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.


Saturday 17th March 2018

	Lingering rarities still present today included the Snowy Owl on Tresco, Isles of Scilly, Pied-billed Grebe at Loch of Spiggie, Shetland, Pacific Diver at Crookhaven, County Cork and Black Kite at Tankerness, Orkney. A moribund Alpine Swift was found near Sheffield, South Yorkshire. Scarcity highlights included a Yellow-browed Warbler, two Little Buntings, two Lapland Buntings, two Waxwings, two Great Grey Shrikes, a Pomarine Skua, two Tundra Bean Geese, three Green-winged Teals, three American Wigeon, five Ring-necked Ducks, four Glossy Ibises, two Ring-billed Gulls, three Kumlien's Gulls, 20 Glaucous Gulls and 46 Iceland Gulls.
- Will Soar, RBA


Friday 16th March 2018

	Lingering rarities included Horned Lark (Surrey), Ferruginous Duck (Powys), Black Kite (Orkney), Coues's Arctic Redpoll (Norfolk), Pacific Diver (Cornwall) and King Eider (Co Clare), but the Bufflehead in Nottinghamshire is now believed to be a ringed escaped bird. The best of the rest included Yellow-browed Warbler (Devon), Little Bunting (London), two Waxwings (Northumberland) and three Glossy Ibises.
- Stuart Piner, RBA


Thursday 15th March 2018

	A female Bufflehead was discovered at Attenborough NR (Nottinghamshire) this evening. A ringed escape Bufflehead was present at East Leake, 6 miles to the south west of Attenborough, on 2nd-3rd December 2017. The juvenile Black Kite lingered on Mainland Orkney. The bird is believed to be an 'Eastern Black Kite', an intergrade between the nominate form migrans and eastern taxa lineatus. Elsewhere the Ferruginous Duck (Powys), Horned Lark (Surrey), Yellow-browed Warblers (Devon and South Yorkshire), Little Bunting (London), two Waxwings (Northumberland), eight Shorelarks (Lincolnshire), American Wigeon (Highland), Tundra Bean Goose (Devon), two Glossy Ibises (Co Wicklow), four Green-winged Teals and seven Cattle Egrets all lingered. Summer migrants included Manx Shearwater (Dorset), Osprey (West Yorkshire), two Swallows, five Little Ringed Plovers, five Garganey and 10 White Wagtails.
- Stuart Piner, RBA


Wednesday 14th March 2018

	Rarity highlights comprised Horned Lark (Surrey), King Eider (Co Clare), Lesser Scaup (Cornwall), Penduline Tit (Gloucestershire), Ferruginous Duck (Powys) and Coues's Arctic Redpoll (Suffolk). The best of the rest included Little Bunting (London), Yellow-browed Warbler (South Yorkshire), Glossy Ibis (Suffolk), Cackling or Canada Goose (Western Isles), Tundra Bean Goose (Northumberland), two Green-winged Teals, three Great Grey Shrikes, four Surf Scoters, nine Shorelarks and 15 Waxwings (Aberdeenshire). In addition to many reports of Sand Martins, records of summer migrants included Whimbrel (Bedfordshire), Manx Shearwater (Devon), two Garganey, two Willow Warblers, three White Wagtails, six Swallows, seven Ospreys, eight Little Ringed Plovers and 21 Wheatears.
- Stuart Piner, RBA


Tuesday 13th March 2018

	The highlight of the day was the discovery of a Black Kite on the Orkney Isles at Bay of Suckquoy, Mainland although it later transpired that the same bird had been present elsewhere on Orkney Mainland on 27th November 2017 and 10th-17th February 2018. Other rarities comprised the Horned Lark still in Surrey, Lesser Scaup in Cornwall and single Ferruginous Ducks in both Hampshire and Powys, whilst a Snowy Owl was reported at Nether Poppleton, North Yorkshire. Scarcities included Rough-legged Buzzard (Cambridgeshire), Yellow-browed Warbler (South Yorkshire), Waxwing (Suffolk), American Wigeon (Highland), Snow Goose (Western Isles), two each of both Little Bunting and Glossy Ibis, three of Ring-billed Gull and Lapland Bunting, four Great Grey Shrikes, five Surf Scoters and nine Shorelarks (together in Norfolk). Incoming summer migrants included around Britai totals of 97 Sand Martins, 40 Wheatears, four of both Osprey and Swallow, three Little Ringed Plovers and two of both Garganey and White Wagtail.
- Chris Batty, RBA


