Weekly birding round-up: 20 - 26 Apr 2021
The pulse of spring began beating just that little bit more urgently this week, with shorebirds in particular very much on the move and pushing north. The bubbling of Whimbrels enlivened many a local patch in recent days, and Bar-tailed Godwits seemed to be cropping up all over the shop too. Scarcer waders were out there for the finding, while the week’s top headlining bird was cut from considerably rarer cloth still…
Last year was notable for many things across Europe, many of which we’d sooner put behind us. On a positive note for birders in several countries, it was a remarkably good year for records of Greater Sand Plover - starting with a bird in Hungary at Sarkeresztur on 25th May, further sightings cropped up in the coming months of late spring and right through into the autumn migratory period.
June was marked by records from Sweden, Norway, Germany and, latterly, closer to home in Lothian where a bird lingered in Tyninghame Bay on 27th June – 6th July. July yielded more sightings in Finland and France, with French sightings extending right into mid-September. All in all, it was a good year for European records of this attractive bird.
If Britain got in on the act, birders in Ireland could only look on with envy during the Lothian bird’s longish stay. To the end of 2019, Britain had 17 accepted records of Greater Sand Plover; Ireland, on the other hand, had just a paltry single bird on the books, an adult bird seen for just thirty minutes by Killian Mullarney at Tacumshin (Co.Wexford) on 20th July 2016. Another example, preferably an obliging individual that stuck around a while, would be a welcome sight…
Alas, this week, news of Ireland’s second record, present at Rossbrin (Co.Cork) on 21st, broke belatedly a couple of days later – two days in which the bird hadn’t been seen again there. Another bird slips through the net. It’ll be interesting to see how records of the species play out again in Europe as a whole this year – 2016 was another big year for western European records, as was 2019 - in the latter year a bird even made it as far as Iceland. It feels like they’re getting just a little more regularly found in Europe, so maybe Irish birders won’t have to wait too long before they get another, more satisfying, crack of the whip.
If the Greater Sand Plover was the very definition of an unsatisfying bird, thankfully for Co.Cork birders there was some compensation this week in the form of a settled Sardinian Warbler at Knockadoon Head on 21st-23rd.
Not only settled, but a singing male for good measure. Rather like said plover, Sardinian Warblers retain significant Irish rarity cachet, there having been only three previous accepted birds to date – all of which have been in Co.Cork, albeit two thirds of them date back to 1993, when two males were found in April at Knockadoon Head and on Cape Clear. The third record was more recent, owing to another male that stayed put on Dursey Island for 25 days from 20th April – 14th May 2014.
The latter bird may have been the unblocker for many Irish birders who hadn’t picked up a pair of bins back in 1993 but, with seven years elapsing to the present day, there will surely be some who’ll be very glad of another opportunity to catch up with one of these smart warblers this week.
Perhaps relating to a possible bird seen passing over Cors Ddyga RSPB on Anglesey on 19th, Cheshire and Wirral’s third Collared Pratincole was found at Leasowe at Kerr’s Field on 22nd. Alas the sighting was fleeting and the bird swiftly moved on… leaving local birders to wait for their next twitchable bird, the last such being a bird at Frodsham way back on 28th April – 1st May 1987.
No such long wait occurred on Scilly since their last Rock Thrush - it’s been only four years since an adult male bird lingered on St Martin’s on 9th-15th April 2017, elapsed time in which Scillonian birders staved off boredom with a Blue Rock Thrush in autumn 2019.
In the dying embers of this week, and crowning a generally very enjoyable week for Scillonian birders (you’ll be seeing Scilly cropping up time and again in the Round Up that follows), a female Rock Thrush was found on St Mary’s at the airfield – the sixth record for the archipelago, and the spring is still young. What next in the coming weeks for the Fortunate Isles?
Once more, we commence the week’s seabirds in Ireland where, in Co.Kerry, the first-winter Double-crested Cormorant remained at Carrig Island on 22nd.
