and Red Kites, Buzzard, Osprey, Peregrine and Common Kestrel.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Another highlight was the huge variety of warblers, including many new species, such as Spectacled, Subalpine, Sardinian and Western Bonelli's. It was, however, the Western Orphean Warbler that was the highlight of the warblers, and probably the birds, of the trip. A shy warbler that showed well for a brief period and singing constantly. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Other warblers included Dartford and the more common species. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Birds were everywhere, including by the roadsides, so we were constantly stopping the bus to watch Roller, Bee-Eater, Iberian Grey Shrike, Zitting Cisticola and Woodchat Shrike.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Birds of the Plains included many displaying Great Bustards, a displaying male Little Bustard, Black-Bellied Sandgrouse in flight, and some more familiar species such as Little Owl. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Larks were numerous, with Short-Toed, Calandra, Crested, Thekla's and Woodlark. Some days we entered different habitats - the marshes and pools held Black-Winged Stilts, Purple Swamphens, Little Bitterns, Gull-Billed Tern and Penduline Tit. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">We drove up to high altitudes one of the days for some specialist species - this is where I saw the Western Bonelli's Warbler, and other species such as Golden Oriole, Iberian Green Woodpecker and Short-Toed Treecreeper. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">With all these specialities, there were many common birds, with Corn Buntings and Crested Larks everywhere, and Red-Rumped Swallow, Crag martin, Alpine Swift and Pallid Swift were seen over bridges and towns. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Other species included Blue Rock Thrush, Nightingale, Black Redstart, Spanish Sparrows, Cirl Bunting, Common Waxbill, Red Avadavat, Rock Sparrow, Great Spotted Cuckoo, Purple Heron, Cattle Egret, Montagu's Harrier and Quail.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">It was a great place, and a new area for me. Birds were everywhere, including beside motorways and near the hotel. I would definitely come back here, even though I saw most of the targets, as the chorus of Corn Buntings remind me of what Britain could have been like with the correct habitat. Thanks to the excellent, skilled guides at Heatherlea, who found the amazing birds and were friendly and helpful.</span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIQlnqaLfIqG3_g1U3ETPmhfzVLlTC5p2o9rASbIHTN6Xk-8u5QvlEVK0vbfC1lmC3PCrwYunol9-pwUWw4d48PatyU_19JCj2yR3cDHGCM9ll2QfZiAh9BcEV3VW3wVlkgDbCieOCzw/s1600/BOOTED.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIQlnqaLfIqG3_g1U3ETPmhfzVLlTC5p2o9rASbIHTN6Xk-8u5QvlEVK0vbfC1lmC3PCrwYunol9-pwUWw4d48PatyU_19JCj2yR3cDHGCM9ll2QfZiAh9BcEV3VW3wVlkgDbCieOCzw/s640/BOOTED.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Booted Eagle</span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMropebIgISn7EQczyzl6oTJpYf8mPpaz6hxS26vbZJeeUqGy8DK8oF4oL_DEvLHvuchUSc5a81jzzuCVcMnTY6cQlb3vZhH8cm-HApgblgPwYTHZT7dsALR5Cut3zzhHsEeDjn9KOsQ/s1600/beeeater.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMropebIgISn7EQczyzl6oTJpYf8mPpaz6hxS26vbZJeeUqGy8DK8oF4oL_DEvLHvuchUSc5a81jzzuCVcMnTY6cQlb3vZhH8cm-HApgblgPwYTHZT7dsALR5Cut3zzhHsEeDjn9KOsQ/s640/beeeater.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Bee-Eater</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtSl78zfhPDdpSSNtpIKY7BIHR_kQudo8FBaPXn8BV7o2eA3dGeD_4G9IofEMX8nU9_epwCN0I9W-8kNIorwBt_5Yt_xJp0cP1Bj-kEkuA-8PDehLkcYpHp9sfr3Lye1Lo5Plu2sU3cA/s1600/bluerockthrush.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtSl78zfhPDdpSSNtpIKY7BIHR_kQudo8FBaPXn8BV7o2eA3dGeD_4G9IofEMX8nU9_epwCN0I9W-8kNIorwBt_5Yt_xJp0cP1Bj-kEkuA-8PDehLkcYpHp9sfr3Lye1Lo5Plu2sU3cA/s640/bluerockthrush.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Blue Rock Thrush</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7UldqzTEqt86rX-nEWmOPDwL2BTNtB9EoYJFNT6_tdGwv8P1TyT8GhEP7ZPDUQPP-POx6SKXdnL-YBwI7AUNoEZ7a2r63-OEo1ryKOI5D3upfuCLUSEL0M4wc_T8JJ6sok2J0ykW6jA/s1600/Hoopoe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7UldqzTEqt86rX-nEWmOPDwL2BTNtB9EoYJFNT6_tdGwv8P1TyT8GhEP7ZPDUQPP-POx6SKXdnL-YBwI7AUNoEZ7a2r63-OEo1ryKOI5D3upfuCLUSEL0M4wc_T8JJ6sok2J0ykW6jA/s640/Hoopoe.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Hoopoe </span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9_yrHSjhs3bPKe3jlVJFanO-WYrRSelABkZ2dBpMxsDL6CHSUmc_eksANiXDCpEN801FIRlahAzvlsy1JeDiBKm4NT0wJFubknrZ4rSijPnf5D15sRNjQq5MO_wX4CTCfimf2oOhyphenhyphenpA/s1600/CFAG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9_yrHSjhs3bPKe3jlVJFanO-WYrRSelABkZ2dBpMxsDL6CHSUmc_eksANiXDCpEN801FIRlahAzvlsy1JeDiBKm4NT0wJFubknrZ4rSijPnf5D15sRNjQq5MO_wX4CTCfimf2oOhyphenhyphenpA/s640/CFAG.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Crag Martin</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0pFtkBeMsQUk-EzucZG9xluN2bsdVGIyHLYovw1XoubAX_N7KdgBMnWZPDlatLOWJO2gYy1fn-kqjWP5bo9xtypBr6ABtQGVhOAboOc8ImZ6u0snVDrqiel3uWM1PFKkD_beUvy-q4A/s1600/BV.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0pFtkBeMsQUk-EzucZG9xluN2bsdVGIyHLYovw1XoubAX_N7KdgBMnWZPDlatLOWJO2gYy1fn-kqjWP5bo9xtypBr6ABtQGVhOAboOc8ImZ6u0snVDrqiel3uWM1PFKkD_beUvy-q4A/s640/BV.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Black Vulture</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitxfR07C3LiapPrEyCIDwdq9M5tU0nJUSuMMRitRVOc7XC81xanAcP44BMQLa_TIg8daue7SVD9XOeP1NmyZ9EFIWNBeL8c_clY_AfueFH3pVzBmzzgB2UzWyigmhyphenhyphenKqrJZYYuKIIJ9Q/s1600/LK.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitxfR07C3LiapPrEyCIDwdq9M5tU0nJUSuMMRitRVOc7XC81xanAcP44BMQLa_TIg8daue7SVD9XOeP1NmyZ9EFIWNBeL8c_clY_AfueFH3pVzBmzzgB2UzWyigmhyphenhyphenKqrJZYYuKIIJ9Q/s640/LK.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Lesser Kestrel</span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3F2ubU_k4QW_fgr4WiGlYzhkciLzVcIsB6TAtR8-6TUQ1ZyojqKw6ohDRlvXozwsyOR_3BxGniHvxNIGCMQ5ZBWmFrOau0rb_SbBbirtdO-1ujrF1ZxbsiId-E9EGA-O2zZKmQwhvQw/s1600/RADV.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3F2ubU_k4QW_fgr4WiGlYzhkciLzVcIsB6TAtR8-6TUQ1ZyojqKw6ohDRlvXozwsyOR_3BxGniHvxNIGCMQ5ZBWmFrOau0rb_SbBbirtdO-1ujrF1ZxbsiId-E9EGA-O2zZKmQwhvQw/s640/RADV.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Red Avadavat </span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLKA4CCwG0jX1BV1XyzNjuj4lvnIz7C5H04cKo8PtGcNnj4HJieL64FgFl5zaetlbyoHRCGwFeLcyGndFbXP49kKPzYpu9zy7IxeFYECqIJUi0qRnBsrp1sr34Bu3PvCbceMrORcY-7A/s1600/WBW.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLKA4CCwG0jX1BV1XyzNjuj4lvnIz7C5H04cKo8PtGcNnj4HJieL64FgFl5zaetlbyoHRCGwFeLcyGndFbXP49kKPzYpu9zy7IxeFYECqIJUi0qRnBsrp1sr34Bu3PvCbceMrORcY-7A/s640/WBW.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Western Bonelli's Warbler </span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaLQGmli9L6B2ytdBNqqi2_gPXa6oeoIoU0KlhzEiP0HaXC7mCtQnjrpx8RswYCJSKV_MAXwrXUhAFqWGMyyD7XTS5MUWEhrfGixDREuB5JvzkSyiLI3MOHTw36-sCVqb6dyD-aHAgbQ/s1600/STL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaLQGmli9L6B2ytdBNqqi2_gPXa6oeoIoU0KlhzEiP0HaXC7mCtQnjrpx8RswYCJSKV_MAXwrXUhAFqWGMyyD7XTS5MUWEhrfGixDREuB5JvzkSyiLI3MOHTw36-sCVqb6dyD-aHAgbQ/s640/STL.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Short-Toed Lark</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQYekZRbNOwk9izW18FbCu2Z5-PTqtYf9e44iej3Oks4cj1Ep6WMmjTgKb3Hfq9VaMrSnmlZPiof5qg7txwFsKyaQNxXZz-iHEiW2cd046Qd8-ScA1BuuMX86mXPuUfjKClDDIstWfCA/s1600/Thelka.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQYekZRbNOwk9izW18FbCu2Z5-PTqtYf9e44iej3Oks4cj1Ep6WMmjTgKb3Hfq9VaMrSnmlZPiof5qg7txwFsKyaQNxXZz-iHEiW2cd046Qd8-ScA1BuuMX86mXPuUfjKClDDIstWfCA/s640/Thelka.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Thekla's Lark</span></b></td></tr>
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Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-7648480517304448682019-01-23T12:22:00.003-08:002019-01-23T12:23:26.396-08:00Christmas Holidays<span style="color: white;"><b>Just like every holiday I get, the majority of it was spent birding. This year, I was heading up to Northumberland with my Aunt after Christmas, but first, I took a few days out locally.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
The first was to a lake in the Colne Valley that I had never been to before, Denham Quarry Pit, near Broadwater. It also gave me the chance to view Savay Lake, a private lake that can be seen from the canal path, and try and catch up with the Red-Breasted Merganser I had missed a few days earlier, but had been just a couple hundred yards from.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
The canal itself, predictably, did not hold many birds, but it wasn't long before I was watching a smart male <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Goosander </span></i>on Savay Lake.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
When I reached Denham Quarry Pit, there were even more Goosanders, a total of nine - but no <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Red-Breasted Merganser</span></i>. However, while walking up the channel between two pits, I noticed it on a different lake to the Goosanders, and quite distant, although it drifted closer for good views.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
Later, when I walked back down the path, it had flown over to the other pit and was now resting with the Goosanders, where it showed even closer.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCN8qZZnEgBL61hCUWMtd2OxvoeqreOit9p0pgMnTiswY2VQaxAlubMuzg5DRyvsEK7JzUP2qlEzK1BpwpaJreZ30aRQF7NMKfGA8pQR_16FhzZlgb7MMes_5Y0FoMQx60rY2KGz4BkQ/s1600/RBM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><b><img border="0" data-original-height="1201" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCN8qZZnEgBL61hCUWMtd2OxvoeqreOit9p0pgMnTiswY2VQaxAlubMuzg5DRyvsEK7JzUP2qlEzK1BpwpaJreZ30aRQF7NMKfGA8pQR_16FhzZlgb7MMes_5Y0FoMQx60rY2KGz4BkQ/s640/RBM.jpg" width="640" /></b></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: white;"><b>Red-Breasted Merganser with Goosanders</b></span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: white;"><b>A couple of days later, I made the long journey up to Northumberland, where I would be combining a few hours birding with hospital visits (to a sick relative) each day, with the short daylight hours unfortunately reducing time.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
However, on the first day I made it to Druridge Bay, where I first visited Widrington Moor Lake nearby, that had been holding a Smew for a few days. We pulled up by the side of the road and I got out with the scope, but the conditions were terrible, with heavy wing blowing in my face meaning the scope couldn't stay stable.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
I went inside as it was impossible to identify distant birds in the wind, and set up the scope in the car instead (it wasn't easy to do!), and scanned the closer areas of the lake, where it wasn't long before I noticed the redhead <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Smew</span></i> drifting around with a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Goldeneye</span></i>.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
I was lucky that it decided to hang around the closest part of the lake, as that meant I had better views. There was also a flock of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Wigeon</span></i> and a very distant flock of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pink-Footed Geese</span></i>. Next stop was Druridge Pools, where I didn't actually view the pools, but focused on seawatching, as I found a sheltered spot behind the dunes.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
It was a great seawatch, with dozens of birds to check through, including very good numbers of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Red-Throated Divers</span></i>, which were almost everywhere I looked, and a few Red-Breasted Mergansers. It wasn't long before I picked up a different diver flying through, the head pattern showing it clearly wasn't a Red-Throated, and it eventually landed, displaying that it was a lifer for me - a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Black-Throated Diver</span></i>.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
A <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Great Northern Diver</span></i> also put in a brief appearance, and a flock of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Common Scoter </span></i>drifted in to view.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
As I was heading back to the hospital, a flock of Swans flew in, calling and flying close by, displaying the fact they were <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Whooper Swans</span></i>. There was also a few <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tree Sparrows</span></i> in the dunes, with a Linnet flock, which was one of the few times that I have seen them in a truly natural setting.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
The next day, unfortunately, I fell ill, and a long walk producing nothing except the realisation I was going the wrong way meant the day wasn't the best. However, a look for the recent <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Taiga Bean Geese</span></i> was successful, although they were distant and hard to track down in the light, annoying because others seemed to get pin-sharp images of the birds at close range. It was a lifer, but I will look for better views in the future.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9qqEqmn5WMb_LBl-4k357lnJJe6CWkOmodz6aTMO6VKn51YE1wnPSGltmWR_0gxTMTIcPYTflzwnpzT5jAfDncCZrb3hWaEhdWPrPm9Arki_5I3oG1r-J681Po1xkJ1-Cot6GewZ4Ng/s1600/Goldeneye.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><b><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9qqEqmn5WMb_LBl-4k357lnJJe6CWkOmodz6aTMO6VKn51YE1wnPSGltmWR_0gxTMTIcPYTflzwnpzT5jAfDncCZrb3hWaEhdWPrPm9Arki_5I3oG1r-J681Po1xkJ1-Cot6GewZ4Ng/s640/Goldeneye.jpg" width="640" /></b></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: white;"><b>Goldeneye</b></span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: white;"><b>A morning visit to Stag Rocks was OK, but a frustrating diver which looked like one of the two non Red-Throated species only showed for about a second each time I got onto it, with very long periods of it not reappearing. There were also a few <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Long-Tailed Ducks</span></i> on the sea, and a large flock of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Purple Sandpipers</span></i> on the rocks.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
The following day, there wasn't much of a variety but I went to look for wintering birds in Beadnell Bay, where I walked from the village, instead of the other side of the bay, which I had mistakenly done the previous day. On the sea there was a large flock of<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Eider</span></i>, and in the burn running through to the sea, there were a lot of gulls, which I checked in hope for a white-winged, without success.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
After scanning the saltmarsh for Shore Larks which weren't present, I walked along the beach and put up a couple of medium-sized birds feeding in the dunes. They flew over the dunes and in the direction of the saltmarsh. After walking back here to check it, I noticed a lot of birders and photographers watching the area the birds had flown from, and was informed that two <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Shorelarks</span></i> were feeding there now.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
I had good views through the scope of the birds feeding, which turned out to be one of the final birds of the trip. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="color: white;"><b>The next event was the London young birders meet-up, with Samuel, Kabir, Arjun, Calum, Ben and Dante. Once again meeting at Rainham, it was good to catch up with everyone and meet Dante for the first time.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="color: white;"><b>In the morning, we visited the riverside by the tip, where we checked through the gulls, with Dante obviously the one to pick out a smart first-winter <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Caspian Gull</span></i>, although it didn't stay for too long. A <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Water Pipit</span></i> flew past, calling, and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Stonechats</span></i> and<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Rock</span></i> and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Meadow Pipits</span></i> showed well.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh41YTeqfM1v_fDB79tkGsybyouLXP4YRq_iLPnXxwOyq819mOK14K9r4M0_dhdI4oCqIN_gw_AehOkDUYo04GuD6rLz2ORQvnhuZzapfgxSGs_euqiuxiOZTUn0XCu2gPJl5a-WAgVrA/s1600/Wipit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><b><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh41YTeqfM1v_fDB79tkGsybyouLXP4YRq_iLPnXxwOyq819mOK14K9r4M0_dhdI4oCqIN_gw_AehOkDUYo04GuD6rLz2ORQvnhuZzapfgxSGs_euqiuxiOZTUn0XCu2gPJl5a-WAgVrA/s640/Wipit.jpg" width="640" /></b></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: white;"><b>Water Pipit (but taken a few days later at London WWT)</b></span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
Walking back, Dante picked out a second-winter <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Yellow-Legged Gull</span></i>, with other birds including large flocks of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Stock Doves</span></i> and<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Lapwings</span></i>.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
We then walked around the reserve, where we met up with Ben, and didn't see too much except winter ducks and a<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Ruff</span></i>, with a few other wader species such as <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Snipe</span></i> and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Redshank</span></i>. There were also a few <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pintail</span></i>.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
My last birding trip was to the Thames, which I timed badly - the tide was too far in for gulls on the river. So I headed to the Wetland Centre, where some of the gulls go when the tide is in. There were many gulls, but nothing of note.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
I spent quite a long time watching an adult gull that I though looked like a good Caspian candidate. It had a dark eye, a very white head and breast, very thin, greenish bill, the legs were clearly longer and thinner than the Herring Gull's next to it and were not as flesh-coloured.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq51lHeXLrZUMuuYhc81x2DpOg791-LgEhb4M0KcyDAPHvfezMMvy4eoe7_9fNAKbErAEWsLxd26Iq28PJzYPjCr3HdX47QNpuSGq9wpcmmhQ4PTQQfSc2fHJy3Z7sy_FPJOYt-C-bqQ/s1600/CASP3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><b><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq51lHeXLrZUMuuYhc81x2DpOg791-LgEhb4M0KcyDAPHvfezMMvy4eoe7_9fNAKbErAEWsLxd26Iq28PJzYPjCr3HdX47QNpuSGq9wpcmmhQ4PTQQfSc2fHJy3Z7sy_FPJOYt-C-bqQ/s640/CASP3.jpg" width="640" /></b></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: white;"><b>Dark-eyed Herring Gull</b></span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: white;"><b>I received confirmation that it was a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Herring Gull</span></i>, and I can now see many problems with it, such as short wings, round head and the fact it was quite small.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br />
However, over the next few weeks I plan to visit the Thames much more often to work on gull identification, as I have been spending a lot of hours on the Gull Research Organisation website recently.</b></span>Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-87643709750568175752018-12-23T09:35:00.000-08:002018-12-23T14:49:39.181-08:00Birding Highlights 2018 - Top 11<b><span style="color: white;">2018 has been an extremely successful birding year for me, with so many highlights, some I didn't put on this list. This is also just a list of birding events, so doesn't include the Birdfair or the People's Walk for Wildlife, even though they were probably the highlights of the year. </span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">It also doesn't include the best birding event of the year, Poland, because this is purely based on my birding top 11 in Britain.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white; font-size: large;"><u><b>Smew</b></u></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b>One of my first birding excursions of 2018 was to Rutland water, without any specific targets. After seeing many good birds around the reservoirs, including Goosander and American Wigeon, I entered a hide to see a Smew, although not a real one, but one being filmed through a camera. I looked up to see a stunning drake Smew swimming a couple of metres in front of the hide, the kind of views you can get at from captive birds. It swam away and joined a female more distantly. Awesome views of an awesome bird.</b></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglntalb_pAcfw0WYNLT08sF6CseyNVAcqlowiha_S0J6m45Jz8FnQ6jUeX9Tibi_Ogz84rdkenbN2AsxatOcxCWaP4qwe1Ib8YD9tUTrtHIoZXb5agH3dIxtFVUF4a7YLGy7vivp3G2A/s1600/P1280100+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglntalb_pAcfw0WYNLT08sF6CseyNVAcqlowiha_S0J6m45Jz8FnQ6jUeX9Tibi_Ogz84rdkenbN2AsxatOcxCWaP4qwe1Ib8YD9tUTrtHIoZXb5agH3dIxtFVUF4a7YLGy7vivp3G2A/s640/P1280100+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></div>
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp98YlS0BzEVQ1-tTzQs68ON7Vcwbth5f0FKNBNk4pqodVxx1O24AdkdNVjGU9-BEVX4k3OukMCHlMLUA8xDdSRISR3VLNjpsbUw_XQXH0vCWTJ62F5mZtKRKTyIeMTOq0S5IbGNBMtw/s1600/P1280107+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1079" data-original-width="1437" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp98YlS0BzEVQ1-tTzQs68ON7Vcwbth5f0FKNBNk4pqodVxx1O24AdkdNVjGU9-BEVX4k3OukMCHlMLUA8xDdSRISR3VLNjpsbUw_XQXH0vCWTJ62F5mZtKRKTyIeMTOq0S5IbGNBMtw/s640/P1280107+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></div>
<span style="color: white;"><b style="color: white;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<span style="color: white; font-size: large;"><u><b>Butterflies</b></u></span></span><br />
<b><span style="color: white;">Another highlight was searching for butterflies, which I only got interested in last year. Many of the species with restricted range could be found locally as well, sometimes within walking distance from my house! Not really a 'birding' highlight, but falls in to the category of searching for wildlife. </span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWaMUpD5vBiGJ7SQtaM_lh-MmRdK8VKNk7rN9ylWD75vZNdy-c0ZqN7GWNgX7Ub4uQdykrHVxsg0sLjtrorEE9g5rmjWqNsCuOGwlRSh05kEnSTZpOvdpcGzEypIJ7_XFom-CXFBQKvw/s1600/DOG5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="938" data-original-width="1250" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWaMUpD5vBiGJ7SQtaM_lh-MmRdK8VKNk7rN9ylWD75vZNdy-c0ZqN7GWNgX7Ub4uQdykrHVxsg0sLjtrorEE9g5rmjWqNsCuOGwlRSh05kEnSTZpOvdpcGzEypIJ7_XFom-CXFBQKvw/s640/DOG5.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Duke of Burgundy </span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7-97ZGRigE_nBsx4pDHdD3F14gIPgLqJY0PCx8VUzU_f9pJgAyIiiZiuNTYk6mm2gjxP5ZKMtA2-N0ZZxWE92M_n4GQUsL4ZS48Y32DqayiH8cnFdbNxJ9jSRzt5K-Wi6SAMkNEqWrg/s640/PURPLEHR.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></span></b></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Purple Hairstreak</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7-97ZGRigE_nBsx4pDHdD3F14gIPgLqJY0PCx8VUzU_f9pJgAyIiiZiuNTYk6mm2gjxP5ZKMtA2-N0ZZxWE92M_n4GQUsL4ZS48Y32DqayiH8cnFdbNxJ9jSRzt5K-Wi6SAMkNEqWrg/s1600/PURPLEHR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7-97ZGRigE_nBsx4pDHdD3F14gIPgLqJY0PCx8VUzU_f9pJgAyIiiZiuNTYk6mm2gjxP5ZKMtA2-N0ZZxWE92M_n4GQUsL4ZS48Y32DqayiH8cnFdbNxJ9jSRzt5K-Wi6SAMkNEqWrg/s1600/PURPLEHR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKR8p8f9VvALFKZ9DdH17X85sKgXFHDpE6I4eL3wLkz7kZUaNN4Ce5D_86ryA_NrkaxqT57NKIaA4UB_gEp1F8UxQDOjRzcZu4BGCIZK1s3cZy1mtQSz8PEyZFpo8w894INiC2YTLZoA/s1600/WLH.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKR8p8f9VvALFKZ9DdH17X85sKgXFHDpE6I4eL3wLkz7kZUaNN4Ce5D_86ryA_NrkaxqT57NKIaA4UB_gEp1F8UxQDOjRzcZu4BGCIZK1s3cZy1mtQSz8PEyZFpo8w894INiC2YTLZoA/s640/WLH.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">White-Letter Hairstreak</span></b></td></tr>
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<span style="color: white; font-size: large;"><u><b>Gulling</b></u></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b>After buying the <i>Gulls of The World</i> book at the start of the year, I begin to understand how to ID Yellow-Legged Gulls, and others. I can't say I can tell them all apart, but I'm better than I was. Events throughout the year also helped, as I went on a couple of 'gulling days' in Suffolk. Gulling also produced a recent Caspian Gull in London, one of the best-looking large gulls!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRwjcIvQ-IIz7HE5yTumI_YiZDQOeGZGwmE0DwMmyYVz1BGOuSdQ7DsLEucujXzrFvNwpcmKKMfdaWIGI2YtzMsvJLaZ8N4rqC5bAq1L7Wf7ng8yYx6euF7_MffarzrQ9wY8FxWPS4WQ/s1600/Yellow+legged+g%2527%2527%2527%2527.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRwjcIvQ-IIz7HE5yTumI_YiZDQOeGZGwmE0DwMmyYVz1BGOuSdQ7DsLEucujXzrFvNwpcmKKMfdaWIGI2YtzMsvJLaZ8N4rqC5bAq1L7Wf7ng8yYx6euF7_MffarzrQ9wY8FxWPS4WQ/s640/Yellow+legged+g%2527%2527%2527%2527.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Juvenile Yellow-Legged Gull</td></tr>
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</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQbht4fUJo22DUCbwJJkcacfNVVtH7nCDU1IB4xNdH1mrme3SrGMA6rSypaZOTt9B5FT83NZaCy6we8Q6tDK-ZmhZGYbJRhHSzG9xv9I1KID2oKATgXcncigc7EpkNsu_pofvhxXRfNA/s1600/YEllow+LEGGED+GUILL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1194" data-original-width="1593" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQbht4fUJo22DUCbwJJkcacfNVVtH7nCDU1IB4xNdH1mrme3SrGMA6rSypaZOTt9B5FT83NZaCy6we8Q6tDK-ZmhZGYbJRhHSzG9xv9I1KID2oKATgXcncigc7EpkNsu_pofvhxXRfNA/s640/YEllow+LEGGED+GUILL.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Yellow-Legged Gull - near adult </span></b></td></tr>
