Migfest 2019

It has been some time since my last visit to Spurn but what better event to return to than the Migfest. It was, as usual, a fantastic social event with great avian offerings. I was involved in a handful of guided walks, as well as the usual car parking duties.

Over the weekend, through luck or judgement, I managed to connect to a number of the weekends star species. The long staying White-rumped Sandpiper was nice, although it remained distant for most of the time. Mandarin was a Spurn tick for me when a moulting male flew over us off the sea and landed for a short while on the Humber before flying off again. Throw in a nice mix of regular migrants; Pied Flycatcher, Spotted Flycatcher and Whinchat and it made for an excellent weekend.

-Barn Swallow

Species List:

Spurn Bird Observatory: Greylag Goose, Shelduck, Mallard, Eurasian Teal, Mandarin, Common Swift, Stock Dove, Woodpigeon, Collared Dove, Ruddy Turnstone, Little Ringed Plover, Ringed Plover, Curlew, Whimbrel, White-rumped Sandpiper, Dunlin, Sanderling, Knot, Common Redshank, Common Snipe, Green Sandpiper, Little Egret, Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Eurasian Reed Warbler, Sand Martin, Barn Swallow, Common House Martin, Willow Warbler, Blackcap, Lesser Whitethroat, Common Starling, Common Blackbird, Spotted Flycatcher, European Pied Flycatcher, Whinchat, Northern Wheatear, House Sparrow, Tree Sparrow, Yellow Wagtail, Common Linnet, Reed Bunting, 

Norfolk Day 1

So my parents decided to go to Norfolk for a week and I of course was not going to decline tagging along. Having travelled down overnight I set off for the first day by heading to the usual Cley Marshes followed by Blakeney for the long staying Lapland Buntings. 

First port of call were the hides at Cley where I picked up some wader species for my yearlist, namely Avocet, Ruff and Green Sandpiper. I also had nice views of Marsh Harrier which was also a yeartick. Species all familiar to the site but ones which I had not seen overwinter, so was pleased to see again.

-Avocet

-Ruff

-Marsh Harrier

The reason I did not start my day at Blakeney was simply because of the weather being awful, but as it began to clear late morning I decided to just take the hit and go. After all, the birds had reduced from around 8 being present a week ago to only 2 the last I heard. Along the walk through Cley-next-the-sea and Blakeney Freshmarsh I picked up my first Swallow of the year. They were quite abundant already this far south but none had really appeared up north so this was quite exciting.

-Swallow

Blakeney freshmarsh was a fairly standard affair, fields with pools, but I did pick up my first Brent Geese of the year, which initially only looked to be a few individuals until something spooked them, or the tide moved them and the sky was suddenly full of Brent Geese. Quite a site really, a really smart bird to look at.

The highlight of the walk along the marshes though has to be the really nice White Wagtail that was knocking about. A real stunner, and although they turned out to be fairly abundant during the day, there is something special about this European visitors.

-Brent Geese

-White Wagtail

And so I arrived at the location where the Lapland Buntings were meant to be. I picked one up, a female, distantly almost immediately but it soon vanished into the undergrowth and I could not find it again for around half an hour. 

I made a move past the gate where most people have been watching them from, and began to walk down the track to relocate it. I was able to, but it now seemed that only this female remained. I tried to get some photos but the bird was quite skittish. After a while I returned to my scope and tripod set up at the gate and scoped out the marsh whilst decided when to give the bunting another try. But I need not have worried, for whilst I was scoping the bird flew onto the fence next to me, before coming down and feeding around my feet. I only wish the light had been a bit better because the view I got was otherwise unparalleled. It was really something. It was so close I could have reached out and touched it. What a real treat. 

-Lapland Bunting

After that I was obviously buzzing. The bird flew off into the marsh and I decided to take my leave. I headed back to Cley and walked along the beach side where I was treated to nice views of a few smashing Wheatear. Willow Warbler was another spring migrant of which was my first of the year. I also yearticked Sandwich Tern flying up the coast, something of an expected yeartick but still a much welcome one. A really nice bird to see. I also year-ticked Sand Martin and a few other waders; Grey Plover and Knot.

-Sandwich Tern

So an excellent start to the week, with a host of yearticks and other awesome species, and of course the Lapland Bunting being the real highlight, even if there was only the one bird left.