White-billed Divers continued to feature, for the most part in Scotland, albeit with the exception of a bird tracked going north up the northeast coast between Whitburn (Co.Durham) and Holy Island (Northumberland) on 24th. Other than that, though, the rest of the 20 or so birds logged this week were all in Scottish waters, with a peak count of nine birds from Portsoy (Aberdeenshire) on 26th. Numbers in Shetland were noticeably up, with several birds seen away from the usual South Nesting Bay wintering site including, notably, two from Fair Isle – the species is decidedly rare there, with the first of this week’s pair being only the fifth island record, and the first since 1979 – a great start to the day’s work for assistant warden Alex Penn.
There’s surely no surer sign of spring progressing apace than the arrival of numbers of Pomarine Skuas in the English Channel. This week they began their annual move past the usual south coast vantage points with some 150 birds logged, of which 29 birds seen passing Dungeness through the course of 24th was the highest single site tally.
Pick of recent long-legged beasties had to be the arrival this week of one or two Black Stork on 26th – one was seen in the morning following the course of the River Dee north at Cynwyd (Denbighshire) and then, in the early afternoon, either it or another bird was found in Cheshire, seen passing over Marton Heath Trout Ponds.
A modest arrival of Purple Herons took place across England this week – two were found on 21st, one at Westbere (Kent) that remained until 26th, and the other, an adult bird that lingered until 26th also, at Wellington GPs (Herefordshire); a couple more checked in on 24th in the southwest, with one seen on Scilly over St Agnes and on Annet, and the other on The Lizard (Cornwall) passing over Soapy Cove. Either the bird from earlier in the week or another new arrival was seen on Scilly on 26th on Tresco and St Martin’s.
Heading a little way up country, in Devon the first-winter Night Heron remained at Slapton Ley on 20th-26th, while the adult bird was once more seen on the Isle of Wight at Brading Marsh RSPB on 21st-22nd.
Settled and presumably new Glossy Ibises continued to be seen throughout the week. Three birds bounced around Oxfordshire on 20th-21st, being seen at Otmoor RSPB and Port Meadow, with two remaining at the latter site on 22nd, and one at Otmoor on 26th. One lingered in Cambridgeshire at Upware on 21st-26th, with a single bird seen at Fen Drayton Lakes RSPB in the evening of 23rd, and one at Needingworth Quarry Lakes on 26th. Three birds were settled at Cotswold Water Park’s Cleveland Lakes (Wiltshire) on 22nd-25th, with three noted in the county at Eysey Pits in the morning of 25th also. In Dorset, the long-staying individual was again seen over Hengistbury Head on 22nd, and in Christchurch Harbour on 24th. The three birds were again seen in Devon at Fremington Pill on 25th-26th. Finally, in Kent the Dungeness bird was still present on 21st-23rd, with another sighting, this time on the north coast of the county, coming from Tankerton on 23rd.
Lastly, a Corncrake was noted on Rathlin Island (Co.Antrim) on 24th.
There was just the beginning of a sense this week that our wintering contingent of scarce and rare honkers and quackers might be considering vacating our shores for pastures new. Starting with The Goose Formerly Known As Canada, the interior Todd’s Canada Goose remained on North Uist (Western Isles) on 20th; while the hutchinsii Richardson’s Cackling Goose remained on 20th-22nd at Udale Bay (Highland).
Just one Black Brant was nted this week, at Snettisham RSPB (Norfolk) on 24th-25th. Five possible Grey-bellied Brants were seen on North Bull Island (Co.Dublin) on 24th also.
Last of the interesting honkers were the white morph Snow Goose still present on Lewis (Western Isles) on 21st; and a white morph bird seen on 25th heading north over St Agnes (Scilly) while, later in the day, presumably the same individual accounted for the bird seen at St Gothian Sands (Cornwall).
Our only American Wigeon this week was the drake still present in Shetland at Loch of Spiggie on 20th.
A mere two Green-winged Teals were reported this week – individuals still present at North Cave Wetlands YWT (East Yorkshire) on 20th, and at Tacumshin (Co.Wexford) on 24th-26th.
