Bonxie2003 - did you mean to put Scopoli's Shearwater? As far as I know there are very few confirmed records. I notice that Balearic Shearwater is missing, which would perhaps be an obvious species for your list, so maybe you confused the two.
Bonxie2003 - did you mean to put Scopoli's Shearwater? As far as I know there are very few confirmed records. I notice that Balearic Shearwater is missing, which would perhaps be an obvious species for your list, so maybe you confused the two.
American Wigeon Twitch
Green-winged Teal Twitch
Ferruginous Duck Twitch
Ring-necked Duck Twitch
Lesser Scaup Twitch
Surf Scoter Firth of Forth
Quail Tough one! (Easy to hear in traditional places)
White-billed Diver Portsoy
Wilson’s Petrel Pelagic
Leach’s Petrel Wirral
Scopoli's Shearwater Rarity
Cory’s Shearwater Cornwall
Sooty Shearwater Cornwall
Great Shearwater Cornwall
White Stork hard to avoid escapes/releases
Glossy Ibis Twitch
Spoonbill Poole Harbour/Pennington
Night-heron Twitch
Cattle Egret Warblington/Abbotsbury
Purple Heron Twitch
Great White Egret Dungeness/Somerset Levels
Montagu’s Harrier Hard!
Black Kite Twitch
Rough-legged Buzzard Twitch
Spotted Crake Scilly
American Golden Plover Scilly/Shetland
Kentish Plover Twitch
Temminck’s Stint East coast passage
White-rumped Sandpiper Twitch
Buff-breasted Sandpiper Scilly
Pectoral Sandpiper Autumn passage
Red-necked Phalarope Hebrides/Shetland
Grey Phalarope Cornwall/Scilly
Sabine’s Gull Cornwall
Little Gull Hornsea Mere (by the thousand)
Ring-billed Gull Copperhouse Creek
Iceland Gull Northern harbours
White-winged Black Tern Twitch
Pomarine Skua Cornwall/Selsey/Splash Point/Dungeness
Long-tailed Skua Norfolk autumn
Little Auk Twitch
Alpine Swift Twitch
Bee-eater Twitch
Hoopoe Twitch
Wryneck Scilly
Red-footed Falcon Twitch
Great Grey Shrike Thursley/Frensham/Cannock (many traditional wintering sites)
Woodchat Shrike Twitch
Waxwing Twitch
Penduline Tit Twitch
Short-toed Lark Scilly
Red-rumped Swallow Twitch
Yellow-browed Warbler Scilly/Shetland/East Coast autumn
Pallas’s Warbler Scilly/Shetland/East Coast autumn
Radde’s Warbler Twitch
Dusky Warbler Twitch
Greenish Warbler Twitch
Blyth’s Reed Warbler Shetland
Marsh Warbler Twitch
Melodious Warbler Portland August
Icterine Warbler Twitch
Barred Warbler Shetland/Scilly/East Coast autumn
Subalpine Warbler (which?)
Rose-coloured Starling Scilly
Bluethroat Shetland/Scilly/East Coast autumn
Red-breasted Flycatcher Shetland/Scilly/East Coast autumn
Siberian Stonechat Twitch (once DNA'd!)
Citrine Wagtail Shetland/Scilly/East Coast autumn
Richard’s Pipit Scilly/East Coast autumn
Olive-backed Pipit Shetland/Scilly/East Coast autumn
Common Shetland/Scilly/East Coast autumn
Mealy Redpoll Check redpoll flocks
Arctic Redpoll Shetland
Parrot Crossbill Twitch
Serin Twitch
Lapland Bunting Shetland/Scilly/East Coast autumn
Ortolan Bunting Twitch
Little Bunting Shetland/Scilly/East Coast autumn
When I started out on this, I wasn’t expecting my lists to be scrutinised too closely. I may need to update.
My British list stands at 441 (IOC), but I’m still missing quail (heard loads), Blyth’s RW, Melodious W (always seems to have seen half an hour ago!) and Sib St.
When I started out on this, I wasn’t expecting my lists to be scrutinised too closely. I may need to update.
My British list stands at 441 (IOC), but I’m still missing quail (heard loads), Blyth’s RW, Melodious W (always seems to have seen half an hour ago!) and Sib St.
Bonxie2003 - did you mean to put Scopoli's Shearwater? As far as I know there are very few confirmed records. I notice that Balearic Shearwater is missing, which would perhaps be an obvious species for your list, so maybe you confused the two.
This (the Brit scarcities concept) has come up before.