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<span style="color: white;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlt5pzTPYy0jg8lEKJ5SdWUu7NKx2S3yan5epiEneDF5ZALIXN1S3oa7X6On0_QOsZ7QMf9UY1-Cl14IsabedngUIfqJCwd6HsZHCOAnzPnEZ4yrib2-0Koli7d719V53AWIwQZl8W2g/s1600/Little+Gull.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlt5pzTPYy0jg8lEKJ5SdWUu7NKx2S3yan5epiEneDF5ZALIXN1S3oa7X6On0_QOsZ7QMf9UY1-Cl14IsabedngUIfqJCwd6HsZHCOAnzPnEZ4yrib2-0Koli7d719V53AWIwQZl8W2g/s640/Little+Gull.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Little Gull, because they don't all look the same</span></b></td></tr>
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<span style="color: white; font-size: large;"><u><b>Redstart</b></u></span><br />
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">During a long weekend in Norfolk in May, seeing Purple Heron, Dotterel, Wood Warbler, Lesser Whitethroat, Cuckoo, Woodlark, Dartford Warbler, Nightingale and many other good birds, the highlight was probably this male Redstart, found by the warden of Holme Bird Observatory. It stayed out in the open and at extremely close range at all times, perching on open posts, low bushes and on the grass, often next to a Wheatear. </span></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh33feQ-E4j6LxUaUasD8TYOW5aqaKwwo2tQJjboYg5BQjuUs4Vuh4cnmVO_jYqlal5xTol01P8eDhEy7yycYSVgkhlpi8D4JoOWeL1jKC8Alqj1sctU5Rn2StYKKgjhN3pbO9mkazldw/s1600/REDSTART.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh33feQ-E4j6LxUaUasD8TYOW5aqaKwwo2tQJjboYg5BQjuUs4Vuh4cnmVO_jYqlal5xTol01P8eDhEy7yycYSVgkhlpi8D4JoOWeL1jKC8Alqj1sctU5Rn2StYKKgjhN3pbO9mkazldw/s640/REDSTART.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: white; font-size: large;"><u><b>Oriole Birding day trip 3rd February</b></u></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">An extremely successful day's birding in Norfolk, led by Jason Moss, Oriole Birding. Highlights were Glossy Ibis, Rough-Legged Buzzard, Merlin, Cranes, Barn Owl, masses of waders, male Hen Harrier, Mediterranean Gull and Bewick's and Whooper swans feeding in fields.</span></b></div>
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<a href="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DVI1HI7WAAA2JGT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" height="473" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DVI1HI7WAAA2JGT.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: white; font-size: large;"><u><b>Migfest</b></u></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">I was delighted to be in the final of the young birders competition at Spurn, and although I didn't win the competition, the weekend was a huge success (ignoring the worst-quality tents I've ever had). </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">I found Pied Flycatcher and Redstart, not 'mega finds' but both great birds. The Pied Flycatcher was thanks to David Walsh telling me what the call sounded like beforehand as well. I also had good views of Common Rosefinch, but it was the whole experience of the event that was the best thing.</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBmZJG5lIyIxEoSj4RI3t_qtyvSDeAJo7g2FBCpqBU8dcvhQHPqvNGELzfUlLmyUTeKHU1linJJPUEEgzJdS41W-cHoRqQwWVUQt2a5p_TFaPGfcTJGMWkTWKqG_-FRBMkJpClD8e6yg/s1600/PIEDFLY.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBmZJG5lIyIxEoSj4RI3t_qtyvSDeAJo7g2FBCpqBU8dcvhQHPqvNGELzfUlLmyUTeKHU1linJJPUEEgzJdS41W-cHoRqQwWVUQt2a5p_TFaPGfcTJGMWkTWKqG_-FRBMkJpClD8e6yg/s640/PIEDFLY.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></b></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Pied Flycatcher</span></b></td></tr>
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<span style="color: white; font-size: large;"><u><b>Yellow-Browed Warblers</b></u></span></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;"><i> </i>I was concerned I would not have time to see one of these this year. However, in the end, I managed to see/hear about ten, including one trapped and ringed at Portland, and four self-found ones, mostly in Cornwall. With almost every bird, I heard the distinctive call, which, for me, has become a sound of autumn. One experience included one calling at the same time as a Dusky Warbler in Cornwall!</span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DpgDEoaXUAAzWsl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DpgDEoaXUAAzWsl.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Yellow-Browed Warbler</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: white;"><u>Spurn in August</u></span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">My second visit to Spurn (before the Migfest) and my second time in August. Even more successful than the previous year, with a trip that started with Spotted Crake and Stilt Sandpiper on the way up, and ended with a perfectly timed Citrine Wagail flying over my head as I was getting in the car to leave. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Other birds included at least three Icterine Warblers, including one probably self-found (a chance it could have been a re-find, but was likely a different bird from the first), Woodchat Shrike, Black and Roseate Tern, Spotted and Pied Flycatcher (including three in one bush), Tree Pipit, Long and Short-Eared Owls, Fieldfare, loads of Whinchats and so many more great birds. </span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEcyeFXIu0D7VdG2nCBPDoMyuRlVahPHkP2FVtWbUTBx1JBgqwnXxey4wFmkA_xr9rI9wcQKdBwu75m0ajMT2NrLpMv-eDvZNG-msyroq2V91NWry9S3BJMNvF5wS7_iGPDUvqpeecVQ/s1600/iccy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEcyeFXIu0D7VdG2nCBPDoMyuRlVahPHkP2FVtWbUTBx1JBgqwnXxey4wFmkA_xr9rI9wcQKdBwu75m0ajMT2NrLpMv-eDvZNG-msyroq2V91NWry9S3BJMNvF5wS7_iGPDUvqpeecVQ/s640/iccy.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Icterine Warbler</span></b></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJmEtaeWnuSrQVnobKv0KJRTOgFHOSRyKrNT8iHjuvC2nk9QYkN5xS9cvRFoLPMeQdQjB1fMiGrVrgeosOo393mUFjFrhkAfJDAiy3ccNCGQFiMsX-QDYavDS707UWUdMT3Dmk3yBMHg/s1600/SPOTTEDCRK+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1201" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJmEtaeWnuSrQVnobKv0KJRTOgFHOSRyKrNT8iHjuvC2nk9QYkN5xS9cvRFoLPMeQdQjB1fMiGrVrgeosOo393mUFjFrhkAfJDAiy3ccNCGQFiMsX-QDYavDS707UWUdMT3Dmk3yBMHg/s640/SPOTTEDCRK+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Spotted Crake (Gibraltar Point, on the way to Spurn)</span></b></td></tr>
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<span style="color: white; font-size: large;"><u><b>Catbird and Bittern</b></u></span><br />
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<b><span style="color: white;">The two rare birds I saw in 2018, the American Bittern involved a long range twitch and the Grey Catbird, involving pure luck, as it chose the week I was going to Cornwall to arrive and settled 10 minutes from where I was staying. Of course, right before I had amazing views of the it, my camera screen fell off and became broken beyond repair. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">The American Bittern showed well,after a four-hour wait, although it was distant, and began to display to a Eurasian Bittern, both birds standing out in the open some of the time. The day also produced a male Hen Harrier.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: white; font-size: large;"><u><b>Local Birding</b></u></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">I would call it patching, but I didn't have time to visit my patch much during the second half of the year. My local area included much the Colne Valley, Ruislip Woods and a few other areas in between. The highlights of local birding included self found Dunlins (once again, might not be considered much of a 'find', but it was an unusual, underwatched site inland and in walking distance from my house), a Curlew flying over Broadwater, Garden Warblers, Bittern, Jack Snipe and Yellow-Legged Gull.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Countless other local highlights include Goldeneye, Caspian Gull, Kingfisher, Siskin, Bullfinch, Water Rail, Pintail, Hobby, Oystercatcher, Water Pipit, Lesser Whitethroat (singing at my school!) and Fieldfares in my garden.</span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img height="480" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DZIoHG5XcAAs3TC.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></span></b></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Siskin</span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img height="480" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DXdXZ49XUAE45J2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></span></b></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Bittern</span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DXX7MaDXkAM8_BV.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DXX7MaDXkAM8_BV.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Dunlins</span></b></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DUEKauLX4AAhlUt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DUEKauLX4AAhlUt.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Fieldfare</span></b></td></tr>
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<span style="color: white;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: white; font-size: large;"><u><b>Lesser Spotted Woodpecker</b></u></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">One of the highlights, mostly because of the six attempts it took to see it. The first five at Cassiobury Park, all of which didn't produce a sighting, although I heard one drumming briefly. However, for the sixth attempt, I visited a woodland in Buckinghamshire, where, after a bit of searching, I heard one calling, drumming and I got views of it. A success after so many failures!</span></b></div>
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Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-20417766852362731302018-11-12T15:09:00.000-08:002018-11-17T10:22:14.568-08:00Cornwall in October <b><span style="color: white;">Since the school holidays in October is at the end of the month, it is not really the peak time to visit migration sites. However, it is still a good time, with many species that can be found at other times in autumn.</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYdxXLcf5MY_RAmSjmFnacW_4R3QI8LvEaRDh11O1o1Uybm9JZeOMPWSjwaYalEMMlo5_1ZWVuPJhlWE7hCQRVaHTrZmF1ymXt3yZjbOsOz4_pYTbgxBmSJSFBsIIiGrwbgoNBODc8dg/s1600/BlackRed.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYdxXLcf5MY_RAmSjmFnacW_4R3QI8LvEaRDh11O1o1Uybm9JZeOMPWSjwaYalEMMlo5_1ZWVuPJhlWE7hCQRVaHTrZmF1ymXt3yZjbOsOz4_pYTbgxBmSJSFBsIIiGrwbgoNBODc8dg/s640/BlackRed.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">A Black Redstart at Pendeen</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">The decision of where to go in the autumn had flipped around a lot, but I eventually settled on Cornwall, going with my aunt and staying with her friends near Land's End.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>This turned out to be a good decision, as almost no birds turned up on the east coast because of the wind direction. Another lucky event was the discovery of a Grey Catbird a few days before I went down, which was not only showing well, but was about ten minutes from where I was staying.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The drive down to Cornwall was mostly uneventful, with a few <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Buzzards</span></i> and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Red Kites</span></i> and some overcrowded service stations for lunch, but we eventually reached Cornwall, where the first stop was a brief afternoon visit to Drift Reservoir, near to where I was staying, but there wasn't much here.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I arrived at the cottage, but was out again a few minutes later for the <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Grey Catbird </span></i>ten minutes away.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b><b>On arrival at the site, I walked to the end of the field and joined the large gathering of birders. After a short wait (and after the screen falling completely off my camera) the shout came that the bird was showing and, to my amazement, it flew straight towards us and landed in view in a small bush.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>It was here for about five minutes, before perching out in the open on a bare branch for a few seconds, then diving in to the bushes, presumably to roost. An awesome bird to begin with, and one that showed well. I put a donation in the bucket and left, preparing for the following day.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg04Md4MzUKUl60KEPYZvJUMOBsf841Qlt19Cu5lYF9nbg3GnETJjFTwl0JYLUHqMTt_ySsvY2yw0iXepyq_bcKhVssyWhv2Etn6o-NQyFzVprq0bAKuQbleIDCrNPz2hCTITG4-Qz_ag/s1600/br.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg04Md4MzUKUl60KEPYZvJUMOBsf841Qlt19Cu5lYF9nbg3GnETJjFTwl0JYLUHqMTt_ySsvY2yw0iXepyq_bcKhVssyWhv2Etn6o-NQyFzVprq0bAKuQbleIDCrNPz2hCTITG4-Qz_ag/s640/br.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">A Black Redstart seen at Pendeen</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">The next day, I got up early to try for a second view of the Catbird, without success, and returned to eat breakfast. I was soon out again though, to Porthgwarra, one of Cornwall's best valleys. Things began well when I found a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Firecrest</span></i> in the trees at the bottom of the valley, and heard many <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Goldcrests</span></i>.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I walked up the to Gwennap Head, where I searched for migrants amongst the few bushes that were here, but was instead given amazing views of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Chough</span></i>, which circled the cliffs and landed in the short grass to feed. Walking further through the valley, I came across a large area of bushes, with a lot of people grouped round them.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I was told that they had re-located a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dusky Warbler</span></i> found earlier in the day, and I immediately heard it calling, then, unexpectedly, it flew over the path, calling as it flew. Annoyingly, it had landed in a dense patch of bushes. Over a period of time, it showed about twice more, for c.1 second each time, but it remained vocal throughout (there was a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Blackcap </span></i>in the bush to add confusion with the calls too). However, the best views were when it worked its way through the front of the vegetation, visible for about a minute.</b></span><br />
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<b><span style="color: white;">A <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Yellow-Browed Warbler</span></i> also called a few times, but remained unseen.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Once the crowds had cleared, the Dusky Warbler flew over my head about 4 times, continually calling. This was my second lifer of the week.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Stonechats </span></i>were entertaining, with smart males perching at the top of the vegetation and calling constantly.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Wrens called from almost every bush, and a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Grey Wagtail </span></i>was flying around the top of one of the houses. I stopped to check for Rose-Coloured Starling on the way back from the valley, but without luck.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The next day was a slightly longer drive to the Lizard, an under-watched location in Cornwall. I started off at Church Cove Cemetery, where there were few birds, but a Yellow-Browed Warbler was present, although I only heard it. Next to Church Cove, with almost no birds at all, except <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Robins</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dunnocks </span></i>and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Blackbirds</span></i>. Butterflies included Wall Brown, Speckled Wood and Red Admiral.</b></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>After lunch at a cafe on Lizard Head, with House Sparrows picking food off tables and Grey Seals in the water, I attempted to bird the surrounding area. However, the 'good' weather proved to be a negative, with huge of people to dodge as I walked down the paths and too much disturbance for the chance of many birds.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I ended the day looking for a reported Little Bunting, which I'm almost certain I saw. However, given the fact that it was distant and there was no size comparison and loads of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Reed Buntings</span></i> in the area, I don't want to confirm it. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The next day was also uneventful, with almost nothing all day - one Yellow-Browed Warbler each at Cot Valley and Nanquidno Valley, both heard only, but the highlight of the day was a Yellow-Browed Warbler at Kenidjack Valley, which ended up showing very well, calling constantly. There were also Choughs seen in every valley, often as flyovers. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>An evening visit to a moorland site to look for Hen Harriers was unsuccessful, but I did get a brief flight view of a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Wheatear</span></i>, and saw many <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ravens</span></i>. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>However, the day after, bird quantity improved rapidly, with an early start at Drift Reservoir. Almost immediately, I heard a Yellow-Browed Warbler calling from the bushes, but, at first, couldn't locate it. I had a few glimpses after a while, but got the best views when someone else turned up and started 'pishing', which brought the bird out in the open for perfect views! After investigating the noise, it returned to feeding, but this time in the nearest bush. It remained very vocal, the most vocal one I had ever heard.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Next, I walked around the reservoir, hearing <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Reed Bunting </span></i>and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Chiffchaff </span></i>along the way, and reached the hide, where most of the birds were gathered. Almost immediately after reaching the hide, someone inside said they had a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ring-Necked Duck </span></i>showing well in front of it. They soon put me on to the bird, a 1st winter, and a lifer!</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>While watching the duck, a wader appeared on the shore of the reservoir - a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Green Sandpiper</span></i>. There were also <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tufted Ducks</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Teal</span></i>, many Gulls, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Wigeon</span></i> and a pale Buzzard.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9OpAUX9jnEpQNFBn6EmdXv10d81qA0sT9TD_h7oQJsqX_c4vvGFwsx2boSvAia-reTa-zk9mO4dOxJk77tzX2cd24XiuEborHcV2JUYBJxPYO0hdZz25UeLGBF_5riIuFU1oBHNPghw/s1600/RND+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9OpAUX9jnEpQNFBn6EmdXv10d81qA0sT9TD_h7oQJsqX_c4vvGFwsx2boSvAia-reTa-zk9mO4dOxJk77tzX2cd24XiuEborHcV2JUYBJxPYO0hdZz25UeLGBF_5riIuFU1oBHNPghw/s640/RND+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">I think it is safe to call this a record shot - Ring-Necked Duck</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Next I went to Pendeen, where I failed see anything on a seawatch, but instead was entertained by a showy <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Black Redstart</span></i> on the lighthouse. I still had some time left before it got dark, so I went back to the Lizard area to visit Croft Pascoe pool, where there were reports of Vagrant Emperor dragonflies.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I reached the pool in mid-afternoon, where a few dragonflies were still active, mostly Common Darters. However, I soon saw a large dragonfly, which proved to be the Vagrant Emperor, although it showed only briefly, which another half hour after the first sighting with it not appearing again. While watching the Dragonflies, a flock of<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Siskins</span></i> flew over.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I had only about an hour of birdable daylight time left, so I travelled to Stithian's Reservoir, a place where Temminck's Stint had been seen the previous day, although not reported when I went, so I wasn't expecting it to still be present. However, after taking many wrong turns and ending up on the wrong side of the reservoir, I finally reached the site to be told that the bird was still there.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I set up my scope and, although distant, saw a very small wader that was the<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Temminck's </span></i>Stint! Another lifer, and a bird I had wanted to see for a while. Even distantly, I could see the the colouring of the bird matched what I had seen in books, but the easiest way to tell it was a stint was when a Green Sandpiper appeared next to it. Once the Sandpiper starting 'bobbing' I worried I had been watching this bird the whole time (as I had taken my eyes off the spot), but realised the Temminck's stint was next to it, so small it was barely noticeable until it moved!</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I got up much later the next day, but ended up at Nanquidno valley with a few hours before setting off for Hayle. Unfortunately, no matter how much I scanned the brambles and field edges, I couldn't find a Ring Ouzel, and, in fact, found almost nothing at all.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>So, later that afternoon, I ended up at Hayle, where I first looked around Carnsew Pool. There was a good variety here, with <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Grey Plover</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bar-Tailed Godwit</span></i>,<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Curlew</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Redshank</span></i>, a distant <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Spoonbill </span></i>and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Oystercatcher</span></i>. I watched a small bird shoot across the water, clearly a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Kingfisher</span></i>, which then landed on the margin of the pool and showed well. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>As I was walking up the path, I heard a distinctive call from the bushes, and watched a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bullfinch</span></i> in the closest vegetation - a bird I hardly ever see, despite them being present at most places.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrqluNgBSCXQO2YMucwR_Hg6fcc7Mn0Aa9W5kEGyY9cnUk4V7APsJzxLzjo4XoBw32eL9jaPM4L8DNbg0_oRZ0_Yomi_oI9Sa9yaqI2Ihb7dvKLZB08AoRaZrSTPkY1AQtVdRVsQzsBg/s1600/BULLY.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrqluNgBSCXQO2YMucwR_Hg6fcc7Mn0Aa9W5kEGyY9cnUk4V7APsJzxLzjo4XoBw32eL9jaPM4L8DNbg0_oRZ0_Yomi_oI9Sa9yaqI2Ihb7dvKLZB08AoRaZrSTPkY1AQtVdRVsQzsBg/s640/BULLY.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Male Bullfinch</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">However, the best feature of the pool was that the 'distant Spoonbill' was walking closer and closer and, after a while, ended up on the shore directly in front of me and proceeded to give amazing views - the best I have ever had of this species. </span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiG804YTNZKGTzSCX7hQlzsJAhZcMhsBDVV0R5DaNPoOSKiqkjKi84xB8Ggk04aayhj1C75vBIcQJOvCbaYOP0R2qXXp-7Gup0u8ewKcKEnS9L89ZTtEibDvykItjeUIAW7XNLoVBTcQ/s1600/SPPO.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiG804YTNZKGTzSCX7hQlzsJAhZcMhsBDVV0R5DaNPoOSKiqkjKi84xB8Ggk04aayhj1C75vBIcQJOvCbaYOP0R2qXXp-7Gup0u8ewKcKEnS9L89ZTtEibDvykItjeUIAW7XNLoVBTcQ/s640/SPPO.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Spoonbill</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Next I searched a few creeks in the estuary, where I again saw the Kingfisher, another Grey Plover, a lot of Redshanks and a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Greenshank</span></i>. Wigeons whistling and the sight of hundreds of T<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">eal </span></i>was also an exciting feature here.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I arrived at Ryan's field for the evening high tide, where I immediately saw the <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Great-White Egret</span></i> that had been there for a while. The Spoonbill had also re-located here, and was feeding happily. To add to the numbers of 'big white things' here, there were a couple of<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Little Egrets </span></i>arriving with the tide. Waders began to trickle in, although there weren't huge numbers. There were more Redshanks, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dunlin</span></i>, Oystercatchers and Bar-Tailed Godwits, as well as <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Black-Tailed Godwits</span></i> and Curlews.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8JgEsOcEJwO4C6dh8wnNr7GKm9AqWn1b5hFkOZvKft4pN3skTSbVAfdnqfVuMVeyb8y827rJa1MjupSpG9LLSwOsbIT8NuJMAovlttVAgkNapPkenJViOszx3wyDsKVXGVGTvReqCqw/s1600/dddddddaa+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8JgEsOcEJwO4C6dh8wnNr7GKm9AqWn1b5hFkOZvKft4pN3skTSbVAfdnqfVuMVeyb8y827rJa1MjupSpG9LLSwOsbIT8NuJMAovlttVAgkNapPkenJViOszx3wyDsKVXGVGTvReqCqw/s640/dddddddaa+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Spoonbill with Little Egret</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">For the final full day, there was a planned, yet very random, day trip to the Isles of Scilly, decided about two days previously. It was mainly for the sea-crossing, although I had a couple of hours on St. Mary's. The crossing there didn't really produce many birds, but there were a lot of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Kittiwakes</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Guillemots</span></i> and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Razorbills</span></i>. I also managed to miss 2 Sooty Shearwaters and a Manx Shearwater, as well as a group of harbour porpoise. </span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>When I arrived on St. Mary's, I had to make a quick decision of </b><b>what to do - deciding the best thing was to search for the Rustic Bunting that had been seen quite nearby. One of the local birders kindly gave me and a few other birders a lift to the Rustic Bunting site which was a field near a cafe. