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Member Updates May 5th

UK400 Club life lists updated plus the latest installment in Lee’s Diary notes for 2010 covering the period from March 16th – 31st, members can download from the members area. For details of membership please contact Lee.

2010 Additions

Recent additions have included Pallid Swift (Kessingland) and the adult male LESSER KESTREL at Minsmere.

UK400 Club UK & Ireland Combined Life List Totals

Total number of species recorded equals 654

Members Area Updates

The UK400 clubs life lists have been updated and don;t forget to check out Lee’s diary 2010 notes, please log in to download.

UK400 Club Members Certificates

Available at just £2.60 the UK400 and 500 club certificates are the ideal way to celebrate and remember reaching these milestones. Please contact Lee to order your copy now.

UK500 Club Certificate

LGRE Tour Updates

Have a few days off now before my next (18th) tour of Turkey and will be addressing all emails, list updates accordingly

My annual ‘Highland and Islands’ Scottish tour was extremely successful, with a total of 144 species recorded. The six participants were able to enjoy spectacular views of playing OTTERS, point-blank views of ‘Limpy’ – a female PINE MARTEN we have fed in consecutive years and ARCTIC HARE, along with breeding SCOTTISH PARROT CROSSBILLS, a nesting pair of CRESTED TITS, two displaying male PTARMIGANS, crippling views of feeding male CAPERCAILLIES, over 25 lekking cock BLACK GROUSE, several OSPREYS, numerous breeding pairs of GOLDEN EAGLES (including a memorable nest changeover of one pair), some fantastic views of nesting adult WHITE-TAILED SEA EAGLES, MERLIN, WHIMBREL, SHORT-EARED OWLS and commoner species such as COMMON RAVEN, TWITE, ROCK DOVE, GOOSANDER, WHINCHAT, COMMON REDSTART, TREE PIPIT, DIPPER and WOOD WARBLER. SLAVONIAN GREBES and all three diver species were in full finery and a full suite of seabirds were seen crossing to the Outer Hebrides, whilst rarities ‘scooped up’ including an awesome male COLLARED FLYCATCHER and a pristine summer-plumaged WHITE-WINGED BLACK TERN. Bookings are now taking place for my 2010 tour

The May tour of the WESTERN SAHARA and MOROCCO also proved exciting and challenging this year, with 180 species recorded highlighting in the finding of no less than 9 CRICKET LONGTAILS at Aousswerd, including a pair feeding three fledged young. We also recorded 8 breeding AFRICAN DESERT WARBLERS, several AFRICAN DUNN’S LARKS, 90+ BLACK-CROWNED FINCH LARKS, over 120 DESERT SPARROWS, LANNER, FULVOUS BABBLERS and 10 adult KELP GULLS, 3 LESSER CRESTED TERNS, 4 AFRICAN ROYAL TERNS and 26 AUDOUIN’S GULLS.

Morocco yielded MOUSSIER’S REDSTART, excellent numbers of MARBLED DUCK and RED-KNOBBED COOT, breeding WHITE-HEADED and FERRUGIONUS DUCKS, large numbers of passage PIED FLYCATCHERS, BARBARY PARTRIDGE, BROWN-THROATED SAND MARTIN, large numbers of AFRICAN DESERT and RED-RUMPED WHEATEARS, successful breeding of ISABELLINE WHEATEAR, good numbers of TRUMPETER FINCH and AFRICAN SCRUB WARBLERS, outstanding views of THICK-BILLED LARKS, BARBARY FALCONS, 60+ CREAM-COLOURED COURSERS, 30+ GREATER HOOPOE LARKS (many in full display) and 63 NORTHERN BALD IBIS in and around the breeding colony.

The Atlas Mountains held breeding ATLAS PIED FLYCATCHERS, ATLAS RAVEN, BARBARY APES, SEEBOHM’S WHEATEARS (large numbers), DUPONT’S LARKS and TRISTRAM’S WARBLERS, whilst the desert regions near Merzouga produced breeding PHARAOH EAGLE OWL, BLUE-CHEEKED BEE-EATERS and numerous MOROCCAN PIED WAGTAILS.

