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BIRDING QUESTION HAVE YOU SIGNED UP FOR 2022? We ask this month’s contributors: What’s your #My200BirdYear challenge favourite UK birding location? Brandon Marsh, Coventry – one of Matt’s favourite nature reserves CHRISTOPHER NICHOLSON/ALAMY* Ian Parsons: “The Exe estuary in Devon, where I’m from. It’s full of great birds. Clouds of waders and gulls.” DAVID LINDO Welcome DAVID HARDING/ALAMY* ANN AND STEVE TOON/ALAMY David Lindo: W e all have our ...and the Bird Watching TOM BAILEY “Wormwood Scrubs in West favourite places to team’s answers London will forever be my go birding, whether MIKE WEEDON COVER IMAGES: NIGHTJAR: DAVID TIPLING PHOTO LIBRARY/ALAMY; BEE-EATER: BLICKWINKEL/ALAMY; ZEISS SFL 8X40: MIKE WEEDON favourite site no matter how they’re iconic, Matt Merritt: “Charnwood PHILIP SMITH/ALAMY* much HS2 tries to destroy it!” nationally-known Lodge LRWT – it’s where reserves, or more modest, locally-famous I first started birdwatching.” John Miles: “Geltsdale. spots (as most of mine are). I just have to walk out of the On page 27, we offer you 100 of Mike Weedon: “Nene house, through the woodland Britain’s best birding sites. Read about Washes, near Peterborough, I planted and onto the fell!” them, argue about them, but make has outstanding birds!” yourself a vow that you’ll visit at least a few of them when you Ruth Miller: “The Great get the chance. Tim Unwin: “I was blown Orme, Llandudno. My local If you want inspiration to see something really special this away by the variety of birds patch. It’s a huge limestone month, turn to page 40 and read all about the extraordinary on the Ceredigion coast!” headland which can turn up Nightjar – I can guarantee that a close encounter with this exciting migrants.” particular bird will live long in the memory. So, enjoy the long days and sunny weather, and tell us what GET IN TOUCH: you find on your travels this month. We’ll be out there enjoying it too. Bird Watching, Media House, Lynch Wood, Peterborough PE2 6EA Matt Merritt, editor SUBSCRIBE NEIL MCALLISTER/ALAMY* FOR @ [email protected] £4.30 facebook.com/BirdWatchingMag A MONTH SEE PAGE 6 twitter.com/BirdWatchingMag instagram/birdwatchingmag birdwatching.co.uk 3

Contents JULY Britains BEST BIRDING DESTINATIONS 27 70 ON THE COVER FEATURES 36 21 Flying start! 27 100 Best birding destinations minute 27 100 best birding destinations 36 30-minute birder A comprehensive list of the best birding 21 40 Nightjar sites in the UK, from Abberton, 47 ID Challenge Alkborough and Arne onwards... 70 Bee-eater 90 Zeiss SFL 8x40 review 40 Nightjar SIGN UP Head out late onto heathland at this time NOW! of year and you may well be entranced by this special bird, says Ian Parsons. BIRDWATCHING. CO.UK/MY200 68 Odiel Marshes 4 July 2022 Ruth Miller admires a saltwater reserve in Spain that does a great job in balancing the needs of industry and nature. 70 Bee-eater Rising global temperatures aren’t a problem for the glamorous Bee-eater, says Dominic Couzens. #MY200BIRDYEAR 21 A birdwatching beginner Anna Cooper talks about the ups and downs she’s experienced as a novice birder. 36 30-Minute Birder Combining running and birding is a rewarding challenge, says Amanda Tuke.

14 8 40 90 NEWS & VIEWS IN THE FIELD 78 16 Weedon’s World 8 Your Birding Month 98 There are plenty of technological ‘advances’ getting on Mike’s nerves. A close-up look at the juvenile Green BIRD THE WORLD Woodpecker, five species to watch out 18 NewsWire for, plus rarities, fieldcraft, grebes... 77 Travel The relaunch of Global Birdfair is well 14 Beyond Birdwatching Join us in the Scottish Highlands in underway, plus music, studies and more. autumn; who knows what we might see? There’s a lot more than just birds 19 Grumpy Old Birder to enthral eagle-eyed nature lovers. 78 Mull It’s time to start planting ‘fast forests’ 47 ID Challenge Ensure a short boat trip from the on otherwise useless wasteland... Scottish mainland to the Isle of Mull How well do you know your heathland is on your birding holiday wishlist. 65 Readers’ letters birds? Check out our ID tips! 84 The Urban Birder Woodcock wonders, owls in focus and 53 Go Birding many, many opinions about dogs... David Lindo reveals all about the Ten more UK birding locations, dimunitive Wren; a bird whose life is 67 Q&As tried and tested by our expert team. surrounded by myth, fable and legend... Having a gander at geese, a ‘rare’ finch, SUBSCRIBE FOR wonderful warblers, and a ‘white’ puzzle. £4.30 114 Back Chat PER MONTH* Singer-songwriter Stella Connelly talks about birding in Australia. SEE OVER THE PAGE BIRD SIGHTINGS *PRINT ISSUE WHEN YOU PAY BY DIRECT DEBIT 95 Rarity Round-Up If it’s rare and in the UK in April, the chances are it’s made it onto these pages. 98 UK Bird Sightings A comprehensive list of birds spotted in the UK, compiled by our experts. GEAR & REVIEWS 88 Nikon Coolpix P1000 A chunky camera that could almost replace a scope. We take a closer look. 90 Gear Zeiss binoculars reviewed, plus quality boots for outdoor exploration. 92 Wishlist Birding-related goodies for you to buy, save up for, or merely dream about. 93 Books The latest releases reviewed, including guides to Ireland and Ghana. birdwatching.co.uk 5

SUBSCRIBE TO FOR JUST PRINT ISSUE DELIVERED TO YOUR DOOR £4.30 WHEN YOU PAY BY MONTHLY DIRECT DEBIT OR £49.99 ANNUAL PAYMENT YOU’VE REALLY AN EXCELLENT MAGAZINE. HELPED IMPROVE I LOOK FORWARD TO MY BIRDING READING IT EACH MONTH R CLARKE DAVE FRANKS Call 01858 438884 Quote ZIAA Terms & Conditions: Subscriptions will start with the next available issue. The minimum term is 13 issues. You will not receive a renewal reminder and the Direct Debit payments will continue to be taken unless you tell us otherwise. This offer closes on 31st December 2022 and cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer. Cost from landlines for 01 numbers per minute are (approximate) 2p to 10p. Cost from mobiles per minute (approximate) 10p to 40p. Costs vary depending on the geographical location in the UK. You may get free calls to some numbers as part of your call package – please check with your phone provider. Order lines open 8am-9.30pm (Mon-Fri), 8am-4pm (Sat). UK orders only. Live Overseas? Please phone +44 1858 438828 for further details. For full terms and conditions please visit: www.greatmagazines.co.uk/offer-terms-and-conditions 6 July 2022

SUBSCRIPTION OFFER WANT THE DIGITAL ISSUE INSTEAD? £3.99 a month when you pay by direct debit or £39.99 annual payment WHY NOT GET BOTH PRINT & DIGITAL? £5.20 a month when you pay by direct debit or £59.99 annual payment SUBSCRIBE TODAY “Our mission is to bring you & BENEFIT FROM: everything you need for brilliant birding – and with this offer you FREE UK delivery of the print magazine, can subscribe to the magazine direct to your door for just £4.30 a month! Don’t miss out – take advantage of this Multi-device access to your digital issues great offer today!” Never miss an issue Matt Merritt, editor Save money TOM BAILEY PAUL R. STERRY - NPL/ALAMY* Order online today! greatmagazines.co.uk/bw birdwatching.co.uk 7

YOUR BIRDING MONTH JULY BIRD OF THE MONTH JUVENILE GREEN WOODPECKER The laughing ‘yaffle’ of the Green Woodpecker is one of the great sounds of spring. Familiar and pleasing on the ear, it is always wonderful to know that Green Woodpeckers are about and making their presence known. However, come the summer, the soundscape becomes a bit different. Instead of the mellifluous giggle of the territorial adult woodpeckers, the shouting of broken voiced teenagers takes over – usually as a response, it seems, to a human getting a bit too close while they are trying to hoover up ants on the ground. In addition to having a less pleasant voice, the juvenile Green Woodpecker is not as neat and pretty as its parents. It has the red crown, green back and yellow rump; but all are liberally covered in pale grey spots, and the underparts (including the moustache) are even more barred and spotted, giving the bird a grey, almost cryptic appearance, blending with the grass and dried ground of summer even better than adults. Green Woodpeckers are pretty common (more than 50,000 breeding pairs) widely distributed in the UK (though not on the island of Ireland), particularly in England and Wales. They are absent from much of western Scotland including the Hebrides, and don’t occur in the Northern Isles. Contrary to many people’s expectations, though Green Woodpeckers nest in trees, they spend most of their time feeding on the ground, using their long, narrow, sticky tongues to eat large quantities of ants, which comprise the vast majority of their diet. So, scan short-cropped fields and parks, especially with obvious anthills, to see if you can encounter one in action. Alternatively, you will hear them if they see you coming first! 8 July 2022

DID YOU TOBY HOULTON/ALAMY KNOW? If in spring you hear a woodpecker drumming, it won’t be a Green! They don’t drum. birdwatching.co.uk 9

FIVE TO FIND IN JULY All months have their charm for WILDLIFE GMBH/ALAMY birders. But the heat of summer sees little change in bird 1 GREENSHANK populations, and many of us turn our attentions to the delights of As many as 1,500 pairs of Greenshank nest in northern and north-western Scotland. other wildlife, as extolled by James For the rest of us, it is mainly seen as a passage bird. In July, the first juveniles start to Lowen in Beyond Birdwatching pass south through the country. They are similar to adults, but with a neater pattern of (see p14). That said, there are birds dark back and wing feathers with narrow pale fringes. to enjoy out there, and what better time to leave your local patch for a Greenshanks walk the tightrope between elegance and gawkiness, being long- spell and enjoy some special birds legged, long-necked and long-billed but ever so slightly ungainly at the same time. The further afield. Like these five juveniles often reveal their presence with a rather throaty version of the adults’ ‘pew pew species, perhaps? pew’ exclamation. Greenshanks are birds of freshwater habitats, where they can chase small fish and invertebrates. twitter.com/BirdWatchingMag facebook.com/BirdWatchingMag RARITY RATINGS Common, widely distributed Localised – always a treat Very scarce or rare DID YOU 2 RAZORBILL KNOW? A somewhat astonishing 130,000 pairs of these handsome black-and-white auks nest With a global breeding around the rocky coasts of the British Isles. population of about a They are the closest thing we have to a bird resembling the original ‘penguin’, the million pairs, the flightless and sadly extinct Great Auk. Razorbill may be Though looking quite like a Guillemot, the considered one of main distinction is the shape of the bill, the rarer auks. which is flattened like that of a Puffin, vaguely resembling an old-fashioned ‘cut-throat’ razor in black, with a white cross stripe. Other distinctions include white stripe from the eye to the bill, the black rather than dark brown upperparts ,and the longer tail, as well as the choice of nesting site, less tied to thin ledges on vertical cliffs. BLICKWINKEL/ALAMY 10 July 2022

