Pec

The first 'Pec' for Broom.  Just part of Broom gravel pits great run of birds this year. These include: Purple Heron, Glossy Ibis, Rough-legged Buzzard, Roseate Tern, Spoonbill.  Not bad for a dirty hole in the ground!

Azorean type Gull video

Azorean type Yellow-legged Gull from Steve Blain on Vimeo.

Some video of the second Azorean type Yellow-legged Gull at Stewartby Tip, October 2011

Another hooded Yellow-leg

So, I'm not quite sure what to make of this gull.  It's got yellow legs, a dark blue-grey mantle, not a lot of white in the wing tips, and a dark hood.  I guess its an extreme michahellis?  Or is it another atlantis type?

It was certainly striking when I picked it out of the melee on Stewartby tip this afternoon.  On an open wing shot I have it has a band on P5, and appears to have quite a bit of black still in the coverts making it a third-winter type.  My current best guess is a michahellis with an above average dark hood.  Any other suggestions?

EDIT - some more images of this bird can be found on my Flickr here.  These were taken Sunday morning in slightly better light.

Azorean teaser

Note P10 still growing and with a small mirror.  Impossible to see P9 here but that's still growing too

The Azorean type is at around 11 o'clock from the centre of the image.  It's mantle is far darker than any Yellow-legged or Herring Gull, and yet paler than the surrounding Lesser BB's

It's big.  And dark.

After finding what I thought then was a possible candidate for an Azorean Yellow-legged Gull in the Stewartby roost in August, I then bump in to this thing this evening.  In my opinion it looks really good.  When you compare this bird to the Didcot bird Ian Lewington found in October 2009, it looks extremely similar - I would even go so far to say this could be the same individual?

So what do I need to nail it?  Better views and lots more video!  I guess I'll be back at Stewartby again tomorrow...

See two Grey Phals, get a Sabs free!

Big blow = wrecked seabirds inland.  The Grafham haul included two lovely Grey Phalaropes, and a spanking Sabine's Gull - all together on the dam!  What does Bedfordshire get?  A Manxie under a bush.

Spotted in Milton Keynes

Spotted Sandpiper at Caldecote Lake, Milton Keynes from Steve Blain on Vimeo.

A lovely local bird, just a shame it was in Bucks. Wonder where it is now?

Rare breeder

You don't see many of these in the UK, but can anyone tell me what it is? The only clues I'll give you are that it was bred in Bedfordshire, and there are usually less than ten breeding pairs in the UK...

Coot it be magic?

It always pays to be vigilant. This colour-ringed Coot was on a drain next to a main path around Fen Drayton Lakes RSPB reserve. CV was originally ringed on 26th October 2005 at Radipole Lake in Dorset. It hadn't been reported anywhere other than there (but last seen 20th December 2010) until I found it at Fen Drayton on 24th April 2011!

Apparently its only the second colour-ringed Coot that has been recorded in East Anglia from Radipole, with the other turning up on the Orwell Estuary in Suffolk.

Many thanks to Terry Coombs and the Radipole Ringing Group for all the information.

A dead ringer

Not actually dead, but a close call for a drake Ring-necked Duck. This bird is a hybrid Ring-necked Duck x Tufted Duck, Dunstable Sewage Works, 15th May 2011.

On first glance it shows the sweeping grey flanks, white edged base and ring to the bill, and the high crown of a Ring-necked, but look a bit closer and thing don't start to add up

• The 'high crown' becomes a bit of a tuft
• the sweeping grey flanks aren't sweeping enough, and don't end with a clear white stripe towards its chest
• The bill pattern isn't strong enough, with a very weak sub-terminal band and white basal surround
• A green sheen to the head
  

There are some good comparison photos on Flickr here, on RadioactiveRobins here, on Dave Browns blog here, and on the Birdwatch Irelands website here.

Spot-it!

There are few birds more obvious than a first-winter Caspian Gull in a winter roost! Stewartby Lake, 18th March 2011

Have you noticed

British Chaffinch (left), Continental Chaffinch (right), Lesser Redpoll (front)

Have you noticed the difference between British and Continental Chaffinches? At this time of year they are at their most obvious. The British breeding males are peachy orange, slighter in structure, and have already started to stake their claim on a territory. The slightly larger Continental Chaffinches are deeper salmon pink colour in colour, and generally duller overall.

In the next few weeks the Continental birds will head back north and east, leaving the British birds in peace. British Chaffinches have been found (thanks to ringing data) to be incredibly sedentary. They generally don't move more than about five miles from where they were raised. Is Britain that good?

New or old?

Instructive views of the Meadow Lane, Bedford, Coues' Arctic Redpoll over the last three days. The angle you view a bird at can be critical to getting the correct impression of it. When I initially saw it from underneath, and against a bright sky, it looked 'interesting' but far from conclusive (and of course all too fleeting). The next day, with better light and more prolonged views, looking down on the bird, really clinched the deal. Well done Martin Palmer for finding it and putting the word out.

The images above also give false impressions - the last image for instance makes it look like it has a long, spikey bill - compare that image with the one above!

After looking at these images this evening, and comparing them to the recent Coronation bird of last month, I do wonder if they are the same individual? They are incredibly similar...take a look for yourself:

http://steveblain.blogspot.com/2011/01/arctic-roll.html

Charcoal embered duck

I do like Scaup. These two adolescent drakes are currently on Stewartby lake and have been showing quite well today. The juv Iceland Gull that I saw shortly after was the bird of the day though. (look up what the scientific name of Scaup means if you don't get my title)

Arctic Roll

Coues' Arctic Redpoll, Beds, Jan 2011. This is a second individual in Bedfordshire this year, coming straight off the back of the highly elusive Lodge bird. This one is with only around 40 redpolls and showed very well when I went to look at it. It's interesting to note how variable the flank streaking appears to be in different shots. In some it looks very light and almost not there, but in others it shows are heavier, darker lines. Similarly the undertail coverts look totally clean in some shots, but perhaps actually show a tiny streak in others?

These are fascinating birds, and ones that have been keeping me occupied all winter so far. Most of my lunchtimes have been spend walking round The Lodge in search of that individual. However in the 40+ hours I've amassed looking through hundreds of redpolls I've only seen the Coues' twice! Very tricky blighters.