Numbers of Ring-necked Ducks also took a tumble, from some 30 birds in the preceding week to just shy of 20 in the week just gone. Of these, a couple of sites hung on to multiple birds – the settled trio remained on Tiree (Argyll & Bute) on 21st, while the two females were still present in Dorset at Longham Lakes on 20th-24th.
More interesting Aythya were, however, available – two Ferruginous Ducks were seen at Coate Water CP (Wiltshire) on 21st while, at Lower Lough Erne (Co.Fermanagh), the drake Lesser Scaup remained on 20th, and a further drake of the latter species was logged to the north at Blanket Nook (Co.Donegal) on 22nd.
A handful of Surf Scoter were reported this week: two were seen in the Sound of Taransay (Western Isles) again on 21st-22nd; while on 25th in Lothian the female remained off Musselburgh, and two drakes were seen in Gosford Bay and Aberlady Bay.
Given how many King Eider have been found in Britain and Ireland over the past few months, whether the first-winter drake seen this week on 23rd-25th off Unst’s Uyeasound (Shetland) is one and the same as the bird last seen in Hascosay Sound on 3rd March is far from a foregone conclusion.
A little more certainty accrues this week to the drake Hooded Merganser still present in East Yorkshire at D reservoir near Tophill Low NR on 20th-26th – the damning duck fancier’s ring of shame has now been seen on its leg, so that firms up what we already suspected about its origins. Meh.
If that bird is now dropping off our radars, it’s replaced by a more testing conundrum altogether – a Marbled Duck found in the evening of 26th at Beddington Farmlands (London). One to ponder, certainly… nice time of year for one, but, y’know, ducks… and then there’s the small matter of the tame and approachable bird that’s been hanging around Dulwich Park (London) in the not too distant past. Dulwich to Beddington isn’t a long migration as the duck flies, no matter where it’s originally from.
We finish with our honorary wildfowl, the adult male Pied-billed Grebe, still happily resident on Loch Feorlin (Argyll & Bute) on 26th.
As we hoped, the week just gone featured a variety of wayward waders that leant a touch of the exotic to proceedings – arguably none more so than some Black-winged Stilts. The week began with a female found at Rainham Marshes RSPB (London) on 20th, followed by a male in Co.Cork at Clonakilty on 21st-26th, and another bird in Cornwall at Par on 21st.
A female Kentish Plover inland at Rutland Water (Leicestershire) on 21st was followed, on 24th, by the year’s first Temminck’s Stints - one at Covenham reservoir (Lincolnshire) and in Norfolk at Cley and Salthouse, both birds remaining until 25th at Covenham and Cley respectively.
A few more Dotterels checked in during recent days – one at Blackgang (Isle of Wight) on 24th, and another the latest species to be sound-recorded in the dead of night – this one passing over Crossgates (North Yorkshire) in the small hours of 21st. At the weekend, two were found in Kent at Wilmington on 25th; and on 26th one was found on the summit of Foel Fras (Gwynedd).
A probable Broad-billed Sandpiper at Breydon Water (Norfolk) in the evening of 20th alas came to nothing further. It would, had it been confimed, have been an early bird - while there are a handful of April records, the peak for arrival is emphatically May onwards.
The overwintering Spotted Sandpiper was still present at Culzean Bay (Ayrshire) on 21st-23rd, now sporting a goodly sprinkle of eponymous spots.
A Pectoral Sandpiper passed over Trevescan (Cornwall) on 20th.
Keeping it Nearctic, two American Golden Plovers were seen this week – one was present for its second day at Cross Lough (Co.Mayo) on 20th, while one was seen again in Cornwall at Maer Lake CBWPS on 20th also.
The first-summer Long-billed Dowitcher was once more seen at Scorton GPs (North Yorkshire) on 20th-23rd.
A Grey Phalarope dropped in to Staines reservoir (Surrey) on 21st, while another lingered a little longer in Norfolk at Cantley Marshes RSPB on 21st-24th.
The settled and popular first-winter American Herring Gull extended its growing tenure in Newlyn (Cornwall) this week, remaining there until 26th.
