Big Year 2022 Part Three: More special moments - November to December

 

Part Three: More special moments - November to December

Little Owl (Martin Kelsey): first seen 15 January

By the start of November, I reappraised my progress. There were a few species, like Grasshopper Warbler (a scarce autumn passage bird and always seen just by luck) that I had missed and with now little chance of recovering. There were also a few winter birds that I had missed at the start of the year that I still had a chance to find. The first one I found was just 500 metres from my front gate: a pair of Bullfinches feeding on desiccated blackberries in brambles growing over an old wall. They were first I had ever seen so close to home. At my local patch Alcollarín where the water levels were extremely low because of the prolonged drought, the waders had been better than usual (probably because the nearby rice fields were so dry) and the winter gull roost was starting to build up in numbers. I paid a visit one late afternoon. Below the dam, something made me pause. The Alcollarín river has a lovely belt of willows and shrubs along the bank and is always good for small birds. Just the place I thought to find a Yellow-browed Warbler. I parked and stood on a small wooden bridge. Common Chiffchaffs were busy catching small insects close to the waters edge. Just a few minutes later, a small warbler flew up into the tree beside the bridge, straight onto it I saw its bright yellow supercilium and wingbars. I couldn’t believe it: a Yellow-browed Warbler! The first I had found in Extremadura (and only the fourth that I had ever seen in the region) and with that my personal year list record was also broken. Elated I quickly got the news out (it stayed there for about a week and was seen by many other local birders) and then proceeded to watch the gulls coming to roost. Having eluded me all year so far, I was delighted to find a Mediterranean Gull amongst the hundreds of Black-headed Gulls present. Two more species to cross off the list of potentials that I had made at the end of summer.

Yellow-browed Warbler (Martin Kelsey): first seen 7 November

November continued to give more. The day after finding the Yellow-browed Warbler I walked from the village to see if the Bullfinches were still present. They weren’t, but on my return, I checked a field close to my front gate to check the Song Thrushes and Redwings feeding there. Amongst them, was a Ring Ouzel. It was a huge surprise and it stayed for a few days, to be seen by several other birders. That was a bird that I was very keen to find and had considered visits to mountain areas where they may be overwintering. To find one at the edge of the village was a huge relief.

Ring Ouzel (Martin Kelsey): first seen 8 November

Late November was dominated by high winds from Storm Denise. I made regular visits to Alcollarín and Sierra Brava reservoirs in case of finding birds that had been blown inland. Whilst in the field, I received a call from David Lindo that he and a companion had found an adult Kittiwake on the rice fields nearby. It was just a few minutes from where I stood, so I got there quickly and the bird, an adult, was still there, sitting at the edge of the track. With that, the Extremadura year list record was broken. After a few minutes more, it flew off, not to be seen again. The following day, on my return from fieldwork in southern Extremadura, I noticed that there was a large flock of gulls at an ornamental pond in a park at the edge of Miajadas. I stopped to check them out and found amongst many Black-headed Gulls, an immature Kittiwake. It was a stunning bird and like some of my other finds, was enjoyed by several visitors on the days that followed.

Black-legged Kittiwake (Martin Kelsey): first seen 23 November

My son and I did a short trip to Salamanca for some birding at the end of the month and as we returned to Extremadura, we stopped briefly at La Garganta to find a few Goldcrests, a wintering bird I had missed at the start of the year. But that was not the final word from November. From the middle of the month, I had been checking the rice fields in the late afternoons to watch harriers go to roost and look for Short-eared Owls. I found a couple of harrier roosts, but had failed on the owls. On 29^th November, whilst slowly driving along the dirt tracks, I stopped beside one flooded field where there was a flock of Dunlin. They took flight, thanks to a harrier, and as they circled before returning to the field, I noticed a larger and paler wader with them. I wondered whether it might be a Sanderling. Once they were back in the field, I checked them through and quite quickly refound the bird: a Grey Phalarope. That was brilliant, a bird I had not even put on the potentials list, and only the second that I had ever found in Extremadura.

Rock Sparrow (Martin Kelsey): first seen 21 January

December started with 261 on my Year List. I was leading the field and had broken not just my personal best, but also the all-time record. I wondered would it be possible to reach 265 for the year? The first two weeks of December had record-breaking rainfall. Over half of an average year’s worth of rain fell. There was severe flooding and the reservoirs dramatically filled, to levels that I had not seen for years. We spent a week away to take a break to mark our wedding anniversary. I was back in the field in mid-December, doing fieldwork in the south and checking Alcollarin every afternoon. There were still some gulls that could be added to the list. On 16^th December, a sunny afternoon, amongst Black-headed Gulls flying at some distance at the far end of the reservoir, I noticed a smaller gull with more rounded wings, which were dark below. It was an adult Little Gull, a rarity in Extremadura and my first for my local patch.

