March 2005: Just as predicted, highlight of the month was a Killdeer in Norfolk, whilst two White-spotted Bluethroats in Suffolk were also popular. Two Penduline Tits visited Kent briefly. Long-stayers continued to remain in residence with Short-billed Dowitcher and Forster's Tern in Ireland, Lesser Yellowlegs in Norfolk and two American Coots in Scotland. By the end of the month, a dozen Hoopoes had appeared and a few Northern Bullfinches at various east coast locations were presumably moving north.
March 2004: many of the winter's long stayers moved on during March including the Highland Rufous Turtle Dove, the Norfolk Pine Bunting and the Devon Dusky Warbler, whilst the Lincolnshire American Robin fell victim to a sparrowhawk. But new birds arrived with a long-staying Franklin's Gull in Dorset and two long-staying (amazingly!) Alpine Swifts in Hampshire and North Yorkshire. At the end of the month the long-staying White-headed Duck (Greater London) moved back to Cleveland, whilst even further north a finnish ringed White-tailed Eagle visited the RSPB Loch of Strathbeg reserve in Aberdeenshire for three days.
March 2003: An influx of Cranes in the early part of the month signalled that birds were on the move again. Two Sardinian Warblers arrived in Norfolk, but bird of the month was to be a fine male Pallid Harrier that arrived for two days in Cornwall at the end of the month. Other good birds continued to linger from the winter including the Buck's Two-barred Crossbill and the Norfolk dark-breasted Barn Owl whilst London birders were enjoying a fine Lesser Scaup in Regent's Park.
March 2002: A Red-billed Tropicbird sighted by a lucky few from the Scillonian, east of the Scillies, would have been a crowd-pulling rarity if it had hung around. As would have been the Little Bustard on the same islands if it too had chosen to stay. More obliging was a Scops Owl also in the West Country, an Alpine Accentor mid-month in Suffolk and a Western Black-eared Wheatear just a few miles north of the owl - allowing many to bag both. Spring overshoots included double figures of Alpine Swifts and one positively identified Pallid Swift, whilst up to 4 Ross' Gulls at various coastal locations underscored this winter as a good one for this species.
March 2001: Bird of the month was the Short-toed Treecreeper which graced Dungeness at the end of the month. Spring overshoots arrived in the form of a couple of Great Spotted Cuckoos and a dozen or so White-spotted Bluethroats. Filey in Yorkshire scored with a Pine Bunting at the beginning and a Rustic Bunting at the end of the month.
click here to return to header page