Weekly birding round-up: 5 - 11 Jul 2022
The coming weekend will see the rebirth of the British Birdwatching Fair when Rutland Showground hosts the inaugural Global Birdfair. The RBA team will be there and have some terrific New Subscriber Offers. So, make stand 32 in the Swallow Marquee your first stop at the fair.
The weather was hotting up this past week as high pressure settled over much of Britain and Ireland. Settled conditions not necessarily being particularly conducive to new rarities being uncovered, it transpired to be a fairly peaceful week on the whole, with lingering (or reappearing) quality making much of the running.
Cream of the crop for many a British birder with a yearning to indulge in a little light twitching this week remained the fine male Turkestan Shrike still present near Bempton Cliffs RSPB in East Yorkshire until 11th. A rare shrike is always a guaranteed crowd-pleaser, and better yet one that obligingly sticks around for days and days on end. As for one that’s on the very doorstep of a Black-browed Albatross… well, that’s the stuff of midsummer dreams right there.
The planets were aligning over Ireland this week with not one, nor two, but three top quality terns seen over the course of recent days. And that’s before we even get to the plovers…
Starting in Co.Wexford, the recently-found Elegant Tern chose to linger at Lady’s Island Lake on 5th-10th, albeit it could prove elusive at times during that tenure.
Been a minute since I twitched something rare outside the county bounds so news of an Elegant Tern at Lady's Island lake was too much to resist. Not a bad birthday ?? for @daniel_weldon and a tick also for me and the old man! Nice to see some familiar twitchy faces, as always! pic.twitter.com/KL16A32JRp
— Mícheál Cowming (@Watbirder1) July 5, 2022
Coming and going from the news these days, the adult male Least Tern was once again noted in the vicinity of Portrane (Co.Dublin) on 8th-10th.
So far, so reasonably expected and then, on 10th, what should also pop out of the woodwork once more in Co.Galway but the adult Forster’s Tern at Inishroo on 9th. Back again after an absence of a little over three months since it was last reported from Kinvarra on 21st March, it completed a fine hat-trick of rare terns for Ireland this week.
In a week where further depressing news about the extent of the ongoing outbreak of avian flu amongst our seabirds seemed relentless, the presence of the lingering adult Black-browed Albatross at Bempton Cliffs RSPB (East Yorkshire) served as something of a breath of fresh air. Present still there throughout the week, and seen from Flamborough too for good measure, it continued to delight both first time admirers and returnees doing a double with the Turkestan Shrike.
Beyond the Albert, the seas were somewhat quieter than during the preceding week. An Irish Wilson’s Petrel, seen from a pelagic off Rossaveel (Co.Galway) on 5th was a good start, but didn’t herald a largesse of further rare petrels.
A Leach’s Petrel was a good find off the back of the ferry between Unst and Yell (Shetland) on 8th. Sticking with Shetland a moment longer, a Little Auk reported from Sand Voe off Mainland on 10th would be a remarkably unseasonal bird, if confirmed.
(What are we to make, then, of the wholly unconfirmed report of a Brunnich’s Guillemot off the Shiants (Western Isles) on 8th? Stranger things have happened but, in July, probably not much stranger.)
Our only Cory’s Shearwater sightings this week owed themselves to the North Sea – on 7th one was tracked along the Norfolk coast, being seen from Sheringham and Trimingham in the morning; while on 8th one was seen heading north past Wolla Bank (Lincolnshire), and a probable was noted distantly off Howick (Northumberland).
Two Balearic Shearwaters were logged from Portland (Dorset) on 8th.
Finally, a Pomarine Skua was seen in the channel between St Agnes and St Mary’s (Scilly) on 8th.
Our weekly dalliance with long-legged birds is headed by a couple of Night Herons, with one present in Norfolk at Cley NWT on 6th and 8th being particularly locally popular; another was present at Oare Marshes KWT (Kent) on 6th-11th.
Glossy Ibises remained a regular sight at a number of British locales, with some 25 birds in all recorded as the week wore on. Peak count came from Dungeness (Kent), where five were noted in flight on 9th. A further notable record came from Orkney on 5th, where a single bird was seen on Rousay, and two over Papa Westray – were these newly arrived individuals, or birds coming out of the woodwork from the influx earlier in the year?
