Surprise arrival of rare ‘cartoon birds’ on random Suffolk street causes a stir

Andrew Papworth

PUBLISHED: 20:01 29 January 2019 | UPDATED: 17:50 30 January 2019

But these rare waxwings are causing something of a stir after flying all the way from Scandinavia and randomly picking an Ipswich street to nest for winter.

The 20 or so of the brightly coloured birds are currently camped out on telegraph poles, television aerials and in trees in Defoe Road - picking Suffolk, perhaps surprisingly, for its warmer winter climate.

They have brought with them a flock of their own - in the form of nature lovers with binoculars and cameras, who have travelled from far and wide to capture a glimpse of the rare birds famous for their plump shape and prominent crest.

In scenes watchers have described as something out of a cartoon, the creatures fly down from their perches to eat berries from trees, comically tossing the fruit up in the air before taking a bite.

Continued

Some of the RAREST birds ever seen SPOTTED in UK during world's biggest ever nature watch

LUCKY nature lovers have discovered some of the rarest birds ever seen in Britain by taking part in the planet’s biggest garden wildlife survey.

By STUART WINTER

PUBLISHED: 13:18, Fri, Jan 25, 2019 | UPDATED: 13:20, Fri, Jan 25, 2019

As the Big Garden Birdwatch celebrates its 40th anniversary this weekend, conservationists are revealing the highs and lows of the mass citizen science project. While the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds’ annual winter nature count has charted the marked decline of the house sparrow and starling in the nation’s gardens, some lucky observers have spotted exotic visitors from all points of the compass. One of the most amazing discoveries was a straggler from across the Atlantic that turned up on the streets of London – the striking American robin.

Only 30 of these red-breasted thrushes – close relatives of the blackbird rather than our native robin – have ever made it to British shores since the first sighting in the early 1950s, many drawing huge crowds of twitchers.

The use of an animatronic American robin rather than the British species in the Spoonful of Sugar scene of Disney classic Mary Poppins, supposedly set in Edwardian London, has been described as one of Hollywood’s biggest bloopers. Yet delighted observers taking part in the Big Garden Birdwatch were lucky to a get a sighting of a real American robin in Peckham in 2006.

Read more

The unlikely location a flock of rare waxwings have taken roost in Hull

They've given Spurn Point a miss

Dan Kemp

18:46, 8 JAN 2019

When you think of birdwatching, you would imagine people dressed from head to toe in camouflage, staking out in the middle of woods or on cliff tops.

But birdwatchers from across East Yorkshire have decided against scenic trips to Spurn Point or Bempton Cliffs - instead opting to do their spotting in an altogether less likely place.

Men and women with their long lenses have been spotted focusing on a group of rare waxwings in Hessle , just yards from where hundreds of shoppers go about getting their groceries.

The birds have been spotted near Aldi and Sainsbury's car parks on either side of Priory Way.  A flock of more than a dozen of the rare birds have taken up residence in trees near the supermarkets.

Birdwatcher Michael Flowers says the birds were spotted as early as the end of November but that their numbers are now at a high for winter 2018/19.

He said: "The Waxwings first appeared at Hessle this season on November 28 when nine were seen. Numbers gradually dropped until there were only three on 23 December. Numbers rose again on 5 January when 13 were seen. There must have been another influx from Scandinavia."

Continued  

Eastern Imperial Eagle spotted at Sarola for first time

By TOI

| Monday | 12th March, 2018

Aurangabad: The Eastern Imperial Eagle also known as ‘Shahi Garud’ has been spotted in Sarola area, around 20 kilometer from the city, taking bird experts by surprise.The migratory bird is said to have been sighted for the first time in Aurangabad region. However, it is the first time that the rare bird has entered Aurangabad area.”Nearly 85 centimetre in size, Eastern Imperial Eagle has white patches on the shoulder, a golden buff crown and nape. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has listed the eagle as a ‘vulnerable’ species.Environmentalist Kishor Pathak, who spotted the bird on the bank of a pond located near the entrance of Sarola, said Eastern Imperial Eagles are relatively bolder in nature compared to other varieties of eagle.Pathak said, “The bird is spotted in some parts of Maharashtra during winter as they tend to migrate during the season. The bird feeds on rats, reptiles, birds and even small mammals. Hence, deforestation has been shrinking their habitats.

