Three Lifers in less than a Day! Northumberland & Fife 5-6th May 2023

While we were wandering quite happily around our favourite woodland in Wales and devoid of any internet or mobile signal on May Day, an extremely rare bird had been discovered in Northumberland. We only got wind of the Grey-headed Lapwing when we stopped for a coffee near Llandovery after having had our annual fix of the special welsh woodland birds (details in another blog to come). My first reaction was, what's a Grey-headed Lapwing since it wasn't a species I could ever recall of hearing about. It was unsurprising that I didn't know of it either since it was apparently the first ever record of the species in Britain and the bird  hails from the Far East, breeding in northeast China and Japan, and wintering in India and Cambodia and places in between. My friend Jim had messaged me frequently throughout the day asking if I was on my way to Northumberland but of course I never received any until it was too late. By the time I had replied to his texts it was mid-afternoon. The next message I received from Jim had a photo of the Lapwing attached that he'd taken after he'd instantly taken a punt and gone for it!

Of course, with the Bank Holiday weekend over, it was back to work on Tuesday and I rued the gods of fate who had decreed yet again that a mega rare bird had to be found at a time when I couldn't possibly travel to see it. So for the next few days, while hourly reports of the birds presence was being announced by all of the lucky folks who did have the time to spare to go and see it, I conjured up a stock reply to anybody who asked if I would be going, and that was that it was too far away and, no I wouldn't be travelling. But the rare Lapwing became the number one thought in my skull and by Thursday evening my resolve had been completely dissolved and I hatched a plan. That plan also involved going to twitch another couple of very rare birds, a couple of Scoter ducks, that had been discovered amongst a large flock of mixed Scoters in Fife. I just had to get Mrs Caley to agree to a night away. In the end she agreed readily to the plan, concurring that with all the stress we've endured recently that a couple of days away would be just what we needed.

In the event we still took it calmly on the Friday morning, and didn't head northwards until we'd done the weekly grocery shop and sorted out a few pressing matters. By the time we were ready to hit the road at just before eight, the Grey-headed Lapwing had been reported again, and if true to its previous form it would stay in the same field all day so seeing it should be a formality although you can never take anything for granted in the birding game. When the Lapwing had first been found, it had been fairly close in on a grassy bank behind the scrapes at Low Newton-by-the-sea and Jim had managed to grab some really nice photos (see here). However, after being at the scrape again on Tuesday morning, the bird had flown off but fortunately had been rediscovered later on farmland a mile or so away at Links Farm, High Newton-by-the-sea, but the views of it there were initially from much further away. The farmer subsequently and very helpfully, granted access to a track that allowed better access to view the field that the Lapwing favoured but it was still far more distant than the original site.

The motorway traffic northbound at least was light and we made excellent progress. I chose to continue on the M1, and avoid the M18 and A1 which I detest despite it being a few miles shorter that way, in any case I knew that there were roadworks on that route. Everything was hunky-dory until we hit the mother of all rainstorms just north of Sheffield. Combined with low fog the monsoon-type conditions slowed traffic to a crawl until we emerged into lighter rain once we'd passed Leeds. Whilst there was little traffic on our side of the motorway the southbound carriageway was much busier and when we joined the A1(M) there were some lengthy queues heading south. It was of course the King's coronation weekend and I wondered if the traffic was all headed towards London for the festivities there. A stop at Wetherby services confirmed that was indeed the case, the whole site was heaving with folk clearly heading down to the capital to watch the various goings-on. I couldn't think of much else that personally I wouldn't want to do, but I guess that we all have different boats to float.

We pulled into Newton Steads carpark at half past one. We'd been here before, last May, when we visited the Long Nanny Tern colony to see an adult American Black Tern that had joined the Arctic and Little Terns for the summer there (read here). The walk along the farm track and past some very nice looking holiday cottages took ten minutes before we arrived at the designated viewing spot, a rough compound of sorts where rusty tractor parts and old sheds stood forgotten. A wall of earth had been built around the compound which gave us an elevated view over the fields. We joined just three other birders on the mounds and instantly connected with the Grey-headed Lapwing which was stood in the middle of the field exactly as it had been doing for almost three days. I erected the scope for some good views and fired off a very ropy record shot or two.

