30/11/2016 Desert Wheatear Normans Bay, nr Bexhill, East Sussex

Wednesday 30 November 2016
Normans Bay, East Sussex


I responded to a message on my pager and headed down to the south coast to twitch the desert wheatear.  This vagrant, first spotted here on Cooden Beach on Monday, gave a superb display in the bright morning light - much to the delight of the assembled photographers!

Desert Wheatear
Courtesy of Alastair Gray

• The desert wheatear occurs across North Africa, through the Middle East and Arabian Peninsula, and into Asia, as far east as China. 

• It is also sometimes recorded outside of its normal range, in parts of Europe. 

• This species is migratory, with populations generally moving southwards in winter.

Addition to BUBO 2016 UK Bird List:
desert wheatear   (258) 

             A most enjoyable twitch!

28/11/2016 Rose-coloured Starling in Crawley.

Monday 28 November 2016

Crawley, West Sussex

• I twitched the juvenile rose-coloured starling in Crawley in the early afternoon.  The bird was sitting in a bare tree in a garden on a housing estate in Beachy Road.  It was an oh-so easy twitch - a stationary bird, showing well from less than 10 metres away.

This represents a "lifer" for me - my 15th of the year.

Rose-coloured Starling
courtesy of Alastair Gray

Rose-coloured Starling
courtesy of Alastair Gray

This rather bedraggled juvenile will eventually blossom into a lovely adult like the one's shown below.

• The breeding range of this bird is from easternmost Europe across temperate southern Asia. 

• It is a strong migrant, and winters in India and tropical Asia. In India in winter, it often appears to outnumber the local starlings and mynas. 

• In years when grasshoppers and other insects are abundant, it will erupt well beyond its core range, with significant numbers reaching France and the United Kingdom. 

Addition to BUBO 2016 UK Bird List

rose-coloured starling   (257)

Addition to BUBO UK Life List

rose-coloured starling   (323)

24/11/2016 Birding in West Sussex

Paul and group  (8)

Kingley Vale NR near West Stoke in West Sussex  a.m.

Famous for it's Yew trees this was a first visit for me to this site.  After climbing to the top of the hill we enjoyed spectacular views over Chichester Harbour.

• Bird species of the morning was yellowhammer with 10 seen soon after we left the car park.

• fieldfare and redwing were there - but not in great numbers.

• Raptors seen included buzzard and sparrowhawk but, surprisingly there were no red kites.

• I saw my first green woodpecker for some time.

• Over 250 stock doves were seen in one stubble field at the end of our visit

A pleasant walk. 

West Dean Woods   p.m.

• What a difference a few miles makes.  Just 15 minutes away by car and we immediately had 3-4 red kite sightings over West Dean Woods.

• After a patient wait we finally got to see our target bird, the hawfinch.  We enjoyed cracking views of 1 of the 2 on show at the top of the bare tree.

• There was no sign of the little owl as we visited it's usual haunt.

Some skilled birding by Paul ensured we all saw the beautiful hawfinches.

23/11/2016 Rye Harbour NR

Wednesday 23 November 2016
Rye Harbour NR, East Sussex

Missed out on the scaup today at Rye Harbour NR.   I was sure that I was looking at one in the scope, only to discover it was a female tufted duck with a large amount of white at the base of the bill.  I need to get smarter and nail this ID next time.

• No problem with the stunning drake pintail with an accompanying female, seen from Denny Hide.

• Or the black-necked grebe seen from the Ternery Pool.

• I don't think I have ever seen so many little grebes in one place.

• Grey plovers, golden plovers, dunlin and a snipe were the pick of the rest.

Missed the target bird but still had a smashing time in superb weather conditions.  33 species seen!

Miscellaneous

West Rise Marshes   Monday 14/11/2016
No sign of the long-tailed duck this afternoon but plenty of other ducks; wigeon, tufted duck, shoveler and gadwall.  

Weir Wood Reservoir  Tuesday 15/11/2016
A couple of kingfishers, 9 snipe and a couple of drake mandarin ducks were the highlights of our breaks from working today - bonfire and snake survey recce for 2017.

West Rise Marsh  Thursday 17/11/2016
Missed the long-tailed duck again but saw a lovely slavonian grebe.


Paul contacted me on Friday to say the long-tailed duck was still there but I couldn't get to see it because of family arriving for the wedding in the evening.

