Shetland Day 2: A Real Wild One

The forecast for Sunday 3rd October was foul. Like, proper wash-out, don't-bother-getting-out-of-bed foul. But we had waited a long time for this Shetland trip, and we weren't going to let a bit of rain stop us getting out. Or wind. Maybe hail and snow, but the forecast wasn't that bad. Bacon, on the other hand, could well delay the start of the birding day...

The result of 80mph gusts forecast on Shetland on 3rd October

News of the Semi-palmated Sandpiper (on which we dipped the previous evening) being relocated near Pool of Virkie broke pretty early and gave us the shot in the arm we needed to get moving. The wind was howling but reasonable scope views could still be obtained in the prone sniper position, even if anything but the most basic record shots were a challenge. It was hanging out with a flock of Dunlin and a bright Little Stint which provided a convenient comparison.

Poor shot of the Semi-palmated Sandpiper (right) with Dunlin, Pool of Virkie

An equally poor shot of Little Stint just for comparison

From there we trundled past the tumescent windsock on the Sumburgh airstrip around to Grutness, a spot I have always enjoyed visiting since a close encounter with an American Buff-bellied Pipit a few years ago. More lying down was required here to photograph a rather windswept Wheatear on the tarmac. Jono went for a stroll in a wet area nearby, if leaning into the wind at a 45 degree angle can be classed as a stroll, and put up a Jack Snipe. I joined him in trying to relocate it and we seemed to disturb a couple of chunky passerines which flew overhead calling. 

Windswept Wheatear at Grutness

Wheatear

Speculation over the crackling radios suggested possibly one of the scarcer Buntings, but within a few minutes, hidden from my view, they sat up on the rock armour in front of the rest of the team revealing themselves to be Shorelarks. A few pics were obtained by the others but they flew before I could point my lens at them. Although a small flock of this photogenic species showed well later in the week at Scatness, the ruthless tick-machine which is Bradders Birding Tours almost never goes back for seconds - hence stealing Howard's photo for this post! 

Shorelarks at Grutness (pic by Howard Vaughan)

Buffeted by the weather we headed back to Hoswick for a brew, then Sandwick where a couple of Purple Sandpipers were trying to be invisible on the shoreline, then Wester Quarff where we hoped that both we and a fistful of rarities might find shelter. The search for them was curtailed when news broke of a Bonelli's Warbler species a short way away, back on the main road, and we re-traced our steps to connect with it after a mercifully brief wait. Had it been an Eastern Bonelli's, it would have been a tick for two of us - but after a day of silent teasing it eventually called to reveal itself as Western - still a good bird, but no cigar.

Otter at Grutness

Purple Sandpiper at Sandwick

The twitch at the Bonelli's was the biggest we had seen all week, and freaked out by the crowd and the awful prospect of having to *socialise* we made our excuses and left to check out a few other sites, the best of which was Fladdibister, where Howard kicked up a Little Bunting which the rest of us missed. 

Western Bonelli's Warbler

Surely showing it facing the other way makes it an Eastern Bonelli's Warbler?

The hour was getting late, and the promise of Sunday roast - yours truly's main contribution to the culinary week - was calling. Fighting 50mph winds all day was by now taking its toll and when Bradders proposed one last stop at Orcaquoy in the near darkness for a Red-breasted Flycatcher, I confess to whining like a 6 year old who just wanted to get home before C-Beebies finished for the day. But I was persuaded to head once more unto the breach and, Bradders being Bradders, only went and booted up an Olive-backed Pipit on to a garden wall!

Loving those cotton white underparts

With our driver having scored another good find we were finally allowed home for some dinner and a well-deserved ale. Given that the day had been a potential write-off, the team had done pretty well. At a personal level there was some trauma, however, in discovering that what appeared to be an intermittent fault with my lens discovered whilst papping the pipit had now become permanent. Photographically, the trip was potentially over before it had barely begun and I sulked and burnt dinner until the offer of a loan of a spare by top bird photographer Gary Thoburn saved the day. We arranged to meet up the following morning so I could collect it, and I slept the sleep of the just. 

A wall-creeper, not a Wallcreeper: Olive-backed Pipit, Orcaquoy

OBP - another top find for BBT

October...

October always brings a sense of anticipation, and October 2016, up next in my review of the year, was no exception. It brought its fair share of success, but also its fair share of frustration. First the successes, which featured a couple of American waders.

A Baird's Sandpiper at Davidstow airfield was worth an early morning visit. The closest I have seen one, photographed from the car window

This Lesser Yellowlegs was at Lytchett Bay - my second Dorset tick of 2016

October 2016 will be remembered for the Siberian Accentor invasion, and I managed to catch up with the second one to turn up - the long-staying Easington bird which drew a crowd from the middle of the second week of the month. Fortunately it stayed until the Sunday allowing myself and Chris Patrick to pitch up, tick it before breakfast and be back home just in time to avoid social services taking our abandoned families into care.

Siberian Accentor, Easington - a special bird, and my bird of the month for October



This Shorelark was just down the road from the Siberian Accentor

A good first half to the month then - but less so the second half. Portland lay at the centre of October's frustrations with a short-staying Red-flanked Bluetail and a Pine Bunting failing to settle having been ringed at the Observatory. Still, a few scarce migrant birds made several visits more bearable over the course of the fortnight.

Hen Harrier, Portland

Turtle Dove on Portland - a sad comment on its rarity now that it was quite a well-twitched bird, My photo of the month for October

Another island - St Mary's added to the frustration at the month's end, when a day trip with Steve Smith produced nothing more exciting than a couple of Yellow-browed Warblers and a putative Eastern Yellow Wagtail. Still, it was good to be back on the island for the second time in two months, even though it wasn't as successful as the first.

Yellow-browed Warbler, St Mary's

Putative 'Eastern' Yellow Wagtail

More Yorkshire pudding

My return to work this week was made a lot easier, and less stressful, by the knowledge that I had seen the Siberian Accentor at Easington last Sunday, the second record for Britain. Many birders will still be pinching themselves that they were able to see one of the six individuals of this species which have graced British shores over the last fortnight. The Yorkshire bird, which finally moved on on Thursday, was undoubtedly the most widely twitched. Checking the time stamps on my images we had just 15 minutes with the bird showing at close range, but happily it seemed like much longer.

The East Yorkshire coast was enjoying a real purple patch with flocks of Dusky Warblers and the odd Radde's among them. Siberian Stonechats were popping up and, the day after our trip, an Isabelline Wheatear was found also in Easington. We didn't have time to go looking for such goodies unfortunately, but before heading south we did manage to stop at the beach by the Bluebell café where a Shorelark was very confiding. A few pictures of the Shorelark below, and, as a special treat, a few more of Prunella montanella - yes I know that sounds like an adult movie starlet from an American mountain film festival, but if you can just drag your minds out of the gutter for a second, you will recall it's actually the scientific name for the Siberian Accentor.

The Shorelark was easy to find - we just headed for the long line of birdwatchers on the beach!

An attractive species, photographed in horrible light unfortunately

The second 'zorro' masked bird of the day, the first being, of course....

...the Siberian Accentor

Catching the light during a brief period of sunshine

Here channelling Denis Healey with those prominent brows

Up with the Larks

Shorelark is a bird I have never managed to photograph well, so after an overnight stay at Wells I stopped at Cley to look for the birds reported the previous day before heading off to work in Cromer. After a careful approach, simply standing still in the shingle was enough to gain the confidence of four of these charming birds which were close enough for me to hear their soft contact calls.