Essex Birding (1 Viewer)

Steve Arlow · Sep 19, 2014

Barred Warbler is still around the concrete pad area just to the north of the reserve according to local tweets/twitter messages.

Saw the bird briefly last night twice and would love to get back for further looks but wont have the chance as off up north early next morning and gear all packed up.

This is a local / SOG area tick for me as I missed the last twitchable bird back in the early 90's I think it was. great bird and great find by Mr BakerBoy...

Also a Garden Warbler being around the same area

vangerover · Sep 19, 2014

Frinton BO said:
The ne of the county hasn't had a bonaparts's in recent times (if ever) either.

Only one record for the county shown in the Birds of Essex 2007 - 27/8/1994 on Hadleigh Marshes. Don't know if one has been accepted since then?

JamesA · Sep 19, 2014

vangerover said:
Only one record for the county shown in the Birds of Essex 2007 - 27/8/1994 on Hadleigh Marshes. Don't know if one has been accepted since then?

Haven't there been a couple of recent records in the London/Essex crossover area? I'm sure I remember being utterly unmoved to twitch them...

Edit - a quick google for "elbf bonapartes" suggests there were two commuting between Crossness and Barking Bay in May 2012. There might have been others; I didn't look.

Steve Arlow · Sep 19, 2014

JamesA said:
Haven't there been a couple of recent records in the London/Essex crossover area? I'm sure I remember being utterly unmoved to twitch them...

Edit - a quick google for "elbf bonapartes" suggests there were two commuting between Crossness and Barking Bay in May 2012. There might have been others; I didn't look.

The 1994 bird at Hadleigh is considered highly dubious and really shouldn't be on the Essex list on basis of that bird. The Crossness bird(s) probably crossed into Essex waters at some point, when they were at mid channel.

Phil Andrews · Sep 19, 2014

Steve Arlow said:
The 1994 bird at Hadleigh is considered highly dubious and really shouldn't be on the Essex list on basis of that bird. The Crossness bird(s) probably crossed into Essex waters at some point, when they were at mid channel.

However the 1994 bird was accepted by the BBRC?

Steve Arlow · Sep 19, 2014

Phil Andrews said:
However the 1994 bird was accepted by the BBRC?

Yes it was but anyone can write a description from a book though to make it acceptable, all the locals know it was rubbish

Sharp Shin · Sep 19, 2014

Steve Arlow said:
Yes it was but anyone can write a description from a book though to make it acceptable, all the locals know it was rubbish

Interesting! Birds can and have been removed from accepted records - was any 'counter-evidence' submitted in this instance?

I take your point about cribbing descriptions from guidebooks, and it chimes in a way with my earlier comment about the 'naive' use of guidebooks. We may yet get a guidebook-based description of the Dovercourt bird!

Stewart

Frinton BO · Sep 19, 2014

Hopefully not jumping the gun too much as we are still at proof reading stage but the EBR2012 draft includes the Bonaparte's records from Barking Bay in May. Also noticed two Ring Billed Gull of Steve's from Pitsea in February the same year that should be added to the previous comments.

Paul

Debbie1905 · Sep 20, 2014

Barred Warbler

Saw the Barred Warbler in Gunner's Park Shoebury this morning, showed well at about 11.20 in the hawthorn bushes attached to the apple tree to the north of the concrete apron behind the reserve. Couple of soft photos here - looking forward to seeing some good ones from the guys with the big lenses. Took my Canon SX50 which I can never get a decent shot with, but was close enough I could have used my DSLR which I didn't bother to take as I've only got a 70-300mm lens and didn't think that would be enough reach. Thanks to the chap who let me look through his Swaro, stunning.

Linfordbirder · Sep 20, 2014

Debbie1905 said:
Saw the Barred Warbler in Gunner's Park Shoebury this morning, showed well at about 11.20 in the hawthorn bushes attached to the apple tree to the north of the concrete apron behind the reserve. Couple of soft photos here - looking forward to seeing some good ones from the guys with the big lenses. Took my Canon SX50 which I can never get a decent shot with, but was close enough I could have used my DSLR which I didn't bother to take as I've only got a 70-300mm lens and didn't think that would be enough reach. Thanks to the chap who let me look through his Swaro, stunning.

Nice shots, looks like you did well in challenging light. Great bird and hats off to the finder.

