Innholdsfortegnelse for May 2024 i Bird Watching

What’s your favourite urban bird? John Miles: “Ring-necked Parakeet. I love seeing these birds as I travel south, knowing they make a great food for the local Peregrine population!” Amanda Tuke: “No contest, our suburban Firecrests like to make their presence felt. One was singing at my local South London rail station a couple of days ago.” Dominic Couzens: “The Woodpigeon. It doesn’t care what you think of it, and it has a great midsummer display. Also, the ‘coo’ is so relaxing.” Ian Parsons: “It has to be the Peregrine - the way they have colonised our urban areas is brilliant. What a bird to see on the High Street!”…

twitter.com/BirdWatchingMag facebook.com/BirdWatchingMag RARITY RATINGS Common, widely distributed Localised - always a treat Very scarce or rare BEE-EATER In the past couple of years, Bee-eaters have attempted to breed in north-east Norfolk, near Cromer. Perhaps, this will continue this year. Otherwise, they are rare (but regular) and highly desirable visitors, often in small flocks. They are, of course, unmistakable birds in rainbow colours, and with a very distinctive shape and flight profile. Arguably the best way to find them is by hearing the distinctive ‘proop’ call of birds flying overhead. They are a dream patch find for many of us! BLACK TERN This small graceful tern is a passage ‘marsh tern’ which does not breed in the UK, but passes through ‘on passage’ in April and May, often in small flocks.…

CRAWLING TONIGHT While moth-ers keenly fire up their light traps to catch winged adult moths, some species are still starting their life as caterpillars. One such is Small Eggar, with adults mating in March and April. When the larvae emerge, they gather in large, eye-catching, shared webs on Hawthorn-and Blackthorn-based hedgerows. Searching for such a caterpillar commune is an easy way to discover new locations for this once-scarce species. BEETLE Protective mimicry A small, slender longhorn beetle, the Wasp Beetle’s approach to survival is captured in its common name. The black and yellow colouration sends alarm bells ringing for would-be predators, and the vespid impression is enhanced by jerky movements. In spring and early summer, it is a frequent sight on flowers in woodlands and hedgerows. INSECT Brief flight Alderflies…

Help the BTO honour conservationists The British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) is seeking your help to find winners for its 2024 Marsh Awards. There are three main categories - the Marsh Award for Ornithology, the Marsh Award for Local Ornithology, and the Marsh Award for Young Ornithologist. The BTO also recognises individuals who have made notable contributions to ornithology, including the Dilys Breese Medal, the Bernard Tucker Medal and the Jubilee Medal. Nominations close on 31 May. To find out more, visit www.bto.org/awards Milestone for flagship reserve project The RSPB’s Salthome reserve has welcomed its one millionth visitor since opening 15 years ago. A flagship project to rejuvenate the Teesside landscape and reconnect local people with nature, among its successes have been breeding Bitterns, first raising young there in 2022.…

I am not a regular watcher of Strictly Come Dancing. Don’t get me wrong, I love some of the music, being a fan of Northern Soul and Tamla Motown, but I was never that good on the dance floor myself, maybe too nervous to strut my stuff. But, at the end of 2022, along came a wildlife cameraman whom I’d previously met in the course of my work, and he went all the way to win the popular BBC Saturday night programme! Hamza Yassin’s local community all gathered on Saturday and Sunday nights to watch how he got on, and cheered like it was a football match as the results came in! I first met Hamza on Islay. I was helping my youngest son, Ewan, lead his Nature Scotland group…

In association with MAX MILES ON FOOT: 7 MIN TIME: 2 HOURS Kirkby Thore is locally famous for its underground factory of gypsum, with trainloads leaving the area every day. But the flood plain of the River Eden has a wintering flock of Whooper Swans and geese, and there is good birding interest to be enjoyed all year round. WHERE TO WATCH 1 To enjoy this area, you need to get off the A66. This can be done via an old road by the lay-by just east of Kirby Thore. The benefit here is to view the floodplain of the River Eden and look out for all the species that may drop in here, especially in winter. Geese and swans can be the main species to look for, along with…

In association with MAX MILES ON FOOT: 10 MIN TIME: 5 HOURS Back in 1944 thousands of acres of Exmoor were passed to the National Trust by the Acland family, a gesture that fitted the political ethics of Sir Richard Acland and ensured that the estate remained as a single entity, safeguarding the lives and livelihoods of those connected with it. It now offers thousands of acres for all to enjoy, with a huge range of habitats and paths for naturewatching that can yield enormous variety throughout the year. WHERE TO WATCH 1 From Bossington village, a lane, then track, leads out to the pebbly beach, with marshland behind. Along the beach to the west lies Porlock Marsh. Once protected by shingle, this was permanently breached in 1996, resulting in…

