Cleveland's next new bird?

[sidwemn]

Can't tell you what the next new Cleveland bird will be, but I can tell you when. It'll be between 4th & 23rd September - the next time I'm out of the county

Cheers
Martyn

Well it's one prediction I almost got right. It wasn't the next new bird that turned up for Cleveland during this period, but the one after that!

Cheers
Martyn

[Ian Foster]

This topic has got to be the most entertaining and interesting on our forum, keep up the good work Ian, a happy new year to you too.

Thank you Keith. Sorry it's taken 6 month to respond!

[Ian Foster]

Time for an update

June does it again!

Squacco Heron

Spring 2015 has seen a larger than normal number of Squacco Heron's in the UK. With at least six birds seen so far, all in the far South bar one...

late morning on Thursday 18 June the RSPB tweeted "We can confirm we have a Squacco Heron at Wildlife Watchpoint. A very rare sight indeed!"

Within 30 minutes they also had a Wildlife Watchpoint full of anxious Birders all wanting to add this mega rare Heron to their county lists. Time ticked by and the (very) few of us that were on a lunch hour tick and run mission were starting to get a little nervous when all of a sudden there it was in flight! With pressure off we could all relax and enjoy the stunning views the bird gave both in flight and on the deck, often quite close to the hide. luckily the wildlife Watchpoint having it's large windows meant nobody struggled for a view!

Thanks to the combined efforts of Susan Taylor, Arthur Truby and Dean Heward (Visitor, Hide Guide and RSPB Assistant Warden) we can now add the long anticipated Squacco Heron to the Cleveland list.

Squacco Heron is still a very rare bird in Britain with about 160 records but like other Heron species they are increasing. Most records are as expected from the far South of Britain but Northumberland has had two records in the last decade or so, so Cleveland and Durham birders have been hoping for a record and Saltholme was the obvious location.

Much to everyone's surprise the Squacco wasn't present the following day and was thought to have moved on, but on Friday 26th June totally out of the blue it re-appeared in front of the Phil stead Hide giving a few very lucky County Listers a second chance! Again it seems to have been a one day wonder and with a bird seen in Lincolnshire on Saturday 27th maybe it has gone south or is it still lurking in a hidden ditch somewhere?

When I was watching the bird on that Thursday afternoon I was fairly confident I had predicted this species for Cleveland but on checking here I found I only included it in my second list of 10...I'm really not very good at this...

Now we have had a Squacco and with Heron type's all on the increase maybe we will soon get a repeat of Little Bittern? Although not new for the county it would sure feel like it with the last record dating back to 1852! Fancy trying to see one of them at Haverton in your Lunch hour!

Once accepted this will become the 378th species for Cleveland (Including last years Fea's Type Petrel).

So 2015 has continued with the run of new birds for the county. What will be next?

Cheers

Ian.


Other Stuff

Subalpine Warblers - Rather surprisingly the BOURC split Subalpine Warbler into two species rather than the expected three. They retained Eastern and Western as one species (for now at least, pending further research). This further split is very much expected to happen in the near future so the next subalpine in the county will be getting well grilled!

Fea's Petrel - Last years Fea's type Petrel off Cowbar and elsewhere has been accepted by BBRC as "Zino's/Fea's Petrel Group". Until the Cleveland Bird Report for 2014 has been published I will still include this in the totals given above. Whatever the TBCRSC decide to do with this record regarding the county list I will follow.

[Ian Foster]

As 2015 is just about to call last orders I thought a quick update was in order...

2015 - A mixed year for some but still continued Cleveland's good run of 1st's with the superb Squacco Heron back in June. Already accepted by BBRC this will now grace the Cleveland list as species 377!

As expected following the publication of the Cleveland Bird Report 2014 the Fea's "type" Petrel from Cowbar in September 2014 was treated the same as the BBRC and recorded/published as Zino's/Fea's Petrel and not identified to Species level so therefore is not included in the county list totals. Still an astonishing record and well deserved bird for the lucky few! (maybe next time and there will be a next time...).

Other Stuff

Subalpine Warblers - Quite surprisingly the BOURC disbanded it's Taxonomic Sub-Committee a month or two back so it's anyone's guess what will happen in the future regarding this expected split? At least for now we can all just enjoy having Subalpine Warbler on our county lists...

Brunnich's Guillemot - Although I know very little about this a probable/possible of this mega rare species was seen briefly and photographed off the end of South Gare on 9th December 2015! With a recent record off Filey (03/12/13) it's certainly not impossible...check out the finders Twitter account for the pics @saloplarus.