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>It was here where it finally started to feel like autumn - the Yellow-Browed Warblers previously were very autumnal, but the number of birds made the difference - a huge flock of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Chaffinches </span></i>with numerous<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Bramblings</span></i> in it, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Redwings </span></i>and<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Fieldfares </span></i>constantly flying overhead, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Song Thrushes</span></i> everywhere and a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mistle Thrush</span></i> bounding through the field.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The Chaffinch flock flew up to the bushes whenever they felt threatened (often by a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Kestrel</span></i>), but mostly fed in the fields. It wasn't too long before I was scanning through the bush and found the <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Rustic Bunting</span></i>, which had stayed there while the Chaffinch flock was in the field. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I quickly tried to get other people on to it, but through my shock and lack of practice, I was unable to give directions, and only one person got on the bird, something that I clearly need to improve on. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>However, the Bunting was once again found a few minutes later, this time only briefly, and almost everyone managed to see it. With patience, it was located in the field and went on to show amazingly well in the flock of chaffinches and Bramblings, almost certainly the highlight of the week (after the Catbird of course!) </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Right after this, it was time to go back on the Scillonian, where the crossing back produced more Kittiwakes, and a few pods of Common Dolphins.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The final bird was a small raptor seen for just a second in Penzance harbour, diving in to a starling flock and catching one (I think, as I heard a starling squealing from under the building it dived to). </b><b>I am almost confident it was a Merlin, but couldn't say from this sort of view. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The drive back included rain, hail, snow and sun in a 10 minute period, and eventually I reached London. It was a lucky decision to go to Cornwall, as it turned out better than I expected, with 6 lifers and highlights of Rustic Bunting, Grey Catbird, Temminck's Stint, Ring-Necked Duck, Dusky Warbler, Firecrest, Yellow-Browed Warbler, Black Redstart, close views of Spoonbill, Choughs and the sight and sound of the birds on Hayle Estuary. I will be back. </b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZJSxP5W_wGLvDkbf5rMKcqCOtCjownwDYtBNsDpAv3naaEBXbxQzNEnutcdQrC_OBBIgBqvP9xITscBh-OBXSKvlB1cPEWfCnuOoyydgEKgl4L7vVegd7lmWla8iq2XrDqGJC685zkA/s1600/P1050918.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZJSxP5W_wGLvDkbf5rMKcqCOtCjownwDYtBNsDpAv3naaEBXbxQzNEnutcdQrC_OBBIgBqvP9xITscBh-OBXSKvlB1cPEWfCnuOoyydgEKgl4L7vVegd7lmWla8iq2XrDqGJC685zkA/s640/P1050918.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Great-White Egret </span></b></td></tr>
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Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-50596618441300676782018-11-02T14:00:00.000-07:002018-11-02T14:00:21.698-07:00Portland - Searching for Yellow Brows<b><span style="color: white;">After not really getting out last October and almost doing nothing in the famous October of 2016, I made sure that I went somewhere this year. And since I hadn't been to Portland yet in the year, I decided to go there.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Unfortunately, the bird obs was full, so I once again stayed in the bunkhouse, as I had last September. It is fine as a hostel for a couple of nights, but the atmosphere isn't as interesting as most of the people tend to be rock climbing university students, who would speak loudly until 2am...</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I did manage to get some sleep though, and got up just after sunrise on Saturday morning. On previous trips to Portland, I have spent the full day at the observatory, without looking around much, so this year I tried to spend the whole day walking around the island.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I started by walking to the obs garden, where a crest species appeared briefly in the trees, but disappeared just as fast. I walked up to Southwell, then to Easton, visiting quarries along the way.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The first quarry held a few <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Blackcaps </span></i>and a large flock of<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Goldfinches</span></i>, with the same in the next. The winds were strong in the morning, but died down pretty quickly.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>In a small quarry, there was a lot of bird activity, so I waited here for a while. It wasn't long before I heard the distinctive call of a <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-style: italic;">Yellow-Browed Warbler </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">w</span>hich sent me in to a run around the quarry. I did not, unfortunately, manage to see it, as it typically stopped calling as soon as I worked out its location. There was possibly a second bird too, but it could have just been the wind blowing the noise of the original bird around.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>After stopping at Tesco for food, I tried to find the way to Suckthumb Quarry, and on the way saw a pair of both <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Stonechats </span></i>and<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Peregrines</span></i>. Upon reaching the quarry, I heard<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Chiffchaffs</span></i> calling (and singing) and Blackcaps 'tacking'.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Along the path there was a Clouded Yellow, a new butterfly species for me, which settled in one of the fields.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDWNrXajaUX3ZB4l1ob-PRls6rZv5GZjLkTeULV1JrpxGPeMa_GkygYxtt8hgMU-9HO0VTlv1LJ57PUefld3_Baqc9aS9FrrWr5AlUkZS76CptZFF1Hz9bq6mUAtyc-QmjuOeniOdkRA/s1600/CLOUDED+YELLOW.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDWNrXajaUX3ZB4l1ob-PRls6rZv5GZjLkTeULV1JrpxGPeMa_GkygYxtt8hgMU-9HO0VTlv1LJ57PUefld3_Baqc9aS9FrrWr5AlUkZS76CptZFF1Hz9bq6mUAtyc-QmjuOeniOdkRA/s640/CLOUDED+YELLOW.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Clouded Yellow</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">However, the rest of the day was quiet for birds, so I headed to the nearby reserve of Radipole Lake, where there had been a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Lesser Yellowlegs</span></i> for some time. I didn't know how easy it would be though, and could actually see it from the car park!</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMlbA33AFfEvqlTgWioBSAvQ1XTq8qrGDprnH4LfSEdVm8NHzedSIEE8S8EIlrzhqFdT4QEUzRP9p5BuQ-1NBmiVqeh1hOuibAlrUn3e0ISGaRPHhDTgdGN8C8wXkce8kDRgdEkq_pDA/s1600/LSSER.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="812" data-original-width="1200" height="432" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMlbA33AFfEvqlTgWioBSAvQ1XTq8qrGDprnH4LfSEdVm8NHzedSIEE8S8EIlrzhqFdT4QEUzRP9p5BuQ-1NBmiVqeh1hOuibAlrUn3e0ISGaRPHhDTgdGN8C8wXkce8kDRgdEkq_pDA/s640/LSSER.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Lesser Yellowlegs - so close even I could get an identifiable photo of it</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">I enjoyed great views, as it was just on the spit in front of the visitor centre, along with a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dunlin</span></i>, a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Snipe</span></i> and a couple of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mediterranean Gulls</span></i>.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I then went back to the bunkhouse, very tired as I had walked about 15 miles, but worth it for the birds...</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The next day the forecast looked really bad, and getting up in the morning didn't really fill me with hope - it was raining heavily. Today, a half day, I was going to stay around the observatory area to try and get views of Yellow-Browed Warbler.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I sheltered under the trees, where there was a Chiffchaff, which would prove to be more numerous than the previous day. <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ravens </span></i>flew over and called and a huge flock of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">linnets</span></i> was flying around in the fields by the road.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Soon, the rain began to stop, and I stood in the front garden, where I watched a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Merlin </span></i>hunt a small passerine. Lucky for the pipit(?) the Merlin wasn't very accurate, and eventually gave up. I heard Yellow-Browed Warbler call a few times in the garden but failed to catch sight of one - while I was looking in the trees someone came to report to me that they were watching Yellow-Brows from the kitchen window! I failed to see them unfortunately.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>There were a few more migrants around, with some flocks of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Siskins </span></i>landing in the trees and flying over.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The moth trap was then brought in from the garden, which was very interesting, although I struggled to remember all the names of the moths (the next subject I need to learn about). I remember a Large Yellow Underwing, a medium sized moth that really did have a yellow underwing.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>A Chiffchaff was caught and found to already be ringed, apparently caught during the spring, and was on its way back from its breeding grounds.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Later in the day however, one of the ringers came with news that they had trapped and ringed a Yellow-Browed Warbler. It is always great to study birds close up, and this Yellow-Brow was no exception. It was released in the back garden, where it flew off to continue feeding.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcaebPDneCzrm6EaOwFuB5sf66u5sZgCYqQ9mGFR0BzDOW7f9YH-mpmY6YTimh6jxdncV4f9zRKCvCcX3zcUL6mMcQzxdL0DoaJtePmg5vhxxOkDCTn8O_0HFhDjelHk7PcNf5BfyiMA/s1600/YBW.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcaebPDneCzrm6EaOwFuB5sf66u5sZgCYqQ9mGFR0BzDOW7f9YH-mpmY6YTimh6jxdncV4f9zRKCvCcX3zcUL6mMcQzxdL0DoaJtePmg5vhxxOkDCTn8O_0HFhDjelHk7PcNf5BfyiMA/s640/YBW.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Yellow-Browed Warbler</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Unfortunately, soon after this, I had to leave, but checked the field full of gulls on the way. Here I saw a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Yellow-Legged Gull</span></i> - I don't claim to be an expect on gull ID, but all the features added up - narrow edges to tertials, white head and breast, dark eye smudge, advanced moult, brown coverts, greater coverts with a dark bar and becoming less barred towards the wing bend, and the slightly squarer head and thicker bill.</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo5TpPcLv5XKQApWk-G-EWQEzZ9jPJCYrpGJ0z3i6ZwtGINcHB4B5uCJeT8H_s04uqapF9gnvuAYVTNfHSKFiNCTv3Sb_htSbE-HRfypeXf0ur-Nx0JhFcTNwlc4dBwuMyjZlGKPhkhQ/s1600/YLG+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo5TpPcLv5XKQApWk-G-EWQEzZ9jPJCYrpGJ0z3i6ZwtGINcHB4B5uCJeT8H_s04uqapF9gnvuAYVTNfHSKFiNCTv3Sb_htSbE-HRfypeXf0ur-Nx0JhFcTNwlc4dBwuMyjZlGKPhkhQ/s640/YLG+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Yellow-Legged Gull</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">On the way back - I stopped off at Radipole again, where the Yellowlegs had moved, but I saw Mediterranean Gull and common ducks.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I try to get to Portland every year, as it is great for birding and everyone there is helpful and friendly - I highly recommend it to anyone who is thinking of going. However, during the Saturday, when I covered 15 miles, I saw no other birders in the many quarries. This was interesting because there could be anything lurking at Portland, it just doesn't get as much coverage as other places.</b></span>Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-71567158943089712018-09-24T13:26:00.000-07:002018-09-24T15:01:05.782-07:00The People's Walk for Wildlife <span style="color: white;"><b>I was looking forward to going to The People's Walk for Wildlife to show my support for nature and the constant struggle it faces. I was also given the opportunity to join other passionate conservationists to hand in the People's Manifesto for Wildlife at Downing Street, something I was not going to miss!</b></span><br />
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<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFbYr5_CWhanuN0SslwOC7bb0l-P7MzfQiv8o4SszbqL4YyapTjJY6VtHyJetCwbQfDBuU6Snd9Hf97uArGZLOP-cDiBw7xtF70wc5vAGKcCz0AoHafLdXhyphenhyphenUjeZZbuF4voCQ7uAvgrw/s1600/MARCH.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><b><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFbYr5_CWhanuN0SslwOC7bb0l-P7MzfQiv8o4SszbqL4YyapTjJY6VtHyJetCwbQfDBuU6Snd9Hf97uArGZLOP-cDiBw7xtF70wc5vAGKcCz0AoHafLdXhyphenhyphenUjeZZbuF4voCQ7uAvgrw/s640/MARCH.jpg" width="358" /></b></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: white;"><b>Speakers at the event</b></span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: white;"><b>I travelled up by Tube, a very short journey, and arrived in time to see Kabir Kaul and his brother Aryan Kaul sharing their views on the problems facing our wildlife via the big screen.</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><b>I went over to meet them and Arjun Dutta, as well as briefly speaking to Alex White and Mya Bambrick. </b></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv7oCfnI-B-FvL_7jAm8kJ1-M1GGOwwwuNcz8tW_quLsWAcq0iotkZ8k5pRXFfEpXPcHx41FhY0mypkLpB4TgD9dy5wqW1OmI4IBtFl8ZmIPjoErcCjRmLcqVeClsOf8ZDylODQJY4Tw/s1600/BILL+DOOE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><b><img border="0" data-original-height="779" data-original-width="1600" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv7oCfnI-B-FvL_7jAm8kJ1-M1GGOwwwuNcz8tW_quLsWAcq0iotkZ8k5pRXFfEpXPcHx41FhY0mypkLpB4TgD9dy5wqW1OmI4IBtFl8ZmIPjoErcCjRmLcqVeClsOf8ZDylODQJY4Tw/s640/BILL+DOOE.jpg" width="640" /></b></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: white;"><b>Me, Arjun, Kabir and Aryan with Bill Oddie </b></span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: white;"><b>The main talks then started, with powerful and inspirational speeches given by all, including talks on racial diversity by Mya (Birdgirl), and conservation from Bella Lack, Dara McAnulty, Georgia Locock, Ruth Tingay, and a very powerful speech by Dominic Dyer. Unfortunately, some of the talks had to be cut short due to time pressures, but I they were successful in getting a positive message across.</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: white;"><b>We then started our journey to Downing Street. I walked with Kabir, Aryan and Arjun, although Arjun had to leave soon after it started. It was so encouraging to hear that the estimated number of people was 10,000 (I was way off with my guess!). People played birdsong on their phones, of species such as Song Thrush, Blackbird, Blackcap and Nightingale, and there were real birds there as well - Kabir spotted a Peregrine flying over. </b></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: white;"><b>As we reached Parliament Square, more speeches were made, including ones from Mark Avery, George Monbiot and Chris Packham; all huge inspirations to me. </b></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: white;"><b>Then, together with Chris, Dara McAnulty (who had travelled all the way from Northern Ireland to be here!), Bella Lack, Zach Haynes, Georgia Locock and Mya, aka Birdgirl, we were led through the gates to Downing Street to hand in the Manifesto.</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><b>This was, undoubtedly, one of the highlights of my life, going to Downing Street and presenting a manifesto that could spark serious change.</b></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieJFpqH_kH2cOew7CuntYlei5f8zMlNZWQxS3OCBC5MEeZ3PEUi9aSUn6fD81Bp4I4fKs41qPreaJiHnHcAuwgur-Zx-i0zrBf5-7MAsPoOyI4GgYz0OZzKmnCNUdVt5Q1WTr7HmQ2zA/s1600/DntS2qyXgAAj6oH.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><b><img border="0" data-original-height="857" data-original-width="1200" height="456" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieJFpqH_kH2cOew7CuntYlei5f8zMlNZWQxS3OCBC5MEeZ3PEUi9aSUn6fD81Bp4I4fKs41qPreaJiHnHcAuwgur-Zx-i0zrBf5-7MAsPoOyI4GgYz0OZzKmnCNUdVt5Q1WTr7HmQ2zA/s640/DntS2qyXgAAj6oH.jpg" width="640" /></b></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: white;"><b>Conservationists at Downing Street - I'm happier than I look</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b>Photo credit <a class="twitter-atreply pretty-link js-nav" data-mentioned-user-id="502010876" dir="ltr" href="https://twitter.com/LukeDrayPhoto" style="background: rgb(245, 248, 250); font-family: "segoe ui", arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;">@LukeDrayPhoto</a></b></span></td></tr>
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<div>
<span style="color: white;"><b>The day also gave me new ideas about what else I could do for conservation, including some things I can start doing immediately. </b></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><b>- Volunteer for conservation projects. I know a few places I could do this, including organisations that clean waterways and help with habitat management and creation.</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><b>- Use social media and blog more about conservation and problems facing wildlife. </b></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><b>- Campaign against events that destroy the environment, (for example balloon releases). </b></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><b>- Write a letter to my local MP asking him what his thoughts are on the Manifesto and what steps he can take. (I should get this done in the next couple of days.)</b></span><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: white;">Not everyone was so happy with this event, though. Certain people who enjoy hunting have decided to perceive this march for our wildlife as a personal attack on them, and have responded angrily to it. Surely if they really cared about conservation (most of the event was not even about hunting), they would have supported the walk?</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: white;">After handing in the manifesto, we headed to Portcullis House to discuss how we would tackle conservation issues with Lord Randall, the Special Advisor on Environment, Prime Minister's Office, including ideas about helping young people to understand and appreciate nature.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: white;">I am hoping that there will be another Walk for Wildlife next year, as there is no doubt that I will be attending that, as all I have to say about this one is positive.</span></b></div>
Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-19889781529234387662018-09-22T14:26:00.001-07:002018-11-04T13:07:13.673-08:00Spurn Migfest<b><span style="color: white;">I almost went to Migfest last year, but didn't know much about it or what happened, so it was exciting to eventually be going to this famous event for the first time.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I had been shortlisted as a finalist for the Young Birder of the Year competition, so I would be participating in numerous tests to assess my bird identification and general knowledge of birds and migration.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Unfortunately, the weekend began with some bad luck when my train was delayed by over two hours, and this meant it would be dark when we arrived at Spurn and put up the tents...at least it wasn't raining (yet). The tents were very small but good enough for a couple of nights.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I did a quick tour of the barn where there were numerous stalls, although it was soon closing. I also briefly met Kabir Kaul, another young London birder and finalist for the competition.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I got up relatively early on Saturday and tried to do some birding before the assessments. The bushes were very quiet, so I joined the many birders vis-migging briefly, but still didn't see much here, although there were a few <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Meadow Pipits </span></i>passing and 5+ <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Red-Throated Divers </span></i>on the sea. <span style="font-family: inherit;">I also saw a</span><i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Redstart</span></i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> on the way to the Canal Scrape hide.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>It was soon time to start the tests, so I went inside the observatory building and met the other participants, who were Kabir Kaul, Jack Bradbury, Angus Jennings, George Henry, and Rowan Wakefield. Nick Moran gave us a brief introduction speech then we were split in to groups of age - 14+ and 13 and under, with a winner being picked from each group. I was put with Angus and George in the 14+ group, and we were driven to do our seawatch and vis-mig test.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>As there were 3 of us and 2 stations, I was the first to wait in the car park, where I heard a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Lesser Whitethroat</span></i>. Before long though, I was heading to the vis-mig station area, being assessed by the locally famous Jonnie Fisk.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>There were hardly any birds going over, but I did see Meadow Pipit, Lesser Whitethroat and a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Reed</span></i> <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bunting</span></i> in the bushes. I was asked questions about migration at Spurn and about migratory Pipits.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Next I went seawatching, probably my weakest area of birding, and was asked to identify three species of birds. I struggled on the questions at this station however.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Next we switched over with the younger birders, so I was about to be assessed on birds in the bushes. There wasn't much around, but I did see/hear <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-style: italic;">Robin</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">,</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-style: italic;"> Blue Tit</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">,</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-style: italic;"> Goldcrest</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">,</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-style: italic;"> Kestrel and Siskin</span>. I was also asked a couple of questions.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Next was the lab test, where I was asked to name feather areas of a stuffed Whimbrel and identify calls.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I am surprised to have misidentified Whitethroat song at this station, as this is a bird I can always recognise in the field.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>My final section was the Estuary test, where I was asked to identify birds on the Humber from a hide situated in someone's garden, then was asked a question about which waders have white rumps.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>All the assessors were very kind and helpful, and the tests weren't stressful at all.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>We then had a buffet lunch and the winners were named, Jack Bradbury from the younger group and Angus from my group, both very well deserved winners. We then received answers for the assessment and discussed it.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Later that day, I went looking for the Rosefinch that had been seen earlier, and met David Walsh, Jack Bradbury and Kabir Kaul. It was raining quite hard now, and Kabir, David and Jack went to the seawatching hide, but I decided to stay and hope for the Rosefinch.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Soon after they had left, the <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Rosefinch</span></i> did a quick fly-by and flew out of view. But a few more minutes of waiting saw it emerge from the bush and perch in view on the fence post. It showed well in various places throughout the next few minutes, so David, Kabir and Jack were also able to see it.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Unfortunately, even though there were good photo opportunities, the camera I use had broken.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>That night, I attended an interesting talk about advances in migration studies at Long Point, and was presented with my prizes for being a finalist in the young birder of the year competition.