Warbling Oop North

 Last summer's crew of butterfly twitchers switched codes and got together for a birding jaunt to the frozen north. Alan Shorrock, Phil Rogers and I headed to Flamborough in search of a selection of goodies that have been reported from here over the last few days. Although we passed through some rain on the way to and from Yorkshire we luckily managed to avoid the wet stuff while we were there.

Flamborough

Once we'd parked up and payed the relevant fees we chose to head towards the spot where a Two-barred Warbler had been seen. The bird showed almost as soon as we reached its crowd of admirers but none of us managed to get a satisfactory view. An anxious wait followed until the bird was picked up again but once it was we had good if brief views as it flitted low down in the vegetation. I didn't manage to get any pictures as it was a little too distant and nor did it stay still for any length of time. We left the warbler, which was a lifer for all three of us, to continue entertaining the crowd as we set off in search of other stuff.

Chiffchaff and Goldcrest

A Red-headed Bunting has been present in the area for a few days and as we were in its neck of the woods anyway we thought it would be rude not to pay it a call. We missed out on a Dusky Warbler which had been showing near to the lighthouse and pressed on along the cliff top path towards the bunting. I have to say that the path had been reduced to a muddy ruin by presumably the tread of trudging twitchers and we slithered and slid as we trekked towards the bird. Joining up with a small crowd of expectant birders we settled in for what we hoped would be a brief stay. There was a selection of birds in view which included Tree Sparrows but the bunting remained elusive. While waiting we had views of a Wheatear in the neighbouring field and a large flock of Pink-footed Geese which were spooked into flight by a passing Peregrine. We had spent over an hour at the spot without any sign of the Red-headed and so decided to call it a day and squelch back along the path towards the lighthouse.

Stonechat

I stopped at the place where the Dusky had been noted earlier as there were a few birding types peering over the cliff edge. It turned out that the Dusky had been replaced by a Pallas's Warbler which was feeding amongst the brambles. This time I was luckier and managed to get some half decent views of it though once more I did not get any photos. As this was only the second time that I've seen this beautiful little bird it was nice to catch up with one again. By now the light was beginning to fade somewhat so we fed and watered ourselves at the cafe before making the long trip home.