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.

Choose a starting date
Wednesday 14th May 2014  
  The highlight of the day was the continued presence of the Hermit Thrush on Fair Isle, Sheltand Isles, where it showed alongside both Caspian Stonechat and Western Subalpine Warbler. Elsewhere, lingering rarities comprised the Sardinian Warbler still in County Cork, Great Reed Warbler in Gloucestershire, Lesser Yellowlegs in Cornwall, and a pair of Black-winged Stilts in Kent.

New discoveries included two Subalpine Warblers together off the Isle of Man on the Calf of Man, a Bonaparte's Gull in Devon at Bowling Green Marsh, and in Hampshire a brief Black Kite near Petersfield.

Highlights amongst the scarcities were Golden Oriole (Dorset), Serin (Lincolnshire), Purple Heron (Isle of Scilly), Cattle Egret (Somerset), five Temminck's Stints, seven each of both migrant Dotterel and Glossy Ibis, and a total of fifteen Long-tailed Skuas.
-  Chris Batty, RBA
Tuesday 13th May 2014  
  Fair Isle's run of top quality birds continued today, with the discovery this evening of the island's third Hermit Thrush. This is also the third Spring record of the species in Britain, with just one out of the previous three records in Shetland occuring in Autumn. The Caspian Stonechat and Western Subalpine Warbler both remained on Fair Isle.

Further south, a singing Great Reed Warbler spent the day at Slimbridge WWT, Gloucestershire, and a Red-rumped Swallow flew west at Reculver, Kent.

Lingering rarities included the Whiskered Tern in County Cork, Lesser Yellowlegs in Cornwall and Bonaparte's Gull in County Wexford.
-  Will Soar, RBA
Monday 12th May 2014  
  Today's new discoveries included a flyover Roller in Kent, Red-rumped Swallow in Suffolk, Little Bunting on Shetland and yesterday's Gull-billed Tern relocated to Ceredigion. Elsewhere lingering rarities included Spotted Sandpiper in Oxfordshire, Lesser Yellowlegs in Cornwall and Caspian Stonechat on Shetland.

Scarcities included Cattle Egret (Buckinghamshire), Short-toed Lark and Woodchat Shrike (Isles of Scilly), Shorelark (Cleveland), Wryneck (Shetland), Serin (Lincolnshire), two Hoopoes, two Temminck's Stints, six Glossy Ibises and 14 Dotterels.
-  Stuart Piner, RBA
Sunday 11th May 2014  
  Bird of the day could have been the Gull-billed Tern in Gwynedd, seen late afternoon off Aberdyfi, but news didn't emerge until late this evening. Elsewhere, a Citrine Wagtail spent a minute or so on the patio of Portland Bird Observatory, Dorset, a Red-throated Pipit flew over Berry Head, Devon, a Lesser Yellowlegs was on Loch Fada, Western Isles and a Red-rumped Swallow spent three hours at Thamesmead, London. Other new discoveries included a second Bonaparte's Gull at Tacumshin, County Wexford and two Black Kites in Kent.

Lingering rarities seen today included the Caspian Stonechat in Shetland, Sardinian Warbler and Whiskered Tern in County Cork, Snowy Owl in the Western Isles, Black-winged Stilt in Kent, Lesser Yellowlegs in Cornwall and Spotted Sandpiper in Oxfordshire.
-  Will Soar, RBA
Saturday 10th May 2014  
  On a fairly quiet May Saturday, the new discoveries included the first Alpine Swift of the year at Ouse Fen, Cambridgeshire, a Lesser Yellowlegs at Windmill Farm, Cornwall and a Snowy Owl at Grenitote, Western Isles.

Late news from yesterday concerned County Galway's first modern day record of Great Spotted Cuckoo, which flew past Barna Church.

Lingering rarities included just the Caspian Stonechat in Shetland, Spotted Sandpiper in Oxfordshire, Lesser Yellowlegs in Northumberland, Black-winged Stilt in Kent and Bonaparte's Gull in County Wexford.
-  Will Soar, RBA
Friday 9th May 2014  
  New discoveries today included a Rustic Bunting on Fetlar, Shetland and a Red-rumped Swallow over Easton Broad, Suffolk.

Lingering rarities present today included the Great Spotted Cuckoo on The Lizard, Cornwall, Caspian Stonechat and Little Bunting on Fair Isle, Shetland, Black-winged Stilt at Dungeness, Kent, Lesser Yellowlegs at Beadnell, Northumberland, Bonaparte's Gull at Tacumshin, County Wexford and a Black Kite on Tresco, Isles of Scilly.

