Weekly birding round-up: 26 Sept - 2 Oct
Yet more westerly airflows this week. This is not the script we’re all hoping for… but with birds on the move far away in the west as well as in the east, something was always likely to filter through…
Birders with half an eye on the news coming out of Iceland in the early half of this week, and maintaining a watching brief on the weather forecasts would have wagered that something tasty from North America was imminent in Shetland, Orkney or the Western Isles over the weekend…
Meanwhile, on Foula (Shetland), a pleasant hangover from the previous week remained a while longer in the form of the White-throated Sparrow still present until 2nd – first found on the island back on 7th September, that bird’s arrival was heralded in these columns with some commentary about Foula’s pedigree as a rarity hotspot. This particular bird was Foula’s second record, and Shetland’s 16th. So far, so good…
That it was joined, this week, by a White-crowned Sparrow found on Foula on 30th-2nd is nothing short of remarkable. Was there ever a single-site North American sparrow double before? Not that I’m aware of… But there it was – Foula’s second, Shetland’s third, and only the ninth ever in Britain. And where was the last record? Yep, on Foula only last year, present on 8th-11th October 2017.
The keen-eyed will note that this is a species that usually turns up here in the spring – of all the past records, we’ve just two autumnal arrivals, that last year on Foula, and the bird seen at Seaforth (Lancashire) on 2nd October 1995. The latter is a year to conjure with… 1995 was, like this autumn so far, dominated by westerly winds and, furthermore, as the autumn folded, graced by a host of interesting North American vagrants with no fewer than 15 species of passerine logged. Will 2018 be similarly blessed?
What 1995 didn’t feature was an American Buff-bellied Pipit - oddly, really, given the plethora of other goodies from the west we either enjoyed or, in the case of certain Nearctic warblers, ruefully shook our heads at what might have been had they stayed a little longer, or news emerged in a timelier manner. Bay-breasted Warbler, I’m thinking of you…
Single birds, one for each decade, in the 1980s and 1990s, didn’t give us much clue of what was to follow – from 2007 to 2014 American Buff-bellied Pipit was annual, and turning up in some numbers – to date, we’ve now 43 British and 21 further Irish records.
While it wasn’t a complete surprise, given what else was on the island at the time, that Foula should be where our latest American Buff-bellied Pipit was found on 1st, that will probably have been scant consolation to those birders visiting Shetland this week – Foula’s far from readily accessible, and while I imagine many visiting birders would need neither of the rare sparrows or the pipit, in a week with otherwise fairly slim pickings elsewhere in the archipelago these three birds would have been greatly welcomed had they but been somewhere a little easier to get to…
We all know that Yellow-browed Warblers have got a lot more numerous in recent autumns -spectacularly so – and the transformation of Red-flanked Bluetails from mythical rarity to annual staple is well-documented too. To that number must be added Brown Shrike - after the first, on Shetland on 30th September – 2nd October 1985, fully 14 years elapsed before our second, a long-staying bird in Ireland at Ballyferriter (Co.Kerry) in late November 1999. And then everything went a bit crazy…
Since 2000 Shetland alone has had another seven birds, while further sightings have been spread far and wide across the rest of Britain – with Cornwall boasting three records, the first of which was on The Lizard on 26th-27th September 2009. Brown Shrike, all of a sudden, has gone from unthinkable rarity to a potential find almost anywhere – as the popular, wintering, bird at Staines Moor from 11th October 2009 – 2nd January 2010 would attest. (I think I may still be almost alone in having the species on my garden list, though…)
Cornwall, this week, added to its tally with yet another individual on The Lizard, a first-winter bird at Kynance Cove on 29th-2nd. That would once have rocked the birding world, though not so much in recent years – but in this slow-burning autumn for eastern vagrants, it’s a welcome glimpse of what we may yet have in store for us in the coming weeks…
For all we’ve been spoiled in recent times with confiding and long-staying Stilt Sandpipers in Britain, they remain statistically rare beasts, with just 35 birds accepted up to the end of 2016. In Ireland, they’re rarer still, with only 16 birds on the books to the end of 2014.
None of those Irish sightings have obliged with properly long, settled periods of residence – indeed, the longest stay any of them have managed is 12 days. Short stops seem to be the order of the day with them, and that appears to have been the case with Co.Donegal’s first ever Stilt Sandpiper this week – an adult bird present on Inch Island Lake (Co.Donegal) on 27th only.
