My UK Year List - 2014

  • 117-118) GREAT WHITE EGRET and LONG-TAILED DUCKS at Mary's Lake, Earls Barton GP, 9 January
  • 116) Barnacle Goose, Emberton Park, 9 January
  • 114-115) SMEW and Cetti's Warbler at Great Hardmead Lake, Amwell, 7 January
  • 113) Reed Bunting, Tyttenhanger, 7 January
  • 112) Tree Sparrow (32 birds), Tyttenhanger, 7 January
  • 111) Sparrowhawk, West Hyde, 7 January
  • 110) Mandarin Duck, Burnham Beeches NNR, 7 January
  • 100-109) Curlew, Knot, Bar-tailed Godwit, Dunlin, Oystercatcher, Grey Plover, Sanderling, Common Shelduck, Kittiwake and Mediterranean Gull at Church Norton, 6 January
  • 99) RUDDY SHELDUCK, Sidlesham Ferry, 6 January
  • 96-98) Purple Sandpiper, Turnstone and Rock Pipit in Shoreham Harbour
  • 95) Red-breasted Merganser, Widewater, 6 January
  • 94) GREY PHALAROPE, Hove Lagoon, 6 January
  • 93) Grey Partridge, Broom, 5 January
  • 92) Goosander, Woburn Lakes, 5 January
  • 91) Skylark, Totternhoe, 5 January
  • 90) Yellowhammer, Totternhoe, 5 January
  • 89) Corn Bunting, Totternhoe, 5 January
  • 88) Water Pipit, Wilstone, 5 January
  • 87) SABINE'S GULL, Weston Turville, 5 January
  • 86) Common Scoter, Brogborough, 4 January
  • 85) GREAT NORTHERN DIVER, Stewartby Lake, 4 January
  • 84) Red-legged Partridge, Hatch, 4 January
  • 83) Common Kestrel, Langford, 4 January
  • 82) GLOSSY IBIS, Frensham, 4 January
  • 81) Goldcrest, Frensham, 4 January
  • 80) Green Sandpiper, Lynsters, 3 January
  • 79) Stock Dove, Lynster's, 3 January
  • 78) Egyptian Goose, Lynsters Farm, 3 January
  • 77) Common Chiffchaff, Stockers Lake
  • 76) SIBERIAN CHIFFCHAFF, Stockers Lake
  • 75) Siskin, Stockers Lake
  • 74) Dunnock, Stockers Lake
  • 73) Ring-necked Parakeet, Stockers Lake
  • 72) Lesser Redpoll, Stockers Lake
  • 71) Coal Tit, Chaffinch House
  • 40-70: Nuthatch, Greylag Goose, Pied Wagtail, Lapwing, Golden Plover, Great Crested Grebe, Cormorant, Common Redshank, Common Snipe, Teal, Wigeon, Shoveler, LITTLE STINT, Black-tailed Godwit, Grey Wagtail, Goldeneye, Meadow Pipit, Greenfinch, Marsh Tit, Dunnock, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Long-tailed Tit, Bullfinch, Jay, Red-crested Pochard, Wren, Collared Dove (all at Tring Reservoirs), Brambling (Ivinghoe), Herring & Great Black-backed Gull, CATTLE EGRET (Briarhill Farm, Calvert) & Green Woodpecker
  • 1-39 all local, Chess River Valley & Shardeloes Estate: 1 January 2014: Chaffinch, Common Starling, Woodpigeon, Little Egret, Grey Heron, Common Magpie, Mute Swan, Mallard, Moorhen, Carrion Crow, Jackdaw, Rook, Common Buzzard, Canada Goose, Coot, Black-headed Gull, Tufted Duck, Pochard, House Sparrow, Common Blackbird, Woodpigeon, Pheasant, Gadwall, Kingfisher, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Robin, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Little Grebe, Common Gull, Red Kite, Redwing, Fieldfare, Song Thrush, Goldfinch, Mistle Thrush, WOODCOCK, Treecreeper, Greenfinch and Water Rail

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Year Listing in the UK

Lee Evans has been Year-listing in the UK since 1977 and has achieved annual totals of over 300 species ever since. Although he has recorded in excess of 360 species on some nine occasions, his record stands at 386 species - achieved in 1996. Adrian Webb in Year 2000 recorded at least 378 species, making him by far the highest-listing individual to compare with Lee. In terms of Life Listing, Lee has recorded 577 species in Britain and Ireland and 853 species in the wider Western Palearctic region.

