My time on North Ron - by Espen Quinto Ashman & George Gay

My Time on North Ron: George Gay, 21, Somerset

"I arrived on North Ron on April 22^nd, it was a long journey, taking the best part of a day. When I arrived I was greeted by Alison off the plane, she drove me straight up to the Obs to meet Kevin, Mark, Fleur and the two girls Sara and Molly. They were the first volunteers I saw in my spell, both lovely girls and both in the early stages of their birding lives!

The first week was spent getting used the census routes and finding my own way around, I think the main highlight was a Tree Pipit, a bird I wasn't overly familiar with so seeing one perched on a wall was useful!

I'll skip ahead slightly now to the 1^st May, it was my first time on the top end of the island, census area F. I was about halfway through the route coming up the loch inside of the sea wall at Bewan, I could see three wading birds feeding on a mud spit, the first two clearly Dunlin the third was different, I crept closer and got stunning views of what I could of thought was a calidris type Sandpiper, I had a fair idea of what the bird was before I phoned Mark, he told me to be cautious and describe it to him as if I had no idea what it was, my description was enough for him to decide it was worthy of a look, so when he rolled up with everybody from the Obs I started to panic and doubt myself a bit! Thankfully my hunch was correct and the bird stuck about, it was my first lone find and a lifer too!. White-rumped Sandpiper!

Forward in time now to the 30^th May, myself and Steve are in our room, Steve was on holiday in Hungary when I arrived but was back on the island now, I'm sat in bed having just woken up and I can hear these loud rushing footsteps coming up the stairs, I say to Steve.

“Is that Mark? Why's  he's coming to our door?”

With that a highly flustered Mark bursts through the bedroom door shouting and waving like a mad man!

“Gav’s caught a Cathurus Thrush at Holland, he's not sure what it is! Get up!”

Me and Steve were out of bed and in the car before Mark had left the room, we got to Holland and the bird was presented to us, me and Steve in awe of what was being shown to us! A Veery! The girls didn't really grasp the significance of the bird we were looking at until it was explained it was only the 11^th record for Britain. It was the highlight of the Spring.

Other Spring highlights included a long staying Male Rustic Bunting, a stunning OBP, a self-found Woodchat Shrike (3^rd Island Record), Long-tailed Skua passage that defied logic (they passed 12ft over heads!)  and other Spring migrants like Corncrake, Bluethroats etc.

Not a bad Spring.

I left the island in late June for a holiday to America and return again at the back end of July, the faces I knew had left apart from Steve and Sam Perfect had arrived along Pete, there where things to see once I got back, the breeding birds had bred and we had chicks to rings in the form of Arctic Terns, Black-headed and Common Gulls, we had done most the waders in early June but a few remained and best of all the Tystie (Black Guillemot) chicks. We managed a record number of Tysties this spring, also on the ringing front we had Storm Petrels to ring, an amazing experience and if any of you get a chance to do it then I suggest it! With the Stormies we also caught a few Leach’s and that's a real treat!

With the ringing done the birds started to move back towards Africa and early Autumnal influxes of Wrynecks,  Icterine and Barred Warblers arrived, bringing the hope of that far Eastern mega bird but it never really arrived! Things seemed to slow down, we had a few exciting birds, like a possible Arctic Peregrine that I photographed on the 7^th September, Steve found an American Goldie in horrible weather conditions that hung around for at least a week, we had a second WRS and plenty of other good passage migrants, the highlight of our Autumn came in late September and continued to be a highlight until I left. A phone call from Mark to me while I was sat in the Obs with Sam and maybe Johnny (I can't remember sorry!) sparked a wild and now in hindsight unneeded panic, Mark said he thought he had a Northern Harrier, if you ever get the chance to bird with Mark Warren do it, it's a privilege! I think is as good as I've got! So a mad dash and some potentially wreck less driving later we got to Mark, and eventually the bird, what a screamer it was, a sub-adult Male Northern Harrier, it stole the show for weeks and rightly so! I'm sure you've all seen pictures of it and now it's been split its all the sweeter! In October we joined in with the Yellow-browse passage that sweeper the UK breaking the island record, I can't remember the total but going out census and getting into double figures was easy, the same happened with Short-eared Owls in November!

