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...

The King of Garden Birds! We set off at 3:30am in hopes of seeing a mainland Myrtle Warbler in Kilwinning. The last mainland Myrtle Warbler in the UK was ten years ago, so this was quite a special bird.  As soon as we arrived, we met Kristian who pointed out the Myrtle Warbler  straight away feeding on the feeders. We also met Wayne who was there for seconds of the bird.  The Myrtle Warbler  was much bigger than I expected, and its prominent white wingbars stood out when I first saw it. It stayed on the feeders for quite a while, before it started chasing away the Blue Tits  and the Great Tits . There was plenty of food in the bird feeders in the garden, but the Myrtle Warbler was too busy chasing off birds. The only birds it didn't chase were those larger in it, which included the  Song Thrushes and the Blackbirds . Suddenly, as I watched the Myrtle Warbler  through by binoculars in the trees, a female Siskin appeared from behind but it too got chase...

Northern Stars We set off at 12pm on a rainy day and arrived at Long Nanny at 3:15pm in hopes of seeing a first for Britain! We walked along the track to get to the farm, where the bird had been viewed from. We scrambled on top of a huge dirt mound in order to scan the fields. Then, a bird with a grey head, brown back, white underbelly and a striking yellow bill appeared in my view. It was the  Grey-headed Lapwing , a wader from Asia! I watched it in the cold and managed to get a decent record shot of it. Surprisingly there was no other birder in sight, I had this first for Britain all to myself! I felt very satisfied with my views and set off to Boulmer for another lifer, a Red-backed Shrike! We arrived at Seaton Point at around 4:20pm and walked towards where the bird had been reported. We met two other birders who said the bird got spooked by a Meadow Pipit, but should still be around. The longer we waited, the less hopeful we became. It was raining hard and was very cold. There...

 Infuriating Wrynecks!! We arrived at Spurn YWT at 6:30am, to search for a Wryneck that was showing well yesterday, (along The Canal). I checked the rocks briefly, to no avail, and then walked along the canal towards the seawatching hide; which was very quiet, except for an Arctic Skua and a few Scoter, Wigeon and Red-throated Divers were also seen. We then ran towards the Canal Scrape Hide when we heard the radio message of a Jack Snipe showing well, yet when we arrived, we got the sad news that it had JUST flown away. We waited for a bit, again no avail, and then rushed back along The Canal to go see a reported Yellow-browed Warbler; in the Crown & Anchor car park. Along the way, we saw a crowd of people staring at the rocks. I asked someone what had been seen, and he replied Wryneck!. My face lit up as I rapidly searched for it, when I finally saw it fly onto a rock and land in view, briefly. Then, the radio said a Yellow-browed Warbler, caught in the mist nets, that was goi...

A First For Britain!! We arrived at 8:00am at Eyebrook Reservoir (Leicestershire) in hopes of seeing a reported White-rumped Sandpiper. We met someone who let me look through his scope to see it. A lifer for me! It was paler that the Dunlin it was feeding with. It was also slightly smaller and longer than the Dunlin. Soon after, a large raptor hovered for a second above the water. It was an Osprey! It flew around and then went away. He told me it was likely the ones nesting at Rutland Water. The White-rumped Sandpiper kept feeding distantly as we viewed it. Not long after the Osprey, two Red Kites soared in the field behind us, as well as three more feeding in the field opposite us. We then went to Willow Tree Fen in hopes if seeing some Cranes but when we arrived (at 10:50am) it was closed. We waited a bit as it mentioned on Facebook that it was open today. Soon after, a report came in on Rare Bird Alert of a Cape Gull. We found out that it was a first for Britain and lucky for us, we...

 A  Quick Morning Lifer! We arrived at Conder Green at 7:20am and parked in a layby on the B5290 that overlooked Conder Pool on one side and a river/creek on the other. Recently, there had been a reported Temminck's Stint present. They are small waders, around half the size of a Dunlin. This bird was an adult and was moving quite a bit. We had come on the 1st August and the 2nd August in the evening but dipped it twice. With it being seen every morning and barely in the evening, we came earlier. We went to the screen and met someone who said they had seen in on the island full of lapwing but it went down a channel. We waited and soon enough the man said it was visible. I looked through with my scope and saw it as it foraged along the rocks. It didn't seem small when looking through a scope but with a naked eye it was tiny, I could barely see it with my binoculars. It then flew to the neighbouring island and foraged along the tip before going out of view. Then, someone who we h...

  So Many Mammals! We arrived very early at 9:40 in hopes of catching a glimpse of the masters at camouflage, the Eurasian Woodcock​. We also were hoping for some Cattle Egrets but they never showed. We quickly viewed the main scrape where we saw many Dunlin, Black-Tailed Godwit and Redshank. We then headed up the Reed and Fen trail and into the new section which was a hotspot for Eurasian Woodcocks, if you're lucky enough to spot one. We thoroughly searched the area, looking for the slightest dark spot or movement but had no luck. We then went to Burton Viewing Point which was a good spot to see Eurasian Green Woodpeckers in the field. 2 people had seen one fly towards Burton Viewing Point but I never saw it. We then made our way to the newest hide, the Border Hide. Along the trail, I turned a corner and, Lo and Behold, there was a Red Fox snooping around the path menacingly, about 40m apart from us. It was just at the bottom of the ramp that leads up to the new hide. It kept...