Mainland rarities catch up - June 2022

I waited for a couple of weeks before visiting Ken Hill in search of the long staying and very vocal Great Reed Warbler. It's location was along the raised bank by the kissing gate. After a good hour of searching and listening to no avail I decided to walk further on just in case it had moved from it's favoured area. Then in the distance I could hear the characteristic "gark gark eek eek" song being blasted out from the reeds. I approached and the first thing I saw was another kissing gate ! Clearly the correct one.

Being a Great Reed Warbler it was mostly hidden and never showed for me clearly.

a nearby Sedge Warbler was competing hard in the Ken Hill Song Contest

The next day I was again playing rarity catch up with a Spotted Sandpiper at Titchwell. This was day three of it's stay and I was amazed at how few people were there given one of these hadn't been seen in Norfolk since 1994. It was elusive, a long way off in savage heat haze and it was constantly chased by Avocets so I never really connected with it - a great looking bird in spanking summer plumage.

Hugely cropped photo to show off it's spots

....and talking of catching up there was a particular celebrity that had returned to Bempton Cliffs in April. Having decided not to twitch this bird last year, left me with regret after it had returned to it's oceanic wanderings at the end of the summer. So with it having been present for the last couple of months I decided it was about time.......... to look for "Albert"

Albert being the now famous Black-browed Albatross that had been returning to Shetland for many years and now Bempton. With a declining population and their preference for the southern Atlantic it was finally a must see bird for me especially with many friends saying how great it was. The trip up to Bempton took just under four hours and we arrived at 03:30am Light was just breaking through as we walked excitedly to the viewing platform that overlooked the cliffs at it's favoured spot. Just 20 minutes later and this .........

The next two hours were spent watching this fabulous bird gliding round the Gannet colony till it finally flew out to sea and was lost to view.

What an absolute belter !

LUNDY - LAST KNOCKINGS 19-21 May 2022

Last few days on the island and as I type no rarity yet. That said a great time and I'm delighted with some of the pictures I've been able to capture and most importantly the ankle has held up. The extended few days provided me with the chance of more Peregrine pictures, a Peregrine and Puffin in the same shot and more juvenile Stonechats.

and here comes the picture of a Peregrine and a Puffin in the same frame................

......has a certain Lundy feel about it !

These next two shots were taken from THE TOP of Jenny's Cover using the telephoto on max zoom, a converter and in camera cropping.

juvenile Stonechat on the Terraces

Saturday 21 May 2022 and the return home. A really great 11 days. As I awoke the next day back in Norfolk little did I know that a first for Lundy was about to be found, the day after I left ! - typical timing. But that's island birding for you.

Next up a good Tern...................

Lundy Part 3

Sunday 15 May

The winds had gone easterly - this must mean birds ! Millcombe held it's usual suspects but now Sedge Warblers had increased to three, Whitethroats two and singles of Chiffchaff and Spotted Flycatcher. I headed off north to do Pondsbury and the Terraces which were quiet. So I decided on Rock Pipit as my photo target. I found a male Teal in Punchbowl and a Yellow Wagtail fly over heading north and calling.

Returning to the village and I was alerted to news that there was a Blue-headed Wagtail in Barton field. Both flava and flavissima were feeding round the ponies feet.

Back in Millcombe and there were now three Spotted Flycatchers and a singing Wood Warbler.

Monday 16 - Wednesday 18

The winds felt good for something more than the island held but it was not to be. Two Dunlin on Middle Park Flash performed well.

The Yellow Wagtails had crept up to three in Barton field and three was a definite movement of these through the island.

The Blue-headed Wagtail was still present and still favouring the ponies.

The following few days produced nothing much of note apart from the usual Lundy birding with some mixed weather - brewing up for something good hopefully.

Thursday 18th and this is the day I was due to leave but have added another couple of days to the trip so...............................

Lundy part 2

Friday 13 May - started with the arrive of the Hansearctic Nature a cruiser full of 230 German passengers many of whom disembarked onto Lundy for a few hours. The 13th cast it's spell for me as a Hawfinch was seen briefly in Millcombe by Tim Jones and later that day at Gannets Combe Tim Jones and Tim Davis found a Bluethroat. My finds were a solid zero.

However I did busy myself with a Lundy Peregrine.

Spotted Flycatchers were still in Millcombe.

It was a good day for hirundines, and fleeting view of a female Redstart.

Saturday 14 May - a gentle WSW breeze and I started the day with a Grasshopper Warbler in St Johns Valley. Several Sedge Warblers were singing in Millcombe and three Whitethroats contesting territory. I headed up towards Jenny’s Cove mid morning to look for Puffins. On the way Wheatears were displaying and singing with 11 birds seen from south end to Jenny’s Cove.

Whitethroat by the Ugly.

Sitting at the top of the rocks just north of Half Way Wall and it was easy to see Puffins on the cliffs, on the sea and flying to and from the slopes. I spent quite a while watching Puffins coming into burrows, flying off and around the Cove and other birds diving into the grassy slopes above the main Auk colony.

In all I managed to see 141 birds in just this small area. It was fantastic to see so many Puffins after their years of decline. The rat eradication programme surely responsible for this increase in birds and indeed the increase in successful breeding of Manx Shearwaters. The disturbance to Puffins from uninformed visitors and over jealous photographers remains a concern. Not only is it illegal to knowingly disturb a schedule 1 species it’s also very irresponsible just to get close up pictures when they can be photographed from there very top of the island (with a telephoto lens) especially as they are spreading further up the cliffs.

with winds turning easterly ....... expectations were high for the next few days........