Innholdsfortegnelse for October 2024 i Birdwatch

WHEN you’re out in the field in autumn and encounter a migrant, do you ever find yourself thinking in detail about the journey that individual bird has taken, or what it might have experienced along the way? I suspect most of us are simply happy to enjoy the bird in the present, there and then. In almost all cases, it’s what I do. That’s fine, of course, but considering its life history, either at the time or retrospectively, delivers a much deeper sense of appreciation and respect for birds and the feats they undertake. If you see a Yellow-browed Warbler this month, allow yourself to speculate as to where exactly in Siberia it came from. It was most likely hatched and raised to a backdrop of singing Oriental Cuckoos, White’s Thrushes…

HAVING been out in the hills for the day, I heard a knock on the door of the Manse on the evening of 11 August. Tim Wallis, warden at Conwy RSPB in North Wales, visiting St Kilda as the National Trust for Scotland biosecurity volunteer, was checking in after a day in the field. The first thing he said made me immediately reach for my binoculars and camera and rush out the door. Tim told me he’d had relatively distant views (approximately 100 m away) of a hirundine with a pale orange rump which he thought was possibly a Redrumped Swallow, except the tail didn’t look long or forked, as you would expect with this species. We returned to where he’d seen the bird, near the head dyke behind the…

The Spanish hot-spot of Estaca de Bares, Galicia, has rapidly become mainland Europe’s premier seawatching site. Warming sea temperatures have swiftly transformed the suite of expected bird species here, with multiple Pterodroma petrels, Barolo Shearwaters and South Polar Skuas now anticipated every August, and Black-capped Petrel recorded for the first time in 2023. Astonishingly, three Black-capped Petrels were seen this month, with birds passing on 7th, 14th and 15th. As many as 10 South Polar Skuas were logged after the first on 6th. These were joined by an immature Brown Booby, three apparent Zino’s Petrels and three Barolo Shearwaters, plus an exceptional 1,353 Long-tailed Skuas on 24th. Further Brown Boobies were in Andalucía and Asturias, and another South Polar Skua passed Cabo de Burela. Amassed raptors near Tarifa, Andalucía, were…

I’ve been a member of the RSPB off and on, but mostly on, since before I saw my first Hoopoe, at Beesands Ley in Devon, and my second a day later at Buckfastleigh, in spring 1970. I sent my records to the Young Ornithologists’ Club and had my observations briefly mentioned in its magazine, Bird Life. Since then, I volunteered for the RSPB as a teenager and spent 25 years on the staff, first as a biologist, then as Head of Research, and for the latter half of thatperiodas Conservation Director. At RSPB AGMs, when I often had to answer questions from the members, I got an easy chuckle, and a few seconds thinking time, by saying that I too was a fully paid-up member (and I still am). I…

One of the challenges on any visit to the Americas away from the far north is the dizzying array of tyrant flycatchers that you are likely to encounter. If you’ve ever wondered what the largest family of birds in the world is, this is it: there are more than 400 members of the Tyrannidae and the identification puzzles they pose have even reached British shores, with Eastern Kingbird and Alder, Acadian and Yellow-bellied Flycatchers joining Eastern Phoebe on the British list in the last decade or so. Unsurprisingly, given it spans a vast range of latitudes, altitudes and biomes, Argentina is home to a healthy chunk of the world’s tyrant flycatchers. In the four north-eastern provinces that I visited, there are plenty of head-scratchers that include elaenias, tyrannulets and other…

Your trusted guide to what’s new in birding: www.birdguides.com/reviews REVIEW SWAROVSKI OPTIK NL Pure 14x52 THE recent decision to extend the NL Pure range has seen SWAROVSKI OPTIK add three new 52-mm binoculars to the series, offering users a wider choice of optics with the added benefit of a surprisingly high magnification. On the face of it, at 14x, the highest of these looks set to compete with models generally considered to be the preserve of the realm of image stabilisation. So, what are the pros and cons associated with this substantial leap up the rungs of the magnification ladder? When I took my first look through the 8x42 NL Pure binocular at the time the series was launched, back in 2020 (Birdwatch 339: 46-47), I found it extremely impressive.…

