Woodhall Spa twitching White-billed Diver

After my initial attempt to see this bird on Wednesday ended in failure after the bird decided to swim too far up river for me to reach in my limited time-frame, I knew I would have to go back and try again. My Wednesday attempt did get me a yeartick of Waxwing when a small flock of 8 flew over my head as I walked up the river, so thats something worth noting. 

Today's twitch was far more successful, the bird showing very well as soon as I arrived on site, and continuing to show for the three hours I spent with it. White-billed diver is obviously an extremely rare bird, but to see one inland like this is even rarer. Its gives the opportunity to see a bird up close in a way that you might not get otherwise. 

The bill is obviously the main feature that stands out from the first moment you see the bird. Its just so massive on the front of the birds face. The light was not ideal for photos but I managed a few that I am happy with, mainly using digiscoping. Its still a technique I'm working on with my new camera so I failed to get as many photos as I wanted, but I still got enough to be happy with.

-White-billed Diver

White-billed Diver is the final representative of the bird order Gaviiformes, the divers, meaning that it is the first bird order that I have now seen all global representatives. And I've had the fun of being able to see them all up close and really get to grips with. 

There was not much of a supporting cast, the best of it being a pair of distant Whooper Swans and a small flock of Yellowhammer on a garden feeder. Still a cracking day out though, and a great bird to see.

Species List:

Woodhall Spa: White-billed Diver, Cormorant, Goosander, Tufted Duck, Mallard, Moorhen, Coot, Little Grebe, Mute Swan, Whooper Swan, Yellowhammer, Bullfinch, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Goldfinch, Chaffinch, 

Druridge Bay CP twitching Pacific Diver

Winter is meant to be a steady time with not an abundance of new birds being found but a few long staying rarities. Over the weekend though a good few rare birds were found scattered across the north, and with my shifts at work now being moved forward a couple of hours for this week only I was able to get a few of said birds seen.

First on the agenda was a cracking Pacific Diver in Northumberland that was apparently showing exceptionally well. I made the trip up and was on site for half 10. As soon as I arrived I picked up the bird but it was distant and sleeping. Still not as distant as one at sea would have been but nothing like as close as it had been. However, during the morning, once it had woken up, it did come a lot closer and I was able to finally practice digiscoping with my new camera. 

-Pacific Diver

Overall I was quite pleased with the results, but still needs a lot of practice. I also took some insurance shots through Phone-scoping. Sadly the bird remained a little too distant to be able to get anything with the SLR, which is saying something really, as the bird was very close at times. The light was also quite poor, always being behind the bird and making it more difficult to get good photos of.

-Pacific Diver

The bird itself was a rather stunning beast. Its possibly the best views I've ever had of any diver species, which really allowed me to get to grips with its plumage features. The lack of flank patch is the most obvious feature. From photos there did seem to be some white there, but in the field there was obviously nothing. The chin strap was also more marked than it had appeared in photos online. Both diagnostic features of this species. 

It was a really nice day out. Additional yearticks included Siskin and Red-breasted Merganser. Sadly I diddnt have time to go to the coast and pick up any other species that have been linering around the area, but my pattern of work is such that it does allow me to get out birding like this and see this incredible rarities, so I can't complain.

Species List:
Druridge Bay CP: Pacific Diver, Coot, Moorhen, Tufted Duck, Mallard, Gadwall, Goldeneye, Red-breasted Merganser, Oystercatcher, Redshank, Pink-footed Goose, Greylag Goose, Goldcrest, Long-tailed Tit, Bullfinch, Goldfinch, Siskin, Greenfinch, Chaffinch, Song Thrush,

South Pennine moors

A really enjoyable day out with Jamie Dunning and Anna Temple Twite ringing on the southern half of the Calderdale recording area. It was good fun, my first time using a whoosh net to catch birds. Obviously I'm not a ringer but it was fun to see the birds close up and appreciate the Twite in their winter plumage. The flock was probably about 50 birds, and we caught about 20 different birds, including a couple of re-traps. Overall a really fun day out.

-Twite

Species List: 

South Pennine moors: Twite, Goldfinch, Stonechat, Jackdaw, Herring Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, 

Lochwinnoch twitching Hooded Merganser

For my firs twitch of 2017 I decided to finally make a move for the Hooded Merganser that had been residing in southern Scotland for the last few months. The location was Lochwinnoch just south of Glasgow. After testing multiple options, I decided that the best way to do it would be by train, going up from Halifax in the morning and returning the same day after a couple of hours at the bird. This method paid off, as I was rewarded with a nice afternoon out birding.