YOUR BIRDING MONTH RARITY PREDICTOR Here is our guess about which really rare birds may be heading our way... 3 ROCK DOVE MIKE WEEDON MICK DURHAM FRPS/ALAMY Here is a dove which does not get enough love. The trouble is the Rock Dove is the ancestor of all the birds we call Feral Pigeons and Racing Pigeons and the line between a pure, ‘genuine’, ELEGANT TERN PERRY VAN MUNSTER/ALAMY wild Rock Dove and a Feral Pigeon is somewhat blurred. Some birdwatchers don’t even look at Feral Pigeons, let alone ‘tick’ them or ‘count’ them on their lists. So, coming to terms with STEVE ROUND/ALAMY With fewer than 20 accepted UK records a Rock Dove can be a challenge, psychologically! True Rock Doves in the UK are believed to involving many fewer individuals (with be only found on the north and west coasts of Scotland and the coast of Northern Ireland. But birds reappearing over several years), this JAMES EATON, AGHAMI PHOTO AGENCY/ALAMY birds which look just about indistinguishable from Rock Doves also occur elsewhere, such as large, orange-billed tern is seriously rare. some cliffs on the east coast of Great Britain. Wild birds are consistent in their pattern, with two But, with recent breeding in Spain and broad dark wing bars and a clean white rump. Go on, give them a bit of love! birds seen regularly in France, the chances of UK records has increased. 4 JUVENILE This was demonstrated with the long- MISTLE staying bird on Anglesey and Lancashire, THRUSH last summer. A repeat this summer? Let’s hope so. Comfortably the least common of our three common breeding BOOTED EAGLE thrushes (Blackbirds are abundant, and Song Thrushes Here’s a bird so rare that it’s not even on not too far behind), the big, the British List. Yet, just about every year handsome Mistle Thrush is at there are reports of them in the UK. And times quite a shy and elusive every year, those reports are ‘rejected’. bird, somehow easily forgotten. Surely, Booted Eagles from France would So, it is often something of be capable of taking on the short crossing a surprise when you encounter over the Channel to England. With cameras a juvenile Mistle Thrush out and as good as they are, a real one will surely about. As with other thrushes, be documented soon. This summer? the juvenile resembles its parents, but is somewhat GREATER SAND PLOVER spottier, especially on the upper parts (with abundant pale spotting), and also has a slightly scruffier look to it. See if you can find one this month. It was back in the summer of the first lockdown year of 2020 that Tyninghame 5 SPOTTED FLYCATCHER Bay, Lothian hosted a first-summer Greater Sand Plover seemingly forever. Famously poorly named, the Spotted Flycatcher is not really spotted In May, this year, one is hanging around (though the youngsters are notably spottier than the parents), more slightly Co. Waterford in Ireland. Brace yourself streaked on the breast and crown. They are flycatchers, though! And at for another in the UK this month! catching flies they excel. They are in many ways nondescript LBJs, but when swooping gracefully to snap the bill (audibly) on a flying insect, before sweeping back elegantly to the perch whence they came, the bird elevates itself to something wonderful. CARL MORROW/ALAMY birdwatching.co.uk 11

WHAT’S IN A NAME? PENDULINE TIT VOLKER LAUTENBACH, IMAGEBROKER/ALAMY The Penduline Tit (or European Penduline Tit or even Eurasian Penduline Tit) is a widely distributed member of the family Remizidae (which are not really tits, though they look like them). The name Penduline is purely down to the neatly-woven, pouch-like hanging nest, with an added entrance tunnel, usually found dangling over water. TRACKS & SIGNS BREEDING BIRDS OF PREY IN NUMBERS FLPA/ALAMY 80,000 Approximate count of the number of pairs of what is now the UK’s most numerous breeding bird of prey: the Buzzard 50,000 Number of pairs of Tawny Owl in the UK’s woodlands PTARMIGAN DROPPINGS 46,000 ED BROWN WILDLIFE/ALAMY In common with other grouse (such as the Red Grouse), the droppings of Ptarmigans DAVID TIPLING, NATURE PICTURE LIBRARY/ALAMY Number of pairs of Kestrel nesting in the UK REMO SAVISAAR/ALAMY* are pellet-like and comprise fibrous plant material. Ptarmigans live so high up in mountains that there appears to be just rock for them to feed on. But somehow, they 2,800 scrape a living extracting nutrients from the scanty plant matter growing up there. And what they can’t digest reappears in the pellets (looking rather like the original plant). Total UK breeding pairs of the booming Hobby FIELDCRAFT 440 LATE EVENING VIGIL Breeding pairs of Golden Eagle in Scotland It is slightly depressing to think that the days are getting shorter. So, don’t think about it, 400 and instead remember that July’s days are still very long! And that means there is plenty Number of pairs of time to go out birding well into the evening. of British Marsh Depending on where you go, you may be able to enjoy the late evening insect hunting Harriers of Hobbies (right), or perhaps the first feeding forays of Short-eared or Barn Owls. And as day eventually turns into night, so Grasshopper Warblers will still be singing and, given the right habitat the first calls of Grey Partridge, Quail, and even the song of the Nightjar, start to fill the air. Make the most of these long evenings of July. 12 July 2022

YOUR BIRDING MONTH UK’s breeding grebes UK TIDES JULY As there is only about one breeding pair of Red-necked Grebes in the UK, it will not appear here. But remember, that where there is one, there may be more unseen and unknown. And also remember that non-breeding scarce The times below are grebes in summer plumage may appear at this time of year. for high tide, when waders and wildfowl will be pushed closer to dry land... Find the location closest to your destination and add or subtract the hours and minutes from the high tide time at London Bridge, below. Date Time m Time m 1F 03:03 6.72 15:18 6.56 ROLF NUSSBAUMER PHOTOGRAPHY /ALAMY 2Sa 03:39 6.66 15:51 6.51 DAVID WHITAKER/ALAMY 3Su 04:13 6.60 16:25 6.44 4M 04:48 6.53 17:00 6.35 5Tu 05:26 6.43 17:36 6.24 6W 06:07 6.29 18:17 6.14 7Th 06:54 6.15 19:06 6.06 8 F 07:51 6.04 20:06 6.02 9Sa 09:00 6.03 21:27 6.10 10 Su 10:12 6.15 22:40 6.34 11 M 11:18 6.34 23:45 6.64 12 Tu 12:21 6.54 13W 00:45 6.90 13:18 6.70 Little Grebe Great Crested Grebe 14 Th 01:42 7.11 14:12 6.81 Though you may expect the more obvious Great Crested With 4,600 breeding pairs, the elegant Great Crested 15 F 02:36 7.25 15:03 6.90 Grebe to be the most common UK breeding grebe, the Grebe was once so threatened that the RSPB owes its title goes to the Dabchick or Little Grebe, which has 5,300 existence in a large part to its near demise! Easily our 16Sa 03:28 7.34 15:51 6.95 breeding pairs on the most recent count. These are well largest grebes, these pale and unmistakable beauties are named, as they are pretty tiny for water birds, looking familiar across most of the country, particularly in England. 17Su 04:18 7.32 16:36 6.93 comparable to a duckling in size. They are dark in plumage Though all our grebes have pretty elaborate breeding and rather rounded in shape with a relatively stumpy or displays, those of the Great Crested are the most familiar 18M 05:06 7.17 17:21 6.83 even blunt looking bill. Most of the feathers are black or and most obvious. The pair face each other and mimic dark brown, with a generous splash of reddish on the each other’s actions, nodding and fake preening and 19 Tu 05:53 6.93 18:05 6.68 cheeks and throat and a whiter, fluffy rear end. The bill is shaking their heads and suchlike; and at the most black with a yellow gape area, giving them an extra hint of spectacular, both dive for waterweed, return to the surface 20W 06:41 6.65 18:52 6.49 ‘chick’ in their appearance. They’re generally quite shy, and perform the belly-to-belly ‘penguin dance’ or ‘weed hiding in waterside vegetation or diving when disturbed, dance’. The calls are odd, gruff barkings, which always 21 Th 07:30 6.36 19:44 6.28 and betraying their presence with a whinnying call. seem anomalous from such graceful birds. 22 F 08:21 6.11 20:41 6.10 23Sa 09:17 5.92 21:42 5.98 24 Su 10:20 5.83 22:48 6.00 25 M 11:29 5.94 23:51 6.17 26 Tu 12:25 6.16 27 W 00:45 6.40 13:12 6.38 28Th 01:31 6.58 13:52 6.53 29 F 02:12 6.68 14:30 6.62 30Sa 02:49 6.73 15:05 6.68 31Su 03:24 6.78 15:39 6.71 SOUTH WEST Milford Haven Weston-Super-Mare (+4:37) (+5:05) Cardiff (+5:15) Barnstaple (+4:30) Newquay (+3:32) NORTH WEST Falmouth (+3:30) Whitehaven (-2:30) Plymouth (+4:05) Douglas (-2:44) Torquay (+4:40) Morecambe (-2:33) Bournemouth Blackpool (-2:50) (-5:09)* Portland (+4:57) NORTH EAST St Peter Port Skegness (+4:29) (+4:53) Grimsby (+4:13) Swanage (-5:19)* Bridlington (+2:58) Portsmouth (-2:29) Whitby (+2:20) Southampton (-2:53) Hartlepool (+1:59) Blyth (+1:46) SOUTH EAST Berwick (+0:54) REMO SAVISAAR/ALAMY Ryde (-2:29) PHILIP MUGRIDGE/ALAMY Brighton (-2:51) SCOTLAND Eastbourne (-2:48) Leith (+0:58) Dungeness (-3:05) Dundee (+1:12) Dover (-2:53) Aberdeen (-0:18) Margate (-1:52) Fraserburgh (-1:28) Herne Bay (-1:24) Lossiemouth (-2:00) Southend-on-sea Wick (-2:29) (-1:22) Lerwick (-2:50) Black-necked Grebe Slavonian Grebe Clacton-on-sea Stromness (-4:29) Having only 30-50 breeding pairs, widely spread across Of a similar size to the Black-necked Grebe and easily (-2:00) Scrabster (-5:09) England, these delightful grebes are pretty rare breeders. mistakable for that bird in black-and-white winter garb, They are more familiar as black-and-white winter birds, in the summer, the two small, rare grebes look quite Stornoway (+5:30) but are at their finest in the breeding season, when the different, yet equally beautiful. There are only about back, neck and head are wholly black apart from the 30 breeding pairs and all are in the Scottish Highlands EAST ANGLIA Ullapool (+5:36) golden ear tufts. The eye is like a bright ruby and the bill (though in winter they are found around the UK coasts). is black, quite fine and pointed, looking almost upturned. Breeding adults have gorgeous reddish necks and Felixstowe Pier Gairloch (+5:16) The flanks are red brown and the final ID feature is the flanks, a black back and black crown and cheek ‘flares’ peaked crown (which is highest in the centre). They are with glorious golden tufts where the supercilium (-2:23) Oban (+4:12) a little bigger than Little Grebes and are known to nest (‘eyebrow’) would be on other birds. Like the in association with noisy ‘protector’ species such as the Black-necked, the eye is bright red; but the bill is Aldeburgh (-2:53) Greenock (-1:19) colonies of Black-headed Gulls. straighter and more ‘peg-like’, black with a pale tip. Lowestoft (-4:23) Ayr (-1:44) Cromer (+4:56) Campbeltown Hunstanton (+4:44) (-1:12) Girvan (-1:51) WALES Kirkcudbright Bay Colwyn Bay (-2:47) (-2:25) Holyhead (-3:28) Barmouth (-5:45) IRELAND Aberystwyth (-6:11) Londonderry (-5:32) Fishguard (+5:44) Belfast (-2:47) Swansea (+4:42) Donegal (+4:20) *Approximate times due to large variance between the month’s neap and spring tides. All times are GMT. birdwatching.co.uk 13

YOUR BIRDING MONTH Beyond Birdwatching Whether day or night, north or south, INSECT wood or field, wildlife diversity is the name of the game in July, says James Lowen. Bitten by beauty DORSET From painful experience, you may think that horseflies EXCLUSIVE are best avoided. But take a close look at a Band-eyed Brown Horsefly and you might rethink. In particular, gaze You’ll need to make a special into the vivid green and red compound eyes after which trip to see Lulworth this insect is named. Across their middle runs a stunning Skipper. This tiny, broad violet-red band – unexpected beauty might just be golden-winged worth any subsequent bite. butterfly curiously lives only in tall PLANT grassland on chalk, and survives solely Tall grass along a relatively short stretch of Dorset coast Visit sandy heaths or moorland – yet can be abundant in south-west England or south where it occurs. Wales and you may come across a tall, tufty grass called Bristle Bent. It often grows as single plants, but sometimes large patches form when the species seeds well on disturbed or burnt ground. PLANT MOTH Verdant stunner Green is an unusual colour among butterflies and moths, so the appearance of a verdant moth in one’s trap is often cause for celebration. All the more so when it is as swoonsome as Blotched Emerald. Fifty years ago, this oak-loving moth’s peak flight season was July, but climate change has advanced that to June. Nevertheless, it’s still on the wing during the first half of this month. MOTH PLANT Special heath Lappet up Plant thief PICTURES: JAMES LOWEN The British Isles harbour several Arguably as much Womble as moth is The Lappet, Broomrapes are species of heath or heather, of its peculiar form comprising a desiccated, deep thieves of the botanical which Dorset Heath is one of the chestnut leaf with a remarkable bibber’s nose world. They possess more localised. Characterised by (technically, the moth’s ‘palps’). Once widely no chlorophyll, so long, balloon-shaped flowers, it distributed in England, it has disappeared from cannot generate grows only on somewhat damp swathes of the country – and the population is now nutrients for heathlands in south-east Dorset just 3% of what it was in 1970. Nevertheless, many growth through (particularly Purbeck, where a moth-ers caught multiple Lappets last July, photosynthesis. large new National Nature suggesting a strong breeding season. Might 2022 Instead, they must Reserve was designated in 2020), be as good? hijack a host plant, and pilfer its life force. Most west Cornwall and odd sites in broomrape species target just a single host Devon and Hampshire. species, after which they are conveniently named and beside which they invariably grow. Which is just as well, as broomrapes are generally devilishly difficult to identify. This one was sprouting out of a clump of ivy, which makes it Ivy Broomrape... right?! 14 July 2022

