Not had a lot of time for birding over the last week. Too busy at work. Locally, there has been no further sign of the Black Redstart but I have managed a Kingfisher at Yate Common and a pair of Gadwall at Kingsgate Park. The Gadwall as usual are skulking on the long pond but it won’t be long before there move over to the main lake.

I manged a quick jaunt around Sodbury Common on Friday. It is now starting to get very wet up there as it becomes more flooded with the rain. I am determined to keep an eye on it over the winter just in case something decent turns up. Nothing to report on Friday though other than an increase in Redwing and Fieldfare.

Last Sunday I made the trip down to Brixham for the DESERT WHEATEAR that had been present for a few days. The hardest part of this twitch was finding Mann Sands in the first place. Lots of driving around windy lanes in fear of meeting a tractor coming in the other direction.

Once parked at the car park it was a slippery walk down a steep hill to the Coastguard Cottage.

The bird was showing well as soon as I got there and sharing the roof with a female Black Redstart a couple of Rock Pipits and a Chiffchaff.

Of course to get back I had to return up the hill. I was puffed out by the top. Obviously not very fit !

I was sat in the office on Friday afternoon when the pager sound the Mega Alert. I half heartedly looked at it expecting to be miles away. It read "Sharp Tailed Sandpiper,Blagdon Lake". Grrrr I was stuck in work for the rest of the afternoon.

On Saturday morning I headed down to Blagdon getting there at around 7:30. No sign. The juv Long Tailed Duck was showing well and on the surface for prolonged times.

At around 9ish I was contemplating heading to Devon for the Desert Wheatear when the pager beeped to say that the bird had relocated to Chew Valley Lake. There was a mass exodus with a convoy of cars heading to Chew.

Upon arrival the bird was out of view but the two LONG BILLED DOWITCHERS were showing well around the exposed stumps. Suddenly the wader flock flushed from where they were hiding. When they landed the people to my left were able to see the bird but I was too far to the right.

After a couple of more flights and landings I eventually got onto the SHARP TAILED SANDPIPER and got decent scope views.

To make the morning even more memorable I crossed the road and saw the SPOTTED SANDPIPER as well.

Here is a picture that was in the Daily Express showing the twitch. I am the tall one in the blue coat in the centre. I’m not really that much taller than everyone else it’s just that I am stood up on a kerb looking over other people

The excellent Autumn continues, and this weekend brought two short distance twitches and two British ticks. On Saturday morning I headed over to Telford for the STEPPE GREY SHRIKE. It was nice and easy. Local birders had arranged a field for parking and there were even signs pointing to the bird. The bird itself was always distant with a scope being essential. However it did work its way up the left hand hedge and became a bit closer. I did get some photos but they weren’t worth posting. I was back home by lunchtime.

On Sunday morning I found myself over at The Gower in South Wales for the ISABELLINE WHEATEAR. Again this was an easy twitch with the bird being on show as soon as I got there. Everyone was lined up and the bird just kept working its way towards us. At one point it was around twenty feet away. I must say i was surprised when I got home and saw the pager message saying "Please watch at a sensible distance" It makes you wonder just how close people need to get.

                                                                       Pied Wheatear (c) Mark Coller

Local birder Mark Coller has kindly supplied me with some photos of the Oldbury Pied Wheatear and some of the birds that he saw on his recent trip to the Isles of Scilly

                                                                     Upland Sandpiper (c) Mark Coller

                                                                  Olive Backed Pipit (c) Mark Coller

                                                                   Wilson’s Snipe (c) Mark Coller

On Sunday we decided to go over to Pembrokeshire to twitch the Isabelline Shrike. We didn’t leave until 11 o’clock which meant time was against us with the lost hour of daylight. However, when we got there the bird was showing well. Some birders were waiting by the orange 5 bar gate and the bird came to within a few metres of them. I got some half decent photos in the fading light.