Alpine Accentor at Slaughden in Suffolk

News broke yesterday of an Alpine Accentor being found by Mark C on or around the Martello towers at Slaughden beach near Aldeburgh in Suffolk. The first reports were around 1.30pm which would usually have given me plenty of time to travel but yesterday I was on grandad duty, and it was impossible to travel so I watched the news in envy all afternoon but was pleased to see reports that the bird had roosted on a pipe of the tower. I called the Jims and arranged to travel up to be on site at 7am today with sunrise scheduled for 7.40am I assumed if the bird had stayed, we'd at least see it leave the roost.

We arrived at 6.55 and walked up to the tower in darkness to find around thirty birders on site and reports that a thermal imager had picked up a heat source on top of the pipe which was promising. Within ten minutes with the light improving, we could make out the shape of the Accentor on the pipe but by 7.15 it had a big stretch flew up onto the wall of tower then flew off around the back of the tower and out of sight.

The Martello towers

The enthusiastic scrum

It took around 40 minutes to locate the bird again. It was a bit of a scrum and I found myself at the back and although I managed to see the bird the views were poor until a guy next to me with a better placement let me look through his scope. When the crowd moved, I remained distant with three others and eventually had a magical reward when the bird flew back down the beach landing on the large boulders briefly before flying up onto the path close to me. Better still it then walked towards me giving views down to about ten feet or less.  Quickly the crowd gathered around the four of us, but the bird seemed unconcerned and continued to feed giving everybody the opportunity to enjoy it.

Alpine Accentor

Alpine Accentor Slaughden beach Suffolk

Alpine Accentor

Alpine Accentor

Alpine Accentor

Alpine Accentor

Alpine Accentor

I have previously dipped Alpine Accentor so this means I can remove it from the "dipped list"

My year list now stands at 243

My life list now stands at 436 (Mainland Britain only/BOU)

couple of local trips

My time birding remains limited, but I have managed a couple of local trips of late. Firstly I spent a morning at Grafham water in Cambridgeshire where we enjoyed a year tick with a drake American Wigeon that was difficult to pick out in the large duck flocks especially as they kept getting put up by a fishing boat that had very little regard for the wildfowl on the water. We picked out a Pectoral Sandpiper on the shoreline and a couple of Little Stints. Curlew Sandpipers were also present along with Dunlin, Ringed Plover and Grey Plover. 

We've also visited Lemford Springs for a couple of hours. Here we found several Green Sandpipers three Snipe, Water Rail and Kingfisher to name a few of the highlights. There has been a Jack Snipe reported but we failed to see it on our visit. 

Year list now 241

Grafham water

Green Sandpiper

Little Egret

Snipe

Snipe

Snipe

Water Rail

Water Rail

Blue-winged Teal at Fairlop waters ESSEX

News broke yesterday of a Blue-winged Teal at Fairlop water along with the usual (can't rule out Cinnamon Teal or hybrid) caveat. I thought I'd pop over today and have a look but then this morning it was reported as having clipped wings so my enthusiasm understandably waned until it was reported again at lunch time "fully winged".  On the second report I set off with the Jims as Fairlop is only a couple of miles away, we were there in a few minutes, and I noticed three birders with scopes/cameras set up so we headed for them hoping they knew where the Blue-winged Teal was. Andy T, Russ S and another greeted us and did indeed have the bird in their scopes.

The bird sat on the bank of the centre island of the main lake and did take a short walk before briefly swimming for a bit of a feed. The bird has a limp but definitely has two full wings and appeared to be un-ringed. The large white bar in the wings between the blue and green would indicate that it's a male and the dull sandy colour of the legs would indicate that it's a juvenile bird.

It remained distant and wary and all points to a wild bird. It was first reported as a possible Cinnamon Teal so this doubt remains but if accepted it would be an Essex tick for me so I'm pleased I put in the small effort to go and see it.

Egyptian Goose

Egyptian Goose

Common Nighthawk at Wantage in Oxfordshire

Sitting at home today doing my usual domestic duties I'm joined unexpectedly by my father-in-law, my son and my granddaughter and then the news breaks of a Common Nighthawk report in Oxfordshire. I called the Jims and put them on standby to await news of its accuracy and twitch ability.  These issues were quickly cleared up and access seemed ok too in exchange for a tenner, so I made my excuses and we set off for the 90mile trip around the M25/M40 arriving on site at 2pm to find around a hundred others already on site. We each dropped a ten-pound note in the bucket and within seconds were enjoying the fantastic vagrant from a distance of no more than twenty feet away. It sat on the fence all afternoon shuffling from looking left to looking right and back again every so often and would lift its head and open an eye every time a Red Kite flew over. 