As soon as I arrived on site I connected with the Hooded Merganser. It remained distant throughout my stay unfortunately, on the far side of the Loch to myself, meaning only distant record shots could be obtained. Its a pretty stunning bird, although having seen Hooded Mergansers in collections before there was nothing overly surprising about seeing it. It did come a little closer when it came round the bank at the north end. I headed over that way but found it the same second it found me, so flushed it out again. However, it clearly flew no bother (not clipped) and was obviously wary, so I suspect this is a wild bird and should have no bother getting accepted by the relevant committees.

-Hooded Merganser

As for the supporting cast. There were a host of commoner year-ticks to be had but also some less common. A drake Scaup was unexpected, hanging out with the ample Tufted Ducks on the loch, and showing fairly well too, substantially better than the Merganser thats for certain. Unfortunately I diddnt manage to get a clear shot of it, meaning I still don't have a good photo of a Scaup.

-Scaup

But the highlight of the supporting cast were the Whooper Swans which were around. I headed onto the actual RSPB reserve after a while watching the Merganser and right in front of the hide was a family party of seven Whooper Swans. They were cracking birds, as Whoopers always are. 

-Whooper Swans

The light remained poor throughout the afternoon, with intermittent flecks of drizzle. For that reason I took no decent photos of any of the birds on the list. It was an awesome day out though, and well worth the effort.

Species List:

Lochwinnoch RSPB: Tufted Duck, Wigeon, Teal, Mute Swan, Moorhen, Cormorant, Hooded Merganser, Goosander, Mallard, Scaup, Whooper Swan, Kingfisher, Great-crested Grebe, Little Grebe, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Black-headed Gull, Herring Gull,Coot, Pochard, Chaffinch, Coal Tit, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Robin, Nuthatch, 

Spurn for New Years

I decided to spend the New Year at Spurn seeing old friends and getting my yearlist off to a good start. After being there for so long before it felt awesome to be back.

31st December
Called in at Welwick on the way over with Zac and Danni. No sign of the Pallid Harrier, but there was a nice Short-eared Owl perched up, as well as a Merlin. A nice hour or so to kick start to weekend.

1st January 
2017 is here already and the year-listing slate has been wiped clean. First bird of the year this year was Brent Goose, which is a bit different to the last few years back in Halifax. It rained all day and so birding was at a premium. I got a lift with Tim to have a look at a mixed goose flock near Weeton. It contained Bean Geese, Pink-footed Geese and White-fronted Geese. All good species to have on the yearlist, if only they were not so distant, and when I say distant, I mean really distant. On the way back I got a Spurn tick, which was probably the highlight of the weekend. Grey Squirrel! It was feeding on the roadside as we drove back before it scurried into the trees. A pretty insane record, especially since there were no records in the area for 2016.
When the rain finally stopped we had a walk round the triangle and picked up Kittiwake flying over for the yearlist.

2nd January
A much brighter day allowed me to spend more time in the field. Started at Seawatching but it was very quiet on that front, with nothing really to note. I then did the triangle, wetlands, ponds and then the triangle again. Nothing really stood out, the highlight probably a Grey Wagtail on the shoreline at Beacon Ponds, or a Little Owl perched up just outside the area on our way back from visiting a local shop. A pleasant day birding all the same though.

Species List:
Spurn Area: Brent Goose, Great Tit, Redshank, Mallard, Carrion Crow, Starling, House Sparrow, Collard Dove, Blackbird, Mute Swan, Pheasant, Common Gull, Woodpigeon, Lapwing, Curlew, Golden Plover, Magpie, Moorhen, Feral Pigeon, Jackdaw, Bean Goose, Pink-footed Goose, White-fronted Goose, Red-throated Diver, Goldfinch, Black-tailed Godwit, Bar-tailed Godwit, Knot, Oystercatcher, Wigeon, Herring Gull, Wren, Great Black-backed Gull, Little Grebe, Kestrel, Teal, Robin, Dunnock, Blue Tit, Kittiwake, Turnstone, Grey Plover, Shelduck, Reed Bunting, Guillemot, Gannet, Common Scoter, Dunlin, Stock Dove, Greylag Goose, Common Snipe, Tree Sparrow, Meadow Pipit, Pied Wagtail, Goldeneye, Little Egret, Grey Wagtail, Grey Heron, Song Thrush, Common Buzzard, Little Owl,

Stow-on-the-wold twitching Blue Rock Thrush

I have done some brutal and ridiculous twitches by public transport, but this could be one of the hardest I have ever done. Usually a coach overnight involves a trip of a few hours where I arrive at my destination in the morning ready to begin having slept on the coach, but with this one I had to change at Birmingham at 3.00 in the morning. It took its tole and by the end of the day I was very worse for wear.