A starting point is the 250 or so regular UK species in eg the old Collins maps at back (a handful of which are hard), followed by the 70+ annual scarcities (probably a lot more now days).
It was said that anyone yearlisting really seriously in any one year would be unlikely to get all the scarcities, simply due to chance/poor years for certain species.
We need an updated Shell Guide to resolve this matter once and for all.
It does depend on a good passage year to get high numbers (I had over a thousand in a couple of hours a few years ago), but there's at least a few in all years. Strong NNW winds with a long pull from the Arctic any time from October to January, you should get at least a few in a morning's seawatch.I thought it was dependent on having a good passage year?
I once had one in my pocket, picked it up off the beach at Filey during that massive passage in the 90's. It was being attacked by a Crow, that's how I noticed it, took it to RSPB Bempton Cliffs.
Ok I have updated the list. There are 77 species listed as scarce by Birdguides. I'm afraid they are not in a great order
American Golden Plover Shetland/Scilly
Arctic Redpoll Shetland/Scilly
Barred Warbler Shetland/Scilly
Black-winged Stilt Long-stayers including breeders
Bluethroat Shetland/Scilly
Blyth's Reed Warbler Shetland/Scilly
Buff-breasted Sandpiper Scilly
Cetti's Warbler almost anywhere in the South!
Citrine Wagtail Shetland/Scilly
Common Crane Lakenheath,Eledernell, Hickling etc
Common Rosefinch Shetland/Scilly
Corncrake Balranald/Iona
Cory's Shearwater Cornwall
Eurasian Stone-curlew Weeting Heath
European Bee-eater Long-staying breeders most years now
European Honey Buzzard New Forest/Wykeham Forest
Golden Oriole Scilly (Spring)
Great Grey Shrike Many traditional wintering sites
Great Shearwater Cornwall
Greater Short-toed Lark Shetland/Scilly
Grey Phalarope Cornwall/Scilly
Leach's Storm Petrel Wirral
Little Bunting Shetland/Scilly
Long-tailed Skua Norfolk autumn
Marsh Warbler Shetland/Scilly
Melodious Warbler Portland August
Olive-backed Pipit Shetland/Scilly
Pallas's Warbler Shetland/Scilly
Pectoral Sandpiper Shetland/Scilly
Red-backed Shrike Shetland/Scilly
Red-breasted Flycatcher Shetland/Scilly
Red-flanked Bluetail Shetland/Scilly
Red-necked Phalarope Hebrides/Shetland
Richard's Pipit Scilly
Ring-billed Gull Copperhouse Creek
Ring-necked Duck Long-staying winterers, often returning birds
Rosy Starling Shetland/Scilly
Rough-legged Buzzard
Ruddy Shelduck - almost certainly most (especially multiples) are Continental Cat C5 birds
Sabine's Gull Cornwall
Spotted Crake Scilly
Surf Scoter Firth of Forth
Temminck's Stint Many East Coast locations especially autumn
Western Cattle Egret Warblington/Abbotsbury
White-billed Diver Portsoy
White-tailed Eagle Mull etc
Wilson's Storm Petrel Pelagic
Wryneck Scilly
And of the 236 common, 102 are listed as local
Arctic Tern Farnes (but almost anywhere on passage and all over Scotland in summer)
Avocet Minsmere! - but also, these days, almost any coastal wader habitat in Southern Britain.
Balearic Shearwater Cornwall
Bearded Tit Minsmere/Radipole/Farlington/Stodmarsh/Leighton Moss....
Black Grouse Langdon Beck
Black Guillemot Anywhere in coastal Western Scotland
Black Redstart Dungeness/Portland
Black Tern Crikey.Even Fleet Pond is pretty much annual. Almost anywhere.
Black-necked Grebe Staines Reservoir/Blashford Lakes
Black-throated Diver Northern Scotland
Brent Goose FFS
Caspian Gull Dungeness
Chough Lands End/Porthgwarra/Pembrokeshire/Anglesey
Cirl Bunting Labrador Bay/Prwale Point/Wembury
Common Eider Coastal everywhere!
