Sunday 30 November 2008 - Alvecote Pools SSSI - 30/11/2008
Alvecote Pools SSSI
After having terrible views of the SMEW in the fog yesterday, the bird showed a little better today but it was always pretty distant. Despite being told it was an adult female I reckon it could be a 1st winter male but improved views are requied to be certain. If you visit this bird please view Pretty Pigs Pool only from the top of Laundry Lane otherwise the wildfowl maybe flushed to other inaccessible pools in the area. The 6 male Goosanders were still present on Gilman's Pool and a single Little Grebe was on Railway Pool. Wildfowl numbers appeared to be down slightly, probably due to a combination of higher water levels and disturbance from pesky fishermen. There were still good numbers of Gadwall present though.
Sunday 30 November 2008 - Cattle Egret in Staffordshire..... AT LAST!
Sunday 30th November 2008
Cattle Egret in Staffordshire....... AT LAST!
Whilst twitching the Two-barred Crossbill up in North Yorks a few weeks back I bumped into Stokesters Phil Jones and Nick Smith. The subject of a local CATTLE EGRET cropped up and I predicted that we would have one in Staffordshire before Christmas. Little did we know that as we spoke there was one knocking around at Barton Under Needwood just 20 minutes away from where I live!
CATTLE EGRET - Barton under Needwood, Staffordshire - November 2008
Photo by Adam S Archer (can't you tell?)
According to the friendly lady at the stable block the bird had been present since the first week of November. This was only the second record of this species for the County with the only other sighting at Doxey Marshes for just one day on the 7th January 1987. This bird was therefore a much needed tick for a whole host of keen Staffordshire birders. The last record for the West Midland Bird Recording area was at Ansley, Warwickshire from 24th September to 23rd December 1994.
The bird showed very well in the horse paddock this morning but it does commute between a few nearby fields. If you use the stable block please remember to ask permission first, close the gates behind you and most importantly drop a pound in the donations bucket.
Thursday 27 November 2008 - Alvecote Pools SSSI - 27/11/2008
Thursday 27th November 2008
Alvecote Pools SSSI
A sexy female SMEW (oooohh my favourites) was found by Roy Smith this afternoon. It was frequenting the area of Pretty Pigs Pool on the Staffordshire side of the reserve (NOT Warwickshire as reported by the bird information services). To view the bird head up to the top of Laundry Lane and view the lake from below the fisherman's car park. The 'sawbill' theme continued with 6 male Goosander on Gilman's Pool where a Tawny Owl was also heard briefly at dusk. There are still good numbers of Gadwall knocking around with at least 50 birds scattered throughout the reserve.
Thursday 27 November 2008 - Rough-legged Buzzard in North Warwickshire.....perhaps?
Possible Rough-legged Buzzard in North Warwickshire
A possible ROUGH-LEGGED BUZZARD has been reported by a local couple to John Allton. Apparently the bird shows 'all the signs' of belonging to this species and has even been seen to hover whilst hunting rabbits. If anyone would like to follow up this lead the bird has been seen at least twice in the past two weeks from Kitchener's Bridge area. Along the B5000 east of Polesworth park either by the first railway bridge you come to and scan the general area or alternatively continue along the B5000 and park by the canal bridge that bends sharply to the left. Good luck..... and if you see it please let me know.
Wednesday 19 November 2008 - West Midland Bird Club - Annual Report 2006 (No 73)
West Midland Bird Club - Annual Report 2006 (No 73)
Today the latest annual bird report covering the 'chav' capital of England - Staffordshire, Shakespeares glorious County - Warwickshire, that slightly backward County full of web-handed suppressors - Worcestershire and that sprawling sewer that's not even a proper County - West Midlands dropped through the antique letter box of my quaint Warwickshire cottage. Before I'm sent any death threats (AGAIN), I'm only joking folks, I love all my 'West Midland' brothers and sisters equally.
The report (as always) is superbly put together by David Emley with the help from the 4 x County Recorders. It runs to a massive 244 pages and includes nearly 50 colour pics from the cream of local photographers. The report starts with a condensed review of the birds and the weather throughout the year followed by the usual systematic list of all species recorded in the area. The report then concludes with a ringing report by Bert Coleman and a brief finder's account of Staffordshire's first ever FRANKLIN'S GULL found by Max Radford at Blithfield.
Other rarities detailed include the female AMERICAN WIGEON at Belvide (well done Ian & Steve), FERRUGINOUS DUCKS in Warwickshire and Staffordshire, LESSER SCAUPS in Worcestershire and Staffordshire, GREAT WHITE EGRET in Warwickshire, GLOSSY IBIS over Staffordshire (the only Staffs blocker on my list), BLACK-WINGED STILT in Worcestershire, LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER in Worcestershire, GULL-BILLED TERN in Warwickshire (GRRRRRRR) and the RED-RUMPED SWALLOW in Staffordshire.
The report is FREE to all members of the West Midland Bird Club.... and if you're a birder who resides in any of the above Counties and you're not a member..... HANG YOUR HEADS IN SHAME! Alternatively you can purchase a copy for £10.00 (well it's really £9.00 but it's worth at least £10.00) including postage and packing from the following lovely person:
John Hoyle - 22 Montfort Road, Coleshill. B46 3LT
Please make cheques payable to West Midland Bird Club
Sunday 16 November 2008 - Firecrest at Alvecote Pools, Staffordshire - 16/11/08
Sunday 16th November 2008
Alvecote Pools SSSI
It was a pretty good day at the patch with loads of Fieldfare and Redwings about and Siskins and Lesser Redpolls passing overhead. The highlight however was a superb FIRECREST around the Old Orchard on the Staffordshire site of the SSSI. The bird was favouring the area of oak trees and holly bushes near to the shoreline of Pretty Pigs Pool. If you're thinking of paying this bird a visit look out for the oak with the Tawny Owl nest box and you've got the right area.
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One of last winter's Firecrests at Alvecote Pools.
Photo courtesy of Warwckshire's finest DAVE HUTTON (not Steve Seal... Whoops!)
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Hopefully this little gem will spend the winter at the reserve like two birds did last year. A single bird was found last year on the 24th November and I found two the following day. At least one of the birds lingered into early March of this year. It will certainly brighten up my days if it does hang around. Other sightings included a single Shelduck, a pair of Common Goldeneye (an Alvecote rarity) and a 1st winter Common Gull on Mill Pool. At least 8 Common Pochard were fresh in and the Tufted Duck flock has increased to about 90 birds between Mill Pool and Pretty Pigs Pool. Small numbers of Northern Shoveler, Eurasian Wigeon and Common Teal were also seen.
Saturday 15 November 2008 - A Yorkshire Hat-trick! - Crossbill, Wheatear & Tamworth FC.
Saturday 15th November 2008
A Yorkshire Hat-trick!
What a crackin' day! First I enjoyed marvelous views of the handsome male TWO-BARRED CROSSBILL in North Yorkshire, secondly the first-winter female PIED WHEATEAR showed well in East Yorkshire and the icing on the cake was my beloved Tamworth FC winning 3-1 away at Farsley Celtic in West Yorkshire..... to remain top of the Blue Square Northern League.
