Gigha birds (2008)

Message to argyllbirding yahoogroup:

Subject: Holiday sightings, wk 7-14 June - Gigha
Sent: Jun 16, 2008 1:03 am

Hi all

Just back from another pleasant holiday in Argyll, this time on Gigha (first visit). During trip also completed TTV's for the 4 required squares on the island (NR64J,N,P; NR65K), and gathered RR's in all other land tetrads (11) except S of Cara Island (not visited). Did not visit every last corner but decent coverage averaging 8 hrs/day, concentrated in early morning plus two nocturnal visits. Confirmed breeding of 34 species, 22 probable breeders and total 81 species
seen. Nothing rare but a few comments on observations in case of any interest locally:

* Cormorant confirmed at Craro with at least 6 AOS, Shag 17 AOS; Cormorant also at Eilean Garbh colony [cf. last BTO atlas, 88-91 - no records for these 2 10km sqr]
* Grey Heron confirmed at Mill Loch
* At least 40 Greylags present but no goslings seen [cf. single "possible breeder" dot for last atlas]
* 5 Lapwing with one chick West Tarbert Bay
* Single Greenshank briefly at Eun Eilean on 10/6
* 3 large gulls confirmed at Eilean Garbh, AOS: 69 HG, 64 LBB, 5 GBB on SE slope and probably lots more in total
* 4 Arctic Tern and BHG in the gull colony at Ardminish Point but no Common Terns seen
* Barn Owls seen hunting rough ground SE of Achamore Gardens and 2 more plus an "owl sp." along road N from Tarbert to Kinerarach
* House Martins at Mill Loch and Ardminish with at least 8 and 2 nests respectively
* 6 male Blackcap at Achamore Gardens, where also single Chiffchaff and Spot Fly, plus Treecreeper confirmed with probably several pairs and LTT family; a gardener said the last Golden Pheasant (photo online for 2004, and "possible breeder" in last atlas) is no more
* At least one family of 6 Raven roaming around, but far too late to confirm breeding

Generally healthy populations of Willow Warbler, Sedge Warbler, Whitethroat, Stonechat and Redpoll, but no Grey Wag, Wheatear, Mistle Thrush or Yellowhammer seen anywhere; all of the latter are mentioned in the Vie Tulloch guide, along with Corncrake and Corn Bunting, but this is now out-of-date (1988). Hopefully some of these will still be confirmed by those with better local knowledge.

Non-avian: Otters - watched a pair at close range playing in shallows near Eun Eilean for 20 mins early on 10/6. Plenty Pipistrelle, 10+ at village hall and more all along main road. Finally, whilst sea-watching off N end on 10/6 saw a Basking Shark moving W not far offshore.

Regards

Stephen

Bird list for Loch of Leys, Banchory, Kincardineshire

This is a list of the species I've seen at the Loch of Leys to the north of Banchory, Kincardineshire, Scotland, about 15 miles from the coast (map). The loch is more of a bog since there is very little open water remaining. To the north and east are conifer plantations, with open farmland to the south and west.

1. Fulmar (Fulmarus glacialis) - single over West, 6 June 1987
2. Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea) - several often present
3. Whooper Swan (Cygnus cygnus) - single on the water, April 1993
4. Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) - numerous, breeds - several pairs
5. Teal (Anas crecca) - regular, breeds
6. Common Buzzard (Buteo buteo) - common resident, breeds
7. Sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) - regular
8. Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) - regular mainly over farmland to south
9. Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) - common resident
10. Grey Partridge (Perdix perdix) - formerly regular
11. Water Rail (Rallus aquaticus) - regular but absent in mid-winter; perhaps 5-10 pairs
12. Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus) - common resident, breeds
13. Coot (Fulica atra) - common resident, breeds
14. Oystercatcher (Haematopus ostralegus) - common summer visitor, from late February; breeds nearby
15. Lapwing (Vanellus vanellus) - regular visitor
16. Common Snipe (Gallinago gallinago) - regular visitor, probably very numerous but secretive
17. Woodcock (Scolopax rusticola) - rodding birds seen on summer evenings, probably breeds in small numbers
18. Curlew (Numenius arquata) - regular visitor in small numbers, possibly breeds
19. Black-headed Gull (Larus ridibundus) - former breeding colony
20. Common Gull (Larus canus) - regular visitor
21. Herring Gull (Larus argentatus) - passes overhead commuting between Loch of Skene roost and Crow's Nest amenity site; day roost in fields to west
22. Great Blackback (Larus marinus) - passes overhead commuting between Loch of Skene roost and Crow's Nest amenity site; day roost in fields to west (up to 150 birds)
23. Wood Pigeon (Columba palumbus) - common resident
24. Stock Dove (Columba oenas) - uncommon resident
25. Tawny Owl (Strix aluco) - resident, presumably breeds
26. Green Woodpecker (Picus viridis) - resident in small numbers
27. Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos major) - resident in small numbers
28. Skylark (Alauda arvensis) - regular visitor
29. Common Swift (Apus apus) - regular summer visitor
30. Swallow (Hirundo rustica) - former large roost (1400 birds, 1989); smaller roost in recent years (50 birds, 1998)
31. House Martin (Delichon urbica) - small numbers with Swallows at roost
32. Sand Martin (Riparia riparia) - small numbers with Swallows at roost
33. Meadow Pipit (Anthus pratensis) - common resident
34. Tree Pipit (Anthus trivialis) - uncommon summer visitor, breeds at east end
35. Pied Wagtail (Motacilla alba yarelli) - uncommon visitor
36. Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) - common resident
37. Robin (Erithacus rubecula) - common resident
38. Blackbird (Turdus merula) - common resident
39. Fieldfare (Turdus pilaris) - common winter visitor
40. Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos) - common resident
41. Redwing (Turdus iliacus) - common winter visitor
42. Sedge Warbler (Acrocephalus schoenobaenus) - common summer visitor, breeds
43. Common Whitethroat (Sylvia communis) - uncommon summer visitor
44. Willow Warbler (Phylloscopus trochilus) - common summer visitor, breeds
45. Goldcrest (Regulus regulus) - common resident, breeds in woods to north and east
46. Long-tailed Tit (Aegithalos caudatus) - common resident, breeds
47. Coal Tit (Parus ater) - common resident, breeds in woods to north and east
48. Blue Tit (Parus caeruleus) - common resident
49. Great Tit (Parus major) - common resident
50. Treecreeper (Certhia familiaris) - uncommon resident
51. Magpie (Pica pica) - regular visitor; breeds near farms to west
52. Jackdaw (Corvus monedula) - common visitor, feeds at Crow's Nest to west
53. Rook (Corvus frugilegus) - common visitor, sometimes in large numbers in roost flights
54. Carrion Crow (Corvus corone) - common resident, up to 100 birds feeding at Crow's Nest to west
55. Hooded Crow (Corvus corone cornix) - uncommon resident, regular individuals amongst Carrion Crows at Crow's Nest to west
56. Jay (Garrulus glandarius) - uncommon resident
57. Starling (Sturnus vulgaris) - common resident, formerly roosted in large numbers (>1000 birds, 1989)
58. Chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs) - common resident, breeds
59. Greenfinch (Carduelis chloris) - uncommon visitor
60. Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis) - uncommon visitor
61. Siskin (Carduelis spinus) - common resident, breeds
62. Lesser Redpoll (Carduelis flammea) - uncommon resident breeder, larger numbers visit in winter
63. Common Crossbill (Loxia curvirostra) - uncommon visitor, possibly breeds
64. Bullfinch (Pyrrhula pyrrhula) - common resident
65. Yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella) - common resident
66. Reed Bunting (Emberiza schoeniclus) - common resident, perhaps 20 pairs