While the previous week had fairly left us reeling in its wake, with numbers of Great Shearwaters soaring into the thousands and Leach’s Petrels recorded in the low hundreds, this week was a different kettle of fish altogether…
Things had calmed down, significantly. Try telling that though to the Norfolk faithful for, early on 28th, it was here that a Fea’s-type Petrel was logged passing Blakeney Point.
That was, however, the highlight in an otherwise fairly unremarkable week for seabirds. Great Shearwater sightings were almost entirely confined to the waters off Cornwall and Scilly – 43 were seen over the course of the week from the Scillonian; 700 were logged from a pelagic off Scilly on 27th; some 140 were seen off St Mary’s (Scilly) on 27th also; and on 1st 100 were noted from a Scilly pelagic, while the Scillonian claimed five more that day, and one was seen heading north past Flamborough (East Yorkshire). The week concluded in Cornwall with a single bird off Pendeen on 2nd.
Numbers of Balearic Shearwaters, meanwhile, plummeted with just 170 birds seen all week long. Many of these were singletons, with a peak count of 101 coming from Prawle Point (Devon) on 2nd.
Leach’s Petrels were similarly denuded, with again around 35 birds in all noted this week, scattered around the coast with sightings coming from widely dispersed locations in England, Scotland and Ireland. The peak tally amongst their number were five birds logged off Portrush (Co.Antrim) on 30th.
However, Pomarine Skuas proved to be made of sterner stuff altogether, with some 140 birds noted nationwide. A scatter of Long-tailed Skua were seen this week, starting with daily single birds off Flamborough on 26th; Fife Ness (Fife) on 28th; Scoughall (Lothian) on 29th; and Seaton Sluice (Northumberland) and Kilcummin Head (Co.Mayo) on 30th. Three passed Hound Point (Lothian) on 30th and then, on 1st, the pace picked up significantly – two were seen off Whitburn CP (Co.Durham); singles were seen from Bardsey (Gwynedd), Port Vasgo (Highland), Long Nab (North Yorkshire), Gibraltar Point NNR (Lincolnshire) and Weybourne (Norfolk). On 2nd further sightings came from East Yorkshire, with a single logged off Hornsea and three birds from Spurn; and singles were seen from Dunnet Bay (Highland) and Gibraltar Point NNR again on 2nd also.
If Cattle Egrets keep up their recent form they’re heading in the right direction to be dropped from these columns, so numerous are they proving to be lately. Once again this week we’ve a good number north of 100 birds logged nationwide this week, though with many of these proving rather mobile and dispersive, quite how many we’re actually dealing with remains a matter of conjecture. Some 200 birds were reported this week, with a truly staggering count coming from the Somerset Levels – at least 105 were noted at roosting at Shapwick Heath NNR on 28th. The mind boggles.
A juvenile Purple Heron was noted in flight at Eldernell (Cambridgeshire) on 29th.
Moving onto Glossy Ibises, we experienced a modest surge in records again this week. Four settled individuals remained, respectively, at Dundalk (Co.Louth) on 26th-28th; Bowers Marsh RSPB (Essex) on 26th-27th; at Fremington Pill (Devon) still on 27th; and again at Aldeburgh Marshes (Suffolk) on 27th-2nd. Additional sightings came from Mizen Head (Co.Cork) on 26th, where two birds were noted; Donisthorpe (Leicestershire) on 27th-2nd; on 28th at Topsham (Devon) and Beddington (London); and at Oath (Somerset) on 29th.
The party of five Common Cranes tracked heading south at the end of the preceding week (seen in Northamptonshire and, latterly, Wiltshire and Hampshire) began this week in Hampshire at Lymington on 26th before, later that day, being seen over St Catherine’s Point (Isle of Wight). In the north, two were seen at Goole Fields (East Yorkshire) on 26th; with two over Anglers CP (West Yorkshire) on 29th, and two also seen that day at Erewash Meadows DWT (Derbyshire); and two noted on 29th at Big Waters NR (Northumberland). A further duo were seen at Arne RSPB (Dorset) on 26th, with a single bird noted in Cornwall at Land’s End and Nanjizal on 29th.
Spotted Crakes remained this week in Buckinghamshire at Willen Lake still until 27th, in Dorset again at Lodmoor RSPB on 26th, and at Old Moor RSPB (South Yorkshire) again on 1st. Another probable bird was reported, in flight, in Dorset at Stanpit Marsh on 26th also. One was seen at Gibraltar Point NNR (Lincolnshire) on 26th-30th, while one present at Wilstone reservoir (Hertfordshire) on 29th was joined by a second individual there on 30th-2nd.