GET IN TOUCH birdwatching@bauermedia.co.uk facebook.com/BirdWatchingMag twitter.com/BirdWatcthingMag Bird Watching, Media House, Lynch Wood, Peterborough PE2 6EA Unusual Red Kite I live in Oxfordshire, and feel lucky that it’s rare to leave the house without a Red Kite circling overhead. But, there’s one in particular that has caught my attention. Tufty, as I’ve taken to calling it, is noticeable for the lack of black hook on its beak, and its ragged appearance in flight. I also see it regularly perched in local trees, far more frequently than any other. At first, I wondered if it was a juvenile, or moulting, but it’s maintained the same appearance from my first sighting in September to the most recent one just a few weeks ago. I now wonder, on the other end of the spectrum,…

Have you ever had that experience when you are taking or altering something, and feeling slightly uncomfortable as a consequence? Maybe you put something in your neighbour’s recycling bin, or took some wood from a nearby yard that you are pretty sure nobody needed? For large parts of the year, Jackdaws have a standard mutualistic relationship with sheep and other grazing animals. They use the ungulates as a regular takeaway joint, feasting on the ticks, fleas and other annoyances that plague their hosts. They perch on the animals’ backs, and the sheep, horses or deer tolerate the feel of their claws and the odd peck, presumably having worked out the benefit for themselves. In the spring, however, Jackdaws like to line their nests with soft far — who wouldn’t? But…

BIRD THE WORLD BOTSWANA On my 1970s bedroom wall, I had a poster depicting world birding hotspots, featuring the Okavango Delta. The name had an allure for this impressionable teenager, but in the days when even a trip to Spain was considered an adventure, I never imagined I would one day visit. It has taken me a long time, but it did not disappoint. Nestled in the heart of southern Africa, the Okavango Delta is still one of Earth’s most pristine ecosystems. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, this vast inland delta is formed from waters flowing from Angola in the north along the Okavango River, which then fans out in northern Botswana over the Kalahari, into a myriad of reed and Papyrus-fringed waterways, swamps and lagoons, a landscape characterised by…

As I write this, it’s the middle of March and I’m looking out of my study window at the steel-grey skies of yet another overcast day. At least it isn’t raining — well, not yet anyway. I’m struggling to remember a wetter, more overcast winter than the one that, thankfully, is now slowly morphing into spring. I wrote an article not that long ago, extolling the virtues of winter and the magical light that it can deliver. I can’t help but smirk at the irony of those words, as there hasn’t been too much of that dramatic light in evidence over the past few months. Virtually every outing with my camera has proved rather frustrating with neverending cloud cover and rain. This got me thinking about how I have learnt…

Paul Wilson has been birdwatching for more than 40 years, in the UK and Spain, and lives near London. He is a retired aerospace engineer. I read Stuart Winter’s article about losing, and refinding, his birdwatching ‘mojo’ with a silent murmur of agreement. No matter how much I love watching birds, there have been times when it has become hard to motivate myself. Don’t get me wrong. There won’t ever be a time that I’m not taking note of the birds that I see outside my kitchen window, or as I drive to the supermarket, but there have been occasions when I just haven’t wanted to pack up my binoculars and scope and go out there and actively birdwatch. Over the years, though, I’ve come up with a cure for…

HAVE YOU SIGNED UP FOR 2024? #My200BirdYear challenge Many of us will have our own favourite urban (and suburban) birds, given that many of us have no option but to do much of our birding (or our casual birding, at least) in such habitat. In his excellent article on Tawny and Barn Owls on page 26, Ian Parsons looks at how these two species differ in their behaviour in England and Spain, and explains how both species can be urban birds in the right circumstances. But, while it’s a reminder that many species can be highly adaptable, others are much more specialist, and loss or degradation of habitat can lead to potentially irreversible declines. On page 22, Amanda Tuke takes a close look at the issue of river pollution —…

Here is our regular semi-educated stab in the dark as to which extreme rarities may be the next to appear in the UK. CRESTED LARK A European lark which is exceptionally rare in the UK, with just 13 accepted records since the start of the 20th Century and only four since the turn of the Millennium, including a May bird at Dungeness, Kent in 2009. BLUE ROCK THRUSH There have been just 10 records in the UK of this southern European rock thrush. Most have been in autumn, but some in spring, including a May bird in Cornwall, in 2000. Time for another. Keep an eye on those rocks… EGYPTIAN VULTURE Technically, there have been just two accepted UK records of this species, both in the 19th Century. But, recent…

