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 3rd June 2021  
 

What was presumably Scilly's Little Swift was located over St.Agnes Beacon in the morning. Mizen Head in Co.Cork hosted a Western Bonelli's Warbler. Finds in Shetland included Paddyfield Warbler, Thrush Nightingale, Lesser Grey Shrike, Red-flanked Bluetail and a female subalpine warbler sp.

A Black Stork flew over South Foreland/St.Margaret's-at-Cliffe in Kent. Black Kites appeared in Ceredigion, Lancashire and Suffolk. 30 Bee-eaters were scattered across Yorkshire. New Blyth's Reed Warblers were discovered in Co.Durham, Orkney and Shetland. There was a report of a Snowy Owl yesterday at Dundalk, Co.Louth.

The Calandra Lark on Fair Isle, Little Crake in Cambridgeshire, Black Stork in Cornwall and Great Reed Warbler in Nottinghamshire all remained.

Among other highlights were 28 Rose-coloured Starlings, two Woodchat Shrikes, 14 Red-backed Shrikes, 15 Marsh Warblers, nine Icterine Warblers, Golden Oriole (Scilly), two Bluethroats and Grey-headed Wagtails, four Common Rosefinches, Montagu's Harrier (East Yorkshire), Night Heron (Scilly), Purple Heron (Co.Cork), American Golden Plover (Devon), Temminck's Stint (Shetland), Pectoral Sandpiper (Orkney), Long-tailed Skua (Highland), seven Spotted Crakes (singing at one site in North Yorkshire), Ring-necked Duck (Moray) and two Glossy Ibises.
-  David Campbell, RBA
Wednesday 2nd June 2021  
  A White-tailed Lapwing was present at Stodmarsh NNR, Kent briefly this morning, before it flew south, whilst a Little Swift was also a brief visitor to Porth Hellick, Scilly this evening.

A Western Bonelli's Warbler was found on Skoholm, Pembrokeshire, with a Blyth's Reed Warbler at Langport, Somerset, a Pallid Harrier in Aberdeenshire, two Red-rumped Swallows at Mizen Head, County Cork and several Bee-eaters in Yorkshire (nine at Whitby, eight at East Newton, five at Spurn, one at Filey and one at Bempton) with further birds in Kent at Dungeness and South Foreland and Gibraltar Point, Lincolnshire.

Lingering rarities still present included the Calandra Lark in Shetland, Lesser Grey Shrike in Yorkshire, Great Reed Warbler in Nottinghamshire, Black Stork and American Herring Gull in Cornwall and White-billed Diver in Shetland.
-  Will Soar, RBA
Tuesday 1st June 2021  
 

A Black Stork was seen near Bodmin while the other Cornish bird remained in the St.Ives area. In Yorkshire, a flock of nine Bee-eaters were near Whitby and four were seen at Spurn. Fair Isle hosted a Blyth's Reed Warbler and an Eastern Subalpine Warbler appeared at Carmel Head, Anglesey. A Western Subalpine Warbler was trapped and ringed on the Calf of Man and a subalp likely to be this species too was on Unst, Shetland. A Rustic Bunting was on Lundy.

The Calandra Lark on Fair Isle, Sardinian Warbler in Shetland, Lesser Grey Shrike in North Yorkshire, Great Reed Warbler in Nottinghamshire, two Black-winged Stilts in Suffolk and Red-rumped Swallow in Orkney were still present.

There was a good mix of scarcities today, including: Red-breasted Flycatcher (East Yorkshire); two Purple Herons, Woodchat Shrikes and Grey-headed Wagtails; three Common Rosefinches, Wryneck (Shetland), nine Red-backed Shrikes, Hoopoe (Cornwall), four Icterine Warblers, five Marsh Warblers, six Golden Orioles and Rose-coloured Starlings, American Golden Plover (Devon), Pectoral Sandpiper (Shetland), two Red-necked Phalaropes, Temminck's Stint (Aberdeenshire), two Long-tailed Skuas, Rough-legged Buzzard (Shetland), Ring-necked Duck (Shetland), eight Spotted Crakes (an influx into the Lower Derwent Valley) and two Glossy Ibises.
-  David Campbell, RBA
Monday 31st May 2021  
  A Slate-coloured Junco was photographed in a garden in east Lothian, and late news from Sunday involved a Little Crake heard at Wicken Fen NT, Cambridgeshire late evening.