West Rise Marsh   Monday 21/11/2016
After everyone had departed after the wedding weekend I got my chance to follow up Paul's guidance and was rewarded with some excellent views of the long-tailed duck.  The slavonian grebe was also still there and looked majestic, despite the rain and wind.

Addition to BUBO 2016 UK Bird List
Long-tailed duck   (256)

Third time lucky - thanks Paul!

13/11/2016 Glorious Sheppey

Sunday 13 November 2016
Isle of Sheppey

5 of us from the East Grinstead RSPB Local Group travelled to the Isle of Sheppey.  The scheduled trip from yesterday was cancelled because of the poor weather conditions.  No such worries today with bright, clear skies.  We were rewarded with a lovely day's birding.

Shellness

• As we walked from the sea wall car park down to Shellness we saw our only hen harrier of the day, a ringtail flying low over the fields towards Leysdown.  We watched, in admiration, as the bird foraged on it's way.  This was my first hen harrier sighting of the autumn.  Other, more fortunate birders had also seen a male bird flying over the marshes at Shellness but it had gone to ground before we got there.

• As it was high tide just after we arrived, we decided to go past the concrete shelter to look for waders.  We got spectacular views of thousands of knot and oystercatchers huddled together on the shingle spit.  Of course the usual suspects were there in good numbers.  We had no luck with snow buntings or shore lark - hardly surprising with the large number of birders present today.

• A peregrine disrupted the calm these waders were enjoying and they were all up and away in a spectacular display before settling down again in the same place.

Capel Fleet 

• There were many marsh harriers here, many more than we had seen at Shellness.
• We searched in vain for the common crane that earlier birders had seen.  However our luck changed when we were advised to view from the hillside looking over the channel to the north.  Bingo - the crane was to the left of a derelict hut and, when the sun went behind the clouds, afforded some good but distant views.  We even saw it flying as it went to roost.
• Not long afterwards we got our first, of many, views of the short-eared owl in the hamlet to the north east of us.
• As we were driving away from Capel Fleet we were alerted to a close barn owl sitting on a post and looking immaculate in the evening light.  

A cracking trip with some exceptional birds, a species count well over 50 and some very good company. 

12/11/2016 Twitching Ducks

12 November 2016
With rain forecast for most of the day it had to be a day with the ducks.  I was already contemplating going to see the ferruginous duck in Hertfordshire when news came through of a pair of juvenile velvet scoters  in nearby Buckinghamshire.  That clinched it - I was off on my travels, twitching ducks.

Buckinghamshire

• I decided to start by going as far north as I could where the weather was better.  At Willen Lake, near Milton Keynes, the 2 velvet scoters were present with one close by and the other distant.  This had to be the nearest I have ever been to this species - normally I would see them off the coast.

• Also present was a superb drake goldeneye, looking majestic in the water.

• A drake red-crested pochard and an accompanying female were a welcome surprise and added colour to a dull day.

I arrived at 12.30 and was done by 13.15 - a really good start.

Now it was off to Tring in Hertfordshire, a short drive south west, of just over 20 miles, to look for the drake ferruginous duck. This bird has been around for some time now.

Hertfordshire

• At Wilstone Reservoir I had a huge area to search and after half an hour I was getting nowhere,  Thankfully a local birder turned up but was looking at an area a long way from me.  I made my way over to him and after a while he found the aforesaid duck.  It was about 50 metres away with some gulls and a few wigeon.  The lighting was poor so the views were not brilliant.

Very pleasing outcome - thanks mainly to my local birder.

Additions to BUBO UK 2016 Year List:

Velvet scoter   (254)

Ferruginous duck   (255)

Good birding today despite the awful weather.

10/11/2016 Ring-necked Duck and Snow Buntings in Kent

Thursday 10 November 2016
Kent

• I spent the early afternoon at Dungeness watching the ring-necked duck in the pond by Boulderwell Farm.  This North American "vagrant" was showing really well with the coots.  In really good lighting, the views were absolutely superb.
• I bumped into Plodding Birder who advised against going onto the reserve and guided me to looking for the snow buntings at St Michael's beach - some 7-8 miles further east.  This was a new site for me and the search area was massive.  However, after reading the RBA text carefully I and a couple of other birders managed to locate and enjoy watching the 5 birds seen by others earlier in the day.  In good lighting and at short distance the views were spectacular.  After some time they flew a few metres further west before landing again. 

