Yellow-browed Warbler. Arch's biggest bogey bird, his Nemesis Bird, he calls it.
A brief history then.
October 2019, he's gripped off with a vocal but mobile Yellow-brow on Vicar's Lane by his younger brother while ticking Red-eyed Vireo. "Don't worry" says I (all voice of experience), "were spending half term in Cornwall, bound to get one there". Dipped at Porthgwarra, in a week of ridiculous gales & heavy rain.
"Don't worry" says I "we'll be doing loads of birding all over the place in 2020, bound to see one somewhere". Remember 2020?
Had a go in 2021, heading on to Bempton after Long-tailed Stint to miss a couple by a minute here, two minutes there, throughout the balance of the day.
This year's attempts I've already outlined upthread, almost went for one near Church Bay on Anglesey on Friday but a combination of forecast gales and our track record put me off. First bird reported on the WhatsApp group Friday morning? Yep, that's right.
So, to today, undeterred by more strong winds forecast, we arrived for a crack at the Church Bay bird (present 9 days and counting). Within minutes of our half seven arrival we heard it call. And it called, and it called, and it called. Didn't seem to be moving any though, just a bit of self talk to psyche itself up to leave its roost and have at the day. Then movement, chaser & chaser, I got onto the Yellow-browed (North Wales tick 272, 206 for the year), Arch, unfortunately locked onto a Chiffchaff. All fell quiet, until around fifteen minutes later, more calling, more views for me, none for Arch. Things then fell into a fifteen minute cycle of bursts of calling then nothing, but no more sightings. We were somewhat hampered by having to stay on the road looking along the hedgerow, without any vantage point available to look into the hedge from the side. Until a couple of friendly gents from the farming community stopped by for a a chat. "Oh, that's our field that is, help yourself, here, I'll get the gate". Excellent!
We now had a much better view of our search area, around a 40 yard stretch, maybe 10 yards deep, from which all calls throughout the morning emanated. However, views were still not forthcoming, although now upon each bout of calling we at least felt we could do justice to our searches.
Eventually Arch drily observed that the amount of time this month that we'd spent searching had eclipsed the entire series of The Sandman, with about as many Yellow-browed Warblers to show for it. By 11:40 he'd had enough, wanted to go. "Give it another twenty minutes" says I, trying to sound more optimistic then I was! Ten minutes later, calling again, seemed close, and then... there it is! Views for both of us this time, finally!!
Yellow-browed Warblers are lovely wee things, but even so I think it's going to be a long time before I devote any time to looking for one.
Two pics attached, first an appalling one of the bird (or its belly, at least), and another of the stretch of hedgerow from which all of the many calls & the few views were achieved. It did a damn good job of hiding the rest of the time!