NB - another species reported from the site is Grasshopper Warbler (Locustella naevia) though I'm yet to see one there and I'm fairly sure there have been none in some years. Even rarer, a presumed Marsh Warbler was reported on 8 June 2008

Incredible birds

Vagrancy in birds is a subject of great fascination and some mystery. This page considers some of the most incredible bird records of all time, focusing on species recorded in the Western Palearctic, though also beyond (see new section below). Assessing which particular records are the most 'incredible' is of course a highly subjective task, complicated by all sorts of uncertainties. However, the following list is a personal view of a few that are up there.

The top places on my list go to seabird residents of the North Pacific, though it's very difficult to balance these against the feats of, for example, small passerine migrants. For top spot I have selected the single Western Palearctic record of Aleutian Tern, a resident of the Aleutian Islands in the North Pacific Ocean, which by the early 1990s had not even been recorded in Canada or the USA outside Alaska - a record which will take some beating!

Aleutian Tern (N Pacific only)	Farne Islands, Northumberland, 28-29 May 1979; first seen at 1.30pm by R. Haywood, warden on Inner Farne; seen down to 4m on the following day before last sighting at 5.30pm; little is known about the species, and it has not even been recorded off the west coast of North America south of Alaska, and it has only recently been found to winter off Indonesia and Malaysia.
Parakeet Auklet (N Pacific only)	Lake Vättern, Sweden, mid-Dec 1860 (after a severe Easterly gale); the implication is that this individual was already far from home (e.g. in Baltic or Barents Sea) before being caught up in the storm and blown overland to its final destination, some distance inland; it is hard to imagine what precise route it may have taken, but the species is normally confined to the North Pacific and does not occur in the Arctic Ocean; it is quite numerous with about 1 million breeding in Alaska, but confined to the coast (unlike next species)
Long-billed Murrelet (Brachyramphus perdix, formerly considered as a race of Marbled Murrelet Brachyramphus marmoratus perdix) (N Pacific only)	Zollikon, Lake Zurich, Switzerland, between 15 and 18 December 1997 - 1st-win. discovered dead in a fishing net, presumed drowned; the distribution of this species is confined to the North Pacific where it breeds individually in forest some distance from the sea (up to 70km for sister species, Marbled Murrelet), hence is well able to travel overland and indeed has been recorded as a vagrant in continental North America as far as the Atlantic coast; the population is thought to number 10's of thousands; nevertheless, assuming an eastern origin from the southern part of its range, the feat of this seabird in reaching western Europe, perhaps travelling in excess of 8000 miles overland, surpasses even the most extreme Siberian passerine vagrants; furthermore, there are plenty of large water bodies along possible routes; more likely the bird took a more direct route over the Arctic Ocean/Barents Sea, where it perhaps had chance to rest and feed. [References: OB 96: 172, 1999; NO 47: 40-41, 2000; Maumary, L. & Knaus, P. (2000) "Marbled Murrelet in Switzerland: a Pacific Ocean auk new to the Western Palearctic", British Birds vol. 93, pp. 190-199].
Long-billed Murrelet (Brachyramphus perdix) (N Pacific only)	Reservoir on River Olt at Porumbacu, Transilvania, central Romania, from 21 December 2006; photo; see also BirdForum thread. This occurrence supports the view that all three of these birds recorded in the Western Palaearctic have arrived more via an easterly route than westerly. Nevertheless, so far inland another utterly incredible record!
Long-billed Murrelet (Brachyramphus perdix) (N Pacific only)	Dawlish Warren/Dawlish, Devon, from 7 November 2006 - 1st-win, initially identified as Little Auk, see log. Fascinating that this one appears to be of 1st-win age (on basis of striations on breast) hence has arrived during, or at the end of, its initial dispersal as a juvenile. Hard to know which way it may have arrived, but interesting to note that a further Brachyramphus species had been reported migrating S at Skogsøy, Øygarden, Western Norway, Norway on 29 September 2005 in the company of Little Auk (c.f. netfugl.dk). Another all-dark alcid amongst Little Auk was reported off Whitburn, NE England, on 13 November 2004 - but not conclusively identified. And recent weeks have seen many thousands of Little Auk off the east coast of Britain (peak day count 7881, Farne Islands, 2 November 2006). Just possibly the bird got lost north of the species breeding range (in the region of Kamchatka and the Sea of Okhotsk) and came over from the same region as the most north-easterly populations of Little Auk. Or, perhaps less likely, it may have dispersed the other way round the pole and joined up with Little Auks off Greenland - this route would also fit with an arrival on the west side of the British Isles. However, neither option looks very realistic, hence this record is high on the "incredible" scale and ranked above the next - a species sharing almost the same breeding range which also reached the same county of Devon in SW England.
Ancient Murrelet (N Pacific only)	Lundy, Devon, 27 May 1989; found at 1.45pm and seen again at 2.45pm before flying out to sea; seen again the following morning before flying out to sea again; a group of birders who had set off for the island, despite the fact that it would be dark when they got there, miraculously encountered the bird at sea about 6 miles east of the island, and watched it at distances down to 2m swimming in the company of a much shyer Razorbill; the bird was subsequently seen by many thousands of birdwatchers up to 26 June 1990, between 4 April and 20 June 1991 and between 30 March and 29 April 1992 when it was last seen. The origin is most likely from the west. In the 1989/90 winter larger than usual numbers of Ancient Murrelet had been seen along the California coast, with 4 venturing inland. A possible scenario was the bird straying inland and somehow getting into the Atlantic late in 1989, then at spring migration migrating north and east looking for a coast (as it would in the Pacific) eventually arriving off the coast of SW England; congregations of breeding auks may then have carried it into the Lundy area. Crossing continental North America is the hardest step here, but the species is a regular inland vagrant here, far more abundant than any of its sister species. It can apparently survive well for some time on fresh water and there are three previous Atlantic records. A western origin is the expressed view of Rob Hume (BBRC) and Alan Knox (BOURC) in their comments on the original British Birds paper on the record [Waldon, J (1994) "Ancient Murrelet in Devon: new to the Western Paleartic, British Birds 87, 307-310]
Crested Auklet (N Pacific only)	45 miles NE off Langanes, Iceland, August 1912
Tufted Puffin (N Pacific only)	Laholmsbukten, Lagoset, Sweden, Jun 1994 - adult in breeding plumage offshore.
Glaucous-winged Gull (N Pacific only)	El Hierro, Canary Islands, Feb 1992 and Essaouira, Morocco, Jan 1995; both were adults and presumably the same individual.
Slender-billed Curlew (Siberia, winters NW Africa)	Druridge, Northumberland 4-7 May 1998; the breeding grounds of this species remain unknown; neither are there any regular wintering sites with only a handful of sightings of wintering birds in recent years. See linked document for more details about recent occurrences.
Jouanin's Petrel (Arabian Sea, vagrant to Hawaii)	Cimadolmo, Treviso, Italy, 2 November 1953; 3 seen during a storm, one was collected; must have arrived via the Red Sea.
Varied Thrush (USA/Canada W coast)	1st win. male, Nanquidno, 9-23 Nov 1982; an abnormally-coloured individual, lacking the usual orange tone; grey-plumaged individuals are rarely recorded in wild birds, but would seem even less likely for a captive bird; this helped to exclude the escape possibility for such an unexpected vagrant from the west coast of America
Swainson's Hawk (W USA/Canada)	2nd year, Røst, Norway, 6 May 1986; this species is only rarely recorded on the east coast of America
Swainson's Thrush (N America)	Ukraine, November 1893; to reach Europe over the Atlantic is one thing...to then continue as far as Ukraine is quite an achievement (presumably a reverse migrant)
Fox Sparrow (N America)	Liguria, Italy, 1930
Rose-breasted Grosbeak (N America)	Yugoslavia, October 1976
Black-throated Green Warbler (N America)	adult male Heligoland, 19 November 1858
Hermit Thrush (N America)	Luxembourg, August 1975; this bird had presumably arrived from America in spring or the previous autumn
White's Thrush (Siberia, winters SE Asia)	Greenland, Oct 1954
Siberian Rubythroat (Siberia/NE China, wintering SE Asia as far as India)	adult male, Iceland, 8 Nov 1943
Lanceolated Warbler (Siberia to NE China & N Japan, wintering between NE India and Philippines)	c. 70 nautical miles N of Bear Island, Arctic Ocean, 15 September 1982
Tickell's Thrush (W Himalayas, winters E India)	Heligoland, 15 October 1932
Long-tailed Shrike (Central Asia, wintering Indian subcontinent)	Howmore, South Uist, 27 October-4 November 2000
Shrenck's Little Bittern (China, winters Indonesia)	1st win. female, Piemonte, Italy, 12 November 1912
Eastern Crowned Warbler (China, winters India/SE Asia)	single collected Heligoland, 4 October 1843
Chinese Pond Heron (China, winters SE Asia/Indonesia)	Hettesylt, Norway, autumn 1973
Brunnich's Guillemot (Arctic Ocean)	Austria, 1882; also recorded in Romania!
Ross's Gull (Arctic Ocean)	Sardinia, January 1906
Royal Tern (USA, West Africa)	1st win. bird ringed USA, Kenfig Pool, 24 Nov 1989; there have been five British Isles records; finding a ringed bird was a remarkable occurrence and proved transatlantic vagrancy
Black-browed Albatross (S Atlantic)	female, Faeroes, 1860-May 1894, i.e. for 34 years
	Spitzbergen, June 1878 (rather a long way from home!)
	"Albert Ross", a female, first recorded at Bass Rock 1967-1969 and, not finding a mate there, presumably the same bird at the Saito outcrop, Hermaness, Shetland 1970-1995
Ascension Frigatebird (S Atlantic)	Tiree, 10 July 1953 (reidentified as this species in 2002, BB 96, 2)
Killitz's Plover (Africa S of Sahara, also Egypt; resident)	single, S Norway, May 1913
Moussier's Redstart (N Africa resident)	Dinas Head, Dyfed, 24 April 1988
White-crowned Black Wheatear (N Africa/Middle East/Arabia resident)	Kessingland, Suffolk, 1-5 June 1982

