As in the last posting the blog has suffered as we have done a lot of work elsewhere - unfortunately waiting in the inbox were what I had presumed were further scaup pictures of the winter birds which have seen immatures and hybrids in the mix. Subsequent to publishing (I didn't actually look at gone midnight!) it transpires that all evidence suggests the recent bird purports to be a pukka North American lesser scaup - particularly so in Tony Simpson's latter shots. The other not published on Sunday is included here:
Fair credit to Lee Johnson whom made the call. Unfortunately as has been proven before at Tophill hindsight and good photographs are a fine thing; and equally there are heavy penalties for a wrong call so observers always have a fine line to walk. Certainly all ID features stack up and if accepted this would be the first in Yorkshire since 2009. The last confirmed sighting was the 14th; It has not been logged since Monday when ID'd - but hopefully it hasn't gone far and everyone will get a second bite of the cherry...
A good couple of days on the reserve with a few little gulls through, red kite and marsh harrier about, the first common whitethroat on the 20th, 4 wheatear passing through on the 20th with two black tailed godwit on Watton NR - Francis Bell:
Perhaps a foreboding sign was an Iceland gull on the approach road fields that night - reminding us if colder to come. A tree pipit was a big rarity for the reserve on the 21st, and was joined by the first swift, lesser whitethroat, and greenshank on SME on Tuesday night.
