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| Friday 7th December 2007 | ||
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| Ashley Fisher hit the jackpot this afternoon when he found Britain's first
Great Blue Heron on St Mary's, Isles of Scilly. The first-winter bird showed
well at Lower Moors and surrounding area throughout the afternoon.
In Oxfordshire the juvenile Thayer's or Kumlien's Gull continued to show on and off at Dix Pit before roosting on Farmoor Reservoir. A couple of Cattle Egrets arrived in West Sussex at East Lavant and lingering rarities included Desert Wheatears in Norfolk and North Yorkshire, Bonaparte's Gulls in Aberdeenshire and Angus, Lesser Yellowlegs in Angus, Lesser Scaup in Warwickshire, King Eider in Aberdeenshire and White-tailed Eagle in Hampshire. |
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| - Stuart Piner, 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 6th December 2007 | ||
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| The Thayer's or Kumlien's Gull showed well from 11am onwards,
but the identification is still unconfirmed either way. Four Cattle Egrets
continue to grace the south coast, with a new bird in Devon today. The drake
King Eider is still in Aberdeenshire, and the two Desert Wheatears
continue to show well in Norfolk and Yorkshire. The Lesser Scaup is still at Draycote Water, Warwickshire, and the Long-billed Dowitcher was seen this afternoon at Bowling Green Marsh, Devon. Elsewhere, gulls continued to feature highly, with good numbers of Glaucous Gulls and a few Iceland Gulls in roosts across the country. |
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| - Will Soar, RBA | ||
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| Wednesday 5th December 2007 | ||
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| The highlight of the day was the discovery of what may prove to be Britain’s first
Thayer's Gull at Dix Pit, Stanton Harcourt, Oxfordshire. As always with this form, the separation of this juvenile individual from Kumlien's Gull may prove problematic. There are currently five accepted records of Thayer's Gull from Ireland with further European records of this Canadian breeder from Denmark, Iceland and Norway. Lingering rarities comprised an American Buff-bellied Pipit in County Cork, Desert Wheatears in both Norfolk and North Yorkshire, White-tailed Eagle in Hampshire, Forster's Tern in County Louth, Long-billed Dowitcher in Devon, King Eider in Aberdeenshire, Lesser Scaup in Warwickshire, American Golden Plover in Gloucestershire, Great White Egret in Lancashire, Cattle Egret in Dorset and seven Cattle Egrets in Cornwall. |
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| - Chris Batty, RBA | ||
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| Tuesday 4th December 2007 | ||
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| Once again the breaking the news concerned Cattle Egrets with another four discovered today in Cornwall, this time at Siblyback Lake, with a further three remaining today in west Cornwall with one still in Dorset. Whilst it is not possible to eliminate duplication, the past month has seen 28 Cattle Egrets recorded between England and Ireland comprising 12 in Cornwall, eight in Dorset, four in County Cork and singles in County Wicklow, Devon, East Yorkshire, Glamorgan, Greater Manchester and the Isles of Scilly. Other lingering rarities today consisted of single Desert Wheatears in Norfolk and North Yorkshire, Lesser Scaup in Warwickshire, American Golden Plover in Gloucestershire, Long-billed Dowitcher in Devon and the White-tailed Eagle – now confirmed as a juvenile ringed this summer in northern Finland - still in Hampshire. In Scotland the Lesser Yellowlegs was seen again in Angus and in Northern Ireland the Great White Egret remained in County Londonderry as did the Ferruginous Duck in County Down. |
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| - Chris Batty, RBA | ||
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| Monday 3rd December 2007 | ||
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| In Scotland, the two King Eiders were still off Girdle Ness, Aberdeen,
the Lesser Yellowlegs still at Montrose Basin, Angus and the
White-billed Diver was seen again off Fetlar, Shetland. Further south, the Desert Wheatear was still in Yorkshire, at Cromer Point, with the Norfolk bird still present also. Other rarities included Lesser Scaup in Warwickshire, Red-breasted Goose in Sussex, White-tailed Eagle and Great White Egret in Hampshire, American Golden Plover in Gloucestershire and the Ferruginous Duck reappeared in Berkshire. |
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| - Will Soar, RBA | ||
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| Sunday 2nd December 2007 | ||