Grey-headed Lapwing (Vanellus cinereus)

I committed the cardinal sin of taking my eye off the ball (bird) when I reviewed the shots on the back of the camera and when I looked up again the bird had disappeared. Luckily the chap to our right announced that the Lapwing was flying towards us. I managed to locate it and fired off a whole volley of frames. A Rook had taken exception to it and was harrying it across the field. Luckily for us it chased the Lapwing closer and the flying bird, and consequentially a much bigger target, actually improved my chance of getting some much better photos.

After a couple of circuits of a waterlogged area about a hundred metres or so away the Grey-headed Lapwing landed by a small weed fringed pond. It was still a bit too far away for my lens to reach but Mrs Caley and I now had ample opportunity for good views through the scope. I often bemoan carrying my Swarovski ATX95 scope because its heavy and I rarely make good use of it, but on this occasion I was extremely happy that I had it (the following day I would be even happier to use it to view the Scoter flock). Now the bird was grounded again we could really enjoy an attractively plumaged bird. It was aptly named too, grey-headed described that part of the bird perfectly because its head, and neck were indeed grey! The grey top was bordered by a black breast-band and the belly was white. The upper parts were plain brown but concealed the black and white patterned wings (as shown in the flight shots) and a white tail with a broad black bar. Most striking was the long yellow legs and a yellow bill with a black tip. All in all a very distinctive looking bird and only superficially resembling our usual Northern Lapwing of which there were a couple in the same vicinity. It was much more akin to the White-tailed Lapwing that we saw last year (read here), which is also an Asian species.

The brief burst of activity was as good as we got though since the Grey-headed Lapwing decided to walk behind the rank vegetation of the scrape and was concealed from view. Over the next half hour we could only see the bird on occasion when it stretched up to reveal its head or its wings when it opened them. Many other birders were arriving and all would have to wait for the bird to show again. We had only paid for two hours parking, you need a mortgage to park for longer (the carpark is run by the National Trust after all) so by three o'clock had to consider moving on. We were rewarded by staying right to the last moment of paid for parking time when the Lapwing suddenly burst into the air and was pursued once again by Rooks. It called as it flew past but unfortunately my view was obscured by some trees. When it turned and flew back almost overhead I pointed the camera to fill my boots and nothing happened. The camera battery had chosen that exact moment to die and even though I had two spares in my pocket there was no time to change it before the Lapwing had settled down in the middle of the field again. Such is my luck sometimes!

On that note we signed out. Of course, I was happy to have seen my latest life bird, my 406th in the UK, but I will likely rue that missed opportunity of some really good flight shots for a long time to come. I tried to shrug the battery fiasco off and paused to take some photos of some captive Guinea Fowl, Peacocks and Cockerels in the farmyard. I had calmed myself by the time we'd reached the car. A few miles away in Beadnell there is a really good cafe, a nice flat-white and a slice of rocky-road would ease the pain. While enjoying those we confirmed that we'd head on into Scotland and thanks to the wonders of modern technology I was able to select and book a hotel for the night for just a reasonable outlay in Glenrothes (a name I know because there's a Glenrothes whisky although that is distilled in Rothes in Speyside and not in the town in Fife). The drive along the A1 through the borders and past Edinburgh was as good as the drive up earlier until we neared the Forth Road Bridge and encountered quite thick fog. The crossing over the bridge was distinctly surreal since we could barely see the stanchions of the structure and it almost felt as if we driving through cloud. The Best Western Balgeddie House hotel was excellent, entirely comfortable and we enjoyed a very fine meal and a couple of celebratory drinks that evening.