The bird was last reported as taking to the skies just before 7pm.

Common Nighthawk

Common Nighthawk

Common Nighthawk

Common Nighthawk

Common Nighthawk

Nighthawk

Nighthawk

The news on site was that a resident had seen the bird and reported it to the RSPCA thinking it was sick as it was just sitting on the fence and of course it was quickly ID'd as Nighthawk and news put out. Well done to all involved locally for getting news out, arranging viewing and for the charity collection work.

Sitting on the fence

Some of the crowd

It's proving quite a year and this is my ninth life tick so far taking the life list to 435 and the year list to 240

Catching up

I've not blogged since early September but I have managed a little birding in the last couple of weeks.

Firstly, a trip to Cley for a sea watch, I'd seen the North westerlies forecast but couldn't make it up on the Friday so although winds were less favourable on the Saturday I headed up anyway. It took a while to get going but we eventually saw a dozen Arctic Skuas and a couple of Great Skuas. A few Red-throated Diver passed, others reported both Manx and Balearic Shearwater which we missed. Gannets were distant but ever present and a few Auks were seen along with a few Red-breasted Mergansers. We had a very distant very probable large Shearwater that we couldn't nail as views were so distant and brief. Lots of Ducks moved west which included mostly Scoter, Teal and Wigeon but wader numbers were disappointing.

After a cold four hours we departed and stopped at Dernford farm reservoir in Cambridgeshire where we quickly ticked the distant Pec Sand as it waded up and down in the company of Ringed Plover and Common Sandpiper.

Very distant Pec

On Friday we took the short drive down to East Tilbury hoping to get the Jims a year tick with the long staying Stone Curlews. A walk down to the scrape where we bumped into Harry for a natter before the birding started. Green Sandpipers, Blackwits, Lapwing were seen before local birder Paul W helped us find the area the Stone Curlews favoured and we managed to pick out all three in the scope. We next watched the shoreline as the tide came in and what a spectacle it provided with over 1000 Avocets and Dunlin and hundreds of Blackwits the obvious highlights. We did pick out a few Curlew and Grey Plover too along with Shelduck. Little Stint and Curlew Sandpipers were seen but not by me. The walk back was very birdy with lots of common migrants like Meadow Pipit, Robin, Blackcap and Chiffchaff but we failed to find anything rarer.

Today we popped over to Wanstead for a couple of hours and find it very birdy. Firstly, there were lots of Mipits about and Stonechats numbered somewhere between ten and twenty but were difficult to count due to constant movement between areas of broom. A single Whinchat was spotted before we got to the enclosure area. We plotted up here as it was also very busy with birds, mostly Chiffchaff and mixed Tits but a few Blackcaps were seen and a family group of Greenfinch. Two small groups of Linnet moved through and a couple of Reed Buntings were also seen before two Spotted Flycatchers were seen. We eventually found a Common Redstart before leaving only to find a second Redstart in the Broom close to the Centre Road car park.

Carrion Crow

Common Redstart

Spotted Flycatcher

Whinchat

The above ticks moved my year list to 239 so I have remarkably avoided my lowest year list total despite the limited time birding this year.

Spotted Flycatcher

Onwards and Upwards!

Dungeness day out

I've been a little busy of late with all the usual family stuff but managed to steal a couple of hours yesterday to visit the Red-necked Phalarope at Little Marlows gravel pits a nice reserve which was new to me. Lot's of Great Crested Grebe with chicks and some still displaying courtship behaviour. A couple of Kingfishers buzzed up and down the lake and a Grass Snake was a surprise before I connected with the tiny Phalarope out in the middle of the lake. It was very actively feeding and took a few short flights but sadly didn't come close during my stay.

Little Marlow GP

Today I had a planned day release and took the Jims down to Dunge arriving at first light. We started the day down Galloways where we found at least three Whinchat, several Stonechat and a couple of Whitethroats. 