In Glamorgan, the recent first-winter Bonaparte’s Gull remained in Cardiff Bay on 20th-25th, joined there by an adult bird on 24th-26th. A popular first-winter bird was discovered inland at Rutland Water (Leicestershire) on 20th-24th; and one more was seen in Ireland this week at Tacumshin (Co.wexford) on 22nd.
Numbers of white-wingers continued to dwindle this week, though they’re not entirely absent just yet – some 20 Glaucous Gulls were logged this week, with our first blank day in a while for the species coming on 24th; and around 40 Iceland Gulls were recorded.
In Cambridgeshire, the second-winter Kumlien’s Gull was again seen at Smithy Fen on 21st and 25th; another bird dropped in briefly to the Catch in Lerwick (Shetland) on 24th.
Finally, a couple of Sabine’s Gulls were a spring treat – one seen heading north past Hunmanby Gap (North Yorkshire) on 21st followed, on 22nd-25th, by an obliging, lingering adult bird on the River Esk near Longtown (Cumbria).
Cream of the raptors crop this week must be the smart white morph Gyr found in Kent at Walmer Green on 21st, as per the memorable commentary on the accompanying video taken by finder Tony Wickenden, “duffing the f#ck out of [a pigeon]."
Given the prolonged spell of recent northerlies, the time of year, and the coastal location, there’s a feel-good factor to this bird despite the slightly incongruous suburban setting of a mowed lawn beside a busy road – April is a great month for Gyrs, with almost 80 past records for Britain and Ireland as a whole and, amongst them, several from southern England, from Scilly, Cornwall, Devon and Kent – the latter being a bird seen in Folkestone on 28th April 1979 which remains, to date, the only record for the county. It seems Kent’s superb recent run of rarities isn’t coming to an end any time soon…
Nor was that magnificent bird the only decent, superlative-worthy raptor to be seen this week – adult male Pallid Harriers were seen on consecutive days this week, on 22nd northbound at East Chevington NWT (Northumberland) and, on 23rd, heading south-east over Pitsford reservoir (Northamptonshire).
A possible Montagu’s Harrier was seen on 23rd over Bishop’s Stortford (Hertfordshire).
Cementing Scilly’s excellent day on 26th, a female Red-footed Falcon was found on St Martin’s.
Alas the probable Short-toed Eagle seen heading east high over Watton (Norfolk) on 21st didn’t quite make the final leap into a definite record.
A possible Black Kite in Cornwall at Nanquidno on 20th heralded a small rush of further confirmed birds – near Grassington (North Yorkshire) on 23rd and, on 24th, in off the sea at Samphire Hoe (Kent) and, in Norfolk, at Snettisham and Heacham Bottom.One was seen again in Orkney on Mainland on 25th at Heddle Hill; and on 26th two more birds were found, one apiece for South Stack RSPB (Anglesey) and Danbury CP (Essex).
Last but not least, a few Rough-legged Buzzards round off an unusually busy raptors section this week – two noted on 22nd, but at opposite ends of the country – one in Kent at Weddington, and the other north of Grantown-on-Spey (Highland) – and the final bird seen on Arran (Ayrshire) on 25th.
There has to come a point where either the first-winter male Belted Kingfisher at Dunboy (Co.Cork) moves on, or it stays to the point where we start to refer to it as resident. That rubicon presumably is somewhere later in the spring or early summer but, for now, it remained there this week on 22nd-25th.
On Scilly the mobile Bee-eater remained on St Mary’s on 20th-26th, with presumably its wandering ways accounting for the bird seen on Tresco on 23rd and heard there again on 25th. Another was heard only passing above Rainham Marshes RSPB (London) on 23rd, while three were seen that day in Devon near Torridge. On 26th a final bird was reported from The Lizard (Cornwall).
A fair arrival of Hoopoes clocked in this week, with some 25 widely scattered birds logged. Co.Cork was particularly blessed with no fewer than eight birds, including the settled individual still present on Cape Clear on 20th-24th, but in Britain some pioneering birds were found further north, with one seen at Inverness (Highland) on 24th, and three birds seen in Yorkshire over the course of recent days too.