Finding a Corncrake at this time of year remains a bit like getting two or three numbers on a lottery ticket – a good moment of happy chance, but not quite the jackpot. Three such serendipitous moments occurred this week in Shetland on Fair Isle of 26th and Foula on 27th; and on Bardsey (Gwynedd) on 29th.
Oh, Hooded Mergansers… you just don’t do yourselves any favours whatsoever, do you?
The drake, found the previous week in Co.Galway in Streamstown Bay, seemed to be ticking all the requisite boxes – at decently westerly location, at a credible time of year, found after a big westerly blow… what was not to like about that? Far less promising individuals have made the grade, after all. The current week began as the last had ended, with the bird still present on 26th-28th – everything seeming fine and dandy right up to the latter date when a keen-eyed soul noticed that it was sporting the Metal Ring of Shame – and, all of a sudden, it was now dubbed a ‘presumed escape’.
(Of course, we could probably say the same about any number of North American wildfowl that are found in Britain and Ireland, ringed or otherwise. Given that a quick Google turns up plenty of breeders in the UK offering everything from exotica like Hooded Mergansers to plain old Green-winged Teals via the whole gamut of the likes of Canvasback, American Wigeon and Lesser Scaup… I think we all suspect, in our heart of hearts, that even some unringed and fully-winged quackers currently on the record books probably originated from nearer the English Midlands than the American Midwest).
That said, despite some duck-fanciers offering homebred Common Scoter for sale – I kid you not – I think we’re all fairly comfortable with the wildness of the returning drake American White-winged Scoter, still present this week off Musselburgh Lagoons (Lothian) on 26th-2nd. Two drake Surf Scoter were again off Taransay (Western Isles) on 1st.
A juvenile drake Blue-winged Teal was found on Inishmore (Co.Galway) on 29th-30th, with another turned up on 2nd at Trabeg (Co.Kerry).
Three or four American Wigeon were seen this week: three single drakes at Loch Eye (Highland) on 30th, Rutland Water (Leicestershire) on 30th-2nd, and Hesketh Out Marsh RSPB (Lancashire) on 30th-2nd, with a further possible female there on 30th also.
In Highland, meanwhile, the resident drake Black Duck was still to be found at Strontian on 27th.
The juvenile Ferruginous Duck at Minsmere RSPB (Suffolk) remained there on 26th-2nd, while the drake was back at Blashford Lakes HWT (Hampshire) on 1st-2nd, and the drake was seen once more at Abberton reservoir (Essex) on 2nd. A female Lesser Scaup was seen at Chew Valley Lake (Somerset) on 28th and again on 1st.
The female King Eider was still present this week at Ynyslas (Ceredigion) on 27th, while the eclipse drake was seen again off Burghead (Moray) on 26th-2nd.
Starting our weekly shorebird foray, once again, with American Golden Plovers, we had ten or eleven birds recorded this week. Lingerers from the former week remained on North Ronaldsay (Orkney) on 26th, at Marshside RSPB (Lancashire) again on 26th, and in Ireland still at Omey Island (Co.Galway) on 26th and Loop Head (Co.Clare) still on 26th-29th, with another at Tacumshin (Co.Wexford) on 30th. Shetland sightings, relating to at least one and maybe more birds, came in the form of a possible at Fleck on 27th, a juvenile reported from Yell on 28th, an adult on Unst on 30th-2nd and, on 2nd, an adult on Bressay. Back in Orkney an adult was present on Sanday on 29th-1st; and in Norfolk one was seen at Titchwell RSPB on 27th.
A juvenile Semipalmated Sandpiper was reported from Lewis (Western Isles) on 28th but wasn’t seen again subsequently.
Just two Baird’s Sandpipers were logged this week, in the form of juveniles at Myroe Levels and Lough Foyle (Co.Derry) on 27th-1st and in the Easington (East Yorkshire) area on 30th.
Myroe Levels and adjacent Lough Foyle also hosted one of the week’s two adult White-rumped Sandpipers, present there still on 27th-1st; with the other seen on 27th in Lincolnshire at Gibraltar Point NNR.
Numbers of Buff-breasted Sandpipers fell significantly this week, though it wasn’t for want of trying – this was the species seemingly on the lips of every visiting birder I met in Shetland this week, with many a clifftop, field and golf course checked assiduously. Nationally, however, a dozen were seen, of which three were remnants from the preceding week – birds still present on Foula (Shetland) on 26th-2nd, at Scotney GP (Kent) on 26th-1st, and at Carrahane Strand (Co.Kerry) on 26th-28th. New birds were logged on Skokholm (Pembrokeshire) on 27th and on Loop Head (Co.Clare) on 29th, with two birds present at the latter site. On 1st four birds were seen on Hook Head (Co.Wexford), while on 2nd one was found on Tresco (Scilly) in the morning, with it or another seen on St Mary’s briefly in the afternoon.