Urra, North Yorkshire
The first stop was the picturesque area of Urra just south of Stokesley. I parked at the Clay Bank car park and hiked the half mile or so to Garfitts Farm where a male TWO-BARRED CROSSBILL had been coming to feeders for the past three weeks. After about a hour wait the bird flew in and started to feed on peanuts..... unfortunately most of us were all watching the wrong feeder at the front of the house so I only got a brief glimpse. The bird then flew to feed high up in the larches where reasonable views were had before disappearing again. The bird was still in the area though as you could occasionally hear it's distinctive nasal, piping call. After a further hours wait the bird flew in again to the feeder at the back of the house. This time I was ideally positioned in just the right place and the bird showed well for about 5 minutes. After a short while it visited the feeder at the front completely ignoring the admiring crowd of birders that had assembled. This was only my second ever TWO-BARRED CROSSBILL in Britain and my first male. My previous sighting was of an adult female in the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire during March 1998. Other sightings in the area included the usual woodland species, a few Brambling and a zillion Common Pheasants.
Two-barred Crossbill factfile
After the influx of this species into the Northern Isles of Scotland during the early part of the autumn it was just a matter of time before one was picked up further south. I'm sure that a few more may well be reported in England as the winter progresses. In European terms the species breeds in Northern Russia. It also probably breeds in Finland most years and occasionally in Sweden, Norway and very rarely in Germany. Like other Crossbill species they are subject to periodic irruptions well away from their usual areas. Compared with other Crossbills this species has a marked preference for feeding in larches rather than spruces or pines and can also be found feeding in deciduous trees such as birches and rowans.
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Reighton Sands, East Yorkshire
I then headed south-east towards Filey feeling a bit like Nick Berry from Heartbeat as I made my way through some gorgeous Yorkshire countryside and a few pretty little villages. Unfortunately the PIED WHEATER had shunned these more aesthetically pleasing areas for a toilet block on a caravan site! Upon arrival the bird had moved out of the clifftop ravine and was feeding unconcerned around the static caravans. This first-winter female was an extremely tatty individual and appeared to have some kind of injury to it's underparts. Like the Crossbill this was only my second ever example of this species in Britain. My last was a 1st winter male at Spurn, East Yorkshire during October 1998.
Pied Wheatear factfile
There have been just 53 accepted records of this species in Britain with 12 of those reported since the year 2000. The species mainly breeds in Russia where there is a wild estimate of 100,000 to 1 million pairs. It also breeds to a lesser extent in Romania, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Turkey and Moldova. In winter the species migrates to eastern Africa where it can be found from Sudan and Somalia south to the north-east regions of Tanzania,
Wednesday 12 November 2008 - SOUTHERN GREY SHRIKE in Lincolnshire - A new addition to my British List - 08/11/08
SOUTHERN GREY SHRIKE in Lincolnshire
After spending the early hours of the morning nursing an hangover and being unable to remember much from the night before, I was actually dreading news of yesterday's SOUTHERN GREY SHRIKE still being present in Lincolnshire! Ridiculous I know! Anyway my 'Elaine Pager' was all broke so perhaps I could pull the duvet back over my throbbing head and spend my Saturday in blissful ignorance? Not possible I'm afraid. I checked on the internet but there was no news at around 7.20am so I texted some of the Cheshire Crew, within a few minutes Big Al Orton called to say it was still present. About a hour later I was on my way with Pezza Perrins & the Renegade Master for company.
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After receiving a nice tip off from Mark 'Feel My' Payne on the way up we made our way over to Grainthorpe Haven via Keyholme Lane rather than use the Horseshoe Point car park and walk the mile or so. It ain't nothing to do with me being lazy or nothing it's just that 'Big Pezza' gets all wheezy after strolling a few yards so it was more like a health and safety issue really. Anyway I soon managed to pick up the target bird feeding along a dyke in the distance, my first ever 'Steppe Grey Shrike' (race pallidirostris). After a short wait the bird came closer..... and closer.... and closer until the little beauty was more or less within touching distance. It even flew and landed to within inches of young photographer whilst he sat obliviously fiddling with his equipment. After the initial shock he must have peeled off a few decent pics, great stuff! Another funny moment was when an old geezer turned up, rushed over to view the field he thought we were looking in and began to look confused and panicy as he failed to locate the bird. It was because we were all looking beyond the field towards the top of a sign post where the Shrike was perched about a foot above his head!
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'Steppe Grey Shrike' - Grainthorpe Haven, Lincolnshire - November 2008
Photo by erm sorry I forgot where I obtained it from, please contact me for your royalty cheque Mr Photographer.... and well done for 'keeping a sensible distance' by the way.
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Unfortunately things began to get somewhat frustrating soon afterwards. The bird flew towards a hawthorn hedge that ran alongside a footpath between a stubble field and a nice green kale field. At this point most birders were content with viewing the bird distantly and waiting for it to return to the dyke. Unfortunately a few 'bell ends with big lenses' decided to 'bum rush the show' in order to get that 'money shot'. As a result an episode of chasing the bird from bush to bush ensued along with a certain amount of trespassing in both the stubble field and even worse in the kale crop! What also gets on my tits is that these numpties think nothing of ignorantly blocking your view of the bird, it's like owning a decent camera and lens gives you some kind of birding carte blanche to do whatever the fekkk you like. It's not all photographers but the good lads need to sort these idiots out, it's giving the decent fellas who we rely on for those mouth-watering shots in the magazines a bad name. To be fair there are a fair few birders that should take a long, hard look at themselves and their thoughtless actions too. Other birds on site included a late Barn Swallow and a number of migrating Pink-footed Geese.
STEPPE GREY SHRIKE factfile
If accepted (which it will) the Lincolnshire bird will represent just the 18th British record. There has also been one on the Isle of Mann..... but they're not part of Britain, so fekkk 'em!
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2004 - Ash, Kent - first-winter - 6th to 7th November.
2003 - Ballaghennie Ayres, Isle of Mann - first-summer male, in song - 17th June to 12th July.
1994 - South Walney, Cumbria - first-winter - 2nd November.
1994 - Great Wakering, Essex - first-winter - 26th to 30th October.
1994 - North Ronaldsay, Orkney - first-winter male - 14th September to 16th October.
1993 - Swindon, Wiltshire - first-winter - 23rd September to 28th September.
1992 - Easton Bavents & Southwold, Suffolk - age uncertain - 4th to 7th October.
Southern Grey Shrike is very similar to the more familiar Great Grey Shrike and was only split as a separate species recently. 'Steppe Grey Shrike' is the eastern race of the Southern complex and is the only race that is a long distance migrant, particularly those in the north of its range, hence its appearance in Britain over the years. Some authorities treat pallidirostris as a separate species in its own right. It breeds in Northern Pakistan, Afghanistan, North East Iran and east of the Caspian Sea down to the southern regions on Mongolia and even into China. In winter birds migrate in a south-westerly direction with around 30% of the population wintering in Turkmenistan. The remaining 70% spend the time in the Middle East, Western Pakistan and in North East Africa.
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Coming Soon..... Tales of Seals & Desert Wheatears......
