There was no escape from the gank weather in Cornwall, but at least as we stood in the vast, shit-strewn field behind the shop at Sennen, we had an intimate encounter with the heavily moulting, hotly debated
PADDYFIELD PIPIT. Surprising flyovers while on site included a
Ruff and a
Swallow, while a couple of
Redwings flew through, a
Raven was feeding and the fields were scattered with
Skylarks and
Meadow Pipits.
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| 2cy+ Paddyfield Pipit at Sennen |
An hour-and-a-half of seawatching at Pendeen was filled with auks, mainly
Guillemots, probably in their thousands, but with a decent number of
Razorbills thrown in. A
Long-tailed Duck, a
Bonxie, three
Red-throated Divers, eight
Mediterranean Gulls and the occasional
Common Scoter kept interest up but we had to move on shortly after midday.
Helston Boating Lake was twitched for the adult drake
LESSER SCAUP, which showed quite well, but we found the juvenile female mooted Lesser Scaup more intriguing. It looked alluringly like the real deal but the contrasting dark mantle was offputting. Frustratingly, it wouldn't reveal its wings in the field but someone dealt the killer blow on Twitter in the evening with an open wing shot, revealing far too much white in the wing bar in the primaries. Also present were 15
Shovelers and a
Grey Wagtail.
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| adult drake Lesser Scaup at Helston Boating Lake |
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| 1cy female Lesser Scaup x Tufted Duck hybrid |