Pectoral Sandpipers also dipped, a little, in numbers, with just under 30 birds in all seen nationwide this week. While most of these were singletons, including a popular London bird at Rainham Marshes still on 26th-30th, two birds were present still at Buckenham Marshes RSPB (Norfolk) on 26th-2nd; two were again seen at Tacumshin (Co.Wexford) on 27th-30th; and three were on South Uist (Western Isles) at West Gerenish on 28th, with two still present on 2nd. The week ended with two present on Tresco on 2nd.
The Temminck’s Stint remained at Pennington Marshes (Hampshire) on 26th-30th.
In Lincolnshire, the adult Long-billed Dowitcher was a more or less daily fixture at Frampton Marsh RSPB until 2nd.
Juvenile Lesser Yellowlegs remained settled in Cornwall at Devoran Quay remained on 27th-1st and in Dorset at Lodmoor RSPB on 26th-2nd; another was seen on South Uist at Askernish on 27th and again on 1st-2nd.
Perhaps just the one bird accounts for sightings of Dotterel in Cornwall on 27th-29th, being seen at Polgigga on 27th and then, on 29th, Nanjizal and Porthgwarra; another was logged on 30th at Old Head of Kinsale (Co.Cork), and on 2nd another was on Tiree (Argyll & Bute).
We’ve a couple of Red-necked Phalaropes recorded on 29th – one in the east at Bridlington (East Yorkshire), and another in the west at Ynys-hir RSPB (Ceredigion) – and further single birds noted in Ireland at Tacumshin (Co.Wexford) on 1st-2nd, and bombing past Flamborough (East Yorkshire) on 2nd.
And finally, the previous week’s hundreds of Grey Phalaropes were a fading memory this week, with a still respectable 60 or so but a pale shadow of what we’d enjoyed before. Lingerers hung on for a little while on some freshwater bodies but the majority of fresh sightings were back where they belong at this time of year, over open water. The week’s peak count came in the form of a dozen noted at sea off Cape Clear (Co.Cork) on 27th.
Quieter times also this week for that other pelagic wanderer, Sabine’s Gulls, with just 10 birds logged in all - around a tenth of the number of birds seen in the preceding week. On 26th a juvenile was seen from Flamborough (East Yorkshire); on 27th two were off Corsewall Point (Dumfries & Galloway), with one seen on Shetland at Scatness – this latter, perhaps, also accounting for a bird seen at adjacent Sumburgh on 29th; on 28th birds were seen on the Isle of May (Fife), at Whitburn CP (Co.Durham), and off Titchwell RSPB (Norfolk); one was seen from Collieston (Aberdeenshire) on 29th; and, on 30th, another was noted from Maidens (Ayrshire). On 2nd one was seen from Ramore Head (Co.Antrim), and another was logged off Gibraltar Point NNR (Lincolnshire).
The adult Bonaparte’s Gull was once more seen at Dunmoran Strand (Co.Sligo) on 28th, with another adult noted on 28th on the sea off Cloghaun Lough (Co.Clare); meanwhile, Ring-billed Gulls were logged on 27th at Blennerville (Co.Kerry) and Dundalk (Co.Louth) and, on 30th, at Rusheen Bay (Co.Galway).
Just the tiniest hint of winter, meanwhile, this week in a little upturn in numbers of Glaucous Gulls - five were reported, being singletons seen at Llandulas (Conwy) still on 27th; Dunbar quarry (Lothian) on 27th-30th; on 28th-2nd again at Burghead (Moray) and on 28th at Muir of Ord (Highland); and a further bird was reported from Highland at Ullapool on 29th.
Iceland Gulls were present at Drumlemble (Argyll & Bute) on 29th and up on Unst (Shetland) on 30th; two more possible birds were logged on the south coast at Sennen (Cornwall) on 29th and Southbourne (West Sussex) on 30th.
We hung onto two of the preceding week’s juvenile female Pallid Harriers for most of the past week – the individual at Welney WWT (Norfolk) remaining until 29th, while the bird at Therfield (Hertfordshire) was present until 2nd.
