Ventnor, Isle of Wight
At the 12th day of asking I finally ventured down to Wheelers Bay, Ventnor on the Isle of Wight to twitch the Great Spotted Cuckoo. The weather was absolutely perfect with sunny conditions and only a slight breeze.
- The cuckoo was showing well on the cliffs when I got there. It was moving around the vegetation - foraging. This continued for 15 minutes or so, much to the delight of the 4 or 5 birders present. It then flew downhill and disappeared behind a large bush.
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| courtesy of Neil Hilton and Twitter |
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| courtesy of Neil Hilton and Twitter |
- Not long after it reappeared and we had a repeat of the situation described above. All the time the photographers were having a whale of a time getting their pictures. The bird even obliged by putting up its crest from time to time.
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| courtesy of Sally Philips |
- Finally we got a number of cracking flight views as the bird moved to and fro along the cliffs. All in all, I reckon we had nearly 90 minutes of quality viewing before the bird flew round the corner and out of sight.
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| courtesy of Old_Caley and Twitter |
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| courtesy of Old_Caley and Twitter |
This was another "lifer" for me - only my second in 2019, the other being the Hume's Warbler in Sussex.
A superb day - well worth the time and expense!
The following is from the local newspaper OnTheWight
Rare sightings of Great Spotted Cuckoo in Ventnor
Usually resident in African countries and the Mediterranean, the Great Spotted Cuckoo has been seen in Ventnor.
Bird watchers – aka twitchers – have been flocking to Ventnor this week to catch a glance of the Great Spotted Cuckoo.
Anyone walking between Ventnor and Bonchurch today (Friday) along the revetment will have witnessed bird lovers gathering to take photos or just see in person the rare sighting.
The Great Spotted Cuckoo is widely spread throughout Africa and the Mediterranean Basin. It feeds on insects, spiders, small reptiles and hairy caterpillars, so will do well in Ventnor.
Our thanks to OnTheWight reader, Sally Phillips, for the heads up and photo.
Image: © Sally Phillips
Image: Michele Lamberti under CC BY 2.0
Anyone walking between Ventnor and Bonchurch today (Friday) along the revetment will have witnessed bird lovers gathering to take photos or just see in person the rare sighting.
The Great Spotted Cuckoo is widely spread throughout Africa and the Mediterranean Basin. It feeds on insects, spiders, small reptiles and hairy caterpillars, so will do well in Ventnor.
Our thanks to OnTheWight reader, Sally Phillips, for the heads up and photo.
Image: © Sally Phillips
Image: Michele Lamberti under CC BY 2.0
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