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Mega Seabirds - The Unofficial Records! (1 Viewer)

A

Andrew Clarke

Well-known member
Greetings all

Well it's that time of the year again as the seawatching season kicks off (for me anyway). Several hours staring at the sea proved rather uneventful today but got me wondering about the various records of mega seabirds that have been reported but never officially accepted.

Given the nature of the beast (distant, brief views, terrible weather, single observers, no photos etc) it is understandable - considering their criteria for accepting new birds for these islands - that BBRC/BOURC fail to accept many claims but knowing the limitations of this system against the vast experience, dedication and time in the field of many hard core seawatchers hardly means that I consider these claims less seriously!

Birds that come to mind are records like the Kent Herald Petrel (which had a great write up described in BB a few years ago), but I also vaguely recall some incredible records from Flamborough (Short-tailed Shearwater, Great Winged Petrel etc) that were accepted by the Yorkshire Records Committe but failed by BBRC. I would love to hear more about these claims. There must be many more that people can recall!

I am genuinely fascinated by seabird vagrancy and feel that climate change will bring a few more interesting species this way - both well documented accepted species (eg. Aleutian Tern, Yellow-nosed Albatross, Tufted Puffin and Long-billed Murrelet) and who knows what else?

Sadly, I've had no 'scary seabirds' so far but one intriguing record that I remember was another Herlad type Petrel well desribed in Orkney some years ago by a seawatching addict.

Finally (he says yawning) please note that this is not an open invitation for half of the ****heads who diss everyone and everything they read on BirdForum from the comfort of their desks to mouth off but a genuine appeal to learn more about the ones that got away!

So people, please share your stories - and give me something to dream about while counting Manxies!

Anyone had Black-capped Petrel yet?

Good Birding

Andrew
 
I've seen Bulwer's Petrel past Selsey Bill (14th July 98, W @ 1040!!) along with 6 others (watchers, not petrels of course!!) and it was seen past the IOW about 2hrs later. The news was put out immediately but bizarrely only as a probable because misidentification with Matsudaira's (??!!) couldn't be ruled out...we'd been watching Stormies and followed one tracking west until we lost it behind the seawall and as we tracked back we got onto the petrel and my mate said "I think I've got a small dark skua here..." literally as I got onto it, me replying immediately "That's not a small skua, that's a big petrel!!" Seen plenty since but will always remember that one!
 
Tufted Puffin would surely be one that 'got away', where it not for the fact it stopped and posed for photos ... (not anything to do with me btw) ... a bit unexpected/unlikely to say the least!!!

... if photos weren't taken, but the views were as good, you can't help but wonder what the outcome would have been. For a few other lucky observers around the time of the sighting there would always have been the nagging doubts of 'what on earth was that?'

Stands to reason that almost anything could well occur in British waters, and probably many things have done so. And they're going to get seen eventually, whether good views, or tantalisingly not quite good enough for full acceptance.

re Birds that should stay in the notebook - always dodgy ground - bit sad that it is because judgements will be made, subconsciously or otherwise I guess. But, I think a healthy dose of sceptiscism is required in birding, it's just trying to keep it non-personal, and remaining open-minded surely? You'd be taking back all the Hastings Rarities if you were too accepting ... (which would please some though, lol)


I dreamt I found a White-faced Petrel last night off the Lizard. Somehow I think that one will remain on the 'Birds I've dreamt of' list/thread though for me ... ;)



And nice one BBB!!! (I presume you mean plenty abroad, not in the uk?!)
 
Masked Booby - Hurst Spit & IOW several years ago.
The Hurst record was well seen by three very solid birders, one of whom is the most experienced sea watcher in Hants; FWIW I believe that they saw one (& I spent most of the next day trying to find it with the Gannet flock) but can understand why it was rejected.
cheers, alan
 
Not my records, but I remember a couple of lovely stories from the dim and distant past, shared whilst on long car journeys...

One was what the observers thought, by process of elimination, was a Murphy's Petrel (I think that was off the Calf of Man?)...