Monday 12th March 2018

	Rarities today comprised both Pacific Diver and King Eider still in County Cork, Penduline Tit in Gloucestershire, Coues's Arctic Redpoll in Suffolk, Lesser Scaup in Cornwall, and Ferruginous Ducks in Hampshire, Powys and Lothian; the latter bird new-in at Holyrood Park. Scarcities included Serin (Essex), Yellow-browed Warbler (South Yorkshire), American Wigeon (Highland), two Little Buntings, three each of both Surf Scoter and Glossy Ibis, six Ring-billed Gulls and nine Shorelarks (together in Norfolk). Incoming summer migrants included Garganey (Hampshire), Osprey (Leicestershire), Swallow (Warwickshire), Arctic Skua (Kent), Manx Shearwater (Dorset), three each of both Little Ringed Plover and White Wagtail, 48 Wheatears and a total of 89 Sand Martins.
- Chris Batty, RBA


Sunday 11th March 2018

	The highlight of the day was the continuing Snowy Owl in Norfolk that was relocated at Snettisham late in the morning and then showed well there until the evening. Rarities elsewhere comprised the wintering Snowy Owl still on the Isles of Scilly, Horned Lark in Surrey, King Eider in County Cork, Long-billed Dowitcher in County Wexford, Ferruginous Duck in Powys and single Coues's Arctic Redpolls in both Kent and Suffolk. Scarcities included Bluethroat (West Sussex), Serin (Essex), Yellow-browed Warbler (South Yorkshire), two each of both Little Bunting and Ring-billed Gull, three of both Great Grey Shrike and Lapland Bunting, four American Wigeons, five of both Ring-necked Duck and Glossy Ibis, nine Shorelarks (together in Norfolk), and in England four Parrot Crossbills. Incoming summer migrants included 23 Sand Martins, 15 Wheatears, seven Little Ringed Plovers, three Garganey, two Ospreys, Cuckoo (Kent) and a Swallow (Warwickshire).
- Chris Batty, RBA


Saturday 10th March 2018

	In Norfolk, the Snowy Owl was relocated at Thornham Point, where it spent most of the day on the beach before flying off at dusk. New discoveries today included a King Eider at Dunmanus Bay, County Cork and a Ferruguinous Duck at Llan Bwch-llyn Lake, Powys. Lingering rarities included the Horned Lark in Surrey, single Coues's Arctic Redpolls in Kent and Suffolk, Pacific Diver in Cornwall and Long-billed Dowitcher in County Wexford. Scarcity highlights included a Serin, a Yellow-browed Warbler, two Little Buntings, two Great Grey Shrikes, two Waxwings, nine Shorelarks, two Glossy Ibises, a Surf Scoter, two Green-winged Teals, four Ring-necked Ducks, a Snow Goose, two Kumlien's Gulls and five Ring-billed Gulls.
- Will Soar, RBA


Friday 9th March 2018

	Following reports of a Snowy Owl near King's Lynn on 5th March and Heacham the following day, it finally gave itself up on Scolt Head Island (Norfolk) today. The bird was twitchable throughout the afternoon. Elsewhere new discoveries comprised a flyby Franklin's Gull in Essex and Gyr in Co Antrim, whilst the Horned Lark (Surrey), Long-billed Dowitcher (Co Wexford) and Bonaparte's Gull (Co Dongegal) all lingered. The best of the rest included Yellow-browed Warbler (South Yorkshire), 12 Parrot Crossbills (Norfolk), Little Buntings (Cornwall and London) and a total of 19 Waxwings.
- Stuart Piner, RBA


Thursday 8th March 2018

	Lingering rarities comprised Thayer's Gull (Hampshire), Horned Lark (Surrey), Black Scoter (Northumberland), Pacific Diver (Cornwall), King Eider (Ceredigion), Long-billed Dowitchers (Kent and Co Wexford) and Coues's Arctic Redpoll (Suffolk). The best of the rest included Yellow-browed Warbler (South Yorkshire), Serin and Little Bunting (London), three American Wigeons, four each of Parrot Crossbills, Surf Scoter and Ring-necked Duck and 15 Waxwings.
- Stuart Piner, RBA