Portland Bill

A dash to Portland Bill was successful in getting views of the/a Yelkouan/Menorcan-type shearwater among rafting Balearic and Manx Shearwaters. I'm not sure how comfortable I'd ever be with this bird being a tick due to the Menorcan 'problem' but it was educational, as they like to say, to see a Yelk-type among the two confusion species. A small flock of Common Scoters flew by and there were small numbers of Guillemots, Gannets and Razorbills offshore.

Balearic Shearwaters

Canons Farm, Lodmoor RSPB and Portland, 14th September 2017

A quick visit to Canons while waiting on news from Dorset was rewarded by a couple of Yellow Wagtails and a continuing trickle of Meadow Pipits, plus the regular Peregrine dealing with an intruder. A Collared Dove was an increasingly rare sighting.

Ian J picked me up and we made tracks for Lodmoor, successfully connecting with my first LEAST SANDPIPER and my second STILT SANDPIPER, both juveniles. Other sightings there included a Great Egret, 11 Mediterranean Gulls, a Green Sandpiper, a Yellow Wagtail, a Kingfisher and a few Sand Martins, House Martins and Swallows. A jaunt onwards to Portland bolstered the day's haul with the showy Buff-breasted Sandpiper there (my third) and a Wryneck which sunbathed on a rock in the observatory quarry for a good 30 minutes before slinking into the grass.

Least Sandpiper at Lodmoor

Stilt Sandpiper at Lodmoor

Portland and Farlington Marshes, 22nd August 2017

Captained by John B, I headed with Magnus A to Portland in the early hours in the hope of connecting with the Yellow Warbler discovered near the bird observatory yesterday afternoon. Abject failure, it was down to a very light overhead trickle of Tree Pipits and Yellow Wagtails to keep us busy. In hindsight, I should have shot down there as soon as news broke but I simply didn't expect to get there in time for the bird to still be showing, or perhaps for there even to be any light. Six Common Scoters and a Dunlin flew past at sea, while at least four Ravens, two Wheatears, a few Willow Warblers and a Peregrine were also seen.

We gave up and started off for home at about 13:00. John fancied dropping in at Farlington Marshes on the way home for Pectoral Sandpiper as a year tick. Incredibly, it transpired that the bird was in the process of buggering off just as we were parking up. It was nice to relax and stretch our legs for a couple of hours though, highlights including a Green Sandpiper, two Greenshanks, a Ruff, two Yellow Wagtails, three Wheatears, three Stonechats, several Grey Plovers, a Common Sandpiper and two Bearded Reedlings.

White-billed Diver and a second helping of the Brünnich's

Ian couldn't get away yesterday so I jumped in his car as he headed southwest early this morning. An unpromising start at Portland Harbour saw the BRÜNNICH'S GUILLEMOT eventually show well, adding itself to Ian's list. After enjoying this bird we made our way to Devon for the bird that I was really there for which had taken up temporary residence in Brixham harbour. We soon picked up a Black-throated Diver and the odd Great Northern Diver but it turned out we were in the wrong part of the harbour as Liam Langley called to say that he was watching it in the inner section. We rushed round there and were soon on the White-billed Diver which showed spectacularly well at times; the bill truly was something to behold! How great it has been seeing this run of Arctic birds this winter in Britain. As a tag-on we called in at Broadsands to see the Cirl Buntings on the seed put out for them, a nice finish to my and Ian's first twitch together for too long!

White-billed Diver in Brixham harbour

Black-throated Diver in Brixham harbour

Boxing Day Brünnich's

Josh Burch and I rushed down to Portland when news broke late this morning of a BRÜNNICH'S GUILLEMOT in the harbour. It had just gone out of view when we arrived, but the Black Guillemot that has been around for a few days was showing distantly. It wasn't too long, though, before we moved a little further along and the bird bobbed up in front of us, very close. We were treated to excellent, albeit usually fairly brief views, between the bird's frequent dives (during which it typically moved a considerable distance). A fantastic late Christmas present!

To cut a Long story (relatively) Short

The last couple of days have really summed up twitching for me; most of the ordeal has been extremely stressful and left me very ratty but the end result reminded me what I was doing it for.

It started on Tuesday when, at Canons Farm with Richard and Peter (seeing Common Redstart, Whinchat etc), a message came on the pager hinting that the reported 'Long-billed' Dowitcher at Lodmoor might be something to keep an eye on. This wasn't solid enough to be worth dashing off for straight away but I awaited further developments.

I got up very early on Wednesday, planning a dawn start at the patch, and saw that I'd missed a mega alert from just before midnight saying that instincts were correct. Gah! I had to go, but how? I poked dad and he murmured something that sounded like I had car rights until three in the afternoon. If I were to drive there myself I had to go there and then, little time for faffing around. However, a couple of things ended up faffing me around so I ended up leaving around seven and arrived at ten-thirty. Only to find I had no change for parking so had to drive into Weymouth and break up a tenner for a Diet Coke. I wish I was more organised.