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Next morning, I got up early to walk down Beacon Lane, where I saw Reed Bunting, but Beacon Ponds and Kilnsea Wetlands were quiet.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I spent most of the day in the Kilnsea churchyard, where I hoped for Pied Flycatchers but there was almost nothing there the whole time I was present. A brief view of a phylloscopus excited me for a minute, because it had the look of a wing barred phyllo (I didn't actually see a wing bar), but with 2 <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Chiffchaffs</span></i> and a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Willow Warbler</span></i> calling in the same spot afterwards, I had probably made a mistake.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I met David Walsh again, who I went looking for Pied Flycatchers with. We did not manage to find any but David told me many interesting things about bird calls and his patch in Suffolk. He also told me what a Pied Flycatcher sounded like, something I hadn't known up until now.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>At the end of the day, just before I was about to leave, I was looking for birds in the Crown and Anchor car park when I heard a call which made me run over to where it was coming from, Kew Villa Camp Site.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>This was because it sounded identical to the call David Walsh had played earlier to tell me what<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Pied Flycatchers</span></i> sounded like. After a couple of minutes of persistent calling, the sound got louder until it was right above my head. I located it in the tree and got good views of it moving through the leaves.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Thank you to David Walsh, who taught me the Pied Flycatcher call. I wouldn't have identified it otherwise. </b></span><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">I then got a taxi to head home, the Migfest weekend being very entertaining and something I definitely want to attend again, with many good birds, but also a lot of helpful and interesting people.</span></b>Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-90980361125131494022018-09-11T14:46:00.000-07:002018-12-14T15:04:35.143-08:00Spurn Again <b><span style="color: white;">A trip I had been looking forward to for a long time, although late August isn't the 'classic' time to visit. I went here at the same time last year as well, and it was successful, so I was hoping it would be similar, or better, this year.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>However, I had a few things planned before I arrived at Spurn. The first was a pelagic trip off the Norfolk coast, but this was unfortunately cancelled due to strong winds. So, instead, we headed up to Frampton for the day.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Frampton was a reserve I had heard about a lot, as it has a huge variety of waders, as well as the bonus of the Stilt Sandpiper being present.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I arrived to large numbers of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sand Martins </span></i>and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Yellow Wagtails</span></i> in the car park, and quickly headed up the path to view the marsh.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Birds here included <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ruff, Redshank, Dunlin, Black-Tailed Godwit, Snipe, Gadwall</span></i> and others, but the <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Stilt Sandpiper</span></i> was apparently hidden amongst the Godwits. After a short while, someone noticed it in the flock and put me on to it briefly, but I could hardly make out any of the features.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>A few more minutes and no sign of it, so I was beginning to think it had moved somewhere else. Just then, though, someone came with the news that it was showing well with a couple of Godwits on another marsh.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I rushed over there to see it, and found it was on the side of the marsh nearest to me! I got excellent views as it fed out in the open and occasionally hid behind vegetation.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I tried looking around the other marshes, where there was a flock of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Spotted Redshanks</span></i> and a few other waders, but there wasn't much of a variety. Snipe showed very well and I had brief views of a Water Rail from the 360 hide.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I headed up a path with thick hedges on either side where there was a lot of birds, but most refused to show themselves. I saw a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Willow Warbler </span></i>and heard what sounded like a Garden Warbler alarm calling, although I didn't confirm this.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I was staying in a hotel in Titchwell, where I found out there was a path to the RSPB reserve at the back. I took this path in the evening and managed to see <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Spoonbill</span></i> on the fresh marsh, although I hadn't brought the scope.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>On the way back, I witnessed an interesting sight of about half a dozen <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Chiffchaffs</span></i> all feeding in a small clump of bushes. Within this group there was a flock of<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Long-Tailed Tits</span></i>, a few <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Blackcaps</span></i> and one <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Lesser Whitethroat</span></i>.</b></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA2s5tGtSpGzpm97J5ktX-QRtGjcA7WnxXMY8n0mNlc50wjS_ydOExI-cWFNEJF0hAIkIllG2yGwVEfo4l3x-ECFVtEGMk8C2kY-U5enELy4FiDhEvPgAWB0yRqHBdJx0HaeSuRYDOBg/s1600/LSSERWT.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA2s5tGtSpGzpm97J5ktX-QRtGjcA7WnxXMY8n0mNlc50wjS_ydOExI-cWFNEJF0hAIkIllG2yGwVEfo4l3x-ECFVtEGMk8C2kY-U5enELy4FiDhEvPgAWB0yRqHBdJx0HaeSuRYDOBg/s640/LSSERWT.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Lesser Whitethroat</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">The next day, originally planned for Frampton, was spent at Gibraltar Point where a rain storm unfortunately started before I could look for any migrants.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>So I took shelter in the Mere hide, where a<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Spotted Crake </span></i>had been reported to be showing. Someone else in the hide told me where it was last seen, so I waited and scanned that area, and was surprised to see it walk right in front of the hide!</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Over the next hour it appeared and disappeared, never showing very well or for very long. But, I got lucky as it decided to walk in front of the hide as it had done on the first view, but this time stayed out in the open long enough to get a proper view!</b></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ1Cnd-645CXdjVejo6f1_ZnKmafKtCn9dnoD8nUAMI05s9wk-eZHuZ8-KFlMRq8J0ElyE4ca2ZH411Db590eEBfwd_YRicwjnfP-tjXEhHz_ntqNuIEnFhdOHsTcbi-4WNxZYxOjgTA/s1600/SPOTTEDCRK+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1201" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ1Cnd-645CXdjVejo6f1_ZnKmafKtCn9dnoD8nUAMI05s9wk-eZHuZ8-KFlMRq8J0ElyE4ca2ZH411Db590eEBfwd_YRicwjnfP-tjXEhHz_ntqNuIEnFhdOHsTcbi-4WNxZYxOjgTA/s640/SPOTTEDCRK+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Spotted Crake</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">It was still raining hard, however, so there wasn't much chance of finding any migrant birds. I had lunch in the cafe then headed up to Spurn for the afternoon.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I arrived at the seawatching hut, where I hoped to see the evening tern roost. However, the hide was packed, and I had trouble viewing any of the terns, as well as the fact I had to leave early because I needed to make time to eat in the nearby pub.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>It was quite a quiet day for migrants in the morning, with a few <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Common Whitethroats</span></i> and Willow Warblers around.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The sea-watching hut gave good views of 5 <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Whinchats </span></i>sitting on the fence posts, which was the most I had seen in one area.</b></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcQP1tQlayWMCKeSg2lRy41jpOmcgEK39VZr39Iz3aPl5pGsiXW8-EBVNIB0negqERlD68ELH9lbYtGEMQ4fetlwViZZwp6Pb1TqjqUi9O6CeGCHPXSDiHG1MrRgpmMzbFUj0MqCFD_Q/s1600/WHINCHAT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcQP1tQlayWMCKeSg2lRy41jpOmcgEK39VZr39Iz3aPl5pGsiXW8-EBVNIB0negqERlD68ELH9lbYtGEMQ4fetlwViZZwp6Pb1TqjqUi9O6CeGCHPXSDiHG1MrRgpmMzbFUj0MqCFD_Q/s640/WHINCHAT.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Whinchat</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">However, later in the day I headed up to Sammy's Point where the bushes were a good shelter from the strong winds. Once again, there were few birds until I accidentally flushed a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Long-Eared Owl</span></i> from one of the bushes.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>This had been seen a couple days previously but I had forgotten it was around. It settled in a dense clump of vegetation where there was no hope of re-finding it.</b></span><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">A brief visit to Kilnsea Wetlands produced a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pintail </span></i>and an adult <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Yellow-Legged Gull</span></i>.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;">There were a few <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Greenshanks</span></i> calling from the Humber, including a couple which showed well as they flew past.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Later that day I headed to the Kew Villa viewing area, which is often good for migrants. A <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pied</span></i> <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Flycatcher</span></i> had been seen here recently and it didn't take long to see it perched out in the open, although it didn't stay where it was and flew away without ret</b><b>urning. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Later in the day I visited the churchyard and managed to see a Pied Flycatcher, presumably the same one that was at Kew. A different bird on a wire caught my eye, and this turned out to be a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Spotted Flycatcher</span></i>, showing very well. A Wall butterfly was also a new species for me.</b></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2kzAL8czOTFSIApwz2k7PK_pGc02ZQGuCQXquxk0AutN2yRsgjMEK9Nul_36LSjk5xgQXZdg5X1vNM5r62nTQVYX0O-ziU4k2DMA2pNHZYso_HE-NQAcca0Z8luqBzT0f6fn0yDymLQ/s1600/WALL.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2kzAL8czOTFSIApwz2k7PK_pGc02ZQGuCQXquxk0AutN2yRsgjMEK9Nul_36LSjk5xgQXZdg5X1vNM5r62nTQVYX0O-ziU4k2DMA2pNHZYso_HE-NQAcca0Z8luqBzT0f6fn0yDymLQ/s640/WALL.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Wall</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">At the Kew Villa viewing area, it was possible to see both the Spotted and Pied flycatchers in the same bush at the same time, which was exciting as I'd never even seen them on the same day before!</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I arrived at the seawatching hut early and spent over 4 hours looking at the sea. It was quiet at first, although a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bonxie</span></i> and a few<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Arctic Skuas </span></i>flew through, as well as<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Kittiwakes</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Fulmars</span></i> and a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Manx Shearwater</span></i>.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The tern roost was the highlight, though, with thousands of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Common Terns</span></i> passing, and among them a few <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sandwich Terns</span></i>. It wasn't long before I began to see <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Roseate Terns </span></i>and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Black</span></i> <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Terns</span></i>, the latter being a lifer. There were <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Arctic Terns</span></i> in the flocks too, although I was struggling to pick these out.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The light started to fail, so I headed back to the observatory.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The next day I watched birds flying over in the observatory garden, and saw many birds including <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Grey Wagtail</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Kingfisher</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Green Sandpiper</span></i> and a flock of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tree Pipits</span></i>, picked up by one of the local birders. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Later that day, I walked down to Spurn Point, quite a long walk, made harder carrying the scope, but it was worth it, even if there weren't many birds. <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Wheatear</span></i>, <span style="font-family: inherit;">Willow Warbler</span>, 8+ Lesser Whitethroats, and other common migrants including Common Whitethoat were around the bushes at the point, but, other than that, it was quiet. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I took my place in the seawatching hide that evening and saw fewer common terns, just over 4000, but also saw many more Black Terns and had better views of two Roseate Terns. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>On Wednesday, I got up early to watch birds in the Obs garden, seeing my earliest ever <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Fieldfare</span></i>, but soon went to the triangle to search for migrant birds. I realised the day would be good when I arrived here, as there were a lot of migrants making their way through the bushes.</b></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoL14tug2TpYbxf9VcSWScIap5kZEhnJXNzEnq8c-X0UOwFHXBm7BWwwDd48IatGS5mWDgxVTWPswWvSSJykBnWRuA5MTWJFxZyoK87-g7KscN_QB-HtnqQRilZYUxQiPACbYU9YuYZw/s1600/FEILFFARE.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoL14tug2TpYbxf9VcSWScIap5kZEhnJXNzEnq8c-X0UOwFHXBm7BWwwDd48IatGS5mWDgxVTWPswWvSSJykBnWRuA5MTWJFxZyoK87-g7KscN_QB-HtnqQRilZYUxQiPACbYU9YuYZw/s640/FEILFFARE.JPG" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Fieldfare with berries - it looks like winter!</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">Whitethroats were in almost every bush, a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sedge</span></i> and<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Reed Warbler</span></i> sat in the same view, Lesser Whitethroats called from deep in the vegetation and Willow Warblers were common, with one <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Chiffchaff</span></i> as well. <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Yellow Wagtails </span></i>were constantly flying over and I saw the Fieldfare I had seen earlier again. </span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b><b>The best bird here was a Pied flycatcher that I had brief views of, but it showed the main features. </b></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipGly4H0_vr8QHKEQlTa3mwoRlyELzZKJ09toj6jmRQ8Zq3KVpLUhv49AWUT9YaXQNm_iiJqd_WElHJoiy85sl_tzfaELxrpygnpJGhEX2KCiR5hmeEryEiXbRFT4U502y_uwit0-kGg/s1600/PIEDFLY.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipGly4H0_vr8QHKEQlTa3mwoRlyELzZKJ09toj6jmRQ8Zq3KVpLUhv49AWUT9YaXQNm_iiJqd_WElHJoiy85sl_tzfaELxrpygnpJGhEX2KCiR5hmeEryEiXbRFT4U502y_uwit0-kGg/s640/PIEDFLY.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Pied Flycatcher </span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">Upon entering the area where the path joined the road, one of the volunteers passed me and gave me the news that a Woodchat Shrike had been found at the Warren!</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I rushed over to hear it was sitting out of sight in a dense bush, so I waited for it to appear. After waiting and circling the bush a lot, it started to show out in the open, although it was still hard to find an angle where it could be viewed. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>After another short wait, it flew over to the other side of the path, where it remembered it was a Shrike, and started to perch on bushes out in the open! I was soon enjoying clear views through the scope of what was clearly the <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Woodchat Shrike</span></i>, with a very prominent white patch on the primaries. </b></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHUCzysug-QMod_aLg3ptLH6Gcc2ztX-4NWzPTcG6BiijRdN413WHI7QZchgPrtVjwWD_EKMExujO9iEE_bY2YvVU8hnzYFP3V0lz3UdQo5WRiHM72E0OSDQXhfrz6Ve-Ayj_O87gRHA/s1600/WOODCHAT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHUCzysug-QMod_aLg3ptLH6Gcc2ztX-4NWzPTcG6BiijRdN413WHI7QZchgPrtVjwWD_EKMExujO9iEE_bY2YvVU8hnzYFP3V0lz3UdQo5WRiHM72E0OSDQXhfrz6Ve-Ayj_O87gRHA/s640/WOODCHAT.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Woodchat Shrike</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">There were also two more Pied Flycatchers showing at the Warren. </span></b><br />
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">I walked back along the Triangle, seeing 5+ Whinchat and a Wheatear, then travelled to Sammy's Point. There were three more Whinchats and another Wheatear near the car park, although the bushes held disappointingly few birds, but the quality improved hugely when I found a bush containing three Pied Flycatchers.</span></b><span style="color: white;"><b></b></span><br />
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">Each one would make a short flight to catch an insect, then return to their perch, which was usually out in the open.</span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
</div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">As I was driving back from Sammy's Point, I received a message that an Icterine Warbler was present in the Obs garden, so I headed in that direction. </span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">The bird hadn't been seen for half an hour when I arrived, and there was no one searching anymore, so I began to look around the garden. After about 10 minutes of searching, I noticed a bird moving through the trees, and when checking it more closely, I realised it was the <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Icterine Warbler</span></i> (or <u>an</u> Icterine Warbler - it could have been a different bird to the original)! </span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">It disappeared quickly, and it was only seen a couple more times until it wasn't observed again. But while hanging around, I got the news that one of the Icterine Warblers had been caught in a net and would be released shortly! </span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<span style="color: white;"><b>After missing an Icterine Warbler in the hand last year at Spurn (on this exact date!) it was good to see one in the nets. I like to get in-field views as well, but it is always exciting</b><b> to study a bird up close. </b></span></div>
<div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir2f_XG07HucCdFZVr4u6Z25KbG-PeHxMYIDQopmcbnW4Cmm15wio0OTlWvsO4OV3D5bhUaj5eBS9qNJ8ymO-AWf4AKLTKpb_GZQ9CE4WKto9rBsW-glLTijMfDg2J5DStZi-EgltSog/s1600/ICCY2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir2f_XG07HucCdFZVr4u6Z25KbG-PeHxMYIDQopmcbnW4Cmm15wio0OTlWvsO4OV3D5bhUaj5eBS9qNJ8ymO-AWf4AKLTKpb_GZQ9CE4WKto9rBsW-glLTijMfDg2J5DStZi-EgltSog/s640/ICCY2.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Icterine Warbler</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">I spent the rest of the day checking the bushes and watching common migrants, including one more Pied Flycatcher. </span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">The next day was my last full day at Spurn, and a large clear-out had happened overnight so I could find hardly any migrants in the bushes.</span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">A few Whinchats in the Triangle was the best at first, until I heard news of a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Barred Warbler</span></i> at the Warren, although it was behaving typically and never gave perched views, and after about an hour waiting all I had was a couple of flight views. </span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">Other migrants about included Yellow Wagtails, Sedge and Reed Warblers, Greenshank and a few <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Whimbrels</span></i> on the Humber. A Wheatear and a Kingfisher were also seen on a brief walk.</span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmJMi1yQkPBsrStj7iUBWPnnOIvuIiHNur5HdbF6OY_a69UvE_50tQ3eUql3xRmdSiwqs-r4idi8A3nrt4QyQSEBI1ZDVS3kAyxrQAV4sU2sSUmrg30tDQMJYobCfkurJPf4b3FJW7_g/s1600/WHE.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmJMi1yQkPBsrStj7iUBWPnnOIvuIiHNur5HdbF6OY_a69UvE_50tQ3eUql3xRmdSiwqs-r4idi8A3nrt4QyQSEBI1ZDVS3kAyxrQAV4sU2sSUmrg30tDQMJYobCfkurJPf4b3FJW7_g/s640/WHE.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Wheatear </span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;"><span style="color: white;">My final day at Spurn was slow-paced but eventually turned out to be very good. It started with chasi</span><span style="color: white;">ng an Icterine Warbler around and failing to see it for a couple of hours. One of the local birders told me that there were probably more Icterine Warblers around, and the best way to see one would be to find my own. </span></span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">I immediately went to Kew Villa viewing area, where there were few birds. However, a large warbler caught my eye, and upon looking at it more closely I was amazed to see it was an Icterine Warbler! It was most likely the one that had been seen at Kew the previous day, but I was still happy to record the first sighting of it for the day.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;">Later that day, on another brief visit to Kew Villa, t</span></b><b><span style="color: white;">he warden walked up to me and gave me news that a Citrine Wagtail was on Canal Scrape. I rushed over there, and guessed the hide would be packed so I took a risk and tried to view from the canal path, but as I approached the scrape, I heard the call of the Citrine Wagtail, sounding like it was getting more distant. </span></b></span></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">I reached the group of birders who told me it had flown away, but another Icterine Warbler was about to be ringed in Church Field. Someone kindly gave me a lift here and for the second time in a week, I was watching an Icterine Warbler in the hand, most likely the bird I had seen in Kew Villa. </span></b></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKuswmmJblgVMBl5LkUHBdsTtAKPR7mpOZbFoNxTJQXuZSCGVnbOlloqcc0BxBHXk9HpFcSQxuQ1Ae5DTEFgMtjhMEaXLJU27SIZW2hW84XqXlbaU4tRieT0LyEXpAm0nOnSz1tCFrKA/s1600/iccy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKuswmmJblgVMBl5LkUHBdsTtAKPR7mpOZbFoNxTJQXuZSCGVnbOlloqcc0BxBHXk9HpFcSQxuQ1Ae5DTEFgMtjhMEaXLJU27SIZW2hW84XqXlbaU4tRieT0LyEXpAm0nOnSz1tCFrKA/s640/iccy.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Iccy 2, looking even better than the first</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">I was due to leave in half an hour so I gave up hope of re-finding the Citrine Wagtail. </span></b><br />
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">I was actually about to get in the car to head home when a flight call alerted me and I looked up to see that the <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Citrine Wagtail</span></i> was flying over my head! If I had left just one minute earlier, I wouldn't have seen it, so the moment was definitely very well-timed. </span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">Very satisfied by my time at Spurn, with six lifers over the week, including the birds at Frampton and Gibraltar Point. I didn't have to wait long before my next visit, as next week was the Migfest, which I will be writing about soon.</span></b></div>
Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-77164972170548898832018-08-21T12:55:00.003-07:002018-08-21T14:42:26.749-07:00Summer Holidays <b><span style="color: white;">It</span><span style="color: white;"> isn't the best time of year for birds, but there is usually some stuff around during the summer holidays. As well as the trip to Norfolk at the end of July, I have tried to fit as much birding in as possible at other places, though I am usually confined to London.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I visited the Thames at Hammersmith at the end of July to look for Gulls. I am still far from an expert at identifying gulls, and a lot of the them were distant. However, one gull close to me turned out to be a Juvenile <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Yellow-Legged Gull</span></i>, probably my first real sighting, not including all the ones I counted when I was younger which were probably Herring Gulls.</b></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy4TcPLO0JkCRViJehy0gpsTNJQ3RdivH_sqk9-dckxAgP_6rtCVDYf7alHVMuE96BXGrOR73VntAt4C8C7UUSPuWtwEcrD9Jd7X_M9Augwuu7-ivkJ7pgTwEmBtN_pBvt-qpgMBbXWw/s1600/Yellow+legged+g%2527%2527%2527%2527.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy4TcPLO0JkCRViJehy0gpsTNJQ3RdivH_sqk9-dckxAgP_6rtCVDYf7alHVMuE96BXGrOR73VntAt4C8C7UUSPuWtwEcrD9Jd7X_M9Augwuu7-ivkJ7pgTwEmBtN_pBvt-qpgMBbXWw/s640/Yellow+legged+g%2527%2527%2527%2527.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Yellow-Legged Gull</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">A couple of visits to my patch at Stocker's Lake didn't produce much except<i><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Hobby</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Kingfisher</span></i>, <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-style: italic;">Oystercatcher</span>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Linnet</span></i> and a patch first <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Yellow Wagtail</span></i>.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>At the beginning of August I travelled to the Oare Marshes for a day, where I immediately saw the <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Red-Necked Phalarope</span> that had been present. A few people kindly let me look through their scopes at it, and as I was scanning along I noticed an adult <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Curlew Sandpiper</span></i>.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Walking, around the reserve, I heard many bubbling calls which alerted me to a flock of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Whimbrel</span></i> flying over. I was amazed to see that there were over 50 in the flock; more than I had ever seen in my life. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Without a scope, I struggled to pick out the Bonaparte's Gull so I headed on to an area where Turtle Dove is often seen.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2N9NbEXrLPF1a-vL1v7NZIxTgzeVqrEczBpkmmi6QYpL6OOh7MHjRrpDVwBpw2hyphenhyphend__4dS0IDk1OVvvPNZD42NlHh8rr5Z6Ws3PrDKPJg54qI5JEZ5Ny6vtp35va0eGj4P3gl5NWYww/s640/WHIM.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: white;"><b>Whimbrels</b></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b style="color: white;">I did end up seeing a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Turtle Dove</span></i>, but the views were terrible and very brief, so nothing compared to the views I had the previous week. There was also a Small Heath butterfly, a Migrant Hawker and a Blue-Tailed Damselfy.</b><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqDLot7gmxjSjD3lGGXXGGntAVXgCwlcdmm4r1Pc_mn6t7S-0W2Hj8QeJ22ss3F2i2WsNIDrmbfNRON-FR-PDSw-0ry9nNvA3Ll3JGwvpoHP7vsVIPh19ni5SZefZaOoCK6QoZ-GtfAw/s1600/DAMSELFFF.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqDLot7gmxjSjD3lGGXXGGntAVXgCwlcdmm4r1Pc_mn6t7S-0W2Hj8QeJ22ss3F2i2WsNIDrmbfNRON-FR-PDSw-0ry9nNvA3Ll3JGwvpoHP7vsVIPh19ni5SZefZaOoCK6QoZ-GtfAw/s640/DAMSELFFF.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Blue-Tailed Damselfly </span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwriJdDO2nqyoGBq6tE9kjlNJoSMs-Mslcl3KmA7R72O0i5nbmMsmCjV_sVbcbvPr0dCYp0JlBNpZ17OzcgteCpY5Hd51i8ZUDmiM8hBpput0mPoJB_otoPjfCjdUmH5kmpYZzbTEQPw/s1600/small+heath.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwriJdDO2nqyoGBq6tE9kjlNJoSMs-Mslcl3KmA7R72O0i5nbmMsmCjV_sVbcbvPr0dCYp0JlBNpZ17OzcgteCpY5Hd51i8ZUDmiM8hBpput0mPoJB_otoPjfCjdUmH5kmpYZzbTEQPw/s640/small+heath.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Small Heath</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">A<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Marsh Harrier</span></i> flew over the reeds and a couple of Yellow Wagtails flew over, including one that dropped down on the mud.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>I tried searching for the <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bonaparte's Gull</span></i> again and managed to find it, as it had come closer and was easily identifiable with binoculars.</b></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY8mZIE4TfFwTn6d8zSCOLm2hGEbuCCkbyDDUlpUc5F3DjTzUxS01RIb2yLiruZ-FPPNYJjoTnEZ9kW67kzhnuGYeaY1SU-9bF8bgp9IyfxCmXQHOFvD5shdBR43-d8V0pLKBIZUEyuQ/s1600/Bonapartes+gull.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY8mZIE4TfFwTn6d8zSCOLm2hGEbuCCkbyDDUlpUc5F3DjTzUxS01RIb2yLiruZ-FPPNYJjoTnEZ9kW67kzhnuGYeaY1SU-9bF8bgp9IyfxCmXQHOFvD5shdBR43-d8V0pLKBIZUEyuQ/s640/Bonapartes+gull.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Bonaparte's Gull</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">Also on the East Flood were<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i> Golden </i>and<i> Little Ringed Plovers, Black-Tailed Godwits, Dunlin, Redshank and Snipe.</i></span></span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
In mid August I met up with other young London birders - Samuel, Arjun, Calum, Kabir and another young birder I didn't know called Ben.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>We saw many good birds including <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bearded Tits</span></i>, a green -tagged Marsh Harrier from Norfolk, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Greenshank</span></i>, Whimbrels and Yellow-Legged Gulls as well other wildlife such as Willow Emerald Damselfly, Marsh Frog, Ruddy and Common Darter and Blood-Vein moth.</b></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqKsvHR4cI93SInD3NXgpnz6HqiEOzNsc7mGIeT65BdqFaWzthWxZH-r2MR7bIp6-z_n7m2T3Qbnn3PIUnbeQXkrhr-6PSZpBnM3h_dOKeoOQn2pwBXdXnEJC9j1Cp02wfqpnrF-xnpg/s1600/Ruddy+darter.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqKsvHR4cI93SInD3NXgpnz6HqiEOzNsc7mGIeT65BdqFaWzthWxZH-r2MR7bIp6-z_n7m2T3Qbnn3PIUnbeQXkrhr-6PSZpBnM3h_dOKeoOQn2pwBXdXnEJC9j1Cp02wfqpnrF-xnpg/s640/Ruddy+darter.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Ruddy Darter</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0RUpmEXcl8LN-yeqbo1EdxGnGxciBbFtgIQT2G4pyq6Gu-4LbD0LmuA_tAa8JBMpbWGoFTIeT2OwVfiIeeYY6PM648RMSHc8dTf_I32pbyHwPedEWdTGBD0v99VjlHlEoy8FWMPiK5Q/s1600/WILLOWEM.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0RUpmEXcl8LN-yeqbo1EdxGnGxciBbFtgIQT2G4pyq6Gu-4LbD0LmuA_tAa8JBMpbWGoFTIeT2OwVfiIeeYY6PM648RMSHc8dTf_I32pbyHwPedEWdTGBD0v99VjlHlEoy8FWMPiK5Q/s640/WILLOWEM.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Willow Emerald</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">Then it was Birdfair 2018, where I travelled up by train for the day. There were many interesting stands where I picked up all the holiday brochures I could. I also bought pin badges and DVDs, and met lots of people, some who I had met before and some who I hadn't.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Some of the stands featured moths caught the previous night, and it was interesting to look at species I had never seen before including Spectacle, Brimstone Moth, Gold Spot, Swallow Prominent, and Poplar Hawkmoth.</b></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzQtc5idZ6kIDUwiTdsLS0qX_c4qBu_z72tsTm-vB1rr2ncEvYdZUas9NaD6vRowwcxzCsTVZzbG3SMmB6r6wi8G3GAHddlAu0k3GSg_2l2Mwb7jZlET0f95BHARDxDQRVIS8mDV8eng/s1600/brimstone.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzQtc5idZ6kIDUwiTdsLS0qX_c4qBu_z72tsTm-vB1rr2ncEvYdZUas9NaD6vRowwcxzCsTVZzbG3SMmB6r6wi8G3GAHddlAu0k3GSg_2l2Mwb7jZlET0f95BHARDxDQRVIS8mDV8eng/s640/brimstone.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Brimstone Moth</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhqhM9SaNkDCo-PIB-L95WhVxdxnbDgbyYKtuZROeBUZWHOZvSj0w_ZKLzgTYkiBp7NjPaYMfj75SRWdzS-yYc9bYhp0o8EGt1x4ZlslVywVBvEi4xDKWDlR0KUwYM6xOIVH4OlkLIFA/s1600/POPLAR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhqhM9SaNkDCo-PIB-L95WhVxdxnbDgbyYKtuZROeBUZWHOZvSj0w_ZKLzgTYkiBp7NjPaYMfj75SRWdzS-yYc9bYhp0o8EGt1x4ZlslVywVBvEi4xDKWDlR0KUwYM6xOIVH4OlkLIFA/s640/POPLAR.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Poplar Hawkmoth</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsDr3n4hIsIUMYrDktNCS9V52-uqqKpAhlL1xt6BK4Uo73p-XvyNpc7ko4hUJU_Np_93xy2K1k94_J2O26UmMVsQq5_KRpVQlqGprUTwVfR5pl-M3xcKtB6MJhdzL-yN285IjgCV-E4A/s1600/GOLDSPOT.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsDr3n4hIsIUMYrDktNCS9V52-uqqKpAhlL1xt6BK4Uo73p-XvyNpc7ko4hUJU_Np_93xy2K1k94_J2O26UmMVsQq5_KRpVQlqGprUTwVfR5pl-M3xcKtB6MJhdzL-yN285IjgCV-E4A/s640/GOLDSPOT.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Gold Spot</span></b></td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7IlWmbFBNpI_PWYN2ClAowPEF7JQy4Xk8ddpcRMNnYoa1FYUmmPxuw_Gngm3uFgSVL6E_2ARNk0TziVV4VUDTB-9wMdXAUWOKGc2WUgMQh5X7vIW1vKgUQqJEpR-N9UQVfQFzKyEH8Q/s1600/swallowprom.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7IlWmbFBNpI_PWYN2ClAowPEF7JQy4Xk8ddpcRMNnYoa1FYUmmPxuw_Gngm3uFgSVL6E_2ARNk0TziVV4VUDTB-9wMdXAUWOKGc2WUgMQh5X7vIW1vKgUQqJEpR-N9UQVfQFzKyEH8Q/s640/swallowprom.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Swallow Prominent</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheO0ijwHfiuw9EnB5qcpJQW8_m8VL98E3d-FH9fbBCcUoHtzhC0WH7-b6-gcQR8aP8hjpqkZjjU7w-_OpgfNXUDzw9eYB0y6nErVu9uv77CXDPtbM-8-QXj8CBykk86IF_CCfpSdYXNQ/s1600/Spectacle.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheO0ijwHfiuw9EnB5qcpJQW8_m8VL98E3d-FH9fbBCcUoHtzhC0WH7-b6-gcQR8aP8hjpqkZjjU7w-_OpgfNXUDzw9eYB0y6nErVu9uv77CXDPtbM-8-QXj8CBykk86IF_CCfpSdYXNQ/s640/Spectacle.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Spectacle</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="color: white;"><b>At the end of the day, many of the young birders, including myself, met for what was apparently an annual photo. I met many people I had never met before, although I didn't talk much.</b><b><br /></b></span><br />
<b><span style="color: white;">Next week I am heading to Spurn Bird Observatory, before travelling back for the Migfest the week after, so there is still a chance of more good birds soon.</span></b>Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-37964696624795698182018-08-06T10:13:00.001-07:002018-08-06T10:13:49.763-07:00Norfolk/Suffolk Days 3-4<b><span style="color: white;">I headed out to Westleton Heath in the morning, which was where I would be starting the day. I arrived at the main entrance and began to walk up and down the many tracks, taking a different route to the one I had taken months earlier.</span></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Near the entrance, I heard a very distant<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Stone Curlew</span></i>, unfortunately very hard to hear with the wind and traffic masking the sound.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">It was quiet at first, but as I got deeper in the heath I saw many Graylings landing on the paths, showing how well they can camouflage. There were also Small Coppers and a couple of Brown Argus. </span></b></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjARuYv3OG1m2mFibD4osKQofskc_B_S7Viz9w-PjTHd6wUEBIEvKIi3pOIW2zpjCOayIlv_c28H6TfG3JNdy7SMEB5uYLH5vHKohw4pNi-aZsqr1rk74IcX7e0q-qEG-b1KG2Bijt-dw/s1600/Grayling+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjARuYv3OG1m2mFibD4osKQofskc_B_S7Viz9w-PjTHd6wUEBIEvKIi3pOIW2zpjCOayIlv_c28H6TfG3JNdy7SMEB5uYLH5vHKohw4pNi-aZsqr1rk74IcX7e0q-qEG-b1KG2Bijt-dw/s640/Grayling+.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Grayling</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">However, there were few birds, with the best a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Dartford Warbler</span></i>. Once again no Turtle Dove, and I couldn't find anywhere where the habitat looked promising. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">Next to Minsmere, where there were even more waders! Birding started when a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Hobby </span></i>flew past the visitor centre, and many <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sand Martins</span></i> flew around near the sandy cliff. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">I visited the East Hide, where there were 6 <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Little Ringed Plovers</span></i> and lots of <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Common Sandpipers</span></i>, including one right in front of the hide. A <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Green Sandpiper</span></i> showed itself briefly, while <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Common Snipe</span></i> showed well in the open. There were many<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Common Terns</span></i> including a nest with 2 chicks.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">The next hide was exciting because there was a<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Wood Sandpiper</span></i> walking around directly in front of the hide, giving prolonged and close views, which were better than I had ever had of this species.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Walking round to the other side of the same pool, I saw a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Greenshank </span></i>and numerous <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Spotted Redshanks</span></i>, which were seemingly everywhere I looked! Some were in their smart summer plumage, some were in winter plumage and some had a plumage that was sort of in between.</span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjz3YxqQ8Pnzq-tGxkeHMQHsao06uQkEiOCxtM939VFbN7iIDC6MPvw79CgAtG2fFITxf3483oZbe4mognQGF1W_O41Y9eCoWmxzRgvcvgAc4qttDB0wUlByADFJqq2VNPyv3ciDoe-g/s1600/Greeedfw.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1196" data-original-width="1594" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjz3YxqQ8Pnzq-tGxkeHMQHsao06uQkEiOCxtM939VFbN7iIDC6MPvw79CgAtG2fFITxf3483oZbe4mognQGF1W_O41Y9eCoWmxzRgvcvgAc4qttDB0wUlByADFJqq2VNPyv3ciDoe-g/s640/Greeedfw.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Greenshank</span></b></td></tr>
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<span style="color: white;"><b> Amongst the <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Dunlin</span></i> there were at least two summer plumage </b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b><i>Curlew Sandpipers</i></b></span><b>, another wader for the already huge number for the day. An<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Oystercatcher</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Turnstones</span></i> and two <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Golden Plovers</span></i> also showed from the hide.<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Sandwich Terns</span></i> called loudly, and juvenile <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Mediterranean Gulls</span></i> sat on the grassy strips between the scrape. </b></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">In this hide, we met John Grant, one of the experts who was running the gull watching evening later, and he pointed out a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Little Gull</span></i> flying past, although it didn't stay for long. Others Gulls from the hide included some <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Kittiwakes</span></i>, which would call loudly whenever they were disturbed by something.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">I returned to the visitor centre, where I was amazed to see a Hummingbird Hawkmoth on a Buddleia plant. On the same plant there was also a Painted Lady butterfly, which stayed only briefly. </span></b></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOZk72z0mSIJIVa4v7DeZ3wBZlccML909RpLDXZ2RvxdXRbeh8KbLB3kLuePM-VZ3WwcciWXylMfiuKcWTbBVcudvEAzARVLr_I3wEntcqgXHCXMfYHOMkNPgZDYiPyNrsq9c6_KvDew/s1600/Hummer.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOZk72z0mSIJIVa4v7DeZ3wBZlccML909RpLDXZ2RvxdXRbeh8KbLB3kLuePM-VZ3WwcciWXylMfiuKcWTbBVcudvEAzARVLr_I3wEntcqgXHCXMfYHOMkNPgZDYiPyNrsq9c6_KvDew/s640/Hummer.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Hummingbird Hawkmoth</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">It was then on to the main event...the gull staring. We joined the hide with various gull experts including John Grant who found another Little Gull, this time one in the water that I got to view for a longer time. <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Lesser Black-Backed Gulls </span></i>started to fly in, although apparently not in the numbers they had been in the previous few weeks. It wasn't long before John spotted a 3cy<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Yellow-Legged Gull</span></i> within the flock, which was a plumage I had never seen. </span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRF72GPo1EiHgcpLb7d1dBggwolU_3T3AlgaRImSGqbpLqzv7O9PVoiRk1WG84BFgBqvYdw2g0_beoavSNp5SRyFadM8UJMsJA71BcESppbAx-F034yTV6Tq0Hq_ibW9VeyAzXPm64-A/s1600/YEllow+LEGGED+GUILL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1194" data-original-width="1593" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRF72GPo1EiHgcpLb7d1dBggwolU_3T3AlgaRImSGqbpLqzv7O9PVoiRk1WG84BFgBqvYdw2g0_beoavSNp5SRyFadM8UJMsJA71BcESppbAx-F034yTV6Tq0Hq_ibW9VeyAzXPm64-A/s640/YEllow+LEGGED+GUILL.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Yellow-Legged Gull</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">The six Little Ringed Plovers showed well, along with a female <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Gadwall</span></i> and a few Common Sandpipers. Someone in the hide noticed a limosa <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Black-Tailed Godwit</span></i>, which, apparently, has plainer feathers, although this was difficult to see because of distance. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">A juvenile Yellow-Legged Gull was picked up, an interesting bird that I would have put down as a juvenile Lesser Black-Backed if I were alone, so it was lucky I was with experts who could correctly identify it. </span></b></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5OvRZOOaTWVP6yHvkmykHr5VWrWAjTGL30a7eyofjs-TPa1uPKNmqX_3Xnv2QDSR9ePOf9BrEw8Nds4jCT5jBaIjk9PoYC1lY7_taESStnRwNSVw9gkqygr2eC7PQ21k9GmgG35bmYg/s1600/YLGGG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5OvRZOOaTWVP6yHvkmykHr5VWrWAjTGL30a7eyofjs-TPa1uPKNmqX_3Xnv2QDSR9ePOf9BrEw8Nds4jCT5jBaIjk9PoYC1lY7_taESStnRwNSVw9gkqygr2eC7PQ21k9GmgG35bmYg/s640/YLGGG.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Yellow-Legged Gull - Juvenile </span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">The last bird of the day was a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Green Woodpecker</span></i> as I headed back to the car.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">So although gull numbers weren't as high as in previous weeks, it was still a good evening watching Yellow-Legged Gulls, and an amazing variety of waders.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">The final day of the short holiday was only a half day, but there was still time to get a lot done. I had received advice the previous day on where to look for Turtle dove near Westleton, so I tried there first.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">The first stop proved unsuccessful, but there were many <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Chiffchaffs</span></i>, more distant calling <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Stone Curlews</span></i> that remained out of sight and a surprise <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Bullfinch</span></i>. There were dozens of Graylings along the path, including one that landed on my hand.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Next I headed to Westleton Common where I walked around the heath and scanned the wires. The dead trees held nothing expect a couple of Wood Pigeons, and the path I took didn't produce anything at all.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Eventually, after scanning the wires numerous times, I decided that the doves were probably skulking in the bushes, and was already making a plan for Turtle Doves next year when I noticed a small Dove on a post. I rushed to get the scope on it and to my delight I saw that it was a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Turtle Dove</span></i>!</span></b><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSOVYpRYvCqnVOUWDv63my9yIGYptAH7JzEiH9Ahaia9DYH8Pp1HhB-1_ruzV1yrXkS5gY4pDK66hEKlfxn8iqAZ6NlI9iYY6qrFY9AuFBrkY-BjgeD58wNDDkGbbBZU4EwxmPZbhm6A/s1600/TURTLETOVE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSOVYpRYvCqnVOUWDv63my9yIGYptAH7JzEiH9Ahaia9DYH8Pp1HhB-1_ruzV1yrXkS5gY4pDK66hEKlfxn8iqAZ6NlI9iYY6qrFY9AuFBrkY-BjgeD58wNDDkGbbBZU4EwxmPZbhm6A/s640/TURTLETOVE.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Turtle Dove</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">It showed well for about 5 minutes until it flew away, where it was not seen again.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Next we headed to Sizewell, where I had been told to check the Gulls out. I picked a good spot to watch the numerous birds feeding offshore including Kittiwakes, Common Terns, and a few other species of Gull, but no Little Gulls. With nothing else out at sea, I turned the scope to the power station, where Black Redstarts breed. The power station was huge with a lot of dense vegetation around it, so I wasn't expecting anything.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">To my surprise, however, the first bird I saw was a Robin sized bird that was black all over except for the red tail and white forehead...a male <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Black Redstart</span></i>!</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">The views were distant and brief, so I rushed closer to the power station. Unfortunately, when I reached the area it was, there was no sign of it. But after about 5 minutes, a bird flew up to land on the railings - the male Black Redstart again. I got amazing views of it dropping down to feed on the grass, flying up to land on the concrete floor then watched it land on the railing again until it disappeared. </span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIMzTCZikoMpV0z35lDEEwi4s8wEfllG_y_0h-sMCAFkOvY4EXK-VIv79nXjRrRjoMckWgbA5U2DtUqimxl1jxFm_jF3zc5EjzTte30dFGDjW1bdQdPOcL3ECZQCRPuMe_zgC_t9ewIQ/s1600/BLACKRED.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIMzTCZikoMpV0z35lDEEwi4s8wEfllG_y_0h-sMCAFkOvY4EXK-VIv79nXjRrRjoMckWgbA5U2DtUqimxl1jxFm_jF3zc5EjzTte30dFGDjW1bdQdPOcL3ECZQCRPuMe_zgC_t9ewIQ/s640/BLACKRED.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Black Redstart</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Another 5 minutes passed with no sign until another bird dropped down on the grass again. This time it was the female, although she didn't stay for long. I spent the next half hour standing on the dunes, watching both the male and female Black Redstarts return about every 5 minutes, but never together, and got great views of both of them. Another definite highlight of the holiday.</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1G-CagYyZgXPoisA-7Kj-t49rIvuwUH-vYcKs-5uIq7GEs9PCWj62zg-D6GhYOwkUHp0Mm0uEbLVNyCxxSe2b9-Di8pPp795aCUvv5TyO_KN5UDoiKC8p73gT56DDO41vpJ3DVmP0Zg/s1600/BLACKREDDD.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1G-CagYyZgXPoisA-7Kj-t49rIvuwUH-vYcKs-5uIq7GEs9PCWj62zg-D6GhYOwkUHp0Mm0uEbLVNyCxxSe2b9-Di8pPp795aCUvv5TyO_KN5UDoiKC8p73gT56DDO41vpJ3DVmP0Zg/s640/BLACKREDDD.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Black Redstart</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">After scanning a few pig fields with Gulls in them, I headed home after a holiday that had seen three lifers and loads of other awesome birds, especially waders!</span></b></div>
Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-1980087230449742492018-08-02T12:07:00.000-07:002018-08-02T12:09:45.662-07:00Norfolk and Suffolk Days 1-2<b><span style="color: white;">This trip wasn't really planned much in advance, but after hearing that there was a Gull watching event at Minsmere, I was interested to see what it would be like, as well as doing some other birding around the area. </span></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: white;">I drove up to Norfolk on Sunday morning with my aunt. We decided to head to Titchwell. However, on the way, I heard news of a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Semipalmated Sandpiper</span></i> at Snettisham, a reserve that we were passing by anyway, so we decided to drop in for a short time. After taking the path to the very windy beach, I met some other birders who helpfully told me where the Sandpiper was. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">It wasn't long before I was enjoying good views of it as it fed behind flocks of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dunlin</span></i> and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ringed Plover</span></i>. This bird was a lifer, and a bird I definitely didn't expect to see on the trip. </span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpLFKljqzkfBytAVo3vVgQ5VgQW9MzkHfoAMpFslHSWc1_mg5Z0gK6R5Xo4ElvPImrfp-sM-ffPTYs65j8hi59vmd7KmhHy6r7LEsAIbNbyyjhtL1VPDyI3UaPAB1xxiVrpk7OP6EZIg/s1600/SEMIPALM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpLFKljqzkfBytAVo3vVgQ5VgQW9MzkHfoAMpFslHSWc1_mg5Z0gK6R5Xo4ElvPImrfp-sM-ffPTYs65j8hi59vmd7KmhHy6r7LEsAIbNbyyjhtL1VPDyI3UaPAB1xxiVrpk7OP6EZIg/s640/SEMIPALM.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Semipalmated Sandpiper</span></b></td></tr>
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<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">On the way back there, were many more birds, including <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Common Tern</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Meadow Pipit</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Linnet</span></i> and a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Yellow Wagtail</span></i> amongst the numerous <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pied Wagtails</span></i>.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Next to Titchwell, which had recently been very good for waders. I was soon watching many species, including <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Black-Tailed</span></i> and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bar-Tailed Godwit</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ruff</span></i> and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Avocet</span></i>. I moved on to the second hide where there were even more waders, and quite a large flock of Spoonbill (one of which appeared to be colour ringed). </span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif14LU3gTfnOn2q4ZyqZfDX7caEODGuu1ZQU5w8KdztrON-Mgyns_F_LbIOXFg9Y-FoIlnNutqLme6jXY79TKsAUPobNOsKNQpmE5Ebd5yM6gQanuLSMBHt_gRNQlty0yz0fCeUyrJhQ/s640/BARWIT.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: white;"><b>Bar-Tailed Godwits</b></span></td></tr>