In addition to the above, the following two species have occurred on numerous occasions over recent years in the North Atlantic, yet their occurrence here still remains very much a mystery:

Swinhoe's Petrel (Sea of Japan, winters off SE Asia)

Several North Atlantic records in recent years, see linked document for more details. The species had never been recorded on this side of the world in earlier years and its sudden appearance here is still unexplained.

Elegant Tern (Mexico/USA - Pacific coast only)

At least 25 records for the North Atlantic, including known long-staying birds, since the first in France in 1974. The majority of records have been from the French Atlantic coast (especially Banc d'Arguin, Arcachon, Gironde, France) with 1/2 individuals many years to date, but with others reported from Northern Ireland (1982), Irish Republic (1982, 1999, 2002), Spain (1993), Belgium (1998), Denmark (2000), UK (2002), Netherlands (2002), Canary Islands (2004), Germany (2004) and finally an extraordinary record of one of the French birds, of uncertain ID, in South Africa (2005) (see linked document for more details). Some of these records will relate to the same wandering individual, e.g. this is known to be the case for the 2002 records in the UK and the Netherlands. The amazing thing about these records is that Elegant Tern is both a very coastal, i.e. non-pelagic, species by nature and is also a strictly Pacific seabird in terms of its New World distribution - there had only been one record on the Atlantic side of the USA before 1999! Thus there has recently been an interesting debate about the likely origins (and identification) of these birds, e.g. on the ID Frontiers website.

Beyond the Western Paleartic

Brown Shrike (W Siberia, Mongolia and China, wintering SE Asia)

single, Fairview, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 23/11/97-1/12/97; see this linked page with further information on this occurence; this record is a strong rival to any of those listed above due to the phenomenal distance involved; the location where the bird was observed could hardly be further from its usual range with approximate travel distances of 12000km for arrival from the west of 11000km from the east; the magnitude of the feat can be appreciated by first considering the latter option - this species is an extremely rare vagrant in western Europe and has already travelled a huge distance to get that far; to then imagine it crossing the Atlantic is unreasonable, though ship assistance might be an option (Halifax is a port with ships from Europe); nevertheless, other Siberian vagrants have penetrated west as far as Iceland and even Greenland (c.f. notes on Siberian Rubythroat and White's Thrush above); for arrival from the west, traversing of a major ocean can be avoided if it is assumed the bird crossed via the Bering straight; however, this just extends the travel distance and does not seem reasonable either! Further discussion is here.

Red-necked Stint (E Siberia, wintering SE Asia to Australia, a few reaching South Africa)	various records for US east coast, and Bermuda, e.g. single(s), Connecticut, July-August 2000; again, direction of travel is uncertain but the birds presumably originated in Siberia and followed a west-to-east route. The Little Stint, which breeds in Siberia further west than the Red-necked (as far as the extreme north of Scandinavia) and winters down into South Africa, has also been recorded on the east coast of the US, and Bermuda! Such birds must have followed an opposite east-to-west route, but may have originated from a region in Siberia neighbouring the breeding grounds of the Red-necked birds. Further, the Little Stint has also been recorded on the West coast of the US, e.g. California (Sept 1983). It would be very interesting to know if either species occurs at the southern tip of South America, as might be expected.
Sharp-tailed Sandpiper (Siberia, winters Australia)	Tristan da Cuhna, Jun 1950
Arctic Warbler (Asia)	Kilauea Point NWR, Kaua'i, Hawaii, 13 February 2000 - probably this species, see full account here; this was the first and only passerine vagrant recorded on the main Hawaiian islands.