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PATCH DIARY Weedon's World After a quiet spring passage around his home area, Mike is feeling slightly dejected about the impact of technology D o you remember the ‘Battle of Britpop’? It was some media-hype nonsense in the 1990s about who was best out of the pop groups Blur or Oasis. The former were billed as middle class art school types and the latter as champions of the working class. Neither band tickled my fancy, as it wasn’t really my ‘era’ (I am more of a 1960s and 1970s rock fan), but the strangest thing was setting up a competition between the bands as if they were football teams or the equivalent. The public were encouraged to take sides, as if you could only like one band. What twaddle. Why am I talking about this? Well, one of the great things about birding around the Peterborough area is the spirit of cooperation between the local ‘listers’ and particularly ‘year listers’; helping each other see birds as best as we can. Well, that is how it has been for most of my time living here. The closest MIKE WEEDON we got to competition was the annual GPOG (Greater Peterborough Ornithological Group) 24-hour Bird Race. But, even during that ‘day in the field’ trying to see (or hear) more birds than the other teams, we had a gentlemen’s agreement I have no objections to this, but it is not really birding, Above Male Whinchat, that if a very decent bird was seen, whoever saw it would more finding out what you could hear if you stay up all night! near Spalding, Lincolnshire, call the other teams to give them a chance to see it, too! Then there’s a personal bugbear of mine: ‘playback’ aka ‘tape 6 May 2022 But, I fear the times they are a-changing. It is a subtle luring’: using recordings of bird sounds to get ‘better’ views, or Mike Weedon is a lover of all change, but I sense the feeling of mutual help and cooperation at least stimulate a reaction. Various local birdwatchers have wildlife, a local bird ‘year lister’, and a has declined slightly, this year. And I suspect that technology told me, recently, how they have used playback to see scarce keen photographer, around his and birding techniques have something to do with this change. passage birds, including Redstarts; rare breeders including home city of Peterborough, where When I was youngster, birding was about going out looking Lesser Spotted Woodpecker; and even relatively common, but he lives with his wife, Jo, and children, for birds with a pair of binoculars plus a notebook (if you were elusive species, like Water Rail. Yes, I see its potential value Jasmine and Eddie. You can see his a good birder, which I generally wasn’t) and good old fieldcraft. of playback in some situations, such as vital bird surveys. photos at weedworld. I lived in Surrey, and we used to make the odd, shy phone call But would I ever put a ‘tape lured’ bird on my year list? No. blogspot.com to places like Dungeness Bird Observatory or to birders ‘in the In early May, I saw two lovely male Whinchats on the same know’ to ask what had been around; then beg for lifts… day. The first was at Ferry Meadows CP, Peterborough, in the These days, technology is king. I get to hear about local birds middle of a set of rough fields. And it was even singing a lovely, through my mobile and apps such as WhatsApp. That is great, short, scratchy warble! The other was also in a rough field, in theory, and in black and white. But, grey areas occur. favouring barbed wire fences, near Spalding in south Lincs. Members of the WhatsApp groups may report the ‘wrong’ Unlike the FM Whinchat, this bird was close enough to birds (too common or too ‘sensitive’, such as rare breeders); photograph, and several photographers came along and or report them too early (eg., before the ID is confirmed) snapped it from their cars. I decided to hang on after they had or too late (eg., after dark). Or they give gone and, having figured out its slightly inaccurate locality details; or IT WAS EVEN favoured circuit, waited ages until the dare to veer from stringent ‘posting SINGING A LOVELY, chat approached my vehicle. rules’ set up by ‘admins’. SHORT, SCRATCHY A little before it finally came close, So, depending on the group, I saw its bill open, its throat flutter, and of course, people are told they have WARBLE! I could just hear a quiet little subsong, acted poorly, or that they have posted like the earlier bird, but much softer. inappropriately. If not handled well, Two singing Whinchats in a day, members of a group can feel patronised, resentful and even superb, was my initial thought. But then I wondered: was it ostracised. The spirit of friendly exchange of information singing just because some time earlier another photographer for mutual benefit can appear compromised. had played a recording of a singing Whinchat to it? That may Technology is also behind the modern phenomenon of be just speculation, but it was enough to take the edge off the ‘noc mig’ (nocturnal migration), when birders put a sound thrill of hearing this singing Whinchat. Something, however recorder out all night, then check later on their computers slightly, had been spoiled. which birds have called flying over. It has been amazing to find I feel the use/misuse of technology has eroded a little what has been flying around at night. But in some ways, it is of the pleasure of my annual year listing challenge. In the just reinforcing what we already knew: birds migrate at night. words of Blur: “You’re taking the fun out of everything”. 16 July 2022

MORE NL PURE ONE WITH NATURE SEE THE UNSEEN



NEWS IN BRIEF NEWS & OPINION Music to our ears G rumpy Old Birder A Guide to the Birdsong of This month, Bo talks about planting ‘fast’ Western Africa is released forests on otherwise useless wasteland... on 16 June via Shika Shika – it’s the third album from D oes Akira Miyawaki mean hand that should be given is watering and The Birdsong Project, which anything to you? A sumo star weeding for a couple of years. Thereafter, challenges musicians to create perhaps, or maybe a character the trees reach for the skies and the winners an original track from the song from the Lion King? The name of the wacky race naturally thin out the rest. of an endangered bird. The meant nothing to me until project is 100% non-profit, recently, which is so sad. Maybe, if someone A stable, multi-layered mature woodland is with all proceeds from sales listens locally, I might just about be able to established in 20 or 20 years rather than going to help conservation see a woodland planted and mature before hundreds of years! In such plantations, trees organisations in the region. I shuffle off to make compost. grow 10 times faster, averaging an astounding Through the first two volumes, This visionary died in the middle of last one metre a year. Moreover, because they are the project has already raised year aged 93, some 20 years my senior. faster to grow and there are many more of them, more than $50,000 for bird But his name lives on as shorthand for a they absorb much more ‘carbon’. They survive conservation across method of reforestation that could transform droughts better and deal with impoverished or Latin America. our cities, brownfields and unproductive polluted soils. agricultural deserts. Genetic studies His is a very simple idea… sort of a Of course, the woodland is also more resilient ‘no brainer’ really, if you start with his first tenet: and biodiverse because it’s what’s meant to be A new conservation study that you plant the sort of trees that are the most there, not a dark, dead plantation only good for co-led by the University of common, native species in any area. Sampling Grey Squirrels. You can expect these woods to East Anglia suggests that the soil to see what it might benefit, you select be full of song in the canopy, and buzzing boosting a species’ numbers the tree types that would generate if the land insects where light allows native flowers to is not enough to save it hadn’t been clear-felled by our Iron Age regenerate, too. from extinction. Despite a ancestors or Middle Ages landlords. population increase, the In my corner of the UK that would probably It’s not just a quick fix, it’s also a long-term research team’s analysis of be a mix of oak and Ash, or maybe a stand of one. Stabilising slopes, reducing pollutants, the once critically endangered Beech. A few places would favour wet woods of sequestering ‘carbon’ and enriching all our lives. Pink Pigeon of Mauritius shows birch, Alder and willow and the Welsh hanging the species has a high genetic valleys oak, alone. None would favour It’s ideal for towns and cities where land load of bad mutations, which introduced species like Lodge Pole Pine, is at a premium, awkward leftover plots, puts it at considerable risk of Horse Chestnut or Sycamore. demolition sites and rusting industrial badlands extinction in the wild within Then, you pick a bit of land we’ve thoroughly can go from eyesore to urban micro-forests 100 years, without continued messed with, be it where heavy industry has that become community assets in a couple conservation actions. The fallen into ruin or some chemically scoured of decades. research will be used to help it ‘field’ no longer of use to plant or beast. and other threatened species. Measure the plot and order your ‘whips’, What is more, just a couple of years into but not at the rate of 1,000 per hectare, their lives they require nothing more than It’s easy as 1 2 3... but 20 or 30 times as many! what Mother Nature gifts them. No costly Plant your seedlings more densely than maintenance and chemical use. Of course, The African Bird Club seems sensible! Why? Because that is how some seedlings and saplings die, but the fittest (ABC) has launched its actual forests regenerate when storm felled survive at high densities, quickly establishing revamped website: www. trees or big beasts create sunlit clearings. functioning ecosystems that can cope with africanbirdclub.org. It There, all the acorns germinate and grow, and, everything thrown at them from manmade includes information on as they do, they shoot up competing for light, pollution to climate change. Edged with conservation programmes just like in the wild wood. The one helping ponds and meadows, they become bug and partnerships, and you and bird paradises! can also access free birding apps, all-new ABC region Bo Beolens runs fatbirder.com and other and country accounts, a websites. He has written a number of books. comprehensive video library and a growing African bird GET IN image database. Visitors are TOUCH urged to take a look around the site, see how they can Want to add anything support the ABC, and email: to Bo’s comments? [email protected] Email us at birdwatching@ bauermedia.co.uk ALAN PEMBLETON/ALAMY “Mighty oaks from little acorns grow” birdwatching.co.uk 19

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BROUGHT TO YOU IN PARTNERSHIP WITH SET A TARGET OF SEEING 200 BIRDS IN ONE YEAR! Sign up to #My200BirdYear Okay, we’re halfway through the beauty of #My200BirdYear – a UK list or by casting your net further the year – would it be you decide exactly what counts and afield. We’re not suggesting you race off possible to complete the what doesn’t. in pursuit of rarities, just that at a time #My200BirdYear challenge of year where many of us travel anyway, even starting now? While a July start might make it nigh on our holidays, it’s always possible to Well, yes. It depends on exactly what on impossible to see 200 self-found species, see new birds. So, here are five tips for parameters you set for yourself, but that’s say, or 200 in a particular county or region late starters. You can still hit the 200! of the UK, you could still manage it for Bempton Cliffs, East Yorkshire 1Savour the summer holiday towns within very easy reach of worse than seeing something new or DAVID PORTER/ALAMY Make sure you see as many of our Bempton Cliffs RSPB, a seabird city with unusual and being not quite able to clinch summer visitors as possible, because for guaranteed wow factor. the ID because your bins are sitting on the the most part this is your only chance shelf at home. (a few, such as Blackcap and Chiffchaff, 3Plan ahead linger all year in small numbers). Don’t worry When you get a rainy day, work out 5Don’t give up! too much about those species that are here which winter visitors you can reasonably After the initial thrill of clocking up all all year, for now – you’ll have all autumn expect to see in your normal birding area, the easier to find species, it can be easy and the start of winter to find them. and where you might see them. Then do the to get discouraged after a couple of quiet same for any all-year species you haven’t weeks, but don’t be! Autumn migration offers 2Do your research seen so far. You’ll soon see the gaps in your perhaps even greater potential than spring, If you are going on holiday, or on day list starting to fill up. and remember that birds are on the move trips, check to see whether there are any all the time. A few years ago, BW editor good birding spots where you’re going, 4Go equipped Matt Merritt reached exactly 200 by adding and any key species. Sometimes, a Summer’s long days and warm weather five species on New Year’s Eve (three of 10-minute break in your journey can turn mean we’re out and about generally a lot more them gulls dropping into a nearby reservoir). into a memorable birding experience. than at other times of year, so keep some You can’t rely on that sort of luck, but the For example, there’s a host of Yorkshire optics handy wherever you are. There’s nothing more you look, the luckier you get. birdwatching.co.uk 21