Iberian Grey Shrike (Martin Kelsey): first seen 8 January

I had been putting off going to the city park in Cáceres to look for the resident Monk Parakeets that live there, but whilst Christmas shopping I took a few minutes to stroll down there. Alarmingly, the park was closed because of damage that the recent gales had done to trees, but I waited at the perimeter until I glimpsed and heard a Monk Parakeet, another feral species in Spain. Christmas passed and my plans for a final visit to La Garganta were thwarted due to persistent high winds or cloudy weather. So instead, David, my sister and I went to the summit of the Villuercas Mountains on a morning miraculously calm, to look for Alpine Accentor, which David had not yet seen during the year. As soon as we got out of the car and walked just a few metres from it, in flew that gem of gems a Wallcreeper. It was the first (and only one) seen in Extremadura in 2022 and we enjoyed spectacular views of it for a few minutes at close range. It is surely a regular wintering visitor to Extremadura but is a classic needle-in-a-haystack bird. To cap it off, we then found a group of Alpine Accentors for David.

Wallcreeper (Martin Kelsey): seen 28 December

The following day I received an email from my friend Neil Renwick. On 28^th, he had found an odd-looking wagtail and thought it was a Citrine, but he wanted my opinion on it first. He attached some photos and it was clear to me that it was indeed first-winter Citrine, a first ever for Extremadura! I immediately contacted other birders. I drove down before dawn and did some driving along tracks in the rice fields to be rewarded, at last, by a Short-eared Owl. At first light (at the same place where I had found Aquatic Warber and Red-throated Pipit!), Hugo, Raquel Lozano, David and I started searching for the wagtail. It was two days since Neil had found it, but we felt certain that it would still be present and sure enough, after a couple of hours of checking each suitable looking field, we found the bird. It was 266 for my Year List and a first for Extremadura to boot.

Citrine Wagtail (Martin Kelsey): seen 30 December

I spent the last few hours of daylight on 31^st December at Alcollarín, enjoying the gull roost, seeing another Mediterranean Gull. My local patch had proved its worth, I had seen 163 species there during the year. The year ended, I had broken my personal best for a year list in Extremadura and also set a new record. I was two species ahead of the person in second place. For the second year running I had the highest year’s total.

What about the rules I had set myself? 98% of the birds I saw were “self-found” and if I exclude the birds that I subsequently found for myself elsewhere and species found by others that were first for me in Extremadura (like the Citrine Wagtail and Great Northern Diver), then I broke the rule for only 1.5% of the species seen. As for maximizing the number of species seen within 35 km from home, I calculate that the average distance I saw a bird for the first time in the year was 32.47 km. 191 species were recorded for the first time within my 35 km radius. Subsequent sightings closer to home of some species initially recorded further away, showed that 206 species were seen inside the limit. I am impressed by that total.

Little Bustard (Martin Kelsey): first seen 7 February

It had been a great year, especially because of some of the rarities that I had found myself. Yes, I had missed some birds. Red Knot, Ruddy Turnstone, Common Gull and Bald Ibis were all species that were present at sites for several days, but I did not go to see them because it would have broken my rules. I think that had I twitched all possible species, I might have reached 270 species. Do I want to do it again? No. It was a satisfying achievement, but frankly in the last few weeks it became a bit of an obsession, putting in a lot of effort to look for birds like Short-eared Owl, which are always a delight to see, but I have previously seen them always just by chance, by luck.

So, this year, 2023, I will take the birding as it comes. I certainly have some goals and targets. I want to enjoy my local patch birding at Alcollarín, I want to find some more rarities. I have some in mind and I know that with effort and perseverance, it sometimes works (it did with Red-throated Pipit and Aquatic Warbler). I also want to explore some places that I have barely visited before. But this year, I will not mind how many species I see or where I stand in the rankings. Someone else can take the chase. My record is there to be broken.

