The Lincolnshire Bird Club

Female Merlin zipped through the feeder area at Hill Holt Wood this afternoon scattering the assorted Tits, it's maneuverability through the trees was awesome.

Oliver.

And John Hurt does the voice of the dragon....

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Alastair Carr

Where there is a will, there is a way....

Oliver
This sounds much more like Sparrowhawk behaviour
John

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Lincolnshire Birds https://www.flickr.com/photos/120340949 ... 8078912016
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Contact: recorder_north@lincsbirdclub.co.uk

i agree it does, however i have seen lots of both and it wasn't much bigger than a Mistle thrush, i have also found a dead female Merlin in our garden in the wood that had flown into a green house window, so they do come into the wood.

Cheers,

Oliver

Ditto Johns remark - sounds more like Sparrowhawk. Merlin's are in open country in our part of the world,
Phil

Stick at it, after all you where there and you evidence it well with previous Merlin activity in your garden so they obviously do come through. Thrush size bird too small for a sparrow hawk in my limited opinion. I didn't report the black restart in my garden in the summer because I just know some people would have told me I hadn't seen it.

Thanks Jon, i only reported it because it's unusual to see one in a wooded area; if any of my future reports are met with cynical conjecture then I'll probably keep them to myself....as I've done for the last 30 years.

Oliver.

No cynicism or offence intended Oliver, just reasonable comment.
Phil

I am saddened that an observation by a competent person should be challenged by those who have no personal knowledge even after Oliver has given a reasonable explanation. Just because John and Phil are prominent self regulated County listers it doesn't mean they are always right. Keep submitting your sightings, Oliver.

I am saddened that an observation can't be challenged without this sort of guff from Stuart Britton as a response. I don't know Oliver but If Dick Forsman himself had presented this info I would have responded in the same way. Any record presented here is open to scrutiny which must not be regarded as cynicism. It seems to me that Oliver responded appropriately to my initial reply about this bird's unusual behaviour and settled the matter; no more needed to be said. Thanks Oliver.

All records presented to the LBC are worth receiving but all will be subjected to the appropriate level of scrutiny in order that we can present a county avifaunal history through our reports which are as accurate as possible

John

PS I had a Black Redstart on my garden wall in the middle of Louth one year as I was brewing coffee early one morning. I could barely believe it myself!

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Lincolnshire Birds https://www.flickr.com/photos/120340949 ... 8078912016
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Contact: recorder_north@lincsbirdclub.co.uk

During the bad winter a couple of years back a Merlin was seen in an Ashby garden, it was not reported as I personally didn't see it but the person that did has plenty of experience, granted it was desperate times.

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GETTING OLD HAS IT'S ADVANTAGES BUT I CAN'T REMEMBER WHAT THEY ARE lol

It is very interesting to see everyone's reports, from the mundane garden regular to the rare and exciting vagrant.

However there will always be that little bit more judgement when the species, behaviour or location are perhaps out of the ordinary.

In this case both parties are right, in firstly reporting the bird and secondly trying to get the id correct.

I'm sure that Oliver is a very competant birder and that his observation is correct, but it all goes back to the fact nowadays that without photographic evidence, then these records will get scrutinised, good or bad.

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George Rutter

Hi Folks.
I'm 100% sure Oliver was correct. I also don't have a problem with being asked to qualify any rarity sightings.

I do however very much regret that as you suggest George, birding and reporting birds has changed, IMHO for the worse.
All to often now photographic evidence is a prerequisite when finding many species. When once a full description of the bird & events would have surficed. 'It's only a bird!'

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Regards.
Del.

To err is human. To really louse things up takes a computer

Hear! Hear!, Stuart.

Richard.....