Azerbaijan 25th February – 7th March 2022

A seemingly well-planned sojourn to the Caspian coast appeared to give us a decent chance at bagging Omid, the last western Siberian White Crane.  Unfortunately, we blundered into the tail end of winter doing its cold and windy best to delay spring.  Omid, quite understandably, remained resolutely on his Iranian wintering grounds, not taking off until 8th March, his latest departure since forever and, even then, didn’t play ball for those that had stayed on, taking an age to make his way to Shirvan NP where he was found on the morning of 14th before heading off north again by lunchtime.  Only a single car load of visiting birders managed to connect.  

Of course, it wasn't all about Omid, we did get Caspian Tit and Siberian Buff-bellied Pipit, and had a pretty good scout around which should aid any future attempts at the crane or indeed Shikra, etc., but,… well,… the crane guys, the bloody crane.      

25th Feb 

UK -> Baku via Istanbul (night on plane[s])
First flight for three and a half years due to climate guilt and COVID.  Pretty straightforward, grabbed some sleep,... some.  

26th Feb

Baku -> Gobustan -> Shirvan (night in Masalli)
Walkie-talkies confiscated by the very polite Azerbaijani customs officials, failed to get local SIMs, but, apart from that, everything went to plan.  Met up with the rest of the team in Baku then headed south to our base in Masalli via Gobustan and Shirvan NP.  On arrival at the Gobustan site found a few Trumpeter Finch, turned out to be the rarest find of the whole trip and a tick for one of our Azerbaijani guides/enablers.  The semi-desert was ringing with Finsch’s Wheatear song whilst Lanners wheeled overhead, spring appeared to be unfolding but, as it transpired, it was just a deceitful manifestation of the fickle foibles and petty schemes of the ornithological gods.  Then it was on to Shirvan NP, famed stop-off for Omid.  The Goitered Gazelles, an Isabelline Shrike and large numbers of Little Bustard were probably the highlights but the restricted viewing of the crane habitat might have been the most talked about feature of the site.  Were Omid to have appeared it may well have been absolute carnage.   

Semi-desert habitat in Gobustan.

Gobustan
Long-legged Buzzard – 3 
Lanner Falcon – 2, apparent pair of adult male and immature female.
Little Owl – 1
Red-billed Chough – 4, flew over site.
Crested Lark  
Western Rock Nuthatch  
Common Starling
Isabelline Wheatear – 1, constantly chased by territorial male Finsch’s Wheatears.
Finsch’s Wheatear – 10
Spanish Sparrow
Rock Sparrow
Trumpeter Finch – 7, minimum count, seemingly first record for region.
Common Linnet
Corn Bunting

Young male Goitered Gazelle, Shirvan NP.

Low scrubby steppe habitat, Shirvan NP.

Shirvan NP
Greylag Goose
Mute Swan – 2
Ruddy Shelduck – 4
Common Shelduck
Northern Shoveler
Gadwall
Mallard
Northern Pintail
Eurasian Teal
Common Pochard
Black Francolin – 5+
Feral Pigeon
Common Woodpigeon – 1
Little Bustard – 150
Northern Lapwing
Eurasian Curlew
Black-tailed Godwit
Ruff – 3
White-winged Black Tern – 2, breeding plumaged adults.
Pygmy Cormorant
Great Cormorant
Dalmatian Pelican – 1
Grey Heron
Great White Egret
Western Marsh Harrier – 10+
Hen Harrier – 1
Eurasian Sparrowhawk – 1
Common Kestrel – 2
Merlin – 1
Isabelline Shrike – 1
Great Grey Shrike – 1
Common Magpie
Rook - 2750
Hooded Crow
Eurasian Skylark
Crested Lark
Bearded Tit – 4
Common Starling
White Wagtail
Meadow Pipit
Common Chaffinch
Corn Bunting – 50
Common Reed Bunting

Golden Jackel – 2
Red Fox – 1
Goitered Gazelle – 50+
European Hare – 1


27th Feb 

Lerik/Talish Mountains (night in Masalli)
Caspian Tit ‘twitch’ and a day in the Talish Mountains whilst we awaited news on the crane from Iran.  The tit proved very straightforward with prolonged sightings of at least four birds.  The eye-catching local Long-tailed Tits also proved popular.  

Wooded hills above Lerik, Caspian Tit habitat.

Caspian Tit.

House Sparrow, presumed hyrcanus but, given how often the phrase 'grades into x' occurs in the geographical variation section in BWP, I think we can take it all with a pinch of salt.

