The Lincolnshire Bird Club

A great day at Gibraltar Point despite the foul weather and some missed birds

Saw
pallas's warbler just behind the ringing hut. There when it was found, there when it was caught, ringed and released and as it showed well subsequently. Lifer to boot
ring ouzel 2
red throated diver 2
redwing 100+
fieldfare 20+
goldcrest 100+
gannet 1north
scoter 100 mainly south
pintail 1
barn owl 1
blackcap 3
stonechat 1
water rail 1 on the Mere
woodcock near Shovelers
spotted redshank 3

Missed
great grey shrike
red-throated pipit (despite being stood next to KMW & JPS when they first heard it - the perils of hearing loss due to working in a factory and advancing years)
pomarine skua
arctic skua
great skua
snow bunting
richards pipit
firecrest

I think most of today's sightings will be on the Gib Obs website. However, to add some further detail:

Thrushes today included at least 3,800 Redwing and 55 Ring Ouzels with flocks of 12 and 7 seen coming in off the sea.

The Great-grey Shrike was in the East Dunes early on then moved toward Rock Ridge later (unless this was a different bird).

Chiffchaffs and Goldcrests seemed to be arriving in bigger numbers from late morning and there was a new wave of Robin late morning too.

The Red-throated Pipit was heard by about 10 observers as it flew over Storm Ridge as we were waiting for the Pallas's to show again. It called four times but was never seen.

Yesterday's Richard's Pipit was seen a few times in the East Dunes (when seen it would then head for the saltmarsh north of the shorebird's warden's hut) - which is basically what it did yesterday evening.

James

Additionally, it's probably not worth mentioning but there were at least two birds that 'got away' today in the form of a fly-over possible OBP and an additional heard only Pallas's - I wonder what else we missed...

The lady who first saw the Pallas's talked about two birds in the tree behind the ringing hut but as far as I know the two were only seen by her. She thought they were yellow-browed until George the ringer saw one and identified it a Pallas's. He opened his nets and had caught it within about fifteen minutes.

I know that the shrike in the dunes was seen not that far from Mill Hill about 14:00 and then I was told by a lady in the Mere Hide about half an hour later that she had seen one on the rock ridge about 13:30 but by that time it was pouring down. So I got in the car and went home. Perhaps there was two

Had forgotten the chiffchaff - but as you say who knows what was missed?

Hi Chris

The heard only Pallas's was in the north of the reserve. The last (to my knowledge) sighting of the shrike (In Buckthorn) was at 1332 (I informed you about 2 mins after it was seen) so that gives it an hour to get a pretty short distance...

All the best

James

Hi James
Didn't realise that is who you were. The penalties of not introducing ourselves
Best wishes
Chris