In the primary Review of the Week of 2024, we might prefer to want all BirdGuides readers a Happy Near Year – might or not it’s an pleasing and bird-filled time for all of you. As festive fortnights go, 2023 proved an particularly stormy one, and as such the sightings web page felt fairly quiet at instances as howling winds and torrential rain curtailed birding efforts over Christmas. However, New Year’s Day is all the time an enormous day within the birding calendar and the 2024 version proved the busiest but for BirdGuides – an unbelievable 850 experiences have been despatched by the sightings group in the course of the day.
Despite the usually terrible climate circumstances, the previous two weeks has seen a big shift within the distribution of Waxwing round Britain at the least. Birders in southern counties might need been beginning to marvel if the birds would ever attain them – however attain them they did. Quite what generated it’s a little bit of a thriller, however there was a transparent southward push within the days main as much as Christmas and good-sized flocks have been famous in a number of south-coast counties. It’s actually solely Dorset, Devon and Cornwall – in addition to components of south-west Wales and southern Ireland – that haven’t but totally prospered from this winter’s arrival. At instances, Waxwings have been making up 1 / 4 of the day by day output on the sightings web page, which demonstrates the species’ prominence (and maybe the shortage of different birds to have a look at too!).
Waxwing, Islandmagee, Antrim (Ian Dickey).
Waxwing, Ilkeston, Derbyshire (Glyn Sellors).
There have been one or two good finds made in the course of the fortnight. An American Robin in an undisclosed Caithness backyard on twentieth sadly proved a really temporary customer. A Dark-eyed Junco in Co Wicklow was equally untwitchable, for information solely got here to mild on nineteenth that it had been seen two weeks beforehand and never since.
But, rarity smart, it was in all probability the male Baikal Teal at Greylake RSPB, Somerset, that was probably the most important discover in Britain. This species has gone from excessive rarity to a semi-expected near-annual winter customer in recent years, and certainly the Somerset chicken is presumably the identical individual seen on the identical website in winter 2021-22, its absence final winter doubtless defined by Welsh sightings between January and March 2023.
Baikal Teal, Greylake RSPB, Somerset & Bristol (David Chislett).
In the same vein, the looks of a male Ferruginous Duck at Thorpe Park, Surrey, for a day in mid-December presumably associated to the chicken current there in winter 2021-22, though this time it wasn’t so obliging and wasn’t seen once more by the top of the yr. At least one Ferruginous continued within the Norfolk Broads and a male at Idle Valley NR, Nottinghamshire, was dependable from Boxing Day onwards.
It was two weeks for Lesser Scaup all informed, with no fewer than 12 at massive throughout Britain, together with a brand new drake in Orkney and the flock of 5 in north Devon. A single male was in Ireland, at Knockaderry Lake, Co Wexford. After a number of bountiful winters, it is turning out to be moderately extra mediocre for Ring-necked Duck this yr, though totals of 19 in Britain and 10 in Ireland have been cheap sufficient. The Essex Canvasback hung round at Abberton Reservoir all through, giving very respectable views at instances. Abberton additionally held as much as three Smew, with a complete of 58 birds nationwide together with a peak of 12 at Eyebrook Reservoir, Leicestershire.
Lesser Scaup (proper) with two Greater Scaup, Bosherston Lily Ponds, Pembrokeshire (Richard Stonier).
Five American Wigeon have been seen in the course of the fortnight, together with a brand new male at Newshot Island, Clyde, on 28-Twenty ninth. In reality, Scotland had three of the 5, with the exceptions being persevering with males in Northumberland and Cambridgeshire. Green-winged Teal nearly made it into double figures in Britain, with 11 recorded between Highland and Cornwall, and solely two have been reported from Ireland. It has hardly been conducive to looking for uncommon seaduck within the incessant storms, so it was no actual shock that the 2 Surf Scoter at Carrick Roads, Cornwall, have been the one members of their species usually reported, with one seen off Ferny Ness, Lothian, on 1st.
First-winter Red-breasted Geese remained with Dark-bellied Brent Geese in North Norfolk and Essex, whereas adults continued with Barnacle Geese in Northumberland and on Islay, Argyll. The grownup, probably of suspicious origin, hung round at Martin Mere WWT, Lancashire. The solely different Cackling Goose apart common birds in Co Sligo and Co Mayo was one with Canada Geese at Lunt Meadows, Lancashire. Black Brant have been seen in Dorset, the Isle of Wight, Kent and Essex. Two or three Snow Geese roamed Scotland. In a poor yr for gray geese, the variety of Tundra Bean Geese on provide nationally might be counted on one hand.
Red-breasted Goose, Holt, Norfolk (Matthew Mellor).
