An A-Z of rare bird photos in the UK

With the nights drawing in there's a bit more time to sit in front of the laptop of an evening and ponder the big questions in life, like 'could I do an A-Z of decent rare bird photos I've taken in the UK'? At the risk of ruining the suspense, the answer is 'no' - there isn't a species on the British list that begins with 'X' - but this is my best shot otherwise:

A: I've seen several species which begin with 'American' so plenty of options here, though I've gone for something different: Alpine Accentor. A cheeky half-day off saw me racing the sunset to the Suffolk coast at Slaughden in October 2022. When I arrived the bird posed nicely on the rock armour before going to roost on a Martello Tower. 

B. Baird's Sandpiper, Black-billed Cuckoo, Bridled Tern and Black-browed Albatross were all on the shortlist for this one - but I've chosen an American mega in the classic location of the Isles of Scilly, also from October 2022. A memorable day trip with David Bradnum, Phil Saunders and Paul Welling when everything fell into place beautifully.

C. A few options here but the enchanting Common Nighthawk which sat on a garden fence in Wantage in September 2022 pipped Common Yellowthroat, Canvasback and Cream-coloured Courser to it. Barely a detour on the way to work in Reading at the time!

D. Daurian Shrike and Dusky Thrush almost made the grade but the male Desert Wheatear at Thurlestone in Devon which we called in to see on the way to Cornwall for a family holiday in February 2017 is my selection for 'D'. We even heard a snatch of song from this bird.

E. A few 'Eastern' options present themselves for the letter 'E' - Olivaceous Warbler, Subalpine Warbler and Yellow Wagtail among them - but I've selected the Eastern Crowned Warbler in Cleveland in October 2014 on the strength of the photo. I was particularly grateful to this bird for giving me an excuse to miss a children's Halloween party. 

F. My Fan-tailed Warbler photos aren't up to much (see 'Z' below) so the Forster's Tern which hung out reliably just a few miles from home at Arne last summer gets this spot. I spent about 18hrs and 7 or 8 trips looking for it this year without success during its more erratic appearances, and it then went back to France!

G. Various species beginning with 'Great' (Blue Heron, Snipe, Knot), or 'Greater' (Yellowlegs, Sand Plover) gave me plenty of options, and Green Heron was also in with a shout - but for the combination of rarity value and a nice photo I've chosen the October 2018 Grey Catbird at Land's End - a jolly day out with Jol Mitchell.

H. My Harlequin Duck photos wouldn't win any awards, but Hudsonian Whimbrel and Hudsonian Godwit were in the frame. However, I've plumped for another Cornish mega, the Hermit Thrush from October 2013 at Porthgwarra, as my choice for 'H'. Fondly recalling James Lowen confidently foretelling 'If it's not here by 0900, it's not here'. It was relocated at 0920.

I. The only Ivory Gull I've seen was before digital cameras so the photos aren't great - enter then the long-staying Isabelline Wheatear in Devon, twitched on the way to see the parents, at Christmas 2022.

J. Nothing to offer on the rarity front for 'J' I'm afraid, so you'll have to settle for uncommon beauty instead: a Jay on Hengistbury Head, taken in 2021 - a memorable day as it was the first time I cycled from home in Wareham to Hengistbury to twitch a Glossy Ibis.

K. Not a lot of choice as we approach the mid-point of the alphabet but here's the Kelp Gull from Graffham Water in August 2022 - a first for Britain no less and a smoothly executed twitch with Phil Saunders and Jol Mitchell. 

L. Spoilt for choice here with 'Leasts' (Bittern, Sandpiper), 'Littles' (Bittern, Bunting, Bustard, Crake and Swift) and 'Lessers' (Kestrel, Grey Shrike, Scaup, Sand Plover, White-fronted Goose and Yellowlegs) but none of those could match my only Lanceolated Warbler - an intimate view of a species which at the time was my 'most wanted', finally seen in October 2022 after four or five autumn holidays on Shetland without success.

M. Magnolia Warbler, Marsh Sandpiper, Masked Shrike - all seen but not photographed brilliantly, so I've chosen a Marmoras Warbler on the Blorenge in South Wales in June 2013 - not the best photo but a fun morning: we returned from a holiday in France on the Sunday, and I twitched it before work in Dorchester on the Monday morning - requiring a very early start!

N. This was a choice between three 'Northerns' - Harrier, Mockingbird and Waterthrush - all from across the pond - but photographically, the Mockingbird, just along the coast in suburban Exmouth in April 2021, ultimately got the nod.

O. I never managed to photograph the Ovenbird I saw on the Isles of Scilly in October 2004 or that would have been a slam dunk - so an Oriental Pratincole at Frampton Marsh in May 2010 is my selection for the letter 'O', beating another Oriental (Turtle Dove) to the top spot.

P. Anything beginning with 'Pacific' is going to be a good bird, but out of the Golden Plover, Swift and Diver with that prefix, the Diver, which I saw in South Wales in December 2021, was the most obliging photographically. 

Q. Well this narrows it down a bit doesn't it: Quail is the only species on the British list I've seen beginning with this letter, and it's not a species I've ever photographed well. This one was the first I saw in Dorset after a long bike ride to Tarrant Keynston and is about as good as it gets!

R. Finally, options: Red-breasted Goose or Flycatcher? Red-footed Booby or Falcon? Red-throated Pipit, Rock Thrush or Ross's Gull? All good options but I've gone for a Shetland special: River Warbler. Our team found one of these last year but this one, located by Pete Aley on Unst in October 2018, performed better for the camera.

S. I could have chosen various Semi-p's, Siberian, Short-toed or Spotted things for the letter 'S', but in the end for sheer majesty as well as rarity, it had to be the Suffolk Sandhill Crane from October 2011. Another enjoyable day out with Steve Smith and Jol Mitchell.

T. A close run thing between a Dorset Tawny Pipit on Cogden Beach, twitched on a 60+ mile bike ride in a gale - we were both a bit windswept when I finally caught up with it - and the Shetland Tengmalm's Owl. I abandoned a family holiday in Speyside for 36 hrs to see this, teaming up with Andy Mears, Chris Turner, Chris Wilkinson and Dave Gibbs. Well it was just around the corner...

U. A complete absence of alternatives narrowed this one down to an Upland Sandpiper on St Mary's from October 2011. A classic Scilly day during which I saw this bird, a Northern Waterthrush, a Wilson's Snipe and two Olive-backed Pipits and still went home a bit disappointed that I dipped a Scarlet Tanager which was last seen an hour before we arrived.

V. A bit like 'U', only one rarity seen beginning with this letter, but what a bird: the very friendly Veery from a Shetland holiday in 2023 with Bradders, Phil Saunders and James Lowen. We saw this bird within an hour of our arrival on Mainland but went back a few days later when the crowds had dissappeared and had it all to ourselves.

W. A White Christmas's worth of choices here: White-wings, -crowns, -throats and -bills offered a myriad of options, and even a White's Thrush - but my favourite photographically came down to Wilson's - not the Snipe or the Petrel but the Phalarope which showed at close range at Keyhaven in October 2020.

Y. And after the white options, here come the yellows: not too many to choose from but, on photographic merit alone, I did better with Yellow-rumped Warbler than the Yellow Warbler which graced Portland in August 2017. This one required a short detour on the way home from a family holiday in Scotland in April of this year.

Z. I'm left with no choice but to revert to the modern name to dig out Zitting Cisticola from Pegwell Bay to close this post, seen with Paul Welling in September 2009. Not a great photo, I grant you, but I'm obviously scraping the barrel at this point!