Would welcome any other suggestions from further afield for this section!

Recent North Atlantic records of Swinhoe's Petrel (Oceanodroma monorhis)

At 1.15am on 19 July 1989, a large petrel was seen and heard calling as it circled the trapping area where British Storm Petrels were being tape-lured on Tynemouth pier, north-east England. It departed unidentified. However, on 23 July, a similar bird was attracted to the tape and trapped. In the hand, the ringers were astonished to find a storm petrel superficially resembling Leach's Petrel, but with an all-dark rump. The bird was ringed, measured and photographed before release. On 26 July, an unringed bird, identical to the first, was trapped.

At the time, no certain identification could be made, as there were no obvious candidates amongst birds likely to reach the UK, but research began into the possibilities...

In 1990, a third individual was trapped on 6 July. The same bird was re-caught in July every year for the next 4 years, i.e. 30 July 1991; 29 July 1992; 21, 28 and 29 July 1993 and 11, 23 and 25 July 1994. This provided the possibility to use DNA analysis to assist in the identification. In 1991, a blood sample was taken by Dr David Parkin. Analysis of cytochroime-b mitocondrial DNA sequences in comparison to samples taken from Swinhoe's Petrels in Russia and Korea finally proved that the bird was of this species, this particular individual being a female.

More details about the taxonomy of the species, which is sympatric with Leach's Petrel (Oceanodroma leucorhoa), are available from Sibley's sequence and in the Birdguides library. Some literature references are as follows:

1. James, P.C. & Robertson, H.A. (1985) "First record of Swinhoe's Storm-petrel Oceanodroma monorhis in the Atlantic Ocean", Ardea 73, pp. 105-106
2. Carruthers, M.P., Cubitt, M.G. & Hall, L. (1989) "The dark-rumped petrels in Tyne & Wear", Birding World 2, pp. 288-289
3. Bourne, W.R.P. (1990) "The first dark-rumped petrel", Birding World 3, p. 249
4. Bretagnolle, V., Carruthers, M., Cubitt, M., Bioret, F., & Cuillandre, J-P. (1991) "Six captures of a dark-rumped, fork-tailed storm-petrel in the northern Atlantic", Ibis 133, pp. 351-356
5. Cubitt, M. (1991) "The mystery petrels of Tyneside", Birding World 4, pp. 295-297
6. Cubitt, M., Carruthers, M. & Zino, F. (1992) "Unraveling the mystery of the Tyne Petrel", Birding World 5, pp. 438-442
7. Dawson, R. (1992) "Blood, sweat and petrels", Birding World 5, pp. 443-444
8. King, J. & Minguez, E. (1994) "Swinhoe's Petrel: The first Mediterranean record", Birding World 7, pp. 271-273
9. Cubitt, M. (1994) "The mystery dark-rumped storm-petrel", Birding 26, p. 125
10. Cubitt, M.G. (1995) "Swinhoe's Storm-petrels at Tynemouth: New to Britain and Ireland", British Birds 88, pp. 342-390
11. Brinkley, ES. (1995) "Dark-rumped storm-petrels in the North Atlantic", Birding 27, pp. 95-97
12. Bourne, W.R.P. & Simmons, K.E.L. (1997) "A dark-rumped Leach’s Storm-petrel in the South Atlantic", Sula 11, pp. 209-215
13. British Birds Rarity Committee Files (1997) "The Chalice petrel", British Birds 90, pp. 305-313
14. Force, M. (1997) "Comments on 'The Chalice petrel'", British Birds 90, pp. 339-342
15. Morrison, S. (1998) "All-dark petrels in the North Atlantic", British Birds 91, pp. 540-560
16. Bolton, M. (1998) "Swinhoe’s Storm-petrel ringed at Ponta de Almadena, Algarve, 27th June 1998", A Rocha Bird Observatory Report, 1998
17. O'Brian, M. Patteson, JB., Armistead, GL. & Pearce, GB. (1999) "Swinhoe's Storm-petrel: First North American photographic record", North American Birds 53(1), pp. 6-10
18. Palmer, P. (2000) "First for Britain and Ireland: 1600-1999", Arlequin Press

The species had been observed over a number of years on Selvagem Grande in the Madeiran Archipelago, where breeding has been suspected (see below). In addition to these records, further records have come from various parts of the North Atlantic in recent years, including Norway, Holland, France, Portugal, the Mediterranean coasts of Spain and Italy, as well as off the US east coast.

The origin of these birds is debated - vagrancy from the Indian Ocean round the Cape being one possibility and a small North Atlantic breeding population being another. In support of the latter is the fact that the first North Atlantic record, from 1983, was of a male on the nest of a Madeiran Petrel (see James & Robertson 1985); in 1988, a male was captured (Bretagnolle et al. 1991) and, in each year from 1993 to 1996, a female with a vascularised brood patch was regularly caught on a nest (Zino 1997). Bretagnolle (1991) suggests that there might be a breeding population on the Azores or Cape Verde Islands.

More information on European status is provided on Eurobirding and on international distribution on Avibase and Oceanwanderers:

* Swinhoe's Petrel on Eurobirding * Swinhoe's Petrel on Avibase (includes worldwide distribution map) * Swinhoe's Petrel Oceanwanderers

An exhausted bird at Eilat, Israel in January 1958 (Bourne, 1967) was the first record for in the Western Palearctic, and an obvious vagrant from the Indian Ocean. After the 1983 Maderia record, there been a further 16 confirmed records of Swinhoe’s Storm-petrel in the Western Palearctic, all trapped. In addition, Morrison (1998) documents 19 "dark-rumped" small Oceanodroma storm-petrels observed ‘at sea’ in the North Atlantic up to 1998 (though note that dark-rumped Leach's Petrel have also been identified by DNA analysis, so that any sight records must be uncertain). My own compilation of some of the more recent records (not necessarily all accepted yet) includes:

* single trapped, Revekaia, Klepp, Rogaland, Norway, August, 1997

* single trapped, Ponta de Almadena, Algarve, Spain, 27 June 1998

* single (sight record), Huisduinen, Den Helder, Noord-Holland, 11 July 1998

* single photographed, North Carolina Pelagic trip, USA, 8 August 1998

* single trapped, Great Skellig Island, County Kerry, Ireland, 1 July, 2000

* single re-trapped, Revekaia, Klepp, Rogaland, Norway, 27 July, 2000

* single trapped (different to last), Revekaia, Klepp, Rogaland, Norway, 16 August, 2000

* single trapped, Cove Harbour, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, 5 August, 2000

* single (sight record), South Stack, Anglesey, Wales, October, 2000

* single, Eilat's north beach, Israel, 8 September 2001. The bird flew into a window of one of Eilat's seafront hotels. It was picked up and brought to the IBRCE, but died shortly afterwards. The information about this bird was not submitted to the IRDC, however, I. Tsurim and N. Sapir examined the skin, which is preserved in the Zoological collection of the Tel Aviv University (specimen #AV15980) and confirmed the identification. [This is the second record for Israel, after the first found dead at Eilat, January 1958.]