It’s additionally been a pitiful winter thus far for white-winged gulls, and whereas the slight enhance to roughly 40 Iceland, 30 Glaucous and two Kumlien’s Gulls was welcome, a nationwide inflow does not really feel imminent. One or two grownup Ring-billed Gulls have been in Cornwall and the usually returning grownup was at Strathclyde Loch, Clyde; solely three adults (one in Co Dublin and two in Co Cork) might be present in Ireland. The Mount’s Bay space of Cornwall additionally hosted as much as two first-winter Bonaparte’s Gulls, with two (an grownup and a first-winter) on provide in Co Antrim. The Azores Gull was again in Co Mayo on twenty third after its go to to Killybegs earlier within the month.
Iceland Gull, North Shields, Northumberland (Fozzy).
Three Lesser Yellowlegs remained current and proper, with birds in East Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and Suffolk all on present. In East Sussex, the Long-billed Dowitcher was reported usually from Cuckmere Haven, as was the common Kentish Plover at Burnham-on-Sea, Somerset. A juvenile American Golden Plover was a shock New Year’s Eve discover at Wexford Wildfowl Reserve.
Lesser Yellowlegs, Frampton Marsh RSPB, Lincolnshire (Tony Davison).
The Double-crested Cormorant at Doon Lough, Co Leitrim, prolonged its already prolonged keep within the space, but it surely’s notable that there have not been any experiences of the Galway Bay Forster’s Tern this winter – the primary time it hasn’t been seen within the space since 2003, presumably indicating that this long-lived celeb has shuffled off its mortal coil.
Norfolk’s returning Pallid Harrier continued alongside the north coast close to Warham Greens all through the fortnight, whereas the juvenile proved cell round Burry Inlet, Glamorgan. In Co Wexford, the Northern Harrier was reported twice – as soon as at Tacumshin and as soon as at South Slob. The solely confirmed Rough-legged Buzzard of the festive interval was one at Rosedale Abbey, North Yorkshire, on Boxing Day.
Pallid Harrier, Llanelli Wetland Centre WWT, Carmarthen (David Ord).
One of the preferred birds of the Christmas break was the male Black-throated Thrush at Tophill Low NR, East Yorkshire, which was reported most days and gave respectable views at instances. An extraordinary 9 Little Buntings have been seen collectively on the outskirts of Penzance, Cornwall, on twenty first, with smaller numbers both facet of that day – this discovery should symbolize one of many tales of the winter. A Pallas’s Warbler at Warham Greens, Norfolk, was a shock on 18th, lingering to Boxing Day at the least. Only 5 wintering Yellow-browed Warblers have been seen, all alongside the south coast between West Sussex and the Isles of Scilly.
Black-throated Thrush, Tophill Low NR, East Yorkshire (Mike Barth).
Seven Great Grey Shrikes included the Lincolnshire chicken being pinned down and one other discovered at Budby Common in neighbouring Nottinghamshire on thirty first. A potential Coues’s Arctic Redpoll was seen once more at Fontburn Reservoir, Northumberland, but it surely was a bit shocking there have been no others reported given the excessive incidence of Mealy Redpolls this winter.
Great Grey Shrike, Doddington, Lincolnshire (Paul Daubney).
A male Eurasian Penduline Tit at Lough Beg BWI NR, Co Cork, signalled that at the least a number of the group seen final winter had returned. Shore Larks have been seen at solely three websites, with usually reported birds in Norfolk and Northumberland. A Hoopoe was famous at Caerwys, Flintshire, on twenty eighth, with the Derbyshire chicken seen once more at Swadlincote on twenty second.
Western Palearctic
Cape Verde continued its good type with a high-quality Abyssinian Roller found on Sal on thirty first, with the White-faced Whistling Duck additionally nonetheless hanging round there. In the Canary Islands, two Sudan Golden Sparrows have been nonetheless on Gran Canaria and a Magnificent Frigatebird was photographed north of Lanzarote on twenty first.
Abyssinian Roller, Santa Maria, Sal (Uwe Thom).
In Portugal, a first-winter American Herring Gull was a pleasant discover within the Algarve at Vilamoura on Twenty ninth. Nearby, 4 Rustic Buntings have been photographed at Quinta da Vala on twenty seventh – a part of a big quantity present in southern Iberia thus far this winter, with at the least 5 in neighbouring Spain at La Janda, Andalucia, the place there have been additionally 15+ Little Buntings. Meanwhile, Spain’s second White-throated Sparrow was close to Barcelona at Sant Cugat del Vallès on twenty eighth.
France’s first House Bunting was a shock discovery in Grenobles – if accepted as wild, it’s going to be probably the most northerly document but of a species which has lately bred in Spain for the primary time. The pair of Ross’s Geese held on in Belgium, the place a male Baikal Teal was discovered close to Oudenburg.
In Denmark, the Northern Harrier caught round at Frøstrup, as did the Pacific Diver at Hantsholm and the Stejneger’s Scoter off Zealand. Lastly, Israel’s first Pacific Diver was a shock discovery at Eilat within the ultimate days of 2023.