A good couple of hours birding and 2 excellent sightings.

Addition to BUBO 2016 UK Bird List:
Ring-necked duck   (253)

08/11/2016 Weir Wood Day

Tuesday 8 November 2016
Weir Wood Reservoir

Another day doing conservation work at the reservoir, this time cutting back the hedges to improve the views people see from the 2 lay-by's between the car park and Willet's Bridge.  Water levels are dropping nicely, increasing the chances of attracting waders to the muddy surrounds.

• Before starting work we saw a marauding sparrowhawk.  
• On the water we saw a couple of drake mandarins, a couple of snipe and a lovely kingfisher along with the usual suspects.
• During our lunch break we saw a couple of treecreepers in the trees next to the feeders. On the feeders a nuthatch kept coming and going and a great-spotted woodpecker appeared after a while.
• Shaun and Richard, making a new owl box in the car park, heard a coal tit and a bullfinch.

A lovely crisp day with lots achieved and at least 27 bird species seen.

06/11/2016 Last day in Norfolk - in search of Twite

Sunday 6 November

The weather forecast for today was even worse so, after yesterday's drenching on the long exposed walk to and from the sand dunes at Burnham Overy, we decided to stay close to the van.  

Thornham and then Holme                     a.m.

• It wasn't long before we got our target species - twite.  There was a roaming flock of about 20 at Thornham.  They eventually went to ground enabling us to get good scope views.  What an attractive little bird this is when seen close up - well worth the effort needed to go out and find them.  Thankfully the adverse weather hadn't reached us yet and the lighting was remarkably good.
• We saw our only kingfisher, on the stream by the car park, just after we arrived.
• Bar-tailed and black-tailed godwits were also seen - side by side enabling us to appreciate the ID differences

We then drove round to Holme to visit the observatory and do some seawatching.

• Waxwing numbers were well down,with only 3-4 seen today on the approach to the car park.
• We managed 30-40 minutes seawatching from the dunes before the bad weather closed in on us.  Lots of common scoter and gannets were seen as well as a couple of "bonxies" and a red-throated diver.  Alas no little auks were seen - even though they had been spotted earlier by other birders.  Surprisingly there was an arctic tern still around.

Titchwell            p.m.

With the poor weather well and truly with us we headed off to the safe confines of Titchell for some hot food and then the luxury of the Parrinder Hide.

• At least 6 ruff were showing well but the star bird for me was the water rail which showed well as it appeared from the reeds into the newly cultivated area in front of the hide.   

By 3.30 p.m. we headed back to Hunstanton and after making my goodbyes to Charlie, Karen, Paul, Don, Vivien and, of course, our leader Chris, I left for home on 4 p.m. arriving just after 7.30 p.m.




I can't finish without mentioning the superb accommodation at The Bays guesthouse in Hunstanton where the breakfasts were awesome, the room immaculate and the hosts Anna and Jane so friendly.  Without question I will go back there again.




 A cracking trip with several truly memorable birding experiences.  

• The term "visible migration" springs to mind when reflecting on the winter thrush encounter at Snettisham.
• Hopefully the waxwing influx will turn into a full-scale "irruption" this winter.
• The 68 record total for shore larks was beaten next day when over 90 were seen at the same place, a remarkable event.
• As always, it's nice to see snow buntings but 6 was rather special.

Addition to BUBO 2016 UK List:
Twite   (252)

05/11/2016 Shorelarks and Isabelline Wheatear

Saturday 5 November 2016
Norfolk

Our second day was, unfortunately, curtailed by the awful weather.  It was wet, windy and cold for much of the day.  Nevertheless we still managed to enjoy some super birding.

Holkham a.m.

• If you remember we drew a blank yesterday at Holme in our search for shorelarks.  Today we hit the jackpot at Holkham where we counted at least 68 of the beauties.  They were foraging in the vegetation near to the paths.  The views were outstanding.  We even had time to watch them in flight.  This is the largest total recorded in Norfolk for over 40 years - amazing.
• Only 10 waxwings today - on the A149 outside of Thornham as we drove to Holkham!

What a great way to spend a couple of hours on a dull morning!

Burnham Overy  p.m.