IN this book, Dominic Couzens offers a wonderful dive into the secret world of our closest avian neighbours to see what fascinating dramas unfold, every day, in the most familiar of spaces. ‘What do your garden birds really get up when you’re not looking,’ it asks, before offering would-be readers a tantalising promise: ‘You will never look at your garden birds in the same way again.’ Couzens’s study describes itself as an exercise in laying bare the ‘foundational details’ to help in identifying species and understanding their behaviours. Its layout is well organised and clear – making it an ideal purchase for those interested in birdlife, but starting out with a basic knowledge. Across eight chapters, it covers a range of different species, from thrushes and chats to woodpeckers, with…

NEW research has looked at how humans impact island bird communities and how people are responsible for many current biodiversity patterns across the world. Humans have been bringing non-native bird species onto islands for thousands of years – but how this has shaped the diversity of those species has just been brought to light by a new study. Published in the journal Ecology Letters, a paper headed up by an international team of scientists and led by three researchers from the CNRS and Paris-Saclay University has shown that, on most of the 407 islands they considered, humans have a greater impact on alien species diversity than do geographic variables. Depending on the selective pressures exerted by humans, some islands, such as New Zealand, harbour greater functional and phylogenetic diversity, while…

Pre-order your copy online now – see www.birdguides.com for details of how to subscribe and save more than 15% a year! ■ The race to 600 Once upon a time, a British list of 500 species was considered the holy grail. Now, however, several twitchers are homing in on an even higher milestone. Richard Bonser discusses the situation for Britain’s top listers. ■ A tale of deceit The Hastings Rarities scandal remains Britain’s most infamous case of ornithological fraud. David Campbell revisits and reflects on this extraordinary affair. ■ Birds of the Neotropics The recently rebranded Neotropical Birding and Conservation (formerly the Neotropical Bird Club) has turned 30. We take a look at its aims and work, as well as how you can get involved. ■ Bone crusher Bearded Vulture has…

THE remnants of Hurricane Ernesto were due to hit southwest Ireland on the evening of Wednesday 21 August. After finishing work, I drove with some anticipation to Seven Heads, a promontory to the east of Leganagh Point in Co Cork that myself and some local birders have been pioneering. When I was 2 km from the site, a message in the Cork Rare Birds WhatsApp group announced that Dennis O’Sullivan had an albatross species at 5.23 pm heading west from Ballycotton, which is 57 km to the east. Within 15 minutes I had met local birder Ronan O’Driscoll at the watchpoint. We discussed Dennis’s find and the possibility that the bird could potentially pass Seven Heads, so we commenced scanning east towards the Old Head of Kinsale. The minutes passed…

IT’S crucial for all birders to be dressed appropriately for the season. What we wear while birding can play an important role in maintaining comfort and therefore our focus on the job at hand, especially if spending long hours in the field. Recently, I got to try out the new Pájaro waterproof jacket from leading outdoor-clothes manufacturer Páramo, and it was a good reminder of this. Over the past year or so, I’ve been ‘making do’ with an old jacket that doesn’t quite do the job of keeping me warm in winter, yet quickly becomes sweaty when temperatures rise or the walking pace quickens. Thermoregulation is important when it comes to comfort in the field and so I was intrigued to see how the Pájaro fared, given that it had…

THIS is an immediately appealing book. Large and pleasingly heavy with a stunning photo of a colourful (but bizarrely unnamed in the blurb) butterfly on the front. It is richly illustrated throughout with photographs showing examples of species, their behaviour and their habitats. In the UK we have approximately 60 breeding species of butterflies. The world has some 17,800. Needless to say, it’s not possible for one book to cover such a large order in detail, but the authors cleverly draw on their deep knowledge to offer fascinating and intriguing examples of each family of butterfly. I learned about subfamilies that glory in names such as elfins and sunbeams, and more sinister policemen and awls. There’s a whole group of moth-like butterflies that fly at night, further adding to the…