#MY200BIRDYEAR Avocets at Goat Walk Robin at Leighton Moss Woodpigeon at Blackpool Zoo never seen them before! For example, my three big highlights of the year… birdwatching.co.uk 23 In third place: watching Dippers a few times on the stream at Barton Grange Garden Centre, near Preston. I’ve only ever seen these birds on TV and find them so interesting, so unique. Who knew I could watch them quite regularly from one of my favourite cafés? (In the same spot, I’ve also seen Jays, a Grey Heron, a Treecreeper, and a blue flash of Kingfisher – but these fly along the stream so amazingly fast you can’t ever actually see them properly.) In second place: I think my favourite group of birds are the various delicate little songbirds, finches etc, you get on feeders. At Leighton Moss, I sat alone once at the feeding station and saw at least 12 different species in half an hour. I love the way the birds ‘drop in’ for a moment, like taking their turn on stage. The star appearances were Nuthatch, Bullfinch, and something I’ve #My200BirdYear ticklist Download and print off our 2022 #My200BirdYear ticklist to track your progress throughout the year... www.birdwatching.co.uk/ my-200-sign-up

never seen in my life before, or even been aware of as existing – a Lesser Redpoll. To think of all the years I sat at my desk at work, unaware that these beautiful little birds were flitting round somewhere out there in the woods! Luckily, I got plenty of photos to capture the moment. Surprise flycatcher Lesser Redpoll I will just note things I haven’t seen before, But my number one sighting – again of some- in my life; Reed Buntings on the feeders at and will make it a cumulative ‘since 2021’ list. thing I had never known existed before – was Brockholes; Bearded Tits at Leighton Moss in a (male) Pied Flycatcher. I was walking alone November – what beautiful colours; masses My wishlist of species yet to see includes – around a little zoo in the Lake District, and of Whooper Swans at Martin Mere; huge was actually thinking that I was getting a bit murmurations of Starlings over Blackpool piers Yellowhammer, Siskin, Goldcrest, Wheatear, disillusioned with birdwatching, because it was – a stunning wildlife spectacle; and Gannets always ‘the usual suspects’ (Blackbird, Blue Tit, flying alongside the Holyhead to Dublin ferry. Stonechat, Water Rail, Stock Dove, Bittern. Robin, Woodpigeon, Mallard, Crow, Magpie...) Then I glanced up at a tree and there it was – a I have also learned the difference between And anything else I haven’t seen yet! beautiful, distinctive little black-and-white bird, Lesser Black-backed Gulls (yellow legs) and posing on a branch just long enough for me to Great Black-backed Gulls (pink legs), though I just wanted to include reference to what get some photos. After about 10 seconds it was have yet to get a decent photo of the latter. gone, which really made me reflect… But what I consider to be my three ‘bereavement birds’. if I hadn’t visited that place on that day? What So, thanks to my late-in-the-year trip if I hadn’t looked in that particular direction? to Exmouth (mainly to see Avocets), I have The Nuthatch is special to me, because my late What if I’d only looked for a different achieved my 100 species target – in fact I’m on 10 seconds, when it wasn’t there? 103. Unexpectedly, I saw a new duck the other husband and I always saw them when we went day on a blustery little lake (several of them, The moral of the story – go places, keep diving regularly). White below, dark head, black to a particular little clearing/viewpoint at your eyes open, you might get lucky. back and tail, and a clear white mark on the face near the beak – revealed by my guidebooks as Wakehurst Place, Sussex – we used to call it Another revelation has been the sound of Goldeneye (though I was too far away to see the Chiffchaff. I’ve walked in parks and in the the eye, clearly). ‘Nuthatch Grove’. He worked for a while in an countryside many times over the decades, but just not known this particular distinctive song. Going forward, I will definitely list accounts office at a big cemetery and came to Once it’s been pointed out to you, well, I just birdwatching as one of my interests, but I’ve can’t believe how often I hear it all over the decided that, with regard to the My200 list, I’m really appreciate the wildlife there, particularly place – including in the background on TV not going to start again from scratch every year. programmes! Chiffchaffs are everywhere! Foxes and Green Woodpeckers, which I reliably Other birds I have seen and enjoyed and see and hear whenever I visit that place, now. photographed during the year include: groups of Sanderlings and Turnstones rushing about The other bird is the Robin, which moved on beaches and promenades; House Sparrows in the bushes of people’s gardens – I thought they me by always singing at night under the were rare now, but I still see them a lot; plenty of Wrens – I’ve never seen these much before streetlamps, right outside our front door, during Whooper Swans the sad months when I was visiting the hospital at Martin Mere every day (as if to say “have strength, there’s hope, and even if it goes badly, there will still be beauty in the world, and I’ll still sing for you”.) And finally, a few comments about other bird encounters I have enjoyed on previous holidays abroad. Loved the little yellow Bananaquit on palm trees in the Caribbean – I always said the birds there sound like insects (the Bananaquit makes a strange long quiet sound like a cicada), and the insects sound like birds (I was convinced when I first heard the loud chirping of Caribbean crickets that they must be birds). Also, sitting in an outdoor swimming pool on the deck of a cruise ship, lovely Brown Pelicans would come and fly around the ship, looking down at you. In Kenya, on a Hippo- filled lake, I saw beautiful black-and-white kingfishers, as well as lots of fish eagles. And on holiday in Romania once, I will never forget seeing the lovely yellow of Golden Orioles flying right over my head. I see they feature on the My200 list – maybe next year! BW Sign up to the challenge – go to birdwatching.co.uk/my200 24 July 2022



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Britains BEST BIRDING DESTINATIONS W ant to see the best of the UK’s birds? 3Hayle Estuary, Cornwall MACIEJ OLSZEWSKI/ALAMY Porthgwarra, Cornwall Here’s a round hundred of what we When: Winter consider the best places to watch Why: Huge numbers of wildfowl such as Wigeon 9Arne RSPB, Dorset them – from small urban sites to iconic wetland and Teal, plus waders such as Curlew. RSPB When: Summer wildernesses. We’re not suggesting you make reserve is excellent, but don’t ignore the rest of Why: Heathland specialities, such as Nightjar, special visits to them all, of course, but keep the the estuary Wood Lark and Dartford Warbler, while list and drop in on them whenever you get the Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ Spoonbills are possible nearby chance. Remember, too, that getting to know reserves-a-z/hayle-estuary/ Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ your own local patch really well will always reserves-a-z/arne/ be the best way of widening your all-round 4Taw and Torridge Estuaries, Devon birding knowledge. When: Winter 10Chew Valley Lake, Avon Why: Lots of waders and wildfowl, plus egrets When: Autumn South West and raptors, at multiple locations ranging from Why: Lots of wildfowl at all times, plus migrants, Isley Marsh RSPB to smaller sites accessed but autumn storms can also bring in seabirds 1Isles of Scilly from the Tarka Trail such as petrels and sea-ducks When: Spring and autumn migration periods Info: www.devonbirds.org/birdwatching/ Info: www.bristolwater.co.uk/chewvalleylake; Why: Great chance of various transatlantic places_to_go/taw_torridge_estuary www.cvlbirding.co.uk vagrants, plus more common passage birds Info: www.islandwildlifetours.co.uk is a great 5Exe Estuary, Devon 11Steart Marshes WWT, Somerset place to start looking; more details also at When: Pretty much year-round When: Winter, although good at all times www.islesofscilly-travel.co.uk Why: Multiple sites, including Bowling Green Why: Waders, wildfowl and plenty of raptors Marsh RSPB and Dawlish Warren NNR – such as Peregrine and Merlin 2Porthgwarra, Cornwall wildfowl and waders are the main attractions Info: www.wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/ When: Late summer into autumn Info: www.birdspot.co.uk/bird-watching-on-the- steart-marshes/ Why: Falls of migrants, plus great seawatching exe-estuary at Gwennap Head – target bird 12Somerset Levels Cory’s Shearwater 6Portland Bill, Dorset When: Autumn and winter are best, Info: cornwall-birding. When: At its best during spring and but all times are excellent co.uk/site_guides/ autumn migration Why: All the egrets, Bitterns, Marsh Harriers, porthgwarra-and- Why: Watch often huge numbers of commoner Cranes, wildfowl, and of course staggeringly pendeen-seawatching- migrants funnelling in or out the UK, and of huge Starling murmurations at Ham Wall RSPB. guide/ course, there’ll be rarities among them Info: www.somersetbirdwatchingholidays.com Info: www.heightshotel.com offers great 6 Portland Bill on-the-spot accommodation, while www. portlandbirdobs.com is a superb observatory. 7Radipole Lake RSPB, Dorset When: Summer Why: It’s a superb wetland reserve in the heart of a classic British seaside town – take a break from the beach to find a Bittern! Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ reserves-a-z/radipole-lake/ 8Hengistbury Head, Dorset 10 MALGORZATA MORAWSKA/ALAMY When: Year-round 12 Why: There’s seawatching, heathland birds 4 11 including the possibility of Dartford Warbler, passage migrants, and great views over 5 7 98 Christchurch Harbour 6 Info: www.visithengistburyhead.co.uk/ Explore-learn-discover/Birdlife.aspx 3 2 1 birdwatching.co.uk 27

13 Titchfield Haven 16 Ringed Plover, Rye Harbour DAVID CHAPMAN/ALAMY South East 18Dungeness, Kent 31 32 When: Spring and autumn 33 13Titchfield Haven NNR, Hampshire Why: It’s hard to beat as a spot for watching When: Summer migration in action, but don’t forget to bird the 37 36 30 35 34 Why: Lots of warblers, Bearded Tits, plus whole peninsula, not just the RSPB reserve 27 wildfowl and waders, and excellent for Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ 39 28 dragonflies reserves-a-z/dungeness/ 38 Info: www.hants.gov.uk/thingstodo/ countryparks/titchfield 19North Kent Marshes 24 29 When: Winter 23 25 26 14New Forest, Hampshire/Dorset Why: Large expanses of saltmarsh, reedbed 22 When: Spring and summer are best and rough grassland make it a great spot for 21 19 Why: Heathland birds such as Dartford Warbler, finding raptors, including rarities such as 20 Tree Pipit, Wood Lark and Nightjar are Rough-legged Buzzard 17 specialities, plus raptors such as Honey Buzzard Info: www.kentwildlifetrust.org.uk/events/ 16 18 and Goshawk 2022-12-09-birds-prey-north-kent-marshes 14 13 15 Info: www.newforestnpa.gov.uk/discover/ wildlife/heathland-birds/ 20Stodmarsh/Grove Ferry, Kent 23Lee Valley Regional Park When: Autumn/winter When: Autumn/winter 15Pagham Harbour, West Sussex Why: The largest reedbeds in south-eastern Why: Following the river as it does, it offers When: Spring and autumn England harbour the likes of Marsh Harrier, lots of entry points to look for species such migration periods Bearded Tit, Bittern and more as Kingfisher, Bittern and Green Sandpiper Why: As well as the many migrants passing Info: birdingforall.com/england/kent/ Info: www.leevalleypark.org.uk through, it’s excellent for egrets, while in winter, stodmarsh-reserve/ it plays host to Brent Geese and other wildfowl 24Stokenchurch, Buckinghamshire Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ 21London Wetland Centre WWT When: Any time reserves-a-z/pagham-harbour-local-nature- When: Any time, although migration Why: Red Kites! Large numbers can always be reserve/ periods are excellent found soaring over this Chilterns village, offering Why: As a large green oasis close to the centre great photo opportunities 16Rye Harbour NR, East Sussex of the capital, it can attract pretty much any Info: bucksbirdclub.co.uk When: Spring and autumn flyover species to drop in Why: Another excellent spot for watching Info: www.wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/london/ migration, although it attracts varied waders at all times 22Walthamstow Wetlands LWT, London Info: rye.sussexwildlifetrust.org.uk When: Winter Why: Lots of wildfowl gather here (while in 17Thursley Common, Surrey summer it’s good for warblers and hirundines), When: Spring and summer and you can watch Peregrines hunt pigeons Why: Expect the typical species of the Surrey and parakeets heaths, plus at least one very photogenic Info: www.wildlondon.org.uk/walthamstow- Cuckoo! wetlands-nature-reserve Info: www.surreyhills.org/surrey-hills-60/ thursley-national-nature-reserve/ 28 July 2022