7 Common Scoter on the Thames at East Tilbury this morning, 29 Brent Geese flew up river were the first of Autumn for me. A juv hobby and kingfisher gave lovely views the former affording a stunning flypast despite the murk.

Steve

JamesA · Sep 22, 2014

The Naze was good yesterday - birds everywhere. Heavy pipit passage throughout our visit including a couple of tree pips, whinchat running around with the wagtails in the carpark, and warblers everywhere. Other visitors we met had had spot fly, gropper and wryneck. Personal highlights were a woodlark at about 10.15, north and low, and bumping into some ringers as they caught the attached. Nice couple of hours.

Frinton BO · Sep 22, 2014

Was certainly a busy morning yesterday - the sort of day I feel really fortunate to be able to watch the spectacle at close quarters. Mipits were almost taking our heads off as they came in over the house, whilst some the raptors gave crippling views as they passed. Was slightly curious at the lack of Mipit reports from other sites (e.g. only 150 at The Naze and no specific mention at Bradwell) but presumably passage was on a very broad front. My observations were of a northerly movement along the coast initially before immigration became most prominent, some birds then moving up the coast but most heading straight inland. Total counted 1131 with small numbers still moving late in the afternoon.

Presumably the Woodlark was the same bird at The Naze and Frinton, with a pause somewhere along the way, but then again could easily have been two birds.

Personal highlights were the Great White Egret very high over the coastal strip and circling over the bottom of Connaught Avenue before paying Holland Haven scrape a brief visit, a BoP bonanza with multiple Common Buzzard, Sparrowhawk, Kestrel, Hobby and single Marsh Harrier, Merlin, Red Kite and SEO, but for spectacle it had to be the humble Mipit..

Paul

Phil Carter · Sep 22, 2014

JamesA said:
The Naze was good yesterday - birds everywhere. Heavy pipit passage throughout our visit including a couple of tree pips, whinchat running around with the wagtails in the carpark, and warblers everywhere. Other visitors we met had had spot fly, gropper and wryneck. Personal highlights were a woodlark at about 10.15, north and low, and bumping into some ringers as they caught the attached. Nice couple of hours.

Glad someone was seeing stuff, everything seemed to be avoiding me. Admittedly, I did have single Redstart, Whinchat and a couple of Stonechats but, Mipits aside, the place seemed devoid of birds. As for warblers, I had 1 Willow, 2 Lesser Whitethroats and 4 Chiff Chaff. Flycatchers don't exist this year!
Still be back next week though.

Phil

JamesA · Sep 23, 2014

I notice that EBWS requires "notes" for woodlark. So to whom would I submit those notes and is "it went north calling like a woodlark because it was one" sufficient?

Sharp Shin · Sep 24, 2014

JamesA said:
I notice that EBWS requires "notes" for woodlark. So to whom would I submit those notes and is "it went north calling like a woodlark because it was one" sufficient?

Submission of sightings should be sent to the County Recorder, who I believe is still Les Steward. His address is 6 Creek View, Basildon, SS16 4RU. Email: [email protected]. Pages 4 and 165 of the most recent Essex Bird Report provide guidelines for submission.

Basically, it is best if you submit all the records you wish to submit at the end of the year, on an Excel spreadsheet of 5 columns: species; location; number; date; and comment. Where a description is asked for, put it in the comment column.

For your Woodlark, perhaps you could make some comment about features you saw in flight (say, tail pattern, wing shape and size, etc), plus some commemt about the call and the number of times it called. (I'm aware that descriptions of calls can often involve some weird combination of letters - 'sweeeeechet, sweeeechet! (which is not my attempt to imitate a Woodlark, by the way!)). Also how close to you was the bird? It might also be worth mentioning that Paul Brayshaw saw the same, or another, bird on the same day - indicating that passage of Woodlark was taking place.

Hope this helps. Others might like to add comments.

Stewart

Steve_Halstead · Sep 24, 2014

Phil Carter said:
Glad someone was seeing stuff, everything seemed to be avoiding me. Admittedly, I did have single Redstart, Whinchat and a couple of Stonechats but, Mipits aside, the place seemed devoid of birds. As for warblers, I had 1 Willow, 2 Lesser Whitethroats and 4 Chiff Chaff. Flycatchers don't exist this year!
Still be back next week though.