It would be wrong to mention our excursion to nearby Papa Westray for a potential 1^st Britain if accepted, the Chestnut Bunting was a fantastic bird showing stupidly well but it overshot us by about 20 miles and that sort of hurts!

 My time on North Ronaldsay was rounded off by a truly unexpected event, while ringing at Holland House I got a text from Mark about a large Cetacean, not thinking much of it and bring up to our armpits it's Redwings we blew it off, only for Mark to text again to say it was a probable Humpback, so me and Alison rushed down the pier, and lone and behold every 1-2 minutes a ridged back would appear and an all to familiar panic ensued, we now had to get everyone on it! So several Land Rover trips later everyone got to see what was and still is one the most spectacular creatures on the planet.

My time on the island was amazing, the people, the wildlife and the birds. Best of all, I get to do it all over again in March!"

My Time on North Ron: Espen Quinto-Ashman, 18, Herefordshire
"This autumn saw me travelling up to the most northerly Isle in the Orkney Archipelago to help out as part of the North Ronaldsay Bird Observatory team. The Island was split into 6 different areas: A,B,C,D,E and F, and the Obs team rotated around censusing one area each, every day. The first few days I spent getting my bearings, as the island is bigger than I had imagined and there are lots of place names to learn! Once I had an idea of this I was put on the rota and birded one area of the island each day for the rest of my stay. I was also required to do shifts in the observatory which included doing various jobs in the kitchen, the guest house and shop. The volunteers took turns at going ringing when the conditions were suitable and we caught a brilliant array of species during the course of the autumn!

Birding highlights in my first week included a huge fall of Yellow-browed Warbler consisting of 31 birds (an Island day record, which I got to ring 3 of!), and a Red-breasted Flycatcher became my 300^th species in Britain! A Blyth’s Reed Warbler was found in the dock field at Senness and was trapped and ringed to confirm ID, a Common Buzzard was only the 2^nd on the island this year, but a Honey Buzzard would’ve been much more appreciated… A big influx of Snow Bunting was also apparent. 

Red-breasted Flycatcher

Blyth’s Reed Wabrler

Week 2 started with a bang as a stonking adult male Northern Harrier was found late morning on 25th, census was abandoned and a stampede to the north end ensued, luckily it was still in the area and gave a close flyby so we could check the id features- it was spot on! The bird then went on to stay all autumn giving great views to all and is still present now (17^th November)! The 25^th also produced the first significant movement of Pink-footed Goose of the autumn with 418  going south throughout the day. 3 Barred Warbler were present on the 28^th, one of which I flushed whilst cycling past one of the Heligoland traps and nearly caught it there! Several Lapland Buntings were also now present on the Isle.

Northern Harrier!

Week 3 started fairly quietly, although two Buff-breasted Sandpiper were the first on the island for two years. Hopes were high for the end of the week with an easterly gale forecast, on the 4^th a Storm Petrel was found on the pier which George very kindly let me ring! On the 5^th the easterlies started blowing, these produced a few migrants, the best of which being a Little Bunting I found on the rocks on the north coast, the day record of Barnacle Goose was also broken with 375 going south. The birding was tough on the 6^th with high winds and rain but the 7^th produced two more goodies in the form of a Bluethroat and another Little Bunting, two Grasshopper Warblers were also found although we couldn’t help feeling a little disheartened that they weren’t something rarer!

Little Bunting

Yellow-browed Warbler

The highlight on the 8^th was the Aurora  which put on a phenomenal display! It’s the first time I’ve seen it and it didn’t disappoint! That day we also caught two Ring Ouzel in Holland Gardens, a lovely ringing tick. The next few days’ highlights were a Temminck’s Stint and an interesting Redstart with prominent white wing panels- a characteristic of the eastern race samamisicus, this went on to stay for the next few days. 

Bluethroat

A duo of rare pipits: Olive-backed Pipit and Pechora Pipit on the 12^th and 13^th respectively were more than welcome, who doesn’t love a good pipit! Also of interest was the wing of a swift sp. found at the lighthouse, we’re still awaiting confirmation of ID although it looks most likely a common. The island’s 5^th Firecrest was also found on the 14^th among the large numbers of Goldcrest which had been present over the week.

