Pleased to meet you

I've been taking it a bit easier with the long bike rides since suffering some knee pain after a 50 mile trip back in March but a positive session with the physio recently made me a bit more confident that the problem was a temporary one - it turned out that the knee braces I had been wearing for support had probably been doing more harm than good, causing abrasion of the kneecap by restricting its natural movement and preventing the development of the surrounding muscles. So when I was kicking around home around noon on Saturday 23rd May with not much to do, and news broke of a singing Common Rosefinch at Martin Down, 28 miles to the north over the Hampshire border, I thought I would be a good opportunity to give the knees a run out.

Common Rosefinch, Martin Down, 23rd March

I was on the road by 1300 and although I knew it would be hot as it was in the middle of the recent heatwave, I calculated that at least I would be travelling back in the cool of the day. Because of the heat and the knees I didn't push myself too hard, assuming that a singing bird would probably stay put for the rest of the day at least. I had chosen the mountain bike for the journey rather than the hybrid and although it glided along the Castleman Trailway as far as Wimborne, it was a bit sluggish on the long road north to Cranborne. It came into its own again on the lanes and tracks to Martin Down though, and I arrived shortly before 1600.

Common Rosefinch delivering the 'Pleased to meet you' song with gusto

My friend Andy Mears, who had been in the area looking for the Red-footed Falcon at Holt Heath, but detoured to Martin Down after it observed its habit of vanishing in the middle of the day, arrived just before me and, as I reached the breach in the Bokerley Dyke which marks the border between Dorset and Hampshire, he broke the unhappy news that the Rosefinch had not been seen for over half an hour. This was most unwelcome, but having come so far, I was not going to give up yet and besides, there were other good birds to try to add to the non-motorised year list.

The Rosefinch in the shade of a tree

Chief among these was Turtle Dove, which I have seen at Martin Down in 2 of the last 3 years on bike trips in May or June. Although there had been sightings this spring, sadly they were not in their usual haunts on this occasion, apparently visiting nearby farmland where some pools have been dug for them, but the location of these were not known to me. Also on the list of possibilities was Grey Partridge, which have been thin on the ground at my usual site of St Aldhelm's Head this year. Although I could see partridges in a distant field when I got a bit closer they turned out to be Red-legged.

Grizzled Skipper, Martin Down, 23rd May

Having done a circuit of that part of the down I made my way back to the original location of the Rosefinch. The Red-footed Falcon had re-appeared so Andy had left to look for that, but a few other birders had the same idea as me of hoping that the Rosefinch would return to the scene of past crimes and start singing again as the day cooled.

Small Blue, Martin Down, 23rd May

By 1800 it had been over 2 hrs since I arrived and 3 since the last sighting so I was beginning to lose hope, and wandered off from the small crowd to look for Marsh Fritillaries near a damp triangle of grass where I had seen them in previous years. I had gone less than 100 yards when I heard the very distinctive 'Pleased to meet you' song of a Common Rosefinch - I looked back at the others but no-one else seemed to have heard it so I beckoned them over and sure enough it sang again. 

Red-legged Partridge, Martin Down, 23rd May

The only thing we had to rule out at this point was someone playing a tape but diligent detective work by Dave Bishop checking a path hidden from view below us established that there was no-one there. A few seconds later and the bird sat up in a tree and while it became elusive for the next few minutes it eventually settled on a visible song-post and sat out for all to see.

Grey Partridge, Martin Down, 23rd May

Flushed with success, I decided on one last twirl around the down, back to the lower car park, where the field which held Red-legged Partridges earlier in the day held a pair of Greys, followed by one last, unsuccessful search for Turtle Doves before heading for home. Yellowhammer and Corn Bunting, both of which seem to be doing well in this area, cheered me along - although with hindsight perhaps the latter's 'jangling car keys' song was in fact trolling me with a reminder that there are easier ways to get to Martin Down! Dinner comprised a meal deal from a garage in Wimborne, and it was pretty dark by the time I completed the 55 mile round trip to chalk in Common Rosefinch as the 278th species on the bike list. 