Other new discoveries today included single Lesser Grey Shrikes on Skomer, Pembrokeshire and at Whitby, Yorkshire (the latter joined by a flock of at least 11 Bee-eaters, with further singletons on St Agnes, Scilly and over Samphire Hoe Country Park, Kent), a Thrush Nightingale at Brook, Isle of Wight, two Rustic Buntings on mainland Shetland, a Blyth's Reed Warbler on Coll, Argyll, a Western Subalpine Warbler on Skokholm, Pembrokeshire (with a Subalpine Warbler species on Unst, Shetland), a Greenish Warbler at Spurn, Yorkshire, a Red-rumped Swallow on North Ronaldsay, Orkney and a Black Kite over Bodmin Moor, Cornwall.

Lingering rarities still present included the Calandra Lark, Rustic Bunting and Bee-eater in Shetland, Great Spotted Cuckoo, Black Stork and Black Kite in Cornwall, Sardinian Warbler in Shetland, Great Reed Warbler in Nottinghamshire, Collared Pratincole in Kent, Pied-billed Grebe in Argyll, two Black-winged Stilts in Suffolk and Black Kite in Kent.
-  Will Soar, RBA
Sunday 30th May 2021  
 

New finds included Great Spotted Cuckoo in Cornwall and Great Reed Warbler in Nottinghamshire. A male Eastern Subalpine Warbler was found on Barra and another male subalpine, probably Western, was on Skomer. A flock of 10 Bee-eaters flew over Bempton Cliffs in East Yorkshire, while four flew over Normanby in Lincolnshire and singles were logged in Cornwall, Highland, Scilly and Shetland. There were at least two Black Kites in Cornwall.

The Double-crested Cormorant in Co.Kerry, Calandra Lark on Fair Isle, Collared Pratincole in Kent, Black Stork in Cornwall, Pied-billed Grebe in Argyll, two Black-winged Stilts in Suffolk and two White-billed Divers in Shetland all continued their stays.

Other highlights included White-winged Black Tern (Co.Kerry), Grey-headed Wagtail (East Yorkshire), three Common Rosefinches, Serin (Cumbria), Rough-legged Buzzard in Shetland, American Golden Plover (Devon), three Icterine Warblers, eight Red-backed Shrikes and Golden Orioles, two Woodchat Shrikes, four Purple Herons, Temminck's Stint (Aberdeenshire), three Ring-necked Ducks and two Glossy Ibises.
-  David Campbell, RBA
Saturday 29th May 2021  
 

Fair Isle's second Calandra Lark of the year was found today, while a Sardinian Warbler appeared at Sumburgh on Mainland Shetland. Following a nocmig report, the spring's first sight record of Great Spotted Cuckoo was at Brownstown Head in Co.Waterford today. A Blyth's Reed Warbler was found singing in urban Brighton.

The Double-crested Cormorant in Co.Kerry, American Herring Gull in Cornwall and Collared Pratincole in Kent were still present, as were the Iberian Chiffchaff and two Black-winged Stilts in Suffolk, Eastern Subalpine Warbler in East Yorkshire, Rustic Bunting on Fair Isle and the Red-rumped Swallow on Scilly. Six Bee-eaters were logged today.

Other highlights today included American Golden Plover (Devon), three Common Rosefinches, Bluethroat (East Yorkshire), five Purple Herons, seven Golden Orioles, two Woodchat Shrikes, four Red-backed Shrikes, six Icterine Warblers, Serin (Cornwall), Wryneck (Fair Isle), Sabine's Gull (Somerset), Pectoral Sandpiper (Cornwall), Red-necked Phalarope (Northumberland), Ring-necked Duck (Shetland) and four Glossy Ibises.
-  David Campbell, RBA
Friday 28th May 2021  
  A good day for discoveries with on the Shetland Isles Eastern Subalpine Warbler and Tawny Pipit joining three Rustic Buntings on Fair Isle, with two more Rustic Buntings new on Foula, the first Blyth's Reed Warbler of the spring found on North Ronaldsay, Orkney Isles, in County Wexford a Subalpine Warbler species on Great Saltee Island and a Bonaparte's Gull at Churchtown, two Black-winged Stilts together in Suffolk at Trimley Marshes, a Red-rumped Swallow on the Isles of Scilly on St Martin's, a mobile Bee-eater in Norfolk, and Black Kites briefly in Dorset, Highland, and Somerset.