East Anglia Britains 25Abberton Reservoir, Essex BEST When: Winter, although good at all times Why: Excellent for waders and wildfowl, and BIRDING close enough to the sea to get storm-driven seabirds, too DESTINATIONS Info: www.essexwt.org.uk/nature-reserves/ abberton 31 Bearded Tit IMAGEBROKER/ALAMY* 35Buckenham Marshes RSPB, Norfolk 26Fingringhoe Wick, Essex 31Titchwell Marsh RSPB, Norfolk When: Winter When: Spring When: Any time Why: It regularly hosts Taiga Bean Geese – Why: Nightingales – up to 40 pairs can be Why: It boasts a mixture of habitats – saltmarsh, rare in England – and also has huge numbers present. But there are mixed habitats freshmarsh, reedbed, grassland, waders of Rooks and Jackdaws gathering pre-roost overlooking an estuary, too, so expect variety scrapes and beach, all within a short walk of Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ Info: www.essexwt.org.uk/nature-reserves/ the visitor centre reserves-a-z/buckenham-marshes/ fingringhoe Info: Lots of places to stay on the coast, from www.titchwellmanor.com and 36Welney WWT, Wisbech, Norfolk 27Carlton Marshes SWT, Suffolk www.briarfieldshotelnorfolk.co.uk When: Winter When: Year-round to www.deepdalebackpackers.co.uk Why: Up to 7,000 Whooper Swans and Why: Varied wetland habitats, easy to explore 2,000 Bewick’s Swans gather here, and from Waveney River Centre (just across the are fed in front of the visitor centre river), or using public transport. Look for Fen Info: www.wwt.org.uk/discover-wetlands/ Raft Spiders as well as birds wetland-wildlife/swans/where-to-see-swans/ Info: www.suffolkwildlifetrust.org/carlton; TOBY HOULTON/ALAMY* www.waveneyrivercentre.co.uk 32Cley Marshes NWT, Norfolk 37Nene Washes RSPB, When: Any time, but especially during Cambridgeshire 28Minsmere RSPB, Suffolk migration periods When: Year-round When: Great during migration periods, Why: All sorts of reasons, including seawatching Why: When flooded in winter, it’s great for or late spring; but great anytime and resident reedbed birds, but especially waders, wildfowl, raptors and Short-eared Why: Heathland, reedbed and wetland species scarcer migrants such as Shore Lark and Snow Owls, but summer sees breeding waders, and abound, but it’s also a great base for exploring Bunting. And because it’s so well watched, there are Cranes, too the surrounding area nothing escapes the eyes of birders here! Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ Info: www.norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/home reserves-a-z/nene-washes/ reserves-a-z/minsmere/ 33Snettisham RSPB, Norfolk 38Fen Drayton RSPB, Cambridgeshire 29Landguard Bird Observatory, When: Winter When: Spring and summer Suffolk Why: To see vast numbers of waders such as Why: A former gravel quarry, it’s one of a When: Spring and autumn Knot and Golden Plover coming off The Wash at string of superb wetland sites along the Ouse Why: Migration-watching, both offshore and dawn, sometimes at the same time as thousands – in spring it’s alive with warblers, Cuckoos, involving arriving and departing passerines, of Pink-footed Geese and much more is the highlight here Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ Info: www.lbo.org.uk reserves-a-z/snettisham/ reserves-a-z/fen-drayton-lakes/ 30Breckland, Norfolk and Suffolk 34Breydon Water, Norfolk 39Woodwalton Fen NNR, When: Spring and summer When: Winter Cambridgeshire Why: Heathland birds such as Wood Lark Why: This large estuary surrounded by When: Year-round are found here, plus the likes of Stone-curlew marshes, close to the seaside town of Great Why: A remaining slice of the Fens as they Info: www.brecsoc.org.uk/breckland-birds/ Yarmouth, plays host to huge numbers of once were, this was one of the UK’s first nature wildfowl, plus waders reserves. Great for birds, for your plants and Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ insects, too reserves-a-z/berney-marshes-breydon-water/ Info: www.greatfen.org.uk/woodwalton-fen 28 Minsmere RSPB T.M.O.LANDSCAPES/ALAMY birdwatching.co.uk 29

Wales 46 48 47 40Gwent Levels When: Year-round 49 59 Why: Now saved from the threat of the M4 relief road, these wetlands and wet grasslands 45 60 threaded by waterways are a haven for reedbed and water birds in particular 44 57 56 61 58 Info: www.wildlifetrusts.org/save-gwent-levels 54 55 41Cardiff Bay, Glamorgan 53 When: Winter Why: You can walk from the modern hotels and 43 50 52 restaurants of the revamped docks, straight into 42 51 a wetland reserve, while the Bay itself can hold all manner of wildfowl 40 Info: www.visitcardiff.com/highlights/wetland- reserve/ 41 42Llanelli WWT, Carmarthenshire 45Lake Vyrnwy RSPB, Powys 45 Wheatear When: Year-round When: Spring and summer Why: This is an extensive wetland on the shores Why: Upland birds such as Wheatear, Whinchat 48Great Orme, Llandudno, Conwy of the Burry Inlet, and is a magnet for wintering and Ring Ouzel are all here, plus potential Hen When: Year-round waders and wildfowl, as well as increasingly Harriers, as well as woodland songsters Why: This rocky headland attracts passage playing host to large numbers of Little and Great Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ migrants, is a good vantage point for seawatching White Egrets. Mammals, insects and orchids all reserves-a-z/lake-vyrnwy/ (including huge flocks of Common Scoter in add to the interest, too winter), and even gets Choughs Info: www.wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/llanelli/ 46South Stack RSPB, Anglesey Info: www.birdwatchingtrips.co.uk/ When: Spring and summer bird-blog/a-great-great-orme-birdwatching-walk 43Pembrokeshire islands Why: It’s all about the seabirds – this is a When: Spring and summer veritable city of them, with Puffins, of course, 49World’s End, Wrexham, Clwyd Why: Huge numbers of breeding seabirds, taking the starring role When: Spring including charismatic Puffins and the likes of Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ Why: Lekking Black Grouse are one of the UK’s Manx Shearwater, make Skomer, Skokholm et al reserves-a-z/south-stack-cliffs/ most underrated wildlife spectacles, and this is somewhere you need to see at least once one of the easiest places to view them well Info: www.pembrokeshire-islands.co.uk/ 47Menai Strait, Anglesey/Gwynedd Info: www.birdwatchingtrips.co.uk/bird-blog/ boat-trips/ When: Winter sunshine-birding-is-great Why: Wintering waders, including scarcer birds 44Ynys-hir RSPB, Powys such as Greenshank, can be found in good When: Spring numbers at a number of sheltered spots Why: Redstarts, Pied Flycatchers, Wood Info: www.birdwatchingtrips.co.uk/bird-blog/ Warblers and carpets of Bluebells make this a angleseybirding special place, on the shores of the Dyfi estuary Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ reserves-a-z/ynys-hir/ MARK BOULTON/ALAMY 42 Llanelli National Wetland Centre 30 July 2022

Britains BEST BIRDING DESTINATIONS 54 Brandon Marsh Midlands 55Summer Leys NWT, Northampton 59Willington Wetlands DWT, Derbyshire LH IMAGES/ALAMY When: Spring and autumn When: Winter 50Nagshead RSPB, Gloucestershire Why: A former gravel pit, migrating waders Why: Gulls, wildlfowl, waders and the likes When: Spring use it as a stopping off point as they move of Bittern are among the main attractions, Why: In early spring you can look for displaying along the Nene Valley as are the recently reintroduced Beavers Goshawks, while as the season goes on, Info: www.wildlifebcn.org/summer-leys Info: www.derbyshirewildlifetrust.org.uk/ Redstarts and Pied Flycatchers arrive nature-reserves/willington-wetlands Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ 56Tame Valley, Warwickshire/ reserves-a-z/nagshead/ Staffordshire 60Attenborough NWT, Nottinghamshire When: Year-round When: Year-round 51Slimbridge WWT, Gloucestershire Why: A string of reserves, including Middleton Why: There’s not many places you can walk from When: Winter Lakes RSPB, Kingsbury Water Park and a retail park straight into a major wetland reserve, Why: Visit for the flocks of wild swans and other Ladywalk, provide something for everyone. but you can here. Wintering Bitterns are a given, wildfowl, or visit for the history – this is where Great at migration times but there’s plenty to catch the eye all year Sir Peter Scott founded the WWT. But do visit Info: www.westmidlandbirdclub.org.uk/ladywalk Info: www.nottinghamshirewildlife.org/ Info: www.wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/ nature-reserves/attenborough-nature-reserve slimbridge/ 57Sutton Park, West Midlands When: Spring and autumn 61Welbeck Raptor Watchpoint/ 52Otmoor RSPB, Oxfordshire Why: Though this is a busy urban park, it’s big Budby Common When: Spring enough that you can find some serious migrant When: Spring Why: It can be hard to believe how wild it feels traps, with commoner birds as well as scarcities Why: The raptors can include Honey Buzzard here, sandwiched between Oxford and the M40. such as Red-backed Shrike having dropped in and Goshawk, while the Common is great for the Great for waders such as Lapwing, Snipe Info: sp.scnhs.org.uk/wildlife.html likes of Wood Lark, Tree Pipit, and Nightjar and Redshank Info: www.nottsbirders.net/welbeck. Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ 58Rutland Water html; www.sherwoodhideaway.com reserves-a-z/otmoor-reserve/ When: Year-round Why: The Ospreys are a huge attraction in IAN KENNY/ALAMY 53Upton Warren, Worcestershire summer, but winter sees internationally important When: Year-round wildlfowl gatherings, and migration times are Why: One of those unsung reserves with a habit always busy. Reserves are at Egleton and of attracting good birds at all times – the wader Lyndon, but don’t forget to bird the dam and scrapes are the main attraction here other accessible spots Info: www.worcswildlifetrust.co.uk/nature- Info: www.lrwt.org.uk/rutland-water reserves/upton-warren 58 Rutland Water is the 54Brandon Marsh WWT, Warwickshire home of the Osprey When: Year-round Why: A perfect example of an accessible, family-friendly reserve which has lots to offer birders of all kinds. Start with the feeders next to the (excellent) café, and finish up finding the likes of Bittern, all just a stone’s throw from the edge of Coventry Info: www.warwickshirewildlifetrust.org.uk/ BrandonMarsh birdwatching.co.uk 31

72 North West 71 73 69 70 74 62Hilbre Island, Cheshire When: Spring and autumn 67 75 Why: At the tip of the Wirral, this is a great spot 68 to look for passing seabirds, especially Leach’s 76 Petrel in autumn 77 78 Info: hilbrebirdobs.blogspot.com 65 64 80 81 79 63Parkgate/Dee Estuary RSPB, Cheshire 66Woolston Eyes, Cheshire 62 66 When: Winter and spring When: Spring 63 Why: One of the Wirral’s several fine saltmarsh Why: Black-necked Grebes! There’s nowhere sites, it’s particularly known for the gatherings of better to see ‘Old Fiery Eye’ in the UK 82 raptors that hunt mammals escaping spring tides Info: www.woolstoneyes.com 83 Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ reserves-a-z/dee-estuary-parkgate/ 67Leighton Moss RSPB, Lancashire 69Burgh-on-Sea, Cumbria When: Year-round When: Year-round 64Martin Mere WWT, Lancashire Why: Bearded Tits in the reedbeds, wildfowl, Why: The whole Solway Firth is great for birding, When: Year-round waders, Marsh Harriers, and much more. Worth and this is a good viewpoint to watch for Why: Winter wildfowl gatherings, spring and a visit at absolutely any time migrants, including skuas in spring and autumn summer warblers, and much more – you can Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ Info: www.solwaycoastaonb.org. even take guided boat tours that take you right reserves-a-z/leighton-moss/ uk/2019/a-special-place/ecology/wildlife/birds/ into the heart of the wetlands and get you much closer to the wildlife Info: www.wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/ martin-mere/ MEDIAWORLDIMAGES/ALAMY 65Marshside, Merseyside 68South Walney Island, Cumbria 70Geltsdale RSPB, Cumbria When: Winter When: Year-round When: Spring and summer Why: Close to Southport town centre, it has Why: Resident birds and passage migrants Why: Hen Harriers, Black Grouse, Cuckoos, wintering wildfowl including Pink-footed Geese, abound at all times of year, and it’s also a great Whinchats, Curlews and more – a taste of plus breeding waders such as Lapwing place to see hauled-out Grey Seals the uplands as they really ought to be Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ Info: www.cumbriawildlifetrust.org.uk/ Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ reserves-a-z/marshside/ nature-reserves/south-walney reserves-a-z/geltsdale/ 64 Martin Mere 32 July 2022