Large Tortoiseshell, a harbinger of a spring that never arrived.

The Talish Mountains, see Diedert at bottom right corner for scale.

Horseshoe bat sp., there seem to be four or five options.

Masalli -> Talish Mountains
Cattle Egret
Steppe Buzzard – 1, very dark bird.
Syrian Woodpecker – 2
Eurasian Jay – presumed krynicki/hyrcanus.
Eurasian Blue Tit
Great Tit
Eurasian Nuthatch
Eurasian Wren
Eurasian Blackbird
European Robin
European Greenfinch
European Goldfinch

Lerik/Talish Mountains
Eastern Imperial Eagle – 1, distantly, perched on outcrop.
Hen Harrier – 1, high overhead whilst we had lunch.
Great Spotted Woodpecker – presumed poelzami.
Eurasian Green Woodpecker
Eurasian Jay – presumed krynicki/hyrcanus.  
Common Raven
Coal Tit – presumed gaddi.
Caspian Tit – 4
Eurasian Blue Tit
Great Tit
Long-tailed Tit – 2, presumed alpinus, lacking in any pinkish tones, broad black lateral crown stripes, isolated black throat patch, black streaked neck sides, grey nape/mantle/scapulars, short tail(?).
Eurasian Nuthatch
Eurasian Wren
Song Thrush
Eurasian Blackbird
European Robin
House Sparrow – presumed hyrcanus/‘caucasicus’, grey cheeks/ear-coverts but quite pale underparts.
Common Chaffinch
Eurasian Bullfinch – 2
European Goldfinch

Horseshoe bat sp.

Large Tortoiseshell


28th Feb  

Gizil Aghaj NP (night in Masalli)
A day in the Gizil Aghaj area with a view to picking up a few wetland species, Siberian Buff-bellied Pipit and getting a feel for the area before the hoped for passage of Omid.  A reasonable day but by lunch time was feeling decidedly ropey,… uh-oh.   

Golden Jackels, Gizil Aghaj Bay.

Gizil Aghaj Bay
Greylag Goose
Northern Shoveler
Gadwall
Eurasian Wigeon
Mallard
Northern Pintail
Eurasian Teal
Black Francolin – 1
Little Grebe – 100+, in flocks of up to 20-25 birds.
Great Crested Grebe
Feral Pigeon
Water Rail – 1
Pied Avocet
Northern Lapwing
Black-tailed Godwit
Ruff – 1
Temminck's Stint – 3, flew over calling.
Common Snipe
Common Sandpiper – 1  
Green Sandpiper – 5
Spotted Redshank – 2
Common Greenshank
Marsh Sandpiper
Common Redshank
Black-headed Gull
Little Gull – 3
Pallas's Gull – 1
Caspian Gull
Pygmy Cormorant
Great Cormorant
Dalmatian Pelican – 3
Grey Heron
Great White Egret
Little Egret
Cattle Egret
Western Marsh Harrier – 10
White-tailed Eagle – 2
Rook
Hooded Crow
Eurasian Skylark
Barn Swallow – 2
Moustached Warbler – 3+, singing males.
Common Chiffchaff – 10, singing birds sounded similar to collybita but calling birds sounded tristis-like, some birds lacking green/yellow tones others similar to collybita, presumably multiple populations present.
Cetti's Warbler
Eurasian Wren
Common Starling
Song Thrush
European Robin
House Sparrow
White Wagtail
Meadow Pipit
Water Pipit – 15
Siberian Buff-bellied Pipit – 1
Common Chaffinch
European Greenfinch
Common Linnet
Corn Bunting
Common Reed Bunting

Golden Jackel – 2
Coypu

Caspian Tern, Caspian Gulls, Caspian Sea, Gizil Aghaj coast.

Gizil Aghaj coast
Mallard
Eurasian Teal
Great Crested Grebe
Kentish Plover
Common Ringed Plover
Eurasian Curlew
Black-tailed Godwit
Dunlin
Little Stint
Common Greenshank
Jack Snipe - 1
Slender-billed Gull – 4
Pallas's Gull – 10
Black-headed Gull
Common Gull – 1
Caspian Gull
Caspian Tern – 1
Great Cormorant
Dalmatian Pelican – 4
Grey Heron
Great White Egret
Little Egret
Western Marsh Harrier
Common Kestrel
Common Starling
Meadow Pipit
European Stonechat – 2

Gizil Aghaj NP
Common Pochard
Green Sandpiper
Caspian Gull
Black Redstart – 1
Siberian Stonechat – 1, hemprichii/variegatus

Gizil Aghaj -> Masalli
White Stork – 40

1st Mar 

Masalli (night in Masalli)
Urgh,… just urgh.