Species List:

Cley Marshes NWT: Avocet, Wren, Pied Wagtail, Wigeon, Teal, Gadwall, Egyptian Goose, Greylag Goose, Meadow Pipit, Marsh Harrier, Coot, Moorhen, Mallard, Mute Swan, Shoveler, Dunlin, Ruff, Redshank, Reed Bunting, Shelduck, Black-tailed Godwit, Common Snipe, Black-headed Gull, Little Egret, Green Sandpiper, Lapwing, Woodpigeon, Herring Gull, Ringed Plover, Pochard, Carrion Crow, Rook, Starling, Collard Dove, Pheasant, Jackdaw, Swallow, Willow Warbler, Greenfinch, Sandwich Tern, Brent Goose, Sand Martin, Wheatear, Kestrel, Grey Plover, Bar-tailed Godwit, Knot,

Blakeney Freshmarsh: Wheatear, Mute Swan, Greylag Goose, Mallard, Black-headed Gull, Skylark, Jackdaw, Meadow Pipit, Oystercatcher, Linnet, Redshank, Canada Goose, Avocet, Gadwall, Teal, Cormorant, Curlew, Shelduck, Shoveler, Moorhen, Black-tailed Godwit, Little Egret, Swallow, White Wagtail, Brent Goose, Marsh Harrier, Lapland Bunting, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Red Kite, Rook, Pheasant,

Peak District Tour: Feat. The Midhope Shrike, the 2nd largest reser in England and an Osprey over the pub

Today was the return journey to Sheffield after 2 and half very enjoyable weeks at home. Fortunately these days usually involve a day out in the peaks and since the weather was lovely this was sure to be a nice day out with the family. We were heading to Ladybower reservoir, and I had hopes of catching an Osprey flying over.

However, when I learned the route my dad intended to take to Ladybower I could see that we were going to pass straight by the Midhope Great Grey Shrike, which had conveniently been re-found yesterday. I hoped that it would be on show and clear so that I could persuade my dad to stop the car and I would be able to get a proper view of it.

On the way over though I got an even bigger surprise when my dad picked out a Swallow hunting along the road, which is my first of the year. So already the day was off to a good start, and it got even better as I easily picked up the shrike as we drove past. No sooner had we stopped than the bird dropped, so we had to wait for it to re-appear. Another Swallow flew past at this point and I managed to get a few photos of it, my first swallow photos of the year.

-Swallow

The shrike had initially shown very well on top of the tree, before it dropped. It must have been around 10 mins before it came back up again, and even then the view was badly obscured by the bush. After a while though it returned to the top of the bush where I was able to get some far improved shots on those that I had taken previously when I came to see the bird. I also tried to digiscope it but it took off and flew straight at us before I managed to get back on the DSLR. It flew straight past us and my dad decided that gave us a cue to move on, even though the shrike was now clearly much closer to the road than it had been before, even though we could not see it.

-Great Grey Shrike

We arrived at Ladybower and I expected to pick up siskin on the feeders immediatley, but there were no birds on the feeders at all. I could not believe it, but that's that I guess. I was constantly scanning the skies but could see no raptors at all in the air.

There were good numbers of passerines calling from the woods, and after a quick check of the Collins App I could tell this was where the Siskins had got to. There were loads of them flying around and calling but I could not find any sat down or perched for a photo of this year-tick.

We continued walking along the side of Derwent Reservoir when I heard another call I was not familiar with. I had a quick check in the tree for the source, and found a stunning male Brambling calling. I was shocked to say the least, as this was not a species I anticipated finding in any way. It sat for a while for photos before flying off. Not going to lie, this was a massive shock in a birding sense. 

-Brambling

In that knowledge we continued our walk round until we reached a point where my mum had to stop. My family sat down for a bit while I found myself a place at the edge of the reser where I could scan for ospreys. No joy on that front though I did pick out a large hawk on the horizon. Sadly it was too far away and high up for me to find it in the scope before I lost it. A shame, as from what I could see in the bins it looked good for a gos, which would have been a lifer.

Gutted about that, there was some consolation in that a Siskin flock flew into the trees directly above my head and started to drop seeds on me. Its not the ideal angle for a record photo but its certainly a different perspective on the birds.

-Siskin

Sadly that was it for Derwent reservoir. I found no Ospreys, and the only other birds of note were a couple of Grey Wagtails flitting around the dam wall. Still, it was a great turnout from the birds and better than I had expected that's for sure.