North East 77 Black-browed Britains Albatross at 71Kielder Forest, Northumberland Bempton Cliffs BEST When: Spring and summer Why: Its sheer size means there are always BIRDING birding discoveries waiting to be made. Look, and listen, and see what you find DESTINATIONS Info: www.visitkielder.com/play/discover/ wildlife-nature 72Holy Island and the Farnes, Northumberland When: Spring and summer Why: The Farnes are seabird ‘cities’, with the likes of Arctic Terns, while Holy Island gets good passage migrants at practically any time of year Info: www.nationaltrust.org.uk/farne-islands/ features/visiting-inner-farne-what-you-need-to- know 73Druridge Bay, Northumberland RACHEL BENNETT When: Year-round Why: There are a number of sites strung along 78Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire 81Alkborough Flats, Lincolnshire the bay, many of them former industrial workings. When: Spring and autumn When: Winter Expect the unexepected – rare migrants drop in Why: More breeding seabirds, but also a great Why: An alternative to viewing the Humber’s Info: www.birdwatchingsites.co.uk/ seawatching vantage point, and first landfall for bird-rich habitats from the Yorkshire side – druridge-bay/ easterly passerine arrivals in autumn expect huge gatherings of waders Info: www.ywt.org.uk/nature-reserves/ Info: www.visitnorthlincolnshire.com/item/ 74Newcastle Quayside flamborough-cliffs-nature-reserve alkborough-flats/ When: Spring and summer Why: Kittiwakes. The world’s only breeding 79Spurn, East Yorkshire 82Gibraltar Point, Lincolnshire colony is here, in the shadow of, and actually on, When: Spring and autumn When: Year-round the iconic Tyne Bridge Why: At the height of migration, it can be utterly Why: A great spot for viewing migration, Info: www.tynekittiwakes.org.uk incredible, with large numbers of commoner offshore and on land, which is why it was birds passing through, plus a lot of rarities. the site of the first UK bird observatory 75Saltholme RSPB, Cleveland And the landscape needs to be seen, too Info: www.lincstrust.org.uk/get-involved/ When: Year-round Info: www.spurnbirdobservatory.co.uk; top-reserves/gibraltar-point Why: A family-friendly, accessible reserve www.ywt.org.uk/spurn; www.spurnmigfest.com which allows you to see species such as 83Frampton Marsh RSPB, Lincolnshire Yellow Wagtail and Water Rail well 80St Aidan’s, West Yorkshire When: Year-round Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ When: Spring Why: OK, we’ll admit it, it’s a favourite of the reserves-a-z/saltholme/ Why: One of a string of former industrial sites BW team. Wader scrapes, pools, saltmarsh, turned into extensive wetlands. Bitterns are here, passerine passage, and a very friendly welcome. 76Wykeham Forest, North Yorkshire plus Black-necked Grebes Try it ASAP When: Spring Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ Why: Raptors are the main attraction here, reserves-a-z/st-aidans/ reserves-a-z/frampton-marsh/ especially the elusive Goshawk and Honey Buzzard. Sharpen your ID skills! 79 Spurn Head viewed Info: www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/visiting-woods/ from the lighthouse woods/wykeham-forest/ 77Bempton Cliffs RSPB, North Yorkshire When: Spring and summer. Why: If you want to see nesting seabirds well (especially Puffins and Gannets), and to photograph soaring Gannets, there’s nowhere better. And there might even be an albatross! Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ reserves-a-z/bempton-cliffs/ 72 Arctic Tern PETER CONNER/ALAMY* SUPERSTOCK/ALAMY* birdwatching.co.uk 33

Britains 95 BEST 100 Scottish Seabird Centre, Lothian BIRDING DESTINATIONS 94 91 JOHN PETER PHOTOGRAPHY/ALAMY 98 89 90 93 92 96 99 89Strathdearn, Highland 94Orkney 88 When: Any season When: Spring and autumn 97 Why: Raptors, and specifically eagles. Both Why: During migration periods, there’s every 84 100 species are likely, plus the likes of Peregrine, chance of the sort of rarities that Scilly is known Goshawk and Red Kite for turning up. Make your own discoveries 86 87 Info: www.birdwatching.co.uk/features/articles/ Info: www.heatherlea.co.uk 85 birding-dreams-come-true/ 95Shetland Northern Ireland 90Loch Garten RSPB, Highland When: Spring, summer and autumn When: Year-round Why: The UK’s most northerly point offers 84Rathlin Island, County Antrim Why: Winter’s best for Crested Tits – they might seawatching, passage migrants going to and When: Spring and summer even feed from your hand, as the Coal Tits from Scandinavia and the arctic, rarities, plus Why: You can view the seabird ‘city’ from halfway certainly do – while summer sees Ospreys whale-watching, too down the cliff, plus there’s the chance to find Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ Info: www.shetlandwildlife.co.uk migrants dropping in to this scenic spot reserves-a-z/loch-garten/ Info: rathlinballycastleferry.com 96Mull, Argyll 91Black Isle When: Year-round 85Strangford Lough, County Down When: Autumn, winter and spring Why: Eagles – both species – are the big draw, When: Winter Why: Scaup flocks off Jemimaville, waders and but there’s a huge amount more. Turn to page 78 Why: Huge gatherings of wildfowl at spots wildfowl at Udale Bay, and passing seabirds and for full details such as Castle Espie WWT makes this a great divers (and dolphins) at Chanonry Point Info: www.mullbirdclub.org.uk place to see birds not far from Belfast Info: www.birdwatching.co.uk/features/articles/ Info: www.wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/ birding-dreams-come-true/ 97Islay, Argyll castle-espie/; www.nationaltrust.org.uk/ When: Autumn, winter and spring strangford-lough 92Insh Marshes Why: Winter goose flocks, Hen Harriers, When: Autumn, winter and spring seabirds and divers, and the finest single malt 86Lough Erne, County Fermanagh Why: Whooper Swans and Pink-footed Geese whiskies in the world. What’s stopping you? When: Winter winter here, plus look for Hen Harriers, and often Info: islaybirds.blogspot.com Why: Whooper Swans are the star species, eagles over the distant mountains but there’s plenty more, especially wildlfowl Info: www.birdwatching.co.uk/features/articles/ 98North Uist/South Uist and breeding waders birding-dreams-come-true/ When: Spring and autumn Info: www.daera-ni.gov.uk/protected-areas/ Why: The chance to find your own birds is one upper-lough-erne-spa 93Cairngorm of the big pluses here – as well as the breeding When: Spring and summer species, vagrants are frequently found Scotland Why: In winter, you may be able to find Info: www.heatherlea.co.uk/birdwatching- Ptarmigan in their white plumage. In summer, holidays-birders-tour-hebrides 87Caerlaverock WWT, Dumfries Dotterels are on the tops. But be prepared and Galloway for a walk! 99Tay Estuary When: Winter Info: www.birdwatching.co.uk/travel-guides/ When: Year-round Why: If you want to see Barnacle Geese, this is uk-destinations/birdwatching-in-the-cairngorms/ Why: Any estuary will be a magnet for birds, the place to be, but expect plenty more along the and this is no different, plus its reedbeds shores of the Solway Firth 93 Female Ptarmigan have – incredibly – the UK’s biggest Bearded Info: www.wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/ Tit population caerlaverock/ Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ reserves-a-z/tay-reedbeds/ 88Loch Leven, Perth and Kinross When: Summer and autumn 100Scottish Seabird Centre, Lothian Why: Ospreys breed here in summer, while When: Year-round Pink-footed Geese arrive in large numbers as the year goes on Why: As well as the seabirds actually found Info: www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/ reserves-a-z/loch-leven/ OLIVER SMART/ALAMY* close at hand, it runs boat trips to the Bass Rock and the Isle of May to see the incredible gatherings of breeding Gannets, Razorbills, Guillemots and more Info: www.seabird.org BW Of course, you’ll all have your own favourites. Email us at [email protected] and tell us all about them. 34 July 2022

Explore North Cornwall Discover a from North Beer Cottage – Wilder Warwickshire a birders’ choice Visit our nature reserve, well known for its huge variety Wake to the dawn chorus of birds and other wildlife, including kingfishers, otters, butterflies and much more. Brandon Marsh is the O Beautiful two-bedroom perfect location to discover a wilder Warwickshire. hideaway, each with See what you can find today. en-suite, sleeps up to four people and offers Visit warwickshirewildlifetrust.org.uk/ spacious, contemporary BrandonMarsh to find out more accommodation Brandon Marsh Visitor Centre, Brandon Lane, Coventry, CV3 3GW O Enclosed garden, Telephone: 024 7630 2912 hot tub, woodburner, providing wonderful @WKWT @warwickshirewt peace and quiet Warwickshire Wildlife Trust is a company limited by guarantee. Registered in England Number 00585247. O Situated within easy Registered Charity Number 209200. VAT Number 670318740 distance of RSPB reserves, Bowling Green & Goosemoor and Hayle Estuary O And with Bodmin Moor, Dartmoor and the South West Coast path on the doorstep – you have everything you need for a fabulous birding holiday Book now at www.northbeerfarm.co.uk Or email Mary Hicks at [email protected] / call 07703 498305

minute RUN BIRDING Thirty-minute birder Amanda Tuke takes steps to squeeze in more birdwatching 36 July 2022

30-MINUTE BIRDER Firecrest It’s asking a lot, I know. I spent the last few days playing myself a recording of songs and contact NATURE PICTURE LIBRARY/ALAMY* calls and this morning I’m optimistically setting off into Sydenham Hill Wood to hunt Richmond Park for one of my bogey birds. Following a route on a spring day suggested by my friend Dave Clark, I join the dots between mature Yews and past the old Cedar. I’m mentally ticking off the songs and calls which RICHMOND PARK: MAREK STEPAN/ALAMY; JOGGER: ANTONIO GUILLEM/ALAMY* aren’t really what I’m listening for today. Returning to the gate after a circuit in dappled spring sunlight, I’m nearly ready to give up when I suddenly pick up the staccato call I’ve memorised. A Firecrest appears on a branch in front of me and obligingly stays in the open long enough for me to be absolutely sure of its identity. Then, metres away and out of sight, the gate into the woods clangs, and extraordinarily loud thuds get closer and closer. The bird vanishes and a surprisingly slight but heavily-treading runner wearing outsized headphones appears round the corner. Aurally insulated from nature, he seems barely aware of me, let alone anything else in the wood. He missed the chance to have a Firecrest pointed out to him, and, yes, I do regularly share birds with random strangers. The stats I find suggest that there are two million people who run regularly in Britain. I’m guessing a sizeable proportion of them enjoy running in green spaces when they can, even if most choose to block out natural sounds with music. Since the 1980s and the boom in Sony Walkmans (Walkmen?) we’ve let ourselves be convinced that, even outside, you can’t exercise without a soundtrack. But hang on a mo’, there are some serious runners out there who want to keep their senses about them, and combine their running with birdwatching. My friend Sharon is one of them, and it didn’t take long to find some more – Mick, Will, Rachel and Alison – on social media. The idea of combining running with birding appeals to me, in theory. Momentarily, I imagine myself – or a younger fitter version – running agilely up hills, across moors and through woodland, while whipping out a monocular to confirm sightings. But it’s confession time. I’m more of a shuffling jogger than an actual runner, but perhaps my inability to speed up is really a good thing and will have benefits for run-birding. At the very least, I’ll get a bit further faster. Richmond riches A week or so after Firecrest Day, I’m discovering it’s incredibly difficult to jog quietly in a woodland with Sweet Chestnut trees, like this one in Richmond Park. The husks of last year’s fruit crunch loudly under my trainers as I weave my way round the creviced trunks. Making for some mature oaks which look promising, I slow to a walk. I heard from a reliable source that this was the best area in the park to find our smallest woodpecker, the Lesser Spotted. Knowing how lucky I’d be to see one, I’ve been reading up and listening to everything I can find to help distinguish a Lesser from a Great. I’m guessing that it’s too late in spring for drumming, and in any case, the birders I talk to are divided on whether that’s a helpful way of separating the two. The birds’ ‘ kick’-calls sound more hopeful, although my trusty Collins guide says that they are “at times confusingly birdwatching.co.uk 37

Green Woodpecker Stopping and spotting similar”. I’m just hoping that knowing the Spot? As I tiptoe towards the sound’s source ARTERRA PICTURE LIBRARY/ALAMY Great’s call really, really well from my local staring upwards, I startle a group of deer Sharon Pinner tells Amanda patch, might help. which flick their ears, eye me with suspicion about her experiences of and scatter. Extremely loudly. They leave Wildlife on the Run Richmond Park is big at about 1,000 a deafening silence behind them. hectares and it’s surprisingly easy to get lost if I always admire the bird photos you don’t know it well, with wooded patches Meeting mates taken by my friend and fellow which are confusingly similar, too. Up nature writer, Sharon Pinner, and Richmond Hill from the station was a good After scanning more than 50 of these ancient was even more impressed when warm-up on this chilly morning; and, from the oaks, I finally accept that today is not the day. I found out she’d taken most of park gate, I jogged here to what I now think of Other than an industrious Treecreeper, which them on her regular running as Lesser Spot grove with just a slimline I am pleased to see, the grove is still very quiet. routes south of Cambridge. backpack and my light-weight binoculars It’s an easy run down the gentle slope to Pen strapped within easy reach under my arm. Ponds in the centre of the park, and I stop to “I’m so lucky that I can reach watch my first Sand Martins of the year footpaths just a few metres from A flicker of movement in my peripheral skimming over the surface of the water. our front door”, she tells me. vision proves to be a half-hidden Green Then, I notice that time’s ticking by and “And run-birding is great because Woodpecker. Then, from a few trees over, make for the car park on the far side you can travel that bit further than I hear a staccato ‘ kek-kek-kek’. Could this be walking and aren’t limited to roads tentative enough to suggest it’s not a Great and bridleways as you would be with cycling”. Treecreeper Sharon was motivated during lockdown to make the most of her time running and she’s continued now restrictions have eased. She shows me the compact digital camera with a powerful zoom she carries either in her hand or pocket. “This doubles as binoculars”, she says, “and means that I have some hope of identifying birds I see some distance away once I’m home”. I ask Sharon what her running partners think of her squeezing in birding on their runs. “My usual running partner has got used to me stopping quite a few times during a 3 to 6 mile run, and I can still run without stopping when I need to, in a half-marathon for example”. Sharon regularly sees her favourite birds, Yellowhammers, and has taken great pictures of singing Common Whitethroats. “It’s always a treat to see our local Barn Owl when I run in the evenings and I was once completely surrounded by feeding Swifts and Swallows as I ran alongside a field of oil-seed rape”. You can read more about Sharon’s run-birding and her other wildlife adventures on her blog https://wildlifeontherun. wordpress.com/ 38 July 2022