PATCH DIARY Over the past couple of months I have been banging on about birds brought into the Peterborough area by exceptional flooding, as well as Waxwings (which couldn’t care less about the floods). Well, it is now mid-March and I am pleased to report that our flock of five Waxwings expanded to six and is still in place. But it is the birds brought in by flooding which have dominated the time since I last briefed you. The lake-like fields of Crowland and Cowbit Washes (filled after breaching of the western raised banks of the River Welland) have been jammed with thousands of Whooper Swans, dabbling ducks and waders. The ducky highlights were a rare drake Green-winged Teal I saw on 24 February, but not since, and a Mandarin…

NEWS & OPINION We have lived in this house for almost a quarter of a century, and are about to attempt to move… partly to be nearer our scattered family, but also to eliminate stairs from daily life. Our county of choice is a tad further north, but we intend to remain coastal; I would miss seawatching too much. So, before putting our house on the market, and finding a new home, what is the first thing I did? Obviously, I joined a birdwatching club in the proposed locality. Luckily, that county has a couple of places I’ve loved birding in the past… one a top spot for Nightingales, the other already supporting breeding Spoonbills. It was easy to find the local bird reserves, and we have the draw of…

Is anywhere better than the north Norfolk coast to enjoy the spectacle of masses of birds in the early months of the year? Cold weather may tempt you to stay indoors, but, dressed for winter conditions, a bracing walk any time between January and mid-March will reward you with the sight of hundreds, if not thousands, of geese. And, on a trip to Norfolk this January, we were able to enjoy eight different species of goose in just one day. Perhaps the most familiar was the Greylag Goose, many of which are resident in Britain all year round. This bulky grey goose, with its prominent orange triangle bill, pinkish legs, and coarse honking call, is the ancestor of most of our domestic geese, and can turn up in urban parks…

In association with MAX MILES ON FOOT: 3 MIN TIME: 1 HOUR This local nature reserve is situated in the northern half of Welwyn Garden City, and is a perfect example of a Sessile Oak and Hornbeam woodland. Managed by the Welwyn and Hatfield Borough Council, this site is the perfect place to spot all three of the UK’s native woodpeckers while exploring the criss-cross footpaths, the disused Luton/ Dunstable branch line and bridleways through the woodland. Occasional sightings here have included the tiny shy Firecrest. In 1936, Nightjars and Willow Warbler were recorded as common species, but today woodland loving birds such as Chaffinch, Coal Tit and Bullfinch are regular fare. WHERE TO WATCH 1 In the layers of vegetation, such as Heather and Rhododendron, and under the Oak…

Join our dedicated #My200BirdYear Facebook group and share your best birding experiences and images with the community: facebook.com/groups/My200BirdYear Garden birdwatcher I read with interest your article featuring Lesser Redpolls in the March issue of Bird Watching, and I thought you might be interested in the birds I have seen in my garden over the past 55 years. I live in a suburban area, with quite a few trees and bushes round about, although not in my garden, which is about 25 feet by 40 feet with mostly lawn. However, over the years I have recorded a total of 44 species, mainly on bird feeders filled with sunflower hearts. My most memorable is a pair of Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers, about 50 years ago, but I have also seen Reed Bunting and…

UK Conservation status: Green This intelligent, sociable and adaptable bird has seen its population increase by 146% (1967-2020). In the UK, Jackdaws are sedentary, rarely travelling more than a few kilometres from home, but in the autumn and winter the population is boosted by visitors from northern Europe. Successful bird species in the UK currently tend to be omnivores and opportunists, able to adapt to changing landscapes, resources and increasing human presence. Eating a varied diet enables Jackdaws to exploit food resources when they become available, as most people with a bird feeding station can attest, and they will readily share this resource with their social group. Their diet can vary depending on their location, with farmland species enjoying insects and larvae while in more urban populations, seeds and fruit…

In North America, its native home, there can barely be a more famous bird than the Blue Jay. Indeed, it was one of the first birds to become well known to the early European settlers. Nowadays, this garrulous corvid would almost certainly feature in any North American’s top 10 recognised garden birds — provided, that is, the voter generally lived east of the Rockies. However, they are not universally loved, due to their sometimes aggressive attitude towards other birds. A woodland denizen, the Blue Jay has adapted to wholesale deforestation and, in urban areas, to hanging out alongside humans with relative ease. They can be found throughout the eastern and central United States, south to Florida and north-eastern Texas. The westernmost edge of their range roughly ends in the eastern…