It was not getting on in the afternoon so we headed on to Castleton to find a pub for dinner. We found a reasonably nice one with a nice beer garden with views of Mam Tor and the rest of the valley. It was from this location that I finally saw it.

Despite that time and luck were no on my side I had kept scanning for Osprey all day, even now at the pud, DESPITE HAVING NOT BROUGHT MY BINS WITH ME!! I spotted a large bird flying down the valley and began to take interest in it. When it was still a long was off my first though was  a large gull, but it then came close and I could see the wings were far too broad, and the flight pattern wrong. My next port of call was grey heron, but the feet did not protrude and there was no neck bulge. Now it was not close but close enough to be seen clearly (though only as a silhouette) and I was thrown by how massive the bird was. It then stopped its lazy flapping and started gliding and that was the final clincher for this bird being an Osprey. It could not have been buzzard as I could not clearly make out a tail and the wings were no rounded enough, that and the fact that the wings were too long. As I realised what I had just seen the bitter disappointment in myself for not bringing my bins or camera started to hit me. Alas, I paid a heavy price, but I found myself an Osprey and another yeartick. I can only wish I had been able to make for of it...

Fortunatley the pub had Wifi and I was able to put out the record. I could see from birdguides that an Osprey had been seen at 13.00 in Oldham and was heading SE. Granted, if it were the same bird it should have arrived around 14.00 not 16.00 but the direction and distance fitted, and there is no reason it should not have stopped off somewhere, so why I can see no reason why my Osprey shouldn't be the bird picked up in Oldham. 

So that was a fantastic end to the day. We drove to the top of Mam Tor and got fantastic views of the valleys below to finish off the day before taking me back to Sheffield. What a fantastic days birding to say the least!

Species List:

Midhope Moor Watchpoint: Great Grey Shrike, Swallow, Lapwing, Skylark, Jay, Blackbird, Meadow Pipit, Feral Pigeon, Woodpigeon,

Derwent Reservoir: Siskin, Brambling, Mandarin, Grey Wagtail, Curlew, Kestrel, Canada Goose, Graylag Goose, Mallard, Common Buzzard, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Jackdaw, Chaffinch, Woodpigeon, Feral Pigeon, Mistle Thrush, Blackbird, Pied Wagtail, Long-Tailed Tit, Robin, Dunnock, Coal Tit, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Meadow Pipit, Nuthatch, Skylark

Spurn NGB Weekend Day 1

The first day of the NGB weekend of Spurn, but without many NGB's. There were 4 of us at Numpties in the morning; Martin, Jonnie, Tim and me. Together we had a good time, clocking an incredible passerine passage. The species of the day was Tree Sparrow, of which there were 2285 birds going south, the second highest ever Spurn count and only 40 off the record. There were also 312 House Sparrows and 701 Skylarks, which were also both notable counts and the best for some time. There were other finches moving too; 84 Chaffinch, 106 Greenfinch, 876 Goldfinch, 5 Siskin, 1047 Linnet, 1347 Meadow Pipit, 91 Rock Pipit, all of which made for an impressive mornings spectacle.

There were other goodies among the birds moving south, including a Jay which came south and then banked and turned round north. The highlight of the moving birds was a Lapland Bunting which Tim picked out. I grabbed a photo in of it as it turned back north and though it is a poor attempt you can clearly make out the fact that it is a Lapland Bunting, a Lifer for me.

-Lapland Bunting

We also had a small flock of Whooper Swans fly over the triangle and down the Humber. They were quite distant but that was my tarts tick for the year gone, which is a relief. They were also the first of the autumn for Spurn, There were other wildfowl going too, including Brent Geese and Pinkfeet as well as a couple of duck species, but these were mainly moving over the triangle and not going south. 

-Whooper Swan

-Pink Footed Geese

There were also good numbers of Hirundines moving. Considering before today I had only seen 3 'October swallows' it was great to see 574 going south, including 80 House Martin, which are the first time I have ever seen the species so late into the year.