Monday 10 November 2008 - Jeeeeez I Miss My Pager!
HELP...... I'm Pager-less!
It has now been THREE days since I returned my beloved Rare Bird Alert pager. It's not because I've been hit by the current 'credit crunch' (God I'm sick of that term) ...... HELL NO, I'd sooner go without Guinness and chip butties or pawn my dear old grandmammy's Royal Doulton figurines than be without up-to-the minute bird news. No it's because it suddenly broke on me. It has nothing to do with the rumours of a Friday night incident involving a lap-dancer, an angry bouncer and an attempt to secure a priceless photo for this blog it simply stopped working...... honest!
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Once again the RBA team have exceeded my expectations with their impeccable customer service and have provided me with free text alerts until my pager has been repaired and returned. Well done lads!
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Talking of Rare Bird Alert it has been brought to my attention that RBA Chief Executive Sir Richard Filby may have agreed not to shave for the whole of November in order to raise money for this years 'Children In Greed' appeal........ please make a donation on-line or make a payment over the counter at any High Street bank........ we're only in the 10th day of November and as you can see Dick is doing really well.......... allegedly.....
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DAY 10 of the 'No Shave November' campaign.
It's a good job his hands are in the way otherwise we'd see see his big 'Richard' hanging out!
Thursday 6 November 2008 - Not enough chicks into birds!
Not enough chicks into birds..... that's what I say!
As all us fellas know there is no where near enough fine ladies around enjoying our even finer hobby. It's weird because the fairer sex tend to out number the geezers in pubs these days and they've even infiltrated the terraces (or should I say seats) at football matches..... so why O' why are they so conspicuous by their absence in the field? Is it just a problem in Britain I wonder because since setting up this blog I've received 'fan mail' from female birders from all around the World.... except the UK. I've found that the west side of the United States seems to have the highest concentration of 'chick birders' around so if there are any single chaps out there get yourselves onto 'Facebook' and mailshot those lovely ladies in Texas, Arizona & California. You may well meet the woman of your dreams..... and see some 'dream aviforms' when you're invited over.
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Black Country Legend - Bernie 'Fluffy' Smith
A face only a mother could love.... but what about all the other ladies?
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Is it that the girls are put off by scenes like the one above? Who knows? Is it that British females would rather go out buying shoes during their spare time than pulling on their wellies and getting out into the countryside? Does birding need an image change? Is it that birders are looked upon as some kind of weird geeks on par with trainspotters and stamp collectors? I know one particular birder who shall remain nameless (but he was guilty of bringing a pair of fekkin' hair straighteners on a recent trip to Shetland) who never tells his prospective 'bed buddies' that he's into his aviforms for fear or rejection and ridicule. Things needs to change! I'd be grateful to hear your comments.......... but in the meantime.......... here's my contribution......... one for the ladies.......... and for Duncan from 'Wildsounds'...................................................
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Archie spending a bit of 'sexy time' at The Orca Inn, Hoswick, Shetland.
Photograph by Steve 'Ben Dover' Nuttall (I'm sure I caught him tenting his trousers whilst taking this saucy pic..... either that or he had a 'Cherry Lypsyl' in his pocket at the time).
Sunday 2 November 2008 - Alvecote Pools SSSI - 02/11/2008
Sunday 2nd November 2008
Alvecote Pools SSSI
It was as dark, dank and cold as last week's South Wales estuary down at the patch this morning. The birds on offer were of a similar standard too. 7 Shelduck were new in at Mill Pool. Other wildfowl there included 46 Mute Swans, 98 Eurasian Wigeon, and 71 Tufted Duck. Just a few Mallard and Eurasian Teal were present. Along Laundry Lane there was a large flock of Redwing but unusually not a single Fieldfare was amongst them. I then intended to head up to Belvide to see the 1st winter Purple Sandpiper that was present until I spotted that my tax disc had expired a few days ago.
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South View, Polesworth
Around the feeding station today there were at least 7 hungry Common Pheasants. The female Great Spotted Woodpecker was seen again along with 2 Coal Tits, a male House Sparrow and 4 Bullfinch amongst the usual visitors. With my air-rifle away having a new sight fitted the vermin were rife again with a Grey Squirrel and at least 3 Brown Rats knocking around. One of the Rats is particularly large and aggressive and was seen to attack one of the female Pheasants and chase off the Squirrel. It was probably the same one that attacked and killed a myxomatosis riddled Rabbit last week. All unwanted mammals will be receiving 'lead Aspirins' pretty soon.
Saturday 1 November 2008 - Dr Derek Pechora - A new addition to the ASBO crew!
Introducing Dr Derek Pechora
I have pleasure in annoucing that ASBO Birderz have at last secured the services of birding spiritualist medium Dr Derek Pechora. Derek may be familiar with some readers as star of the cult cable TV show 'Ghost Taunted' where his special powers have been used to contact 'spirits on the other side' or in other words those folks who have long been 'brown bread'.
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Born and bred in Fazakerley, near Scouseport , Derek once famously 'sensed a presence of' (but not necessarily saw) a Siberian Thrush and a Great Snipe on a local plot of wasteland. Derek along with his spiritual guide Freddie Mercury have recently started twitching after his local patch Giro Marshes on Merseyside was unfortunately bull-dozed to make way for phlegm-gargling Premiership footballer Steven Gerrard's new extension. Derek is said to be 'thrilled to bits' to join forces with the lads and cannot wait for the next big twitch.
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Dr Derek Pechora senses the presence of dread-locked actress Whoopi Goldberg in the room with him. Can you spot anything unusual?
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The first task I gave Derek was to advise whether the sighting of a Little Blue Heron in Cymru last week was legit. After holding hands with him for a while and undergoing a brief period of groaning Derek was finally entered.... by the tortured soul of a 19th century South Wales coal miner called Taffy O'Jones. Unfortunately old Taffy struggled to give us the answer we were looking for as neither Derek or myself speak a word of Welsh. The deceased miner was then frightened off by an evil entity. Unfortunately Derek or his spirit guide Freddie failed to identify the dark force at work. All he managed to sense were the faint letters 'L G R E' and the number '400' before collapsing in a pile on my living room floor.
Saturday 1 November 2008 - Turning The Air..... A Little Blue! - 25/10/08
Little Blue Heron in Cymru...... NOT!!!
Well what a waste of bloody time! After last night's report of juvenile LITTLE BLUE HERON in South Wales I was confident that a first for Britain would be in the bag by the end of today. Oh how wrong was I? Steve Richards and myself headed down to Carmarthenshire with fellow Midlanders Jules 'The Renegade Master' Allen and Thomas 'Poppadom' Perrins and arrived on site near Kidwelly at about 9.00am. There was no sign of the bird at this stage from either of the two viewing areas so we decided to head down towards the mouth of the Gwendraeth Estuary to see if we could relocate the bird ourselves. Luckily a hungry Perrins with his bloodhound type sense of smell managed to 'sniff out' a restaurant on a nice little caravan site that overlooked the estuary. We decided to grab a coffee and settle at this handy spot for a while until the tide came back in.
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A rare picture of 'Poppadom Perrins' without any food being consumed.