Masalli
Goldcrest

2nd Mar

Gizil Aghaj NP and porcupine site (night in Masalli)
Back in the game.  Slight up-tick in migrant activity in the Gizil Aghaj area, most notably of Marsh Sandpiper, Whiskered Tern and Swallow.  Tried a site for Indian Crested Porcupine in the afternoon, no joy but Weasel skittered onto the trip list.   

Moustached Warbler through a bramble bush. Heard 'revving up' and chuntering away despite the cool and breezy conditions, Gizil Aghaj Bay.

Penduline Tits, Gizil Aghaj Bay.

Laughing Doves, near Gizil Aghaj Bay.

Coypu, numerous at Gizil Aghaj Bay.

Gizil Aghaj Bay
Northern Shoveler
Gadwall
Eurasian Wigeon
Mallard
Northern Pintail
Eurasian Teal
Common Pochard
Little Grebe
Great Crested Grebe
Water Rail – 1
Pied Avocet
Northern Lapwing
Black-tailed Godwit
Common Snipe   
Green Sandpiper
Ruff – 16
Spotted Redshank
Common Greenshank
Marsh Sandpiper – 70
Common Redshank
Black-headed Gull
Caspian Gull
Whiskered Tern – 700 marsh terns present, all close enough to identify were Whiskered.
Pygmy Cormorant
Great Cormorant
Grey Heron
Great White Egret
White-tailed Eagle – 6+
Western Marsh Harrier
Laughing Dove – 2
Eurasian Skylark
White Wagtail – notable increase, presumably passage birds.  
Eurasian Penduline Tit – 2
Barn Swallow – 12
Moustached Warbler
Common Chiffchaff
Cetti's Warbler
Common Starling
Meadow Pipit
Water Pipit
Common Reed Bunting

Coypu

Near Hyrcan NP
Eurasian Jay
Dunnock – presumed obscura.  
Brambling
Eurasian Siskin

Weasel – 1

3rd Mar 

Hyrcan NP and Gizil Aghaj NP (night in Masalli)
Down to Hyrcan NP for sub-species skullduggery, the Great Spotted Woodpecker, Coal Tit, Long-tailed Tit and Dunnock were probably the most notable.  Then back to the coast in the hope that some migrants were pushing their way north.  A barely detectable trickle included Little Ringed Plover, an increase in Common Snipe and a few marsh terns including 15 White-winged Black Terns.  I imagine the Eurasian Coot and Greater Spotted Eagle, both additions to the trip list, were probably wintering birds.   

Wet woodland, Hyrcan NP, still plenty of Lesser Spotted Woodpecker here.

Dunnock, soon to be Caucasian Dunnock(?), OOOOOSH!

Presumed poelzami Great Spotted Woodpecker, Hyrcan NP.

Woodland, Hyrcan NP, amazing to think there are still Leopard, Bear and Wolves in these woods and mountains.

Hyrcan NP
Mallard
Eurasian Teal – 230
Eurasian Sparrowhawk – 1
Common Buzzard
Steppe Buzzard – 1, red type.
Common Kingfisher – 2
Great Spotted Woodpecker – presumed poelzami.
Lesser Spotted Woodpecker – 4
Eurasian Green Woodpecker
Hooded Crow
Coal Tit – presumed gaddi again.
Eurasian Blue Tit
Great Tit
Common Chiffchaff
Long-tailed Tit – the rather eye-catching presumed alpinus again.
Eurasian Blackcap – 1, singing male.
Goldcrest
Eurasian Nuthatch
Eurasian Wren
White-throated Dipper – 1
Song Thrush
Redwing
Eurasian Blackbird
European Robin
Dunnock – obscura again.  
Grey Wagtail – 2
White Wagtail
Common Chaffinch
Hawfinch – 6
European Goldfinch
Eurasian Siskin

Whiskered and White-winged Black Terns, Gizil Aghaj Bay.

Whiskered Tern, Gizil Aghaj Bay.