-Hirundines-Swallows and House Martin

But there was an undoubted highlight of the morning. As we were all counting at numpties there came Steve's calls from the seawatching hide. His cry was of 'Whale, Whale Whale'. I have never seen a whale so I, along with all the others present turned our eyes straight to the sea. Steve had picked it up quite south but its breaches were irregular and difficult to follow. I only pick it up the once but the view included Spray and the Fin, all that you could realistically hope for. That was fantastic, made all the better for the fact that it was so unexpected. Steve said he had spent 2500 hours watching the sea since his last whale, so to be there for this was a privilege. There were birders all along the Spurn coast that had heard the message, and they followed its progress as it moved up north. As to its identity, we remain unsure. Based on the spray it may have been a humpback,but Minkie seems to be the most common thoughts about it based on peoples previous experiences with the species, and that is what most people have put it down as.

That was early morning so left me buzzing for the rest of the day. By early afternoon the passage had dried up so I headed over to Canal Scrape to see if there was anything about on there. There was not a lot, in fact the only bird was Long-John Silver the redshank. who is somehow still alive despite having only half of one of its legs. Considering he was there when I left my job back in September it has done remarkably well for itself. 

Since it was so quiet I went back for an afternoon kip. Turns out a woodcock was caught at kew but I did not hear about it, which was a big blow. The evening was spent back up at Numpties seeing what was moving. There was much less than the morning counts, the highlight being a few Whooper Swans that came down and landed on the sea, and a few large Skeins of Pink-footed Geese with a single Graylag in tow.

-Whooper Swans

-Pink Footed Geese

In the pub later on I met some more NGBs, which was great, a chance to get together with other birders my own age. It had been a good start to the weekend, with a bird lifer and a Whale, can you ask for much more.

Species List:

Vis-Migging: Siskin, Merlin, Kestrel, Sparrowhawk, Brent Goose, Teal, House Martin, Swallow, Jay, Pink-Footed Goose, Rock Pipit, Grey Wagtail, Pied Wagtail, Mallard, Reed Bunting, Rook, Skylark, Magpie, Woodpigeon, Linnet, Feral Pigeon, Goldfinch, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Greenfinch, Greater Black-Backed Gull, Tree Sparrow, Lapland Bunting, House Sparrow, Whooper Swan, Little Egret, Cormorant, Knot, Whimbrel, Minke Whale, 

Vis-Migging: Red-Throated Diver, Swallow, Meadow Pipit, House Martin, Whooper Swan, Pink-Footed Goose, Kestrel, Little Egret, Knot, Curlew, Pintail, Brent Goose,

Orgreave Lakes

Went for a trip down to Orgreave today with the intention of putting my new camera to the test. However, that did not happen, and I took no photos over the course of the morning. There large numbers of Pochard and Tufted Duck, which was nice. There were also 2 Greater Spotted Woodpeckers, though I only saw one, the other I heard calling. The real highlight were 3 Swallows that flew south over the site, which are my first inland October swallows.
I met Mark Reader there for the first time, who is something of a local legend, and regularly patches Orgreave. We got chatting about the site, and I learned some of the incredible things that have been seen there before, e.g. Leaches Petrel. As we were wandering back he picked out the Rock Pipit that had been around on the bank of the small pool, allowing me to see my first inland Rock Pipit. I tried to get some photos but it dropped before I was fully able to.

Species List:
Orgreave Lakes: Starling, Woodpigeon, Tufted Duck, Magpie, Mallard, Carrion Crow, Coot, Black-Headed Gull, Gadwall, Feral Pigeon, Pochard, Swallow, Mute Swan, Goldfinch, Cormorant, Meadow Pipit, Great-Crested Grebe, Chiff-Chaff, Lapwing, Kestrel, Oystercatcher, Great Tit, Skylark, Great-Spotted Woodpecker, Canada Goose, Pied Wagtail, Graylag Goose, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Dunlin, Linnet, Rook, Rock Pipit,

Spurn Day 46

Since easterlies are due tomorrow I decided to spend today writing the tern report so that it was done and out of the way so I could enjoy tomorrows delights without worry. However, I quickly realsied that I had no idea what I was actualy doing for the report and by 12.00 I had given up and went out to enjoy the afternoon.

I did not know where to go really, but ended up in Canal Hedge doing a little bush bashing in case any early migrants might be hiding within the bushes. They were not, but the Southern Hawker that has been around was showing very well and even landed in a photograph-able position. It meant I could get some proper decent record shots, good enough to prove once and for all that there was a Southern Hawker, placing it beyond all doubt. It is the only one recorded at Spurn this year, so that is certainly one of the best finds I have had since I arrived.