A further Norfolk Corncrake record came from Downham on 5th.
Were the two Red-breasted Geese seen in East Sussex at Pett Level on 7th-9th one and the same birds as those last reported from Saltholme RSPB (Cleveland) on 3rd? That’s one question. The burning one remains what to make of midsummer records of the species – a glance at the 90 accepted British records shows a total absence of birds in the period May-August…
In Co.Mayo, the drake Ring-necked Duck remained a persistent presence on Achill Island on 7th.
The first-summer King Eider was still reliably to be found off Musselburgh (Lothian) on 5th-9th.
The drake Surf Scoter was still in Lunan Bay (Angus) on 5th.
Finally, another showing from our honourable waterfowl, the adult male Pied-billed Grebe at Loch Feorlin (Argyll & Bute), on 10th-11th.
There may have been prior occasions when both American and Pacific Golden Plovers have been present on the same site at the same time, but they must be pretty few and far between. Birders visiting Tacumshin (Co.Wexford) on 6th-7th were treated to adult male examples of both species, with the lingering American Golden Plover joined there by a fresh Pacific Golden Plover. The latter bird was present until 9th at least.
Dipped the elegant tern… but how often has this been seen in Ireland? American and Pacific golden plover side by side in summer plumage… worth the trip to Tac! pic.twitter.com/rl9A2XUrcO
— David Stirling (@stirling413) July 6, 2022
The now-you-see-it, now-you-don’t Broad-billed Sandpiper in Shetland’s south Mainland was re-found back at Pool of Virkie and neighbouring Grutness on 5th-9th, and hence more resident and visiting birders enjoyed the opportunity to catch up with this smart wader.
Norfolk landed itself a White-rumped Sandpiper at Snettisham RSPB on 7th-11th.
Pectoral Sandpipers were found this week on Tiree (Argyll & Bute) on 8th, and Clogheen Marsh (Co.Cork) on 10th.
Two Temminck’s Stints were found on 10th in South Yorkshire at Eddersthorpe Flash, with one bird remaining there the following day. Also on 11th, a bird was found at Loch of Skene (Aberdeenshire).
The family of half a dozen Black-winged Stilts at Potteric Carr YWT (South Yorkshire) continued to flourish for another week, being seen there daily until 11th.
Pick of the week’s gulls was comfortably the adult Laughing Gull seen in flight from St Martin’s (Scilly) on 10th.
Birders in the English northwest enjoyed the opportunity this week to catch up with a lingering adult Sabine’s Gull - seen initially at Leighton Moss RSPB (Lancashire & North Merseyside) on 5th-8th and, latterly, at Jenny Brown’s Point on 8th-11th. Another probable was seen from Long Nanny (Northumberland) in the morning of 11th.
Adult Bonaparte’s Gulls were seen in Highland & Caithness at Firemore on 5th, and at the traditional site of Oare Marshes KWT (Kent) on 7th-11th; another was reported in Newcastle near the Metrocentre (Northumberland) on 7th.
Another unconfirmed report of a scarce gull came on 7th – in this instance of an immature Ring-billed Gull at Kilminning (Fife). A confirmed first-summer was seen on 11th at Lahinch (Co.Clare).
Highland & Caithness supplied sightings of Glaucous Gull at Brora on 6th still, with two birds present there on 11th, at Keiss on 9th, and Gairloch on 11th; and the putative individual (or hybrid) remained on South Uist (Western Isles) on 7th-9th.
The juvenile Iceland Gull was once more seen at Magheroarty Harbour (Co.Donegal) on 10th.
In Northumberland, the adult surinamensis American Black Tern remained at Long Nanny on 5th-11th.
The good summer for visiting Caspian Terns continued to play out in recent days. Sightings in Norfolk came from Potter Heigham on 5th and Hickling Broad NWT on 8th-9th; while one passing Flamborough (East Yorkshire) on 8th was an excellent persistent sea-watching reward. Another was noted in Suffolk at Botany Marshes RSPB on 10th, while a possible was also seen that day passing Long Nanny (Northumberland).