A juvenile Montagu’s Harrier meanwhile was seen in Oxfordshire at Otmoor RSPB on 30th.
Further variety came this week in the form of a Rough-legged Buzzard at Slains Castle (Aberdeenshire) on 28th, and a possible Black Kite in Berkshire at Twyford on 26th.
Kent supplied three Honey Buzzards, in the form of two over Sandwich on 26th and a singleton noted at Hildenborough on 27th; elsewhere, on 29th one was seen at Linby (Nottinghamshire); and on 30th birds were noted at Dunstable (Bedfordshire) and Thorpeness (Suffolk).
Finally, out on St Kilda (Western Isles), the female Snowy Owl was seen again on 26th.
We’ll start this week’s passerine low down with the good news – the Yellow-browed Warblers are starting to trickle through again… This is Good News – for with them, surely, more will come. They’re classic harbingers of autumn vagrancy. While a shade over 45 birds, as recorded nationally this week, isn’t going to set the world on fire anytime soon, it’s definitely a good sign.
They were, however, for the most part in the south of Britain – and even had made it out into Ireland, with a couple of sightings this week from Co.Cork. The Naze (Essex), boasted at least four birds on 30th but where they weren’t being seen was up in Shetland, their usual stronghold. Small wonder if was Cornwall that landed the Brown Shrike and not Shetland… but how, then, do we explain the River Warbler found on Unst (Shetland) on 1st-2nd? Quite how, or when, it arrived there is open to conjecture, but there’s no denying Shetland’s dominance where the species is concerned – of the 44 accepted British records to the end of 2016, just over half of them have been in Shetland, with September the peak month for arrival. Had this bird been lurking, unseen, on Unst for a few days beforehand?
Odds and sods were definitely trickling into the northern isles, however – a warbler at Lunna on the Shetland mainland on 29th-2nd was, initially, ascribed to Icterine but latterly re-identified as a Melodious Warbler - a rare beast in its own right that far north, and one that’s barely annual in Shetland.
An unequivocal Icterine Warbler was present on Cape Clear (Co.Cork) on 26th-27th.
Shetland landed a Marsh Warbler on 1st-2nd at Sumburgh; another, probable, bird was found on Unst at Lund on 2nd.
Lowestoft (Suffolk) scored on 30th with a new Blyth’s Reed Warbler, a species I suspect we’d have seen a lot more of in the past fortnight had the winds only been more conducive. A further possible bird was at Kynance Cove (Cornwall) on 1st.
Much the same can be said for Barred Warblers - this week 15 birds were logged, a poor showing really given the time of year. Two were on Unst on 30th, following a single bird there since 26th; elsewhere in Shetland on was in Lerwick on 28th-29th; Fladdabister claimed a bird on 28th also; another was on Trondra on 29th; and one was present on Lunna on 30th. Elsewhere birds were seen in Lowestoft on 26th; North Ronaldsay (Orkney) had one on 27th; one was trapped and ringed on South Uist (Western Isles) on 28th; and one was present on Tiree (Argyll & Bute) on 30th. On 1st single birds were present at Sand (Shetland) and on Sanday (Orkney), with two found that day on Barra (Western Isles); and on 2nd another was on Shetland in the dense cover of the Swinister burn.
On Shetland a first-winter Citrine Wagtail, found on Unst on 30th, may have been the previous week’s bird relocating; another was found on 30th also on St Kilda (Western Isles); and early on 2nd a further bird was seen, briefly, in Shetland on Bressay.
An unconfirmed report of a Richard’s Pipit at Thurlestone Bay (Devon) on 26th was followed by one on 29th at Porthgwarra (Cornwall), with two present at the latter site on 30th. One or both (or neither!) of these may have accounted for the records of single birds on 30th also at Polgigga and Nanjizal. On 29th a further bird was seen in Norfolk at Holme NOA.
Tawny Pipits meanwhile were represented by two birds on Scilly, present on St Mary’s and Bryher on 26th-28th and 26th-2nd respectively; a probable bird was seen in flight over St Mary’s on 30th.
Finally for the pipits, an Olive-backed Pipit was seen in Wells Woods (Norfolk) on 30th-1st.
A Short-toed Lark was found in Somerset at Huntspill on 28th; another was seen up in Shetland late on 1st near Fladdabister.
Onto more colourful fare – starting with a Bee-eater at Burry Port (Carmarthenshire) on 30th, we also have Hoopoes on offer this week – on 28th one was at Pentire (Cornwall), followed on 29th by further birds at Orford Ness (Suffolk) and on Holy Island (Northumberland); on 1st one was found on Portland (Dorset), with another in Cornwall at Newquay.