Gizil Aghaj Bay
Northern Shoveler
Gadwall
Eurasian Wigeon
Mallard
Northern Pintail
Eurasian Teal
Little Grebe
Great Crested Grebe
Eurasian Coot – 1
Pied Avocet
Northern Lapwing
Little Ringed Plover – 1
Black-tailed Godwit
Common Snipe – c.200, notable increase in numbers.   
Green Sandpiper
Ruff
Spotted Redshank
Common Greenshank
Marsh Sandpiper
Common Redshank
Black-headed Gull
Caspian Gull
Whiskered Tern
White-winged Black Tern – 15
Pygmy Cormorant
Great Cormorant
Grey Heron
Great White Egret
Greater Spotted Eagle – 1
White-tailed Eagle
Western Marsh Harrier
White Wagtail  
Moustached Warbler
Common Chiffchaff
Cetti's Warbler
Common Starling
Meadow Pipit
Water Pipit
Common Reed Bunting

Coypu

Gizil Aghaj coast
Slender-billed Gull
Black-headed Gull
Pallas's Gull – 5
Common Gull – 6  
Caspian Gull
‘Steppe Gull’ – 1, apparent barabensis.
Caspian Tern – 1
Sandwich Tern – 4

4th Mar
White-tailed Plover site, Salyan, and Shirvan NP (night in Baku)
Headed north with the ultimate aim of dropping Vincent and René at the airport. Stopped for White-tailed Plover in Salyan at an active aggregate extraction site which, apart from the star birds, didn’t appear to have much else to offer although a healthy number of bee-eater nest holes would presumably provide entertainment later in the spring.  We then headed back to Shirvan NP and added Greater White-fronted Goose, Marbled Duck, Common Moorhen, Grey-headed Swamphen and Turkestan Short-toed Lark to the trip list.  However, the highlight was probably a stunning male pallidus Merlin, absolute cracker.  

Masalli -> Salyan
Stock Dove – 2  

Salyan
White-tailed Plover – 17
Green Sandpiper – 3
Common Greenshank – 1
Marsh Sandpiper – 1
Pygmy Cormorant
Grey Heron
Great White Egret
Little Egret
Western Marsh Harrier
Common Magpie
Hooded Crow
Eurasian Penduline Tit – 1
Common Starling
White Wagtail
Water Pipit

Steppe habitat with raised viewing platform (top right) from which the wetlands (Omid's favoured stopover) can be scanned.

Scrubby steppe and Isabelline Wheatear.

Shirvan NP
Greylag Goose
Greater White-fronted Goose – 90
Mute Swan – 7
Ruddy Shelduck – 41
Common Shelduck
Northern Shoveler
Gadwall
Eurasian Wigeon – 3
Mallard
Northern Pintail
Eurasian Teal
Marbled Duck – 20
Red-crested Pochard – 3
Common Pochard
Black Francolin – 3
Little Bustard – 300
Water Rail – 1
Common Moorhen – 1
Grey-headed Swamphen – 2
European Golden Plover – 30
Northern Lapwing
Eurasian Curlew
Black-tailed Godwit – 60
Ruff – 12
Common Snipe
Green Sandpiper – 1
Common Redshank
Caspian Gull
White-winged Black Tern – 6
Pygmy Cormorant
Grey Heron
Great White Egret – 35
Western Marsh Harrier – 12
Hen Harrier – 1
Eurasian Sparrowhawk – 1
White-tailed Eagle – 1
Common Kestrel – 2
Merlin – 3, including a male pallidus.
Isabelline Shrike – 1, same bird as present on 26th Feb.
Great Grey Shrike – 1, homeyeri.
Common Magpie
Rook
Hooded Crow
Common Raven – 1
Eurasian Penduline Tit – 1
Turkestan Short-toed Lark – 1
Eurasian Skylark
Crested Lark
Bearded Tit – 4
Moustached Warbler – 3
Cetti's Warbler
Eurasian Wren
Common Starling
Isabelline Wheatear – 1
Spanish Sparrow
Meadow Pipit
Water Pipit
Common Chaffinch
Corn Bunting – c.100
Common Reed Bunting

Goitered Gazelle

5th Mar 

Absheron NP and Baku (night in Baku)
Checked out Absheron NP’s potential for migrants.  A decent-sized spit jutting into the Caspian with almost exclusively low vegetation and wetland habitats plus limited scrub and the odd tree.  Looked great as a local patch for anyone working in Baku and/or for birders to bookend their trips, maybe not good enough to base yourself there if hunting WP megas from the east (not helped by the usual office hours accessibility of the NPs).  In the afternoon attempted to check out some wetlands in northern Baku.  Oh dear, those that were still present amongst the forest of nodding donkeys and sprawl of uncontrolled urban creep, were polluted, litter-strewn and pretty much birdless.   