Collared Flycatcher - A bit of a blast from the past this but some reading this may remember checking out an "odd" looking ficedula Flycatcher at South Gare back in May 2008. This bird was dismissed at the time as just a Pied Flycatcher although the possibility of it being a Collared was discussed whilst the bird was present and news spread as such! A couple of local birders have always had doubt's about the true identity of this bird and just recently Ian Boustead was curious enough to forward photo's of this bird to Martin Garner...the feedback was most interesting and there is a very real chance this bird could well be a Collared after all! This bird must surely now be submitted to the BBRC for them to make a decision (don't know how to add a link but it's well worth a look on Martin Garner's superb Birding Frontiers web site for pic's and discussion...Big question is did you go for it?

So here we are again with another New Year upon us...what will 2016 bring?

My bet will be with Pacific Diver. With 7 records up to the end of 2014 and all since 2007, the first record being from inland Yorkshire and a recent record from Switzerland of all places this is a species that needs to be kept in mind...maybe just one day one of those Diver's in Jackson's Landing will be that extra bit special!

Happy New Year!

Cheers

Ian.

[Keith Ryan]

I love this thread, thanks Ian.

[Ian Foster]

I love this thread, thanks Ian.

Cheers keith. Lets hope we have plenty of updates this year!

Ian.

[Ian Foster]

It's just a Bird, It's just a Bird, It's Just a Bird, It's just a Bird...

WARNING - COUNTY LISTING CAN SERIOUSLY DAMAGE YOUR HEALTH

How time flies when you're having fun! Nearly a year without an update and 2016 was just plodding along without anything to write home about. Early Autumn was a non-event, September came and went (with westerly's) and finally the winds turned Easterly and October kicked into action. Then something very, very special happened!

SIBERIAN ACCENTOR

9th October - Shetland scores Britains 1st ever Siberian Accentor! An influx of these Funky Dunnock's was happening in northern Europe but this still came as quite a shock.

13th October - Britains 2nd was found at Easington, Yorkshire and became one of the most twitched birds ever! I'd guess most reading this thread actually saw this gift of a bird. Watching this bird on Friday 14th I couldn't believe how lucky we were. A Siberian Accentor so close to home...

15th October - Damian Money (Mr Red-flanked Bluetail), one of the County's hardest working "local patch" birders must have thought he was dreaming when he found Britain's 3rd Siberian Accentor on Hunt Cliff, Saltburn just less than a week after the first was found on Shetland!

News spread fast and the race was on! A few "south side" locals were soon on site and were fortunate to get views of this Mega whilst most of us were still en-route and wondering weather we would survive the climb up the Cliffs! A crowd soon gathered but the bird had gone missing! It was thought to have flown into a field that was not accessible and as time went by it seemed more and more unlikely that the bird was still present. A Radde's Warbler found just a couple of hundred yards away became the focus of attention. As the hours slipped away and with Siberian Stonechat and Pallas's Warbler also nearby a lot of birders either gave up, went back to the car park to pay for more time or drifted away to see the other birds on offer...

This is when the unthinkable happened! The Siberian Accentor was still present and all of a sudden was on show. Maybe 30 or so birders were very lucky to still be close enough to get a view (and photo's) whilst the vast majority were just out of range. The bird was only available for a tantalisingly short 90 seconds or so before flying into a close by Copse and did not reappear by dark!

The long walk back to the car in the gathering gloom was not fun for those that missed out (even the Pallas's Warbler didn't help in softening the blow) and neither was the walk back up in the dark the following morning!

A much deserved find for Damian and what a bird for the County.

Most reading this will know of the incredible influx of Siberian Accentors into Europe in 2016. A total of about 237 have been found between 24th September and 12th December. 13 were found in Britain including records for Yorkshire, Cleveland, Durham and Northumberland.

Could one or two still be lurking out there somewhere? Will one be found wintering at a feeding station? Will anything like this ever happen again? My guess is this was a one off event and those that were lucky enough to see this bird up on the Cliffs that Saturday afternoon will be envied forever more.

Once accepted this will become the 378th species for Cleveland

Another year, another addition. Let's see what 2017 brings...

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Cheers

Ian.


If you have been affected by any issues in this update please call 01642 0*005769. The Help line will be open until a 2nd more twitchable Siberian Accentor is found in Cleveland. In the meantime don't hold you breath.

[Ian Foster]

Well here we are at the end of another year!

So what can we say about 2017? Not a lot to be honest...I've lost count the amount of times I intended to update this thread but kept putting off hoping something would happen and give me some real news to report.

