Weekly birding round-up: 27 Jul - 2 Aug 2021
So long, July, and hello August… I think we can start to think in terms of summer waning, and autumn beginning to warm up now. While in Japan the British Olympics team continued their impressive gold rush, what of the birding back nearer to home? This past week, while predictably quiet this early in the autumnal proceedings, nonetheless still featured one or two birds that deserved to stand proud on the medals podium…
If Western Sandpiper is a top drawer American peep in Britain, with 10 accepted British records on the books to date, they’re absolute dynamite in Ireland where, to the end of 2016, we’ve a mere five accepted records.
Ireland’s first was comparatively recent, being found on 3rd September 1992 in Co.Wexford at North Slob. Two more individuals followed in the course of the 1990s, at which point we might have been forgiven for thinking they might be all set to become a semi-regular feature of the Irish autumn birding scene. That would have been wildly inaccurate for, since the turn of the century, there’s been just one bird per decade, the last being Co.Wexford’s third record, a four day bird at Tacumshin on 23rd-26th July 2016.
Co.Cork and Co.Galway have also enjoyed a bird apiece but, until this week, not a sniff of a Western Sandpiper has there been for Co.Waterford. That changed in the afternoon of 31st with the discovery of a fine adult individual at Clonea Beach – Co.Waterford’s first record of the species, and a different bird to the recent Norfolk individual which, this week, remained present at Snettisham RSPB on 27th-30th. Happily, the bird remained present on Clonea Beach until 2nd.
The week kicked off in splendid form in East Yorkshire, where the adult Black-browed Albatross continued to be seen well, off and on, at Bempton Cliffs RSPB on 27th and then, after a day’s absence on 28th, consistently on 29th-1st. In the afternoon of 2nd it was once more seen from Flamborough (East Yorkshire).
If we needed telling that the seabird season was firmly upon us, we needed only to look this week to Scilly where pelagics were beginning to reap rewards in the form of multiple Wilson’s Petrels - six birds being amassed on 30th, and a dozen on 31st. These had been heralded by a single bird seen from Pendeen (Cornwall) on 29th. On 1st one was seen from a Scilly pelagic, while another singleton was seen off Penzance (Cornwall).
Two Leach’s Petrels were trapped and ringed at Sumburgh (Shetland) on 28th.
Staying in Shetland for a moment, the summering Long-tailed Skua continued to linger around the Boddam area of south Mainland on 30th-1st. One or two were seen going past Hartlepool (Cleveland) throughout 31st, with other sightings that day coming from Scoughall (Lothian), Whitburn CP (Co.Durham), Filey (North Yorkshire), Bempton Cliffs RSPB (East Yorkshire), and off Cramond Island (Lothian). 20 birds were noted on 1st off the northeast coast of England and Scotland, with a count of four off Ryhope (Co.Durham) the highest tally.
Single Pomarine Skuas were seen from Flamborough (East Yorkshire) on 27th and 31st; one more was seen from northeast England at Whitley Bay (Northumberland) on 31st; and an Irish sighting came from Bloody Foreland (Co.Donegal) on 29th. August began strongly with numbers picking up, with almost 30 birds logged on 1st – peak counts being four noted from Old Hartley and Seaton Sluice (Northumberland). Six more were noted nationwide on 2nd.
Large shearwaters began to be a thing this week, albeit in modest numbers. Single Great Shearwaters were seen from the Scillonian off Land’s End (Cornwall) on 29th, and a Scilly pelagic on 31st; and in the North Sea from Tynemouth (Northumberland) on 31st. On 1st a Scilly pelagic racked up eight birds; and a singleton was noted from the Scillonian.
Two Cory’s Shearwaters headed south past Flamborough (East Yorkshire) in quick succession on 28th; an unconfirmed report of one off Hornsea (East Yorkshire) on 30th was followed, on 31st, by a bird seen heading east past Sheringham (Norfolk), with a further reported on the north Norfolk coast of a westbound bird early in the afternoon; Cornish sightings came on 28th and 29th from Pendeen, on 29th from Porthgwarra, and on 31st at sea between Falmouth and The Lizard; and a single bird was seen from Bloody Foreland (Co.Donegal) on 30th. August commenced with a flurry of sightings of a single bird on 1st from the English northeast, and three noted from Porthgwarra; on 2nd one was seen from Flamborough.