The other was a Pterodroma that sailed past my ex-boss (can't remember where, Wales perhaps?) - I can't even remember what he thought it was, but I remember the way he told it made me think he's been totally awe struck by the majesty of this ocean wanderer which didn't beat its wings for the whole time it was on view. I remembered that tale whilst watching my first Mottled Petrel in rough seas and a force 9 gale in New Zealand - it seemed totally unfussed by the conditions. Amazing birds.
 
Excellent, thanks everyone - just the kind of stories and debate I'm after. Bulwer's sounds wonderful, Masked Booby !, odd Pterodromas - well done all! :t:

The reason I carefully worded the original question is because of the unique circumstances encountered when seawatching. Many of us know/are experienced seawatchers who are absolutely grounded in the regular/scarce seabirds and easily pick up anything different. I am interested in reports from such people.

Personally, I am not a twitcher (apart from the odd local bird) and find this branch of birding rather stale. I do not need a committe to tell me what I can and can't tick even if I choose to do so. Having said that I greatly respect the work of BBRC and friends in pushing forward the boundaries of bird identification and am constantly inspired by much of this work. It's just that evaluating rare bird records - especially seabirds! - seldom occurs in a lab style environment (apart from the odd ringed bird and some skua that has had some DNA work done on it) and mistakes are obviously made in drawing up the 'official record'. Other amazing seabirds obviously occur in these waters without 'official acceptance'.

I can appreciate some scepticism but much of this comes from the idiots encountered on here who slag off everything without knowing anything about the observer(s) or circumstances of the record. I recall a classic case a few years ago when a party of experienced Conwy birders who live and breathe Manxies found a Little Shear off the Bridges and were instantly slagged off by some idiot who was not even there! Hence the caveat - if you're reading this leave the backstabbing out.

A couple of other interesting records come to mind. First, in answer to my opwn question above - the Barmston (Black-) capped Petrel (fortunately dead) and secondly I wonder what will happen to the Severn White-bellied Storm-petrel without photographic evidence?

Re: White-faced Petrel, I now recall a Pembrokeshire record of this species from a couple of years ago on a pelagic trip seen by an ex-observatory warden. Dan, was it a dream or a premonition?!

Keep the stories coming. Can any of the Flamborough or Cornish stalwarts add anything?

Good Birding

Andrew
 
Last edited:
I remember hearing a story from an observer on cape clear, who said he felt sure he had seen a pale phase wedge tailed shearwater go by. Of course....the usual smirks and comments were given behind his back by the usual gobshites.

Years later when people started to look at Cape Verde Shearwater I couldn't help but wonder if it was a contender as it would have been practically unknown at the time.

Other ones that got away from cape where Giant petrel sp., Madeiran petrel, Swinhoes petrel.

Owen
 
Cheers Owen - interesting comments re: Cape Verde/Wedge-tailed Shearwater - surely the latter species is more long in the nether regions though?

Not sure if we can include the famous Caple Clear 'big black birds' seen miles away from way back when - Griffons or whatever?

Also now recall a Giant petrel sp claim from one of the Pembrokeshire islands about ten years back - written up in Birdwatch.

Greatly amusing - and a tad scandalous - blog you have there. Keep it up!

Good Birding

Andrew
 
Andrew Clarke said:
Cheers Owen - interesting comments re: Cape Verde/Wedge-tailed Shearwater - surely the latter species is more long in the nether regions though?


Greatly amusing - and a tad scandalous - blog you have there. Keep it up!

Good Birding

Andrew
Click to expand...

Indeed. But if you had a cape verde go by you ten years ago, when they would have been unknown to most, you could easily assign it to the wedge tailed box as being the best fit was the point I was making.

Owen
 
I remember BBB's Bulwer's off Selsey Bill - I charged down to Portland that evening in the vague hope of intercepting it - decent seawatch, but the 'moment' didn't happen.

Another evening seawatch off Portland 6 May last year, and the late Alan Bundy picked up a strange bird coming round the Pulpit, low against the evening sun. Flight action suggested a tail-less Sparrowhawk, but nothing fitted, and by the time the bird disappeared out to sea a few minutes later the dozen of us there, all with at least 25 years' worth of field experience, were none the wiser. Then one of us looked at the BB paper on dark-rumped petrels and noticed in the description of a presumed Swinhoe's the phrase 'Accipiter-like flight action'. Oh...