No new birds for the county this year! I can't remember the last time we had a blank year? Not got any references at hand so maybe someone more clued up could help out with this?

With a dreadful year now over I think we should all just put it behind us, re-group and look forward to the future...Just what has 2018 got in store for us...well a new BOU/IOC taxonomy for a start!

Earlier this year the BOU announced it would be following IOC (International Ornithological Congress) taxonomy from 1st January 2018. This has resulted in a fair few changes for the British List but only one change is relevant to the Cleveland County list...

Taiga Bean Goose (Anser Fabalis) has now been split from Tundra Bean Goose (Anser Serrirostris)

Tundra Bean Goose is a scarce but annual visitor to Cleveland and the commonest of the two species.

Taiga Bean Goose on the other hand is a very rare visitor with only 10 records attributed to this new species! Time to get those note books out...

A review of all previous records of Taiga Bean Goose is currently underway by the Teesmouth Bird Club Records Sub Committee.

With the addition of this new species the Cleveland list now stands at 379 (please correct me if I'm wrong).


Other Stuff

Isabelline Shrike

Long anticipated to make an appearance in Cleveland and frustrating birders year after year..."Isabelline Shrike" has now also been split into two species by the BOU/IOC.

Isabelline (Daurian) Lanius isabellinus

Red Tailed (Turkestan) Lanius phoenicurodes

Very few records of either species (mainly Adult Males) have been accepted to species level. This now leaves a huge amount of records in limbo as either/or's (I've seen at least 7 Isabelline shrikes and none accepted to species level. A "tick" lost)!

So when one of these species does grace the County with it presence lets hope it's an Adult Male just like the stunning Turkestan Shrike seen at Whitburn back in 2006!

For the sake of a prediction I will go with Daurian Shrike as the first to appear. It's believed to be the commoner of the two but will take a multi observer record with a lot of detail and photograph's for an acceptance...


Collared Flycatcher

The record of a bird at South Gare in May 2008 has now been rejected by BBRC. It's believed to be a hybrid Collared/Pied Flycatcher if I remember correct. An incredible record itself!


So there we go 2018 starting with an addition to the County Total...but what could be next?

I'll go with Black-browed Albatross. Most reading this will know an adult bird has visited Bempton Cliffs in Yorkshire a few times this last summer. The same bird left Bempton and was seen to fly North close inshore past Whitburn, co.Durham early the next morning! This bird must have passed along the Cleveland coast line very early that morning (last June I think?)...This bird has been spending the last few summer's in the North Sea, mainly in Germany and has made several appearances in Britain...When not out at sea or sat on it's ledge it frequently spends it's time with Mute Swans just like it did at Minsmere in Suffolk...imagine that on East Saltholme one morning!!!


Again I will apologise for any mistakes in the above. You wouldn't think I've had a year to write this!

Good Luck and Happy New Year!

Cheers

Ian.

[Ian Foster]

At last something to write about!

Hooded Merganser

Late Morning on 6th May Oscar Dewhurst, a young Birder studying at Durham was playing Golf (so I am told) on Seaton Carew Golf Course, when adjacent to the flooded field by the Zinc Works Bushes he found a unfamiliar bird, took a photo and had the good sense (probably knowing exactly what it was and how significant it might be) to send the photo to Martyn Sidwell. Martyn was luckily still out in that Local Birding Hot Spot called McDonalds, Hartlepool at the time with several others and on seeing the photo no doubt nearly dropped his Big Mac!

The bird, a young Male was still present and news was spread. As more Birders arrived the bird became nervous and flew from the flooded field and moved to the Hartlepool Power Station Golf Course before moving again into a ditch on Seaton Common.

Although elusive and difficult to find at times it was seen by a large number of Birders throughout the afternoon. It was searched for extensively the next day but was not found and had clearly moved on.

Photo's revealed the bird was fully winged and unringed...

This bird was only the Tenth (acceptable) record of Hooded Merganser for Britain!

My thoughts are that due to it being a 1st Summer (2nd calendar year) bird, fully winged, unringed, quite nervous, unapproachable and the fact it's stay was so brief it will be accepted by BBRC. The time of year is perfect for Duck to be moving North (check out previous records of Ring-necked Duck, American Wigeon, Lesser Scaup and Bufflehead) so any committee would have to come up with a very good reason not to accept this individual!

A previous accepted Hooded Merganser was present on Shetland from 15th April to 2nd May 2006 and a pair of Hooded Merganser were accepted by the Irish Rare Birds Committee from Co. Mayo on 19th to 23rd May 2015.