Year List addition; 

217) Grey-headed Lapwing (life #406)

Breakfast was also superb, and we were able to enjoy it in a relaxed manner because thanks to our friends Karen and Dean who were also in Scotland to see the Scoters, we had already received updates that both of our target species were still present. The drive from Glenrothes to Lower Largo took just twenty minutes and we were soon weaving our way through the narrow streets of the fishing village. We passed a small gathering of birders stood at the quay next to the Crusoe Hotel and when we reached the Temple carpark there was another larger group of Duck watchers. The carpark was full so we had to park by the side of the beach.

We joined the larger group of like-minded people by the carpark and rather than mess about finding the rare ducks myself, which I knew would be tricky, I asked aloud if anybody had eyes on the White-winged Scoter (I knew that the rarer Stejneger's Scoter was off the hotel and not here). I should qualify that there were two distinct congregations of Scoters and the one off the carpark which I was now studying probably contained over five hundred birds which were about eight hundred metres offshore so searching through them would definitely be a job for the scope again. As is often normal, nobody was committed enough to say that they had the White-winged Scoter in view although I had it confirmed that it had been present fifteen minutes ago. So, scope duly erected, I joined the end of the line and began sifting through the predominantly Velvet Scoter flock. 

The Scoter flock from the carpark

It takes time to adjust to looking at hundreds of identical looking birds and then more time trying to spot the minute details that indicate the rarer species. You really do have to "get your eye in". Some people are more expert at this type of thing than others and in no shape or form, do I belong in the class of the experts. Long distance viewing of birds out to sea is not an every day requirement back home in Oxfordshire. However, I did know what I was looking for because I'm a good researcher. Fortunately for me, one of the experts was stood close to me and my ears pricked up when I heard him softly say that he had a White-winged Scoter in his sights. This is where the fun really starts. When somebody tries to explain where a very similar looking bird is in relation to hundreds of other very similar looking birds on a flat calm sea with no landmarks to use as reference. The only visible pointers that could be used were a few buoys that were dotted around. So essentially the only way to describe where the desired bird might be is directions like, "it's swimming to the right next to the bird asleep beyond the Eider" or "it's the right hand bird in the group of four about ten ducks to the right of the orange buoy!" Like I said, it is a very difficult sport.

Of course there is another way of finding the bird, and that is to beg to look through the scope of the chap who has it in view and on this occasion it seemed that was the sensible thing to do. So I gained my second UK life tick of the weekend by courtesy of the expert chap who allowed me (and a few others) to see the bird through his scope. Once I saw the White-winged Scoter, immediately recognisable by the enlarged white upside-down teardrop behind its eye, I realised that it should be easy to find it in my own scope. Except it wasn't because I had no marks to line my own scope up on, and none of the birds actually stay in the same place and are constantly moving, as is the sea. My trick in such situations is to stand behind the guy who's scope is pointing at the right bird and then try to line mine up in the same way. But that isn't that straightforward because I won't be standing at the exact same angle. So the next best thing is to ask the chap who knows which bird it is and where that bird is to find it for you in your own scope. And that is exactly what the expert did! I will be forever grateful to him as well. So eventually I had the correct bird in my own scope (which incidentally received glowing praise as a marvellous bit of kit from the chap who found the White-winged Scoter for us) which I was then able to share with Mrs Caley so she could add it to her life list too.

I even managed to grab a few photos of the 407th bird to make it onto my UK list, not that it is very obvious from the frame showed below, although if you really squint hard you can just make out the larger white mark around the eye. That eye marking is one of the few discernible differences between a White-winged Scoter and a Velvet Scoter. Previously to this bird, there had been just six accepted records of White-winged Scoter in Britain and all off Scottish coasts. A very famous bird has been present near Edinburgh for a few years and I intended to travel to see that during the last winter but never made it. Now I had a chance to add the eastern version, the Stejneger's Scoter next. Another difference between the two birds is the head, and particularly the bill profile. The White-winged Scoter has a bump on the culmen (where the bill meets the forehead) of the bill, usually called a "knob". I heard somebody call the White-winged Scoter a knob head. At least I hope it was the duck that he was referring to.