For me, the undoubted highlight (apart from the Longtails) was the sight of 85+ ELEONORA’S FALCONS flycatching overhead at dusk and the exceptional numbers of EUROPEAN TURTLE DOVE (442+) and SPOTTED FLYCATCHER that we recorded on the trip.

Prior to Morocco, my 27th tour of ISRAEL had proved very successful at the end of March with 230 species recorded in 10 days, including ORIENTAL HONEY BUZZARD, CASPIAN PLOVER, NUBIAN NIGHTJAR, HUME’S TAWNY OWL, GREAT BLACK-HEADED GULL, EURASIAN BLACK VULTURE, MARBLED DUCK, CITRINE WAGTAIL, SINAI ROSEFINCH, STRIATED BUNTING (22), ASIATIC SCRUB WARBLER (20), ASIATIC DESERT WARBLER, ARABIAN WARBLER, HOODED WHEATEAR (4), AFRICAN GREEN-BACKED GALLINULE, LILITH’S OWL, McQUEEN’S BUSTARD, TEREK SANDPIPER, DEAD SEA SPARROW (17), STRIATED HERON, CASPIAN STONECHAT, ORIENTAL SKYLARK, NAMAQUA DOVE, SEMICOLLARED FLYCATCHER, ARABIAN BABBLER, LICHTENSTEIN’S SANDGROUSE, BIMACULATED LARK (3), BLACK BUSH ROBIN, BLUE-CHEEKED BEE-EATER, LONG-BILLED PIPIT, BLACK FRANCOLIN, GREAT SPOTTED CUCKOO (9), CLAMAROUS REED WARBLER, SYRIAN SERIN, GREATER SPOTTED EAGLE, amongst the many highlights.

If you would like to join me on any 2010 tour, please email me, whilst I still have places on this year’s SCANDINAVIA (25 June to 6 July), AZORES, EGYPT, CYPRUS and POLAND tours.

Diary Notes Jan 26 – 31 – Added Feb 24th

I visited Cambridgeshire today in the vain hope of adding Rough-legged Buzzard and Great White Egret to my
Year List – I was partly successful.

I arrived shortly after midday and spent three hours on site ‘dipping’ – my fourth attempt at this elusive Rough-legged Buzzard – the bird I saw in Hertfordshire in December 2008. Searching from both the ‘Esso tanker’ spot and the layby south of the black barn, as well as from the high points just south of Coveney village drew a complete blank.

Four COMMON BUZZARDS were seen, including the pale morph, as well as 9 Common Kestrels and a flock of 35 Yellowhammers.. There were also over 2,000 Woodpigeons in the area, and over 400 WHOOPER SWANS in fields NE of the village on West Fen. A BARN OWL appeared at 1600 hours at Home Dams Farm, where it was caught up in an argument with a female Common Kestrel.

I also struggled with the wintering GREAT WHITE EGRET today and after a lot of searching eventually pinned it down feeding in deep water in the Main Drain, south of Pymoor Village at TL 505 855. It was there from at least 1510-1530. I did not see it today in the drain east of Dunkirk, although it had visited there earlier.

Great White Egret

Members please log in to access, non members Please contact lee for membership details.

Diary Notes Jan 12 – 18 – Added Feb 12th

Diary notes covering the period January 19th – 25th 2009

BROGBOROUGH TIP (BEDFORDSHIRE)
Twitching the first-ever King Eider for Sussex, I was otherwise engaged when Steve Blain texted me with the incredulous news that he had just located a SNOW BUNTING whilst counting a few Mute Swans and Coots at the few remaining areas of open water at Brogborough Tip Reclamation. So, after hearing of 15 or so Beds birders connecting during the Sunday afternoon, I arranged to meet Francis Buckle and Roy Nye at 0915 at the site. And what a site it was……full of thick, slippery mud!

Download the full account from members area, if you would like to become a member please contact Lee

English Partridge

Another diary update

Covering the period from January 12th to 18th Lee publishes another edtion of his diary notes for members to download.

Please log in to read and download.
HAWFINCH, CHASEWATER FEEDING STATION, STAFFORDSHIRE
JANUARY 15th 2009

Lee’s diaries Updated Jan 31st

Lee’s diaries covering the period Jan 4th – January 11th, 2 vols, featuring both the Begian Dusky Thrush and the Cornish Snowy Owl have been uploaded for members to read and download, please log in for full access.

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