The Brixham white-billed diver prompted me to have a long overdue look at my Devon list. I've been through a lengthy period of indifference towards it, preferring for years now to just look for my own stuff. I kind of regret this attitude now because I've missed out on some fantastic birds - sometimes because I just couldn't get to the bird but more often because of my pig-headed 'I'm a birder not a twitcher' attitude. I'm much more likely to go for a bird if it's a new bird for me but I think I should make more of an effort to go for species that I 'need' for the county list or simply species that I haven't seen for a long time.
I am also planning on recounting some of my diary entries for famous Devon rarities over the years. I love the Devon birding scene and its many characters and I love the way that the county's top listers, those on 345+ (some are on 360+), maintain an air of secrecy and intrigue around their lists, often playing them down and pretending they don't really care about it.
I've stuck my list on a separate page (see pages menu at the top of this page) in case anybody is interested but I suppose I might as well produce a list of species I haven't seen in the county - there are some shocking gaps and I really do regret not going for some species that I could quite easily have got if I'd tried!
Hi Matt, enjoyed browsing through your Devon list - a lot more impressive than mine I'm sure though I've never bothered to work it out. Also brought back some memories, some of birds I saw and at least one I dipped - I seem to remember travelling down from London for that Black Stork, still never seen one in Britain. The only one I seem to have on you is the Black and White Warbler at Prawle in '88?
ReplyDeleteall the best
Tim
Hi Tim - what a bird! That's a species I'm very unlikely to see in Devon. I think you're far more likely to get black stork back. Most of the top listers have B&W warbler - Mark Bailey had a bit of a problem getting it but it's on his list all the same. Strangely bee-eater is the species most Devon listers will be gripped by - a notoriously tricky species in Devon. Arctic Warbler will bring a few tears to a few eyes too!
DeleteGreat to see that you've seen some fantastic birds in the county Matt. I also have seen the B&W Warbler, but my main gripper is the Hudsonian Godwit!
ReplyDeleteHi Terry - what can I say? Gripper is an understatement!
ReplyDeleteGoing back to the B&W Warbler, Tim, the bird appeared in 1987, not 88! It was followed about 2 weeks later by the Prawle Desert Wheatear.
ReplyDeleteThanks Terry, you're quite correct, of course - surprised I was only one year out, should have checked!
ReplyDeleteHi Matt, that Black and White certainly did present a few problems. Go there too late in the day when Norman found it . Wrote my mums car off in the lanes the next day and then didn't manage to get back down till the Sunday when I got a lift from Tony Rose from the Berry Head Barred Warbler. Luckily though got both the B&W and Pat's newly found Red-Eyed Vireo in Pigs Nose the same afternoon, so all eventually ended up well (except for the car)!
ReplyDeleteHi Mark - your trials with the b&w warbler are legendary!
Delete