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| Much the same as yesterday, as nearly all the lingering rarities continued to
perform well. Both Desert Wheatears showed very well, despite the dismal
weather, and the White-tailed Eagle in Hampshire was seen this morning,
but no reports were received since. A Cattle Egret was mobile around Pennington Flash Country Park, Greater Manchester, with another relocating to Drift Reservoir, Cornwall. The Long-billed Dowitcher was seen again at Bowling Green Marsh, Devon, the Lesser Yellowlegs and Bonaparte's Gull both remained in Angus, with another in Aberdeenshire. Nearby, the pair of King Eider were seen off Girdle Ness. Barrow's Goldeneye, American Buff-bellied Pipit and Forster's Tern were all still in Ireland. |
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| - Will Soar, RBA | ||
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| Saturday 1st December 2007 | ||
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| The female King Eider off Girdle Ness, Aberdeenshire, attracted a
first winter male today, both birds showing well. The two Bonaparte's Gulls
in Scotland also showed well today, as did the Lesser Yellowlegs at
Montrose Basin, Angus. A Great White Egret flew over Barrow GPs, Derbyshire mid afternoon. This bird has been seen on a number of occasions recently, and it is hoped that it will find somewhere to its liking locally. Other Great White Egrets included the long staying birds in Lancashire and Hampshire, and Cattle Egrets remained near Penzance, Cornwall, and at Upton Country Park, Dorset. The White-tailed Eagle in Hampshire proved to be very mobile today, with many birders spending several hours searching the area before connecting. The two Desert Wheatears on the east coast were, however, far more obliging. |
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| - Will Soar, RBA | ||
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| Friday 30th November 2007 | ||
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| As November drew to a close several rarities continued to linger. The
juvenile White-tailed Eagle in Hampshire continued to attract the most
attention - the bird's colour-ring combination has proved difficult to observe,
but if the reports are accurate, then the bird is likely to be from a nest in
Finnish Lapland.
Elsewhere the two Desert Wheatears (in Norfolk and North Yorkshire) were both still on show, and in West Sussex a Red-breasted Goose hopped over the Hampshire border with the Dark-bellied Brent Goose flock in Chichester Harbour. The Bonaparte's Gull was still at Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, and the Lesser Yellowlegs remained on the Montrose Basin, Angus. In Warwickshire the Lesser Scaup continued its stay at Draycote Water, two Wilson's Snipes were still on St Mary's, Isles of Scilly, and the Forster's Tern was once again seen at Cruisetown Strand, Co Louth. |
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| - Stuart Piner, RBA | ||
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| Thursday 29th November 2007 | ||
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| A fine selection of rarities continued to linger including two Desert
Wheatears (in Norfolk and North Yorkshire), a juvenile White-tailed Eagle
near Andover, Hampshire, Long-billed Dowitcher in Devon, Bonaparte's
Gulls in Aberdeenshire and Angus, Pacific Diver off Marazion,
Cornwall, Barrow's Goldeneye in Co Down, Lesser Scaup in
Warwickshire and Lesser Yellowlegs in Angus.
Two Wilson's Snipes were present on St Mary's, Isles of Scilly, and at least ten Cattle Egrets were available in southern England (at least five in Dorset, and five in Cornwall). Great White Egrets remained in Lancashire and Hampshire. |
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| - Stuart Piner, RBA | ||
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| Wednesday 28th November 2007 | ||
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| The highlight of the day was the confirmation of the identity of a Lesser Scaup at Draycote Water, Warwickshire. In Gloucestershire an
American Golden Plover was at Slimbridge, in Dorset a Cattle Egret at Upton and in Suffolk a Great White Egret at Felixstowe Ferry. The Pacific Diver remained in Cornwall as did the Wilson's Snipe on the Isles of Scilly, White-tailed Eagle and Red-breasted Goose in Hampshire, Desert Wheatears in both Norfolk and North Yorkshire, Lesser Yellowlegs in both Angus and County Cork, Long-billed Dowitchers in both Devon and County Londonderry, Lesser Scaup and two White-billed Divers on the Shetland Isles, Bonaparte's Gull in Aberdeenshire, five Cattle Egrets in Cornwall and the Great White Egret in County Londonderry. |
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| - Chris Batty, RBA | ||
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