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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Tuesday 20th March 2018  
  Once again County Clare produced the highlights of the day where the American Herring Gull continued at Kilkee and a Gyr flew over the lingering King Eider at Flaggy Shore.

Rarities elsewhere comprised the Snowy Owl still on the Isles of Scilly, Horned Lark in Surrey, King Eider in County Cork and Ferruginous Duck in Hampshire.

Scarcities were headlined by four Bluethroats - presumably all White-spotted Bluethroats - comprising three in Suffolk and one in Kent - and supported by Yellow-browed Warbler (South Yorkshire), Lapland Bunting (Kent), Glossy Ibis (Suffolk), two each of Little Bunting, American Wigeon and Snow Goose, three of Ring-necked Duck, Great Grey Shrike and Grey Phalarope, four of Ring-billed Gull and Cattle Egret, five Waxwings and six Surf Scoters.
-  Chris Batty, RBA
Monday 19th March 2018  
  The highlight of the day was the discovery of an American Herring Gull in County Clare at Kilkee whilst nearby the King Eider remained at Flaggy Shore. Rarities elsewhere comprised the Horned Lark still in Surrey, Black Kite on the Orkney Isles and Ferruginous Duck in Hampshire.

Scarcities included five Bluethroats - four together in Kent at Dungeness and one in Suffolk at Landguard - Common Rosefinch (Devon), Hoopoe (Cornwall), Yellow-browed Warbler (South Yorkshire), Ring-necked Duck (Somerset), American Wigeon (Ayrshire), Ring-billed Gull (County Wicklow), three each of Little Bunting, Glossy Ibis and Grey Phalarope, six Surf Scoters, at least 13 Cattle Egrets and a total of 15 Waxwings.

Spring migrant reports included Willow Warbler (Norfolk), two Ospreys, three Garganey and three Ring Ouzels.
-  Chris Batty, RBA
Sunday 18th March 2018  
  The highlight of the day was the discovery of three Bluethroats with two together at Dungeness in Kent and one in Suffolk at Trimley Marshes. In Cornwall the first two Hoopoes of the spring were located at Sparnon and Tywardreath whilst other spring migrants today included two each of Garganey and Swallow and a total of 11 White Wagtails.

Rarities today comprised the Snowy Owl still on the Isles of Scilly, Horned Lark still in Surrey and King Eider still in County Cork.

Scarcities elsewhere comprised Rough-legged Buzzard (Cambridgeshire), Glossy Ibis (Suffolk), Lapland Bunting (Northumberland), two each of Little Bunting, American Wigeon, Great Grey Shrike and Grey Phalarope, three Surf Scoters (together in Cornwall), four Ring-billed Gulls, five Ring-necked Ducks, and a total of 13 Waxwings.
-  Chris Batty, RBA
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