The Bearded Vulture in Lincolnshire

Having walked about 20km in the Peak district to connect with the Lammergeier earlier in the year I watched with interest as she was reported moving south through Leicester and then Oxford but she then went missing and it was hoped she had made it across the channel on her way home until last week when she was seen in Norfolk before this weeks news that she was in Lincolnshire. I was due to go yesterday but had some duties to perform at home that prevented that trip but I decided to go this morning. I left a little late and half way up realised I had left my camera cards at home so had to stop and purchase a new card in Peterborough.

On arrival at Cowbit I had just missed the bird leave its overnight roost and it was said to have flown towards the A16. After a while I did manage to connect with it in flight, being ten feet wide and with the flatness of the area you cant really miss it when it's in the air. On the ground it's more of a challenge to locate and it can disappear completely in a tree. I would say to anybody going that if it's in a tree leave it be as it's trying to rest and shouldn't be disturbed so keep a good distance from any roost/rest times.

INCOMING

It was nice to watch it feeding on a Hare carcass for a while but the flight views are what I went for and I had the most amazing time watching it. Being overcast it struggled to gain much height and on occasion flew low straight toward me. A day I will never forget. Let's hope she finds her way home at some point.

The Vulture conservancy now have a couple of her feathers so we should at some point understand her a little better. It should also be noted that they are keeping a close eye on her movements and the threat each one makes to her. It is considered that her current location can provide food and shelter with the main threat to her being traffic and turbines.

Heavily cropped distant shot of it in a tree...some got a bit too close for my liking

The BEARDED Vulture

Good camo check out the size of the Magpie to the right of it

What a monster of a bird

came in low over the bushes to land in the field in front of me

The Lammergeier 

NEVER TO BE FORGOTTEN

what a bird

Where ever it goes its mobbed by gulls and Corvids

11/10/2020 Addendum: The Vulture appeared to move south again today being "reported" over the RSPB headquarters in Sandy Bedfordshire and then later over the city of London. (I repeat reported).

Be very interesting to see where it's next reported.

12/10/2020 Vigo (this bird has a name and has international interest) was "reported over Sandy again on 12th but today 13th an image started circulating of the bird over Tunbridge Wells in Kent yesterday so it really does look as if she is finally making her way to the south coast.

14/10/2020 It now appears both Sandy Bedfordshire sightings could have been erroneous and the London sighting has more credit with the bird being seen in Tunbridge Wells on the 12th and today it was located in East Sussex where it was seen all afternoon and appeared to go to roost there too. She's now right on the south coast and a stones throw from the shortest crossing she could make across the channel at Dungeness if that's her plan.

15/10/2020 Well this morning saw another appreciative crowd watching Vigo leave her roost site in East Sussex where she spent the morning feeding and at lunchtime she took the expected high flight out to sea but she had second thoughts and turned back to land before setting off again mid afternoon where she was lost to view out to sea and we can just hope that she makes the crossing ok and can make a good life in the Alps with others of her kind.

21/10/2020 A probable sighting of Vigo 200km south of Paris

26/10/2020 A probable sighting of Vigo  near Lyon

we await a confirmed ID but the above should give hope that shes almost home.

30/10/2020 An announcement on BBC's Autumnwatch this evening revealed long awaited news of Vigos parents lineage.

Her mother was captive bread but released in 2006 in the Italian Alps

Her father was born in the wild in 2010

The pair have been together since 2016 and Vigo is their third youngster.

We now await a sighting that proves the bird is Vigo and hope that the above lineage is strong enough evidence that the bird does come from a self sustaining population that allows it to be included on the British list. 

More Hoopoe images

 No apologies for posting a few more images of yesterdays fabulous Hoopoe at Wighton

Hoopoe at Wighton

Having seen all the gripping images of the Hoopoe in Yorkshire I was itching to go and spend a day with it but I'm in Essex where the virus levels remain relatively low so was reluctant to travel to Yorkshire knowing there would likely be a bit of a crowd at this star performer so when one was reported in Wighton Norfolk another area with lower numbers of Covid infection I decided I'd travel up to see it.

I arrived early to find the bird feeding by the muck heap. Only two other birders present and no problems keeping outside the two metre rule. Before I'd got the camera out of the car the bird flew high east and landed on a telegraph pole before dropping to the hedge line near the village. A couple more birders arrived and shortly after the bird came back in and made its way back up the road to the muck heap where it started pulling grubs from the mud around the puddles and it did this for the next couple of hours.

