The Juvenile Birder

Second Cornish Delight! We set off at around 1:30am for a mega drive to Cornwall, picking up Dave along the way. We arrived in a layby along the A30 near Crowlas at around 8:00am in hopes of spotting a mega rare Booted Eagle, a bird which we dipped by a day last year in Buckinghamshire. As soon as we got out of the car, we quickly joined the crowd of birders and started waiting. After around two hours, someone called out saying they had the bird. After a quick scramble, Dave managed to get the Booted Eagle in his scope! It was snuggled up in the pines showing well, albeit distantly. Suddenly, it flew through the pines, giving us a quick glimpse of its underwing. Satisfied with our views, we then set off to try and find a rare diver, accompanied by Dave's friend, Leon.  We arrived at Perranuthnoe Beach at around 11:30am and immediately made our way along the beautiful coast path to Boat Cove. Along the way, we spotted two Ravens  flying overhead and a Whimbrel flying past. Once...

Wykeham Forest Wildlife! We arrived at a site just outside of Wykeham Forest in hopes of seeing Turtle Doves. As soon as we arrived, we were  treated to an abundance of activity. Initially we noticed five Yellowhammers  feeding and showing very well, including what looked to be a few fledglings. Suddenly, two Great Spotted Woodpeckers flew in and started feeding in a tree just opposite us. There appeared to be one juvenile and one adult bird. Although not uncommon, I have not had many views of this majestic bird this year. I then got out of the car (which we were using as a hide) and started looking in and around the bushes, spotting a few Nuthatches , as well as both adult and young Great Tits  and Blue Tits . I then spotted five Tree Sparrows , including at least three young, all perfectly perched on one branch. I didn't expect to see them here, so it was nice to find five of them! I also got a brief view of a Marsh/Willow Tit , however I didn't get to see it long enoug...

Hiking in the Highlands! We set off at 2:00am in the morning and arrived at a secret site up in the Highlands of Scotland at around 9:00am. Our only target was Ptarmigan. I had dipped this last year, after a hard and long climb up a mountain, in the snow! We were feeling strangely optimistic about this adventure, as lots of the snow had melted, meaning that the Ptarmigan should hopefully stand out. Enroute to the site, I spotted loads of Red Grouse . As soon as we arrived in the car park, the first bird we saw was a Red Grouse  feeding in the grass only a few metres away. After scanning the boulder scree on the mountain from the car park, I couldn't initially spot anything that stood out as Ptarmigan. I then started scanning the few patches of snow. Suddenly, two white specs caught my eye as one of them moved. They were Ptarmigan ! I was ecstatic, and immediately got a digiscoped image of them. The pair were showing well, however they were extremely distant. They were a lifer for m...

Dipping Rather Than Ticking! We arrived at Mynydd Mawr at 8:20am (Leaving at 5am!) in hopes of seeing a rare Isabelline Wheatear. We had been told by our mentor that there is also Chough here (which would be another lifer after dipping them last week). We parked in a big, grassy layby and started our trek up to the bird. At first, we were a bit disorientated, but we managed to find the right footpath up to the location where the bird was last seen. Without any effort and with no birder in sight we straight away found the medium-sized bird (much larger than I anticipated). It flew straight in front of us and landed up to 10 metres away. I got many record shots, as it danced around near us. It was very pale, and seemed to be the only wheatear there, leading us to believe that it was indeed our target bird, the Isabelline Wheatear . I was thrilled to see this bird, as I was in Gloucestershire, when it was reported last weekend, I really needed it to stick for me! We then scanned around fo...

  Raptors! ​It was our first time visiting Burton Mere. Parking was good and it was our second time visiting an RSPB site. Burton Mere is located near Wales, on The Wirral. When we arrived, we saw a pond with both a Great White and Little Egret along with the usual winter ducks. We walked along the Burton Mere trail at around 1:20pm but didn't see much. We then went on the Reed and Fen trail. We viewed the Reedbed Screen where we saw some Mallards and a Common Moorhen. We then arrived at the Marsh Covert Hide where we saw two Eurasian Coots and a possible Water Rail go past. I didn't get a good look at the Water Rail so it wasn't a confirmed sighting. We then went on a bridge that lead to a boardwalk that went across the reedbed. We then arrived at the Border Hide where we saw Gadwalls, Mallards, Tufted Ducks, Eurasian Wigeons and Northern Pintails. We also saw a flock of Eurasian Curlew fly by as well as some Long-Tailed Tits passing through the trees. We then walked towar...

  First Sight of a Kingfisher! The first hide we entered was in the reedbed walk. The hide was called the Gordon​ Taylor Hide. A Carrion Crow and a Common Redshank greeted us on the roof of the hide. As we entered, we noticed that the Northern Lapwings were foraging along the bank. Two Pied Avocets were roosting in the muddy banks along the pond as well. Presently, a flock of Black-Headed Gulls got spooked by a Common Raven as it tried to attack their young. The majestic Grey Heron also gave a nice flyover as it landed in the distant pools. We continued our adventure by trekking in the opposite direction to the Ron Barker Hide. When we arrived, I was thrilled to hear that someone had a Common Kingfisher through the scope. I looked through it I couldn't believe my eyes. The blue gem showed brilliantly as it bobbed up and down on a post that was to the  right of the bridge that crossed the ditch in front of the hide. Shortly after, it flew off but was then spotted much closer on...