Lindisfarne and Musselburgh

Lindisfarne: Circumstance gave me a couple of days based in Edinburgh. Lindisfarne was just an hour and a half away. As a teenager I had a few holidays around and on here, and remember it as one of the first places I got into birdwatching, so I've always wanted to return. Would it live up to my memories?

In short, it did up to a point. After looking on Birdguides I'd guess local birdies don't generally go there unless there is some specific wind and weather combination that makes it a magical migration point. I didn't get those winds so I got what is on the island on a usual April day. I didn't see any other birders either.

Briefly, the island consists of a village in the SW, which I didn't look round but does get rarities, a rough un 'improved' farmland in the south and a massive dune system in the north. 

There wasn't much on the island. Lots of local stuff like Lapwings, Curlews, Skylarks, Meadow Pipits, but c30 Golden Plover flying around in summer plumage was a welcome sight, and then distant falcons chasing a bird. It was Merlin-like behaviour but then one broke off and behaved like a Kestrel. Could I tick the other one as a Merlin as it continued to twist and turn? Fortunately that conundrum was solved a few minutes later a a female Merlin headed determinedly across the field. 

Then the sea. Gannets galore, Kittiwakes, Eider Ducks, Auks, lots of Fulmars and a lone Common Scoter. Finally on the SE corner of the island a male Wheatear. I walked the coast road and looked over the flats as the tide came in; Red-Breasted Merganser, a lone Pale-Bellied Brent Goose, a Red-Throated Diver, many Bar-Tailed Godwits, a couple of Knot, and a bird which looked like a Slavonian Grebe, but long distance, only my old scope, light against me etc etc. 

So nothing to get excited about but very enjoyable. 

Musselburgh and Seaton. Musselburgh could become a place I visit a few timers a year so I thought I should get acquainted. Just working out where to park, where the lagoons are etc. So imagine my surprise when walking over a bit of landscaped ash tip I detected a slightly familiar call amongst a flock of Linnets and there on a barbed wire fence were two Twite! All buff-orange throat and pink rump. I found the hides over the old lagoon and proudly announced my exciting find to a couple of locals who were in there. "Yes there's usually twenty or so up on the old Ash heap." Oh well.

Completing the tour I had about 10 White Wagtails, and off the sea wall a pair of Long-Tailed Ducks including a male in transition plumage with the full length tail. Quite a place!

On local advice I headed east to Seaton and set up my scope. What a sight! The Forth was millpond flat and there were birds as far as the eye could see. Eider Duck everywhere, about 50 Red Breasted Mergansers close in, and amongst them all a few more Long-Tailed Duck, a couple of Velvets Scoters, some Razorbills, a Guillemot, a Red-Throated Diver and a Shag. There were many more ducks further out and some small flocks were clearly Velvet Scoter. With my old scope I couldn't manage any id's further out but the array of birdlife in scope view was quite fantastic. 

I will definitely be coming back. 

Great Grey Shrike

Nine years ago when I gave up working I went to see a Great Grey Shrike at Grimes Graves. It was easy to find, showed well, all round very nice. This, I thought, would be my new work-free life. Every winter I would pop up to the Brecks and get an easy-to -see long staying Shrike. Needless to say that was the last time I had a decent view of this species. 

Until Friday when I went with Mike and Dave to see the one north of Weeting. As is always the case now for such sightings, we parked where the cars were parked, followed the path and lined up with everyone else. It was easy to see on a tree, not too distant, with the 60x scope giving eye-piece filling views. As we watched, a Woodlark sang. Very nice.

Buoyed by our early success we headed for the Rustic Bunting near Swaffham. On arrival at this extremely popular twitch it soon became clear we were on a hiding to nothing. The bunting flock was deep in a Sunflower-filled corner of the field. Occasionally birds popped up into a hedge, and once a load of birds, maybe thirty, took to the air and then went back down into deep obscurity. We departed.

I think Birdguides should give a 'twitchability score'. Lesser Scaup at Abberton gets 5 - if you follow the instructions almost impossible to miss. But this bird should get a 1. Don't bother unless you are prepared to spend all day for a couple of minutes view in a hedge.

We went back to Lynford Arboretum. Such a nice easy site. Cappuccinos at the Shepherds Baa, Brambling at the tunnel, then unexpectedly at the bridge Crossbills. Great views as they came to drink. Such a wonderful thing to have these birds back. 

Further on we had Hawfinch in the big tree in the paddock, but could't connect with Firecrest. A bit cold, possibly. Just not a Firecrest sort of day. 

Apart from Firecrest the only Brecks speciality we haven't got recently is Lesser Spotted Woodpecker. And on that front we have excellent news! We no longer have to drive fifty miles and walk half a mile to spend hours not seeing them; thanks to some excellent work by a patch birder we have a site nearer to home where we can spend hours not seeing them. Progress indeed. 

Hello Old Friend

What a year its been for notable birds. It started off with Canvasback at Abberton, then Northern Waterthrush at Maldon, then Surf Scoter at Holkham. There was a decent supporting cast too - Snow Bunting at Mersea Island, and Snow Bunts and Shore Lark at Holkham. Then a bit of local action - Smew and Red Crested Pochard at Amwell, and Bittern at Fishers Green. Finally White-Billed Diver off Southend Pier.

Yes reader, I missed them all. Some just weren't there when I was, and that Surf-Scoter; well, it became clear when, as we drove down the road to the Coastguards at Cley and saw the brick shelter repeatedly dwarfed by crashing towering spray, that we had miscalculated and there was zero chance of seeing it. Zero. As for the Diver, I never even got out of my chair.

So when it was mooted that we take a family outing to St Albans I leapt at it. Yes, sure, lets visit the Cathedral. A wonderful building. And just a couple of hours later I was stood in the Cathedral grounds with a lady with binoculars pointing out the long-staying Black Redstart in a tree. A decent sighting at last!

It was a female so lacks the showy pizazz of the males. But it was all Redstart. Non-stop flicking, constantly busy, occasionally adopting a jaunty pose. 

Every bird species DNA seems to extend to all aspects of its habits and behaviour. This bird, when seen, instantly summed up the essence of all the previous  Black Redstarts I've seen. An instant memory of encounters past. Hello old friend!