Whinchat

We arrived at the sea watch hide to find none of the locals had turned up which usually means it'll be a slow day and that's how it began with just the usual action from Terns and Gulls along with a few small flocks of Scoter passing. I wanted to visit earlier in the week when winds were more favourable but find I have to take my free days when they arrive now not when the winds are right. After a while a few other birders arrived and the Skua action began with no fewer than twelve Arctic Skuas with several stopping on route to harass the Terns. The highlight was an adult Pom Skua flying east at around 8.30am . Lot's of hirundines were on the move and a Sparrowhawk also headed out to sea. Scoters and Gannets passed and we saw seals and porpoise too along with a single Guillemot and Oystercatcher.

On the reserve we saw a Great White Egret and Glossy Ibis at Boulderwall farm before eight Cattle Egret dropped into the field behind the pool. From Hanson hide we found two Black Terns, four Common Sandpipers, a Little Stint and another Great White Egret along with lots of Golden Plover, Ringed Plover, Lapwing and Blackwits. It was also good to see winter ducks building with Teal, Wigeon and Pintails present. A Snipe was an easy target for the camera resting just in front of the hide.

Blackwit

Meadow Pipit

Snipe

Sparrowhawk

Year list now 236 and just two short of my worst year. 

Think I might be able to squeeze another day out this coming week too....fingers crossed.

Greater Sand Plover at Redcar

I've not had many chances to see Greater Sand Plovers in the last ten years and I missed one due to Covid but when news came in of one at Redcar in Cleveland I got twitchy. Friday was out due to Grandad duties, Saturday was out thanks to my brother donating a ticket to see Arsenal v Fulham and Sunday was out due to the Jims having prior commitments so the Bank holiday Monday was our first realistic opportunity to travel and travel we did setting off at 4am we had a very smooth journey covering the 250 miles in four hours.

Herts birder Simon W was walking back having set off much earlier and put us in the right direction as we walked a few hundred yards from the car park to the gathered twitchers and toggers. The bird showed well but was challenging to frame with my little 400mm lens and as such the images a little disappointing. The 400mm gives me a similar view to my x8 binoculars but the views through the x50 scope were fantastic.

South Gore

Greater Sand Plover

Greater Sand Plover and Herring Gull

Greater Sand Plover

Greater Sand Plover

Little Ringed Plover with the Greater Sand Plover

The Greater Sand and Ringed Plover

Greater Sand Plover on the tide line

GSP

GSP

GSP

GSP

Sanderling

Sanderling

Desert  Plover by the sea

Typical view when we arrived

GSP

GSP

After about an hour watching the bird with around fifty others we all starting to scan both the shoreline and the sea. I picked up a very distant bird which was probably a Bonxie but too distant to be sure. There were a few Gannets and Fulmars passing by along with lots of Common and Sandwich Terns among the Gulls. On the shoreline Sanderling and Ringed Plover were the dominant species but we also picked out Whimbrel, Curlew, Oystercatcher, Dunlin, Redshank, Knot, Turnstone and Oystercatcher.

Whilst enjoying the distraction the Plover flew and remarkably nobody saw it go so we had no idea which direction to move. I chose to walk the full length of the beach heading north west towards South Gore picking up two very distant probable Arctic Skua but little else of note save quite a large Sanderling roost.

I walked back joined the Jims again and we walked towards the Bandstand searching again for the plover only to connect again here. Again we enjoyed good views but a little too far for my camera. A couple of toggers moved in for closer images but with a crowd of about a hundred now gathered I resisted the urge to get closer and enjoyed the bird with the crowd. There was some "discussion" with one particular togger who people thought was too close but he stood his ground and remained half way between the bird and the main group of others watching. Him being close wasn't an issue for the bird but if everybody had joined him I guess the bird would have been less comfortable with a hundred people setting the same boundary. We left with the bird still happily feeding.

Just up the road is South Gore were I'd previously visited and enjoyed great views of a Pom Skua and some Roseatte Terns so I took the Jims up there to see the area. We had a brief look for the Red-backed Shrike but with people on site saying they'd been looking for hours with no sign we moved over the road to scan the beach. We picked out a few Little Terns feeding in an isolated inlet for a nice bonus year tick and a local put us onto our first Curlew Sandpiper of the year. 

The journey home took an extra hour due to delays getting through the A1M at Leeds where a festival had created issues but after that the journey was straight forward.

Life list now 434

Year list now 233