Corn Bunting, near Cranborne, 23rd May

Hot-footing it to Holt Heath

I didn't pay much heed to a report on Monday 18th May of a Red-footed Falcon on Holt Heath, NE of Wimborne, not least as I was working in London that day and Tuesday. After a complete absence of news on Tuesday I assumed it had gone but the weather back in Dorset was apparently foul so it's possible no-one went to look for it. When the bird was relocated on Wednesday I was working again, but back at home, and started to contemplate the possibility of twitching it by bike after work. Phil Saunders saw it that afternoon and when he relayed that it was an adult male my mind was made up: I had never seen this species in this plumage so it had to be worth a punt.

Red-footed Falcon, Holt Heath, 20th May

A few silvery feathers in the upperwing

The Falcon was catching insects on the wing like a Hobby and hovering like a Kestrel

A good view of the red feet and trousers

I was away soon after work and with a following SW wind I made good time, completing the 17 mile journey in just under 90 minutes. Although I had a dropped pin location to head for, working out how to get to the pin on the labyrinth of tracks across the heath was another matter, but fortunately some local birders pointed me in the right direction just as I was about to make a wrong turn. As I approached the area I stopped to check the location of the pin and caught sight of a small falcon hovering against the light briefly before it dropped below a low knoll.

A lovely slate-grey plumage

My first adult male in the UK or anywhere else in fact

Silvery grey flight feathers again noticeable

The archetypal shit-shot

A horseshoe of wide, sandy tracks skirted the knoll, almost encircling it, so I headed clockwise at first, bumping into other birders who said that they had just seen the Red-foot hovering in the direction I had come from - so that was almost certainly the bird I saw, but I needed a more conclusive view. There was no sign of it here so I retraced my steps anti-clockwise, arriving at the southern side of the knoll from where a couple more birders were watching. As I looked to the east I soon picked out the slate-grey falcon hovering some way away. It then settled distantly on a dead tree, sallying occasionally to catch insects, giving extended telescope views.

A close view as the Falcon landed in the heather nearby

Tricky light that evening

Kinder light but a more distant view

A good view of the Falcon between hunting forays

I was in no rush to leave, and patience eventually paid off as the bird gave several reasonably close passes over the next hour or so, landing in the heather at one point less than 50 yards away. I kicked myself for accidentally packing the 'wrong' camera, the Canon R7, which is next to useless for flight photography IMHO, especially if the subject is against a background of anything other than a clear sky, as opposed to my old 7D Mkii, which locks on to pretty much anything, even at extreme range. I didn't help myself by fluffing the settings, but a few frames from many taken produced some passable images reproduced here.

Red-footed Falcon, Holt Heath, 20th May

Red-footed Falcon, Holt Heath, 20th May

Red-footed Falcon, Holt Heath, 20th May

Red-footed Falcon, Holt Heath, 20th May

I set myself a cut off time to leave of 1930 but overshot that by quite a bit, enjoying seeing Hobby, Dartford Warbler, Curlew, Woodlark and Tree Pipit which were also on the heath. It was gone 2130 and pretty dark by the time I got home, but I was happy with the evening's efforts and pleased to have had good views of the bird which proved quite elusive for some over the next couple of days. Although not a 'bike tick' - I was able to walk down to see the female of this species which graced Wareham water meadows in 2015 - I was also delighted to see this striking plumage for the first time

I guess that's why they call it the Bluethroat

In mid-March I was feeling a bit sorry for myself having experienced some unfamiliar knee pain after a long bike ride to Maiden Newton on the 15th of the month. I read somewhere that the best cure for the aches and pains of a long bike ride is a short bike ride, so, having nursed the knees for a couple of days, I decided to roll down to my local patch of Swineham, just east of Wareham, on the bike, a journey of just over a mile, on the evening of the 17th. Stopping to scan a body of water known as 'Curlews' pool (named after a nearby house owned by some good friends), hoping for a Garganey or something better, I heard my phone bleep but didn't check it until I had finished a careful scan. 

Possibly my favourite photograph of the Bluethroat, taken late on the evening of 17th April, when it was just the two of us and it hopped to within about 3 yards, sub-singing as it approached (Canon R7 with 100-400mm mkII)

My first view of the Bluethroat on 17th March was back on but the eyestripe stood out

As the light faded on that first evening the Bluethroat sat up on some gorse...