NEW research suggests that migrating birds listen to singing individuals to get the most out of the habitat at stop-over sites. The role of birdsong during migration has been poorly understood but birds’ vocalisations have long been used to draw in migrant passerines, both by hunters and field ornithologists. It is widely known that passerines sing on their breeding grounds to deter rivals and attract mates, but a new study has cast light on the role of song at stop-over sites. Previous research has suggested that song is performed for practice ahead of arrival on the breeding grounds, with birds encouraged by increasing levels of sex hormones. Individuals in good condition are more likely to sing during migration, meaning that passing birds might use song as an indicator of sites with…

think. Tell us what you Write to: The Editor, at: Birdwatch, Warners Group Publications plc, The Maltings, West Street, Bourne, Lincolnshire PE10 9PH or email editorial@birdwatch.co.uk www.facebook.com/birdwatchmagazine @BirdwatchExtra Avocet mystery I took this image at Frampton Marsh RSPB, Lincolnshire. The Avocet was approaching and I couldn’t quite believe what I was seeing. From a distance and with my poor eyesight, it looked like it was carrying a bagel! Anyway, I almost missed the photo opportunity but was delighted to have captured the behaviour. The bird dropped the egg shortly after I took a sequence of photos and it fell through the air as if it wasn’t empty. What was going on? Neil St John Josh Jones replies: “What an unusual and striking shot, Neil! I wonder if this bird is…

This is the final chapter in this trilogy of columns – well done for getting this far. We’re delving back into the world of collecting, only this time looking at natural detritus and the macabre. Many people collect natural objects, such as rare or beautiful feathers or shells. I have only three feathers that I treasure – from Jay, Great Spotted Woodpecker and Red Kite – and one shell, my only self-found cowrie on St Martin’s. These shells were once used as currency in some cultures and on Scilly are called ‘Guinea Money’. Some people develop a knack for spotting them and find hundreds, while the rest of us scrape around finding one per decade. Some go a step further, entering into the world of skulls, skeletons and taxidermy. Basically,…

I decided to visit Burton Mere Wetlands RSPB in the late afternoon of Monday 12 August. I arrived at reception and was about to head out to the Border Hide when I took a call from Geoff Robinson, who said that he had seen a possible Hudsonian Godwit with a small flock of Black-tailed Godwits at Connah’s Quay NR on the Welsh side of the Dee Estuary. I was stunned. He said the bird was only there for three minutes when it flew off with the ‘blackwits’ towards Burton Marsh. I asked him if he had seen the dark underwing, as this is the critical ID feature, and Geoff said that “it looked darkish as it flew off.” He added that the encounter was so quick that there was no…

August turned out to be a pretty decent affair for birding across Britain and Ireland, despite a near-constant conveyor belt of westerly winds meaning that east-coast passerine action was somewhat limited when compared to recent years. West-coast seawatchers instead piloted much of the month’s best action, while there was an early surprise or two from the New World. Record-breaking Bridges An awe-inspiring few weeks at Bridges of Ross, Co Clare, reinforced the site’s reputation as Ireland’s premier seawatching location – and also one of the very best in Europe. A fantastic vigil on 3rd peaked with an adult South Polar Skua – the first confirmed record for the Irish mainland – and three Barolo Shearwaters (see bit.ly/4ccPXjb). Another Barolo passed on 29th, a day that also produced 6,585 Great…

For many of us, watching TV may go hand in hand with our love of wildlife, whether that’s viewing nature documentaries, identifying bird calls in a film or even admiring background waders during a beach scene in a drama. As someone who worked behind the scenes in the media industry for almost a decade, I know that the two things can have a symbiotic relationship. It is important to see wildlife on screen as it fosters recognition and understanding of Earth’s many wonderful creatures, alongside raising awareness of what threatens them (almost always us). I’ve seen firsthand the power of using beautiful landscapes to help bring a script to life, but that should never come at the expense of the creatures that live there. That’s why I was so alarmed…

Now’s the time to sign up to Birdwatch! Take advantage of the Birdwatch price freeze and save up to £23 a year when subscribing before 30 November 2024. If you would prefer an eco-friendly way to read Birdwatch, consider joining Ultimate PLUS for unrestricted access to over 380 issues and all future issues while a live member. For more information visit: https://bit.ly/ultplus Subscribe today Visit: https://bit.ly/bw_scoped or call us on 01778 392027 (quoting BIRD/SUBS2024)…

MANY readers will recall their wonder as a child, being shown owl or raptor pellets, soaking them in water and seeing the bones of small mammals inside. Of course, there was a ‘yuk’ factor, but some birders will have had their fascination with birds whetted by such school nature classes. For those whose interest remains, and those who are just starting to be beguiled by the intricacies of the traces left behind by birds, comes this new comprehensive photo guide to the identification of pellets – and their equally interesting contents. This, then, is a book of two parts. In the first half we learn what a pellet is and how to dissect it, and then we are taken, species-by-species, through the various types of pellets. The whole book is…