CHRIS PACKHAM’S BIRDWATCHING GUIDE DORLING KINDERSLEY, HB, £12.99 Chris has gone out of his way here to produce a book which will get the most absolute of beginners fully into birdwatching. It is full of colour pictures, and covers every aspect of how to get started, including equipment, with plenty of detail on binoculars and scopes, what to wear, and even visiting a hide, making you aware of etiquette towards other people using it. Photography is a growing part of birding, so it’s covered here as well. The birds are grouped in habitats, from your back garden to mountain and moorland. Given the price, this is a real treat, especially for children - give them a copy and who knows where it will take them? BOOK OF THE MONTH THE…

SOUTH WEST Highlights In association with The region’s star rare birds of February were undoubtedly the Sociable Lapwing in Cornwall, at Ruan Lanihorne (1 st to 9th) and the drake Baikal Teal at Greylake RSPB, Somerset, throughout the month. AVON CLEVEDON-WESTON-SUPER-MARE: Westonsuper-Mare had a Brent Goose (9th), 3,000 Dunlin, a Spoonbill (12th), Black Redstart and Water Pipit. The Blind Yeo had 20 Goosanders and three Great White Egrets. Clevedon-Yeo had 26 Knot (25th) and two Merlins. Battery Point, Portishead held nine Purple Sandpipers. SEVERNSIDE: A few Common Scoters were identified from nocturnal migration recordings. A Crane flew over (19th). The wintering Black-necked Grebe remained at Portbury Wharf. Severnside produced 41 Avocets, 200 Curlews, three Bar-tailed Godwits, 24 Black-tailed Godwits, 280 Turnstones, 11 Knot and a few Jack Snipe. Seawatching produced…

SET A TARGET OF SEEING 200 BIRDS IN ONE YEAR! #My200BirdYear ticklist Download and print off our #My200BirdYear ticklist to track your progress… www.birdwatching.co.uk/ my-200-sign-up You can track your progress in #My200BirdYear by joining us on the Birda app, as featured in our recent Gear Guide. Download the app, sign up for the #My200BirdYear challenge, and log your sightings as you make them. While you’re at it, Birda’s monthly and geographically-based challenges are a great way of motivating yourself towards the bigger target, too, and by interacting with other users you can develop your ID skills. 1 TAKE STOCK Every year, you’ll find that there are common and widespread species that you’ve somehow failed to connect with. Now’s the time to go through your list, work out what they are, and…

It is one of the harsh, yet unavoidable, lessons of birdwatching that we all face at an early stage. To be a decent birder, you will frequently be required to identify birds purely based on their silhouettes. This may mean birds seen at dawn or dusk, or flying against a bright sky, or simply perched with a background so bright that colours are lost. So, all we have to go on are the structure and shape of the bird (or birds) and, perhaps, at least on flying birds, something of the flight action which may give the ID away. However, for this month’s ID Challenge, you don’t have the luxury of movement, just stills of birds in silhouette, crying out to be identified. Most are in flight, but that is…

In association with MAX MILES ON FOOT: 4 MIN TIME: 3 HOURS We’ve covered the Budby South Forest part of this reserve complex fairly recently, but a long, warm spring day is a great time to have a look at the whole of the site. Enjoy the oak woodland areas (and visit the Major Oak, of Robin Hood fame, of course), then explore the heathland nearer Budby. WHERE TO WATCH 1 The footpaths around the main forest area should yield birds such as Great Spotted Woodpecker, with Lesser Spotted possible and Green Woodpeckers in more open areas. Other common woodland birds such as Treecreepers, Nuthatches, Song and Mistle Thrushes, Great Tits, Blue Tits and Coal Tits are plentiful This is oak woodland, though, so look and listen for possible Redstart…

In association with MAX MILES ON FOOT: 8 MIN TIME: 4 HOURS Part of the National Trust’s Killerton estate, Ashclyst Forest is an extensive tract of mixed woodland, with areas of coppice and some conifer. It extends to more than 250 hectares of access land, and offers a variety of marked tracks, so a visit can last from an hour to a whole day. Some of the farmland adjacent to Ashclyst is being managed sensitively, with hedge restoration and wood pasture. Small streams run throughout the woodland and leaky dams have been constructed in places, adding to the habitat variety. Good amounts of deadwood are left. Goshawks breed here and parts of the forest are known for butterflies, including Pearlbordered and Silver-washed Fritillary and White Admiral. WHERE TO WATCH 1…