Hoopoe at Wighton

Seeing the bird was no problem but I had to work to keep a distance from a couple of the birders who seemed to be unaware of the two metre rule especially when the bird appeared in the open. I have to say that generally the group was small and well distanced just on occasion people encroached my boundary and I had to step away sometimes giving up my view of the bird to avoid the close approach. I think we all need to take our own responsibility for policing the guidelines to stay safe whilst enjoying the hobby we love.

Easier social distancing on the early shift

After enjoying good views but now aware the gathering had grown to around twelve I reluctantly left and made my way along to Salthouse. I walked down the track to Little Eye and scoped the pools. A couple leaving had told me a Red-necked Phalarope had just swam left and out of view behind the reeds but as I scoped I could see the bird twirling round next to a Shoveler and enjoyed good views at distance through the glass of my trusted Swarovski.

Red-necked Phalarope at Salthouse

My next stop was Kelling Water Meadow a new place for me. I parked in Kelling village and carefully crossed the road (right on the bend and the traffic comes through fast so walk back a bit to see more of the road if you go) Walking down the track I was surprised at how quiet the bushes were. I made it to the meadow pools and scanned but found no sign of the Arctic Tern that's been hanging around for a week or so. I found a few Wheatear but little else of note. A Redstart and Redwing had been reported. On the sea I had just missed a very close Red-throated Diver but did see a comic Tern fly west towards Cley. Rain looked likely so I cut short the walk along the beach towards Weybourne and made it back to the car as the heavens opened briefly before the cloud blew over and the sun came out so I avoided a good soaking luckily.

Kelling beach 

Now I had to make a choice between heading down the A12 towards home via the Stonechat at Happisburgh (which I'm told is pronounced Hays borough....what's that about?)  or taking more time with the Hoopoe and you guessed it the Hoopoe won. When I got back to Wighton there were about ten birders on site and the bird was still feeding by the muck heap. I wad surprised to see that some birders had now moved up the hedge line and gone through the hedge to sit a few metres from the bird which to be fair didn't seem too bothered and carried on feeding regardless. I found a small gap in the hedge the allowed me to keep a distance from the other birders and poaked the camera through the hedge using it as a make shift tripod. I enjoyed the bird for about thirty minutes.

The Wighton Hoopoe

I had seen several Marsh Harrier and a couple of Buzzards during the day whilst keeping my eye out for the Pallid Harrier reported a couple of days ago. As I drove back down Crabbe Road I saw another Harrier fly across the road and low along the hedge line heading north, this bird was a longer winged bird and showed a white rump. I pulled over but sadly I couldn't get binoculars on it so I can't say if it was the Pallid Harrier or a Hen Harrier. I scoped the area for a while to find a Buzzard sat in a tree but couldn't see the bird again. It'll be interesting to see if the Pallid is seen again in the area.

I made it home in time to cook dinner for Suzanne and tell her of the Covid drama that now forms part of any birding day out.

Year list now 261 with the Phalarope.

Amazing that a trip to Norfolk in October delivered just one year tick.

Radde's Warbler at Southwold campsite

 Well yesterdays "possible Pale-legged leaf Warbler" turned out to be an Arctic after all.

 

I never planned to twitch the leaf Warbler, I've lost the mojo required for the longer journeys during this pandemic but I did need to get out so I set off this morning for the Rustic Bunting at Lowestoft having seen the terrific images posted yesterday. I left late which is unlike me and before I hit Ipswich news came through that the Rustic had flown high and south followed by more positive news of a Booted Warbler showing well at Sizewell A so that became plan B. I parked up and started the walk down at around 9am. Birders coming back were happy and said the bird is showing well so my pace increased a little but on arrival there was no sign of the target. I waited at a distance from the other birders. Chiffchaffs, Tits, Blackcaps and Robins flitted about in the Sycamores and a few Redwings came in off.

The one eyed Garden Warbler

The Sizewell Booted Warbler dip

A male Redstart was present and then a warbler came in and got us all excited. It was a really scruffy looking one eyed thing that we eventually agreed was a Garden Warbler and it turned out all the sightings after 8.15am were this bird and that the Booted had flown off and not returned. A Black Redstart on the walk back added to the day and several Goldcrest were around the car park bushes. 

I made the short trip up the A12 to Southwold and parked up before walking back down to the campsite.

Southwold is one of the nicest places in Suffolk ....no it really is!

I found a Firecrest and a couple of Goldcrests along with a couple of Chiffchaff and Blackcaps before the first sighting of the Radde's. I got on it but it was brief. I managed another brief view and then another before finally after two hours getting a really good view and even a couple of images.

Radde's Warbler at Southwold

Radde's Warbler

Radde's Warbler

A walk through the copse between the 7th Tee and Green on the golf course gave me my first Yellow-browed Warbler of the year too, hope it isn't my last. A difficult day in the rain but I managed to salvage something from it eventually and saw some nice birds.