-Southern Hawker

I moved along and up the canal to check no birds were in the bushes along there. There were nothing unusual but there were a loads of young swallows sat on the bushes along the edge of the canal. They were incredibly approachable and as a result I was able to get some pretty decent photos of them looking lovely and sweet.

-Swallows

That was about it until the end of the day with the evenings seawatch. It was quiet again but there were a few waders moving including Sanderling, Knot and Oystercatcher. Overall though it was quite a poor night by Spurns standards.

Species List:

Seawatching: Oystercatcher, Common Tern, Gannet, Arctic Skua, Sandwich Tern, Greater Black-Backed Gull, Sanderling, Common Scoter, Knot, Mallard, Common Gull, Grey Plover, Dunlin,

Spurn Day 9

Once more the days story begins at the ungodly hour of 00.00. But also keeping with the trend there was nothing to report until around 4.30; the fox not making an appearance again. The sunrise was simply stunning again, though it may be the last as the weather is due to change for the worse. But I can now include photos from the last few sunrises as I managed to read my SD card, so here are a few pics of what the end of my shift looks like…

-Sunrise

There were hardly any birds on the pools either, most probably having been flushed by my imaginary fox checking. The Little Terns were still around as were a few Oystercatchers and Dunlin but besides them there was very little. There was also nothing to report from the walk back either, which is just as well, as I was feeling very rough.

I awoke at around four, cloudy and very windy was the day’s outlook at this point, so much for hottest day of the year. I decided to go up for the gropper again but it was too windy and they were not singing. It was fairly quiet all round, though there were good numbers of Dunlin on the Humber and a family of Roe Deer: Stag, Doe and Fawn all together in one of the roadside fields.

As you have probably guessed by now, today was not the most hectic day’s birding ever. As a result I started trying to photograph commoner things for the blog, and the lovely families of Swallows that are around, that I really should have photographed earlier, fitted the bill quite nicely. I did not get many great shots, but they were very cute and were being well attended by the adults.

-Swallows

I was back by around half 3 in the afternoon, ready to spend the remainder of the day lounging around the warren. But by half 4 I had done enough lounging and so headed up to the Seawatching hide for a bit, see if there was anything around. I had a decent half an hour spell, recording quite a few Gannets, Kittywake and 5 Manx Shearwaters. The weather turning has probably been the cause for the improvement in the Seawatching.

Next on the agenda was of course my shift. Even walking to that was quiet, I recorded no dunlin on the beach at all, and their numbers were very sparse around the pool. There were improved numbers of Sandwich Tern in though and I spent a good while watching these birds until the light failed. Once more the fox has failed to make and appearance. I am beginning to doubt the existence of said fox…

The Daily Oystercatcher

Though it had been a quiet day on the most part there was high drama here. When checking the birds at first light I noticed that only one of the Oystercatcher chicks was there, and this was the case for the whole morning. As I have become so attached to them I did a rigorous search for the other chick but found no evidence. I began to fear the worst. I mentioned it to Kieran when he took over but seemed confident that it would be ok.

So I headed to my evening shift a little concerned for my Oyks, and desperately hopeful that they had not fallen fowl between the shifts, or worse my 3.00 am nap. My worst fears were realised when I turned up to still find only one chick being attended to by a parent.

However, it was not the case, as round the corner was another oystercatcher chick being attended to by another adult. This chick though seemed older and as a result I was initially unsure if it was my chick. Fortunately the 2 halves of the family joined up and one of the adults headed off, so it’s a case of a false alarm, for which I am very grateful.

The chicks then spent the rest of the light causing havoc with the Sandwich terns, running through the roost leaving startled birds in their wake, while the remaining adult decided to take on the terns rather than just frustrating them.

Species List:

Beacon Pools: Dunlin, Meadow Pipit, Oystercatcher, Mute Swan, Cormorant, Little Tern, Brown Hare,

Sammies Point: Sandwich Tern, Dunlin, Little Egret, Linnet, Black-Headed Gull, Woodpigeon, Swallow, House Sparrow, Oystercatcher, Whimbrel, Redshank, Mallard, Whitethroat, Curlew, Mute Swan, Magpie, Feral Pigeon, Skylark, Pied Wagtail, House Martin, Carrion Crow, Sedge Warbler, Roe Deer

Seawatching: Gannet, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Carrion Crow, Manx Shearwater, Kittywake,

Beacon Pools: Dunlin, Ringed Plover, Swallow, Arctic Tern, Little Tern, Gannet, Oystercatcher, Mute Swan, Cormorant

Orgreave Lakes

I got back to the flat at 3 that this afternoon, maybe intending to take the afternoon lightly, work on my essay kind of thing. When I checked birdguides every single site I have ever visited while at uni had seen arctic terns go through, including Orgreave. Their terns were at 7.00 in the morning though. However since I had time I decided to go for it, just in case.

