Glaucous x Herring

Thurlby Gravel Pits Lincs
This massive Gull came in late, sat on the water for ten minutes then flew off, from its bill you can see the Glauc in it, but the darker primaries seem to indicate Herring gull.

Shovelor

Boultham Mere
Bittern showed in the reeds again this weekend.

COMMON BUZZARD

North Hykeham Lincoln
A breeding pair, also a couple of Jack Snipe, 16 Common Snipe and two Ringed Plover with a fly over adult Med Gull.

Nuthatch

Clumber
Dark old place this morning.

Jackdaw

Great Grey Shrike

Clumber park
It is one honest, it was about half a mile away across the lake.

Diving Ducks

Boultham Mere
At the minute there is around 18 Shovelor in one group that likes to dive for pond weed, both sexes doing this on a very regular basis.

Great Black Back Gull

Boultham Mere
Great Black Back 1st Winter,

Thayers Gull

Possible Thayers Gull or Hybrid Sp
Poolbrook, Staveley.
This is the same bird that was at Dix Pit in Oxfordshire December 07-early January 2008, could it be a Thayers or a Kumliens/Thayers Hybrid.
It was about the same size as a Lesser Black Back, the head appeared quite round when we saw it stood on the Ice, the primarys looked brown,and the tertials paler creating a contrast, but reading birding world, Thayers should not show such a strong contrast between the two. See BW Vol 20 No 12 page 503.

Thayers Gull

In flight the primaries showed brown pigmentation, the secondary bar was indistinct and the tail was all brown, a pure Thayers should probably show a greater contrast between the dark outer webs and the pale inner webs of the primaries, though in these pictures taken against bright sun it washes the whole bird out, it did appear darker on the ground.

DIPPER

Thornhill Bamford 2008
Very hard to get close views, mostly on an open river with loads of people around.

Raven

Strines, Yorkshire
Upto 5 Ravens in the area and a single Buzzard.

GREAT BITTERN

Boultham Mere
On view from hide when we arrived at 8.15am, still on show when we left at 9.30am, you need to look really hard for it in the reeds, watched Preening and Sunning itself, kept moving around so at times only its head sticking up.

Grey Wagtail

Boultham Mere
The first of the year, feeding around frozen pools this morning, -2 when i arrived.

Mute Swan

Goosander

Male and Female Boultham Mere, a local rare bird these days