Phil

Just looking forward to 2 weeks off in two weeks to give mersea, abberton and the naze a go. Doing john ray walk as well. Should be good...

Paul Wood · Sep 24, 2014

I can give some guidance on what is required by the EBS ID Panel with regard to Essex "Notes" (and also "Description") species:

Notes = Required for species that are scarce, but annual in Essex and relatively easy to identify given sufficiently good views and experience of the species. A brief description on how the species was identified, including comment on awareness of and exclusion of possible confusion species.

Description = Species less than annual in Essex, including almost all former BBRC species. The description should be more detailed than for a "Notes" species, e.g. full details of plumage, calls and behaviour, consideration of similar species and how they were eliminated at the time of the sighting and all relevant background details to demonstrate that the identification is sound.

In both cases, it is extremely helpful to the ID Panel and really aids the assessment process if observers complete a "Rarity Report Form". I have attached a template (in word format). This might seem like overkill for a "Notes" species, but if all the sections are completed it gives the ID Panel almost all of the information they are likely to need in one document. One of the main reasons why records of Essex rarities are found "Not Proven" by the ID Panel is simply lack of information and detail.

Sketches, photos, video and sound recordings are also invaluable to the ID Panel in the assessment process and should be included in the record submission where possible.

As Stewart indicated, the latest EBR gives guidance on what species are "Notes" and "Description" respectively. Descriptions should be sent to the Essex County Recorder, Les Steward, who then sends them to the ID Panel for assessment.

An article on the EBS ID Panel explaining what it is, what is does, etc and giving actual examples of accepted "Notes" and "Description" records was published in Issue 116 of Essex Birding (Summer/Autumn 2010).

I hope that helps.

Cheers

Paul

Sharp Shin · Sep 25, 2014

I'm fairly clear on the system of reporting to the County Recorder (and even clearer following Paul's message above). I'm less clear about the status of the reports we make to the EBwS website. (On reflection, this might have been the main thrust of James's original query relating to his Woodlark sighting.) The website provides helpful, up-to-date, information on Essex birds, but how it fits with more systematic and traditional methods of reporting (if at all) seems confusing

What is the situation here:

A) Only those records requiring notes or descriptions, in a fuller report, need to be sent direct to the Recorder? If you submitted electronic reports to the EBwS website for 'commoner' species, that will suffice and they needn't be included in an Excel sheet sent to the Recorder?

or

B) All records, irrespective of the 'rare or common' status of the bird, should be sent to the recorder anyway (even though this may involve duplicate submissions)?

or

C) Some other option?

Stewart

neil78 · Sep 25, 2014

I would say 'A'. At the end of the year the recorders are able to download, and export into a spreadsheet, all of the records entered onto the EBwS and SOG websites, so as long as you enter everything you feel relevant onto the EBwS website you shouldn't need to duplicate this by sending in records manually.

At the end of the year I then send Les Steward notes / descriptions of anything I've found, I know a few other people who do it this way.

As an aside, I'm not sure how often the status of the species requiring notes and full descriptions are updated.
For example, Puffin only requires notes and Little Auk no supporting evidence at all, yet Razorbill requires a full description?!? Also, I can't imagine anyone writing notes for each of the Cetti's Warblers they hear, although I'm guessing these are just accepted nowadays.

Paul Wood · Sep 25, 2014

With regard to Neil's aside, the notes/description list was last reviewed in May 2010 (it was reviewed when the article for Essex Birding I mentioned was prepared). It may be time for another review and I'll raise that with the ID Panel chairman.

I have just compared the May 2010 list with what is on the EBS website and, unfortunately, the list on the website is the previous version and does not reflect the current position. The 2010 list has Razorbill as "Notes" and Cetti's Warbler was removed.

The latest version should be in the most recent EBR and I have attached a pdf version here (which only shows "Notes" and "Description" species).

It may be worth noting here as well that the 2010 review of the list took into account not just the overall rarity of the species in Essex, but also the reletive abundance of potential confusion species in Essex. So, for example, Razorbill is "Notes" because it is considerably scarcer than Guillemot in Essex and the two can appear similar if viewing conditions are not ideal.

Finally, please bear in mind that these are guidelines as to what is normally expected. The County Recorder can request "Notes" or a "Description" for any unusual record (e.g. a Little Auk in June...).

Cheers

Paul

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