If you look closely you can see that the exciting prospect of seeing a 'first for Britain' proved all too much for Snapper Richards which led to him soiling poor Tom's anorack. Luckily all traces of 'baby batter' were removed at a later date with a quick dab of 'Stain Devil'.
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The views from the sheltered cafe were pretty good. The highlights were a small group of 6 Pale-bellied Brent Geese flying up and down the estuary as well as a marrauding Peregrine. There were also an estimated 30 Little Egrets in evidence but due to the distances involved there was no way that the American vagrant could be picked out. There were also around 30 Pintail, 20 Shelduck, 25 Eurasian Wigeon as well as a small selection of common waders which included 7 Greenshank.
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As the tide rolled in we then made our move back towards the area that the bird had been seen yesterday. There were probably around 350 to 400 birders present in the area but unfortunately the bird was not located by the end of the day. A ring-tailed Hen Harrier was nice to see and an escaped Snow Goose at least gave us something nearctic to look at but it was all obviously a bit disappointing after what might have been. No doubt the 'mick tickers' that travelled over to Ireland earlier on in the month had a wry smile on their smug little faces as the negative news filtered through.
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Real birders obviously take field craft very seriously..... but some don't. Notice how 'Captain Pugwash' here blends in with the dark shades of the nearby hawthorn bush. A quick glimpse of this and any self-respecting Little Blue Heron would take cover in the nearest creek!
Tuesday 21 October 2008 - ASBO Birder - The Logo Is Unleashed!
In order to celebrate the way of life that is to be an 'ASBO Birder'I'm in the process of getting a few T-Shirts and car stickers printed. This prototype logo is inspired by my old skool graffiti & breakdance dance heritage combined with the miracle that happened on that fateful day..... April Fool's Day 2005 ..... the day that a BELTED KINGFISHER took Britain by storm by turning up at Shugborough Hall in Staffordshire. The 1st April should really be classed as a public holiday by all West Midlands birders..... well those that saw the bird anyway!
Sunday 19 October 2008 - Alvecote Pools SSSI - 19/10/2008
Alvecote Pools SSSI
After the heartbreak of the recent ALDER FLYCATCHER and the retrospective AMUR FALCON I just about managed to summon up the enthusiam to start looking at birds again today. A quick trip down to the patch produced 2 Little Egrets on Teal Pool. On Mill Pool the wildfowl numbers are at last starting to increase with 49 Mute Swans (the biggest number in a while), 28 Northern Shoveler, 59 Eurasian Wigeon, a single Gadwall, 104 Coot, 10 Moorhen and a single Northern Lapwing. A few Meadow Pipits and Skylarks passed overhead. Over on Upper Pool there were 60 Common Teal and 11 Tufted Duck. It was good to bump into recent birding convert Simon Rose down there today. He's just starting out and practically every species and every little bit of birding behaviour he sees is new and exciting to him at the moment, I envy him in a way. He made me think about the fantastic stuff I'd seen over the years and convinced me not to dwell about the termoil of the last few weeks. Cheers pal. My smile got even bigger as a mixed flock of Redwing and Fieldfare passed through, the first local birds of the autumn.
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'South View', Poleworth
The highlight around the house today was a Grey Wagtail (a new garden tick yesterday) this time taking a dip in the bird bath. There was also a female Great Spotted Woodpecker, at least 5 Common Pheasants, 2 Sparrowhawks, 2 Coal Tits, 8 Long-tailed Tits and 2 Bullfinch amongst the more usual stuff.
Wednesday 8 October 2008 - 'TRAILL'S FLYCATCHER' - A New 'Species' for Britain
'TRAILL'S FLYCATCHER' - New to Britain
What a day to leave my pager at home! Whilst supping a pint of Guinness in Deacon Brodie's hostelry in Edinburgh this afternoon (another HSBC 'slap on the back' event), my fellow birding bredren inundated me with texts regarding a mysterious Empidonax flycatcher that had turned up in Cornwall. Was it part of some sick hoax? Unfortunately 'hell no' it wasn't! I continued to drown my sorrows with more of the 'black stuff' and a trip to a whiskey distillery.
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The trouble with these little American buggers is that they are a nightmare to indentify. The bird in question was soon narrowed down though as being either an ALDER FLYCATCHER or a WILLOW FLYCATCHER. Either way it's a new species for Britain so I need to see it as soon as possible. Apparently though these two species are pretty much impossible to separate in the field other than by listening carefully to their songs or calls and are still pretty tricky to tell apart whilst 'in the hand'. The summer ranges of the two species are different too. The Alder Flycatcher can be found primarily in Canada and Alaska whilst the Willow Flycatcher is usually found in the lower States. Both species migrate to South America for the winter. Before these species were split in the 1970's they shared the name of TRAILL'S FLYCATCHER so named after Dr Thomas Stewart Traill by John James Audubon upon his arrival in Liverpool in July 1826. It was a gesture of thanks from Audubon after the doctor helped him to find a publisher for his monumental 'Birds of America' books. I'm sure there will be a few keen listers out there hoping that it will be 're-lumped'. It will certainly be interesting to see how the BOU deal with this record, however we will probably all be dead by the time a decision is actually made. With that in mind maybe it's a blessing that I won't be able to get down to my beloved Kernow until Saturday at the earliest, at which point the bird will probably be gone.
STOP PRESS: It's been trapped and processed this afternoon (09/10/08) and identified as a 1st winter male ALDER FLYCATCHER.
Sunday 5 October 2008 - Day 10 - RED-THROATED PIPIT on Shetland - A new addition to my British List - 05/10/2008
RED-THROATED PIPIT on Shetland - A new addition to my British List
Our disappointing trip ended with a bang........ well with a slight ripple of excitement anyway. The first stop off on our final day was Trondra. After a careful group scan of around 700 Common Eider around the fish cages Steve Richards put his piercing blue eyes to good use by picking out an eclipse drake KING EIDER bobbing around in the distance. Fortunately the bird swam just a bit closer and all of the usual defining features of this species (whilst in this unimpressive plumage state) could be picked out. Also in this area Common Chiffchaff, Lesser Whitethroat and Siskin were seen. We then moved across to Kergord where a couple of Yellow-browed Warblers (including a particularly vocal bird) were seen in the main plantation. Other species included Pied Flycatcher, Blackcap and a few Goldcrests.
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On the way to Lerwick for fuel we then decided to stop of at a nice looking garden at Frakkafield near Dale Golf Club. Here we managed to see a Common Snipe, a Reed Warbler and a Blackcap. The highlight however was watching an angry golfer go balistic at a mischevious Raven which dropped in and flew off with his golf ball in it's bill! From the noise he was making anyone would have thought he was having his eyes pecked out Hammer Horror style..... very funny indeed. It was while viewing this particular garden that a friendly resident appeared and told us how whilst eating his morning bowl of Corn Flakes on the 12th September 1983 he peered out of kitchen wndow to find a HAWK OWL eating a Starling whilst perched in one of his willow trees. Just imagine that! Anyway whilst Andy Jensen and Steve Nuttall were rummaging around this famous garden news broke of a lifer for Andy and I down in South Mainland.