* single (sight record), Platja del Trabucador, Ebro Delta, Spain, 30 April 2003

* single re-trapped (same as above), Revekaia, Klepp, Rogaland, Norway, 4/5 August, 2003

Pictures of the third record for Israel at Eilat on 19 April 2003 are here. Yet another was found exhausted at the same place 21 September 2004, becoming the fourth record!

* single, Niedersachsen, Germany, 24 September 2004; a detailed account and discussion of this record is found on the Club300.de pages here.

* single, from pelagic 7 miles south of St Mary's (Scilly) for four minutes early afternoon (1.10-1.13pm), 21 July 2005.

* single, trapped and ringed at Hernyken, Nordland, Norway, 13 August 2006

* single, trapped on the Selvagens Islands, summer 2007 (had been ringed there in 1986)

The last-mentioned record here is hugely significant - this bird has been resident in the North Atlantic for over 20 years!!!

It remains a great mystery why this species should apparently have suddenly emerged in the North Atlantic after 1983, with no confirmed records prior to that. The great spread of the area over which the species has now been recorded, from the Mediterranean, off Iberia, the North Sea and off the US east coast adds weight to this mystery because records would be expected to be much more localised if attributable to a small breeding population. We may never know the origins of these birds...

Barn Owl road kill in Lothian

Barn Owl road casualties are always a tragic sight, yet have clear potential for providing insight into the status of the species in particular areas. This might be particularly useful where there is no dedicated monitoring, as has apparently been the case in Lothian in recent years. Whilst casual records showed a marked increase in 2004 there were no confirmed breeding records in either 2003 or 2004 and considerable uncertainty on the current health of the population in the area.

Historical reporting rates of road-kill averaged 2.4/year between 1984-1993 and only 1.0/year 1994-2003 [from Lothian Bird Reports]. This picture is consistent with a general view that the species has declined drastically in the area over the last 40 years. However, within a few weeks of the author moving East Lothian in August 2004 increased numbers of casualties were being recorded and a personal study commenced. Despite the fact that no special effort was made to find them, a total of 51 Barn Owls were thereafter recorded as RTA’s on Lothian roads during the two-year period from October 2004.

This article presents a summary of the findings from this initial two-year study period, with the intention of providing a baseline against which future trends can be monitored. Valuable additional insights have been obtained by means of post mortem analyses of 18 casualties, all courtesy of veterinary surgeon Jason Waine of Redditch. Other reports have appeared recently in Barn Owl Link (p.6), the newsletter of the Barn Owl Conservation Trust, and in the Lothian Bird Report for 2005.

Lothian Barn Owls

My bird records

This is a chronological record of a selection of my own bird sightings which I find of interest due to some unusual aspect of the record - including things like plumage variants and behaviour. In most they are of no particular significance but might just be of interest to people who've birded the same places, or recorded the same individuals.

I prefer to find my own birds, rather than chase after others' rarities, and most of the birds listed here were my own finds (those which I didn't find myself or discover independent of any specific information are marked with an asterisk*).

Most of the locations are in the UK the exceptions being a small number of sightings from the Faeroe Islands, Russia, Japan, Finland, the US and Nigeria. Banchory and Loch of Strathbeg are located in NE Scotland, North Ronaldsay is one of the Orkney Islands, and Bardsey Island is off the Llyn peninsula in North Wales.

1973

9 October - ID of male and female Blackbird, also Starling and Carrion Crow on aerial, Banchory

1974

4 October - Aberlady Bay visit, geese seen

1975

28 August - Edinburgh zoo visit, decided an Avadavat would be a good pet

1976

22 April - pair of Osprey, Loch of Lowes
(bred here from 1969, the year I was born!)

1978

8 May - 2 pairs Raven, Beinn Dearg, Skye

1979

14 July - visited Common Gull colony in Correen Hills near Rhynie

25 August - Hen Harrier, on moor near Rhynie (the sort of thing that can inspire a lifetime love of wildlife, but unlikely to be seen now due to the huge intensification of grouse moor management, with endemic and systematic persecution of native wildlife, proof here at the very same place: Gamekeeper shooting Hen Harrier on Cabrach and all so an ultra rich elite can enjoy killing things, robbing ordinary people of our heritage, an utter disgrace in modern Scotland; hopefully as a new generation grow up in this country, an enlightenment in the appreciation of our native wildlife for what it is, rather than killing it, will finally put an end to an out-dated industry built on criminality)

1981

July - Golden Eagle, Toe Head, Harris

July - Corncrake, Harris

1984

20 July - 2 Peregrines caught young crow, near Inchnadamph, Ross and Cromarty

1985

23 April - late Waxwing, Raemoir Road, Banchory

8 June - Osprey carrying fish mobbed by 4 Oystercatchers, Gicht, Aberdeenshire

1986

31 May - 13 Dotterel, Glas Maol, Cairngorms

8 July - 2 Black-throated Divers with 2 chicks, near Ben Stack, Sutherland

11 July - female Hen Harrier attacked male Merlin with prey, hillside near Gordonbush, Loch Brora

27 September - Glossy Ibis, single briefly at Starnakeppie, Loch of Strathbeg, flew off SE - 8th for NE Scotland, following records in 1844, 1880, 1902, 1907, 1920 and 1938; presumably same refound by the warden on 30 October and last seen on 23 November; sadly, the remains of a dead bird were found in January of the following year

31 December - dead Black-headed Gull, ringed as healthy adult, Vaasan Uääni, Finland, 25 June, 1981, and controlled at c. Southport Pier, 25 February 1986 (distance 1832km, direction WSW, duration 5 years, 6 months, 6 days)

1987

21 February - 3 Puffins on sea, Bullers of Buchan (at the time, said to be earliest Scottish record for return to breeding site)

26 May - Wryneck glimpsed, Dinnet, upper Deeside

6 June - Fulmar flying west, Loch of Leys, Banchory (c. 15 miles from coast)

1 August - Osprey carrying small fish W, Kirkton of Culsalmond, Inverurie

8 August - c.8 Storm Petrel flying round rocks close inshore, Dundonnie, Boddam, Peterhead (wind NW5 and WNW5-6 previous day)

17 October - Swift sp., Snettisham, Norfolk

31 December - 2nd-win Ring-billed Gull*, ad. Mediterranean Gull, Seaforth, Merseyside

1988

26 July - 2 Storm Petrels S, Loch Linnhe, Fort William, after strong SW wind (SSW6-7 previous day)

27 July - 13+ Storm Petrels flying around inside the harbour, flat calm conditions (but up to SW6 previous afternoon), Mallaig

