Here's the latest records from Derek Williams (Jan 20 to 26th) from around Haskayne etc
(and not a mention of Pacific Diver in Yorkshire, I promise).
Okay I lied about not mentioning the juv Pacific Diver that has been on a lake near Knaresboro' in Yorkshire for two weeks now, but just made public today.
AMAZING!!!!!
A first for the Western Palearctic I think, and a lovely bookend to last year's Long Billed Murrelet - sod carbon emissions, I know where I'm going at the weekend.
Sailing Club is charging ã10 a car to get in (call any birdline for details, but 09068 700 246 and 0151 700 222 are as good as any), which, as long money is going to charity is probably fair enough....
Anyway, I digress, Derek's records from the irrigation pools on Downholland Moss as follows:
Little Owl (26th); Raven (20th); Mute Swan - 4; Nuthatch (25th); Lesser Black Backed Gull (22nd);
Total for this period include: Golden Plover - 146; Lapwing - 418; Mallard - 150+; Fieldfare - approx 200; Corn Bunting - 73; Common Gull - 330; Linnet - 116; Reed Bunting - 8; Long Tailed Tit - 7; Blackbird - 26; Pied Wagtail - 7; Teal - 7.
Ta Derek.
Eyes to the diver everyone, eyes to the diver....
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John,
I presume this 'diver' will appear on Surfbirds when they next turn their server back on (shut down 'cos it was hacked).
How do we know this is not an abberrant Black-throated diver - of which the 'Pacific Diver /Loon' is a cospecific? I'm sure the twitchers will be able to give you chapter and verse - but a few indicators would be nice.
Bob.
Howdy Bob,
I've not seen any pix yet of the Pacific Diver/Loon in Yorkshire, and I've never encountered the race, but if I remember my Sibley and other bird guides correctly, it should be smaller than a normal Black Throated Diver, with a slimmer bill (although this would hardly be of value without direct comparison).
The big clinchers with a juvenile bird (which will obviously be in winter type plumage) should be a chinstrap of darker feathering on the top of the white neck, and crucially, a lack of the big white flank panel so typical of Black Throated Diver.
Hope this helps - huge kudos to whoever made the effort to double check an inland "black throated" diver.
There are photos of it on birdguides.com
John,
Huge kudos if they're right. As you say - how many people would have thought to even check - although being inland may have been a mild pointer.
Hi everyone managed to get down to Marshside yesterday saw 3 female and one male scaup, a first for me.
Tried to get a few photos, now realise your quite good at it John after my poor efforts.
No golden plover about but did see a couple of redshank from Nels hide.
Plenty of curlews covering the grass near the back fence along with a few oystercatchers, opposite Nels.
The godwits were quite away from the hides today probably because the water was well up.
Not many birders about only a few brave enough, the wind chill was -20 on the stiff-o-meter,thank god for gas heating in the sandplant hide.
At the end of the day another first for me two juv merlins sitting far out from sand hide for about 10mins ,before going off into the sunset probably for their tea.
Not quick enough to photo i was too excited, just drooled over them.
Sounds like you had a good, if chilly day Gary!
Re the diver, there are shots of it on birdguides.com, but why not stay local and check out Steve Young's shots of it at www.birdsonfilm.com