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<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">The waders included a flock of smart-looking summer plumage<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Curlew Sandpipers </span></i>and a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Little Ringed Plover</span></i> in front of the hide, as well as some more Ruff. </span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUXxxEVzL7RIxHNTmSNJL9dalhuUupnutqyA7BtSfYkwc5vx4aSStiuDB6ZY6mYbbAwyRx5sjE9L_OfmGSNsPNIXc448QAaOycBV1qjpg9-BanR-j9oLvfvVgdgCXktkrp8rj3t9BPOQ/s1600/CURLSAND.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUXxxEVzL7RIxHNTmSNJL9dalhuUupnutqyA7BtSfYkwc5vx4aSStiuDB6ZY6mYbbAwyRx5sjE9L_OfmGSNsPNIXc448QAaOycBV1qjpg9-BanR-j9oLvfvVgdgCXktkrp8rj3t9BPOQ/s640/CURLSAND.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Curlew Sandpipers</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">The next marsh held<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Curlew</span></i>, but not much else, so we headed back, looking for birds along the way. A smart juvenile<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Mediterranean Gull</span></i> flew in and landed on the freshmarsh, and a wader flew towards me, which turned out to be a winter plumage <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Spotted Redshank</span></i>. It gave great views as it stayed where it was, allowing me to get the scope on it. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">We then headed back to Norwich, where I would be staying, hopeful that the next few days would be as successful as the first.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">The next day was reserved for work experience, so I didn't expect any birding at all. However, later that day, we went out locally to Buckingham Marshes for an hour. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">This proved to be a great success, because it took just half an hour to see Little Ringed Plover, Little Stint, Wood Sandpiper, Green Sandpiper and many Snipe; all on the same marsh! An excellent inland site for waders, and one I wouldn't have associated with birding in late July. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">The Little Stint was in its bright red summer plumage, which was exciting because I have only seen dull looking ones in Britain. I didn't spend too much time taking photos, so they might not win any awards, but it was a great bird to watch.</span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkrShPbgEptymNWxtP2MjRUljctUdhE-ZmXx8_89mruSIDvJKQZS72ChTOPFhcRVDX-2Qnbhcfk3mRPTTSPDM6siXrS_vmVcK1xEbTYtRp77EZtHQLSH5jx78VqHTob4Tayu0IhKdE2Q/s1600/LITTLE+STINT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkrShPbgEptymNWxtP2MjRUljctUdhE-ZmXx8_89mruSIDvJKQZS72ChTOPFhcRVDX-2Qnbhcfk3mRPTTSPDM6siXrS_vmVcK1xEbTYtRp77EZtHQLSH5jx78VqHTob4Tayu0IhKdE2Q/s640/LITTLE+STINT.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Little Stint</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">A <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Common Gull</span></i> also circled the river as I headed back to the car, after a surprisingly successful day.</span></b>Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-68143023905993684402018-07-13T14:56:00.003-07:002018-07-13T14:56:50.424-07:00Norfolk Birding<b><span style="color: white;">I always go to Norfolk a few times every year, including once each year in June to July, with the main target often being Nightjar. This year I was making the same trip to the same places, but seeing different birds.</span></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: white;">I arrived in Norwich on Friday night to stay with my aunt who lives there. It was too dark to do anything, but I ate and prepared for the following day. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Next day, we headed out to our first stop at Buxton Heath, a place we would be visiting later that day too. My target here was quickly achieved - Silver-Studded Blue butterfly. At first, there were only a few flying, but after a few minutes, there were dozens flying around, some more impressive looking than others.</span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwd8VwPjCYYTns6T4oMbJQq73YGH3UdZ1Agf5Duu_f4VglzQLKyJ38z2tzagc7_4MKackVuYEVpi7OHwKgCWdlKo4vEpPx9KSeYKIxr0mD9mNQvQp-5tx55HozEHEOAjsetGzhsdyzhA/s1600/SSB.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwd8VwPjCYYTns6T4oMbJQq73YGH3UdZ1Agf5Duu_f4VglzQLKyJ38z2tzagc7_4MKackVuYEVpi7OHwKgCWdlKo4vEpPx9KSeYKIxr0mD9mNQvQp-5tx55HozEHEOAjsetGzhsdyzhA/s640/SSB.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">SSB</span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6sTix2NDIvg3nRMM_KEnbNeFiYxDkBM8Mdzj0XTtiGgkizuBcht0cJ8AK4O50HOsmRH2eSgs02nCMy5j8MzsYYIh0labAUJy7ndZRZjQV2U3vu5PaixpGFD09107PLZEZZcK-mOVdRg/s1600/SSBSS.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6sTix2NDIvg3nRMM_KEnbNeFiYxDkBM8Mdzj0XTtiGgkizuBcht0cJ8AK4O50HOsmRH2eSgs02nCMy5j8MzsYYIh0labAUJy7ndZRZjQV2U3vu5PaixpGFD09107PLZEZZcK-mOVdRg/s640/SSBSS.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">SSB</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">To add some confusion, there were also Common Blues mixing with the Silver Studds, but I soon became familiar with the differences. The final butterfly at the site was a White Admiral that settled for a short period on brambles in the car park. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Next stop was Cley, where we had the scope fixed then headed out to the hides. The first one I visited gave me good views of <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i>Little-Ringed Plover</i></span>, <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Black-Tailed Godwit </span></i>and <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ruff</span></i>. A <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Green Sandpiper</span></i> then showed well, so I headed to the next hide to view it more clearly.</span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCjm8HZjoZpWnSqeCQfCWVvwwDCFjrCiy4r4B5lQ3ZOsJ_8aElUoiiF3JkODiT5M6kcGMimc3_vAcdUFlwhIrUO0s0mRkMbjR7jrluXuoptr3agJXbeptNa_cjtmi_lHTjh6nTm1XPXA/s1600/GREENSA+D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCjm8HZjoZpWnSqeCQfCWVvwwDCFjrCiy4r4B5lQ3ZOsJ_8aElUoiiF3JkODiT5M6kcGMimc3_vAcdUFlwhIrUO0s0mRkMbjR7jrluXuoptr3agJXbeptNa_cjtmi_lHTjh6nTm1XPXA/s640/GREENSA+D.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Green Sandpiper</span></b></td></tr>
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<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">As soon as I opened the windows to the hide however, 3 birds flew in and landed just metres away on one of the islands. It was immediately clear that they were <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Spoonbills</span></i>! I didn't expect views like this of them; my best ever. The flock contained 2 adults and a juvenile. </span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHlREuhWQqyCaGyeiTmAIs6wvGJHqp96KOmDyH-DmcL3GutXm257vlEtCqCEH9GWAE8tDiFFuSPQllzRiCmmuJywGyuK7D5YwCK4qRNdOTyjqlIYX3q3paR4_rDWGK2jIQl0eZJSwJHQ/s1600/SPOONBILL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHlREuhWQqyCaGyeiTmAIs6wvGJHqp96KOmDyH-DmcL3GutXm257vlEtCqCEH9GWAE8tDiFFuSPQllzRiCmmuJywGyuK7D5YwCK4qRNdOTyjqlIYX3q3paR4_rDWGK2jIQl0eZJSwJHQ/s640/SPOONBILL.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Spoonbill</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">We then headed to Choseley, but there were hardly any birds here at all. I've visited this place over 10 times now and haven't seen a Corn Bunting once, which is strange because it's supposed to be a good site for them. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Then to Titchwell, where there is always something to see, and today was no exception. I started off at the first hide where it wasn't long before I found the flock of<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Little Gulls</span></i> that had been around for a while. These are very interesting birds, and ones that I have only started to look at properly recently. </span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKgKBHdyeZdIQoA_Y11jKRSGCTwjg4w7NtbXXWo8mbBaTyEb2DrwpRb2RA5idGKXolAdv0UogEGcl3p8yjXsxAZtn2y18cLVUbd1vzEcBd8HbQMOvSeDsVDwbfta9FLOBtVekt3caSsA/s1600/Little+Gull.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKgKBHdyeZdIQoA_Y11jKRSGCTwjg4w7NtbXXWo8mbBaTyEb2DrwpRb2RA5idGKXolAdv0UogEGcl3p8yjXsxAZtn2y18cLVUbd1vzEcBd8HbQMOvSeDsVDwbfta9FLOBtVekt3caSsA/s640/Little+Gull.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Little Gull</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">We then spoke to one of the volunteers, who recommended a good spot to look for the<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Spotted Redshanks</span></i>. I took his advice and had clear, but distant, views of at least three in full summer plumage. Other interesting birds included summer plumaged <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Knot</span></i>, a Ruff that landed in front of one of the hides, a lot of <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Mediterranean Gulls</span></i> and an interesting butterfly - an Essex Skipper, posing conveniently so I could see its antennae. </span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji__IyGmBRongB3AGrAzBE7aopKFQ88xBjEhwHp6eaKyvxeluxRoO2-58Xh3aQK01vRjE6h46ejqqzrGWWRWg2MixfmJWG3s2dzLD62uurpstL232OJMt5-YYHhWTucn2U0b98kHH0hw/s1600/ESS.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji__IyGmBRongB3AGrAzBE7aopKFQ88xBjEhwHp6eaKyvxeluxRoO2-58Xh3aQK01vRjE6h46ejqqzrGWWRWg2MixfmJWG3s2dzLD62uurpstL232OJMt5-YYHhWTucn2U0b98kHH0hw/s640/ESS.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Essex Skipper</span></b></td></tr>
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<div>
<b><span style="color: white;">It was then my plan to try to find a Turtle Dove, something I've never seen before. However, I realised that I didn't know a single reliable site nearby. I asked one of the volunteers who recommended a site, which was helpful, so we headed that way.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">On the way I saw a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Red Kite </span></i>circling a nearby field.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Unfortunately, Turtle Doves were either not present or refused to show themselves at the site. A shame, but later in the year could provide another opportunity. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">As we drove back I noticed a raptor flying high over the road. Usually these 'large road raptors' are one of three species in Norfolk - Red Kite, Marsh Harrier or Buzzard. I took one glance at it to see it clearly wasn't a Buzzard or Red Kite, so in my head, that meant it was a Marsh Harrier, supported by the black wing tips. But as we drove straight under it, I could see much longer wings which were flapping loosely, and a grey colour to the whole of the wings. I had about a second to view it, but the plumage filled me with excitement. I thought it had to be a Montagu's Harrier.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">I made my aunt drive back up and down the same road about four times, but the raptor didn't reappear. I don't have much confidence in my sighting however, because the habitat seemed strange and I only viewed it for a second, so it could have been anything that has been misidentified by me. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Our final stop was at Buxton Heath again, this time in the evening. It was warm, so I hoped it would be good for Nightjars. We headed out on to the path, (where I picked up the wings of a dead Silver-Studded Blue) and searched for the Nightjars. It wasn't long before I heard the first burst of churring, with more birds soon joining in. A few seconds later, a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Nightjar</span></i> flew high up in front of me. A success! But views had been short and quite distant, so I moved forwards to acquire some better views. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">This turned out to be a very good move - I heard a Nightjar call then flutter past me where I could have touched it if I had stuck my arm out (I didn't!). It didn't move straight on, though. It continued to circle me, only a couple of metres away all the time, often invisible as it flew low over the heath, but showing very well when it fluttered over the path, displaying its white tail corners and wing patches. It called constantly as it circled, and I enjoyed amazing views for a whole 5 minutes before it flew off. No doubt the best views I have had of this species, and the highlight of the weekend.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Unfortunately, the next morning was uneventful, with an unsuccessful trip to look for Honey Buzzard at Swanton Novers, and another visit to Buxton Heath in daylight, with hardly any birds seen at all.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">It was then time to head home, after what had been an amazing weekend.</span></b></div>
Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-82700509636732260122018-07-04T14:39:00.003-07:002018-07-04T14:39:51.392-07:00A Weekend of Butterflies <b><span style="color: white;">In late June, birding opportunities are limited locally, so I travelled to search for some butterflies. I only became interested late last summer, so I don't know too much about locations of them or how to find them.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">It was lucky that I noticed that there was a guided walk to look for butterflies at a site not too far away - run bu the Upper Thames branch of Butterfly Conservation. </span></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">On Saturday we headed up to Holtspur Bottom reserve to join the guided walk. The first butterfly was a Small Tortoiseshell, followed by Meadow Browns, Ringlets and Marbled Whites.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">A Common Blue was seen briefly, and a Large Skipper also showed.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">One of the leaders caught a Skipper butterfly in the net, and showed it to everyone briefly before letting it go to minimise disturbance. It was an Essex Skipper, separated from Small Skipper by the black undersides to the antennae. This was a new butterfly for me. </span></b><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK8uB1mchJo4OF0ZknZOB3EnUqsWl2togV6dNT84u6qujf1RgoJgWduJc_o3DlJalenzJ8q9oEN5d_jneQvjirNd3NaQdeJ5c7aAIvby5D-e-lU0GM7NLGd3PoR8BEjxvZCZ9Yfl6fCA/s1600/ESSSKIP.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK8uB1mchJo4OF0ZknZOB3EnUqsWl2togV6dNT84u6qujf1RgoJgWduJc_o3DlJalenzJ8q9oEN5d_jneQvjirNd3NaQdeJ5c7aAIvby5D-e-lU0GM7NLGd3PoR8BEjxvZCZ9Yfl6fCA/s640/ESSSKIP.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Essex Skipper</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Next we searched through the meadows, where another group leader found one of the target butterflies - the Small Blue! They were even smaller than I expected, and it was often hard to track them as they flew through the grassland. I eventually got prolonged views of one settled on its food plant (Kidney Vetch?). A very brief Dark Green Fritillary flew through, which was apparently an unusual record for the site. However, it was the worst views I have had of any butterfly, and I will be going out to get some better views soon at another site.</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBBsnRIiS5wDhFGqcJHqNS60hqBmek-5Shs_oWU05lOcVye0OwKAp-SmeINLrzapBnp-kHD-XpY_RwSgk5WUn1rzujMzNKSMFd-Iye7jhPvc4D_HyLOCUIlLByyqmyDkJI7cyOaTivHA/s1600/SMALL+Blue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBBsnRIiS5wDhFGqcJHqNS60hqBmek-5Shs_oWU05lOcVye0OwKAp-SmeINLrzapBnp-kHD-XpY_RwSgk5WUn1rzujMzNKSMFd-Iye7jhPvc4D_HyLOCUIlLByyqmyDkJI7cyOaTivHA/s640/SMALL+Blue.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Small Blue</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Another highlight of the day was the other wildlife, and the knowledge of the guides. When I joined the walk I planned to look for nothing but butterflies, and would avoid everything else because it wasn't interesting. But I soon became very interested in the various moths, beetles and bees of the area. </span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Unfortunately, I haven't managed to remember the names of all the things I saw, but I do remember an interesting moth - Mother Shipton, a Thick-Thighed Flower Beetle and some sort of solitary bee. It has encouraged me to learn more about these animals. </span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">On Sunday, I went out by myself to my nearby woodland. The first new Butterfly I saw was a White Admiral, with quite a few flying around. However, I was struggling for anything else. I tried looking in the treetops for Purple Hairstreak, but couldn't find one. But just as I was walking back, a butterfly flew across the floor beside me and landed nearby. Looking at the underside, I could see it was clearly a Purple Hairstreak - great to see my first one on the floor. </span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIhYLpsGP1n6x35NxaeL5QyUgrKEOwzpdzsKFzGk0by7FN014kvr7S6srEoHpQPL4tBCjzq-eEH2-QataG54MC69ArSmYtKU-_RsdbCDggwDjO9eF9fNHCbQ8A68mMM-ibthJxe3YNGQ/s1600/PURPLEHR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIhYLpsGP1n6x35NxaeL5QyUgrKEOwzpdzsKFzGk0by7FN014kvr7S6srEoHpQPL4tBCjzq-eEH2-QataG54MC69ArSmYtKU-_RsdbCDggwDjO9eF9fNHCbQ8A68mMM-ibthJxe3YNGQ/s640/PURPLEHR.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Purple Hairstreak</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Other butterflies seen that day were Ringlet, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper, Small Skipper, Small Tortoiseshell, Red Admiral, Speckled Wood and Comma.</span></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: white;">A <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Garden Warbler</span></i> was also singing, which I thought was quite late for this species.</span></b>Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-79569322375589209352018-06-13T13:42:00.000-07:002018-06-13T13:51:21.415-07:00Poland days 7- 8 <b><span style="color: white;">It was the last full day in Poland, and I was woken up early by one of the resident <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Hoopoes </span></i>calling.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">We met one of our local guides, then set off, seeing an adult <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">White-Tailed Eagle </span></i>on the way.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">As soon as we got out the car at the first sight, a large Eagle started circling low down. It was clearly a Spotted Eagle, but it looked large and very dark plumaged. We watched it slowly climb higher, debating its identity, but in the end it was confirmed as a Spotted Eagle hybrid, because the primaries were like Lesser Spotted but the plumage like Greater. An interesting bird, and it shows you have to be careful when identifying the Eagles in Poland.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">We headed up the path, where there were a lot of songflighting <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sedge Warblers</span></i>, and a large flock of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">White Storks</span></i> gathering near the tower, with two<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Great White Egrets</span></i> trying to fit in. Two <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Curlews</span></i> were also in the field next to the path.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<span style="color: white;"><b>Around the tower we saw </b><i><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Greylag Goose</span></b></i><b>,<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Lapwing</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Whiskered Tern</span></i> and a </b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Moorhen</b></span><b>. That Moorhen was the first and only of the trip, and has been something that is more difficult to find in these areas of Poland this year.</b></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">On our way back we had a couple of very brief fly past<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Citrine Wagtails</span></i>, which unfortunately landed out of view. A few moments later, Neil noticed a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Black Stork </span></i>high in the sky, circling. Although it was high up, its plumage features could be seen perfectly, clearly showing it was a Black rather than a White. Back at the car, we saw <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Willow Warbler</span></i> and heard<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> River Warbler </span></i>and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Golden Oriole</span></i>.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<span style="color: white;"><b>Next we headed to a spot by the river to eat lunch, and it was the best place I had ever eaten in. We sat with </b><i style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Black</span></i><b>, </b><i style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Whiskered</span></i><b> and </b><i style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">White-Winged Black Terns</span></i><b> just metres away, showing amazingly well, with all three occasionally in the same view. </b><i style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Common Terns</span></i><b> were also numerous, and a surprise <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Little Tern</span></i> decided to drop in. We also saw<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Redshank</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Black-Tailed Godwits</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Little Ringed Plover </span></i>and<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Lapwing</span></i> from this spot. Lastly, we had another brief view of a Black Stork flying away.</b></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0nw58bLY3eGsBRuzrFsJ1r6Zc90Y9jIcRIZwtaSNH7JRz9OPpz3XxWKTaH8fGpjb86Us1cXapdDs5pyVZkxGW1HGSw5FxePzulBxBkEI8nI9dSu0HTcG_grzWnLKc3f7MOERMrMtVmg/s1600/WWBT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0nw58bLY3eGsBRuzrFsJ1r6Zc90Y9jIcRIZwtaSNH7JRz9OPpz3XxWKTaH8fGpjb86Us1cXapdDs5pyVZkxGW1HGSw5FxePzulBxBkEI8nI9dSu0HTcG_grzWnLKc3f7MOERMrMtVmg/s640/WWBT.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">WWBT with Black Tern</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Our next stop was quiet, but we saw <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Blue-Headed Wagtails </span></i>here, as well as Great White Egrets and Grey Herons. A day-flying Noctule Bat was a surprise, as it appeared to be dive-bombing us.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Our final stop of the day was another good spot for butterflies. There were a lot of Willow Warblers around, but my attention was mainly on all the species of Heath butterflies flying around. First was a Small Heath, then we had views of both Pearly and Chestnut Heath, showing the difference between the two. A <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Corn Bunting</span></i> sang constantly and a couple of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tawny Pipits</span></i> showed reasonably well.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Other butterflies included Black-Veined White, Comma and Glanville Fritillary.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">A bit further up, we had Dark Green and Small Pearl-Bordered Fritillary, Large Copper and another one of the butterflies we saw at the start of the week, that was confirmed as an Assmann's Fritillary.</span></b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin3OgegZ_Mrx0MGl5mlvob7QihIqGVKGz-nE_GJFOQwhsSlOTfKmXZOKbc0oOShlzRAwXTrpvHMhI_jKqk4BD60jTPYRfklJDKFax8kt3E2a_JkbfLapaJ2xxZKjCe99P4HBpQCWsjWw/s1600/Chestnut+Heath.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin3OgegZ_Mrx0MGl5mlvob7QihIqGVKGz-nE_GJFOQwhsSlOTfKmXZOKbc0oOShlzRAwXTrpvHMhI_jKqk4BD60jTPYRfklJDKFax8kt3E2a_JkbfLapaJ2xxZKjCe99P4HBpQCWsjWw/s640/Chestnut+Heath.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Chestnut Heath</span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Yeqv7yTsHqkyVhNVIwckEguIdm0tbdbhWeX7VFGiriGzAvP4S7tjfJ0PBX6NZHODyYCzl94J62Vy9O5OIzScz_au69J9V24wa0s-KbSkYn-jtefGrZZnnlSENKcAabLOqKsQIpuEqw/s1600/Pearly+Heath.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Yeqv7yTsHqkyVhNVIwckEguIdm0tbdbhWeX7VFGiriGzAvP4S7tjfJ0PBX6NZHODyYCzl94J62Vy9O5OIzScz_au69J9V24wa0s-KbSkYn-jtefGrZZnnlSENKcAabLOqKsQIpuEqw/s640/Pearly+Heath.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Pearly Heath</span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzltNbHjsoKsiWBr6b97xbbS9AirT1GVtgtjIi4vxqFjSAzOCrMsLmZ-3nRzRjslUW_hgS1w2hWbwJIpGmePnuPidBRHYfqrhDXs1binD4Zys64gob4AzaNEd77sGckp_Jsi2336iq4A/s1600/Dark+G.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzltNbHjsoKsiWBr6b97xbbS9AirT1GVtgtjIi4vxqFjSAzOCrMsLmZ-3nRzRjslUW_hgS1w2hWbwJIpGmePnuPidBRHYfqrhDXs1binD4Zys64gob4AzaNEd77sGckp_Jsi2336iq4A/s640/Dark+G.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Dark Green Fritillary</span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEl2TxBtXI_6k4GWbbCpI2ukkm6KefzaHxtzRgU0yBjODPB5VtvB-ORrkcdlOxNGchtCZPrUeRMHikps-AZJv5lJn0q7lItKKFKViowL9q7BALC12UZd0swAPvLnU_234nAW6droKMYQ/s1600/Large+Copper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1201" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEl2TxBtXI_6k4GWbbCpI2ukkm6KefzaHxtzRgU0yBjODPB5VtvB-ORrkcdlOxNGchtCZPrUeRMHikps-AZJv5lJn0q7lItKKFKViowL9q7BALC12UZd0swAPvLnU_234nAW6droKMYQ/s640/Large+Copper.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Large Copper</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">This was unfortunately the end of the full days of the tour, with the next day being spent travelling along the roads back to Warsaw.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">However, there were a couple of birds the next day, including a Hoopoe in the hotel garden, a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Black Redstart</span></i> singing on a lamppost and lots of<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Swifts </span></i>going over.</span></b></span><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Once we arrived back at Stansted, we had to wait over an hour for our luggage to come, but we got it eventually. It was a shame to be back in the UK after such a great trip - one of the best I've ever had. </span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">The only negative was that the birds over the next few days all seemed very normal, and I was expecting to hear an Icterine Warblers sing any minute.</span></b><br />