Aurangabad: The Eastern Imperial Eagle also known as ‘Shahi Garud’ has been spotted in Sarola area, around 20 kilometer from the city, taking bird experts by surprise.The migratory bird is said to have been sighted for the first time in Aurangabad region.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has listed the eagle as a ‘vulnerable’ species.Environmentalist Kishor Pathak, who spotted the bird on the bank of a pond located near the entrance of Sarola, said Eastern Imperial Eagles are relatively bolder in nature compared to other varieties of eagle.Pathak said, “The bird is spotted in some parts of Maharashtra during winter as they tend to migrate during the season.

Continued  

Galapagos red-footed booby found in Sussex

5 September 2016

A bird native to the Galapagos Islands in the South Pacific has been found thousands of miles from home.

The red-footed booby was discovered in "an exhausted state" on the beach at St Leonards, Sussex, on Sunday afternoon.

The seabird, which is related to the gannet and believed to be a juvenile, was washed ashore with its feathers in a poor state and slightly underweight.

It is currently being cared for at the RSPCA Mallydams Wood centre in Hastings.

The bird was rescued by the East Sussex Wildlife Rescue and Ambulance Service (WRAS) following a call from a member of the public.

Founder Trevor Weeks said: "It's an absolutely stunning bird.

"It was looking extremely exhausted, just sitting on the beach.

"Hopefully it will be released back to the wild."

He added: "As far as I can tell, one has never been found in the wild in the UK before.

"From what we gather, one did visit Spain a few years ago, but we can't find many other references to these birds visiting Europe at all."

Source 

'Extremely rare' bird spotted at Derbyshire nature reserve

By Martin_Naylor  |  Posted: July 23, 2016

An "extremely rare" bird, which has only been seen in Derbyshire eight times before, has arrived at a nature reserve in the county.

The Caspian tern was spotted at visited Derbyshire Wildlife Trust's Carr Vale Nature Reserve on Friday.

Nick Brown, of the trust, said, "We think there are only around 290 records of Caspian terns in the UK and most of these sightings have been coastal.

"It is extremely rare to see one in Derbyshire, this is only the ninth record. I was lucky enough to see one at Willington Gravel Pits in 1993.

Read more at 

IN PICTURES: Rare birds flock to Sandwell Valley nature reserve

Rare birds have been spotted at Sandwell Valley nature reserve following the unusually wet and warm winter.

At least two rare species have been seen this month roaming the reserve - which provides a key sanctuary for birds flying over the built-up area.

The extraordinary weather seen around Britain this winter has been cited as the reason why the birds have flocked there early.

Andrew Purcell, a volunteer of more than 40 years at the reserve, said: “We had a smew here not long ago, which is only the seventh time we have ever seen one at the valley.

“The oystercatcher came in mid-December too, they don't normally come until another six weeks.

“We think the warm weather is the reason why they have flocked here earlier.”

The smew is a small diving bird that migrates to Britain from northern European countries, such as Scandinavia and Russia, to escape the freezing weather.

Males are white with black masks and backs, and females are grey with reddish-brown heads.

Continued ...

Winter storms brings rare birds to British shores

WINTER storms have created an amazing “wreck” of one of the world’s smallest seabirds.

By STUART WINTER

PUBLISHED: 13:01, Fri, Jan 8, 2016

More than 100 little auks have been blown ashore by high winds and rough waters over the past few days and are now being nursed back to health before they can be released. 

The auks, about the same size as a starling, have been turning up in gardens and vegetable patches when they should be feeding on plankton well out in the North Sea, leading to a surge of calls to an animal welfare charity.

There have also been reports of thousands of little auks passing by coastal headlands and piers as they head towards shore looking for shelter from the gales.

Continued ...

Storms bring rare avian visitors

John Weekes is a reporter for the Herald on Sunday.

Conservationists are puzzled at a freaky phenomenon blamed on this winter's monster storms.

A bird rescue centre is caring for six giant petrels after concerned members of the public found the birds in distress.

New Zealand Bird Rescue's Lyn MacDonald said in 27 years working at the shelter, she'd never had more than one giant petrel at a time. In fact, she rarely saw more than one a year. Each of the six birds now at the shelter arrived separately over the past few weeks.

The latest, found near Muriwai, arrived yesterday.

MacDonald believed the most rational explanation lay with wild storms of the last few weeks causing the birds to be blown off course. Yet there were plenty of similar storms over the last quarter-century, and no subsequent increase in wounded petrel sightings.

Initial blood tests indicated some of the birds suffered from internal bleeding.

Continued