Watching a Pechora Pipit

Aurora Borealis

The highlights of the next week were undeniably the cetaceans with two lifers for me in as many days, an Orca on the 17^th and a Humpback Whale on the 18^th, wow wow wow! Other highlights were a Richard’s Pipit and having in-the-hand views of a Long-eared Owl!

white wing-panelled Redstart

migrant Goldcrest

Humpback Whale

A Glaucous Gull on a short seawatch on the 24^th provided some interest but it was all about the 28^th! A very impressive fall took place with minimum totals including 2525 Fieldfare, 1114 Redwing, 124 Blackbird, 81 Song Thrush, 1 Ring Ouzel, 22 Brambling, 13 Woodcock, 5 Long-eared Owl and best of all 22 Short-eared Owl including two separate ‘flocks’ of 10, doubling the previous day record! A day that will remain one of my most memorable days’ birding ever!

The 29^th is another day that will remain lodged in my memory, in the morning 927 Blackbird were recorded, it was a bizarre experience seeing actual flocks of Blackbird just like the flocks of Redwing and Fieldfare! The Short-eared Owl day record was broken again with 24 counted! Also present were 2 Great-grey Shrike. In the afternoon the team hopped on a plane and we were soon watching Papa Westray’s 1w male Chestnut Bunting, the next day was spent birding Papay and in the afternoon we flew back to North Ron. The highlights of the rest of my last week were a showy Glaucous Gull, several Pomarine Skua and Little Auk, the latter of which I consistently failed to catch up with! I also got to ring a Great-grey Shrike in Holland Gardens which was a privilege- what a bird!

Richard’s Pipit

migrant Short-eared Owl

Chestnut Bunting on Papa Westray

North Ronaldsay was a brilliant experience with some fantastic birds and wildlife; I would recommend a visit to any birder! I’d like to thank the BTO for this grant which helped significantly to finance my trip! I’d also like to thank Kevin and Alison for the opportunity and the observatory staff and volunteers for making it so enjoyable! I’ll be back!"

1W Glaucous Gull

Ringers Report - October 2015

A monthly roundup of ringing highlights from young birders, whether it be birds ringed, rings read or controlled in the field or ringing recoveries reported from elsewhere. Bird movements are amazing!

Tim Jones, 24 - Spurn Bird Obs, East Yorkshire
Magical Spurn in mid-October, we struck gold on the 12th October during a morning's ringing at Kew. It started well with a steady flow of Goldcrests then a Radde's Warbler dropped into one of the nets, just a few hours later a Red-flanked Bluetail appeared on the fence in front of me! It gave other birders the run around before it was chased into the Heligoland trap by a Robin, a stunning 1w(3) female, (pointed tail shape and lack of blue in lesser coverts and duller blue-tail) a morning not to be forgotten and we finished on a 2-day total of 485 Goldcrests!

Espen Quinto-Ashman, 18 - North Ronaldsay Bird Obs, Scotland
The month got off to a great start with a surprise ringing tick of a juvenile Storm Petrel. Throughout the month, numbers were provided by falls of Redwing (early on mostly consisting of the paler Scandi/Russian race Iliacus and later in the month the darker Icelandic race Corburni), Blackbird and Goldcrest. Some of the more interesting species ringed included 2 Ring Ouzel, a Siberian Chiffchaff, Bramblings, a Yellow-browed Warbler and even a juvenile Gannet!

