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| Friday 2nd March 2007 | ||
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| The highlight of the day was undoubtedly the relocation of the 3rd winter Glaucous-winged
Gull on the estuary at Ferryside in Carmarthenshire. This bird has not
been seen since it was initially discovered and subsequently ringed on 15th
& 16th of December on Gloucester Landfill Site. The bird was present until
3pm when it flew west as the rising tide started to cover the exposed mud. With
luck this tantalizingly elusive bird will be seen again tomorrow and please the
many observers who are sure to make the trip to Wales.
Elsewhere Cornwall remains the place to be with a 1st winter Franklin's Gull being found on the Hayle Estuary where the White-billed Diver and long-staying Spotted Sandpiper remained today. Also in Cornwall the immature white morph Gyr was near Wadebridge this morning, then showing well this evening back at Stepper Point where it went to roost and the Dusky Warbler was still in Newquay. In Scotland in Argyll the Black-throated Thrush continued to be seen on & off on Bute, the Barrow's Goldeneye was again on Loch Venachar, Forth and in Dumfries & Galloway the Lesser Scaup was still at Caerlaverock WWT. Also, the Long-billed Dowitcher was still in the docks at Dundalk, Co.Louth, Forster's Tern still at Nimmo's Pier, Gallway and the Ferruginous Duck was still at New Hythe GPs, Kent. |
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| - Keith Langdon, RBA | ||
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Daily news summaries
Catch up with RBA's daily birdnews summaries. Browse ten days at a time, or choose a date to read summaries from that day backwards.
Daily summaries are available from 13 April 2006. For earlier weekly reviews, visit our articles.
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| Thursday 1st March 2007 | ||
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| Cornwall remains the birding county of choice with the elusive immature white
Gyr still present by the Camel Estuary near Padstow. Only seen at dawn and dusk today this elusive bird is presumably using Stepper Point primarily as a roost site and feeding elsewhere. Elsewhere in the county the
White-billed Diver, Spotted Sandpiper and probable Central Asian Lesser Whitethroat all showed well at the Hayle Estuary, the
Dusky Warbler remained in Newquay and what was thought to be the Pacific Diver
was watched distantly in Mount's Bay. Major rarities elsewhere comprised the Pacific Diver still at Llys-y-Fran Reservoir, Pembrokeshire, Barrow's Goldeneye at Loch Venachar, Forth and Black-eared Kite at Snettisham, Norfolk. In Scotland Black-throated Thrush, Snowy Owl, White-tailed Eagle and Lesser Scaup were all seen again whilst Ireland continued to host Forster's Tern, American Herring Gull and Long-billed Dowitcher. |
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| - Chris Batty, RBA | ||
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| Wednesday 28th February 2007 | ||
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| The highlight of the day was the reappearance of the confiding White-billed Diver
on the Hayle Estuary, Cornwall. The bird remained with a small group of Great Northern Divers throughout the day and showed very well. Supporting cast at this site included the wintering
Spotted Sandpiper and Lesser Whitethroat, the latter thought probably to be of Central Asian
form halimodendri. Elsewhere, the Barrow's Goldeneye remained in Forth as did the Black-eared Kite in Norfolk, Bonaparte's Gull in Angus, Lesser Scaup in Dumfries and Galloway, Long-billed Dowitchers in Kent and Co Louth and both Forster's Tern and American Herring Gull in Co Galway. The Glossy Ibis reappeared at Ballam, Lancashire and the Laughing Gull in Devon relocated to Seaton. Despite adverse weather, Sand Martins pushed north as far as Cumbria and a Little Ringed Plover arrived in Greater Manchester. |
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| - Chris Batty, RBA | ||
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| Tuesday 27th February 2007 | ||
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| Long-staying rarities were represented by the 1st-winter Laughing Gull
and Cattle Egret in Devon, Black-eared Kite in Norfolk, Spotted
Sandpiper in Cornwall, Pacific Diver in Pembrokeshire and Lesser
Scaup in Dumfries and Galloway. New discoveries included an American
Wigeon at Freiston Shore RSPB, Lincolnshire and Rough-legged Buzzard
in East Yorkshire, whilst the unseasonal Temminck's Stint remained at
Slimbridge WWT, Gloucestershire. In Co Galway the Forster's Tern
headlined the expected spectacle at Nimmo's Pier.
Ospreys are beginning to trickle into southern counties and a Sand Martin has already reached as far north as Lancashire. |
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| - Stuart Piner, RBA | ||
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| Monday 26th February 2007 | ||
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| Belated news from yesterday related to an adult White-billed Diver in
Hayle Harbour, Cornwall - a superb find, especially in southwest England.
Unfortunately there was no sign of the bird today. However, the extremely
elusive white morph Gyr in the Stepper Point area was intermittently on
show, and the county also produced the Dusky Warbler at Newquay and
Spotted Sandpiper at Hayle, where an Osprey also flew over.
