New birds for 2023

2023 delivered nine new birds for my British mainland list. Cackling Goose at Brancaster in Norfolk on 29th January replacing the Cley bird that I'd previously seen but removed when it wasn't accepted by BBRC as a wild bird. I managed to see the White-crowned Sparrow at Seaford although it took two visits to connect with it but I was happy to remove this one from my dipped list. In August I connected with the Black-winged Kite in Norfolk, again after two visits and in September I finally added Aquatic Warbler to my UK mainland list with the bird seen on 11th September in West Sussex. Later in September we saw the record breaking fall of American vagrants and I managed to catch up with two on my trip to Pembrokeshire with Magnolia Warbler and Canada Warbler. October saw me travel to Flamborough head in East Yorkshire to tick the Red-headed Bunting which will be left on the list as "pending" hoping it gets accepted since DNA has proved it to indeed be a Red-head. I also picked up a more local lifer with the Solitary Sandpiper down at Stodmarsh in Kent and my last tick of the year was the local Canvasback at Abberton and these nine moved the life list to 446 so I now expect or at least hope to move through 450 next year. 

Magnolia Warbler at St.Govan's Head Pembrokeshire

Aquatic Warbler at Upper Beeding West Sussex

 

Black-winged Kite

White-crowned Sparrow at Seaford and Red headed Bunting at Flamborough

poor record shot of the Solitary Sandpiper

The dips.....

I didn't dip a life tick all year so in other words if I went for a new bird I saw it allowing for the fact that a couple took me two visits to connect with them.

Looking forward to the new birds that 2024 might bring me and if 2023 has taught me anything it's that you can't predict them. Having said that my top targets for life ticks according to Bubo are........

Tawny Pipit

Ivory Gull

Terek Sandpiper

Bufflehead

Black Scoter

Sora

Sociable Plover

Wilsons's Petrel

Sharp-tailed Sandpiper

Oriental Pratincole

Will any of these fall in 2024 or will the new birds be from further down the target list or even new birds for the UK like the Canada Warbler, Red-headed Bunting and Black-winged Kite from this year.