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We arrived on site at Clevigarth near North Town to find around twenty or so birders all looking in different directions which is never a particularly good sign. It appeared that our target species had just vanished into thin air. After a short while we all headed in different directions in order to attempt to relocate the bird. I hadn't walked far when I flushed a Pipit species from a small patch of nettles. It landed briefly infront of me before taking flight again giving off a distinctive tseeeeeeeeezzz as it went. At last my first ever RED-THROATED PIPIT but typically it continued to fly off into the distance. It was at this point that my emotions went from delight to disappointment in just a few seconds, I needed better views. The bird was relocated again briefly on a couple of occassions but just as I managed to get on to it the bird would either disappear into a patch of vegetation or fly off silently with the Meadow Pipit flock. Finally after a bit of hard work and a lot of patience we nailed the bird once and for all. This time Ian Moore flushed it but instead of the bird fleeing into the horizon it dropped down just a short distance away into a dense patch of nettles. We surrounded the area and waited quietly. Eventually the bird strolled out into the open providing us all with superb views as it fed just a few feet away.
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* Red-throated Pipit - Clevigarth, Mainland Shetland - Oct 2008
Photo by Steve Nuttall
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Before heading back to Levenwick to pack our cases we stopped off at Scatness where Tom Perrins had tipped us off about a Dark-bellied Brent Goose amongst the Barnacle Geese flock. Unfortunately by the time we got on site there was just 9 Barnacle Geese remaining along with an adult Whooper Swan and two youngsters.
* * *
So overall a pretty disappointing trip rarity wise but we had some pretty damn good birds really and some cracking views of them. Maybe us 'ASBO's' are just a bit on the greedy side. On the plus side I ain't laughed so much for ages, my sides nearly split on several occassions! Thanks for the memories lads.
Saturday 4 October 2008 - Day 9 - Blizzards, No Birds & Lerwick Loons! - 04/10/08
A Tale of Zero Birds......... it's Snow Joke!
The penultimate (I've always liked that word) day of the trip. It's just above freezing outside with gale force north-westerly winds making it feel more like minus fifteen! We had more chance of finding a Polar Bar or a Walrus today than we did of spying the odd decent aviform or two. After breakfast we decided we would 'chill' (quite literally) in the B&B for a while before heading up to Lerwick to find a pub that would be showing the football. Whilst in Lerwick we did a quick search of the harbour (without leaving the car) and picked up a juvenile Arctic Tern feeding amongst the Herring Gulls and Great Black-backed Gulls. There was no sign of any 'white-winged' Gulls however.
* * *
Right Said Fred enjoying a skinny latte (& I don't mean Ian Moore) at the Shetland Hotel, Lerwick.
* * *
The first stop was the empty bar of the Shetland Hotel where we warmed ourselves up with tea, coffee and fancy little Italian biscuits. At this point it had started to snow! We were all nicely settled in front of the 'big screen' when we realised that they did not even have Sky never mind Sky Sports, we consoled ourselves by watching 'Football Focus' before heading off into town to find a more suitable venue. After much deliberation we ended up at Da Wheel Bar. I felt like Luke Skywalker entering the Mos Eisley Cantina, all that was missing was a Wookie and a space pirate sitting in the corner. As none of us had lightsabers to defend ourselves with, we decided to predict some random footie results, drink up and get the hell out of there. They didn't have Sky either, just Setanta! The locals were getting restless so there was a risk that we probably wouldn't survive with all our limbs intact until 5.15pm when the Man Utd vs Blackburn match kicked off. We made our way back through the blizzards and headed south to Levenwick to the B&B. At least there we could get warm and watch 'Soccer Saturday' without picking shards of glass from the back of our heads. The highlight of the day for me was winning the 'ASBO footie prediction competition', it was a fine feeling taking crisp £5.00 notes from the other lads. After all the results were in, Andy and I made our way down to Channerwick to see if the Red-breasted Flycatcher was still there. Needless to say we saw absolutely nothing.
* * *
The view from Shalders B&B, Levenwick, Mainland Shetland - our base for most of today!
Friday 3 October 2008 - Day 8 - Making a Twatt out of yourself....... on Shetland! - 03/10/08
Making a Twatt of Yourself.......
If you're an childish birder with a penchant for toilet humour, no trip to Mainland Shetland is complete without a visit to the village of Twatt. We were determined to find a decent bird at this location in order that we could phone the news out to Rare Bird Alert. Initially only Northern Lapwings, Hooded Crows and Shetland Starlings were seen in the gale force winds but a quick search of a nice looking garden produced a brief glimpse of a Yellow-browed Warbler. It was the opportunity I needed, I phoned the RBA number, I had the message all sorted in my head......
* * *
"On Mainland Shetland this morning - Yellow-browed Warbler showing well at TWATT in the lady's garden of the house with pink curtains between the recently pruned bush and the rusty cess pit."
* * *
Unfortunately at the crucial time I uttered the word Twatt, I caught a glimpse of Snapper Richards's comedy face in the rear view mirror and lost it! The silence in the car was broken with an ejaculation of extreme laughter...... I hung up! Amazingly the edited message came through on our pagers a couple of minutes later.
* * *
The ASBO Posse (or should I say pussy) at Twatt, Mainland Shetland.
Left to Right - Jensen, Richards, Nuttall, Archer (front), Moore (behind).
* * *
We then stopped off at nearby Tresta where another nice wooded garden was thoroughly grilled. Here we found just a Spotted Flycatcher, Song Thrush, male Blackcap, Garden Warbler and a few Goldcrests. It was here that we had our second comedy moment of the day. A car pulled up alongside us with a local husband and wife birding combo inside. The trouble was that the male of this partnership looked exactly like the dad from the American Pie movies, we all tried to suppress the giggles. He said that he'd seen us having our photos taken by road sign at Twatt and even though he had seen it loads of times, he still found it funny.... not as funny as we found his movie star looks mind! While we all sniggered away like a bunch of school kids the female in the passenger seat looked absolutely horrified.
* * *
Hooded Crow - Twatt, Mainland Shetland - October 2008
Photo by Steve Nuttall
* * *
We then made our way around to Kergord where Ian Moore spotted the showy Barred Warbler before any of us had left the car! This bird continued to show well acting more like a Phylloscopus warbler than an elusive Sylvia. It obviously had some kind of identity crisis. Just down the road in the main plantation we had at least 3 Yellow-browed Warblers, a Blackcap and a Pied Flycatcher and a Grey Wagtail. Small flocks of Redwing and Fieldfare were also knocking around the area.
* * *
The final trip of the day was back down towards the south of the Mainland to the tiny hamlet called Channerwick. A 1st winter Red-breasted Flycatcher had been reported earlier in the day but there was initially no sign of the bird. Eventually though the bird showed briefly around the ruins of a derelict cottage before it flew off towards a grassy area nearby. Fortunately I happened to be at the right place at just the right time and I managed to get pretty good views of the elusive bird before it disappeared again. Also in the area was a single Yellow-browed Warbler and a pair of European Stonechats, our first of the trip. A minor disaster occured on the way back to the B&B when I drove our shitty Rover into a ditch but no major damage was done........ I think!