4 August - Least Sandpiper*, Cove, Aberdeenshire (3rd for Scotland, 16th for Britain)

1989

24 June - Little Stint, Rosehearty, Aberdeenshire

14 July - Gannet high over Kinellar, Blackburn, Aberdeenshire (c. 6 miles inland)

16 August - Albino Swallow, Woolhillock, Westhill, Aberdeenshire

3-11 September - up to 4 Scarlet Rosefinch, North Ronaldsay

7 September - male Scarlet Rosefinch* caught and photographed by warden, North Ronaldsay

7-14 September - male Mandarin, North Ronaldsay (7th for Orkney)

8 September - total 829 Sooty Shearwater N in two main flocks (313, and 383 individuals), off North Ronaldsay

11 September - flock of 8 Grey Heron in off sea, joined by juv from Gretchen Loch, continuing south, North Ronaldsay

13 September - Barred Warbler*, Red-breasted Flycatcher*, Holland House, North Ronaldsay, Yellow-browed Warbler*, Lum, North Ronaldsay (for the latter, earliest Scottish record at the time)

29 September - imm. Golden Eagle chasing deer down steep slope on Meall Tionail, Bynack Lodge, Cairngorms (published as Short Note in Scottish Bird News, 17, 7, March, 1990)

1990

10 January - 2nd-win Iceland Gull, roost by Dee at Crathes, Banchory (c. 15 miles inland)

26 March - Kumlien's Gull*; Banff

15 June - Red-backed Shrike*, 3 Woodlark; Thetford Forest at Santon Downham

6 August - Ivory-phase Fulmar, off Mousa, Shetland, several Common Crossbill, Lerwick, Shetland

10-11,22 August - Chiffchaff, 7 Goldcrest, Vidalundin Park, Torshavn, Faroe Islands

11-23 August - 13+ Common Crossbill, various locations (Torshavn, Gjogv, Oyndafjordur, Klaaksvik, Kunoy), Faroe islands

24 August - Willow Warbler, pair, Kunoy plantation, Faroe Islands

27 August - 7 Goldcrest, Chiffchaff, a second individual with yellow feet, light brown legs, but weak Chiffchaff song/call, Vidalundin Park, Torshavn, Faroe Islands

1 September - juv Pectoral Sandpiper, Anachie Lagoon, St Fergus (14th for NE Scotland)

10 September - Red-necked Grebe, Donmouth; Baird's Sandpiper*, Anachie Lagoon, St Fergus (2nd for NE Scotland)

18 September - Grey Phalarope, Starnafin, Loch of Strathbeg (9th for NE Scotland since 1950; 27th record overall)

1991

31 May - 1500 Lesser Blackback (of adults, 29 out of 64 adjudged L.f.intermedius with 2 coal-black, apparently as dark as L.f.fuscus), Hurst End, Cranfield, Bedfordshire

8 September - 3 young Goldfinch fledged from nest at Lanchester Hall, Cranfield Institute, Bedfordshire

21 September - Kittiwake with light brown legs, Macduff

12 October - Goshawk over Cranfield Institute, Bedfordshire (a genuine one, not a mis-ID)

1992

10 September - c. 11,000 Lesser Blackback, 4,300 Blackheaded Gull; Stewartby Lake, Bedfordshire

11 September - c. 40 Black Tern circling lake at dusk, Brogborough reservoir, Bedfordshire

29 November - c. 28,000 gulls (mainly Black-headed Gulls), Stewartby Lake, Bedfordshire

1993

1 January - albino Rook, Paythorpe, Lancashire

24 January - c. 20,000 Black-headed Gulls, Stewartby Lake, Bedfordshire

19 April - male Ring-necked Duck*, Killington reservoir, M6

1995

28 November - albino Oystercatcher, Morecambe

1996

6-13 September - imm./female Red-backed Shrike, Cape Clear Island, County Cork

11 September - c. 50 Storm Petrels seen on pelagic trip S off Cape Clear Island, County Cork

25 October - several Killer Whales, Girdleness, Aberdeen

1997

14 August - Corncrake walking amongst tourists in park in central Moscow

13 October - juv Barred Warbler, Cristin, Bardsey Island

17 October - 4 Mediterranean Shearwater, 2 (+4 probable) Pomarine Skua, off South End, Bardsey Island

1998

16 April - Red-breasted Goose*, Starnafin, Loch of Strathbeg

26 October - American Wigeon*, Hayle estuary, Cornwall

27 October - 74 Storm Petrel W (12:45-17:10hrs, wind WSW7-8 at times, could barely stand), Porthgwarra, Cornwall, Firecrest, Penberth, Cornwall

30 October - juv Surf Scoter*, Helston Loe, Cornwall, male Ring-necked Duck*, male Black Duck*, Stithians Reservoir, Cornwall

1999

14 June - 2 Quail calling, Brancaster, Norfolk

16 June - Laughing Gull* at the Three Swallows pub, Cley-next the sea, for less than one minute

26 September - 10 Black-crowned Night Heron, 5 Fork-tailed Swift, 2 Red-necked Stint, Lake Kasumigama, Tsuchiuria, Japan

2 October - Arctic Warbler, Sooty Flycatcher, 2 Japanese White-eye, 2 Grey-tailed Tattler, c. 60 Black Kite, 2 Blue Rock Thrush, Enoshima Island, Shonan, Japan

2000

8 January - Waxwing, West Riding, Bricket Wood, Herts.

5 September - Long-tailed Skua, 2 juv W off Great Orme, Great White Egret, Alaw estuary

2001

1 February - 1st-win Laughing Gull*, Stewartby Lake, Bedfordshire (1st for Beds); while we were watching it 4 Waxwings landed in the tree above us!

31 May - male Thrush Nightingale in vigorous song, shore on lake at Espoo, Helsinki

23 June - male Black Redstart in song on roof of Moss Bros, Watford Town Centre

2-5 July - Corncrake: 3+ calling, near cemetry at Bhatarsaigh; 6 calling, Eolaigearraidh, Barra; 3 calling, Acairseid Mhor/Na Pairceanan, Eriskay

3 July - 3rd-sum Iceland Gull at cockleshell dump in backyard of Barratlantic fish factory - Aird Mhidhinis/Bagh Shiarabagh, Barra

8 July - Water Rail, Common Crossbill at Horgabost, Harris

11 July - pair of Black-throated Diver with two young, northern Skye

12 July - Storm Petrel - 5-10 individuals feeding about 2 miles SE of Sgeir Fhiaclach Beag, off east coast of Barra (from Lochboisdale to Castlebay ferry)

26 August - Serin - single over our garden in Garston, Watford; the high-pitched buzzing call betrayed its presence, and the distinctive erratic bouncing flight confirmed its ID, probably the same was seen later in the week in central Watford

27 October - Mediterranean Shearwater S off Strumble Head, Pembrokeshire

28 October - Willow Warbler (late!), Black Redstart, 6 Blackcap, 15000 Starlings S at Whitesands, Pembrokeshire, and another Black Redstart on the roof of St David's Cathedral

