Twinned

The report of a Wood Warbler in Norfolk is always refreshing. We don’t often get them here but they are annual on their migration north. I was leading a ‘birds by song’ workshop for the NWT when one turned up on Saturday. We did call and have a brief look around but given it was silent didn’t place too much effort into seeing it. Besides it was a pig to see and even worse to photograph. I did however go back in the afternoon after the workshop and have another quick look for it. The event of lunch had not made it any easier; always at the back of bushes and never really showing well.

The Pied Flycatcher at nearby Granborough Hill that turned up late afternoon was only marginally better to photograph; by the time friend John and I got to it … the best of the light had more or less gone.

Garden Tick

A glance at the wind indicator told me I should be looking out of the window as I ate my toast on Wednesday morning. The Sycamores weren’t alive with birds but there was a bird flitting among the leaves that I presumed was a Pied Fly and a Wheatear was balancing on the fence. I needed to get outside and take a closer look.

The Pied Flycatcher, or whatever it was, never did show again and the Wheatear moved quickly on. However, a Phylloscopus warbler that momentarily hovered in a little enclave among the Elms held my attention. It was bright. It was very bright. Only after another 30 minutes did it show briefly again and give its identity away. The sparkling white underparts, the lemon tart throat and that supercillium told me I had a new garden tick. Wood Warbler.

Warbling over Scotland

On last week’s Scottish Birding Tour to Speyside and the Isles of Skye we heard the uplifting call of the Wood Warbler coming from high in the mature trees. It wasn’t long before we saw the silky white underparts capped with the lemon yellow that make this species so distinct. It took a little longer however to get a decent shot of him.
Such a great place Scotland … filled with some great birds. Next year’s four day tour is already on the website.