Thursday 2 October 2008 - Day 7 - HORNEMANN'S ARCTIC REDPOLL on Shetland - A new addition to my British List - 02/10/08
HORNEMANN'S ARCTIC REDPOLL on Unst, Shetland.
The first stop of the day was at Voe on Mainland. A RUSTIC BUNTING had been present around the pine plantation near Loch Voe yesterday but unfortunately there was no sign of it this morning. Our first few Fieldfares of the trip were seen in the area though along with small groups of Redwings, a true sign of a British autumn. We then headed further north to Toft where we caught the ferry over to the island of Yell. From the boat we spotted a couple of juvenile Red-throated Divers and a few Black Guillemots. After a half hour drive through Yell we then caught another ferry over to the island of Unst, the most northerly territory of our marvelous British Isles. It was then north again up to the village of Northwick, Britains most northerly settlement (Jeeeez I've said the word north far too much in this paragraph).
* * *
Northwick, Unst, Shetland - The most northerly blah, blah, blah......
* * *
At Northwick we joined up with our West Midland birding brothers Julian Allen, Bob Duckhouse, Tom Perrins, Pete Forbes and Keith Wimbush to search for the 'Arctic Roll', a bird I've always wanted to see in Britain. Around the sun soaked village a Spotted Flycatcher was nice to see. There were also at least 3 Lesser Whitethroats, 2 Blackcaps, a Willow Warbler and a few Shetland Wrens busily feeding away in the sunshine. With no sign of any Redpoll action we decided to split up and search the area thoroughly. It wasn't too long before Ian Moore and Steve Nuttall were seen to move pretty quickly, they had relocated the HORNEMANN'S ARCTIC REDPOLL. As I made my way towards the area I accidently flushed 6 Greenland Redpolls which flew up towards me and nearly sent me flying. Fortunately the Arctic Redpoll remained and showed down to just a few yards feeding along the grassy embankment of a burn. The bird then flew a short distance and showed even closer feeding on a compost heap at the bottom of a garden. I was just starting to get some decent video footage of the bird when we heard the piercing sound of a fox-hunters bugle! The bird looked as startled as we did! There aren't even any foxes on Shetland so 'WTF' was going on? Panic over it was Bob's ringtone on his phone! From now on Bob Duckhouse will now be know as 'Bob Foxhound'. After nearly being frightened to death the bird then departed.
* * *
HORNEMANN'S ARCTIC REDPOLL - Northwick, Unst, Shetland - October 2008
Photo by Staffordshire's finest - Steve Nuttall
* * *
HORNEMANN'S ARCTIC REDPOLL FACTFILE
This is the largest, palest and rarest of all the Redpolls. Hornemann's breeds in Greenland and the neighbouring Canadian High Arctic Islands and is a great rarity in Britain with almost all records coming from the Northern Isles. Hornemann's is larger (averages 14.0 cm) than the commoner COUES'S ARCTIC REDPOLL (exilipes) which averages 12.5 cm and breeds in the Low Arctic of North America and Europe. Hornemann's is whiter with less streaking on the sides and flanks and has immaculate white undertail coverts. Adult males have less pink in the plumage than exilipes, some showing only a trace of pink suffusion on the breast. Both races have the distinctive smaller and more pushed-in appearance of the bill in comparison to Common Redpoll which also has more heavily streaking on the sides of the breast and especially on the undertail coverts.
After a bite to eat in the dunes, a quick wrestle with Mr Richards and a quick search for an imaginary Bluethroat we headed back for some more views of the HORNEMANN'S ARCTIC REDPOLL and the accompanying Greenland Redpoll flock. During the second spell of birding around the area 7 Goldcrests were seen along with Common Snipe, European Golden Plover and Chiffchaff. Unfortunately the weather then changed instantly and I had no choice but to shelter around the ruins of a spooky, derelicy cottage until the downpour subsided.
* * *
The ASBO All Stars - Back Row: Archer, Richards, Moore. Front Row: Nuttall, Jensen.
Northwick, Unst, Shetland - October 2008
* * *
The weather continued to get worse so further birding was completely out of the question. We cheered ourselves up by taking part in Britain's most northerly 'drive by' bell ringing session at Britain's most northerly Church, filling up the car at Britain's most northerly (and perhaps most expensive) petrol station and stopping for tea and cake at Britain's most northerly cafe.
* * *
Northwick Church, Unst, Shetland - Archie peeling the most northerly bell.
By the way I haven't wet my pants, I was caught in a downpour....OK?
* * *
Archie 'choking the chicken' in order to lift his spirits. Check our Snapper's face in the background!
The Cafe/Petrol Station, Northwick, Unst, Shetland.
Photo by Ian Moore
Steve 'Nut Job' Nuttall's Quote Of The Night: "Honey! What about honey? Those Japanese make honey soup, I mean bees nest soup. Bloody hell!" Once again this was shouted out at the top of his voice, IN HIS SLEEP at around 2.00am. We have reached the conclusion that a strong cup of tea and a bar of Galaxy is not the recommended pre-bedtime snack for Nuttall to be indulging in. For a laugh I might force feed him a pound of Stilton cheese before bed on the next trip. Sh*t would really hit the fan then!
Wednesday 1 October 2008 - Day 6 - When Being A Birder Really Sucks! - 01/10/08
When Being A Birder Really Sucks...... BIGTIME!
So it was all agreed, all five of the team agreed to bail out of the Fair Isle experience early. Due to work committments most of us could not risk being stranded until potentially the middle of next week. It was was gut wrenching but we had little choice. Then the inevitable happened. Just as we were taking our luggage downstairs we heard news that a LANCEOLATED WARBLER had been found down in the south of the island. We hitched a ride down in the back of the transit van (with the rarity red flag flying) to the area the bird had been seen. Whilst we were tossed around in the darkness news reached us of a HORNEMANN'S ARCTIC REDPOLL down at Pund. We opted for the 'Lancie' of course. We reached the crop area where the bird had been seen and commenced with an organised search but there was no sign of it. Gutted! It then got a whole lot worse. A probable WHITE'S THRUSH had been reported by an islander near the wind turbine. It had all started to kick off and we were leaving in less than a hour! I caught a quick glimpse of the Little Bunting again before we were bundled into the back of the van again and up to the air strip. We all stared at each other in utter disbelief, was this really happening?
* * *
Little Bunting - Fair Isle, Shetland.
* * *
As we hung around waiting for the plane to drop in Nuttall and I were beginning to have second thoughts about leaving. Jensen, Moore and Richards were adamant they were getting out of there. We then resorted to tossing a coin to decide our fate - heads we stayed, tails we got on the plane! We got three heads in a row....... but in the end all five 'ASBO's got on that plane back to the Mainland. It was initially a rocky take off in the strong winds but thirty minutes later we were safely back at Tingwall........ the first message that came up on my pager as I slumped off over the runway...... PALLAS'S GRASSHOPPER WARBLER on Fair Isle. A few messages later the WHITE'S THRUSH was confirmed and showing well on and off. NOOOOOOO!!!!
