Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2022 i Bird Watching

BIRDING QUESTION David Chandler: “I'd really like to go to St Kilda. Spectacular, but the public transport links aren't good…” David Lindo: “Fair Isle, hands down… It's an amazing place by all accounts. I will make it there one day.” Dominic Couzens: “I would love to visit Spurn Head on a good autumn day. Such a unique environment.” Ruth Miller: “Shetland! It's top of my bucket list to visit as it turns up the most exciting birds during migration. And I'm a big fan of the TV series!”…

NEWS & OPINION I love my Hyundai Tucson Hybrid (other hybrids are available). Being decrepit, I went for my first automatic. So, I can no longer imagine myself to be the boy racer, rattling through the gears as I take the optimum line around a curve. Not that I was ever into Formula 1… the attraction of which was described to me once by a comedian friend (and committed leftie) as a chance to watch rich boys wipe out. I can't stall at roundabouts and it cuts the leg cramps on long journeys by 50%! It's not quite ideal for my physical proclivities… that would be a super comfortable ride that could cross fields and be tall enough for me to look over the top of hedges. It wasn't my…

You might think that birding by coach sounds like a recipe for disaster, with 30 people squeezing down a narrow path to see one small bird, all blocking each other's view and making a huge amount of noise. I thought so, too, until I tried it. Now, I know it can be enjoyable and rewarding for people who might not otherwise be able to visit our reserves. As well as being a bird guide, I am also a North Wales Tourist Guide and through the summer months, I have been busy guiding groups of guests from cruise ships that dock at the port of Holyhead on Anglesey, in North Wales. This work usually sees me taking the passengers to see the castles or historic towns here. But, once the organisers…

ID TIP! Unlike herons, Glossy Ibises, Spoonbills, storks and unrelated Cranes fly with their necks outstretched Three egrets and Spoonbill in flight Little Egret • Small-sized, slim, shortish wings • Medium length, thin, dark bill • Neck folded with small ‘keel’ • Medium length black legs • Yellow feet Great White Egret • Large (Grey Heron sized), long wings • Long dagger-like bill, orange for most of year • Neck folded with a deep keel • Very long blackish legs • Black feet Cattle Egret • Small-sized, chunky, shortish wings • Short length, ‘stumpy’, orange bill • Neck folded with minimal ‘keel’ • Legs orange to dark • Feet same colour as legs Spoonbill • Medium-large, slim, medium wings • Very long, straight, spatulate black bill • Neck held straight…

Tidal marshes, mudflats and inlets near Scotland's ‘book town’ MAX MILES ON FOOT: 4-5 MIN TIME: 2 HOURS This is Britain's largest local nature reserve, covering just under 7,314 acres, comprises saltmarsh and mud, with river channels cutting through it. A hide makes this a great place to view the wildlife. JOHN MILES WHERE TO WATCH 1 Drive through the town dropping down to the harbour. A small reedbed is found on your right as you approach the car park. Spring sees Sedge, Reed and Grasshopper Warbler here, and amazingly in 2022 the march of the Cetti's Warbler reached Wigtown, with one singing here for a few days. Check for Barn Owis at dusk here as they hunt the flood bank. 2Thanks to the wildfowlers in the area, a large…

A quiet area with a small churchyard to explore MAX MILES ON FOOT: 4 MIN TIME: 3 HOURS This walk also involves a short drive, starting at St James the Great church, Longdon, which holds a varied assortment of trees. Farmland fields then can be explored which give good views of the surrounding area. Crossing the busy A51 can be quite a dangerous affair, so a short journey by car is then required to Longdon Green, with its pleasant pub set in a quiet countryside setting. Here there is a mix of woodland, grazed pasture and arable fields. There are many footpaths dissecting the area, offering fairly easy walking. PETE HACKETT WHERE TO WATCH 1A small amount of parking is available at St James the Great church, so obviously week-day…