Numbers of Wrynecks just about scaled the dizzy heights of double figures, but were nonetheless on the up, and birds were noted in Norfolk in particular this week – at Cley still on 20th-21st; at Winterton Dunes and Walsey Hills NOA on 20th; on 21st at Breydon Water; and on 24th at Brancaster and Weybourne Camp. Elsewhere, birds were found at Sheepcote Valley (East Sussex) and Gibraltar Point NNR on 22nd, on North Ronaldsay (Orkney) on 24th and, on 25th, near Rye (East Sussex) and at Kessingland (Suffolk); and finally on 26th at Pwllheli (Gwynedd) and Southwold (Suffolk).
The year’s first Woodchat Shrikes were found this week – birds at Millbrook (Cornwall) on 20th; on Tresco (Scilly) on 24th-26th; on 25th at Kenidjack (Cornwall); and on 26th at Nanquidno (Cornwall) – while an early Red-backed Shrike was found at Dungeness (Kent) on 24th.
In Hampshire, the Great Grey Shrike remained in Woolmer Forest on 20th.
On Scilly, a Golden Oriole was seen on St Mary’s on 24th-25th, with two present on Bryher on 26th.
Up in Orkney, a Short-toed Lark was found near marvellously named Fowl Flag on Papa Westray on 25th.
A Red-rumped Swallow was found in Cornwall at Pendeen on 25th followed, on 26th, by birds at Howth Head (Co.Dublin) and Dungeness RSPB (Kent).
A brief possible Orphean Warbler sp at Warmwell Quarry (Dorset) on 20th came to nothing more, but if the week belonged to any warbler it was emphatically Eastern Subalpine Warbler - three of these always pleasing spring birds were found. Two males were in Cornwall, one apiece for Treeve Moor on 20th-26th and Porthgwarra on 21st-23rd; and one more was present on Foula (Shetland) on 25th-26th. These came hot on the heels of a female Subalpine Warbler sp photographed at Burton Marsh (Cheshire) on 19th.
In Suffolk, meanwhile, the singing male Iberian Chiffchaff remained at Foxhall Heath on 20th-26th.
Norfolk, not to be outdone, continued to sport a singing male Dusky Warbler at Nunnery Lakes NR on 21st-26th, while the Ainsdale NNR (Merseyside) bird was also still present this week on 24th-26th.
An unexpected bird at this juncture, and so far north, was a Yellow-browed Warbler up on Unst (Shetland) on 24th-25th. If that bird was a little wayward, spare a thought for the individual found this week in Canada near Missassauga on 25th – only the second record for Canada.
Numbers of Blue-headed Wagtails held firm, with around 35 seen nationwide, of which at least six on Tresco (Scilly) on 25th were the highest count. A probable Citrine Wagtail was seen at Slimbridge WWT (Gloucestershire) on 20th, but unobligingly flew off and wasn’t reported thereafter.
Much more obliging this week was the stonking Red-throated Pipit at Low Newton-by-the-Sea (Northumberland) on 23rd-24th – an absolutely brilliant find by Gary Woodburn.
A Richard’s Pipit was found on 26th on Bryher (Scilly).
A female Bluethroat was seen on Penlee Point (Cornwall) on 25th.
A handful of Serins were found this week – on 20th, one at Beeston Bump (Norfolk); on 22nd, one further north at Hoylake (Cheshire), sound-recorded just after midnight; and on 24th, two birds made landfall in Dorset, one being seen at Lodmoor RSPB and, a little later that morning, one noted coming in off the sea at Chesil Cove. Then, on 26th, a further small rush of them – birds seen on Scilly (where else?) on Bryher, but also at Durlston CP (Dorset) and Selsey Bill (West Sussex).
Fair Isle was the latest Shetland location to score a hornemanni Arctic Redpoll on 25th-26th, with the autumnal flavour enhanced further by a Little Bunting trapped and ringed on the island on 25th also.