Anyway, I basically arrived to find the bird hadn't shown since about eight and I had to leave just after midday to get the car back to dad. Predictably, half way home the bird came on the pager. Having spent £50 on fuel for a short and frustrating dip-and-run, only for one of my regular lifts (Secret Squirrel) to grip-text me while I was driving to Sutton, I wasn't happy (I could and should have given him a call but was in a such a hurry I just dashed off, and he tried to call me while I was over half way there). What a waste of a day.

Yesterday evening, Liam and I arranged to meet at Waterloo this morning and catch the train to Weymouth. I got to the station just in time to buy a ticket and board but found that my debit card was missing from my wallet and I didn't have enough cash to cover the journey. Shiiiiitttttt..... I ran home and dad kindly gave me enough money to get there and back and took me to Sutton station. The train I needed to catch to get to Waterloo in time was leaving very shortly so I headed for the ticket machines that take cash. After going through the rigmarole of sorting out the ticket details, I tried to pay but it said I could only use a card. Unbelieveable. Thank goodness the queue for the traditional manned desks was short despite being rush hour, as I managed to get the ticket and rush to the platform with a couple of minutes before the train arrived. Phew.

Liam and I teamed up as planned at Waterloo and arrived at Weymouth two and a half hours later. Pager messages throughout the morning had been encouraging so we walked fairly confidently to the reserve. We were greeted by a reasonable gathering of birders including occasional twitch-buddies Micheal and Dan from Sussex who put us on the SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHER. It was tucked behind some vegetation but came out into the open and showed its notched tertials and generally well-marked coverts etc for about a minute before it scampered behind the clump again and hardly moved for two hours. We were debating when we should call it a day when it finally woke up and fed out in the open, not too distantly, for about fifteen minutes before for flying out of sight. A beautifully intricately marked bird, and a performer in the end. Stunner! The stress and hassle of connecting was instantly forgotten and we set off home happy.

What it's all about

Spanish inquisition

Spanish Sparrow's rare so Phil and I twitched it today. First we went to see the DARK-EYED JUNCO - again - I'm not complaining, it's a really nice bird and I would go again to see it. This time was amazing; Phil seeded a stump about ten feet away from the path and eventually it plonked itself there to the crowd's delight! I digiscoped away, hoping for at least one good profile shot but when it was in profile it was behind a blade of grass and when it was in clear view it was a bit at an angle or doing something odd. A few Crossbills, Reed Buntings and Siskins again.

Dark-eyed Junco at Hawkhill Inclosure

in the kitchen...

 Happy, to Calshot we went. It felt like we were going inside to worship the thing, taking our shoes off and going inside to join the crowd of crouching and staring admirers. The SPANISH SPARROW was actually a very striking bird and showed well quite a bit. Its brown cap, white cheeks and strong breast and flank markings made it easily seperable from the House Sparrows with which it kept company.

Spanish Sparrow at Calshot

 We visited Blashford Lakes and dipped the Fudge Duck again (but the Siskins and Lesser Redpolls on the feeders were great to see) and dipped the Hume's Leaf Warbler at Wyke Regis - I've now only got a 33.3'% hit rate with this bird.

Siskin at Blashford Lakes

Junco junkee

I got a good flight view of the junco on Tuesday with Ian but really wanted to get a prolonged look at it on the deck, so I discussed the possibility of going today with Phil - he was up for it so it looked like it was on. Phil also needed the Hume's Leaf Warbler; seeing as this was the furthest site he was keen to do this first so we we followed the satnav there from 5.30am. A big yellow M at Weymouth drew us in to an assortment of breakfast delights as the sun rose. We had a look for the wafty Hooded Merganser from the car park but didn't have any luck, instead seeing groups of Black-tailed Godwits and Common Snipes which wasn't too bad a start.

Richard's Pipit at Wyke Regis

 Wyke Regis was very popular today with hopeful birders popping up around every corner. My friend the Richard's Pipit showed well in the bridging camp and we were amazed to see a good seven hundred or so strong flock of Brent Geese - one being a 'Pale-bellied' that I picked out. I pointed out a couple of Med Gulls and each time I looked I saw more and more. The last time I had a rough count it reached around or beyond ninety birds. But I didn't have time for precise counts. There was lots to do. Notwithstanding an hour or so of staring at bushes in the company of several other guys we did not hear nor see the warbler which was especially annoying as I had no problem seeing it in far more calamitous weather on Tuesday and it was reported both before and after our hunt.