Daniel Wade, 2 - Getteröns Fågelstation, Sweden

I have been at Getteröns fågelstation in Varberg, Sweden for the duration of October as the resident ringer for the observatory.I ringed for 28 days out of 31 (the 3 days off due to bad weather) and captured 2405 birds of which I ringed 1600, which is officially my most productive month as a bird ringer to date. A fantastic site, with nets in reed bed and more traditional berry filled cover. 948 Robins, 356 Blackcap and 238 Chiffchaff have been ringed in October (the top 3 species for this month). A full report will be made once I have returned to England. Below: Twite and Arctic Redpoll

Dan Rouse - Bury Inlet, Swansea
October was the annual Oystercatcher catch on the Bury. A team of 7 of us set the cannon nets out the night before and were aiming of a catch of around 100-150, once we fired and raced down it was evident that we had underestimated the number. 504 birds later and all were ringed! A number of birds were first ringed before I was even born making them atleast 20 years old, A retrap from the SCAN ringing group up in North Wales which was a funny surprise, a bird from the 1960's and a control bird from Sweden! 
Full report here

Ringing Recoveries

Zac Hinchcliffe, 23

A Lesser Redpoll ringed on Bangor Mountain, Wales has been caught in Romsey, Hampshire. 307km away and 732 days since ringed.

Tim Jones, 24

A flock of Barnacle Geese rested on the beach at Spurn Bird Obs. 2 out of a flock of 97 had darvic rings on from Svalbard, 1 from 2004!

NGB Patchwork Challenge - September 2015

As ever during early autumn, migrants both rare and regular adorned the patches of various NGB members throughout September. From continental raptors to gripping garden rarities, September produced some top birds throughout this extremely competitive league though, yet again, there was little change in the results tables, with a few notable exceptions. 

Looking first at the comparative league and things remain largely the same excluding Josie Hewitt's monumental leap from 4th to 1st, edging Amy Robjohns out of the top spot and pushing former front runner James Common further down the rankings. Josie's rise to the top was aided and abetted by a host of familiar migrants including a long overdue Wheatear as well as Redstart and both Spotted and Pied Flycatchers. The latter of which notched while ringing. Whether or not Josie will keep the top spot is open to speculation with the following three competitors well within striking distance should their luck pick up during October. Further down the table Ash Baines jumps a place from 5th to 4th at his Starr Gate-Fairlawn Road patch and former front runner Jonathan Scragg falls to fifth place.

Pied Flycatcher - Josie Hewitt

The NGB points mini league the top ten remains exactly as it was in August with the exception of Drew Lyness and James Common changing places at ninth and tenth. Joe Stockwell appears unstoppable at the top of the table with Jonathan Farooqi and Anthony Bentley firmly lodged in second and third place respectively. Lower down the table things are less clear cut and a few good finds could shake up the rankings somewhat over the coming month. 

Moving on to the finds and highlights this month and the prestigious title of "NGB bird of the month" almost certainly goes to the superb Red-Footed Falcon unearthed by Jonathan Farooqi on his coastal north patch (a photo of which can be seen below). Jonathan also managed a Yellow-Browed Warbler while Ash Baines noted a Wryneck in addition to two separate Barred Warblers, also notching some real patch gold in the form of two Kingfishers, a real rarity on site. Other notable cases of patch gold throughout September include both Black Tern and Little Stint for Rhys Chivers and a patch first Reed Warbler for James Common at Stobswood. The first in almost a decade no less. In addition to his earlier triumphs Ash Baines also nabbed Black-Necked Grebe on patch and David Gomer was lucky enough to turn up a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker in his East Anglian garden, a sight that would turn many birders (particularly us northerners) green at the gills with envy. Well done David!

Red-Footed Falcon - Jonathan Farooqi

Chris Gooddie - My 'NGB Years'

By the start of the 1980s I was already a keen birder, and was twitching UK rarities whenever I could get a lift from friends who drove and could beg, steal or borrow a car. Finding out where rarities were before they departed was difficult before the advent of mobile phones and the web, but by swapping home phone numbers with other birders at twitches one could slowly build up a network of contacts across the UK to become a member of 'the grapevine'. Those contacts had produced results in 1981 and '82, and I'd added the odd cosmic rarity to my list, such as the UK's 7th Paddyfield Warbler at Walney Island, and the long-staying Glossy Ibis at Stodmarsh in Kent.

Another surefire way to get up to date information was to hang out in Cley, North Norfolk over the August bank holiday, and that strategy paid dividends too, not least because I was having breakfast with three friends at the legendary Nancy's Café on August 31st when news of a UK first - Little Whimbrel at Sker Point, South Wales - was phoned in. We drove west and scored the bird before dark, then climbed back in the car and drove overnight to Saltholme Flats in Teeside where we watched Britain's first ever Long-toed Stint feeding on the lagoon edge at point-blank range. After missing a Sooty Shearwater at Flamborough we were back in Norfolk by the evening of the 1st September to finish our week’s birding before heading home to Manchester, a round trip of just over a thousand miles.

