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Late To The Party
Eurasian White-fronted Goose by Paul Slade Easterly winds just prior to Christmas brought an influx of scarce geese to Britain, including this neck of the woods. Both subspecies of Greater-Whitefronted Goose and Tundra Bean Geese were appearing all over the country, and often tagging along with Pinkfeet and even Greylag flocks. So naturally I wanted…
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Norwegian Who?
Picture by Isabelle Rosen I was Run Director at Blackpool parkrun on Saturday. Although it had been frosty overnight we were still able to go ahead. But the ice on the lake gave an ideal opportunity to get more gull ring numbers than usual. I had about thirteen locals before they were spooked by something,…
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Out Skerries – Review of the Birding Year
Pine Bunting x Yellowhammer by John Coutts This blog is unpredictable in content and gaps between posts, but one constant is my review of the Out Skerries birding year. Highlights Firecrest A Firecrest on 2nd November was only the second island record, following one in October 2017. Firecrest is a description species in Shetland and…
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Sunday Surprise
Picture by Tom Parkinson On Saturday I took part in a Cumbria Bird Club outing at Foulney. If you’ve never been I recommend it. Basically you walk out from Roa Island causeway near Barrow and get cut off by the tide. You’re then treated to great views of a couple of thousand Eider and hopefully…
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An Exciting Finale
As I’ve mentioned in these blogs the go to location for birding near the hotel (the Riu Palace, but the Riu Karamboa is closer still) is Rabil lagoon. It’s a location I’ve heard of over the years which has always sounded exotic to me. It had delivered to a decent extent over the holiday, with…
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Boa Vista birding – the middle chapters
I got into a birding routine on holiday walking round Rabil lagoon and back to the hotel one day, and returning to the south on alternate days. EBird showed a sewage pond a couple of miles away from the wader scrapes at Lacacao, so the second time I went south I went looking for it.…
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Day 4 – Sharks And Turtles
I walked up the beach to Rabil Lagoon in the morning. The Greenshank flock appeared to have increased to 20 birds. But when I scanned them in flight there appeared to be a Lesser Yellowlegs. Soon after they flew back down the lagoon in the opposite direction and there appeared to be a rather surprising…
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Day 3 – Five Star Wader
Today I went down to some wader habitat at the south of the island near the Riu Touraeg hotel. The area at Lacacao has a decent track record for shorebirds over the years, and is well known for a Willet turning up this spring. Willet is one of the few American waders to have been…
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Day 2 – Recording Rarities
Lesser Yellowlegs by me, but taken in Canada when our cruise was diverted in 2023 Before breakfast Jane and I got up early and went up the beach. It’s really pleasant walking alongside the surf before it gets crowded. When I approached the lagoon I realised my camera was ‘on’. Given I’d not turned it…
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Boa Vista – Day One
Cape Verde Sparrow (female) We arrived on Friday afternoon. If we’d come without luggage we could have walked round to the hotel. I had a mooch around the grounds and saw Spanish Sparrows (also conspicuous at the airport), Cape Verde Sparrows and Spectacled Warblers (and Collared Doves). A gentle introduction. Spectacled Warbler (female) Before breakfast…
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Natural Selection 