Some 165 Balearic Shearwaters were logged over the course of recent days – of these, the best tally came from Porthgwarra (Cornwall) where 26 birds were seen on 29th.
The week was marked by an intriguing explosion of Glossy Ibises in Norfolk, with six birds logged at Welney WWT on 30th. Elsewhere, one remained at Ken Hill Marsh (Norfolk) on 28th still; one was present in Lincolnshire at Alkborough Flats NR still on 27th-28th and again on 1st-2nd; and another was seen at Somersham GPs (Cambridgeshire) on 28th and 31st.
Back in Norfolk, a Night Heron was seen at Strumpshaw Fen RSPB on 29th.
A Purple Heron was found in Suffolk at Carlton Marshes SWT on 31st, and seen again there on 2nd.
The rarities duckpond was still a largely quiet place this week, as we’d expect given the time of year. The rarest bird on offer was, by a country mile, the drake Black Scoter seen once more off Blackdog (Aberdeenshire) on 27th-28th.
Further north still, in Shetland the first-summer drake King Eider remained on Unst at Baltasound on 28th-29th.
What’s better than one adult Pacific Golden Plover? Two, obviously; and the only thing better than that has to be three adult birds seen on the same day in Britain. Has that happened before? The prior week’s birds remained on 27th at Frampton Marsh RSPB (Lincolnshire) and at Burnham Norton (Norfolk), but were joined in the news that day by one found on Anglesey at Malltraeth Bar, remaining there until 28th. While Lincolnshire and Norfolk have been graced by previous examples of this elegant shorebird, this was a first for Anglesey and, as such, a deservedly popular arrival. The Frampton bird remained until 2nd, while the Malltraeth individual was still present until 29th.
From the headlines alone you don’t need telling that the week was another good one for Nearctic sandpipers, so the supporting cast that follows merely underlines the obvious fact…
A Semipalmated Sandpiper was found on 28th at Rossbeigh (Co.Kerry).
White-rumped Sandpipers were seen at Snettisham RSPB (Norfolk) still on 27th and again on 2nd; and found on 30th at Annagh Beach (Co.Mayo); on 31st at Tacumshin (Co.Wexford) and Kilnsea Wetlands (East Yorkshire), the Tacumshin bird remaining until 2nd; and on 1st-2nd at Minsmere RSPB (Suffolk).
While the Pectoral Sandpiper remained at Adwick Washlands RSPB (South Yorkshire) on 27th-28th, fresh birds were found on 31st at Minsmere RSPB (Suffolk), Blithfield reservoir (Staffordshire), and at Tacumshin (Co.Wexford), the Minsmere and Tacumshin birds being still present on 1st, and the Minsmere individual hanging on into 2nd – on which day one more was found on Tiree (Argyll & Bute).
The first-summer Short-billed Dowitcher remained on the Ring estuary at Clonakilty (Co.Cork) on 27th; the Long-billed Dowitcher was seen once more in Cheshire at Burton Mere Wetlands RSPB on 28th-30th, while in Norfolk one was present at Hickling Broad NWT on 29th-30th.
A Black-winged Stilt was seen in Devon at Velator NR on 29th-2nd.
Finally, a Red-necked Phalarope was seen in Lincolnshire passing Gibraltar Point NNR and Huttoft Bank on 30th.
Starting once more with the terns, as the rarity of the star turns demands our attention once more this week, in Ireland the adult male Least Tern was again settled at Portrane (Co.Dublin) on 28th-31st.
On Anglesey, the adult Elegant Tern remained at Cemlyn Bay NWWT on 27th-30th, but wasn’t seen thereafter. With a day’s absence under its belt, it was refound to the east in the evening of 1st in Merseyside on the beach at Formby Point, where it remained the following day.
A Caspian Tern was present fleetingly at Denge Marsh (Kent) on 2nd.