30-MINUTE BIRDER Male Garganey What you told me about your run-birding and your top tips Rachel Remnant “Ah yes, #RunBirding. The challenges of ID without binocs! I’d recommend running a route through multiple habitats early am/later pm for birdsong. Repeating routes helps confirm ID after researching between runs. Enjoy stopping & using your senses/have a breather!” Which run-bird sighting have you enjoyed the most, Rachel? “For me, hearing then seeing an electric blue Kingfisher whizz past me along the river. As I came round the next bend I flushed a huge Great White Egret, which rose like some sort of Japanese painting above me. Magic.” CHRISTOPHER COOK/ALAMY*A FLICKER OF MOVEMENT IN MY PERIPHERAL VISION Will Clennell “Get out early, for CHRISTOPHER SMITH/ALAMY*PROVES TO BE A HALF-HIDDEN GREEN WOODPECKER. the sunrise and dawn chorus, and THEN, FROM A FEW TREES OVER, I HEAR A STACCATO before anyone else. Pair of mini bins KEK-KEK-KEK. in your run pack. Stop and look. You don’t have to run all the time”. where I spot a likely-looking group. I’m meeting are, with that elegant white eye crescent which up with folks who go on a regular Friday bird is gratifyingly clear from this distance. What have been your best walk in the park and some of the early arrivals After thanking Sue and saying my goodbyes, run-birding sightings Will? chuckle when I explain why I’m dressed in it’s time to get back on route. shorts and trainers. “Great White Egret, Blackwit and Leaving the park at Robin Hood Gate on Gropper [Grasshopper Warbler] They’re a friendly, mixed bunch, more the south-east side, I cross the A3 and jog-walk on edge of city my best spots women than men, and mostly south-west along Beverley Brook towards Wimbledon #RunBirding. Oh, and Ravens up in Londoners plus a birder from Singapore who’s Common. The smaller trees and shrubs lining the Lakes and Brecons while doing visiting her London-based friend. Gravelly Ride are awash with late morning Ultras [-marathons]” warbler song. Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs are Sue, a retired science teacher, is leading today making their presence felt and, when I start Alison Atkin “I never used to do and we go straight back to Pen Ponds where counting, there seems to be at least two it with any intent, was usually just we’re told a Garganey has been seen, recently. Blackcaps singing for every Chiffchaff. Then out for a run and would see some On route, Sue and I listen to bursts of a Mistle a Whitethroat pops up on some brambles and birds. I did sometimes run with Thrush song being blown towards us from a bursts into song. They always sound to me like a camera, so stopped to take distant copse, before I see a Stonechat to point they’re offering alternatives – “On the one photos on occasion. Now, I make out to the others. hand… On the other…”. sure I have the @BirdNET app on my phone, so if I reeeally wanted Keep on running Once in Wimbledon high street I get to ID something, I can.” some odd looks from the expensively-dressed There are some early birders in the prime shoppers, but I’m so full of endorphins at Mick aka Meath Birder, Ireland Garganey spot already, and we join them in this point that I don’t care. Even at the speed “I hear most birds before I see them peering intently into the fallen trees at the I run, I’ve covered the six mile route between when running, so no headphones water’s edge. Our target bird has been seen here Richmond to Wimbledon stations in an hour and keep the ears open. I regularly this morning. Through the trees something and a half, discounting the bird walk in the see Red Kites on my runs around Teal-sized flies fast and away from us across middle. And with Treecreeper, Sand Martin, here. They were reintroduced to the water and I wonder whether that’s going to Stonechat, Garganey and Whitethroat to add Ireland about 10 years ago, so be as close as we get. Then, a few minutes, later to my inside-the-M25 #My200BirdYear list, still a very scarce bird in large what appears to be the same bird flies back onto I’ll definitely be doing this again. areas of the island”. the newly constructed island, and we’re all delighted that it really is the male Garganey. Back home in south-east London, I practise so I can still listen to bird song. Each time I’m reminded what fine-looking ducks they jogging very quietly in my woodland patch, a gazelle-like headphoned runner passes me – which, tactlessly, they often do – I’m just sorry they’re missing out. With some light footwork and leaving your earbuds at home, running – or in my case jog-walking – could be another opportunity to appreciate nature and get to know your local birds even better. BW birdwatching.co.uk 39

SAVERIO GATTO/ALAMY 40 July 2022

NIGHTJAR SPECIES NIGHTJARA spellbinding bird that’s m agicwell worth getting up early (or staying out late) for... WORDS BY IAN PARSONS T here is something magical itself and a good opportunity to meet SPECIES FACTFILE about watching Nightjars. and talk with other birders in your area. NIGHTJAR All birdwatching is pleasurable, of course, it’s why we do it, Nightjars are widely distributed across Scientific name: Caprimulgus europaeus but an evening out with the Britain, from the south coast of England Length: 26-28cm Nightjars is extra special. Maybe it’s the to the central belt of Scotland, but they are Wingspan: 57-64cm fading light of dusk creating its own selective in where they live, meaning that UK numbers: 4,600 males atmosphere, or the anticipation of what is some areas will have good numbers and others Habitat: Heaths, moors & woodland to come, as the daylight is gradually reduced will have none at all. The habitats these birds Diet: Insects – moths and beetles to a faint glow on the western horizon. Or prefer are heathlands, moorlands, young perhaps it’s the show itself: that amazing, forestry plantations and Bracken-dominated whether you have any near you, ask around. almost baffling song filling your ears and open woodland. Strongholds include the You might find you have a good Nightjar the dark silent shapes that flit across the southern heathlands and modern forestry site on your doorstep. open sky before vanishing into the shadows blocs of Thomas Hardy’s fabled Wessex, of the landscape. Thetford Forest and the Brecks in East Anglia, During the daytime, Nightjars are inactive, the Surrey Heathlands and the New Forest, spending their time motionless, either on the Whatever it is about them, Nightjars are, the large forested areas of Dumfries and ground or sat along a low branch or fallen tree in my opinion at least, the most magical of Galloway in south-west Scotland, and parts additions to any #My200BirdYear list. These of central western Wales. But they are found crepuscular birds (meaning they are mainly in many other areas, so if you are not sure active at dawn and dusk) are not with us for very long, being among the latest of the spring Adult brooding chicks (bill of chick migrants to arrive and one of the earliest to visible poking out of breast) depart, but they really are a bird that you should experience while they are here. DAVID TIPLING PHOTO LIBRARY/ALAMY* And it is an experience, it is about watching them, but it is also about hearing them; and then there is the fact that you are out in their heathy, scrubby, forest habitat as night falls, something you probably wouldn’t normally feel comfortable about doing. Nightjars arrive in Britain around the beginning of May and they depart again, heading for their wintering grounds south of the Sahara, in August. The peak time for experiencing them is in June and July, and it is at this time of year that many organisations run Nightjar events. These are ideal if you want to see these fabulous birds but don’t necessarily feel comfortable about being out in the Nightjar wilds after dark. They are also a great way of finding out more about the bird birdwatching.co.uk 41

Their plumage is a cryptic blend of browns THE FEATHERS OF THE NIGHTJAR ARE SOFT AND in a variety of patterns, making them FRINGED, RATHER LIKE THOSE OF THE AN OWL, THIS exceptionally difficult to find; few people ADAPTATION MEANS THAT THEIR FLIGHT IS SILENT. ever get to see a Nightjar in the daytime. But as the light fades, or as we say in Devon, Nightjars also have a flight call similar feathers rather than a whip-lash style when it gets dimpsy, they become active, to a Tawny Owl and they also produce displaying, defending their territories and a clapping sound as they fly around their movement, but it does seem likely that feeding on the wing. Although it sounds territory, a sound that is sharp, loud and counterintuitive, the best time to see these very distinctive, but one that has caused the general assumption that this sound birds is when you are struggling to see! some confusion. The sound is often described as wing clapping, and it is has been widely is an actual clap could well be wrong. Silent flyer assumed that the ‘clap’ sound we hear is made by the birds clapping their wings together While watching Nightjars in near darkness The feathers of the Nightjar are soft and in flight, similar to how pigeons will clap fringed, rather like those of the an owl, this their wings together as they take off. But is a great birding experience, it does mean that adaptation means that their flight is silent. a recent paper has called this assumption Most bird wings produce a sound as they are into question and suggests that the sound accurately observing what is happening when flapped, but not the Nightjar’s (or the owls), is actually made in a mechanical way, perhaps and it is believed this aids their hunting similar to that of a crack of a whip, with the birds are flying around is very difficult. ability. But just because their actual flight is the wings being rapidly manoeuvred to silent, it doesn’t mean that the birds are. Male produce a ‘whip-lash’ like effect. I have always thought that the ‘clap’ like Nightjars produce one of the most amazing bird songs you will ever hear, it is often This is not a new theory, with the sound I have heard on so many occasions is referred to as a churring sound, but to same paper quoting the observations of be honest, our words don’t come close to ornithologists from the 1920s who also literally that, a clap. But if I think about it, describing it. It is a song that carries long suggested that the sound was not made by the distances, being easily heard at 200m or so. wings being brought together in a clap, but have I actually physically seen the birds clap Closer to, the sound fills your ears, making by a whip-like motion of them. The authors it difficult to pinpoint exactly what direction of the new paper are unsure as to the exact their wings? I don’t think I have, but I have it is coming from. Analysis has shown that mechanism used to generate the sound, it is a burst of different notes, with more than postulating that it might actually involve always assumed that they do because that is 40 of them a second, and it is a song that can the physical structure of the primary be sung continuously for many minutes. what other people had told me and what I had Quite simply, it is brilliant. read in books. Assumptions are the mother of all mistakes is a well-known phrase after all. How that sound is actually made is for me yet another part of the fascination of these brilliant birds. I am now really looking forward to not just adding them to this year’s #My200BirdYear list, but also trying to see if I can work out myself just how that sound is made. Perhaps, if you go looking for Nightjars yourself, you might get a definitive view… Every day (and night) is a learning experience in the world of birding! BW During the daytime, Nightjars KIT DAY/ALAMY are inactive, spending their time motionless 42 July 2022

NIGHTJAR SPECIES DAVID CHAPMAN/ALAMY Nightjar safaris Many regional organisations, such as: www.yorkshirecoastnature.co.uk www.somersetbirding.org.uk & www.devonbirds.org, run guided Nightjar ‘spotting’ events at this time of year. Search for one near you, or find a likely spot – heaths and young conifer plantations are favoured – and head out on your own. www.wildlifetrusts.org/where _to_see_nightjars birdwatching.co.uk 43

