A bumper number of Shearwaters flying through Devon on
Friday tempted me however for a weekend
twitch I stuck to my original plan & headed to Kilsea Wetlands as
soon as the first report of the White-rumped Sandpiper came through on the
phone.
Twitching a flighty bird with a 3 hour journey was always
going to have an element on risk involved but It would be worth it if I could
pull it off. Confidence increased as it was reported again when I was just an
hour away. Safely parked I was literally skipping round to the hide only to be
greeted with “It’s gone mate”.
Feeling like a burst balloon I decided to make the most of
the location and have a good nosey around recording Sandwich, Common &
Little Terns, some fantastic coloured Red Knots, Black-tailed Godwits, Dunlin,
Little Egrets, Common & Green Sandpipers.
With the chance to get back to watch the second innings of
local cricket I then headed out of Kilsea when the Squire reached me in a rare
mile of reception to tell me the White-rumped was back. I quickly turned back
along the ten minutes of lanes to park and sprint to the hide. There at last
was the target bird of the day. The bird was very distinguishable as it was
very pale compared to the Dunlin flock it was with & also smaller. The long
primary projections were a feature that really stood out.
From a earlier moment of despair the afternoon drive home
went very smoothly and to make the day even better I hadn’t missed any cricket
due to heavy rain in the midlands.
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