Finally, in Surrey the two male Little Buntings continued to optimistically sing at Thursley Common NNR (Surrey) on 21st-23rd, with one still present on 25th; while two fresh arrivals made landfall on St Agnes (Scilly) on 24th and remained on the island the following day. The week concluded with a further probable bird in Scilly flying over Tresco on 26th, and a possible that day in Norfolk at Surlingham Church Marsh RSPB.
A fair few birders have found the allure of a big lump of blubber too much to resist in the past couple of weeks and, with the young male Walrus still present this week on the lifeboat slip at Tenby (Pembrokeshire) until 26th, still more were heading west to see him for themselves.
Considerably less convenient for would-be pinniped twitchers, Shetland’s latest Bearded Seal was found in Whiteness Voe on 24th. Shetland enjoys a near monopoly on recent records of these bewhiskered beauties – many of which settle in for protracted stays. We’ll see if this latest animal sticks around…
It’s one of those weeks where it’s truly hard to know where to begin overseas, there’s such a surfeit of good birds to go at. We’ll kick off fairly close to home, with a national first for the Dutch…
In Holland this week, the first Dutch Marmora’s Warbler was found on 21st at Julianadorp – a smart bird, and one to leave us green with envy. Also still present in Holland lately, the drake Baikal Teal remained at Zevenhoven on 20th-26th, and a first-winter Ross’s Gull was lingering again at Scheveningen on 20th-25th; while a Lesser Spotted Eagle was near Raalte on 21st.
Speaking of eagles, in Denmark a satellite-tagged Bonelli’s Eagle passed north over Skagen on 20th. Denmark also retained the Sandhill Crane at Torup Holme on 20th-24th and, on 22nd, a Black-browed Albatross was seen from Gilleleje.
Sweden also got in on the Black-browed Albatross act this week with sightings from Krakudden on 21st and Malmo on 25th.
To Germany next, where a Pygmy Cormorant was seen at Sudbucht on 22nd, and a Black-winged Kite at Bad Krozingen on 24th-25th.
France meanwhile scored an Elegant Tern at Pointe de Grigno on 20th, and a male Semicollared Flycatcher at Labergement-Sainte-Marie on 24th.
A couple of good gulls were found in central Europe – Switzerland landing an Audouin’s Gull at Klingnauer Stausee on 25th, and the Czech Republic a Slender-billed Gull at Chropyne on 24th.
Spain starts to lead us a little further afield, where two Lesser Flamingos remained at Laguna de Fuente de Piedra on 20th, and two Elegant Terns were seen at L’Albufera de Valencia on 21st.
Out in the Azores, on Corvo an Indigo Bunting was seen on 22nd.
Sweeping now up the Mediterranean, on Malta a White-crowned Black Wheatear at Gozo on 20th-21st was followed by a second bird at an undisclosed site on 22nd; and a Temminck’s Lark, the fifth for the island, was found on 23rd.
Finally, in Israel, the country’s first Chinese Pond Heron was still present in Jerusalem Botanical Gardens on 20th-25th.
The closing days of April, and the opening salvoes of May offer plenty of food for thought for the hopeful rarity-finder. Whilst we’ve been spoiled, of late, with the smart male White-throated Sparrow in East Sussex, let’s not forget the potential of other of his kind and near relatives at this time of year - White-throated, White-crowned and Song Sparrows have all, historically, been found in the coming week.
And that’s nothing to say of other Nearctic longshots – Britain’s first Red-winged Blackbird was found on 29th April 2017 on North Ronaldsay (Orkney) and, while that’s obviously a rarity beyond the dreams of avarice, past northbound Slate-coloured Juncos hint at more attainable possibilities.
All of which said, the coming week is more likely to be lit up by colour from a little closer to home. We’ve had a few Eastern Subalpine Warblers in recent days, and we’re coming into the period when they should be firmly on any coastal birder’s radar…
Jon Dunn
27 April 2021
Many thanks to all this week's contributors for your photos and videos
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