However, despite such exploits a few of my more serious listing friends were still seeing more rarities than I was for one simple reason; they were spending a week or more in October on the Isles of Scilly. Thrilling tales of encounters with storm-driven American birds carried across the Atlantic by fast-moving westerly depressions whetted my appetite, and the more I listened in envy the more desperate I became to find a way to get myself down to the south-west in October. In the autumn of 1983 an old school friend Colin foolishly mentioned he might be up for it and could borrow a car. I figured no-one would miss us from our respective Nottingham University courses for a few days, and I worked on him until it became a reality. The die was cast and we drove down overnight, slept in the car at Penzance and presented ourselves at Penzance Heliport in plenty of time to catch our morning chopper flight.

Arriving at St Mary's Airfield we pocketed an invaluable photocopied A4 tourist map of the islands, picked up our bags and hopped onto the bus, which dropped us in High Town. A helpful soul had mentioned it was possible to leave bags at a place called 'The Porthcressa', so we asked for directions and had almost reached our destination when we came across a small crowd of birders peering intently at a stripy, yellowish, sparrow-like bird which was hopping about on the tiny strip of mown grass adjacent to Porthcressa Bay. 'What've you got?' I whispered to a bearded gentleman next to me. He turned and whispered a single word that took my breath away: "Bobolink." I exchanged a glance with Colin before we focused our bins on the bird, unable to believe our good fortune. We hadn't even had time to drop our bags off!

Within a couple of minutes a Scillonian dog scampered innocently across the sward, flushing the Bobolink, which flew off over Hugh Town. We silently cursed the mutt, but as things transpired the errant pooch had done us a favour. No sooner had we stowed our rucksacks downstairs at the 'Cressa than a shout went up; "RED-EYED VIREO. TRESCO!" We had no clue how to get to Tresco, but since a mass stampede immediately started through town we followed, and after a short sprint down the quay we just managed to squeeze aboard the departing boat which was already packed to the gunwales. Made it!

Once on Tresco we again followed the crowd, which quickly surrounded an isolated thorn bush backing on to one of the southern beaches. Ignorant of our mounting incredulity, there in the centre of the bush lurked a skulking Red-eyed Vireo, which popped its head out every now and then to reveal a whopping great white supercilium sandwiched between a matt grey crown and a thick black eyeline. Having never visited the USA it was my first experience of the family, and I was struck by its chunky build and rather sluggish movements.

After an hour or so the bird disappeared, and we reluctantly wandered up towards the other quay where we were to board the boat back to St Mary's. En route we skirted a large body of water on our right. I checked the map and said to my friend that I thought this must be The Great Pool, a key site that we had been advised was a key site to check for rarities. A few birders were loitering near the pool so we sidled over and nervously enquired whether there was anything about. "Well the Solitary Sand is still over there…" We jerked our heads in the direction of the extended arm and noticed a small, dark wader picking its way daintily around the edge of the mud. It was indeed a Solitary Sandpiper, and I hurriedly lay down, rested my right foot in the crick of my left knee, and in time-honoured style balanced my trusty Hertel and Reuss Tele-Vari 25-60x scope on the resulting prop. I scribbled largely illegible notes as fast as I could in my notebook, and when the bird flew a few metres noted with satisfaction the dark rump and barred sides to the tail. It really WAS a Solitary Sand!

The boat docked at New Grimsby quay bang on time, and we scuttled to the back and wedged ourselves into a gap between other birders. The thrum of the engine combined with our lack of sleep soon had our heads nodding, but we were awoken from our reverie when a second boat drew up alongside mid-channel. The two vessels were roped together, and our skipper announced: "Anyone who wants to go to St Agnes transfer here". What's on St. Agnes? I asked my neighbour. "Parula Warbler in The Parsonage. Oh, and a Subalpine". We checked our map, located The Parsonage and were soon stood at the back of the crowd. The gent next to us cheerfully informed us "You just missed it…it showed really well two or three minutes ago." He glanced at our crestfallen faces and added, "It's doing a circuit. It'll be round again in half an hour or so." 