The finest estuary in South Wales MAX MILES ON FOOT: 2 MIN TIME: 3 HOURS The Burry Inlet, despite its size, affords good viewing opportunities from several roadside locations. The women of Penclawdd from the mid 19th Century, were particularly famed for their durability and determination as they gathered up to a hundredweight of cockles before the rising tide once more covered the sand banks. These sand banks are much favoured by wading birds, notably Oystercatchers — despite strong opposition 10,000 were culled in 1973 and 1974, having been deemed a threat to the cockle stocks. DAVID SAUNDERS WHERE TO WATCH 1The lay-by almost opposite Dalton's Point provides the first opportunity to view the estuary while one of the numerous creeks provide a haunt for Grey Herons and Little Egrets…

ADVERTORIAL It's 6.30am, I rolled over with the intention of snoozing my alarm, again, but as much as I love my sleep there's a little something called Migfest luring me from I my slumber. A weary walk towards the kitchen for a cup of that wonderful elixir known as coffee results in an imperfectly poured latte and a little granola with yoghurt and honey to fuel the drive from Cheshire to Spurn. We loaded up the van and off we go for a proper day of bird watching. Now, I'm a complete beginner when it comes to bird watching so I have no idea what to expect from Migfest or what I might expect to see. The day was quickly warming up, with the sun shining for everyone to enjoy.…

TRAVEL ECOTOURISM We all love seeing new birds. Most of us start off in our garden or local patch; later, as our interest grows, we venture further afield, to birding hotspots around the UK. For some, the next step is to travel abroad to see species they can't see close to home: either on a selforganised trip or by joining a guided tour. Check out the birding tour companies’ websites, and you'll be amazed at the variety on offer. Tours range from a five-day visit to southern France, costing less than £1,000, to longer and more expensive trips to all seven of the world ‘s continents. If you have upwards of £20,000 to spare, you can even take an expedition into the heart of Antarctica, to visit a breeding colony…

This year, the summer seemed to go on forever, those long hot days eternal. I have never seen the landscape looking so parched and dry (and yes, I can remember 1976 – just…). The constant heat and harsh light are never much of an inspiration for my photography, as I love working in the warm, soft light which only appears at either end of the day during the summer months. Not being a lover of early mornings means that I find it difficult to take full advantage of these periods. And, as avian plumage is not at its best at this time of the year, my bird photography is fairly limited during the warmer months, generally being confined to short evening sessions, when the mood takes me. Shorter days As…

Here is our regular attempt to suggest a few very rare birds which have previously occurred around this time of year, so may repeat the gesture. Top marks for anyone finding any one these three birds, this November. BRÜNNICH'S GUILLEMOT This northern relative of the Guillemot (aka the Thick-billed Murre to the Guillemot's thin-billed aka Common Murre) is a very rare visitor to the UK. Last November, however, saw an unprecedented number of records in the country, especially on North Sea coasts. Is there a chance we will have another major influx? Anything is possible in this era of unpredictable climate. HERMIT THRUSH One of the small (7 inches long) Catharus thrushes from North America which are very rare visitors to the UK (especially Scilly and the Northern Isles, particularly…

#MY200BIRDYEAR As I'm writing this, I'm just about to move back home after my first year of university. What a year it's been! Being the first in my family to attend university, moving away from home, meeting lots of new people and taking my passion for the natural world to the next level. Having the opportunity to study and work towards a degree (ecology and wildlife conservation) on something I love so much, has been brilliant. Whether that's lectures on topics including rewilding, landscape-scale restoration, species reintroduction, or field trips to places such as RSPB Arne and WWT Slimbridge. This last year has allowed me to delve into my interest even further. There's no doubt it's been challenging and a bit stressful at times – with assignments and exams to…

Ducks, raptors and reedbed on the shores of Lough Neagh MAX MILES ON FOOT: 2 MIN TIME: 2 HOURS This is a reserve just off Lough Neagh. Formed by a meteor around 2,000 years ago, it is surprisingly shallow for its size. Surrounded by a large belt of reedbed and fen, there are 73 hectares of wet grassland, with large numbers of breeding waders, like Lapwing. It has a great record for rarities and scarcities, with pairs of Great White Egrets and Glossy Ibis recorded in the past few years. Birds like Pectoral Sandpiper and other rare waterbirds also turn up on occasion. Migration periods at Portmore are the best times to watch. SEAMUS O'HARA WHERE TO WATCH 1 Start your visit in the Wiidiife Garden. Look out for common…