* * *
The Plane of Woe - Off we go! Note the transmitter on the hill in the background where the ASIAN BROWN FLYCATCHER was just a few days ago!
* * *
As we were back on the Mainland two days too early we then had to arrange further car hire and somewhere to stay. We headed south down to Hoswick to The Orca Inn Luckily the Cheshire crew had departed so we dropped on for some quality accommodation at a reasonable price. We dropped off our bags and headed down to Quendale to lift our spirits. With birds turning up on Fair Isle surely there had to be something elsewhere in Shetland. We commenced with a bit of 'burn bashing' and it wasn't long before we flushed a mystery Acrocephalus Warbler. After a few brief glimpses a trio of Scottish lads headed down towards us. The bird had been identified earlier in the day as a Marsh Warbler, not a bad start. Further along the burn a Yellow-browed Warbler was spotted. With not a great deal else about we headed back to the Inn to drown our sorrows..... again.
Tuesday 30 September 2008 - Day 5 - Fairly Vile.....errr I mean Fair Isle! - 30/09/08
Fair Isle - It's Like Alcatraz.... but worse!
Only kiddin' folks Fair Isle is a wonderful place but when the winds are in the west, you'd just sooner be somewhere else..... except at work of course. The day started off mild and real sunny as we made our way back down to the south of the island. A couple of Siskin (the first of the trip) and a Whinchat were seen around Gillsetter. We then headed across to Pund where a Yellow-browed Warbler and a Blackcap were spotted around the ruined cottage. We then headed across to the south west coast to give the clifftops a thorough search but nothing other than the expected seabirds were seen. The scenery around this part of the island however is breathtaking and the Fulmars glide past within touching distance.
* * *
I contemplated throwing myself off here.... but it was a bit high up!
A view from Malcolm's Head, Fair Isle, Shetland.
* * *
With nothing much else to see and with a high chance of not actually finding anything ourselves we decided to take another glimpse of the 2 juvenile Pectoral Sandpipers down on the scrape. Once again the birds showed no fear of our presence and with a touch of field craft I managed to position myself within inches of the birds. Superb stuff.
* * *
Pectoral Sandpipier (juvenile) - The Scrape, Fair Isle, Shetland.
Photo by Steve Nuttall
* * *
Andy and I headed back up to the Obs for lunch whilst the other fellas continued to search the south. Unfortunately they turned up at the Post Office after it had closed so in order to prevent starvation they raided the emergency biscuit supply up at the birder's shelter. I hope you donated generously lads? After lunch I explored Buness area taking in the Bluethroat in South Haven as I passed by. Unfortunately there was no sign of the Snow Buntings that had been present earlier in the day but the other lads connected with them down at Rippack at around the same time. We then headed south again to meet up with the rest of the team. Down in the south at least 3 Yellow-browed Warblers were seen along with a Lesser Whitethroat and a Common Redpoll. It was at this stage that the weather deteriorated and we all started to slip into deep depression. The main reason was the fact that with the weather all set to get even worse with north-westerly gales, there was absolutely no way that we were going to fly off the island on Friday. There was also a good chance that the plane would not risk flying on the Thursday either. Our only chance was to bail out early and fly off tomorrow (Wednesday) or hope that a lull in the storms on Saturday would last long enough for us to get off then. Sailing back on the 'Good Shepherd' was not an option either as it only sails on Tuesdays at this time of the year. In fact the forecast was that bad that the boat was hoisted up out of North Haven onto dry land. Never a good sign! After much deliberation we called the Airline and booked five places back to Mainland Shetland on the early morning flight. We were gutted!
* * *
The rugged terrain at Buness, Fair Isle.
* * *
That evening we drowned our sorrows in the lounge at the Obs. It's a warm, friendly place is the old Obs but in a way it is kind of like being in prison especially at meal times. Everyone gathers around in the lounge area around ten minutes before breakfast, lunch and dinner. At the sound of a bell there is then a mini-stampede as hungry birders rush to the hatch in order to receive their quota. The alpha-males are normally at the front of the queue, the reason being is that as soon as you've been handed your meal you then have the first choice of dining table. The prime spot is the table nearest the hatch. This means that if you're lucky enough to have secured this table you're then first in the queue for the puddings and second helpings. It goes without saying that the 'ASBO crew' claimed this prime spot as their own for the duration of their stay. The prison theme continues in that your stranded on a desolate island with absolutely no female company (except strictly off limits Holly). You miss your woman back home so much that it hurts and by the end of the week your starting to find some of the Fair Isle sheep pretty damn hot!
* * *
Anyway this particular evening our attention was drawn to one particular elderly gentleman. For the sake of this blog I will refer to him as 'Lollypop Man'. The reason for this title is the fact that for health and safety reasons he has to wear an illuminous orange jacket and trousers when strolling around the island in case he topples into a ditch and has to be rescued. As such he resembles an eccentric lollypop lady... without the lollypop. Now I don't know whether he's suffered a stroke or something but he obviously has difficulty in walking, not that it stops him bless him. The thing is that whatever drugs he is taking for his condition are obviously turning him into Britain's biggest stringer! He told anyone that would listen that he has no less than four different Lanius species drop in at his garden over the years - Red-backed Shrike, Great Grey Shrike, Woodchat Shrike and Lesser Grey Shrike! The Lesser he claims came back every year for four years to spend February to April there! On top of this amazing sequence of events he has also claimed Black Woodpecker, Grey-headed Woodpecker and Middle-spotted Woodpecker as well as breeding Nightingales and a family of Bee-eaters. Could it be that the BBRC will soon be drug testing observers and making them take lie detector tests before sightings are accepted? With an aging, drug-dependent population of birders on the increase maybe it's the way forward.
* * *
Steve 'Nut Job' Nuttall's Quote Of The Night: "That looks pretty much on fire to me so have a look, go on have a look before I turn it off!" Again this was shouted out at the top of his voice at circa 01.25 hours whilst he was sound asleep, what the hell is going through his mind? Is it a birding condition? I remember Gareth Clements (Smestow Gaz) shout out in his sleep once "Maaaan do ya hate me? Yo, maaaan do ya hate me....... ARGGGHHH AHHHHHH ARGGGHHH!" whilst we were stranded on Scilly one year. Do any other birders out there suffer night terrors? If so let me know.
Monday 29 September 2008 - Day 4 - Fair Isle Here We Come! - 29/09/08
Fair Isle Here We Come!
The adventure started with us nearly missing our 9.00am flight due to a very late, last minute check in. As it happened the plane didn't even fly until over a hour later because some numpty couldn't find the keys to the aircraft hanger! We then had fun and games with our 15kg baggage allowance. Why is it that a 18 stone fat b@stard is allowed to take the same amount of luggage on a flight as me who is in peak physical fitness and weighs slightly more than his ideal weight? It just ain't fair! Airport staff should add this line to their script at 'check in' time: "Sorry Sir/Madam due to our policy regarding clinical obesity we regret to inform you that you will only be allowed to travel with just a change of underpants and a toothbrush. The remainder of your luggage will be confiscated until you see fit to shed at least 20 pounds in weight.... you wheezing, smelly, fekkkin porker!" As the plane was overloaded we had to leave some of our gear behind.
