Wednesday 25th November 2015
	A Western Rufous Turtle Dove was discovered in a garden at Scalloway, Shetland today. There are three previous records confirmed to have been of the form meena, with the Orkney individual of 2002 being the only one which has been easily twitchable. In County Cork an American Bittern was found at the lake below Castlefreke House, Owenahincha. The last Irish record was in 1990, when one was killed by a dog in County Wexford, and you have to go back to 1875 for all three of the previous County Cork records, one of which was also found (and shot) on this date. A Lesser Scaup was new at Loch Leven, Porth and Kinross, with lingering rarities including the Pallid Harrier at Snettisham, Norfolk, Long-billed Dowitcher at Cresswell, Northumberland, Spotted Sandpiper at Pilmore, County Cork, Bonaparte's Gull at Dawlish, Devon and Lesser Scaup at Chew Valley Lake, Somerset.
-  Will Soar, RBA