The Pale Swift.

One or two Pallid Swift have been seen in the country including in Norfolk and other east coast locations, with more than one bird seen on the south coast in Kent.

Pallid Swift. Marc Heath.

The Pallid Swift is so closely similar to the Common Swift that it mitigates against its discovery, and an individual found in Cleveland has caused some discussion about its ID. But if you use the link below to see the discussion, be warned it was six pages long last time I viewed it but very interesting HERE

Considering the species is locally common in the Mediterranean, and breeds as close as southern France it is remarkably rare here. An interesting historical fact about the Pallid Swift is that the first record for the UK lay in a museum for 77 years after being collected at St John's Point in Co Down, Ireland in 1913, before being positively identified in 1990. The first record for Britain was at Stodmarsh, Kent in 1978. 

Pallid Swift. Marc Heath.

Thanks to Marc Heath for his excellent images of the Pallid Swift he saw at Foreness in Kent, in particular the lower image which shows the bird about to take an insect....Amazing Marc and many thanks.

Nearer home....

 

White-fronted Goose.Copy Permitted.

An amazing 17 White-fronted Geese - an unprecedented record - were found at Cockersands yesterday in a field at Abbey Farm. Struggling to find a photograph of adult birds, the one above is of a juvenile at Eagland Hill on 17 October....Beware of what you may think is a Greylag in the middle of 10,000 Pink-footed Geese perhaps!

Firecrest Martin Lofgren

And a little gem the Firecrest was found on the South Harbour Wall at Heysham yesterday too, and was still there mid-afternoon today. And these records are topped by a Black Redstart at Heysham Harbour today, and one on the sea defences at Heysham near Grosvenor Road yesterday. 

So who was it said birding the west coast will never be birding the east coast. Well maybe it won't ever be....quite!!

                                     Red Deer Grisedale Hide Leighton Moss. Copyright Paul King.

Leighton Moss RSPB Reserve, Lancashire. Autumnwatch 8.00pm BBC 2 Tuesday for four nights....be there.

Yes you guessed it....I'm off the birding scene once again.

Death Chemical.

Still no birding for me since last Friday I'm afraid, so a little politics/conservation to fill the gap once again.

Guillemot Arkive 

There's some excellent news that the discharge of high-viscosity polyisobutylene (PIB) from ships during tank cleaning operations is to be banned. The classification of high-viscosity PIB's is to be changed to require full tank pre-wash and disposal of all residues at port and prohibit any discharge at sea. PIB was the chemical responsible for the deaths of over 4,000 seabirds on the south-west coast earlier this year, and thousands of people were shocked to hear about the worst marine pollution incident since the Torrey Canyon in the spring of 1967 when this was the worlds worst oil spill, and to date remains the UK's worst.

Of the 4,000 seabirds between February and April this year, most of the 18 species involved were Guillemot washed up on beaches from Cornwall to Dorset, most were dead, but some were alive and taken into care. The same substance of PIB was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of seabirds off the Dutch coast in 2010. 

And now for something much lighter and much more colourful, though they're both 'black'....

Black-eared Wheatear Ana Minguez 

The Black-eared Wheatear forms a species pair with the Pied Wheatear, and some individuals are inseparable. In spite of the fact that it breeds as close to Britain as southern France the Black-eared Wheatear is surprisingly rare here. A brilliant image of this bird....Thank You Ana. 

Black Redstart Noushka Dufort

A passage migrant and summer breeder, the Black Redstart was added to the British List when it was first recorded near London in 1829. Thanks for the excellent image of these youngsters Noushka. Photography at its best, as every one posted on Birds2blog testifies, you only have to 'clik the pik' to see why....But none of 'em are ever mine!

A Pallid Swift or Common Swift reported Wednesday from the Public Hide at Leighton Moss RSPB Reserve at 1.40pm. Thanks to the RBA pager service for this information.  

I'D SOONER BE BIRDING!....Birding....what's birding!