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Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-90411282939923729332018-06-12T10:10:00.000-07:002018-06-12T10:10:36.513-07:00Poland Days 5 - 6<b><span style="color: white;">Wednesday was the day that we transferred from Bialowieza to Biebrza, but there would be a lot of birding along the way. Our first stop was in a large set of meadows, which have often been productive in the past for both birds and butterflies.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;"><i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Corn Buntings</span></i> sang regularly, and a male <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Red-Backed Shrike</span></i> displayed on the fence posts and bushes. A <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Wryneck</span></i> gave a brief fly-by, and we saw our first two<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Cranes </span></i>of the tour in one of the meadows.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">A pair of Queen Of Spain Fritillaries showed well and landed regularly along the path, which were the first of the tour.</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1SRfAWmpNi4wtZLH6Il8dgWQmPNPQB_0Z6rROKJK6KWiyJoT7d7iZMENgzoSirtCkY5CyFS6S9gUHts74ja0o0UW2s6znlh06tyDPxmlPGsjj-S8yh7XTxjMsrlf0P9mDJOnfb_Px4Q/s1600/Queenof.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1SRfAWmpNi4wtZLH6Il8dgWQmPNPQB_0Z6rROKJK6KWiyJoT7d7iZMENgzoSirtCkY5CyFS6S9gUHts74ja0o0UW2s6znlh06tyDPxmlPGsjj-S8yh7XTxjMsrlf0P9mDJOnfb_Px4Q/s640/Queenof.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Queen Of Spain Fritillaries </span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">I then noticed a butterfly flying around a small tree, but lost sight of it when it landed. However, it soon got up and flew again, and this time landed in view. The first identification was White-Lettered Hairstreak, but I took a couple of photos, and after zooming in and studying the books, we realised it was a Black Hairstreak, a butterfly I was not expecting to see in Poland.</span></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_1CwC8uvDizecjcxvN9L46MxmIRcnOmrjJzomWtKMD_MbyZwSGS9bx8pISd4V3R92rrOadgv7NlUhxgWKmhykjJW-ubxFnBrjKyZ9kfnK8sKg6WE-ITUFo6MXYoMAUav93FsBrsVnGg/s1600/Blackg+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1201" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_1CwC8uvDizecjcxvN9L46MxmIRcnOmrjJzomWtKMD_MbyZwSGS9bx8pISd4V3R92rrOadgv7NlUhxgWKmhykjJW-ubxFnBrjKyZ9kfnK8sKg6WE-ITUFo6MXYoMAUav93FsBrsVnGg/s640/Blackg+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Black Haistreak - the row of white-tipped black spots down the edge of the wing rules out White-Lettered</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">We then walked through one of the meadows, where birds included a flock of five <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Great White Egrets</span></i> flying over that were probably migrating. I saw a Brown Hair briefly as it ran through the meadow, and there was also a Roe Deer that showed itself better. We had great views of a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Woodlark</span></i> land very close, accompanied by the constant song of <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Skylarks</span></i>. Corn Buntings showed well as we walked back, as did another Red-Backed Shrike.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Our next site produced a flock of Cranes in one of the fields, that allowed a close approach, and a load of <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Starlings</span></i> feeding by the roadside.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">We then made out way to a set of fishponds, but the day was turning out to be painfully hot. A huge <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Black-Headed Gull</span></i> colony occupied the first couple of ponds, but one pond did hold a very smart pair of <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Red-Necked Grebes</span></i>. Other Birds were <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Great Reed</span></i>,<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Reed</span></i> and <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sedge Warbler</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Great Crested Grebe</span></i> and a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Little Grebe</span></i> calling but remaining unseen. There were a few <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Coots</span></i> around, a<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Goldeneye</span></i>, a drake<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Garganey</span></i> and some booming <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Bitterns</span></i>, but the heat made it hard to see much else, so we headed back, where we found out it was 35 degrees!</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0vuY4Owjl-rIfvrc8dGoSOYSz_Ocs5YXjrrrVe81GQGAuwVfB0txoTxxQYVW6MBsh398AsVTZc-agZIFBYxIY_zZwE_NoUYmt187YWosuQGtl99_b-JyqVAEtkFwe4y3eckNIiE3nUg/s1600/RNG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0vuY4Owjl-rIfvrc8dGoSOYSz_Ocs5YXjrrrVe81GQGAuwVfB0txoTxxQYVW6MBsh398AsVTZc-agZIFBYxIY_zZwE_NoUYmt187YWosuQGtl99_b-JyqVAEtkFwe4y3eckNIiE3nUg/s640/RNG.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Red-Necked Grebe nest building</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">We then started the main drive to Biebrza, but stopped on the way to look at birds on the wires. There were many<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Yellowhammers</span></i>, a couple of Corn Buntings and, eventually, a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Tawny</span></i> <i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Pipit</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">, </span>which posed nicely. We also saw a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Great Grey Shrike</span></i> hunting, displaying that, looking at all the birds you see on wires, can be rewarding in Poland!</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-byedUeeyO2wkvYGvQvaVDqwN2fmECNbDTFfpPBbWKfa9ZWmE4GRrtMBvjlh1hJ0QI2KP9hCnh7hh8jYdmeLB0jSzu7VGF2eWkCTCC-sqdx8EJXBjvXk8D2wtNkEBWqX_OrmncX6HqQ/s1600/TAWNY.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-byedUeeyO2wkvYGvQvaVDqwN2fmECNbDTFfpPBbWKfa9ZWmE4GRrtMBvjlh1hJ0QI2KP9hCnh7hh8jYdmeLB0jSzu7VGF2eWkCTCC-sqdx8EJXBjvXk8D2wtNkEBWqX_OrmncX6HqQ/s640/TAWNY.JPG" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Tawny Pipit</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Our final stop of the day was to look for Aquatic Warbler. After being attacked by Horseflies at the parking spot, we headed up a boardwalk to listen out and look for these birds. There were many Sedge Warbles singing, and I was struggling to separate Sedge Warbler song from Aquatic. Luckily, Neil heard an <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Aquatic Warbler </span></i>then located it. We had amazing views of a couple of these birds, as they sang, flew around and landed on reeds, often on the top helpfully.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">From this watchpoint we also saw a distant Eagle, that, at first, was thought to be a possible Greater Spotted Eagle, but it was too distant to be sure and, to be honest, I had no idea. But in the end, it was left unconfirmed, though there was a high chance it was actually 'just' a White-Tailed Eagle. </span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">A <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Snipe</span></i> flew over and a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Marsh Harrier </span></i>showed well, but I managed to miss the Montagu's seen by others, though I knew I would get more chances in the days to come.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">We then arrived at the hotel and had a good amount of time to get ready for the coming days.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Thursday was the first day in the marshes, and we visited yet another set of fishponds today. However, this one had a difference. It was the one I had been most excited about because it was said to be good for Waders, once of my favourite kind of birds.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">But before all that, we had a pre-breakfast walk to look for Bluethroat. We arrived at the site and waited for birds to appear. The first was a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Savi's Warbler </span></i>that eventually came to within a few metres and showed out in the open...great start!</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Neil then noticed a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Penduline Tit</span></i>, that ended up flying straight at us then circle round a few times, presumably visiting a nearby nest. A <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Garden Warbler</span></i> sang and gave brief flight views as well.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Our target birds was seen on a piece of dead vegetation - a male<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Bluethroat</span></i>. It gave very brief views before returning a few minutes later, and this happened a few times. We headed up the observation tower to see if we could see it from there, and this turned out to be a VERY good decision. We saw the Bluethroat perform a songflight, land in a bush, fly in our direction, then land in the middle of the boardwalk just metres away! It left and came back a few times, showing amazingly well.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDSNPcHba1hUFV5SXZihtI3vnjznRU4uZRF8jCLQL91JJQolZN1TmmNtsCOcf1BoHMgvUhTn3CEA1S4kCuIdhu8KXWZKtf-Gehb-yTYvRHQyTeOXqSTTtw3CMe794Gfn3BSDdLWtCmZQ/s1600/BT.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDSNPcHba1hUFV5SXZihtI3vnjznRU4uZRF8jCLQL91JJQolZN1TmmNtsCOcf1BoHMgvUhTn3CEA1S4kCuIdhu8KXWZKtf-Gehb-yTYvRHQyTeOXqSTTtw3CMe794Gfn3BSDdLWtCmZQ/s640/BT.JPG" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Bluethroat</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Then, I saw movement on the boardwalk when the Bluethroat had left and immediately assumed it was the same bird. But after looking closer, I realised that it was actually a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Thrush</span></i> <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Nightingale</span></i>! We had only heard these this tour, and I thought the best I would get of one would be an obscured view in a bush, but there was once hopping about on the boardwalk in front of me.</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc44aSZZe8gWUlxJ30xtyGoypONRGZYvdHLEFIjQF5Be1xrKQz_xPoxWi_ecKc97Auzo_GgAbVgb1GbZ-6718gHKr7m9A5leQ9P6dZBxN7N7uPgyfivmrOUngc6ZCT1Z30YqwOxZtg8w/s1600/TN.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1201" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc44aSZZe8gWUlxJ30xtyGoypONRGZYvdHLEFIjQF5Be1xrKQz_xPoxWi_ecKc97Auzo_GgAbVgb1GbZ-6718gHKr7m9A5leQ9P6dZBxN7N7uPgyfivmrOUngc6ZCT1Z30YqwOxZtg8w/s640/TN.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Thrush Nightingale</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">So, after this very successful morning, we headed for the fishponds. Upon arriving, I thought any hope of waders would be lost after seeing one of the fishponds had been filled, but it turned out that they were still around, and the other ponds had a good amount of habitat for waders on them.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">The first pond contained a close <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Black-Tailed Godwit </span></i>and some handsome<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Wood</span></i> <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sandpipers</span></i>. We noticed that one of the birds next to the Wood Sand was actually a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Green Sandpiper</span></i>, giving a great comparison between the two species.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6yTePzkCk592gXGlu57Yy2NCnXxEs97OGsxhdqSBTjJSh2aiTa02gHxBwCLVhQ8bYvSg1UY_efhBmrLuDQvbLRkFs3KUr80IU6QGTTKidSdOz-bBAqKqXlV2VfHPnkrKQ5glOMlmvFA/s1600/WOOD+and+Green+Sands.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6yTePzkCk592gXGlu57Yy2NCnXxEs97OGsxhdqSBTjJSh2aiTa02gHxBwCLVhQ8bYvSg1UY_efhBmrLuDQvbLRkFs3KUr80IU6QGTTKidSdOz-bBAqKqXlV2VfHPnkrKQ5glOMlmvFA/s640/WOOD+and+Green+Sands.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">It may not be a perfect shot, but it shows the Wood Sandpiper in front and the Green Sandpiper behind</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">The next pond contained a couple of <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Greenshanks</span></i>, quite a few <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Little Ringed Plovers</span></i>, a summer plumaged <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Dunlin</span></i>, a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ruff</span></i>, and, best of all, a pair of Summer Plumaged <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Little Stints</span></i>. There was also a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Teal</span></i> next to a <span style="font-family: inherit;">Garganey</span>, a flock of<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Caspian Gulls</span></i> and a singing <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Marsh Warbler </span></i>by the path, with the regular Sedge and Great Reed Warblers.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">On the final pond there was another drake Garganey and a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Grey Plover</span></i> on one of the islands. A<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Hoopoe</span> flew across the water where there were good number of <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Shovelers </span></i>and Great Crested Grebes, with another Little Grebe calling out of sight. A couple of <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">White-Tailed Eagles</span></i> also flew over, and a <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Whooper swan</span></i> flew in and allowed good views.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_Ec5P5zND87fm24abyR8reUhYf7EouA1tNQxlyOBS8-uBYQDoMXPxRm-AGqpwBA2cgXv-6XT-eA3Ht5ELu4Vqdtl1jorHZx7Gyc9GcrRjTTOdKDlUem3natwRl-y4FwNVnbxzvYuTnw/s1600/WHOOOPErR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_Ec5P5zND87fm24abyR8reUhYf7EouA1tNQxlyOBS8-uBYQDoMXPxRm-AGqpwBA2cgXv-6XT-eA3Ht5ELu4Vqdtl1jorHZx7Gyc9GcrRjTTOdKDlUem3natwRl-y4FwNVnbxzvYuTnw/s640/WHOOOPErR.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Whooper Swan</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">One of the highlights here, however, was when a ringtail <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Hen Harrier</span></i> flew out of the reeds, a bird I wasn't expecting to see in Poland, and I expected a Male <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Montagu's Harrier</span></i> to come and mob it even less! it was a spectacular sight to see these two species side by side, showing clear difference in structure, especially wing length. The Montagu's then landed by the side of the fishponds, and could be viewed from where we stood.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Next, we headed to a quarry, where there was a colony of <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sand Martins</span></i>, a purring <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Turtle Dove</span></i> heard, and some <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-style: italic;">Bee-Eaters</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> seen</span> well both in flight and perched.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Our final stop of the day was to look for raptors, but all we saw was <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Common Buzzard</span></i> and <i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Marsh Harrier</span></i>, so we headed back to the hotel after a great and very successful day.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHrjZ14FuFEZrIs2gNC4t1k1VMZeA6AGt-ehPnFpHdNbArwbORRtcT0s8PJ7Nm8FpJ0T4Qva7GQHUP0D6RJoQduDhidrVDYiwCjpxcxdg1K0YqTbdK8T5GpZCF2WUVdclrGpXh141OUA/s1600/Wireed.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHrjZ14FuFEZrIs2gNC4t1k1VMZeA6AGt-ehPnFpHdNbArwbORRtcT0s8PJ7Nm8FpJ0T4Qva7GQHUP0D6RJoQduDhidrVDYiwCjpxcxdg1K0YqTbdK8T5GpZCF2WUVdclrGpXh141OUA/s640/Wireed.JPG" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">I was here </span></b></td></tr>
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Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-64011397868512162682018-06-08T12:34:00.000-07:002018-06-13T14:34:21.581-07:00Poland Days 3 - 4<b><span style="color: white;">Today we were going with another local guide to the Bialowieza strict reserve. It was an impressive and undamaged woodland that held lots of birds and other wildlife. In the meadow outside the forest a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Corn Bunting</span></i> sang distantly, and a<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Wryneck</span> also sang, although it was much closer, and gave a couple of flight views.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">As we walked along the path through the meadow, a huge bird of prey was seen flying towards us - a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Lesser Spotted Eagle</span></i>! It gave excellent views as it was flying low and right above our heads, and I though this would be the best views we would get. So I was amazed to see it sink lower and land at the top of the tree closest to us! We got amazing views of it perch there, before it eventually flew away.</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNyB25oP1bEFk5oQfgmJyg8Vvp6QRMtSCDoEAsHMH2OL1h-kRlD-38tW9iHx7pOXXPNN5xZrHgOfasRAdoQ0cvB8iqETCjxObkDvVI9vX1lwpaOBaGxci9imSTsW8t1un0aEMINeP7xw/s1600/LSE.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNyB25oP1bEFk5oQfgmJyg8Vvp6QRMtSCDoEAsHMH2OL1h-kRlD-38tW9iHx7pOXXPNN5xZrHgOfasRAdoQ0cvB8iqETCjxObkDvVI9vX1lwpaOBaGxci9imSTsW8t1un0aEMINeP7xw/s640/LSE.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Lesser Spotted Eagle </span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">In the forest itself, we heard a loud drumming, that turned out to be coming from a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">White-Backed Woodpecker</span></i>, which was eventually tracked down and seen well.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">We were also shown a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Middle-Spotted Woodpecker</span></i> at its nesting hole, and although it was high up in the tree, it did show quite well.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">But apart from a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Red-Breasted Flycatcher</span></i> and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Firecrest</span></i> heard, and good views of a Red Squirrel, there wasn't much else seen in the Strict Reserve, although the guide had extensive knowledge of of other aspects of nature, including wildflowers.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Out of the strict reserve, we made a stop to look for<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Grey-Headed Woodpecker</span></i> nearby at a nest hole. Almost as soon as we arrived, one bird came out of the hole, and another flew in to change places with it! We timed the visit perfectly for the changeover, and we got great views.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Later, we went for a walk around some more urban surroundings, where we started off walking down a grassy track. At least two <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Barred Warblers</span></i> were heard singing, but not seen. A distant white butterfly came closer to reveal that it was a Black-Veined White.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">We then sat by the river, to see if any birds would turn up, but a group of people decided to swim in there, so anything that would have been present would have been disturbed. All that was here were a<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Snipe</span></i> and an obliging Male<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Common Rosefinch</span></i>.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<span style="color: white;"><b>So we headed on, and it wasn't long before another Barred Warbler song</b><b>-flighted. However, this one decided it liked the look of a half-built house and then started to climb up and down on top of the wood! Definitely better views than the previous ones. </b></span><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<span style="color: white;"><b>We then walked around the town, where there were many flyover <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Hawfinches</span></i></b><b> and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">3 Serins</span></i>, including a male singing and showing well on the ground and on the wires.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5-7_2Gu2MCYZlQ4zWP1kjvrGzGCH3RNzmw5lW9YXiLnNhTETu1NN1zinhf56l87lehyphenhyphen8WeB9cr3NKjMSk9nk9aIxN-gf46DT1uH-CkrubBuoQxWEiUQBK6VHAcCisS26OW9nCYc0JtA/s1600/SERIn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5-7_2Gu2MCYZlQ4zWP1kjvrGzGCH3RNzmw5lW9YXiLnNhTETu1NN1zinhf56l87lehyphenhyphen8WeB9cr3NKjMSk9nk9aIxN-gf46DT1uH-CkrubBuoQxWEiUQBK6VHAcCisS26OW9nCYc0JtA/s640/SERIn.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Serin</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">There was no evening birding trip today, as we had an early start and a late finish tomorrow.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">The next day, we got up, ready to drive to areas around Siemianowka Reservoir. Our first stop was a working peat bog, where we were looking for Citrine Wagtail. As soon as we arrived, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Willow Warblers</span></i> sang, a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Little Ringed Plover</span></i> landed in the road, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Redshanks</span></i>, Snipe and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Black-tailed Godwit </span></i>flew around and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Lapwings</span></i> were numerous.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">However, when a car started driving straight towards us and stopped next to us it was clear things weren't going to last. We were told to leave the site because they were working, and we had no choice but to comply.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">So we headed straight to the fishponds instead, and a singing <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Woodlark </span></i>on a wire was seen during the journey.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<span style="color: white;"><b>At the fishponds, there were<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Great Reed</span></i>,<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Reed</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sedge</span></i> and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Garden Warblers </span></i>singing, and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Black Terns</span></i> </b><b>hawking over the water. There were a few <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">White-Tailed Eagles</span></i>, of all ages, including one carrying prey. Other birds included a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pied Flycatcher</span></i>, a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Great White Egret</span></i> flying through and a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Hoopoe</span></i>, also seen in flight. A female<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Goldeneye</span></i> was on one of the ponds, as were a few <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Caspian Gulls</span></i>. It was the first time I was able to identify them, helped by the fact that they were the only large gulls found in the area. It was interesting to see different plumages, mostly 1st summer or adult, and should hopefully help when I go up to the Thames to look for Gulls later in the year.</b></span><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">The last species we added was a butterfly - a Small Copper.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6r8CN9822o_6QMiBphlkPRyCazcGFMqoe8bUQQzZoLRCHcL0p8EvQgMboAopVo1iCZEqKZxiW229EupzxRWbZUVsjRkF33BvGmRVsSjmWmAW1udqftq6s1y5u3Udgz0FWAxSpp51dFw/s1600/Sooty+cop.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6r8CN9822o_6QMiBphlkPRyCazcGFMqoe8bUQQzZoLRCHcL0p8EvQgMboAopVo1iCZEqKZxiW229EupzxRWbZUVsjRkF33BvGmRVsSjmWmAW1udqftq6s1y5u3Udgz0FWAxSpp51dFw/s640/Sooty+cop.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: white;"><b>Small Copper</b></span></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">We then went to the shop before visiting the reservoir itself to pick up supplies, but a huge beer van parked beside us and played music at what sounded like maximum volume. We left swiftly after this to look for some waterbirds.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">We stopped briefly at a site near the river, where a flock of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Yellow Wagtails</span></i>, of the blue-headed race, showed amazingly well, coming within just a few metres.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">On the reservoir, there were<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Coots</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Black</span></i> and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Whiskered Tern</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bearded Tits</span></i> pinging and a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Marsh Harrier </span></i>taking Black Tern chicks. We then viewed it from a different angle, where not much was seen, but there was a showy<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Jay</span></i>, a flock of<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Linnets </span></i>and a calling <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Corncrake</span></i>.