* * *
The famous Fair Isle Bird Obs (top right) with the infamous Good Shepherd (below left) docked in North Haven
* * *
We were greeted at the airstrip by the lovely Holly and taken down to the Obs, our home for the next five days. As soon as we arrived we were enjoying our first decent bird of the trip, a Jack Snipe had been found in one of the heligoland traps. It had just been processed and ringed and we were just in time to see it being released.
* * *
Jack Snipe (with Snapper in the background) - Fair Isle Bird Obs, Shetland - Sept 2008
* * *
After a quick brew we then made our way down to South Haven where Andy quickly located a Bluethroat feeding on the insect rich seaweed. Also in the area were Ringed Plover, Dunlin, Common Snipe and Whinchat amongst the Turnstones and Rock Pipits. Offshore Fulmars were numerous along with around a dozen Black Guillemots and 2 Common Guillemots loafing around in the bay. A quick visit to one of the nearby clifftops produced a few Northern Wheatears and a male Blackcap. Surprisingly a Water Rail was also spotted feeding around the boulders at the foot of the cliffs.
* * *
Bluethroat - South Haven, Fair Isle, Shetland - Sept 2008
Photo by Steve Nuttall
* * *
After a spot of lunch we all then headed down to the south of the island. Whilst trekking down to the crofts a couple of Yellow-browed Warblers were seen along with a probable Greenland Redpoll amongst the Twite flock. Down on the recently created scrape 2 juvenile Pectoral Sandpipers showed well down to a few feet along with a juvenile Dunlin. Unfortunately one of the 'Pecs' had a damaged leg. With Nuttall sensing a storm we set off to find shelter which we found just inside the garage door of one of the locals. It was like a scene from a horror flick, five wet and weary travellers taking cover with five hanging sheep corpses, a rusty Peugeot and a whole bunch of nasty looking tools/torture devices for company. All that was missing was a banjo strumming soundtrack. We were all just getting used to our surroundings when we were evicted by an angry Fair Islander "Come on lads, you're pulling the piss, get out! If we were down south you'd all be arrested by now!" Is 'pulling the piss' an obscure Scottish expression? I've never heard that one before. :o)
* * *
After the storm cleared we continued with a bit more 'crop bashing' nearby. After carefully picking through another Twite flock we finally located a soggy looking Little Bunting feeding on the ground. It was while we were admiring this bird that Ian Moore picked out a Lapland Bunting too. A couple of nice semi-rarities in the same tiny crop. We were starting to feel a bit more optimistic about our time on the island as we made our way back north to the Observatory.
Sunday 28 September 2008 - Day 3 - Sh*tland.....errrr I mean Shetland! - 28/09/08
Shitland..... err I mean Shetland!
Great! After a check of the latest weather reports we learned that we were to suffer a week of strong westerly winds. Just what you need when you're up in the Northern Isles during autumn...... NOT! The first stop was Sumburgh Hotel where there was nothing of note. We then headed up to Sumburgh Head where a small flock of 10 Twite and a Lesser Whitethroat were the only highlights. Just down the road at Grutness we had a Garden Warbler and 3 Blackcaps in a nice little garden. A small group of 7 Pink-footed Geese and a Grey Wagtail flew overhead. We then moved up to one of my favourite spots Wester Quarff where we picked up at least 2 Yellow-browed Warblers, 2 Blackcaps, a Willow Warbler and a Pied Flycatcher around the gardens. Down by the Loch we had around 160 Common Eider, 13 Red-breasted Mergansers, 2 Eurasian Wigeon and 10 Black Guillemot.
* * *
Sumburgh Head - Nuttall & Jensen negotiate a gate!
* * *
The next stop was Kergord, an impressive place with easily the most cover on the whole of the Shetland Isles due to the relative shelter of the location. In the main plantation we had at least another 2 Yellow-browed Warblers and a few Pied Flycatchers. The highlight however was down the road near the farm where a Barred Warbler showed extremely well gleaning aphids from the underside of leaves. I don't reckon any of us will ever enjoy better views of this usually elusive species again in Britain. Amazingly Steve Nuttall even managed to grab a few digiscoped pics of the bird (see below). Jeeeez this fella has patience! Also in the area a few late Barn Swallows passed through and Blackcap, Garden Warbler, Willow Warbler and Chiffchaff were all recorded.
We then headed across to Scalloway where a nice mature garden was thoroughly searched. Nuttall and Moore tried to half-heartedly string a 1st winter Collared Flycatcher but it was probably just another of the many Pied Flycatchers that were around. Nice try lads! Whilst forraging around I found a recently dead male Great Spotted Woodpecker. It would have been a pretty good Shetland find, if it had been alive. The final stop was the Orca Inn as Hoswick where we had yet another Yellow-browed Warbler.
Saturday 27 September 2008 - Day 2 - AMERICAN GOLDEN PLOVER and WESTERN BONELLI'S WARBLER on Shetland - 27/09/08
Mainland Shetland
The first site we visited on this damp Saturday morning was Dalsetter near Boddam. After a helping hand from Jase Atkinson we eventually found the area where a juvenile AMERICAN GOLDEN PLOVER had been for the past few days. Luckily a quick scan of the favoured field produced the bird immediately. Taking advantage of the brilliant 'right to roam' rules up here we decided to try for some closer views and as the bird was shunning the flighty flocks of European Golden Plover we were not disappointed. It was a blessing that we decided to make this bird our first port of call as it disappeared soon after our visit, never to be seen again.
* * *
Juvenile American Golden Plover - Dalsetter, Mainland Shetland - Sept 2008
Photo by Staffordshire's finest - Steve Nuttall
* * *
A quick visit to Quendale failed to produced anything of note so we decided to drop in at the Pool of Virkie for some wader action. Around the edge of the pool there were 7 Bar-tailed Godwits, 2 Curlew Sandpiper and a Knot along with a few Dunlin, Redshank, Turnstone and many Ringed Plovers. There was no sign of any passerines in the famous Virkie willows.
* * *
With nothing else much to look at in the south we decided to head north to Lunna. Upon arrival at the small plantation it wasn't long before we were all admiring a very obliging WESTERN BONELLI'S WARBLER. The last time I saw this species was on the Isles of Scilly a few years back. That bird showed distantly whilst around 250 numpties jostled for a position to view the bird. Up here however it's a completely different kettle of fish, a maximum of ten birders were at this one with the bird showing just feet away on a barbed wire fence. Shetland rules!
* * *
Western Bonelli's Warbler - Lunna, Mainland Shetland - Sept 2008
Photo by Staffordshire's finest - Steve Nuttall
* * *
Also in the same plantation was a Yellow-browed Warbler, a Blackcap, a Willow Warbler and a few Goldcrests. On the way back south we dropped in at Kergord where I caught on odd glimpse of a very elusive Barred Warbler. Also present were at least 3 Pied Flycatchers. A Peregrine passed overhead and the only flock of Rooks on Shetland were seen. From the main road nearing Tingwall were saw our first Whooper Swans of the trip on the Loch of Vatster. There were a total of seven birds along with a drake Greater Scaup amongst a small group of Tufted Ducks.