A Red-rumped Swallow was discovered on 26th over Hengistbury Head (Dorset).
We edge, just, into double figures of Wrynecks logged this week, with three on The Lizard (Cornwall) on 30th particularly notable. Elsewhere single birds were present on Skomer (Pembrokeshire) on 26th; at Land’s End (Cornwall) on 26th-27th; on 27th, on Inner Farne (Northumberland) and Whitburn (Co.Durham); on 27th-30th on St Agnes (Scilly); on 29th, birds were on Cape Clear (Co.Cork) and Sawdern Point (Pembrokeshire); and on 30th, single birds were present on Portland (Dorset) and at Earls Barton (Northamptonshire). On 1st a further bird was found in Bolton (Greater Manchester).
Two Golden Orioles were seen this week, both in Shetland – one on Foula on 26th still, and one on the mainland at Voe on 26th-27th.
Two Red-breasted Flycatchers were found on Tresco (Scilly) on 1st – surely an omen of more to come shortly – with one at least still there the following day.
Seven Red-backed Shrikes were spread widely nationwide – the week began with birds on Shetland at Exnaboe on 26th and Loch of Benston on 26th-27th; in the southwest on Lundy (Devon) and Worth Matravers (Dorset) on 26th also; and one still on Tiree (Argyll & Bute) on 26th-2nd. On 27th one was present on Orkney on Sanday; and on 30th-1st, back on the south coast, one was found on Thorney Island (West Sussex).
The first-winter Woodchat Shrike in Lothain remained this week at Barns Ness until 29th.
As the week drew to a close, an Isabelline Shrike sp was found on Barra (Western Isles).
The Pied Crow was still to be found at Flamborough (East Yorkshire) on 28th-2nd.
Getting an adult Rose-coloured Starling in Highland at Bonar Bridge on 26th out of the way, the rest of our Rosies this week were all juveniles: in Cornwall at Polgigga on 26th still, at Porthgwarra again on 28th-29th and once more on 2nd, and at Trevescan on 29th-30th; in Lothian still at Barns Ness on 26th-2nd; in Co.Wexford on 30th at Carne and Carnsore Point; and on St Martin’s (Scilly) on 1st-2nd.
Numbers of Common Rosefinch remained fairly consistent, with around 30 in all logged nationwide for a third consecutive week. Out Skerries (Shetland) once more claimed the peak count, with four birds seen on there on 27th-28th.
We finish with a quartet of Ortolan Buntings - single birds on Fair Isle (Shetland) on 26th-28th, on Scilly on St Mary’s on 26th-29th and St Agnes on 28th, and at Dale airfield (Pembrokeshire) on 30th.
Iceland, as mentioned in our opening remarks earlier in the piece, provided clues that there might be something in the post for us… Blackpoll Warbler sightings came from Hallskot on 26th and Eyrarbakki on 27th-30th, while a Red-eyed Vireo gave further cause for optimism at Kioafell on 26th.
In France the Red-necked Stint remained at Hyeres on 26th.
On 28th a probable Lesser Spotted Eagle was seen in Belgium at Dudzele, while on the same day Holland enjoyed a Black-shouldered Kite at Vogelwacht Uden.
A Blyth’s Pipit in Poland at Jastania on 29th-30th represents a national first; another was seen at Kalken in Belgium and, if accepted, would be the 8th for the country.
A Yellow-breasted Bunting seen in Spain on Majorca at Playa de Can Cullerassa on 30th ticks all the rare boxes – internationally endangered and a great Spanish record.
Meanwhile, out on the Azores, a Green Heron was present on Terceira on 27th.
Last, but by no means least, the young Beluga remained in the Thames Estuary throughout the week, until 1st at least.
The first full week of October is now upon us, and that should mean good birds are firmly on the radar. We could be forgiven for hoping, however, that the next big one is somewhere a smidgen more accessible than Foula…
More Nearctic waders feel like a certainty in the coming days – inevitable American Golden Plover and White-rumped Sandpiper aside, the coming week is historically a good one for Upland Sandpiper, with a dozen past records to its credit… and it’s surely time to start checking snipe underwings and tail feathers – I’m betting there’s a Wilson’s Snipe lurking out there just waiting to be found.
On the passerine front, another American Buff-bellied Pipit would be no surprise whatsoever… and nor would the autumn’s first Grey-cheeked or Swainson’s Thrush.
Jon Dunn
3 October 2018
Share this story