Year list 260

Shetland or Scilly that is the question

This year would have seen me making my first pilgrimage to either Shetland or Scilly. The current pandemic has saved me from making that difficult choice for another year but I thought it would be interesting to review the birds that both sets of islands have attracted this year. I've only included birds that would be life ticks for me so most mega's and a few rares.

I've grouped the Scottish Islands together too for simplicity

So Scilly first...........

Nearly forgot the Zino's !

And the Scottish Islands.......

Lot's of Islands but a decent return thus far for 2020

Lundy wouldn't have been a bad place to be either with  three lifers possible on that tiny island this year...

Killdeer on 17th March

Bridled Tern on 27th August 

and the 

Sora on 12th September

As for the mainland I've missed a few life ticks mostly due to distance or the virus or both and some just didn't hang around long enough to connect if I'd wanted to push the boundary.

I would really love to see that Siberian Thrush 

I'm sure I could easily have missed a couple of reports but it was interesting putting this together on a cold wet day when I should have been out birding and finding my own rare.

Pandemic aside I realise I would have struggled to connect with most of these but I think it shows that thus far the Scottish Islands have the edge this year but will the next few weeks see Scilly start to claw back a few?

Hats off to all the dedicated patch workers that are digging out these great finds for everybody.

Your effort is appreciated.

oh breaking news of a Masked Shrike in Hartlepool today so another strike to the mainland and I believe only three previous records. 

.....

and late late news the earlier reported Arctic Warbler is now being considered to be a Pale-legged leaf Warbler, third for Britain I think and one of the previous two was found dead so yet another strike for the mainland and I'm sure will have many heading to Northumberland tomorrow if its there and confirmed. Let's hope people manage their own social responsibility if it does result in a big twitch. 

I also wonder what has been delivered on todays easterlies and is still waiting to be found, plenty I reckon. Best of luck looking guys, I might even get out looking myself if I can.

A good September and looking forward to October

These are the strangest of times and I need the hobby more than ever. The virus seems to have taken a grip again following the advise of government with people being asked to return to the office, trust public transport again, the return of schools and uni, the promotion of eat out to help out and an endless list of gatherings for various protests and of course elements of social distancing being stretched by some.

We now face a reintroduction of restrictions with gatherings limited to six and a request to work from home if possible, avoid public transport if you can and the early closure of hospitality venues prompting yet more protests about liberty etc. It feels to me like we had a reasonable summer after the full spring lockdown and I'm grateful for that. The weather was great and allowed for meeting family outside which was more than welcome. The virus has sadly touched my family and we've also had the very difficult responsibility of moving my wifes elderly mother into care which is hard at any time but even more concerning in these times. We have been able to visit the care home with outdoor visits once a week using temperature checks and full PPE to protect the care home which to date has had no cases of the virus in residents or carers but as the weather turns that situation may change. 

We will have a much tougher autumn and winter. We're seeing local lockdowns all over the country with some areas now restricting movement in or out of those areas without very good reason. In other areas there are bans on mixing households again and that will be difficult to handle if it comes to our town as the father in law really needs our support. I feel a full lockdown at some point will sadly be reintroduced if we are to get the virus back under control and save lives through the cold months.

Back to birding and September proved to be a pretty good month, I managed a few days out but with the restrictions on holidays abroad and various self isolation requirements our coast line was full of staycationers and was to be avoided at all costs but of course many of the best birding sites are also on these coastlines. I managed a few days and managed to get myself away from the crowds. I added three life ticks by twitching Greenish Warbler at Holme, Brown Shrike at Warham Greens and a Short-toed Lark in Surrey. I also added Wryneck, Pectoral Sandpiper, Red-breasted Flycatcher and Barred Warbler from the expected September targets and bonus ticks with a late Gropper and early Lapland Bunting all of which moved the year list to a respectable 258.

Brown Shrike finally hit the life list in September

I move now to thoughts of October and over the last decade I've had some great October ticks which include

Some great birds but I'm mostly watching Sparrows at the moment

So the above list is evidence that October brings with it some cracking birds and this October will no doubt be equally productive, question is will they be accessible during the onset of further Covid related restrictions. Any hope of a birding holiday has vanished as it seems irresponsible in these difficult times. I'd love to spend some time in Scotland and had thought this might be the year I got to finally experience an October on Scilly but the virus has made me rethink that option and save it for another year.

Well that's my quick catch up for the end of September and here's to a decent October.

Stay well guys

Grey Catbird

More images from my day at Titchwell