Presumably the same bird was then seen three days later, and seemingly also inconclusively - off Selsey Bill!
 
I was very lucky to be on a pelagic that got the first northern hemisphere Light mantled Sooty Albatross off Northern California (1994) and at the time looked for previous northern hemisphere claims which included possibly two from Britain, one a very good shout off Kent that was either Sooty or Light mantled Sooty.
 
I remember reading a write up in Birdwatch mag (or Birdwatching i can't remember) about a Southern Giant Petrel off Skokholm or Skomer in 2000ish. Anyone recall this?
 
daviddixon said:
one a very good shout off Kent that was either Sooty or Light mantled Sooty.
Click to expand...

I was one of the original observers of that bird at Sandwich Bay back in c78. Unfortunately at the time i would have struggled to i.d. an Arctic Skua let alone anything rarer. However the other 6 or so observers had considerably more experience than me & were absolutely convinced it was like nothing they had seen before. My own memory of the bird (hazy to say the least) through binoculars, was of an all dark seabird & the ease with which it outpaced the Gannets with barely a wing flap before disappearing around South Foreland only to reappear about half an hour later travelling in the opposite direction. The i.d was by a process of elimination using the Tuck seabirds of the world book !, so in all honesty it could have been any one of a number of species. All i can say is that i would love to be given that opportunity again now.
 
Crikey, awesome stuff people!

Enjoyed a short session with a couple of thousand Manxies passing this evening - just wonder how many more I need to watch pass by before I hit the jackpot...
 
Just a seabird rather than seawatching, but the reported Nov 2009 Huddersfield frigatebird must deserve a mention...

Richard
 
Someone sent this list to me of recent (and not so recent) seabird claims. Correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think any of these are on the official record books...

Yellow-nosed Albatross south of The Lizard, Cornwall
Southern Giant Petrel Wolf Rock, Cornwall
Southern Giant Petrel Islay, Argyll
Southern Giant Petrel Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire
Great-winged Petrel Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire (twice)
Trindade Petrel Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire
Trindade Petrel Pendeen Watch, Cornwall
Soft-plumaged Petrel Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire
Atlantic Petrel Pendeen Watch, Cornwall
Atlantic Petrel Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire
White-chinned Petrel Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire
Red-legged Kittiwake Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire
Glaucous-winged Gull Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire
Parakeet Auklet Whitburn, County Durham (twice)
Parakeet Auklet Brora, Highland
Tufted Puffin Portland Bill, Dorset
Brown Booby Point Lynas, Anglesey
South American Tern North Hykeham, Lincolnshire
Antarctic Tern Penmon Point, Anglesey
Black-bellied Storm Petrel Sheringham, Norfolk
Cape Verde Shearwater Cape Clear, Cork
Madeiran Petrel Pendeen Watch, Cornwall (thrice)
South Polar Skua Loop Head, Clare
Bulwers Petrel Walney
Audubons Shearwater Whitburn, County Durham
Bulwers Petrel Selsey Bill (twice)
Elegant Tern Porthgwarra
Red-billed Tropicbird Scillonian (twice)
Yelkouan Shearwaters Cornwall, usually twice every day
Brown Noddy Belfast
South Polar Skua St Ives, Cornwall
Cape Gannet various
Great Frigatebird Filey
Audubons Shearwater Devon
Swinhoes Petrel Suffolk, Wirral, East Yorkshire, Devon
Grey-headed Albatross Cromer,
Zinos Petrel Strumble Head
Bulwers Petrel Hornsea
Bulwers Petrel Lunan Bay
Black-capped Petrel Girdle Ness
South Polar Skua Western Approaches
Townsends Shearwater Western Approaches
Brown Pelican Cape Clear (5)
White-faced Petrel Pembrokeshire
Masked Booby Isle of Wight
Masked Booby Porthgwarra
Magnificent Frigatebird Huddersfield
White-cheeked Tern Dungeness
Royal Tern St Marys
Royal Tern St Ives, Cornwall
Scopolis Shearwater Flamborough Head (several)
Scopolis Shearwater Bridges of Ross
Brown Booby Cape Clear
Feas Petrel Hoylake
Bulwers Petrel Leasowe
Short-tailed Shearwater Flamborough Head

Its a bit like the Atlantic Odyssey - without any photographs!