A probable Gull-billed Tern passed through Stanwick GPs (Northamptonshire) on 27th.
Moving onto the slimline gull section, on Unst (Shetland) the first-summer Bonaparte’s Gull remained at Norwick on 27th-1st, while in Kent the Nelson, the adult bird, was still present at Oare Marshes KWT on 27th-2nd.
Our sole white-wingers this week were Glaucous Gulls again at Coleraine (Co.Derry) on 29th and on the Lossie estuary (Moray) on 1st still.
It’s that time of year again when we traditionally anticipate a report of either an Eleonora’s Falcon or a Booted Eagle - and, this week, it was a possible dark morph individual of the latter species that was seen heading over Breydon Water (Norfolk) on 31st. Alas, it came to nothing more…
…and then, on 2nd, we called house on rare raptor bingo with a possible dark morph Eleonora’s Falcon over Morfa Bychan (Gwynedd) in the morning.
A Black Kite was found on 29th at Ruddons Point (Fife).
Scarce and rare passerines were in ever shorter supply this week, as perhaps befits the time of year.
Starting with the colourful stuff, in Borders the recent Hoopoe was still present at Paxton on 30th; and another was reported in flight on the Isle of Wight at Brading Marsh RSPB on 1st.
Rose-coloured Starlings continued to be a bit of a thing, just about reaching double figures nationally, of which Scotland enjoyed the lion’s share. Here birds were seen on Shetland on Fair Isle on 27th-29th, on Noss on 29th, and on Mainland at Sumburgh on 27th-1st and Girlsta on 28th again; on Orkney on North Ronaldsay on 27th-31st still, and on Mainland at Stromness on 27th-28th; and in Highland at Dornoch on 29th. Elsewhere, one remained on Scilly’s St Mary’s on 29th; and on 31st birds were found at Llandyssil (Powys) and on Dursey (Co.Cork), the Powys bird remaining on 1st. On 2nd an adult bird was found in Norfolk at Gorleston-on-Sea.
A possible Waxwing was heard over Sumburgh (Shetland) on 1st.
In the Western Isles, the elusive Subalpine Warbler sp was still present on Barra on 27th-28th.
A Marsh Warbler was trapped and ringed at Hollesley (Suffolk) on 1st.
Dorset landed a Melodious Warbler at Durlston CP on 2nd.
Staking a claim for both an early glimpse of autumn and the week’s rarest new passerine arrival, a Citrine Wagtail was noted flying west over Weybourne Camp (Norfolk) on 27th.
Male Blue-headed Wagtails were logged at Bingham (Nottinghamshire) on 27th and still present at Pilning Wetland (Gloucestershire) on 28th-2nd.
Finally, a Common Rosefinch was found on Fair Isle (Shetland) on 1st.
Starting our overseas news in the north, on Iceland the Black-and-white Warbler remained at Syðra Lágafell on 27th-28th; a Least Sandpiper was found at Grindavik on 29th.
In Norway, the Sandhill Crane remained at Porsanger on 27th-30th.
Denmark laid claim to bird of the week with a flyby Ancient Murrelet past Kikhavn on 29th.
Holland’s Pygmy Cormorant remained at Everdingen on 28th-30th.
A Swinhoe’s Petrel was seen from a pelagic off Madeira on 29th.
Finally, in France an adult and two juvenile Elegant Terns remained at Polder de Sebastopol on 27th; one juvenile was still present on 29th.
While the week to come continues to offer a cornucopia of rare wader possibilities, now we’re into August my mind turns, irresistibly, to the joys offered by parking oneself on a distant headland or, better yet, taking to the sea in a small boat. Seabird season is upon us…
And while these days that means shooting for the stars with something utterly mega – and really, we could be forgiven for thinking almost anything’s possible nowadays, given events of the past couple of years – there will always be the stalwarts, the megas of yesteryear, the still-heart-pounding moment when a dusky Fea’s / Desertas Petrel hoves into view…
Jon Dunn
2 Aug 2021
Many thanks to all this week's contributors for your photos and videos
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