Wallcreeper Pas-de-Calais

[Red-eyed Video]

What must be one of the most sought after European birds has taken up residence on cliffs just north of Boulogne and has already attracted a steady flow of British birders taking advantage of the cheap crossings.

If it's still there after this weekend I may have to make my first continental twitch!

http://www.surfbirds.com/cgi-bin/gallery/display.cgi?gallery=gallery11

Dave J

[Bobolink44]

What a corker! When oh when will another one make it across the channel and winter?? As the photos will get shunted down the gallery page, here's a permanent one for the archives. Lot of people making the trek from the UK?

Wallcreeper, France, Boulogne's cliffs 29/01/08 © Steve Evans Steve's Website (http://www.isabelline.co.uk/)
http://www.surfbirds.com/media/gallery_photos/20080129042625.jpg

[Red-eyed Video]

Steve's excellent video is now here (http://surfbirds.com/video2/view_video.php?viewkey=455b3fa09a282e0d496f). The bird seems to be looking and listening in crevices before extracting food, excellent footage.

[AndyB]

Yes, Steve captures that behaviour really well. A video well worth checking out.

[john c]

After a slow start this bird seems to be collecting a steady stream of British birders. About 30 went over the first weekend (I was working & couldn't make it) and the following Saturday there were c100 birders - mainly Brits. Local French birders thought it was probably the biggest French twitch ever - a record, I suspect, that will take a long time to be bettered.

I also heard Black Woodpecker about 15km to the south - though others with more time both saw & heard them in the same general area. Unsurprisingly I also had Crested Tit & Short-toed Treecreeper in the same woods (though I missed Firecrest). With Crested Lark & Fan-tailed Warbler at Calais plus Shorelark & Snow Buntings nearby, the jaunt over to Calais can be very productive,

John

[Red-eyed Video]

Some stunning artistry by Stephen Message in the Surfbirds Sketchbooks here (http://surfbirds.com/mb/Sketchbooks/wallcreeper-0208.html)