Low steppe habitat and scrub on the peninsula at Absheron NP, looks like a migrant magnet.

Common Gull.

One of the shinier bits of Baku.

Absheron NP
Northern Shoveler
Eurasian Wigeon
Mallard
Northern Pintail
Eurasian Teal
Red-crested Pochard – 3
Common Pochard
Tufted Duck
Greater Scaup – 13
Red-breasted Merganser – 9
Great Crested Grebe – 3
Feral Pigeon
Water Rail – 1
Grey Plover – 8
Common Ringed Plover
Eurasian Curlew
Sanderling – 3
Dunlin
Common Snipe
Common Greenshank
Slender-billed Gull
Black-headed Gull
Pallas's Gull – 15
Common Gull – 2
Caspian Gull
Great Cormorant
Western Marsh Harrier – 2
Hen Harrier – 2
Common Kestrel – 2
Hooded Crow
Eurasian Skylark – 50
Common Chiffchaff – 1
Common Starling
Song Thrush – 1
Black Redstart – 1
Meadow Pipit – 25
Common Chaffinch
Common Linnet
Common Reed Bunting

6th Mar  

Baku -> Istanbul (missed London flight) (night in Istanbul)
Everything went pretty swimmingly, including collecting the confiscated walkie-talkies, until Turkish Airlines managed to take off late and narrowly miss our connection in Istanbul.  Then it was all manner of logistical bollocks followed by a shit hotel, shit dinner and bed.  

7th Mar 

Istanbul -> UK
Up before the arse crack of dawn, minibus, airport, repeated security scans/searches of our hand luggage then Istanbul to Gatwick complete with grim, egg-heavy breakfast. Farewell to Mr. Alfrey, wait for dad, quick sandwich from mum and a drive back avoiding a closed J11-12 on the M4.  Arrived in time to get a big cwtch on the playground from little P,... result. 

Another trip complete.  I imagine I may well be back in Baku some point soon. 

Long time, no see?

Over the weekend I was sent a photograph of the 'Scaup' at Parc Bryn Bach and noticed a few images popping up on social media.  I had my suspicians but wanted to take a look before stating anything too categorical.  Saw it on Tuesday, took a few pics,... and,... well,... I'm pretty sure this is our much-loved, regularly returning, Aythya hybrid (Pochard x ???).  I might be wrong, it may moult in lots of lovely vermiculated mantle, scaps and flank feathers in the coming weeks and I'll have Scaup egg all over my face, but I fear it will hang around all winter looking more-or-less as it does now.  If I'm correct, and if all our Scaup-like hybrids relate to the same long-lived bird, whilst appearing superficially like a juvenile, this bird is actually about 15 years old! 

Dull, dirty yellow eye.  Would most juvenile/first-winter Scaup show a cleaner, more striking yellow iris by early December?

Head shape not quite right, the forehead isn’t quite as rounded/bulbous as it might be (it isn’t the ‘high point’ of the head) and that little ‘peak’ behind the eye (producing a flattish crown) is not just due to it having been feeding or being alert.

Slightly over-exposed in this image but it does show the lovely patterning on the belly.

The amount of pure white in the blaze is very restricted (it's mostly sullied brownish), also the blaze doesn’t meet over the bill and is diffusely edged.

Do those greater coverts look adult shaped to you?  They look adult-shaped to me.  Also, would most Scaup show more white on the outer webs of those inner primaries?

One or two feathers on the left flank do show very fine vermiculation.  They are not easy to see. 

A few upper scaps and mantle feathers have been replaced, they appear blackish-brown amidst the older, dark brown feathers but don’t show any significant amount of vermiculation; I’d imagine the new feathers will, over time, fade/abrade to match the older feathers (i.e. the bird will remain essentially plain brown on the mantle and scapulars).

Blaze doesn't meet above the bill.

Always seems to exude strong Pochard vibes to my eye.

One adult-shaped central feather with the rest abraded, it’s very difficult to be sure but I can’t see bare shafts protruding from the abraded tips as might be expected with a juvenile. 

It isn't actually that much bigger and bulkier than the accompanying Tufted Ducks.  Would a Scaup look slightly broader in the beam?  I do wonder whether it couldn't be a Pochard x Tufted Duck and the whole Scaup thing be a complete facade. 

Pretty little thing though huh?