10 December - Dartford Warbler, Hatch End Pond, New Forest

2002

5 March - Belted Kingfisher and Swamp Sparrow - pond at Holiday Inn, Gaithersburg, Maryland

June/July - Barn Owls (possibly breeding) found not far from my home in Watford

11 July - Colour-ringed Canada Goose at the Moor Mill near St Albans which had been ringed as an adult exactly 8 years previously on the River Thames at Hampton

23 October - Lesser Yellowlegs*, Amwell gravel pit, Herts

10 November - Brown Sunbird at Whispering Palms, Badagry

11 November - Fire-bellied Woodpecker - Nigeria Conservation Foundation reserve at Lekki

14 November - Long-crested Eagle high over Lagos expressway S of Ibadan

15 November - c. 20 Wood Sandpiper, c. 20 Common Sandpiper, pair of Long-legged Pipits (1st for Nigeria! - record published as Thibault et al. (2012) "First records of Long-billed Pipit for Nigeria and Benin" in Bull African Bird Club 19(2) 2012)

17 November - Slender-billed Weavers in garden in Festac Town

24 December - 8 pale-bellied Brent Goose, Donmouth, Aberdeen

2003

15 March - male Firecrest at my workplace, BRE, Watford

9 August - Least Sandpiper*, Tring, Herts (1st for Herts, 28th for Britain)

12 August - stunning view of Red Kite over airfield near our house in Watford

19 September - group of Sandwich Terns over our house calling late evening, our first child having been born that morning!

2004

18 March - Avocet on dam at Hilfield Resr, Herts, went onto the water at dusk (17:15hrs) and drifted out onto reservoir; by 18:40hrs had approached within a few metres of the gull roost flock in the middle of the reservoir; at 18:46hrs (40 mins after sunset) stretched wings upwards once, then a couple of seconds later suddenly took off direct from the water, moving initially W in the direction it was facing but glimpsed flashing back to the right, perhaps circling to gain height; did not call; not present following day so this was probably its departure

26 April - flock of 26 Little Gulls giving marvellous views over Marsworth Resr, Tring, part of a record movement of 40+ birds through

30 April - mixed flock of waders including 14 Bar-tailed Godwits and 10 Grey Plovers NE over Hilfield Resr, Herts

21 May - male Great Spotted Woodpecker scaling the brick wall of the office building at Hilfield Resr, Herts - took c. 60s to climb from 2m to top, mainly with one foot on corner but also grasping wall and flapping to maintain height; once on top climbed horizontally pecking under top slab

12 September - ad Long-tailed Skua E past Craigielaw, Lothian

7 October - ad Mediterranean Gull, red colour ring 7P8 (ringed as an adult on 14 May 2004 by the Vistula at Zwirownia, Skoki Duze, west of Warsaw, Poland (52 36N 19 24E), distance 1505km, direction WNW; first seen in the area on 7 August 2004), Ferny Ness, Lothian

6 December - flock of 175 Waxwings feeding on Swedish Whitebeam berries at Craigmillar in Edinburgh (part of large influx)

18 December - ad Mediterranean Gull, light green colour ring, Seton Sands, Lothian (presumed 3CT6)

2005

15 January - albino Yellowhammer, Balgone, East Lothian

2 February - 2 Little Auks W past Ferny Ness, Lothian, occasionally dropping onto water (part of large influx)

24 March - flock of 111 Waxwings feeding mainly on rosehip berries at Tranent A1 junction, Lothian

18 May - f/imm Marsh Harrier SE over A1 near Blindwells, Lothian

19 June - Common Quail in song on Whitekirk golf course during BBS

27 June - 3rd-sum California Gull - St Luis Reservoir, San Jouquin Valley, California; Anna's Hummingbird, Nuttall's Woodpecker and Loggerhead Shrike all seen in San Jose urban area

3 July - male Common Nighthawk hunting over Edinburgh USA golf course, Brooklyn, Minneapolis

14 August - Long-tailed Skua SE past Barns Ness, Lothian

21 August - albino House Martin, Balgone, East Lothian

19 September - Chinese Little Bittern, Chinese Pond Heron, 70+ Azure-winged Magpie, imm Black-headed Gull - Summer Palace lake, Beijing, China

25 September - juv Pectoral Sandpiper at a flood in East Lothian (18th for Lothian)

5 November - 1-2 ad Mediterranean Gull regular in Seton Sands roost from this date until year end, including Polish-ringed bird 7P8 (7/10/04 above)

2006

4 January - Black-necked Grebe, Ferny Ness, Lothian (and several dates thereafter until 18 February)

29 January - 24 Common Crossbill, Longniddry c/p 2, Lothian

12 March - a colour-ringed female Snow Bunting seen at Drem Pools. East Lothian, was one of a number caught in a project at Caister-on-sea, Norfolk, during winter 05/06; the ringer reported that the bulk of the flock had remained in the ringing area until a couple of weeks prior to this sighting

20 May - as part of winning SOC team logged 127 species in Lothian in a 24-hr bird race (total seen by at least 3 of team was 125); highlight of the day was a male Goshawk with prey; full account here

3 June - added Grasshopper Warbler to current garden list, bird reeling 450m NW of house by coast road (species 69, or 90 for all gardens)

13 June - 2 Spoonbill, Boo, Cantabria, Spain

13 June - 13 Sanderling, Playa de Liencres, Cantabria

17 June - 3rd-sum Great Blackback, 6 Common Scoter, 3 Spoonbill, Purple Heron - Laredo-Santona; 7 Grey Plover (6 1st-sum), Somo, Cantabria; Great Blackback, Astillero

19 June - birding in Pico de Europas, Cantabria - lifers including Crag Martin (20+), Griffon Vulture (20+), Egyptian Vulture (2), Alpine Chough

19 June - Audouin's Gull in evening roost at San Vicente de Barqueta, Cantabria, Spain (2nd for Cantabria, after first at Somo on 5/5/02)

23 June - 1st-sum Great Blackback, Somo, Cantabria

13 August - adult Roseate Tern ENE past Gullane Point, Aberlady

17 August - adult Mediterranean Gull red-7P8, as above, back in Seton Sands roost, Lothian

24 August - Common Terns calling over Longniddry during the night as they departed S on migration, presumably overland to the Solway

14 November - 5 (2 ad, 2nd-win, 2 1st-win) Mediterranean Gull in Seton Sands roost near our house (probably the highest indivdual total yet recorded in Scotland); a good autumn for them here, a total of 41 bird-days, with at least 9 different birds present, probably more

28 December - flock of redpolls appeared visible from our house in Longniddry, including 12+ Mealy Redpolls

Local patches

Over the years I've visited a number of "local patches" on a regular basis and whilst never finding anything particularly rare have enjoyed some good birding. Below are a few notes about some of these patches with more photos to follow in due course.