Brent Geese, including 'Pale-bellied' (centre), Wyke Regis

 It was past ten and we needed to go. Discussion settled on heading for the junco. The car park was far more suitably packed than Tuesday morning (when Ian and I were one of two cars there for quite a while - and the other car was a dog walker). We joined the main line of tripod legs and enjoyed great views of the DARK-EYED JUNCO after about twenty or thirty minutes of trying to see through the hordes of kip-kippy Crossbills. We got a couple more looks before a little bit of a gap then we watched it foraging under a carpet of twigs before flying out and feeding right out in the open on a fallen pine - gorgeous! It shuffled over to the other side of the trunk and, realising that daylight was running out and that we planned to visit three more sites...we got out of there.

Dark-eyed Junco at Hawkill Inclosure

male Crossbill at Hawkhill Inclosure

 First: Blashford Lakes. Phil wanted the Ferruginous Duck. We looked and saw lots of Tufted Ducks and Pochards but not the quarry - as apparently lots of other people already had. A singing Siskin was nice.

Ok, it was decision time. We could either race over to Wyke Regis for another go at the Hume's for Phil, getting to the bird's roost spot just before dusk, or go a few miles to get Blue-winged Teal for me. Phil selflessly decided to go for the latter... both were probably doomed to failure. There were lots of birders at Longham Lakes but apparently no-one gave a rat's arse about the Blue-winged Teal, they were all after the pair of Smew that had been found. I couldn't quite understand this because there are several Smew knocking about the area and the Lakes would be doing well do have a patch crew that big. Anyway, we saw the said pair of Smew which were very nice, and I caught a redhead Goosander fly in just before dusk. A Kingfisher flew about, there was a good variety of common wildfowl, a lone Lapwing and that was all. Day over. Thanks Phil for a good day out!

Smew (drake above, redhead below), Longham Lakes

Junco for joy

Today was a mixed bag... Ian picked me up this morning and we headed to the New Forest for the Dark-eyed Junco. On arrival, around 8.00am, after driving through rivers and hurricanes and around fallen trees, we found that we were the only people present! We didn't know where exactly we were meant to be looking and after a falling pine missed us by a couple of dozen yards we cut our losses. Wyke Regis was our next venue. We thought it was pointless getting out and looking for anything because the weather was truly apocalyptic, but we soldiered on. After a few miles of battling the wind and rain we heard and eventually saw the HUME'S LEAF WARBLER! I couldn't believe that we'd actually seen a bird. It showed quite well at times and I got a few record shots.

Hume's Leaf Warbler

On the way back Ian located the Richard's Pipit - a lifer for him - at the bridging camp and it gave pretty good views. Even though some blue sky had moved over us it was still very windy and hence the scope tried to take off a few times. My umbrella looked like it had been dunked in acid. A couple of Ravens played in the gales.

Richard's Pipit

As we were approaching the car, news came through that the junco had been seen again. Off we went. People told us the bird hadn't been seen for an hour and a half but we staked it out and, at something like 3.40pm, a few people shouted that the bird had flown into a fallen pine. As everyone was in the middle of moving closer, several of us got onto the DARK-EYED JUNCO fly out, a good hundred metres across our view and into a stand of young pines and birches. I'm rather picky with flight views of passerines but I was pleased that I managed a clear and prolonged look at it as it fluttered past, getting the pale bill, white tail sides, white underparts, slate grey upperparts and darker head. I'd like to see it on the deck so might try to get down there again at the weekend. Also seen at the Hawkhill Inclosure were a few Crossbills and a couple of Woodcocks.

New sights around the New Forest

Sabine's Gull

As autumn is increasing the liklihood of a good bird at the patch, I am getting ever more reluctant to leave it but I couldn't resist an outing around the New Forest with Phil today. Ever since I bought my first field guides and continually flicked through the pages in awe of all the wonderful birds I was looking forward to seeing, Sabine's Gull is one of the species that caught my attention. That distinctive wing pattern, forked tail and (in the case of adults) wonderful head makes it the most attractive of the gulls for me. The soft-toned plumage of juveniles is very smart too. However, I haven't had much luck with Sabs - I was utterly gutted when I dipped the three birds at Beddington nearly four years ago on my first visit to the site and have failed on other attempts. The bird near Avon appeared to be hanging around so this was first on our iternery. The situation was daunting, probably over one to two thousand Black-headed Gulls (with a few Med Gulls mixed in) to scan through. So it was a relief to lock eyes on the first-summer Sabine's Gull within fifteen minutes. A smart bird indeed; best in flight. And my 21st British tick of the year.