They were not there. The highlights for my trip were Ringed Plover on the near shoreline which was lovely to see, but the real highlight was the sheer number of hirundines that were all over the lake, of all 3 species. Whats more is that they were coming very close, so I got incredible views.

-Ringed Plover

-Hirundines

I would like to say they were ample compensation for missing out on the terns but it did not feel like that at the time. I seemed to be destined to miss out on this influx...

Species List:

Orgreave Lakes: Linnet, Skylark, Woodpigeon, Sand Martin, House Martin, Swallow, Canada Goose, Graylag Goose, Mallard, Jay, Great Crested Grebe, Ringed Plover, Lapwing, Wheatear, Gadwall, Pied Wagtail, Coot, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Black-Headed Gull, Tufted Duck, Meadow Pipit, Carrion Crow, Mute Swan,

Elland Gravel Pits

Remember the Scaup I dipped in January? The day I saw the GND? It stayed all winter and into the spring, developing into a stunning adult male. Since I had been at uni, there was not much I could do about this, but it remained until I came home on Friday, so today I decided to go down for it, and see what else was around. 

I got dropped off by my dad at around 9.00 in the morning and immediately began my scanning of the fishing lake, its rumored favored spot. I was unable to track it down but was unable to get a decent view of all the lake.I tried to get a good view from all angles available, as access was forbidden. I would usually just go in, but a fisherman had taken up residence right next to the gate.

I decided to go up and scramble down the back near the Italian restaurant where there was not a fence and hopefully no fishermen to observe my entry. Don't do this at home kids, trespassing is strictly forbidden. On the way up, from the road I overlooked the lake and there, sat smugly in the middle was the scaup, sat asleep with a pair of Great Crested Grebes.

At least now I had located it, and had seen it. I watched from the road for a few mins, before continuing on my quest for entry. I made it up and scrambled down the bank into the fishing area. I was in. I made my way round to where the scaup was, passing several fishermen who did not seem to care and set up my gear to watch the bird. I spent about an hour watching it drift around the lake. It mainly slept, but also fished, preened and washed while I watched it. This is the best way to get a lifer. 

-Scaup with Great Crested Grebes

-Drake Scaup

About half an hour into my watch I hear a familiar twittering overhead, and looked up to watch my first swallow of the year fly overhead. It moved quick, as they tend to do, and I was unable to get any real record shots. However, after I left the scaup for a look around the site I found a group of about 5 on the canal, so I picked up some record shots of my first swallows of the year.

-Swallow

Also along the canal towpath there was a male Blackcap singing. Its the first time I have heard this species this year, so that was nice. He gave very good views too, allowing me to fully appreciate the beauty in the song.

-Male Blackcap

I arrived at my destination, the feeding station, with having only picked up goosander not on the towpath. At the feeding station it was much quieter than it was the last time I was hear over Christmas. I was treated to a 10 min stint by the Bullfinches, along with the great and blue tits and chaffinches. I got great views of the bullfinches, really lovely birds.

-Male Bullfinch

After my appearance at the feeding station I decided to return to the scaup. It was still there and I was able to spend a while watching it, though there was little additional behavior. My time then ran out, as I was asked to leave by one of the bailiffs. He said that for him I could stay but the head bailiff was lurking and that he would not share this opinion. He said to return after the head bailiff had moved on, but I diddnt having already got the most out of the scaup.

-Drake Scaup

So thats how I got my third lifer of 2014, a stunning male scaup. I was well pleased with finally settling this score, a species I had previously dipped 3 times. All that's left to do is give a full species report for the day...

Species List: Scaup*, Dunnock, Chaffinch, Blue Tit, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Swallow, Blackbird, Blackcap, Great Tit, Robin, Wren, Mallard, Grey Heron, Grey Wagtail, Woodpigeon, Bullfinch, Goldfinch, Goosander, Treecreeper, Cormorant, Long-Tailed Tit, Coot, Great-Crested Grebe, Lesser Black-Backed Gull, Chiffchaff,