The bird I went for, a Blue Rock Thrush, a male of uncertain age and uncertain origin. Its worth stating from the off that there is no guarantee that this bird will get accepted, and I happen to be in the school of thought that think it won't. I do however think it is a wild bird, regardless of the decision, and whatever it is, its a rather stunning bird and well worth going for a look at in my opinion.

Upon arrival at the site where the bird was, a housing estate in the Cotswolds, I was greeted to the news there was no sign, and since it had already been light for two hours and the bird usually shows first thing, I began to have my doubts about seeing the bird. These were no eased as over two hours passed with ample birders on site looking and still no sign of the bird. I did get a Waxwing as some compensation, but at the time it felt like something of a lost cause.

It was half 11 when it was finally located, just as I had lost all hope of it been seen, considering it predated overnight or otherwise. It was on the rooftops of the houses in a small parking lot. There was a thin fog in the air and it made viewing conditions less than optimal, but there was no doubt as to the birds identity. It stayed there for a short while before it flew off towards its usual spot in the main part of the estate.

This was its pattern of behavior for the rest of the afternoon, with it frequenting the parking lot but remaining mobile and frequently moving to other areas. The light did improve during the afternoon so I was able to get some decent shots. Sadly though my phone died, meaning I could only use my DSLR, no phone-scoping insurance for poor SLR photos. In the end though the bird put on a good show, hopping about the rooftops in great fashion, really good value to watch and well worth going for, regardless of the outcome of its origins.

-Blue Rock Thrush

Species List:

Stow-on-the-Wold: Waxwing, Collard Dove, Woodpigeon, Robin, Blackbird, Blue Rock Thrush, Dunnock, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Starling, Feral Pigeon,

Beeley, Derbyshire twitching Dusky Thrush

When a remarkable Dusky Thrush turned up in Derbyshire on Sunday night, confirmed on the Monday, it seemed like a sure fire hit. The bird performed well for most of the Monday and apparently had been present for over two weeks before it got noticed. Seemed foolproof. Sadly 5 hours in the mist and fog only produced 60 seconds of bird. I can't complain as I did see it and other birders I know did not, but in all that time it was a little disappointing not to have got a little bit more.

The bird was discovered on a bird ID Facebook group, when a lady from the village uploaded three photos from the village of Beeley; a Starling, a Dusky Thrush and a Blackbird. It seemed remarkable but as the story unfolded it became clear that there was a seriously rare bird in a seriously bizarre location. The village was prepped, ready to be inundated with twitchers.

-Beeley getting ready 

The bird was confirmed on the Monday but I had not taken the plunge and at that point it was too late for me to travel and see the bird in daylight. I made my move the following day and arrived on site at half 10. The bird had not been seen for an hour, and such was the pattern of the day, it remained mobile and difficult to connect with throughout the day, hence why I only saw it for such a small period of time.

One thing is for sure though, should it winter, which it seems set to do, I will certainly be back for more, as it really is a smart bird. 

-Dusky Thrush

Species List:

Beeley, Derbyshire: Carrion Crow, Starling, Woodpigeon, Blackbird, Redwing, Fieldfare, Song Thrush, Dusky Thrush, Siskin, Brambling, Chaffinch, Greenfinch, House Sparrow, Robin, Wren, Sparrowhawk, 

Pembrokeshire twitching Masked Wagtail

Less than 24 hours after my departure from Spurn I was back in very familiar company. In my first evening back in Halifax I got a message from John Hewitt saying he had changed his mind on going for the Masked Wagtail in south Wales and was now going, asking if I wanted to come along. I agreed, and John said he was going to pick me up in Halifax at 4 the following morning. 

We arrived on site just after 10, Jonnie, John, another lad and myself. The Wagtail showed on and off for the two hours we spent watching it. Its preferred area was the sunny sides of the roofs of the houses in the village, which was the side we could not see from the road. But as the morning wore on it started feeding more and more on the side we could see, even coming down onto the road right in front of us.

Maksed Wagtail, the first record for Britain, is an eastern race of Pied Wagtail. Its black bib and white mask made it a really stunning bird, well worth the 12 hour round trip for me, and 16 hour round trip for the lads coming from Spurn. I took plenty of photos and was fairly pleased with what I got. 

-Masked Wagtail

A really enjoyable day out, in really nice weather with a cracking bird. The supporting cast was nice too, although nothing unusual, it was mainly common species that I have not seen for some time whilst at Spurn. Its what twitching is all about really.

Species List:

Camrose, Pembrokeshire: Rook, Jackdaw, Grey Wagtail, Chaffinch, House Sparrow, Great-spotted Woodpecker, Blue Tit, Masked Wagtail, Herring Gull, Dunnock, Robin, Collard Dove, Pied Wagtail, Starling, Magpie, Goldfinch, Meadow Pipit, Common Snipe,