3 Rose-coloured Starling on Bryher

16th September 2021

Kayaked twitched a White-rumped Sandpiper on Bryher and re-identified it as a Baird’s Sandpiper

Thanks to my kayak, I had another great day. Although I did kayak dip out on a Buff-breasted Sandpiper on St Martins yesterday. So after seeing a single Pied and 3 Spotted Flycatcher from the Castle obs window this morning, I headed up to the golf course, thinking that maybe the sandpiper might have changed islands. After a quick walk around, a single Whinchat, 20 White Wagtail, 15 Wheatear and below the golf clubhouse, Wryneck. It wasn’t until early afternoon that I twitched a Melodious Warbler at Maypole and had brief but good scope views through the finder’s scope, Mick Turton. There were also 2 Tree Pipit and a single Reed Warbler in the same field. Shortly after seeing the warbler, Will Wagstaff put the news out of a White-rumped Sandpiper on the Big Pool, Bryher but it had flown off with Dunlin. It’s quite sometime since I’ve seen a White-rump. So you can have a guess what I was thinking of doin later this afternoon?

There were 4 Spotted and a single Pied Flycatcher in the pine belt opposite my window

There was also up to 4 Willow Warbler

There were up to 20 White Wagtail on the golf course

And just below the golf club house was this Wryneck enjoying the warm morning sun

2 Tree Pipit were in the same field as the Melodious Warbler at Maypole

Shortly after 16.00, I was on my ways to the latter island in my kayak for the second twitch of the day. On Bryher, I didn’t have much time and checked all the beaches in search of the sandpiper on my ways to the site to where it was last seen. From the west side of the pool, I scanned the edges and feeding with 12 Ringed Plover and 8 Dunlin, was a Baird’s Sandpiper!! Ideal! I continued scanning for the White-rumped Sandpiper but there was no sign of it anywhere. The Baird’s was distant and as the sun came out, all the waders took flight and flew off high out west. Less than half of them returned and I decided to stick it out and hope it to returns. Some twenty minutes later, it flew in and pitched down only meters from where I was standing. The next ten minutes were spent laying down in the grass observing the Baird’s Sandpiper at very close range. I had to make a move and as I made my ways past the hotel, a small flock of Starling moved through south and with them was the juvenile Rose-coloured Starling that I discovered here last Sunday. This was followed by another 150 Starling through and also another juvenile Rose-coloured Starling! It was at the Rushy Bay fields that it was alive with Starling in the Pittosporum hedge that runs parallel with the path and I spotted one of the Rosies. I took 10 steps forward and there together perched on bare branches, were 2 juvenile Rose-coloured Starling. I looked back to where I had just seen one in the hedge, thinking that it must be one of the two together but no, it was still there! 3 juvenile Rose-coloured Starling together!! Were there others hiding deeper in the hedge? No time to wait and see, I had a kayak to catch and was back home by 19.30 and ready for my dinner.

Just rowing out from Sharks Pit and I got good views of this Kingfisher from my kayak. It really wasn’t that bothered of me drifting up to it and caught a shrimp, got it down it’s neck and flew off.

This is when the Baird’s Sandpiper returned to the pool after flying off and landed only meters away from me. I fired off some shots and then settled down in the grass at the water’s edge and observed it feeding at very close range

This Baird’s Sandpiper made up for the kayak dip on St Martins yesterday. If anythin, it’s good excise. Also, Will let me know that this was the same bird he had earlier on the Big Pool. He had distant views of it asleep at the time when he found it before it flew off.

One of the 8 Dunlin the Baird’s Sandpiper was feeding with

I viewed these 3 juvenile Rose-coloured Starling together at the same time in a Pittisporum Hedge in the Rushy Bay fields!! So far I’ve seen up to 9 rose-coloured Starling this year and including these three birds, discovered five of them!

The Rose-coloured Starling were hanging out with some 200 Starling

In the next field from this afternoons Melodious Warbler, yesterday I had this Wryneck. Including the individual this morning, I’ve now seen up to 11 Wryneck so far this year. Like the Rose-Coloured Starlings, by far the most I’ve seen in one year. However, unlike the latter species, I can never get close enough to any of the Wrynecks to get a good shot with the camera. Still time for more to turn up.

Also got a record shot of this Red-backed Shrike at Content that Mark Aderson found last Saturday

A few days ago I came across the leucistic House Sparrow at Morning Point, Garrison, that visited briefly my garden over two weeks ago. In between those two weeks, it has been also seen in town, Old Town and Telegraph.

Re-joining The European Single Market – “Sensible Conversation” Needed

34,984 viewsSep 14, 2021

2K17SHARESAVEMaximilien Robespierre 76.4K subscribers

Juergen Maier, the former CEO of Siemens, said that a “sensible conversation” was needed on prospect of re-joining the European Single Market. Following 8 1/2 months of Brexit damage, there now seems to be talk in public of Great Britain re-joining the Single Market. This would resolve many of the the problems importers, exporters, fishermen and others are suffering from at the moment. Patreon – http://www.patreon.com/MaxRobespierre Amazon – https://amzn.to/2QoRauj Facebook: – https://www.facebook.com/MaximilienRo… Twitch – https://www.twitch.tv/max_robespierre Merch – https://maximilienrobespierre1.live/m… Twitter – https://twitter.com/Robespi33645685 Buy Me A Coffee – https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Robespierre

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