White-winged Scoter (Melanitta deglandi) & Velvet Scoter (Melanitta fusca)

We had a quick chat with Dean and Karen and then walked through the village to join the other duckers at the Crusoe Hotel and to look for the Siberian version of the White-winged Scoter, the Stejneger's Scoter. On the way we passed a statue that commemorated Robinson Crusoe, the character invented by Daniel Defoe in his book and who was based on the real life experiences of Alexander Selkirk, who was born in Lower Largo. The hotel took its name from the link to the book. The raft of ducks off the hotel consisted mainly of Common Scoter and there were fewer of the larger Velvet Scoters. Therefore the Stejneger's should be easier to find. 

The Scoter flock off the Crusoe Hotel

Crucially the raft of ducks wasn't quite so far out which would afford even better views than before. It wasn't long before the chap stood right next to me proclaimed that he had the Stejneger's Scoter in view. This time we had a chain of rocks on the foreshore to use as markers and with a little bit of helpful commentary of which way the duck was going and what it was doing, I managed to locate it myself. The most helpful feature of the Stejneger's against the White-winged is that the bill knob is even more pronounced, and resembles a miniature rhino horn. This could be clearly seen through the scope. I rattled off lots of photos and was absolutely amazed when I found one that showed the bill detail clearly enough as well as the large eye mark.

Stejneger's Scoter (Melanitta stejnegeri)

The Stejneger's Scoter was our third lifer of the trip, and my 408th for the UK. I never dreamt that it would be possible to see so many new birds in such a short time, a little over eighteen hours to be almost exact. We followed the duck for a while and watched it preen and stretch. When the flock became more animated and began diving and feeding it became impossible to keep track of it so we elected to return to the where the car was parked. I realised that, in the excitement of looking for the White-winged and Stejneger's Scoters, I had neglected to look for any of the five Surf Scoters that were also present. We had already seen Surf Scoters this year, at Llanddulas on the North Wales coast. I had made a promise to myself at the start of the year that Surf Scoter was a bird that I wanted to see well since it had been a few years since I'd seen one. So we had made the trip to Llanddulas where a pair of drake Surf Scoters were showing relatively close in. Surf Scoters are the size of Common Scoters, smaller than Velvet Scoters, and the drakes are much easier to identify. They have a white forehead and a large white nape patch along with a large bulbous bill. So when I scoped the sea with the sole intention of finding one it only took me few minutes to connect. I wondered why I hadn't spotted one before but I guess my mind was tunnelled into finding one of the rarer ducks.

Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata) & Velvet Scoter

Remarkably I'd go on to re-find the White-winged Scoter all by my lonesome too which probably gave me as much pleasure as anything. The only way to really learn the different species is to experience them. By gaining some vital pointers from those much more expert than myself, I was hopefully better prepared when viewing Scoter flocks in the future.

White-winged Scoter, Velvet Scoter & Common Scoter (Melanitta nigra)

Having filled up on Scoters I set myself a task of finding other birds for the year list. I already knew that the bay held Gannets fishing further out. I spotted some Sandwich Terns stood atop some of the buoys and best of all, found a Red-necked Grebe loitering at the furthest edge of the Scoter flock. There was also a few Red-throated Divers on the sea as well.

In a little over two hours we had seen five different species of Scoter ducks, the only one missing from the set was the Black Scoter which we had secured last year off the coast at Montrose. For a landlocked birder, a day by the sea experiencing the unexperienced was pretty exciting stuff!

Year List additions;

218) White-winged Scoter, 219) Stejneger's Scoter, 220) Gannet, 221) Red-necked Grebe, 222) Sandwich Tern

We stopped off a few miles along the coast to add a Black Guillemot to our year list at Pathhead next to Kirkcaldy which we all know is famous for dancing Raith Rovers fans. I noticed a couple of Long-tailed Ducks close in to where the waves broke ashore as well. It had been a really good day!

Long-tailed Duck (Clangula hyemalis)

Year List addition;

223) Black Guillemot