randombirder

Heading up to Flamborough once again on Thursday evening to catch the final throes of Migweek started off with a captivating talk by the brilliant Johnny Mac on his past trips to Mongolia and the range of breeding Siberian species that the region supports. The passport is ready for a trip there at some point soon! Birding on Friday was relatively pedestrian with most of the interest out to sea. Ambling gently around the area, Old Hall produced just three brambling , 12 chiffchaff , a blackcap and a treecreeper . Not much to scream and shout about in an autumn that has yet to deliver any decent falls of Eastern vagrants. After a quick break, focus was drawn to the sea and within 15 minutes of setting up, six glorious pomarine skua drifted slowly north around a mile off-shore comprised of five big-spooned adults. Shortly after, J Mac headed over and invited me to join a small group on a seawatch (that also included John and Jono!). A couple of hours there produced a juvenile pomarine s...

 ....after the extraordinary events of the day before, the next two days were relatively uneventful although a barred warbler and a couple of yellow-browed warbler at South Landing were typical yet welcome autumn migrants. A couple of snipe at Thornwick Pools and a decent movement of redpoll with a single brambling over the Head kept things ticking over ending a memorable three days at Flamborough. A lovely walk to the very tip of the Brigg at Filey was more touristy than birdy although a knot and two purple sandpiper didn't go unnoticed. A fair gathering of expectant birders had congregated at the Country Park hoping for a sighting of the needletail that had been present there the previous evening. Stopping off at Rutland Water on the journey back, the continuing Baird's sandpiper showed exceptionally well at the Whitwell Peninsular. Feeding along the shoreline, there were no other waders around other than this Nearctic wanderer that appeared settled and exceptionally o...

29th September - 1st October Stunning landscapes and incredible birding. Over the years the East Yorkshire coastline has delivered high quality. This time it was the pale-legged leaf warbler that drew the crowds. Seen well but briefly on a number of occasions, it was time to get out and see what else was lurking. The first day was dominated by the far eastern phyllosc as Bempton Cliffs RSPB. With many visiting on the Saturday, there was still a decent crowd on Sunday, all behaving impeccably ensuring all got to see this extraordinary vagrant. The leaf warbler was also heard calling on a regular basis. At least one yellow-browed warbler was present there. Leaving the throng, a visit to Holmes Cut yielded two red-breasted flycatcher and only my second UK Icterine warbler that uncharacteristically paused for a few minutes within a sycamore adjacent to the ditch. The photo attempt was taken through a fence. Buoyed by the events of the weekend, I'd decided to stay in the area for a c...

A truly exceptional day of what has been an exceptional autumn up and down the country. This time a trek up to Flamborough Head where over the previous days, an assemblage of eastern vagrants had gathered along the headland. Having to wait till Sunday, the early part of the morning was extremely wet, persistent heavy rain falling from leaden skies made for a rather forlorn hour or so. Gratefully, the weather was forecast to improve and by around 10.30am, the rain had relented somewhat, and it was time to go. The ground was sodden due to the extreme rainfall over previous days. The entire coastal path was reduced to a sludge. Embracing the conditions, I ploughed through the quagmire and headed for the bunting. Rain was still in the air, and the track down to the red-headed bunting had turned to a mud-bath. It was hilarious. The bird showed, quite well actually sitting along the fenceline in the company of the local reed bunting , yellowhammer and tree sparrow . A first-winter bird, apa...

It was never going to be easy to reach the heights of yesterday but today was another remarkable day.  The plan was to head to Spurn and spend the day there.  That was what this trip was intended for.  A laborious start soon turned into an incredible afternoon.  It was really quiet with no real signs of visible passage at Spurn, just a few siskin and redpoll flying over. Standard coffee and cake consumption ensued at the Discovery Centre before deciding to head down to the Point.  A gentle stroll with generally no movement in the bushes and the occasional buzz on the phone with a few updates of East Yorkshire sightings.  At around 2.30pm a message came through of a possible upgrade from the Flamborough red-breasted flycatcher to a taiga flycatcher .  An about turn and a gruelling march back to the car took around 40 minutes.  Distances aren't small in these parts but after a clear drive to Flamborough Head, was grateful that the walk from the ca...

This part of East Yorkshire is absolutely spectacular.  The rugged cliff faces that stretch out from Flambrough Head up to Bempton and beyond provide the stage for a dramatic and breath-taking seabird spectacle. The viewpoints overlooking the cliffs give the public grandstand views across the cliff-face, the home to thousands of seabirds. Incredible numbers of  Kittwake ,  Razorbill ,  Guillemot  and  Gannet  swirling around this epic landscape. The trip started at midday Saturday, a spontaneous decision to head away and by five, we arrived at the Lighthouse car park at Flamborough.  I made tracks immediately to connect with the male Black-headed Bunting that sat out in the open on a gloomy afternoon, preening, roosting, before making a dash to the top of the hedge-line where it paused briefly before disappearing into the adjacent field. I then disappeared as the weather was closing in.  Heading back to the car park where the fem...