Your Most Recent "Life" Bird (1 Viewer)

[birdmeister]

A research trip (road surveys) in the southern U.S. brought me a fantastic total of 20 lifers. My top three were, without a doubt, Swallow-tailed Kite, Roseate Spoonbill, and Short-tailed Hawk. The hawk was quite uncommon where we saw it, too (north of Gainesville, FL).

Mottled Duck
Anhinga
White Ibis
Roseate Spoonbill
Wood Stork
Swallow-tailed Kite
Snail Kite
Short-tailed Hawk
Common Gallinule
Purple Gallinule
Limpkin
Wilson's Plover
Marbled Godwit
Common Ground-Dove
Loggerhead Shrike
Brown-headed Nuthatch
Summer Tanager
Seaside Sparrow
Bachman's Sparrow
Painted Bunting

I should add that the highlight of the trip was reaching a melon field with dragonflies and their associated kite flock. There must have been about 60 Swallow-tailed and 20 Mississippi, many of which wheeled and dove right above the car!

 

[Julie50]

The buff breasted sandpiper and long billed dowitcher, both at Frampton. Many thanks to the RSPB staff and other birders who assisted me in seeing both!

 

[Warixenjalka]

Last Saturday in Viljandi, Estonia:

 

[birdmeister]

Yellow-bellied Flycatcher yesterday at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary.

 

[ClarkWGriswold]

Blue-winged Teal

 

[Farnboro John]

Blue-winged Teal

Two questions:

- plumage state

- distance?

Congratulations!

John

 

[ClarkWGriswold]

Two questions:

- plumage state

- distance?

Congratulations!

John

Up on Frankfield Loch John. So plumage state - meh. Distance - c50 metres. Would loved to have seen the Aultbea individual earlier in the year. Though possibly the same bird?

And ta by the way. Replaced the dodgy birds on my list with the Teal, Black-crowned Night Heron and Collared Pratincole :t:

Rich

 

[in vitrio]

Spotted flycatcher in Elgin, Morayshire, yesterday. Had never seen a flycatcher in the UK but it was doing the classic flycatcher thing of darting out, grabbing, and darting back. Which made it easy to spot as it was feeding every dozen seconds or so. And then helpfully perched prominently. Looked rather grey as opposed to brown though.

 

[Owene]

Wryneck at Ogmore today. Showed extremely well almost as soon as I arrived. One of my highlights of the year.

 

[Larry Sweetland]

Madeiran Storm Petrel (as I'm probably always gonna call it )

 

[solarrobor]

Marsh Owl on 22 August 2019

 

[Shadowfax40]

Red throated loon Upper Michigan in the Seney National wildlife refuge.

 

[mjh73]

Thick-billed Grasswren

The first time I've been paid to bag a lifer! I'm technically an engineer, but the ecology folks at work know that I have ornithology quals and experience so I occasionally get a gig when they need extra hands (well, eyes...). Didn't need much persuading to assist on this one.

 

[Farnboro John]

Brown Booby at Kynance Cove on Tuesday - world bird as well as a British tick, excellent views, bonus Choughs, grand day out!

John

 

[Owene]

Semi-palmated sandpiper. Nice scope views on my third attempt.

 

[ClarkWGriswold]

Nice one Owen. I managed my first Leach’s Petrel today thanks to Tate and Tom’s help.

Rich

 

[in vitrio]

A lost-looking little auk at Roa Island, Cumbria, UK. It swam into a rocky area under a lifeboat station and then couldn't work out how to do a u-turn. Took a while to get back out.

I'm going to con everyone at work it was a penguin.

 

[Owene]

Nice one Owen. I managed my first Leach’s Petrel today thanks to Tate and Tom’s help.

Rich

The sightings list for strumble looked amazing. My last visit a few weeks ago had 4 scoter as the highlight. Think I would have had at least two lifers from your day.

 

[Nutcracker]

A lost-looking little auk at Roa Island, Cumbria, UK. It swam into a rocky area under a lifeboat station and then couldn't work out how to do a u-turn. Took a while to get back out.

I'm going to con everyone at work it was a penguin.

Sorry, but that one's a juvenile Razorbill - too large for Little Auk, and also lacks the latter's white streaks on the secondary coverts. Young Razorbills take several months for their bills to grow to the full adult size. Also Little Auks are still up in the Arctic, and will be for some time yet.

 

[in vitrio]

Thanks - I thought it was a bit weird, but if it is a young one that explains it. Looks nothing like its parents...

In which case, ringed plover, same day, but on Walney Island.