Common Nightingale getting tougher but Minsmere/Pulborough Brooks
Common Quail Martin Down (hearing at least)
Common Redpoll check flocks of Redpolls
Crested Tit Loch Garten RSPB
Curlew Sandpiper Almost any coastal wader habitat August/September
Dartford Warbler Thursley/Frensham/New Forest
Eurasian Bittern Minsmere/Leighton Moss/Dungeness/Radipole etc
Eurasian Dotterel traditional passage sites e.g. Pendle Hill/Scilly
Eurasian Spoonbill Poole Harbour/Pennington
Eurasian Woodcock Shetland/Scilly/Anywhere with damp woodland when roding in spring
European Nightjar Thursley/Frensham/New Forest etc
European Shag Coast anywhere except South-east England
European Storm Petrel Cornwall/pelagic
European Turtle Dove Fowlmere RSPB
Firecrest Dungeness/Scilly/New Forest
Garganey Ouse Washes
Glaucous Gull Northern harbours/Dungeness
Golden Eagle North-west Scotland (deer forest better than grouse moor!)
Golden Pheasant ?
Grasshopper Warbler Widespread on spring passage. Tregaron Bog
Great Egret Somerset levels/Dungeness/Blashford Lakes
Great Northern Diver Selsey/Southampton Water/Gerrans Bay (common on many coasts)
Great Skua Shetland/Scilly/Dungeness/Selsey/Portland/Cornwall
Greater Scaup Loch Ryan/St Andrews present in small numbers on many coasts and inland waters
Greater White-fronted Goose Sheppey/Holkham/Scotney
Hawfinch Holyrood/Sizergh Castle/Blackwater Arboretum etc
Hen Harrier Sheppey/Arne/Wyke Down/Thornham
Hooded Crow NW of Inverness/Shetland
Iceland Gull Northern Harbours
Jack Snipe Shetland/Scilly/Spurn autumn
Kittiwake FFS
Lapland Bunting Shetland/Scilly/North Norfolk
Lesser Spotted Woodpecker East Blean Woods
Little Auk East Coast Nov/Jan suitable weather
Little Egret FFS
Little Gull Hornsea Mere/Dungeness etc
Little Stint any wader habitat in autumn
Little Tern Pennington/Cley
Long-eared Owl Shetland/Scilly/Dungeness
Long-tailed Duck Scottish coasts but also North Norfolk winter
Mandarin Duck Eyeworth Pond
Manx Shearwater Western coasts summer
Mediterranean Gull Portland/Pennington/Selsey/Dungeness
Merlin Shetland/Scilly/Orkney
Northern Fulmar Everywhere!
Northern Gannet Everywhere!
Northern Goshawk New Forest/Wykeham Forest
Peregrine Falcon Everywhere!
Pied Flycatcher South coast on passage Western woods (Forest of Dean,Wales) breeding
Pomarine Skua Shetland/Scilly/Cornwall/Selsey (Pom King competition!) Splash Point etc
Ptarmigan Glen Shee/Pass of the Cattle/Cairngorm
Puffin Farnes/Skolkholm/Portland etc
Purple Sandpiper Portland/Southsea/Aberdeen etc
Razorbill Any auk colony
Red Kite Ubiquitous in Southern England
Red-necked Grebe Firth of Forth
Red-throated Diver All coasts winter, Scotland/Orkney/Shetland summer
Ring Ouzel Pitstone Hill/Linkey Down/Dungeness/Portland/any upland habitat
Roseate Tern Farnes/other Northumberland sites
Ruddy Duck Tricky these days!
Sandwich Tern pretty much everywhere coastal
Scottish Crossbill Are you a believer?
Shore Lark Holkham
Short-eared Owl Sheppey
Slavonian Grebe Pennington
Smew Dungeness
Snow Bunting Shetland/Scilly/North Norfolk
Sooty Shearwater Cornwall
Spotted Redshank any wader habitat in spring or autumn
Taiga Bean Goose Slamannan (good luck) Cantley
Tundra Bean Goose Small groups in big flocks of Pinkfeet in Norfolk
Twite Shetland/North Norfolk
Velvet Scoter Firth of Forth/Offshore at Pett
Water Pipit Alresford/Lower Test Marshes/Staines Moor
Waxwing on berries
Western Capercaillie tough..... Speyside!
Western Marsh Harrier any wetland in Southern Britain
Western Osprey Loch of the Lowes is magnificent
Whimbrel Shetland/Scilly South coast on spring passage
White Wagtail = Pied - not a real problem!
Whooper Swan Welney/Caerlaverock/Shetland
Willow Tit tougher by the year, talk to locals
Wood Sandpiper any wader habitat in autumn
Wood Warbler Forest of Dean/Wales/Western Scotland
Woodlark lowland heaths
Yellow-browed Warbler Shetland/Scilly/almost anywhere in autumn
Yellow-legged Gull Blashford/Dungeness/landfill sites
And now the supposedly local stuff!
With things like "White Wagtail" on here I'm really not sure what they mean by "local"!
John
Great work.