Dickie Ticker

Couldn't resist the chance of a Life tick at Whitburn this morning so toddled off south (Crammy was doing something with goats in the Cheviots?!?!?! in search of the Richard's Pipit(s). Arrived to see a few scopes looking west over the road into the field, with reports of two of the three having flown off and the remaining one not seen for a while. Within five to ten minutes, they were spotted flying back in, so one tick, and then later, two birds in the same scope view. And a Whinchat too! Too far for even a half decent record shot, so here's some from Portugal last week.

Portuguese List

Got back on Saturday from five days of Algarvian birding; quite simply, superb! The list: Owl (not seen, but persistently hissing from a nearby tree all night) / Honey Buzzard / Fan-tailed Warbler / Turtle Dove / Warbler (mystery so far, green above and yellow below with very long legs) / Cockatiel / Crested Tit / Greenfinch / Serin / Iberian Chiffchaff / Sandwich Tern / Subalpine Warbler / Sand Martin / Great Tit / Southern Grey Shrike / Starling / Curlew / Jay / Greenshank / Barwit / Med Gull / Little Grebe / Coot / Purple Swamphen / Glossy Ibis / Shoveler / Red-crested Pochard / Great Crested Grebe / Pochard / Moorhen / Hoopoe / Cetti's / Pied Fly / Wigeon / Black-headed Weaver / Woodchat Shrike / Spot Fly / Redstart / Gannet / Crested Lark / Stonechat / Azure-winged Mag / Crag Martin / Mallard / Kingfisher / Blue Rock Thrush / Lesser Kestrel / Goldfinch / Little Stint / Osprey / Red-legged Partridge/ Caspian Tern / Green Sand / Wheatear / Red-rumped Swallow / Black-winged Stilt / Redshank / Lesser Black-backed Gull / Grey Plover / Curlew Sand / Common Sand / Audouin's Gull / Grey Heron / Greater Flamingo / Kentish Plover / Black-headed Gull / Avocet / Blackwit / Spoonbill / Common Waxbill / Yellow Wagtail / Whimbrel / Sardinian Warbler / White Wagtail / Dunlin / Swallow / House Sparrow / House Martin / Swift / Turnstone / Sanderling / Ringed Plover

Four Spot Chaser

Having seen that the Big Waters team had had a Spotty Fly of late, and never having had one on the patch ever, I consulted the Dalai Lama and asked for guidance.  'Go early in the morning.  Seek the birds in the woods at the north end of West Hartford and Arcot' was his advice. 

Well it was a dry, calm-ish and sunny evening so I thought I'd give it a try in Arcot, as failure would at least allow yet another perusal of the Garganey and Shovellers and who knows what else.

Without donning the orange robes, off anti-clockwise and into the NW corner of the NW field and despite the sun in my eyes, some wee birds in and out of the hedge tops.  Moving so as to get a good view, sun from the left, and voila!  And FOUR of them!

I must admit, whilst the Black Kite was good, this was, dare I say, along with the Redstart, better; and a few half-decent images too.  It doesn't get much better.  I am a patch birding addict and will need some therapy at some stage.