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">We then went looking for Ortolan Bunting, and I wasn't really sure what to expect considering I've been told how hard they have been to find this year. A Bison in a field during the journey to the Ortolan site showed even better than the ones earlier in the week, and was once again unconcerned by us watching it.</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCPNKr16bKSRA-mkIu_A5yJ0Oqq036l86FQwpG53WIVfK9yyxTbaJL2edEeiuLr5AyBq5j3eecfGdrgRZFpaxnuD4lYO7H3iI7oSIX2UjU0MONue9TGiWhqsi0L3zCEeuMaSs3-8nj4Q/s1600/P5290821.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCPNKr16bKSRA-mkIu_A5yJ0Oqq036l86FQwpG53WIVfK9yyxTbaJL2edEeiuLr5AyBq5j3eecfGdrgRZFpaxnuD4lYO7H3iI7oSIX2UjU0MONue9TGiWhqsi0L3zCEeuMaSs3-8nj4Q/s640/P5290821.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Bison</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">We slowly walked up a road with the windows open listening out for birdsong. I heard a strange Bunting like sound quite close, and had a suspicion that it could be an <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ortolan Bunting</span></i>. We pulled over at the side of the road and got out the car, to hear, very clearly that there was one singing!</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">The hard part though was trying to locate it. Very soon, however, we noticed it flying from one of the trees to the crop fields. There turned out to be a very convenient path through the field, so I walked up here while other people stayed near the tree it had come from. I could hear it calling nearby in the field, but it proved frustratingly difficult to find. I somehow managed to miss it fly out of the field, as my aunt and her friend, who were near the tree, signalled me over. I walked over there to be told that they had seen it sit out in full view in the tree, but it had flown back in to the field again. So, once again, I ran back up the path through the field, where the Bunting was still calling.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Just as I thought flight views would be the best I would get, it flew up again, travelled a short distance then landed on leafless branches of a close tree. It sat there while we got the scopes on it, and I had fantastic full-frame views of the bird in perfect light. Definitely one of the highlights of the trip!</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFXFpCKQ7NOBrJsZ_cSpZSoGOOUv8ybbtZLHFD-ZfWj7KLQS8bMsPhPeqmDh7Pj4xcDhDqg1HR2hjadO2okL9g7Th-3saYVSqTOBFgWkx6O7DrsOjSJtXUrCBAvWipTiw2rODBiHf-UQ/s1600/ORTO.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFXFpCKQ7NOBrJsZ_cSpZSoGOOUv8ybbtZLHFD-ZfWj7KLQS8bMsPhPeqmDh7Pj4xcDhDqg1HR2hjadO2okL9g7Th-3saYVSqTOBFgWkx6O7DrsOjSJtXUrCBAvWipTiw2rODBiHf-UQ/s640/ORTO.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Ortolan Bunting</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Another bird was seen during all the effort to see the Bunting, though. A Woodpecker flew from one of the trees, and landed nearby, giving brief flight views. I immediately assumed it was a Great-Spotted, but Neil said it looked a lot like a Syrian. I actually just thought he was being over-optimistic and he didn't seem 100% convinced either. However, when Neil called someone to thank them for information, he was told that there was a pair seen in the exact spot we saw them! Our sighting couldn't be definitely confirmed, though.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">We then drove back to Bialowieza, where we tried to find Citrine Wagtail because we had been unsuccessful in the morning, after being kicked off the site. We stayed for a while, seeing Yellow Wagtails, and just as we were about to leave, Neil noticed a male <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Citrine Wagtail</span></i> taking food to the nest, sitting up on a fence post! Another highlight of the day - it was lucky that we even managed to find one.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<span style="color: white;"><b>We headed out in the evening to try to see Great Snipe at their lek, but we </b><b>were unsuccessful. However, we managed to see <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Great Grey Shrike</span></i>, roding <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Woodcock</span></i>, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tawny Owl</span></i>, Red and Roe Deer, Polecat (which ran across the road) and we also heard many Corncrakes, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">River </span></i>and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Grasshopper Warblers</span></i>. So, although we didn't see the Snipe, we still got some great birds to finish off the day.</b></span>Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-83483746721709538202018-06-06T13:41:00.000-07:002018-06-07T09:27:00.966-07:00Poland days 1 - 2<b><span style="color: white;">Oriole Birding holiday to Poland - a trip for which I'd been waiting for a year and half - had finally arrived during the May half term. I was travelling with my aunt and my aunt's friend, and and we arrived at Stansted Airport on the Saturday to get ready for my flight to Warsaw Modlin Airport.</span></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Predictably, the flight was delayed, but we did eventually make it, to be welcomed by torrential rain and thunderstorms, which made me nervous about the weather for the rest of the week. We met up with Neil Donaghy, our guide for the week. We were a small group, as the main tour had run the previous week, but Neil had kindly offered to do another tour the following week, which was in my holiday. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">During the journey, while driving through the roadworks, Neil told us some information about the year in Poland and what we would be doing later in the day - the holiday had begun! </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">During the journey, we saw birds such as <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Kestrel</span></i>, and, once we got closer to the North East of Poland, <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">White storks</span></i>, which was actually a lifer for me. We arrived at the hotel we would be staying in at Bialowiez<span style="background-color: black;">a<span style="white-space: nowrap;"> </span><span style="white-space: nowrap;">for the week and had time to get used to the surroundings. </span></span></span></b><br />
<span style="color: white; white-space: nowrap;"><b style="background-color: black;">It was soon time to eat, and it wad the first time I had tried local Polish food, along with some more </b></span></div>
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<span style="color: white; white-space: nowrap;"><b style="background-color: black;">familiar meats.</b></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw4mUqK6a58XQly1w0CDM9in56CksmX-zJkBeI_PaPXetxf8jZUoQ1VtoZi69NDTUj2-PkSq47vZEzsC1c2_f1HJfM75Wcrm1ZvU_rOHv4I6ee11Ujdksb9GCZ-TEkhG8QbtV2VbpQWg/s1600/WHITE+STORK.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw4mUqK6a58XQly1w0CDM9in56CksmX-zJkBeI_PaPXetxf8jZUoQ1VtoZi69NDTUj2-PkSq47vZEzsC1c2_f1HJfM75Wcrm1ZvU_rOHv4I6ee11Ujdksb9GCZ-TEkhG8QbtV2VbpQWg/s640/WHITE+STORK.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">White Stork</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">After we ate, we headed out to do the first bit of birding! First, we stopped to look for <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pygmy Owl</span></i>; we didn't have to wait long before our local guide noticed that there was one sitting out in full view. I looked through the scope to see a full frame view of one of these amazing birds! This then immediately became my best bird of the year. Great start to the tour. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: white;">We then had time for a brief stop to look around some local meadows. Nothing but a<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Meadow Pipit</span></i> was seen at first, but as we were driving out the area, our local guide noticed two Bison in one of the fields! We got out of the car to get amazing views of these animals as they walked around, unconcerned by our presence. A <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tree Pipit </span></i>was also singing from the nearby forest, but remained unseen. We then headed back, watching <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Hawfinches</span></i> fly up from the roads, and arrived at the hotel after a great first day,</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmBuBMeM2_lHK6lhR4XCesfkwP1mKdmw-4fEET0Jvq1qFKLOO_9B3hRkI5ON7xFNSRnn6Tw8EcM2fBF1BtkHX8cVH8rN2gfxpB_ZHr5o4-DJMR8tqmttRtPx2L_8FX923ic5XPQhLbpQ/s1600/BISON.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmBuBMeM2_lHK6lhR4XCesfkwP1mKdmw-4fEET0Jvq1qFKLOO_9B3hRkI5ON7xFNSRnn6Tw8EcM2fBF1BtkHX8cVH8rN2gfxpB_ZHr5o4-DJMR8tqmttRtPx2L_8FX923ic5XPQhLbpQ/s640/BISON.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Bison</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">Day 2 began early, with a pre-breakfast walk around the good birding areas of the town of Bialowieza. Walking down the road, a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Common Rosefinch </span></i>sang from a nearby tree. I looked up to find an adult male above my head. There was also singing <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Garden Warblers </span></i>and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Blackcaps</span></i>, and <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Spotted Flycatchers</span></i>, which often sat out on prominent perches. Great Reed Warblers sang distantly from the nearby Reedbed, but didn't show themselves, so we headed to a different area of the village.</span></b><br />
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<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Almost immediately, Neil heard the song of a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Greenish Warbler</span></i>, and, after a short wait, it was perched right above our heads! We had good views of the bird, although it remained quite high up most of the time, but all the details could be seen. While we were watching the Warbler, a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Wryneck</span></i> called distantly, as well as the constant call of <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cuckoos</span></i>, and we saw two <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Great Reed Warblers</span></i> chasing each other around.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Further up the path, Neil noticed the song of a<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Pied Flycatcher</span></i> in the nearby areas of trees, and it wasn't long before the Flycatcher showed itself. It was a young male, and was very interested in a hole in the tree which it could have been considering using as a nest in the future. A <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Black Woodpecker</span></i> gave its strange flight call while we were watching the Flycatcher, and many Hawfinches flew over.</span></b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZsTj7x6QHevSdXYk2MZUV0EK2-Um9vqrKZ_fx0biv2pckISul6LGkTPdk8tO3xdfSVPGuQzYiVTuMvWyWB43zC9161jwfAN19i7D3uhb5DQoyODYuwS7zj2KEqlxMtQVFFlDnkya1lw/s1600/PIEDFLY.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZsTj7x6QHevSdXYk2MZUV0EK2-Um9vqrKZ_fx0biv2pckISul6LGkTPdk8tO3xdfSVPGuQzYiVTuMvWyWB43zC9161jwfAN19i7D3uhb5DQoyODYuwS7zj2KEqlxMtQVFFlDnkya1lw/s640/PIEDFLY.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Pied Flycatcher</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">On the way back, a large warbler flew across the path and landed in a nearby tree. After a few seconds it became clear that it was an<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Icterine Warbler</span></i>. A great bird to end the morning walk (and compensation for the one I missed at Spurn)!</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">We then headed to a woodland, where, as soon as I stepped out the car, I heard a distant<i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Red-Breasted Flycatcher </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">singing</span><i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">.</i></span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Walking up the path, a Woodpecker called, which I immediately thought was a Great Spotted. However, I had been warned that some species can sound the same, so we tried hard to track down the bird. Eventually, it was found, giving good views, and showing that it was actually a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">White-Backed Woodpecker</span></i>! It was calling constantly and flying across the path, perching in open areas where we got great views of it.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">Next was an area of dead forest, where there were no Woodpeckers, but other birds included a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sedge Warbler</span></i> singing from a high tree and a Male Common Rosefinch showing very well, plus the constant call of Marsh Frogs. A pair of Flycatchers flew around the tops of the trees, and they were quickly identified as <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Collared Flycatchers</span></i>, with the male showing well.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">A large butterfly was seen near the car, which was difficult to obtain good views of at first, but eventually landed by my feet - a Poplar Admiral.</span></b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJi51hhXx2Vaufr3IwjX0KpZpqL__5SLaNS1mIwonKwYZIbvJpWjrQ80RgUAc-CPcc7eQxeWla2sS8_SVHlMCWVTJw9cIyBpI8KB8rEGChPgnh8_QpxgzitfIYggGixeN6-xE-JTx5tA/s1600/POPAD.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJi51hhXx2Vaufr3IwjX0KpZpqL__5SLaNS1mIwonKwYZIbvJpWjrQ80RgUAc-CPcc7eQxeWla2sS8_SVHlMCWVTJw9cIyBpI8KB8rEGChPgnh8_QpxgzitfIYggGixeN6-xE-JTx5tA/s640/POPAD.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Poplar Admiral</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">The next stop was to look for Red-Breasted Flycatchers, and we didn't have to wait long before a male was sat out in the open at close range, often singing. This individual also had a red throat, which some lack, so it made the bird even more interesting.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">We then headed to another woodland site, where there was a very smart male<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Black Redstart </span></i>on the top of one of the village buildings. Young <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Great Spotted Woodpeckers</span></i> called from the forest, as well as Cuckoos, which turned out to be almost everywhere. Two Large Coppers flew around the long grass that was next to the houses.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">We then headed along a forest track, where our target was Three-Toed Woodpecker. After a short wait, broken by good views of Wood Warbler, a female <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Three-Toed Woodpecker</span></i> flew in and perched right in front of us. We saw it amazingly well, with no vegetation to obscure views, and I was satisfied as this was the Woodpecker I most wanted to see.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">On the way back, we saw a very faded Green Hairstreak butterfly, which hardly had any green on it, and I had no idea what species it was at first.</span></b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzBGPyS3X3Rv4WEUWZ8Kg_IKnqDHd29Polzopqkv2hxM475eZjAATd0J4SHZla4cj0N0HMLdVFOYVBluF_GtjVTEwEfQq5XwIwIkOZ6gKqU0C8hny2WO6B0S0m4yOt0LjL75yy-rwypQ/s1600/GH.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzBGPyS3X3Rv4WEUWZ8Kg_IKnqDHd29Polzopqkv2hxM475eZjAATd0J4SHZla4cj0N0HMLdVFOYVBluF_GtjVTEwEfQq5XwIwIkOZ6gKqU0C8hny2WO6B0S0m4yOt0LjL75yy-rwypQ/s640/GH.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Amazingly faded Green Hairstreak</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">An interesting butterfly was seen flying around the grassland outside the forest while we were having lunch. At first I though it was a Heath Fritillary, but some things didn't seem quite right.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;">- It looked about the size of the Duke Of Burgundy I had seen two weeks previously.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;">- It was dark and the orange was one-coloured.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="color: white;">The butterfly didn't sit still for long and almost never opened its wings, as well as disappearing for periods of time. I got a couple of poor quality photos, and turned to the Collins Butterfly Guide, but couldn't find anything. Neil suggested Assmann's Fritillary, which I had never even heard of, and looking in the book I could see the similarities with the butterfly I had seen. We left the butterfly as unidentified however.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">But, later in the week, the same butterfly was seen again. I took some photographs of the underside, as it didn't show its upper side, but the pictures turned out to be poor quality. However, helped with the second sighting, we (mostly Neil) confirmed it as an Assmann's Fritillary!</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
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<b><span style="color: white;">A strange call also alerted us to a<i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Middle-Spotted Woodpecker</span></i>, high up in a nearby tree. </span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNWrJ0S8wG2R_lSkki9H-Ln2cC89VeDhjiXl0f0He5hgJ5WInJhnLmvxsM-hAnW5Tfj0tqnZnv3AR2ptFEFVZKqcA2qiFbt9ane3OWQ6HH8GmOcjpIYYol4lWMPa6t-0bYTxPyNTSjfw/s1600/ASSMANN%2527S+FRIT.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNWrJ0S8wG2R_lSkki9H-Ln2cC89VeDhjiXl0f0He5hgJ5WInJhnLmvxsM-hAnW5Tfj0tqnZnv3AR2ptFEFVZKqcA2qiFbt9ane3OWQ6HH8GmOcjpIYYol4lWMPa6t-0bYTxPyNTSjfw/s640/ASSMANN%2527S+FRIT.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Assmann's Fritillary</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">The next site we visited was good for butterflies, and these were our main targets here. The area was soon filled with Small Pearl-Bordered Fritillaries. Large Skippers were seen, and it didn't take long before Neil identified a Wood Brown. Map butterflies were everywhere, but were interesting to watch.</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRC4w9zHgNqyVFTyb4YDt3P9-JYeR22V-xHAmidSD1VQwdSEKaVkfd9JCcGaIBm6zHHQQbi1KydejejYaFFnVdj2T5P4QpouEJ31pvd8KF7F6EZmwAQ8lkSFMhm1IDZ2FcU1OGzIlvqg/s1600/MAP.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRC4w9zHgNqyVFTyb4YDt3P9-JYeR22V-xHAmidSD1VQwdSEKaVkfd9JCcGaIBm6zHHQQbi1KydejejYaFFnVdj2T5P4QpouEJ31pvd8KF7F6EZmwAQ8lkSFMhm1IDZ2FcU1OGzIlvqg/s640/MAP.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Map</span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn1vxxzR0WnT524_9seWe63MJ5jHkmfzhyd2kHzeV_6ALXLH2yTHVXmBnKKEmCr7xQUhoysFf5_3RXuKtAlmwstUXWgIC19IaRTMi56ECYiCYycYZF1S-2_D1OBJ77gc3iIe0HnSqUgQ/s1600/SPBF.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn1vxxzR0WnT524_9seWe63MJ5jHkmfzhyd2kHzeV_6ALXLH2yTHVXmBnKKEmCr7xQUhoysFf5_3RXuKtAlmwstUXWgIC19IaRTMi56ECYiCYycYZF1S-2_D1OBJ77gc3iIe0HnSqUgQ/s640/SPBF.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Small Pearl-Bordered Fritillary</span></b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="color: white;">Further up, a Wood White landed in the middle of the track, and displayed how different it was from all the other Whites I had seen (Green-Veined was the most common during my time in Poland).</span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPBw46MeKlC0iPYSqYXXPoSNZwP_ym1Ay_gT18FqaioqgpUqNjpiePQ7GionpunSssTQ801W82ki5-RTxrI0I_9FzORVDls8yQZ6jFy-OjtWEtfwZVw6C6voTuWeRUrG52OAXvzIOm1g/s1600/WOODW.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPBw46MeKlC0iPYSqYXXPoSNZwP_ym1Ay_gT18FqaioqgpUqNjpiePQ7GionpunSssTQ801W82ki5-RTxrI0I_9FzORVDls8yQZ6jFy-OjtWEtfwZVw6C6voTuWeRUrG52OAXvzIOm1g/s640/WOODW.JPG" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Wood White</span></b></td></tr>
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<span style="color: white;"><b>We turned back and headed down another path, where the pine trees held </b><i style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Coal Tit</span></i><b>, and, with a bit of looking, a nice </b><i><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Crested Tit</span></b></i><b> as well. Garden Warblers and Cuckoos sang, and another Poplar Admiral revealed itself. It was now time to head back to the hotel to eat, but we had time for a short walk around the village, which my aunt and her friend didn't join.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">The heat of the day clearly encouraged birds to stay quiet and unobtrusive, so there wasn't much around, until a Cuckoo flew by, a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Golden Oriole </span></i>sang, and, best of all, a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Barred Warbler</span></i> song-flighted, though I only saw it briefly.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">So, after eating, we headed out for another walk, this time a bit further away. We were greeted by a<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> River Warbler</span></i> singing loudly from the nearest bush, but it was buried deep in it and remained invisible.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: white;">We watched from a bridge, looking down in to a reed bed, where one of the targets, a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Marsh</span></i> <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Warbler</span></i>, was found quite soon, singing its strange song from the reeds, and looking a lot like a Reed Warbler, although Neil pointed out differences such as wing length. While we were watching this, a <i style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Thrush Nightingale </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">sang</span>, although, as always, it didn't show.</span></b></span></div>
Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-164079686690230125.post-3897360625586679772018-05-20T07:38:00.003-07:002018-05-20T07:39:41.706-07:00Norfolk/Suffolk Part 3 <b><span style="color: white;">It was the third day of bank holiday birding in Norfolk, and today it was the plan to head down to Suffolk to go to Westleton and Minsmere. </span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The day was extremely hot and cloudless, and remained that way all day. We parked at Westleton and began to walk through the extensive heath. Almost as soon as I stepped out the car I could hear the distant and constant song of a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Woodlark</span></i>. Walking towards the sound, I noticed a small bird fly from a bit of heather, then land out in the open - a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dartford Warbler</span></i>, a lifer, but one I'm surprised I hadn't seen already, considering I have visited heathland habitat numerous times in the past. The day was already going well as I searched for my next targets.</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSyMz-ibhXAYmBLvdRizagogO7kFzqPBqYX2n-GLsyxYHwgH64g25qE6NFdC29z7hGG4eeHa1IUywzcdCq4lcf0II-dG_FGyAlgWJKBMYwItmBxqAxHpLbTnvGD70wMSJdxO0nCN8g9A/s1600/DARTFORD+WARBLER.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><b><span style="color: white;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSyMz-ibhXAYmBLvdRizagogO7kFzqPBqYX2n-GLsyxYHwgH64g25qE6NFdC29z7hGG4eeHa1IUywzcdCq4lcf0II-dG_FGyAlgWJKBMYwItmBxqAxHpLbTnvGD70wMSJdxO0nCN8g9A/s640/DARTFORD+WARBLER.jpg" width="640" /></span></b></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: white;">Record shot...but at least it can be identified as a Dartford Warbler</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: white;">I was accompanied by the song of at least one Woodlark all the time as I walked through the many tracks, but never managed to locate the bird. There were many <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Stonechats</span></i> perching on the tops of bushes, carrying food.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Just as I approached an area with many trees and dense bushes, I heard the distant, but unmistakable, song of a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Nightingale</span></i>! As I approached the area where the song came from, it became apparent that there were three singing. The next half hour was filled pacing and waiting for one to fly in to view, and eventually, I got a very brief view of one sitting in the bush before it dropped back down in to the dense undergrowth - 2nd lifer of the day. The Nightingale was also accompanied by a singing Garden Warbler, a bird that was new for me last year but one I have seen and heard 5 of this year, and during the weekend I had heard 3.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>The rest of the time spent at the heath wasn't as productive as the start, with no new birds seen. I tried every corner of the heath but couldn't find a Turtle Dove. I then managed to get lost, but this led me to seeing a Common Lizard. </b></span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><b><br /></b>
<b>Eventually making it back to the car, we headed down to Minsmere, where we didn't have much time but I was hoping to try for Savi's Warbler. However, after spending an hour in the hide I realised that a warm, cloudless bank holiday at a popular reserve meant it was very busy inside the hide with the door constantly opening and closing, so the chances of hearing a distant Savi's Warbler were pretty slim. The hide did have a couple of</b><i style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Common Terns</span></i><b>, a </b><i style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Great Crested Grebe</span></i><b> and a lot of </b><i style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Reed</span></i><b> and </b><i style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sedge Warbler</span></i><b> though. So after one disappointing search of the wader scrape and a <i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bittern</span></i> briefly landing out in the open, I headed home after a successful weekend.</b></span>Alex Liddlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08817291717902570198noreply@blogger.com0