Elsewhere long-staying rarities included the Black-eared Kite in Norfolk, Pacific Diver in Pembrokeshire, Lesser Scaups in Dumfries and Galloway and Oxfordshire, Bonaparte's Gull in Angus, Barrow's Goldeneye in Forth, Cattle Egret in Devon and Ferruginous Duck in Kent. The immature White-tailed Eagle made another appearance at Loch of Strathbeg, Aberdeenshire. |
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| - Stuart Piner, RBA | ||
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| Sunday 25th February 2007 | ||
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| Today was a day of more of the same. Two birds found in recent days, the Dusky
Warbler in Cornwall and the Laughing Gull in Devon, both put in
appearances. In Argyll, in west Scotland, both the Ross's Gull and the Black-throated
Thrush were to be seen and both Pacific Divers, in Cornwall and south
Wales, remained.
Two White-billed Divers on Lewis, at Tiumpan Head, may have been the birds seen yesterday at Skigersta, or maybe there are four birds now in the area. In Perth and Kinross, a second Lesser Scaup joined the long staying bird at Loch Leven. Many other long staying rarities could be found around the country, including two Barrow's Goldeneyes, the Bufflehead in Ireland and the Black-eared Kite in Norfolk. Other interesting records included a Rough-legged Buzzard at Snettisham in Norfolk, an Avocet on Mainland Orkney and an arrival of Mealy Redpolls on the Northern Isles. A Grey Phalarope remained on the Thames in London and a Temminck's Stint remained at Slimbridge in Gloucestershire, with a large number of 'white-winged' gulls now present in Ireland. |
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| - Pete Hayman, RBA | ||
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| Saturday 24th February 2007 | ||
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| More new rarities were discovered today, with a Dusky Warbler in
Cornwall and 2.White-billed Divers seen off Lewis. The now-expected
records of White-billed Diver from the Western Isles appear to be
occurring over a greater time-span than was first realised with most birds in
previous years found during April.
The Laughing Gull performed well Devon, though it had moved slightly from yesterday. Also popular in the South-west were the Cattle Egret in Devon and Spotted Sandpiper in Cornwall. Plenty of other rarities were still present including the two Barrow's Goldeneyes the Black-eared Kite still in Norfolk and the Long-billed Dowitcher in Kent |
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| - Simon Mitchell, RBA | ||
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| Friday 23rd February 2007 | ||
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| The highlight of the day was the discovery of a 1st-winter Laughing Gull
at Exmouth in Cornwall. This is presumably the same bird which was last seen in
Kingsteignton last month. The other main news was the continued presence of both
Pacific Divers in Cornwall and Pembrokeshire. A Ross's Gull was
also reported in County Cork
Other rarities still present included the Glossy Ibis in Lancashire, the Bonaparte's Gull on Scilly, and the Spotted Sandpiper in Cornwall. The one of the two Snowy Owls on Lewis continued to be co-operative, allowing birders to successfully twitch it from the mainland. |
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| - Simon Mitchell, RBA | ||
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| Thursday 22nd February 2007 | ||
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| The only new birds today were in Ireland, where a Great White Egret
was reported from Broad Lough in County Wicklow and there was a possible American
Herring Gull at Rossaveal in County Galway. Also at Rossaveal were 21 Iceland
Gulls, a Glaucous Gull and 2 Ring-billed Gulls. Elsewhere,
both Pacific Divers, the juvenile in south Wales and the adult in
Cornwall, remained, but the latter was somewhat elusive. Also in Cornwall, there
was another unconfirmed report of a Gyr near Padstow.
Several long-stayers could still be found, including the Barrow's Goldeneye in Forth, the Bufflehead in County Clare, Lesser Scaups in Dumfries & Galloway and Oxfordshire, the Spotted Sandpiper in Cornwall, the Cattle Egret in Devon and the Long-billed Dowitcher in County Louth. In Hertfordshire, the Litte Bunting remained at Amwell Gravel Pits, but continued to be best viewed early in the morning. The first Sand Martin of the year flew over Slimbridge WWT reserve in Gloucestershire. |
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| - Pete Hayman, RBA | ||
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| Wednesday 21st February 2007 | ||
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| The main news today concerned the two Pacific Divers, the juvenile at
Llys-y-Fran Reservoir in Pembrokeshire and the adult at Penzance in Cornwall,
which both remained and continued to attract interest.
In Scotland an untagged immature White-tailed Eagle was at Loch of Strathbeg RSPB reserve in Aberdeenshire until early afternoon when it flew south, and in Argyll the Ross's Gull was still at Loch Fyne and the Black-throated Thrush remained on Bute, whilst in Ireland, in County Kerry, the drake Black Duck was found again at Ventry Harbour. The juvenile Black-eared Kite was still to be seen to the south of Snettisham RSPB reserve in Norfolk and the two Snowy Owls remained on Lewis in the Western Isles along with the two Lesser Scaup on Benbecula. |
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| - Chris Batty, RBA | ||
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