Anyone like to claim them - I understand several claims may have been made by BF regulars...

cheers, alan
 
lewis20126 said:
Someone sent this list to me of recent (and not so recent) seabird claims. Correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think any of these are on the official record books...

Yellow-nosed Albatross south of The Lizard, Cornwall
Southern Giant Petrel Wolf Rock, Cornwall
Southern Giant Petrel Islay, Argyll
Southern Giant Petrel Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire
Great-winged Petrel Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire (twice)
Trindade Petrel Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire
Trindade Petrel Pendeen Watch, Cornwall
Soft-plumaged Petrel Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire
Atlantic Petrel Pendeen Watch, Cornwall
Atlantic Petrel Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire
White-chinned Petrel Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire
Red-legged Kittiwake Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire
Glaucous-winged Gull Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire
Parakeet Auklet Whitburn, County Durham (twice)
Parakeet Auklet Brora, Highland
Tufted Puffin Portland Bill, Dorset
Brown Booby Point Lynas, Anglesey
South American Tern North Hykeham, Lincolnshire
Antarctic Tern Penmon Point, Anglesey
Black-bellied Storm Petrel Sheringham, Norfolk
Cape Verde Shearwater Cape Clear, Cork
Madeiran Petrel Pendeen Watch, Cornwall (thrice)
South Polar Skua Loop Head, Clare
Bulwers Petrel Walney
Audubons Shearwater Whitburn, County Durham
Bulwers Petrel Selsey Bill (twice)
Elegant Tern Porthgwarra
Red-billed Tropicbird Scillonian (twice)
Yelkouan Shearwaters Cornwall, usually twice every day
Brown Noddy Belfast
South Polar Skua St Ives, Cornwall
Cape Gannet various
Great Frigatebird Filey
Audubons Shearwater Devon
Swinhoes Petrel Suffolk, Wirral, East Yorkshire, Devon
Grey-headed Albatross Cromer,
Zinos Petrel Strumble Head
Bulwers Petrel Hornsea
Bulwers Petrel Lunan Bay
Black-capped Petrel Girdle Ness
South Polar Skua Western Approaches
Townsends Shearwater Western Approaches
Brown Pelican Cape Clear (5)
White-faced Petrel Pembrokeshire
Masked Booby Isle of Wight
Masked Booby Porthgwarra
Magnificent Frigatebird Huddersfield
White-cheeked Tern Dungeness
Royal Tern St Marys
Royal Tern St Ives, Cornwall
Scopolis Shearwater Flamborough Head (several)
Scopolis Shearwater Bridges of Ross
Brown Booby Cape Clear
Feas Petrel Hoylake
Bulwers Petrel Leasowe
Short-tailed Shearwater Flamborough Head

Its a bit like the Atlantic Odyssey - without any photographs!

Anyone like to claim them - I understand several claims may have been made by BF regulars...

cheers, alan
Click to expand...

Alan,

Isn't the Walney Bulwer's a bit of a different case, having been accepted originally? Don't know if that applies to any of the others on the list.

Regards,

Stephen.
 
lewis20126 said:
Someone sent this list to me of recent (and not so recent) seabird claims. Correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think any of these are on the official record books...
Click to expand...

I see what you're getting at - these record committees are really screwing things up. Maybe they're just suppressors :t:
 
M8 & I had what we think was a Sooty Tern south past Dunbar, Lothian around this time of year in 2007.
That is, it was thought to be this species but Bridled Tern could not be ruled out due to range.
We immediatly phoned a couple of mates south of us at Barns Ness who were doing a seawatch, they latched on to it but again it was too distant for positive ID.
3 yrs on and we are still hurting:-C:-C:-C
 
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