Friday 17 January 2014

Birding CAMBRIDGESHIRE - Thursday 16 January

THURSDAY 16 JANUARY
 
Although reasonably mild (at 7.5 degrees C), it was a day of heavy showers, some of which were prolonged.
 
I had planned a visit to CAMBRIDGESHIRE today, largely with the goal of connecting with TAIGA BEAN GOOSE - two of which had been recently discovered just north of Cambridge by David & Jon Heath.
 
Before I got there, I checked out a few HERTFORDSHIRE farmland locations...........
 
A flock of 138 EUROPEAN GOLDEN PLOVER was in fields at ROXLEY COURT, NE OF GREAT WYMONDLEY, whilst in the DEADMAN HILL area of SANDON (TL 29 37), 40 Rook and 12 Eurasian Skylark were noted. The COOMBE ROAD at KELSHALL produced a total of 51 Fallow Deer (herds of 37 and 14), 12 Brown Hares, 2 Common Magpie, 2 Carrion Crow, several Common Pheasant, Common Buzzard and a party of 7 Great Tits. In the vicinity of LOWER HEATH FARM (TL 32 37), I added Common Kestrel, 6 Woodpigeon, 8 Carrion Crow, a Jackdaw and a further 18 Rook.


Fallow Deer herd

I then arrived in CAMBRIDGESHIRE where checking LANDBEACH ROAD near MILTON, a flock of 99 Greylag Geese was feeding just east of the cemetery. At the CAMBRIDGE RESEARCH PARK LAKES, both TAIGA BEAN GEESE (seemingly an adult pair) were roosting on the island in front of the hide, along with 59 Greylag Geese. After a long wait, one-by-one the Greylags started waking up and getting into the water, flying off in small flocks. The two TAIGA BEANS were virtually the last to move, eventually giving great views as they swam away to the left. I took a number of photographs (see immediately below), the two birds being extensively orange on the bill, fairly thick-necked, long-necked and almost Greylag-like in proportions.















In addition to the geese, the lake also held 46 Mallard, 34 Gadwall, 24 Teal, 7 Shoveler, 46 Pochard, 36 Tufted Duck, 33 Coot and 5 Mute Swans, as well as an assortment of gulls. A lake much closer to the research park added a further 46 Coot, 35 Tufted Duck and 3 Moorhens.
 
Returning to the LANDBEACH ROAD, I came across a huge flock of roosting large white-headed gulls in the fields to the south and west of the cemetery - just under 2,300 in number. The flock included singleton first-winters of both CASPIAN and YELLOW-LEGGED GULL, along with 175 Black-headed, 144 Common, an impressive 1,256 Herring (over 70% of which were Scandinavian Argentatus), 637 Lesser Black-backed (of both intermedius and graellsii forms) and a notable 76 Great Black-backed. Further south and much closer to MILTON TIP was another large roosting flock, this one supporting some 8 YELLOW-LEGGED (including 6 adults), a further 848 Herring (again, a large proportion of northern birds), 603 Lesser Black-backed, 97 Common, 437 Black-headed and another 21 Great Black-backed.



The first huge flock of gulls - just under 2,300 in number


Superb numbers of both Herring and Lesser Black-backed Gulls


The second flock - opposite Milton Tip



I then drove north to HOLME FEN (TL 20 89), where the GREAT GREY SHRIKE was visible from the Trundle Mere Hide in bushes close to the red-and-white marker poles to the NE. A single MARSH HARRIER was seen, along with 9 CORN BUNTINGS, 3 Reed Bunting, 3 Meadow Pipit, 4 Stock Dove, 49 Fieldfare, 5 Common Kestrel, 8 Goldfinch and Wren. Most significant was up to 6 SHORT-EARED OWLS hunting over the vast rough fields to the east of the reserve; the HOODED CROW was in this area too - about a mile up the road with 36 Carrion Crows.





Short-eared Owls hunting distantly over the fields

2 comments:

  1. Glad you caught up with the Taiga's Lee. A real surprise find for us on our patch! Now that they have gone we have the place to ourselves again! We had a Bittern there on Sunday just to show that anything can turn up!

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