Rarely does a bird entice me to leave the county, but the summer plumaged Stilt Sandpiper that has been at Lodmoor, Weymouth, for a couple of days did that indeed. So much so that my alarm clock went off at 4:30 this morning...
I met James Mc in Axminster, bundled into his snazzy 4x4 thing and just under an hour later we were parking up by Overcombe Corner.
Now this was my kind of twitch, this was the scene on the raised bit of ground from where this bird is viewable ...
James Mc and my scope - we were the only people there!
We had lovely views of the Stilt Sand - which looks like no other wader in the world! Maybe Curlew Sand is the cloesest common relative I can come up with...but only structure wise (ish!). What a plumage though, with lovely barred breast, belly and flanks, and a gorgeous rufous flash below its eye. A very aptly named bird too- very leggy indeed!
Beause we were so early, the light wasn't good enough to attempt a photograph of the bird. So you will have to make do with a 'it was here' photo...
A lovely bit of 'habbo'
Other birds we saw here, and during a quick look at Radipole and Ferrybridge were four (plus) Green Sands, one Common Sand, 30 Dunlin, two Sanderling, two Med Gulls, several Common Terns, one Sandwich Tern and singles of Willow Warbler and Whitethroat.
We were back in Axminster by 08:15, and I was home soon after that. I then had a quick look through the moth trap that I threw out late last night. There were just two migrants amongst the usual critters; a Silver Y and a...
Yes it's yet another 'micro moth' featured on this blog - a female European Corn-borer
A photo I have failed to post over the past week is this one of 'The White One'. I've seen him/her (I suggest the latter as it's quite a petite bird) several times over the past few weeks...
Stands out doesn't it!!
I met James Mc in Axminster, bundled into his snazzy 4x4 thing and just under an hour later we were parking up by Overcombe Corner.
Now this was my kind of twitch, this was the scene on the raised bit of ground from where this bird is viewable ...
James Mc and my scope - we were the only people there!We had lovely views of the Stilt Sand - which looks like no other wader in the world! Maybe Curlew Sand is the cloesest common relative I can come up with...but only structure wise (ish!). What a plumage though, with lovely barred breast, belly and flanks, and a gorgeous rufous flash below its eye. A very aptly named bird too- very leggy indeed!
Beause we were so early, the light wasn't good enough to attempt a photograph of the bird. So you will have to make do with a 'it was here' photo...
A lovely bit of 'habbo'Other birds we saw here, and during a quick look at Radipole and Ferrybridge were four (plus) Green Sands, one Common Sand, 30 Dunlin, two Sanderling, two Med Gulls, several Common Terns, one Sandwich Tern and singles of Willow Warbler and Whitethroat.
We were back in Axminster by 08:15, and I was home soon after that. I then had a quick look through the moth trap that I threw out late last night. There were just two migrants amongst the usual critters; a Silver Y and a...
Yes it's yet another 'micro moth' featured on this blog - a female European Corn-borerA photo I have failed to post over the past week is this one of 'The White One'. I've seen him/her (I suggest the latter as it's quite a petite bird) several times over the past few weeks...
Stands out doesn't it!!
Is the suicide rate amongst twitchers really high?
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