Magnificent views from the Peaks SPt HLeleOna VER The bucket-list British bird you haven’t checked off your list Located 1,200 miles from the west If you think you’ve seen most British birds, you might have to coast of Africa, St Helena is one think again – the St Helena Plover is a unique species found of the remotest islands on Earth. The plover is St Helena’s last only on the British Overseas Territory of St Helena Island, remaining endemic land bird in the South Atlantic Ocean. (meaning it’s found only on the island), and is known there as the Wirebird, because of its four weeks. Chicks take about 2-3 hours to JAMESTOWN very thin legs. It resembles the Kittlitz’s Plover, dry after hatching, and then they are able found in sub-Saharan Africa, but is a little to feed themselves. DIANA’S PEAK larger. HIGH PEAK There’s an annual Wirebird Census at the Young Wirebirds fledge when 5-6 weeks old, beginning of the year, conducted by the Saint but may stay within their birth territory for SANDY BAY Helena National Trust in conjunction with a some time afterwards, although they also tend Darwin-funded project and the RSPB, and the to range much farther than adults during their most recent showed a total of 602 Wirebirds first year. – 582 adults, 7 juveniles and 13 chicks, and 24 nests, meaning that it’s considered Formal research into the species by the Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. Saint Helena National Trust only began in Peak nesting season is from September to 2006, aiming to understand the bird’s needs March, and Wirebirds feed on ground-living and prevent the extinction that has happened insects, especially beetles and caterpillars, with five other land-based species on the island, which they catch using a ‘run and grab’ primarily because of predation by cats and rats. technique. Foraging typically accounts for around 60% of daytime activity and is most Wirebird intensive in the early morning and late afternoon. They even occasionally continue EMMA WEAVER to feed after dark, on bright moonlit nights. Wirebirds nest on the ground, using a simple scrape in the soil with a thin lining of dry grass stems and rootlets. This lining is used to cover the eggs when an incubating adult leaves the nest in response to disturbance. Like many plovers, the birds defend their nests by luring predators away, initially by running at speed, then by feigning a broken wing, attempting to gain the attention of the predator and draw it away from the nest. The clutch is usually two eggs, with both sexes sharing incubation for approximately 44 July 2022

ADVERTORIAL Wirebird chick held Masked Booby in flight by a conservationist How to see it ED THORPE ED THORPE Personalised, affordable individual or small- group tours to see the St Helena Plover and EMMA WEAVER the island’s other wildlife are operated by Red-billed Tropicbird cloud and maximum sunshine hours). Saint Helena National Trust. The cloudiest weather is between August throughout the whole pandemic, with no masks and November, which is also when the wind Other bird species found there include or social distancing, and 97% of the eligible is strongest. Red-billed Tropicbirds, White Terns, boobies, population fully vaccinated. The island’s first noddies and petrels. and only airport, St Helena Airport, opened in The cuisine of St Helena shows how the late 2017: until then access to the island was island is truly a melting pot of people and The entire British Overseas Territory, with provided via a 5-day ship voyage from South cultures, and includes ‘curry and roast’ – a population of 4,439, is less than a third of the Africa. Now, Airlink flights allow passengers a mix of traditional British Sunday roast size of the Isle of Wight, yet is home to more to reach the island in just six hours. coupled with Saint curry, ‘Plo’ (a local than a third of the endemic biodiversity in all dish of rice, meat and veg similar to pilaf), of the UK and its territories. This means that Other attractions for visitors include fishcakes, black pudding and fried (freshly- St Helena has more than 500 species of plants sustainable one-by-one fishing (tuna being one caught) Moray eel. and animals found nowhere else on Earth. of the most popular catches), great conditions for snorkelling, hiking, and (very affordable) St Helena Coffee is world-renowned – It’s a globally important environment, with diving. 250g costs about £100 on the international endemics at a level near to that of the Galapagos market, as the supply is very limited and the – it’s even sometimes called the Galapagos of The best of the sunshine is December to reputation very good. On-island, you can the South Atlantic. June (February and March have the least buy the coffee at very affordable prices, and can even get hands-on helping to harvest About St Helena the green-tipped bourbon Arabica beans. Harvest season is October-February. St Helena is English-speaking, but with a unique ‘Saint’ dialect. It uses the same St Helena has incredible night sky viewing, electricity supply as the UK, and is on GMT protected in legislation. Bob Bower, Fellow of year-round, with a subtropical climate. the Royal Astronomical Society and Member of the British Astronomical Association, said: It’s extremely safe, and friendly. Its “The Milky Way is so good it can be mistaken community has remained COVID-free for a cloud. St Helena really does have an asset because, being close to the equator, we get The island’s to see 90% of the whole sky.” capital city, Jamestown The island is a popular stopover/destination for cruise ships and yachts. St Helena is about ocean views in every direction. It’s about one minute being in a desert-like landscape, then a few yards away being surrounded by rolling green hills. It’s about 360-degree views of the island, and the Atlantic at every horizon when viewed from the endemic cloud forest at Diana’s Peak. BW DES JACOBS Contact and details: Current flights and COVID entry information: www.sthelenatourism.com. Tourism enquiries: [email protected]. birdwatching.co.uk 45

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ID CHALLENGE IDChallenge This month’s challenge is all about the identification of heathland birds ILLUSTRATIONS: LAUREN NICHOLSON Heathlands are areas of shrubby on seeing the specialities. The scents Bird 3: habitat on free-draining, of heather, gorse, sand and perhaps pine infertile, acidic soils. It is adds to the enjoyment of the whole the lowland equivalent experience. Now it is time to enjoy of moorland which is found at higher identifying these ‘mystery’ birds, all of altitude. From a birding perspective, which are found in heathlands in the UK. they are areas of low diversity, but feature All you have to do is try to name them, some special birds – a matter of quality then turn the page to see our answers and over quantity – some of which are found the reasoning we used to identify the almost exclusively in this sort of habitat. birds. Then, if you feel the need for one It is one of the great pleasures of the UK or two extra tips about identification of birding summer to visit one (or more) of heathland birds, turn the page once more these wonderful places, often to catch up for said words (and pictures) of advice. CAN YOU NAME THESE HEATHLAND BIRDS? Bird 4: Bird 1: Bird 5: Bird 2: Bird 6: TURN THE PAGE To see how many you got right! birdwatching.co.uk 47

Answers & solutions ID TIP! Check your answers against our explanations. Remember, The songs of there are no ‘trick’ birds or extreme rarities among these... Wood Lark and Tree Pipit are both beautiful and distinctive. Learn them! Prominent BIRD 1 supercilium; This LBJ (‘little brown job’), is perching in an upper branch short crest (stick) of a tree or bush. The first thing that may strike you is that this bird has a bit of a streaked crest extending over Black and the top of the nape. So, this is a lark. We have two larks white on front with crests (both occur in heaths): Sky Lark and Wood Lark. edge of wing This bird is in a tree (and appears to be vocalising) so that may make you lean to Wood Lark. Further evidence comes Short tail from the strong, pale supercilium (eyebrow), the black on the front edge of the wing and the tail, which is shorter than ROBIN CHITTENDEN/ALAMY that of a Sky Lark. This is a Wood Lark, possibly starting its delightful, fluty ‘lulululu’ song. Key features Short crest Streaked upper breast, white belly Strong, pale supercilium Short tail Long, dark grey tail, Short, ‘weak’ bill; tapered at tip ‘no’ forehead Red eye-ring Long tail, extends beyond long wings Short wings ROBIN CHITTENDEN/ALAMY Very short legs KEITH M LAW/ALAMY BIRD 2 BIRD 3 Here is a small, dark bird with a heathery background. The bill is And so we come to a silhouette. Luckily it is a pretty distinctive one. short and fine (an insect-eater’s bill) and most striking is the long, Oddly, perhaps, it would have been too easy if we showed this bird dark tail, which tapers slightly at the tip. These features combined fully lit in daylight. Notable aspects of its silhouette include the odd, with its rounded head give it the appearance of a Sylvia warbler (like tiny bill, short neck, very long tail protruding beyond the long wings a Whitethroat). Contrasting with this are the very short wings. The (shown to be long by the extended primary feathers and the very colour of the plumage is also distinctive, being plain brown above, short legs. In some ways the silhouette is like a hirundine or even ‘vinous’ red below (with fine white spots on the throat), and with dark a Swift (if they could perch), but with a longer, fuller tail. Other birds grey tones in the tail and head. The reddish eye has a bright red it perhaps resembles are the Cuckoo (which has a longer, more eye-ring and the legs are strikingly pale yellow ochre. This can conventional bill, and longer legs) or a horizontal, weak-billed Kestrel. only be a Dartford Warbler, a classic heather and gorse skulker! This bird is a Nightjar; a classically crepuscular heathland bird. Key features Key features Small bird shaped like a long-tailed Whitethroat Tiny bill continuous in line with crown Brown and grey above, reddish below Very long tail Very long tail, very short wings Very long wings Red eye-ring Very short legs 48 July 2022

ID CHALLENGE ‘Dove-like’ head Pale-spotted dark upperparts (lacks obvious (extensively pale supercilium) barred) Barred in rufous, white Barred Robin-like bill underparts and black RICHARD CLARKSON/ALAMY MARGARET WELBY/ALAMY Pale buff underparts BIRD 4 BIRD 5 Now we come to a bird perched on top of one of the most ubiquitous Here is another bird sitting on the top of heather. In contrast heathland plants, heather. Judging by the size of the heather flowers to Bird 4, this bird has a relatively (very) large head, compared it is a decent ‘mid-sized’ bird (not a tiddler), perhaps the size of a to the rest of its body. This is surely a small bird. The pale Mistle Thrush or a Collared Dove. Although we can’t see most of the gape line (extending back from the base of the bill) and the bird (it is partly hidden by heather), we can see that its head looks seemingly tail-less state of the bird, both suggest it is a young quite small, implying it is a larger bird (in general, smaller birds have juvenile. Also the pale spots and streaks of the upperparts proportionately larger heads). Having established its rough size, (and wings) suggest we are looking at a recent fledgling (many the plumage is a massive clue to the identification of this bird: it is baby birds are spotty or streaky). The upperparts are notably extensively barred both above and below, and even all over its head. dark (with pale spots) and the underparts paler. The bill is The short bill and big eye help confirm this is a juvenile Cuckoo, Robin-like. This is a juvenile Stonechat. The similar juvenile probably waiting to be fed by a Meadow Pipit adoptive parent. Whinchat would have a stronger pale supercilium (‘eyebrow’) Key features Key features Smallish head implies a dove-sized bird Small, insect-eater Beautifully barred plumage Robin-like bill Shortish, insect-eater’s bill Dark above, paler below Big, stary eye Lacks obvious pale supercilium White pattern in BIRD 6 outer tail We finish with a bird with wings and tail spread and bill wide Fine, pipit bill; open: it appears it has been photographed in the middle subtle dark line of its song flight. The streaks on the breast and the whitish underparts suggest we are dealing with a lark or a pipit. through eye The bill is too fine for a lark, so we are looking at either a Meadow Pipit or a Tree Pipit (both of which can be found Bold streaks on White belly RAN SCHOLS, BUITEN-BEELD/ALAMY in heathland). The main things which confirm the identity as yellow breast; very the latter are the broader black streaks on the yellow-ochre breast contrasting with the fine streaks on the flanks; and fine streaks on the face pattern with a dark line ‘through’ the eye. In real flanks life this bird would be producing a beautiful rich song as it parachutes between treetops. It is a singing Tree Pipit. Key features Typical pipit shape and pattern Coarse breast streaking, finer on flanks Yellow breast background, white belly Face has dark line ‘through’ eye MY FAVOURITE SITE “I USED TO LIVE IN SURREY, THE WEST OF WHICH HAS SOME GREAT HEATHS, SUCH AS THURSLEY COMMON” MIKE WEEDON, ASSISTANT EDITOR birdwatching.co.uk 49

ID CHALLENGE ID TIP! ID Tips & tricks Sky Larks usually sing for extended Here are a few extra tips to help you identify periods high in the heathland birds sky. Wood Larks usually sing from Sky Lark vs Wood Lark trees or in short song flights from trees Both our breeding lark species occur in heathland HOLLY GROGAN/ALAMY RAN SCHOLS, AGAMI PHOTO AGENCY/ALAMY* Sky Lark Wood Lark Crest slightly larger and more obvious Crest short and rounded Longish tail Short tail White outer tail feathers White tip to tail Subtle, shortish pale supercilium Obvious long, bold pale supercilium Medium primaries (long wing feathers) Short primaries (long wing feathers) Plain at front edge of wing Black and white patches at front edge of wing Heathlands are low diversity bird habitats When birdwatching in summer heathlands RAN SCHOLS, AGAMI PHOTO AGENCY/ALAMY don’t expect to accrue a massive day list! The birds of heathlands are usually a pretty specialised bunch. So expect, at best, to encounter the likes of Tree Pipit, Stonechat, Whinchat, Nightjar, Hobby, Redstart (right), Wood Lark, Sky Lark, Cuckoo, and Grasshopper Warbler. Some heaths lie adjacent to bogs and woodland, allowing an increase in species, with additional treats such as Curlew, Snipe, and perhaps Crossbill to add to your list. SNAP IT! NEXT MONTH’S PAUL R STERRY, NPL/ALAMY* CHALLENGE Have you taken a great shot of a heathland bird? If so, please Late summer waders share it! Send your photos to: [email protected] 50 July 2022