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March 2008
Winter seems to be finally over and the first spring 'overshoots' arrive at our shores. But unless you live in the southern half of the country you may feel as if you have been short-changed as winter continues to hold its grip and the action is still some way south.
But whether or not you are still togged up in balaclava and gloves, birds are definitely on the move again and there's every chance of a rare find. Top of the list of "most likely" are those Mediterranean specialities. Little Bittern, Night Heron and Black-winged Stilts will all put in an appearance and by mid-month the first Alpine Swift will have been reported. Now a repeat of the flock of five Alpine Swifts in Dublin in 1992 would be appreciated.
On the passerine front, Great Spotted Cuckoo, when they appear, tend to favour March. Another one is a possibility. The year's first Subalpine Warbler should make landfall during the month.
But don't stop watching the winter visitors. March is still a good month for White-billed Divers moving north as well as two to set everyone's pulses racing - Gyrfalcon and Snowy Owl. Another south-coast Gyr seems a strong possibility. But even if you can't find this high arctic wanderer, look out for Great Bustards or a Killdeer.
And March might just turn up a major crowd-pulling rarity. With two records of Evening Grosbeak (from Scotland) and records of Tengmalm's Owl and Lesser Short-toed Lark, don't ignore that pager!
March 2007: Highlight of the month was the relocation of the 2006 Glaucous-winged Gull in South Wales. But it soon moved on, heading westwards and into Greater London where it gave all bar one birder the slip. Perhaps a sign of climate change was the arrival of a Great Spotted Cuckoo in Kent and a Desert Wheatear in Manchester early on in the month with more spring arrivals bringing Red-flanked Bluetail and the first of the Red-rumped Swallows by the months end. A Black-throated Thrush in Yorkshire was another popular spring migrant.
March 2006: Highlight of the month was a showy (at times) first-winter Sora in Lincolnshire. Less obliging was an American Robin in London, present since January, but only identified the day before it promptly disappeared. By mid-month the first spring migrants were being sighted with a dozen Night Herons, a single Pallid Swift and four Alpine Swifts at the end of the month. More intriguing were reports of a Spanish Sparrow in Coventry and the now regular passage of White-billed Divers off the Isle of Lewis.
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.
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