...before coming down to feed on the path in near darkness to reveal the breast pattern

When I did a minute later, I nearly fell off my bike - Birds of Poole Harbour front-man Paul Morton had just found a Bluethroat - at Swineham! His message, which read 'Redspot Bluethroat Swineham by Bittern watchpoint with Stonechat 🤯🤯🤯🤯', was timed 1731. I must have been at his shoulder within 5 minutes, having thrown the bike over a five-bar gate and torn down the track to his location as fast as my tender knees would carry me. It seemed like an age before the bird showed, sitting up on some reeds with its back to us about 50 yards away - but the camera metadata proves it was just a matter of a few minutes, with my first record shot taken at 1740. 

A wide crop showing the path around Swineham gravel pit which I estimate I have walked 1,000+ times over the years - but this is the smartest bird I've seen on it! Taken 11th April (Canon 7D MkII plus 400mm f5.6)

A closer crop of the shot above - it was a different looking bird which confronted us early on the morning of 11th April - the eponymous red spot within the blue throat clearly visible, unlike on 17th March

We were pretty blown away when it hopped towards us on the morning of 11th April...

...and turned sideways for a profile picture with tail cocked characteristically

Another Swineham regular, Phil Bentley, was 100 yards ahead of us but could see neither us or the bird, but after a fraught phone call he doubled back and eventually joined us to obtain a view, along with about 15 other birders who arrived in various states of hyperventilation over the next 40 minutes. The bird appeared to be 'fresh in', bombing around restlessly with a small party of Stonechats, occasionally sitting up on reeds or gorse to afford a reasonable view in the fading light. Again based on camera meta-data, the Bluethroat was last seen at 1819, at which point it vanished into the reedbed next to the River Frome, never, it appeared, to be seen again. Two unlucky locals arrived seconds too late and we tried in vain to relocate the bird for them until the light was completely gone. 

The one scenario in which my Canon R7 consistently outperforms my old 7D Mkii is close subjects in low light, so I tested it out on the evening of the 15th with pretty good results

Light was pretty low in the evenings with the bird in the shadows - here just catching one of the last rays of sun on 15th (Canon R7 plus 100-400mm Mkii)

Bluethroat, 15th April

More intimate views were gained on the evening of 16th April

Grainy photos of the bird at high ISO ratings were inconclusive as to its racial identify, but given the early date, Paul's initial diagnosis of Red-spotted was revised to White-spotted on the basis of the balance of probabilities. The area was grilled the following morning by hopeful visitors but no trace of the bird could be found, and those of us who saw it thanked our lucky stars for being not far from the right place at the right time.

The Bluethroat fed around this root on the path on the evening of 16th April providing some novel photo opportunities

Bluethroat 16th April

Bluethroat 16th April

Bluethroat 16th April

Fast forward to 8th April and I had just arrived sweaty and breathless at a field near Briantspuddle where a Bonaparte's Gull had been found by my friend Andy Mears. I had just cycled to Weymouth to look for what was presumed to be the same bird, only to find that it had relocated to a site 13 miles to the north, but which I had passed within a few miles of several hours earlier. This meant flogging my way back up over the daunting whaleback of the South Dorset Ridgeway, on which I had reached a speed of 35mph on the way down, to catch up with it. I was struggling to get on the bird, views of which were obscured by vegetation and heat haze, when Phil Saunders and Nick Hopper, two of the lucky band who had seen the Bluethroat on 17th March, arrived. Phil helped me get a good view of the bird and as we lingered, a photo of a bang-to-rights male Red-spotted Bluethroat appeared on social media with a statement that it was still at Swineham!

The Bluethroat was back on its favourite stump on the evening of 17th April

Bluethroat 17th April

Bluethroat 17th April

Not a great photo as slightly out of focus and the bird is hidden by the stump, but at this point it was doing a shivering wing display, a bit like a Wood Warbler, whilst sub-singing (17th April)

I confess, coming so shortly after various April Fool hoaxes, I initially dismissed this as another - it seemed improbable that such a bird would go undetected for 3 weeks at a relatively well watched location. But I had over-estimated the competence of Swineham regulars, principally myself, and fortunately Paul Morton showed more faith and relocated the bird early on the morning of 10th April, a couple of hundred yards further along the track and around a corner from where it was last seen on 17th March. An evening visit that day proved unsuccessful, so I was up early on the morning of Saturday 11th April to look again, hoping to be first on site. As I approached the gravel pit, it became apparent that Garry Hayman had beaten me to it as he reported a brief sighting of the bird at 06:21. Rob Johnson, one of the two who 'dipped' the bird on 17th March, was also present, but hadn't seen the bird by the time I arrived. 