• After lunch we braced ourselves for the long walk out to the sand dunes, in deteriorating weather, to look for the long-staying Isabelline Wheatear.  Returning birders told us the bird was showing well but just as we arrived it flew off towards the sea.  After some smart birding involving up to 20 of us we found it again and finally got some excellent views, between the heavy downpours.  It was at some cost in terms of comfort and patience but it was well worth it.  
• We managed to finish the day at Titchwell where we watched 20+ marsh harriers come to roost.

 Another "lifer"

Addition to BUBO UK 2016 Bird List:
Isabelline wheatear   (251)

Addition to BUBO Life List:
Isabelline wheatear   (322)

04/11/2016 Winter Thrushes at Snettisham. Waxwings and Snow Buntings at Holme

Friday 4 November 2016

Joined up with leader Chris Mills and 5 other birders for a 3 day tour of north Norfolk.

Snettisham a.m.

An early start took us the short distance  from Hunstanton to Snettisham.  We were targeting winter thrush movement.

• .Boy did we meet our target.  Fieldfare and redwing were moving in their thousands along the coast.  This spectacle reminded me of the movement of hirundines on the Sussex Coast at migration time - there were birds everywhere you looked.  Bird heaven!

• We had good views of a couple of waxwings in the bushes nearby and several distant views of flocks of them on the move with the largest flock reaching 40+ birds

• On the sea, as well as the usual suspects, there were huge numbers the signature birds knot and bar-tailed godwits.

• On the pits we soon found the 2 black-necked grebes that we had targeted.  A male and female goldeneye were very welcome surprises.  Our luck was still in when we came across 2 drake goosanders.

A wonderful morning in a rich birding habitat.

Holme p.m.

Shorelark was our target bird when we moved to Holme for the afternoon session.

• The plan was interrupted by waxwings!  Just like at Titchwell yesterday we were about to arrive at our destination when we had to stop to take in another huge influx of these lovely birds. We ventured into the caravan park initially to look at 6-8 of them but soon after they were joined by loads of others and finally we counted 64 waxwings.  Incredibly this was just over half of the total present at this time.  The views were exceptional - just like yesterday.  We even had lunch on the village green with waxwings flying around us  Strangely they were not seeking out the berry laden trees, preferring to behave flycatcher like and fly just a few feet to catch flies before returning to their staring point.  Click on the link to Chris Mills' video to get some idea of our experience.

https://www.facebook.com/norfolk.birding/videos/10154628774141684/

• On the beach our search for shorelarks proved fruitless .......... ...... but it was not in vain as we came across 6 super snow buntings walking slowly east.  We followed them for a good while before they eventually flew away.

• As the light began to fade we saw several birds from Gore Point - most notably a barn owl foraging across the fields in the distance.

Another successful experience and my 250th bird of the year - target reached and nearly 2 months still to go!

Addition to BUBO 2016 UK Bird List:
Snow Bunting   (250)

03/11/2016 36 Waxwings in a One Tree!

Thursday 3 November 2016
Titchwell, Norfolk

• I really got my year list back on track with a bang today at Titchwell.  As I turned off the A149 into the reserve, around 1.30 pm, I had to stop the car and join 10-15 birders who were blocking the road.  The interest was in the huge flock of 70+ waxwings that had just arrived.  When I got my bins out I saw 36 of the beauties in a single tree - shades of Lewes a couple of years ago.  I was so close - the views were awesome.  Unlike Lewes the birds did not hang around for long and when I returned after finally parking my car they had moved around the site.  What an unbelievable stroke of good luck

•   The rest of the afternoon was a bit of an anticlimax but it ended, as it started, with a really good sighting - this time a lovely barn owl flying over the fields to the west of the visitors centre.

• the strangest sighting of the day was of a purple sandpiper, seen from Parrinder Hide, feeding on the fresh marsh   Not a rock or boulder to be seen - far from the habitat I have always seen them in before.

purple sandpiper
courtesy of RSPB Titchwell

• Teal and black-tailed godwits dominated the fresh marsh area where the numbers were in the hundreds. There was a small number of avocets, lots of dunlin and redshank and a good showing of black-headed gulls, lesser black-backed gulls and herring gulls.

• On the sea common scoters were abundant.  Red-breasted mergansers (x6) were also present.

BUBO UK 2016 Year List:
Waxwing   (249)

Over 40 species seen in a couple of hours on a cold, dry autumnal afternoon - not a bad start to my belated trip up to Norfolk.  The waxwings have already guaranteed that it will be a memorable occasion!