Thursday 14th May 2015
	The Isles of Scilly provided the highlights today with Squacco Heron, Little Bittern and Woodchat Shrike all on St Mary's, along with Short-toed Lark, Wryneck, Common Crane, two Night Herons and six Golden Orioles, all around the islands. Elsewhere, rarities today comprided the Harlequin Duck still in Aberdeenshire, Bonaparte's Gull in Hampshire, Lesser Scaup in West Yorkshire, a Red-rumped Swallow new in Surrey at Holmethorpe, a subalpine warbler species on the Western Isles, and brief Red-throated Pipit (County Durham), Bee-eater (County Mayo), and Alpine Swift and Bee-eater (Dorset). Scarcities included Woodchat Shrike (Cornwall), Purple Heron (Dorset), Hoopoe (Borders), Pectoral Sandpiper (Northumberland), two White-winged Black Terns (together in Kent), two Grey-headed Wagtails, five Golden Orioles, seven Temminck's Stints and 27 migrant Dotterel.
-  Chris Batty, RBA