Native woodland is bouncing back at this old airbase MAX MILES ON FOOT: 3 MIN TIME: 2 HOURS This is a site with an intriguing history. There's ancient woodland (its name may come from Earl Morcar, who owned land locally and was a key player in the events of 1066), but parts were also an RAF base, meaning that many of the paths are hardcore and so stand up well to bad weather. Planted with conifers after World War II, those areas were felled in the 90s and have been allowed to naturally regenerate, meaning that bird populations here are always changing. MATT MERRITT WHERE TO WATCH 1 Close to the car park, look for roving flocks of Blue, Great, Coal and Long-tailed Tits, and the commoner finches, in winter,…

Search for spring migrants and farmland birds across a broad floodplain MAX MILES ON FOOT: 5 MIN TIME: 4 HOURS The village of Wittersham is the starting point for this circular walk that descends onto the floodplain of the River Rother at the confluence of the Royal Military Canal on the boundary of the Romney Marsh, taking in parts of East Sussex as well as Kent. The Wealden scenery of small fields and hedgerows around the village with its paddocks, spinnies, orchards and old hop fields is in stark contrast to the arable farmland and lush marginal herbaceous growth beside the watercourse. A wide range of species are assured. PAUL TRODD WHERE TO WATCH 1 Paddocks and hedgerows by the village should hold numbers of common breeding birds including finches,…

WE LOVE… The Sparrowhawk caught in the act. What beauty! 1 Long-tailed Tit by Trevor Burch Camera: Nikon D500 Lens: 500mm, Shutter Speed: 1/1,000 sec Aperture: f/5.6 ISO: 1,250 2 Sparrowhawk by Dave Ward Camera: Canon EOS R5 Lens: 500mm, Shutter Speed: 1/1,000 sec Aperture: f/7.1 ISO: 1,600 3 Hobby by Deena Sharp Camera: Nikon D500 Lens: 500mm, Shutter Speed: 1/2,000 sec Aperture: f/6 ISO: 1,250 4 Fulmar by Kevin Bowers Camera: Nikon D850 Lens: 600mm, Shutter Speed: 1/1,600 sec Aperture: f/7.1 ISO: 800 PICS FROM OUR FACEBOOK GROUP Join our dedicated #My200BirdYear Facebook group and share your best birding experiences and images with the community: facebook.com/groups/My200BirdYear…

TRAVEL HEATHERLEA The Bird Watching #My200BirdYear programme for 2023 begins with holidays in Scotland, which offers excellent birding in January and February. We aim to see as many species as possible, and these exciting holidays are ideal for general birders who want to see Scotland's birds in winter, as well as for enthusiasts who keep lists. There are two holidays to choose over a total of nine different departures, so whether you would like a full week or a four-night stay, there's a holiday which is just right for you. Get 2023 off to a cracking start! One priority will be British speciality species best sought in the Highlands; and during the Birdlist Booster full week tours we specifically target Ptarmigan, Black Grouse, Golden Eagle, White-tailed Eagle, Scottish Crossbill and…

I've spoken before about the fact that I increasingly find myself using smaller binoculars, both because technological advances have meant that you can now cram much more performance into a small package, and because more and more I'm also lugging a lot of other gear around. So, I was really keen to get my hands on Opticron's WA ED-R 10x32s. The ED glass ought to give great light gathering and transmission, among other things, and the fact that this model stresses the wide angle allays any fears that 10x32 might make for rather a tunnel view. Well, they feel absolutely great. They're very compact indeed (120mm x 116mm x 46mm), and lightweight (430g), and so I was able to use them very comfortably in one hand — useful to know…