More sub-singing on the evening of 17th April

More sub-singing on the evening of 17th April

The evening of the 17th provided some opportunities to experiment with partially obscured photo angles

Bluethroat 17th April

Paul's report and Garry's sighting seemed to be in almost exactly the same location so I suggested we hang back, sit on the path with a good view of that area and wait for it to reappear. I had come prepared with a small camping stool, anticipating a long wait. The others agreed to my strategy, and within not too many minutes, the plan paid off: the Bluethroat appeared, distantly at first, then hopped along the path towards us to give excellent views in the half light. I stuck around for another hour or so, and the bird returned every 20-30 minutes, enabling what I thought at the time were the best photos I could hope for in the circumstances.

By the morning of Saturday 18th April I still hadn't seen the Bluethroat in anything resembling sunshine so I went back to see how the Canon R7 performed in daylight

Saturday 18th was a first for me - I've never had to 'queue' for a bird at Swineham before!

The Bluethroat seemed to behave differently with a crowd present on 18th April, nipping in quickly for a few mealworms then flying up to survey the scene from a safe distance (it had been pretty terrestrial the previous three days with no-one else there) 

A bit of early morning dew on 18th April

Sightings of the bird proved a bit erratic over the next few days and while it could go missing for long periods, it became clear that it was an early morning bird. I advised everyone I spoke to to follow our strategy of hanging back and waiting on the path just before its favoured stretch, as walking up and down the path would almost certainly reduce the chances of seeing it. Photographers arrived over the next few days bearing mealworms, which probably played a part in the bird establishing a more regular pattern, appearing every 10-20 minutes throughout the day to gorge on the easy pickings, a pattern which appeared to continue until my final sighting of the bird at dusk on Monday 27th April. 

By the morning of 26th April I had one last combo to test - how would the old 7D Mkii plus 400mm f5.6 perform with the bird in sunlight?

I think it did ok. 26th April provided possibly the most bizarre sight of the Bluethroat's stay, when I noticed some unfamiliar Bluebells on the Bluethroat's favourite verge. A photographer in front me eventually stood up, walked over and picked up the Bluebells which appeared to have been picked and held up with pegs in the grass, presumably to provide a more photogenic backdrop!

On the morning of the 26th April the Bluethroat was giving a few more full-throated bursts of song, albeit against the light

Bluethroat 26th April

There was no sign of the Bluethroat the following morning of 28th April, so I think I must have been the last person to see it at the end of its 41 day stay (it was reported as heard the next day, but not seen) - which was pretty special having been only the second person to see it after Paul's initial discovery on 17th March. In the end I had the pleasure of watching it on 8 different dates during its stay, each one giving a slightly different experience, with a variety of viewing conditions, from bright sunshine to near darkness, from big crowds to just the two of us, from in sub-song to in full song, and even displaying to an imaginary mate.

Bluethroat 26th April

Bluethroat 26th April

Bluethroat 17th April

I didn't get many pictures of the Bluethroat perched in the hedge, or on one of the horribly posed mossy branches stuffed inelegantly into the hedge by toggers, but this one is 'au naturel' in a favoured bush (26th April)

Although not the rarest, the Bluethroat is probably the most memorable and photogenic of the 183 species I have seen at Swineham, and it gave a lot of people a lot of pleasure. At a time when my dodgy knees kept me off the bike more than usual, it was also a blessing to have such an entertaining and attractive bird so close to home - close enough to make it onto the 'walked from home' list in fact! So this post is my photographic tribute to the Bluethroat. Given the return of others of this species in successive years to Slimbridge and elsewhere, and assuming it didn't die of a mealworm overdose, let's hope he comes back next year.

The last sighting, and the last photo to my knowledge, of the Bluethroat taken at dusk on 27th April

A quick bit of hand held video (apologies for sound quality) from 16th April which I think captures some of the character of the bird - looking quite svelte before it became the mealworm equivalent of Mr Creosote!