Goshawk

Crossbill at Blackwater Arboretum

This was followed by a visit to Acres Down. A couple of Crossbills and a Firecrest were seen by the car and further on a pair of Common Redstarts showed. I scanned the dead tops of the rows of trees in the middle distance and lay sight on a majestic juvenile female Goshawk! We got distant but prolonged and clear views of this beast for about half an hour before it flew off when the cloud cleared and it warmed up. This is my first non-flying sighting of a Goshawk. After this there was almost always a Goshawk on view, there were probably at least two birds knocking about - at times mobbed by Sparrowhawks. Common Buzzards were everywhere but as usual none of them could be turned into a Honey-buzzard. A Grayling was my first of the year.

Our final venue was Blackwater Arboretum for a mosey around. Crossbills were everywhere, acquiring by far my best views of this bird. Another Firecrest showed.

Britain Life List: 313

Stilt Sand bagged

record shot of the Stilt Sandpiper

Peter 'Polo' Grady picked me up from the farm shortly after 11.00am and we started the trek down to Weymouth. Originally, this trip was pencilled in for tomorrow but Peter became unexpectedly relieved of his arrangements so this was something of a spontaneous decision.

After an average journey (holiday traffic around the New Forest and coastal towns) we parked up and eventually found our way to the gathering of people fixed on a small muddy pool. Our desired tick had shown but had just recently gone out of view. It didn't take much waiting to see the splendid adult STILT SANDPIPER which showed well, albeit a tad distant, on and off for the next couple of hours. It was a really neat and smart bird; a wader that I've always been keen to see. After acquiring a sketch, photographs and prolonged clear views we decided to head home, both satisfied.

showing the combination of a clean white rump and plain wings

Britain Life List 310

A rare bird at last

After an anxious wait of a week, Phil Wallace kindly took me down to The Fleet near Langton Herring to see the drake Bufflehead.

We left at 7.00am at arrived on-site at something around 10.00am. We joined the gathering of people and after a bit of scanning I picked up the glorious adult drake BUFFLEHEAD amongst a group of Red-breasted Mergansers. My first BB rarity of the year, and the species still constitutes a mega, this being the 14th British record, and the first for nearly 3 years.The bird was tiny in comparison to the nearby Mergansers and dived very frequently, making it difficult to photograph. A Common Buzzard flew over and it stayed up, keeping an eye on it, this was the main opportunity for photography. Other birds in the area included a Chiffchaff, a male Pheasant and a couple of Skylarks.
Such a smart little duck - all handheld digiscoped

The Fleet - a lagoon sheltered by an impressive shingle bar

After watching this cracking bird for half about an hour we moved on to Burley, New Forest, where a wintering Great Grey Shrike had set up territory. The directions on the pager as 'behind the car park' were a bit vague, as this could be taken to mean the suitable habitat in just about any direction and, although implying its fairly close to the car park, it could mean it was a slightly greater distance away than thought. Alas, we failed to find the Shrike after a good go, but we did see 2 Peregrines harassing one of the pair of Common Buzzards that was in the area (we'd seen quite a few of the latter between sites, from the car). The only other raptor was a Sparrowhawk that came in low and fast. A Redpoll flew over, a Bullfinch or two was knocking around and a Meadow Pipit was displaying. A male Stonechat was present on some gourse south west of the car park.

Next on the iternary was Acres Down, a wonderful viewpoint with stunning views over the New Forest. We were hoping for Goshawk but it was getting late in the day and it was starting to cloud over a bit. I got onto a distant Common Crossbill atop a conifer and soon afterwards, another flew over. Siskins were all over the place and a Meadow Pipit and a pair of Stonechats were present. We failed to see any Goshawks, or any other raptors for that matter with the exception of 5 Common Buzzards, 2 of which were displaying.
On the way back to the car, a Chiffchaff called. We decided to head over to Blackwater Arboretum for Hawfinches. On arrival, under the huge pines and deciduous trees, we both bought a much needed flake 99 before walking through the gate to where the finches get. I was onto a Hawfinch before we were even through the gate, giving its familiar clicking and rasping noises before revealing itself as it flew off.

Hawfinch (phone-scoped)

We stayed for about an hour enjoying, at times, excellent views of at least 5 Hawfinches. They were pretty mobile, but stayed put long enough to get photos and show other people through the scope. The place was absolutely brimming with Siskins and there were also some Redpolls around, as well as a handful of Greenfinches. A female Sparrowhawk dashed through, disturbing everything for a short time.

We were about to leave when the Great Grey Shrike came through on the pager again. We couldn't not have another go before dark, so popped back to Burley. We had a thorough look all around the car park again as dusk grew nearer but the Shrike could not be found.

We left happy, Phil had got better photos of the Bufflehead than on his Monday trip and some good shots of the Hawfinches (which he only saw very briefly on Monday) as well as getting Bullfinch out of the way for the year. I was very happy with a good British tick, and a couple of enjoyable year ticks- Crossbill and Hawfinch - (though I'm not really year listing this year). Thanks Phil for the great day out!