Is the mantle a shade too dark?  Do I spend too much time peering at ducks?  Is it possible to spend too much time perring at ducks?

The lower breast grades into greyish-white belly feathers (they look overly dark here due to slight under-exposure), finely patterned with dark feather centres and shaft streaks.  Would a juvenile/first-winter Scaup show a clearer boundary between a dark breast and a cleaner whiter belly?

I don't think, in isolation, any of the above features rule out juvenile Scaup (they can show a dull eye, lack vermiculation, have a 'funny' blaze and dull primaries) but in combination they make me as suspicious as Mr. McSuspicious from Suspiciousville in deepest Suspiciousland. 

If anyone takes the time to pop up and see this duck in perfect (bright but overcast) light and gets a definitive set of close-up pictures (including flight/wing stretch shots) please drop me a line.  If this is the bird I think it is she really deserves an article in the bird report. 

Finally, there are old posts on similar hybrids here, here, here, here and here.  I also have images from more recent (non-blogging) winters.  Whether the differences in appearance are down to the bird maturing, stage of moult, camera equipment, etc., or due to more than one bird being involved I just don't know.  What is the more parsimonious explanation, one regularly returning bird slightly varying in appearance, Gwent being super lucky and being a mecca for Scaup-like hybrids or a combination of both?  

PS. I've remembered why I don't blog anymore, I just don't have the time for this malarky. 

Remarkable bird,... beautiful plumage!

Gawd knows how many tit flocks I have sorted through this autumn, haven't found so much as a Firecrest, let alone a Yellow-browed, Pallas' or Dusky Warbler.  An entire autumn birding in Gwent, predictably, almost reassuringly,... shite.  

I took the liberty of examining this first-winter Blue Tit, and I discovered the only reason that it had been sitting on its perch in the first place, was that it had been nailed there. 

Nice bush

Park up at Redwick in the dark and yomp to Coldharbour Pill.  Just before dawn the Great Grey Shrike appears from its roost, shows atop various Hawthorn and Blackthorn before slowly making its way inland up the reenside scrub.  Plenty of common stuff on the move to keep one entertained for the next hour or two but the shrike had gone and gone. 

Peanuts

Found a peanut,
Found a peanut,
Found a peanut yesterday!

Some people saw the peanut before I did.  Some people didn't have the first inkling of an idea that it might be an interesting peanut.  One person thought it was a different semi-interesting peanut and had to leave before it reappeared.  Luckily, I am very good at peanut identification and came along at precisely the right time.

It's peanut butter jelly time!
Peanut butter jelly time!
Peanut butter jelly time!

Now where he at? Where he at?
Where he at? Where he at?
Now there he go, there he go,
There he go, there he go.

Do the peanut butter jelly, peanut butter jelly
Peanut butter jelly with a baseball bat.
Do the peanut butter jelly, peanut butter jelly
Peanut butter jelly with a baseball bat.

 Lesser Yellowlegs, dainty ickle things.

Ynysyfro delivers a Xmas Prezzie!

'PSEEP!' A single, shrill siren call rang around the lower basin. And there, on the exposed mud shone the dazzling supercilium and belly on a chunky monkey of a pipit that had no earthly business in a muddy hole just north of Newport. A bona fide Ynysyfro mega.

OOOOOOOF!!!

OOOOOOOSH!!!

AAAAAAARGH!!!

KAPOW!!!

The .MOV engine in the iPhone has done all kinds of weird shizzle to the contrast and sharpening, and these are quick and dirty screenshots, but it is quite a well-marked bird, check out those mantle stripes.

Finally, Caspian falls

So far, my only 'in-the-flesh' view of the Caspian Gull in Bettws. Arrived just in time to see all the gulls take to the air and drift off. I thought the underwing looked too dark (not helped by overhead conditions [rain, dull as dishwater] and under-exposure) and the tail a bit too michahellis-like but LGs, much better, photographs of the bird on the deck appear to show a Gibbins, et al. (2010; 2011) proof Caspian. Phew! Finally, a glaring hole on the Gwent list plugged. Well played SP.    

It just keeps on coming back

Adult Mediterranean Gull, Lyne Road, Crindau, Newport.

I gave a letter to the postman, he put it in his sack

Modern rarity hunting is a funny old game. Find dead bird, pluck feathers from dead bird, put feathers in envelope, post envelope to clever bunnies, cross fingers. I wonder how many, if any, Ardea alba egretta records in the Western Palearctic have been confirmed by DNA or biometrics? Fingers still crossed.