NOVEMBER BIRD OF THE MONTH MOORHEN There are many glorious British birds which are largely ignored by birdwatchers and non-birdwatchers alike. These include the magnificent Magpie, the charming Chaffinch, the stunning Stock Dove and the delightful Dunnock. OK, the latter is a bit of an acquired taste, but you get the picture. The Moorhen surely fits into the category of beauties ducking below the birding radar; presumably as they are just too familiar, being ubiquitous and pretty much unafraid. You can see Moorhens just about anywhere where there is a pond, lake, ditch, gravel pit or river. And they won't just be swimming around, but out on the banks and nearby goose-cropped grass pecking for morsels, or hoping to cash in on something thrown for the ducks in the park.…

In my world, there are morals, ethics and the law. Ideally, the three combine sympathetically but when they don't, or there is ambiguity, then I struggle. And while I occasionally struggle with ethics and morals, I very frequently struggle with the law because it fails to align with my morals and our ethics. A clear example is the shooting of Woodcock in the UK. It's legal… but is it morally acceptable? Is it ethical? And if it isn't morally acceptable or ethical should it be legal? And if it shouldn't be legal, then what should be done? Let's begin with some definitions. Although the terms are used interchangeably, morals and ethics are actually different, in that morals are our individual standards of behaviour, what we decide is right and wrong,…

30 minute BIRDER I was fiddling ineptly with my tripod in a London Wetland Centre hide one sunny mid-September's day. It was my first time out with a scope, one I'd borrowed from my dad, and it was a steep learning curve. The plan had been to use it for some wader practice, but the muddy fringes of the main lake and the wader scrape were very quiet that day. I'd heard that everyone else was on the other side of the reserve trying to get a glimpse of a tricksy Bittern, but I was after some time on my own. I'd more or less worked out how to manipulate the scope when a lone wader finally flew in, and I just managed to focus in time. Green Sandpiper, I…

Osprey The Osprey truly is in a class of its own, being the sole member of the family Pandionidae, and so perhaps it should be no surprise that it's found on all the continents bar Antarctica (although it's only a non-breeding migrant in South America), filling as it does a very particular ecological niche. There are four subspecies – the nominate race, Pandion haliaetus haliaetus, which is the one we see in the UK, American and Caribbean races, and Pandion haliaetus cristatus, found in Australia. This latter is the smallest and most distinctive subspecies, leading some authorities to consider it a full species, the Eastern Osprey. Because most of the races are migratory, Opsreys can turn up on just about any water body, wherever you are in the world. (Black-crowned)…

ID TIP! Great White Egrets’ bills turn blackish (ie. not orange-yellow) during the peak of the breeding season BIRD 1 Here is a bird which appears to have long wings (with primary ‘fingers’ at the tip), with a hint of the bowed shape which gives herons that distinctive M-shaped flight profile (unlike other long-legged wading birds like storks or Cranes, which have long, straight wings). The wings (and spread tail) are uniformly grey on the upper wing coverts and the flight feathers are darker, blue-grey. The head is largely obscured, but looks to have a pale crown with dark on the upper nape, and is that a bent neck? Finally, the feet are showing as yellowish beyond the tail. In a UK context, this bird surely must be a Grey…

Varied walking around a great Mull beach MAX MILES ON FOOT: 4 MIN TIME: 3 HOURS The North West Mull Community Woodland company has taken over the woodland from Forestry and Land Scotland, and the future of what will be planted here is still in doubt, but this walk to one of North Mulls famous beaches has plenty to offer at the moment. JOHN MILES WHERE TO WATCH 1As you park you can see a wide area of clear-felled Sitka Spruce with as yet little regeneration of any trees. Look out for Meadow Pipits and Sky Lark. Hunting Hen Harriers are common in the area. Several crofts have been added to the area by the community trust so species like Robin, Song Thrush and Wren are possible. 2 An extract…