Grove Mill, Watford, Hertfordshire, England Map Annotated species list

This site is the first area of countryside you get to on the west of Watford and lies adjacent to the Grand Union canal. It is part of the Grove Estate and the main interest is various large ponds which are part of the newly landscaped golf course. I started visiting regularly in 2002, logging migrants for BTO's "Migration Watch" and watching the new ponds. Disturbance due to work on the estate limited numbers of birds but visiting waders included Green and Common Sandpipers and Ringed Plover. A single Little Grebe was resident and range of waterfowl bred around the pools (Mute Swan, Canada Goose, Mallard, Coot, Moorhen) along with Grey Wagtail and Sedge Warbler. Other ducks included Shovelers and Gadwall, whilst Hobby and Kingfisher were also seen.

In May 2003 an interesting interaction was observed with an intruding pair of Mute Swans driving the resident pair (female depicted below) from the area and possibly killing all their young - more details in species list.

Also in spring 2003 Little Grebe numbers increased to two pairs and, with territorial birds, breeding was suspected for Tufted Duck, Kingfisher, Sedge Warbler, Spotted Flycatcher, Bullfinch and Reed Bunting. By the end of August was able to confirm breeding of Little Grebe and Reed Bunting and 3 Kingfishers were seen together suggesting that they too had bred successfully somewhere locally.

From late August into September both Green and Common Sandpipers were again recorded regularly on the large pool.

At the year end the 6 Little Grebes were still present on the canal loop adjacent to the large pool with Common Snipe back on the island.

In spring 2004 a Great Crested Grebe arrived and Lesser Spotted Woodpecker was seen.

The best "non-bird" creature I've seen at this site was a grass snake swimming across the canal.

A few of my bird pictures from the area are shown below - please click on thumbnails for larger versions (Little Grebe; Grey Heron; Cormorant & "Victoria" the Mute Swan; Shovelers & Mallard; Green and Common Sand; Grey Wag & juv female Reed Buntings)...

PS - a more detailed site guide for this area is now available on the Herts Bird Club webpages.

Whippendell Wood, Watford, Hertfordshire, England Map

I undertook a personal survey of this site in spring 2002 by means of dawn visits. I found the expected woodland species: Great Spotted and Green Woodpeckers, Nuthatch, Treecreeper, Marsh Tit, and plenty of Blackcap and Goldcrest. Owls included several Tawnys, with Barn Owls also at another (undisclosed) locality in the neighbourhood. More details are on this linked page.

Hilfield Reservoir, near Watford, Hertfordshire, England Map

I started visiting this HMWT reservoir in 2003 to count the gull roost which can be viewed from the footbridge over the M1. The above image shows less than 25% of the roost. During winter, the roost is dominated by Black-headed Gulls, with over 10000 present, typically accompanied by about 500 Common Gulls, up to 200 Lesser Blackbacks, and up to 75 Herring Gulls and occasional Mediterranean Gull, Yellow-legged Gull and Great Blackback. The record books show that several thousand Herring Gulls were present in former times (e.g. 7250 on 11/1/69) but it seems that changes in waste disposal practices have forced them to move elsewhere (cf Crow's Nest observations below).

Into the first week of April 2003, numbers of Black-headed and Common Gulls had fallen to single figures, though about 120 large gulls were still present in the roost including at least 30 Herring Gull. It was fascinating to see how the latter species arrived much later in the roost, most coming in from the south, often well after dark!

On 17 January 2004 I took part in the full BTO roost census at the site and we counted nearly 17000 Black-headed Gulls, 2300 Common Gulls, 380 Lesser Blackbacks, and 90 Herring Gulls. I also observed a fine adult Mediterranean Gull on the water prior to the count. These totals suggest that all of my own counts last year had been significant underestimates, though I'd noticed higher numbers of Common Gulls this year.

I followed up these observations with a study of the roost flightpath of the Herring Gulls arriving at Hilfield from the south-east. This is described in full on the linked page here, and downloadable as a pdf here.

Aldenham reservoir

The reservoir lies immediately south of Hilfield within Aldenham Country Park. It is a popular location for family days out and rather less attractive for birds, but on my few trips there I've come across Mandarins lurking along the western shore of the lake. The following are pictures taken in October 2003:

Loch of Leys, Banchory, Kincardineshire, Scotland Map Annotated species list

Whilst in Banchory, my local patch was the Loch of Leys only a short cycle ride from our house in the north of the village. This is more a bog than an loch and it is now almost possible to walk to the old crannog in the middle. Open water is virtually eliminated by scrub.

The characteristic birds at this site are the Water Rails and Common Buzzards. The former can be heard throughout the summer but almost impossible to see whilst the latter are present year round and very visible. I once made a concerted efforts count the calling Water Rails (April 1990) and concluded that there were at least 15 individuals calling. Reed Buntings also breed in some numbers and I found 18 males together in a neighbouring field the same week. Willow Warblers are also common breeders along with Redpolls and Siskin. Long-tailed Tits and Jays are often seen along the south shore and Common Crossbills and Green Woodpecker occasionally in the wood to the north. Reedbed roosts of Swallow and Starling once numbered over 1000 birds each but I've not been able to count them recently. Gulls gather in nearby fields after visiting the local dump (next section) and can be seen moving to and from the Loch of Skene roost at the ends of the day. There was formerly a Black-headed Gull colony at the site. My best find here was a Fulmar on 5 June 1987 which was somewhat lost nearly 20 miles up the Dee valley from the sea at Aberdeen, and over 10 miles from the nearest coast at Stonehaven; what may well have been the same bird had been seen previously at Milltimber 10 miles east down the Dee valley on 30 May and was subsequently reported about 35 miles further west up the valley at the Linn of Dee, near the heart of the Cairngorms, on 20 June!

Crow's Nest amenity site, Banchory, Kincardineshire, Scotland Map Detailed information

I have watched the gulls at this site for the last 20 years or so since my first interest in birds as a teenager. When I first counted the Herring Gulls on 7/1/88 there were over 4000 present but these days around 1000 is more normal for mid-winter. Great Blackback numbers seem to have shown the opposite trend, with very few in the mid-80's but about 150 present in winter 98/99. Lesser Blackbacks are present in smaller numbers, rarely in mid-winter, and I observed a presumed hybrid LBBxHG on 26/12/98. Only once did I find a white-winged bird amongst them, this being a 2nd-win. Iceland in the nearby dayroost at Maryfield.

In December 2003 numbers had fallen to less than 1000 birds and the manager informed me that "bird scaring" (with falcons) is now used on a daily basis to satisfy demands of SEPA. These birds included only 7% 1st-winters, much lower than averages for the early 1990's of 26% and perhaps to do with the scaring? Also, less than 1% were argentatus-race birds, including the adult and 4th-win individuals shown below - quite a low number, cf the paper of study of Coulson et al. 135 Carrion Crows were accompanied by 5 Hooded-Carrion hybrids and 3 pure-bred Hoodies - high counts for NE Scotland.

A more detailed description of the trends in large gulls numbers in this area is now included in this linked document.