It's also interesting to note that the population in North America has grown enormously over the last 40 years with a 1,100% increase!


Most reading this will know this is not the first Hooded Merganser to be seen in Cleveland. From August 2009 to April 2010 a Juvenile Male was seen at several sites around the county but due to the early arrival date (especially for a juv that would have had to have crossed the Atlantic) and it's long stay was not accepted by BBRC.


Once accepted this will become the 380th Species to be recorded in Cleveland!

Anyone else got any views on this bird? Would be interesting to hear other peoples thought's...


Cheers

Ian.

[IanF]

Ringed or not?

A couple of photos taken by Derek Clayton appear to show a pale/white darvic ring on the right tibia. Unfortunately the body feathers partially cover it.

I didn't get to see it myself but I understand some people saw the bird stood preening and didn't see a ring.

Opinion seems divided whether or not it was ringed.

[Ian Foster]

Thanks for sharing the photo's Ian.

I had previously looked at these photo's when they were posted in the TBC Rare Birds Gallery. I'd heard a rumour Derek thought the bird was ringed.

When blown up I believe the pale strip (presumably what is thought to be a ring?) is actually feathering? It's the exact same colour as the feathering higher up on the leg. I think the image is a little blurred due to the bird flying and appears to show a band!

Martyn Sidwell's photo's on Twitter and the RBA gallery clearly show all the right leg and there is no sign of a ring of any sort.

Hopefully Martyn will post his pics here for all to see?

Don't think i've heard anyone else think the bird was ringed but could be wrong...these are only my thoughts of course. Anyone else agree/disagree?

Ian.

[Keith Ryan]

I saw it scratching with it's right leg and saw no sign of a ring.

[sidwemn]

The Hooded Merganser's right leg was seen clearly by a number of birders through telescopes when it had a lengthy scratch shortly after we first arrived. No ring was seen by anyone present.

I've attached a couple of photos. I have studied a series of 12 frames, with the right leg stretched forward, back and down. Photos checked on my 26" ProArt Professional Graphics monitor in close detail and I can 't see the "ring" that Derek is seeing in his photos. If there is a ring, where has in gone in my photos? Opinions seem divided, but the vast majority are of the clear opinion that there was no ring. I have discussed this with Derek and we have agreed to disagree. We'll see what the Rarities Comittee make of it.

Martyn

[Ian Foster]

Thanks for sharing Martyn. Superb images!

Ian.

[Ian Foster]

So maybe 2017 wasn't so bad after all!?!

Back on 31st December 2017 I stated that year was the 1st blank year for new birds for Cleveland for a long, long time (I never actually went back and checked when that was in fact...)

Well it appears I was incorrect!

Dark Eyed Junco

On 9th January this year a Lady called Nicky Johnson posted 3 photo's of a Dark-eyed Junco she had taken in her garden in Yorkshire "a couple of years ago" on Twitter.

Instantly Yorkshire birder Mark Thomas asked for the location and she responded "it was in Guisborough"!!!

This record suddenly became a lot more interesting...

Further details have been forthcoming and it is now known the Junco was present in her garden in the Hunters Hill area of Guisborough for several hours on one date only in June 2017!

As one local birder (MRKA) is a near neighbour of Nicky Johnson we now also know the Bird Table the Junco visited is viewable from the road (OUCH)...

So there we have it a new bird for Cleveland identified retrospectively from photo's. It was bound to happen one day and again we have the use of Twitter to thank. Without the ease of digital photography and social media this fantastic record could very easily have been left undiscovered on the finders memory card!

Dark-eyed Junco is an exceptionally rare bird in Britain with just 46 records to the end of 2017 (including this bird). A large number of records coming from Gardens, in fact the comment for this species in the last BBRC report starts with "If you wanted to find a rarity at your garden feeder, Dark-eyed Junco might be high on your wish list".

It's interesting to note 4 birds are already accepted for Spring 2017 with birds seen in Borders, Hampshire, Meirionnydd (where?) and Pembrokeshire.

Once accepted and I personally can't think of any reason it won't be, this will become the 380th bird for Cleveland.

The Hooded Merganser of May 2018 (again when/if accepted) will take the Cleveland total to 381.


One thing to be learnt from this record is if you ever get told by anyone they have a funny bird in their garden it might be just worth a quick visit...


Well that's enough of the past, let's look to the future...2019 surely has to be the year we get Iberian Chiffchaff (spring) and Blyth's Reed Warbler (autumn) hasn't it?

Cheers

Ian