In an otherwise very quiet week for rare raptors, a handful of reports of Red-footed Falcons made the news – a male on Scilly on St Martin’s on 8th and again on 10th, another seen over the A299 outside Faversham (Kent) on 9th, and a first-summer female on 10th over Silkstone Common (South Yorkshire).
A Black Kite trickled in at Waterbeach Service Station (Cambridgeshire) on 11th.
As we’d expect at this juncture in the summer, the past week returned a significantly pared-down selection of passerines. Heading the pack in terms of sheer joy were, once more, the breeding party of half a dozen Bee-eaters still present in the sand quarry outside Trimingham (Norfolk) on 5th-11th. Another bird put in an appearance at Dungeness (Kent) on 9th followed, on 10th, by another sighting in the county at Kingsdown. Further single birds noted on 10th were seen at Shottisham (Suffolk), and heard at Wells Woods (Norfolk).
A Hoopoe was reported from Willen Lake (Buckinghamshire) on 8th, but wasn’t seen there subsequently.
Scarce and rare warblers were in ever shorter supply, with the best of them once more the singing Iberian Chiffchaff continuing his London sojourn in Regent’s Park on 6th-10th.
In Norfolk, the Great Reed Warbler was again noted at Snettisham CP on 8th, a week after it had last been seen or heard of.
A Marsh Warbler was heard in song in Shetland at Hoswick on 9th.
A male Red-backed Shrike was present on 11th at Brodsworth Community Woodland (South Yorkshire).
Three Rose-coloured Starlings were logged in recent days – one on Skye (Highland & Caithness) on 6th; another at Llangwyryfon (Ceredigion) on 6th-10th; one more on the Orkney Mainland on 8th at Holm, having been present there for some days beforehand; and another was seen at Kilnsea Wetlands (East Yorkshire) on 11th.
The recent Bluethroat at Slimbridge WWT (Gloucestershire) was last heard in song there on 5th.
A feldegg Black-headed Wagtail was found on 11th at Hayton Common (Nottinghamshire).
A male Blue-headed Wagtail was seen at Hesketh Out Marsh RSPB (Lancashire & North Merseyside) on 10th.
Finally, a Serin was noted passing over Fairlight Cliffs (East Sussex) on 5th.
Germany was enjoying a decent run of waders in the past week, with a White-tailed Lapwing on 4th-5th at Holzendorfer Seebruch, and a Greater Sand Plover at Sandgrube on 7th-9th.
Reports of Western Reef Egret came thick and fast from Spain in recent days – in Valencia at Marjales de Alfalfa on 7th, in Catalonia still on 9th at Estanys de les Escoles, and then on 10th-11th well inland in Madrid at San Martin de la Vega.
Lingering quality remained in France in the form of the singing White-throated Sparrow still at Les Bouchoux on 7th-9th, and the Bridled Tern still on Île aux Moutons on 8th.
And what now? At the time of writing, the week ahead looks set to be dominated by high pressure systems anchoring themselves across Ireland and southern Britain at least, with forecasts threatening soaring temperatures and perhaps even record-breaking ones at that.
Traditionally, it’s a quietish week for rarities. Granted, there are stand-out historic birds of high calibre, the likes of Caspian Plover and Brown-headed Cowbird, both of which boast single records from the coming days. And then, hope springing ever-eternal for what makes a strong case for being the sexiest bird on the British list, there’s Blue-cheeked Bee-eater, with no less than three of Britain’s eleven records coming from the week ahead, including Britain’s first, an adult shot on St Mary’s (Scilly) on 13th July 1921.
Perhaps we need to be a little more realistic in these hot days ahead. The coming week has always been a good one for White-winged Black Terns, and they’re a species that can turn up anywhere, over inland freshwater every bit as much as on our coastal fringes. A classic find for the fortunate birder trudging hopefully around their sweltering local patch this coming week, perhaps.
Jon Dunn
12 Jul 2022
Many thanks to all this week's contributors for your photos and videos
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