Rare Bird Alert October 15th
This is the UK400 Cub Rare Bird Alert for Monday 15th October 2007, issued at 1600 hours, and produced in association with Rare Bird Alert Pagers (www.rarebirdalert.com) and utilising further information gleaned from Regional Birdlines, www.Birdguides.com, the Irish Birdnet, local email groups and individual observers.
With a major clearout on Shetland at the onset of an Atlantic front, all major activity reverts to the Isles of Scilly. The star attraction continues to be the North American WILSON’S SNIPE. Present early mornings in front of the Lower Moors hides, the bird then retreats to the quiet, sedge-filled surroundings of the adjacent Stepping Stones Field, where it is incredibly difficult to observe and out of view for 90% of the time. It occasionally returns to the pool prior to dusk, but does roost there each evening.
A LESSER YELLOWLEGS was a new but all-too-brief fresh transatlantic arrival this afternoon, pausing briefly to refuel on Porthellick Beach, St Mary’s. The GREY-CHEEKED THRUSH remains on Porthloo Lane, but is remarkably elusive, being glimpsed mainly in flight perhaps three times a day (in the vicinity of the first few fields beyond Rose Studios) whilst the GREATER SHORT-TOED LARK commutes between the Golf Course and the Airfield and the extremely confiding (and incidentally only easy bird to see) juvenile WOODCHAT SHRIKE continues to refill its larder in the bracken stone-wall hedgerows behind Carn Vean Tearooms adjacent to Green Lane.
There are two similarly marked first-winter BLACKPOLL WARBLERS on St Mary’s – one in Sallows and Willows at the Higher Moors Clump and another in gardens, tall Elms and dense shrubs along Pottery Lane on the quayside Garrison. Both birds can involve considerable time for connection.
A RUSTIC BUNTING is a new addition at the far end of McFarlane Down, Pungies Lane, St Mary’s, with a LITTLE BUNTING in fields opposite the Incinerator also newly discovered.
St Agnes offers a juvenile ROSE-COLOURED STARLING on Periglis Beach, with the elusive BLYTH’S REED WARBLER still on Bryher (in Green Bay area) and a highly mobile GREAT WHITE EGRET occasionally seen over Tresco (on route to feeding/roosting areas on the Eastern Isles). There are up to 15 Yellow-browed Warblers on the archipelago, at least 1 Lapland and Snow Bunting, a lingering Osprey, several Black Redstarts, 600+ Siskins and a field-full of over 1,200 Chaffinches on Tresco.
At the extreme opposite end of the country, Shetland continued to be bombarded by mouthwatering vagrants all weekend (check out the Shetland website to be ‘gripped off’ by Hugh Harrop’s outstanding images). Pride of place (as always) was the spectacular WHITE’S THRUSH, present at Sumburgh Farm on 13th, with runners-up in the form of a very showy PECHORA PIPIT at Toab and yet another RED-FLANKED BLUETAIL (first-winter) at Scatness (13th-14th). Also on 14th, a RUSTIC BUNTING and DUSKY WARBLER were at Sumburgh Farm, obliging PADDYFIELD WARBLER and LITTLE BUNTING at Quendale Burn, GREATER SHORT-TOED LARK at Toab, PALLAS’S LEAF WARBLER at Sumburgh Head and ever present KILLDEER again at Pool of Virkie. The drake Ring-necked Duck remains at Loch of Tingwall whilst well-marked ARCTIC REDPOLLS (probably HORNEMANN’S) continue with Twite flocks at Collafirth, Northmavine, and in West Yell. On Unst, the BLYTH’S REED WARBLER and 12 Northwestern Redpolls remained at Norwick (14th), with a Rufous Nightingale trapped at Northdale, with 3 OLIVE-BACKED PIPITS on Foula.
Most unusual was an adult male RED-FOOTED FALCON at Tarbat Ness Lighthouse (Highland) until 0920 hours this morning (Dave Tanner), with a PALLAS’S LEAF WARBLER trapped and ringed at The Naze (Essex), a European Serin over Stanpit Marsh (Dorset) and a Wryneck present for its 2nd day at Warham Greens (Norfolk). A first-winter LESSER GREY SHRIKE was reported from Dersingham Bog NR this morning (at cTF 665 285) as was the HUME’S LEAF WARBLER again from Holkham Pines. The juvenile/first-winter Red-necked Phalarope survives on Kelling Water Meadows, with a fair number of Yellow-browed Warblers, Ring Ouzels and Bramblings still at coastal localities.
Further north, a moulting adult AMERICAN GOLDEN PLOVER remains for a third day in the Spurn/Kilnsea area (East Yorks), with PECTORAL SANDPIPERS at Tophill Low Reservoir (East Yorks) (2 juveniles) and a GREAT WHITE EGRET at Rutland Water Egleton Reserve (Leics).
A very confiding juvenile SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER is present for a second day on the Gann Estuary, just north of Dale (Pembrokeshire), whilst the adult WHITE-BILLED DIVER in absolutely pristine summer plumage remains in residence off Selsey Bill (West Sussex) (please note that this bird frequents sea surfaces between 500 and 1500 yards offshore – a 60X lens is recommended for viewing). At the other end of the telescopic spectrum, a juvenile PECTORAL SANDPIPER shows down to 3 feet just north of White’s Creek in Pagham Harbour (access from Pagham Lagoon car park; walk north for half a mile to view spartina at edge of muddy foreshore track to North Wall).
A CATTLE EGRET is present for a second day at Seaton Marshes (South Devon), although there is no sign tofday of yesterday’s first for Berkshire – at Lower Farm GP until dusk. The Mockbeggar Lake (Hants) GREAT WHITE EGRET continues to prosper, as does the 2nd-winter GLOSSY IBIS at Marshside Marsh RSPB (Merseyside). Up to 252 Taiga Bean Geese have returned to Luckenburn Farm, Slamannan (Forth). A drake LESSER SCAUP is at Blagdon Lake (Somerset), whilst an adult blue morph LESSER SNOW GOOSE is with 15,000 Pinkfeet at Aberlady Bay (Lothian).
From the island of IRELAND, weekend highlights include LESSER YELLOWLEGS at Clonakilty (Co. Cork), BLYTH’S REED WARBLER and RED-RUMPED SWALLOW at Mizen Head (Co. Cork), DUSKY WARBLER on Cape Clear Island (Co. Cork), LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER and GREAT WHITE EGRET at Lough Beg and LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER at Shannon Lagoons (Co. Clare). At least 1 AMERICAN BUFF-BELLIED PIPIT continues at Liscannor.