Lingering rarities confirmed as still present were the Eastern Subalpine Warbler in East Yorkshire, Collared Pratincole in Kent, Pied-billed Grebe in Argyll, Savi's Warbler in Carmarthenshire, and both Bee-eater and White-billed Diver on the Shetland Isles.

Scarcities included American Golden Plover (Devon), Woodchat Shrike (Suffolk), Night Heron and Pectoral Sandpiper (Cornwall), Bluethroat and Wryneck (Shetland), Grey Phalarope (Hampshire), Red-necked Phalarope (Northumberland), Temminck's Stint (Leicestershire), two each of Purple Heron, Ring-necked Duck, and Glossy Ibis, three Common Rosefinches, seven Red-backed Shrikes, eight Icterine Warblers, and a total of nine Golden Orioles.

Significant late news concerned a Black Stork seen yesterday in Surrey at Thursley Common and then Frensham.
-  Chris Batty, RBA
Thursday 27th May 2021  
 

A male Eastern Subalpine Warbler was found at Spurn in East Yorkshire, while two Rustic Buntings appeared on Fair Isle and an Alpine Swift cruised over St.Mary's, Scilly. In Kent, a Black Kite flew over Cliffe. Two Bee-eaters tracked along the north Norfolk coast and another flew over the Blackwater Estuary in Essex.

Still present were the Collared Pratincole in Kent, Franklin's Gull in West Yorkshire, Savi's Warbler in North Yorkshire, American Herring Gull in Cornwall, Greenish Warbler in Fife, and White-billed Diver and Bee-eater in Shetland.

Other highlights included White-spotted Bluethroat (Norfolk), Red-spotted Bluethroat (Western Isles), two Purple Herons, three Red-backed Shrikes and Golden Orioles, eight Icterine Warblers, Rough-legged Buzzard (Shetland), Temminck's Stint (Leicestershire), Red-necked Phalarope (Northumberland), Ring-necked Duck (Shetland) and two Glossy Ibises.
-  David Campbell, RBA
Wednesday 26th May 2021  
  The highlight of the day was the discovery of a male Black-headed Bunting at Brynamman, Carmarthenshire that showed well from late afternoon until late evening.

In Norfolk news was released of a male White-spotted Bluethroat singing at Strumpshaw Fen, in Kent the elusive Collared Pratincole showed again at Cliffe Pools, in Dorset the Bonaparte's Gull remained at Lodmoor, and on the Shetland Isles two Rustic Buntings were on Fair Isle, with both Bee-eater and White-billed Diver still on Unst.

Scarcities included Rough-legged Buzzard, Common Rosefinch, Long-tailed Skua, Ring-necked Duck, Shorelark, and Shorelark (Shetland Isles), Red-backed Shrike (East Yorkshire), Hoopoe (Warwickshire), Great Grey Shrike (Orkney Isles), Temminck's Stint (Norfolk), three Glossy Ibises, and four each of Red-spotted Bluethroat, Icterine Warbler, and Golden Oriole.
-  Chris Batty, RBA
Tuesday 25th May 2021  
  New today was a Red-rumped Swallow in Lincolnshire at Marston, with brief encounters including Black Kite in Essex at Wix and Kent at Swalecliffe, and Bee-eater in Hampshire at Hannington and Kent at Walmer Castle.

Rarities elsewhere comprised the Collared Pratincole again in Kent at Cliffe Pools, the Double-crested Cormorant still in County Kerry, Bonaparte's Gull still in Dorset, and on the Shetland Isles two Rustic Buntings on Fair Isle and a Bee-eater still on Unst.

Scarcities included Sabine's Gull (Anglesey), Red-necked Phalarope (Northumberland), Temminck's Stint (Norfolk), Great Grey Shrike (Orkney Isles), Grey-headed Wagtail (Greater Manchester), two each of Marsh Warbler, Common Rosefinch, and Red-backed Shrike, three Long-tailed Skuas, four of Golden Oriole, Ring-necked Duck, and Glossy Ibis, seven Icterine Warblers, and a total of 10 Bluethroats.
-  Chris Batty, RBA