Scarcity totals included a Woodchat Shrike, a Red-backed Shrike, a Richard's Pipit, a Serin, a Bluethroat, a Purple Heron, a Pectoral Sandpiper, a Kumlien's Gull, an American Wigeon, two Short-toed Larks, two Wrynecks, two Long-tailed Skuas, two Temminck's Stints, three Hoopoes, seven Roseate Terns, seven Glossy Ibises, 19 Dotterel and 37 Pomarine Skuas.
-  Will Soar, RBA
Thursday 8th May 2014  
  New rarities discovered today comprised an Eastern Subalpine Warbler on the Shetland Isles on Fair Isle, a Subalpine Warbler in Pembrokeshire on Ramsey Island, Bonaparte's Gull in County Wexford at Tacumshin, at least one Black-winged Stilt in Kent at Dungeness, a brief White-billed Diver in Cornwall, and single Red-rumped Swallows in both East Sussex and Kent. A Lesser Yellowlegs at Beadnell, Northumberland, was the same individual as that present at College Lake, Buckinghamshire on 5th May: a movement north of 262 miles.

Lingering rarities confirmed as still present were Myrtle Warbler, Caspian Stonechat and Western Subalpine Warbler on the Shetland Isles, two Black Kites together on the Isles of Scilly, two Two-barred Crossbills together in Norfolk, and White-billed Divers in both Aberdeenshire and the Orkney Isles.

Scarcities included 50 migrant Dotterel, eight Glossy Ibises, four Temminck's Stints, three each of both Wryneck and Cattle Egret, two Hoopoes, Woodchat Shrike (Lancashire), Serin (Lincolnshire), Short-toed Lark (Isles of Scilly), Pectoral Sandpiper (Northumberland), Ring-billed Gull (Western Isles), Surf Scoter (Lothian), American Wigeon (Argyll) and Ring-necked Duck (County Kerry).
-  Chris Batty, RBA
Wednesday 7th May 2014  
  The highlight of the day was the relocation of the Myrtle Warbler - seen yesterday on North Ronaldsay, Orkney Isles - on Unst, Shetland Isles; 110 miles to the northeast. Elsewhere, discoveries included single Spotted Sandpipers in both Oxfordshire at both Farmoor Reservoir and in Warwickshire at Draycote Water, a Western Subalpine Warbler on the Shetland Isles on Unst, and at least one Red-rumped Swallow over Gibraltar Point, Lincolnshire.

Lingering rarities confirmed as still present comprised the Caspian Stonechat on the Shetland Isles, Whiskered Tern in County Cork, Black Kite on the Isles of Scilly, White-billed Diver in Moray, and two Two-barred Crossbills in South Yorkshire.

Scarcities included 25 migrant Dotterel, six Glossy Ibises, four Temminck's Stints, two each of both Ring-necked Duck and Cattle Egret, a Pectoral Sandpiper (Northumberland), Ring-billed Gull (Western Isles), Surf Scoter and Rough-legged Buzzard (both Lothian), with Ortolan Bunting, Short-toed Lark and Golden Oriole all on the Isles of Scilly.

Significant late news concerned the reidentification of the reported singing male Western Bonelli's Warbler at Newbiggin-by-the-Sea, Northumberland on 3rd May as an Eastern Bonelli's Warbler: only the sixth British record.
-  Chris Batty, RBA
Tuesday 6th May 2014  
  The highlight of the day was a Myrtle Warbler on North Ronaldsay, Orkney Isles, only the fourth to be discovered in spring in the British Isles. Elsewhere, a Black-winged Stilt showed in Hampshire at Titchfield Haven, in Berkshire a Red-footed Falcon visited Maidenhead, and in Suffolk a Bee-eater was heard at Landguard.

Lingering rarities confirmed as still present were both Sardinian Warbler and Whiskered Tern (County Cork), Western Subalpine Warbler (Norfolk), Black Kite (Isles of Scilly), Caspian Stonechat (Shetland Isles), King Eider and White-billed Diver (Aberdeenshire), and White-billed Diver (Orkney Isles).

Scarcities included Hoopoe (Isles of Scilly), Wryneck (Orkney Isles), Pectoral Sandpiper (Angus), Surf Scoter (Lothian), Ring-necked Duck (Shropshire), Ring-necked Duck (Shropshire), two each of Woodchat Shrike, Serin and Yellow-browed Warbler, three Short-toed Larks, four Temminck's Stints, five Cattle Egrets, six Glossy Ibises, and 17 migrant Dotterel.
-  Chris Batty, RBA
Monday 5th May 2014  
  Rarities discovered today included a singing Great Reed Warbler at Lackford, Suffolk, a Subalpine Warbler at Holme, Norfolk, a Citrine Wagtail at West Kirby, Wirral, a Red-rumped Swallow over Spurn, Yorkshire, a Lesser Yellowlegs at College Lake, Buckinghamshire, a Black-winged Stilt at Lodmoor, Dorset and a Black Kite in Cornwall, with a second bird also joining yesterday's arrival on the Isles of Scilly. An adult Bonaparte's Gull spent the day at Slimbridge, Gloucestershire.

However, it was the movement of Pomarine Skuas along the south-east coast that provided much of the attention today. With so much overlap of birds passing different sites it is difficult to estimate just how many were involved, but three sites logged more than a hundred - 130 at Splash Point, 115 at Beachy Head and 103 at Dungeness.

Top lingering rarities logged today included the Caspian Stonechat and Western Subalpine Warbler on Fair Isle, Great Spotted Cuckoo in Cornwall and Whiskered Tern in County Cork.
-  Will Soar, RBA