We waited for a couple of hours, but the bird did not show, and despite further searching it was not seen again. We were appalled at our misfortune, but before we could get too down in the mouth another stampede broke out. We grabbed our kit and followed, trying to keep up and at the same time find out what we were running for. "Rose…" came the breathless reply from a fellow sprinter, but the end of his utterance was inaudible amidst his gasps for breath. I racked my brains but could not think of anything that would fit the bill except perhaps a Rosefinch or a Rose-coloured Starling. Both were new birds for me, but would either really have caused such mass panic? I managed to jog alongside a different runner for long enough to ask again what we were running for, and this time the whole of our mystery target's name was audible; "Rose-breasted Grosbeak!" We reached a sweating but thankfully stationary pack of birders and after a few tense minutes managed gripping views of the grosbeak gorging itself on blackberries.

After watching the bird for a while we checked our watches and realised there were only twenty minutes before the boat back to St Mary's. We were some distance from the quay, and the Subalpine Warbler had apparently not been seen for a while, so we reluctantly concluded we'd have to come back tomorrow and try again for both the Subalp. and the Parula. (Sadly, I failed on both counts and had to wait a few more years to add either to my UK list.)

Once on board we broke out the ‘Squashed Fly’ Garibaldi biscuits and celebrated in style, but our introduction to the magic of Scilly birding was not yet quite complete. As we entered the harbour a CB Radio crackled into life, and an uproar broke out at the front of the boat. We caught the word "Swallow" before being knocked aside as an entire boatload of birders attempted to clamber up the quay steps at the same time. Once back on terra firma we quickly established the cause of the furoré- a Cliff Swallow, the first for Britain, was currently circling around the dump catching insects. In record time we were alongside the incinerator and checking the hirundines. Barn Swallow…Barn Swallow…there! No, Sand Martin, false alarm. Barn Swallow…Barn Swallow…and then a flash of a pinkish-buff rump and a pale collar, and the Cliff Swallow was ours. It circled above us, sailing out over the rooftops, before swinging back in our direction, taking advantage of the last of the Autumn sunshine to feed up before settling down to roost in the bushes.

As darkness fell we retrieved our bags and tramped wearily up to the campsite. After a quick wash it was down to the bar on the quay for far more lager than was wise, chicken-in-a-basket and some decidedly inept games of pool. Between games we relived the day's highlights, celebrating our FIVE new American birds, both ecstatic to have confirmed for ourselves just how amazing Scilly could be in the Autumn. Over the coming days we added Gray-cheeked and Swainson's Thrushes and an Upland Sandpiper, plus a strong supporting cast of Richard's and Tawny Pipits, Rose-coloured Starling and Common Rosefinch to our UK lists. After five action-packed days we returned to the mainland, with enough time to make a short detour to St Just. There, flitting in a gloomy corner of a tiny copse, was a bird that remains right at the top of the list of birds I have seen in Britain - an American Redstart. It seemed to float like a butterfly in front of our eyes, flashing its yellow wing and tail patches as it flitted from one perch to another. The flourish at the end of the description in my notebook at the time was succinct: 'the best bird I have ever seen'.

Scilly in the 1980's and 1990's could be spectacular. Although the islands may be enduring something of a drought in terms of rarities in recent years, it seems likely that at some point the good times will return. Until they do, I have to admit that although I have made the pilgrimage to the archipelago on many subsequent occasions, I have never again experienced a day quite like my very first on Scilly.

-Chris Gooddie
Chris Gooddie is a keen birder and rarity hunter; UK finds to date include two Blyth's Reed Warblers, 3 Lanceolated Warblers, a Great Snipe, a Western Bonelli's Warbler and a Greenish Warbler. Chris is the author of 'The Jewel Hunter', a book documenting an attempt to see all of the world's species of pitta in a year, and is a serving member of the Oriental Bird Club committee. 

http://orientalbirdclub.org

chrisgooddie@me.com