Dusky Thrush and a Brecks blitz...

Ok, you probably know the deal by now - news went out late on Friday that a Dusky Thrush had been found in Margate Cemetery, the first twitchable individual since 1703 or something. I did a double take when the news buzzed through on my phone early on Saturday morning and lay there for a moment unthinking...until I realised what I should be doing. Arriving in Margate just before 8am, there was already a decent crowd of 70 odd staring rapturously at an ornamental pine in the middle of the cemetery and BAM...there she was - a female Dusky Thrush perched at the top. Incredible. I think the bloke who piled in behind me summed it up best, "f**k (gasps)...F**K!" A minute or two later, the bird flew down into cover between the headstones and continued to show but from denser trees and scrub. After another half or so of shifting positions I was happy with my lot and left it to the ever increasing hordes, of which there were loads by then.

No doubt much debate about the birds' make up will follow but, never having encountered one before, I noted that it looked slightly 'thrushier' in its general jizz compared to a Redwing and more washed out than any pictures I'd seen before. The excellent views showed up the breast band/streaking and some well defined wing tracts. What a score it was by a local patcher, I reckon he did well to find the bird, confirm its ID with help and then stand back to watch the mayhem unfold. And I wonder what the bird makes of Margate, it's a bloody long way from the forests of eastern Asia.

Dusky Thrush record shot, Margate Cemetery, Kent, 18/5/13

After the Thrush I did what everyone else there did and headed along the coast to Reculver to have a look for the Montagu's Harrier that had been hanging around the oyster farm for a couple of days. Word was it was showing well, which happily turned out to be a considerable understatement as the bird drifted up and down the old sea wall near to where I stood, I barely ever get views that good of Marsh Harrier. Feeling pretty chuffed with things I carried on along the wall over the fields to see what else was about. With clouds of insects in the air, I was half thinking about the male Red-backed Shrike that had been present the day before and how good conditions were for it when not more than 50m further I watched as two linnets flicked into a hawthorn bush, on top of which perched a...Red-backed Shrike! Jeez. What a bird and what a morning.

Drifting homewards, I detoured off just before Gravesend and after a fairly massive walk round Shorne Marshes, managed to scope out the Cattle Egret amongst the livestock. True, it was still about half a mile away but I had to earn at least one tick that day. A couple of Common terns and a nice male Wheatear along the sea wall was the icing on an epic bird-shaped cake.

Following my highly original jaunt on Saturday, yesterday I headed up to Suffolk, mostly with the Red-footed Falcon that's found Lakeheath Fen to its liking in mind. Typical of a hot May weekend, the Lakenheath car park was a mass of buses and bumbags but I managed to shuffle along to the New Fen viewpoint where sizeable crowd was gathered. Oddly, the majority seemed more interested in pointing an 8ft long camera lens at anything with wings than the falcon and more than once I overheard one of the MANY hobbies dashing by being passed off as the red-foot, followed by clickclickclick, but whatever. Pretty soon the Red-footed Falcon did turn up and it put on a blinding show right in front of us. In fact when it drifted off twenty minutes later, there was a distinct sigh from the crowd, much like when the credits roll at the end  of a decent movie and reality resumes. Nice. Point and click, some for the scrap book:

Red-footed Falcon (m) (Falco vespertinus) - a really smart bird,  Lakenheath Fen, 19/5/13

Following up the Red-foot with a majestic Common Crane that flew past Joist Fen, several reeling Grasshopper warblers and a Bittern that passed so close I couldn't focus my bins in time, it was an excellent few hours in the Suffolk sunshine. Half an hour with the Weeting Heath Stone Curlews, Spurs put in their rightful place and it was a very happy drive home.

For a weekend that began in a cemetery, it sure was one to remember.

A Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) in the Lakenheath woodland (digiscoped)

Orange-tip butterfly (m)

RSPB Lakenheath Fen