Great Lakeland views, with some varied bird life MAX MILES ON FOOT: 1 MIN TIME: 2 HOURS The Newlands Valley doesn't have the sort of native woodland that Borrowdale does, but the Keskadale Wood is exceptional and well worth a view, either from the road or up the very steep hillside. The majority of the Lake District National Park would have had this type of woodland on its fells once, but it was cleared for grazing and charcoal production. JOHN MILES WHERE TO WATCH 1 Driving in from Portinscale you see large amounts of conifer woodland, until a very large oak sits in front of you. The valley had a form of grazing called ‘wood pasture’, where trees and grass were essential. Birds along that route will include Goldcrest, Coal…

This large former gravel workings holds year-round interest MAX MILES ON FOOT: 3 MIN TIME: 3 HOURS With a good range of resident species and the chance of scarcer birds dropping into the pools, or along the hedgerows, this site can be rewarding at any time. It gets plenty of dogwalkers, but there are always quiet corners. MATT MERRITT WHERE TO WATCH 1 Along the main track from the entrance, the hedges host tit and finch flocks in winter, warblers such as Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Whitethroat and even Lesser Whitethroat in spring and summer, plus winter thrushes. Check them, and other hedgerows leading off them, for Redstart in migration periods. Check the adjacent fields for winter thrushes and Lapwings, plus passage Wheatear, Whinchat and Ring Ouzel. They can also be used…

A winter walk for grebes and waders MAX MILES ON FOOT: 4 MIN TIME: 4 HOURS This coastal birding walk includes two national trails: the West Coast Path that affords views across the saline fleets ‘trapped’ behind the bulwark of Chesil Bank, and the England Coast Path overlooking Portland Harbour at Sandsfoot Castle, perhaps the best vantage point to scan the harbour for grebes and seabirds. The starting point by the Chesil Beach Centre provides an opportunity to check the mudflats and saltings for a range of waders, gulls and wildfowl, where Black Brant, Kentish Plover, Glaucous and Iceland Gulls and Forster's Tern have occurred in the past. PAUL TRODD WHERE TO WATCH 1 Check in front of the visitor centre for waders; typically, Oystercatcher, Ringed Plover, Dunlin, Bar-tailed Godwit,…

Mystery wader Q Could you help with the identification of this bird please? I believe it is a sandpiper, but as there are a number of variants, I am a bit stuck! Is there a way of separating the different types of sandpipers to make identification easier? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Dave George A Firstly, Dave, your bird is a Green Sandpiper. The ID is helped greatly by it being such a fine photograph. Often Green Sandpipers are very shy birds, flying off noisily complaining at the slightest provocation. The smaller waders we call ‘sandpipers’ come in two main types, those in the genus Calidris and those in Tringa. Calidris sandpipers (typified by the Dunlin) tend to be small, rounded and dumpy, with slightly down-turned bills, and mostly…

BIRDTHEWORLD THE BEST HOLIDAY OFFERS & TRAVEL REPORTS FROM AROUND THE GLOBE READER HOLIDAY The Avalon hide at Ham Wall on a spring day offers great views of hunting Hobbies chasing dragonflies, while Marsh Harriers perform their sky-dance and Great White Egrets drop in like ghostly pterosaurs. If we're lucky, a Bittern will drift over the reeds in sight of the hide. Whitethroats sing from the Blackthorn bushes, Cetti's Warblers erupt into an impossibly loud song and Reed and Sedge Warblers fill the fresh air with their liquid voice. Somerset's coastline is often overlooked by birders, but not on this trip, with a visit included to the wonderful reserve at Steart Marshes, always packed with interesting and varied birdlife. In addition, the ‘western oakwood trio’ of Pied Flycatcher, Wood Warbler and…

UKBIRDSIGHTINGS The best rare birds seen all around Britain in September SEPTEMBER As you will know, the last week or so of September has in recent years been a peak time for ‘rarity hunting’. So, naturally, birders have been hitting Shetland and its allies at this time in search of delicious rare birds from the east and west. This year was no exception and many birders duly reaped the rewards. Meanwhile, those left behind were looking northward with some envy until 26 September, when news of an extreme ‘mega’ came flying out of the heart of England. The wooden fence of a garden in Wantage, Oxfordshire turned out to be the site of one of the most exciting rarities of the year, a juvenile Common Nighthawk. The bird was identified…