 

Griffon and Black Vultures (Martin Kelsey)

 

 

 Appendix 1:

Species accumulative curve: the initial surge, levelling off and final bonuses

 

Appendix 2

List of species seen in chronological order

 

1, Collared Dove
2, Common Chiffchaff
3, Long-tailed Tit
4, Eurasian Blackcap
5, Sardinian Warbler
6, Spotless Starling
7, Eurasian Blackbird
8, European Robin
9, House Sparrow
10, Hawfinch
11, European Serin
12, Barn Owl
13, Griffon Vulture
14, Crested Tit
15, Eurasian Blue Tit
16, Zitting Cisticola
17, Eurasian Crag Martin
18, Mistle Thrush
19, Black Redstart
20, Blue Rock Thrush
21, Alpine Accentor
22, Common Linnet
23, Cirl Bunting
24, Northern Lapwing
25, White Stork
26, Red Kite
27, Common Buzzard
28, Eurasian Hoopoe
29, Iberian Grey Shrike
30, Iberian Magpie
31, Common Raven
32, Great Tit
33, Woodlark
34, Crested Lark
35, Common Firecrest
36, Song Thrush
37, Redwing
38, Spanish Sparrow
39, White Wagtail
40, Meadow Pipit
41, Common Chaffinch
42, European Greenfinch
43, European Goldfinch
44, Great Northern Diver
45, Black Vulture
46, Thekla’s Lark
47, Dartford Warbler
48, Eurasian Wren
49, European Stonechat
50, Dunnock
51, Western Swamphen
52, Great Cormorant
53, Little Egret
54, Eurasian Spoonbill
55, Western Marsh Harrier
56, Common Kingfisher
57, Common Magpie
58, Eurasian Jackdaw
59, Eurasian Penduline Tit
60, Bearded Tit
61, Cetti’s Warbler
62, Bluethroat
63, Common Waxbill
64, Egyptian Goose
65, Northern Shoveler
66, Gadwall
67, Eurasian Wigeon
68, Mallard
69, Northern Pintail
70, Eurasian Teal
71, Little Grebe
72, Great Crested Grebe
73, Black-necked Grebe
74, Black-headed Gull
75, Lesser Black-backed Gull
76, Black Stork
77, Grey Heron
78, Great White Egret
79, Peregrine Falcon
80, Eurasian Skylark
81, Common Shelduck
82, Eurasian Eagle Owl
83, Grey Wagtail
84, Greylag Goose
85, Greater White-fronted Goose
86, Common Crane
87, Green Sandpiper
88, Common Kestrel
89, Black-winged Stilt
90, Common Snipe
91, Common Greenshank
92, Cattle Egret
93, Hen Harrier
94, Red Avadavat
95, Eurasian Tree Sparrow
96, Eurasian Coot
97, Jack Snipe
98, Common Sandpiper
99, Eurasian Sparrowhawk
100, Little Owl
101, Lesser Spotted Woodpecker
102, Barn Swallow
103, Corn Bunting
104, Canada Goose
105, Red-crested Pochard
106, Common Pochard
107, Common Pheasant
108, European Golden Plover
109, Water Pipit
110, Little Ringed Plover
111, Ruff
112, Dunlin
113, Spotted Redshank
114, Pied Avocet
115, Kentish Plover
116, Common Ringed Plover
117, Eurasian Curlew
118, Black-tailed Godwit
119, Little Stint
120, Common Redshank
121, Long-eared Owl
122, Tawny Owl
123, Garganey
124, Ferruginous Duck
125, Rock Sparrow
126, Red-legged Partridge
127, Common Woodpigeon
128, Short-toed Treecreeper
129, Eurasian Siskin
130, Wood Sandpiper
131, Eurasian Jay
132, Great Spotted Woodpecker
133, Spanish Eagle
134, Bonelli’s Eagle
135, Eurasian Nuthatch
136, Common Moorhen
137, Black-winged Kite
138, Barnacle Goose
139, Common House Martin
140, Iberian Green Woodpecker
141, Golden Eagle
142, Black-bellied Sandgrouse
143, Great Bustard
144, Glossy Ibis
145, Rock Bunting
146, Merlin
147, Water Rail
148, Western Yellow Wagtail
149, Osprey
150, Rock Dove
151, Black Wheatear
152, Sociable Lapwing
153, Brambling
154, Great Spotted Cuckoo
155, Pin-tailed Sandgrouse
156, Calandra Lark
157, Common Starling
158, Stock Dove
159, Little Bustard
160, Stone-curlew
161, White-throated Dipper
162, Little Bittern
163, Black-crowned Night-Heron
164, Lesser Kestrel
165, Common Reed Bunting
166, Egyptian Vulture
167, Red-billed Chough
168, Caspian Tern
169, Squacco Heron
170, Sand Martin
171, Greater Flamingo
172, Yellow-legged Gull
173, Ring-necked Parakeet
174, Carrion Crow
175, Coal Tit
176, Common Crossbill
177, Citril Finch
178, Black Kite
179, Short-toed Eagle
180, Fieldfare
181, Grey Plover
182, Moustached Warbler
183, Sedge Warbler
184, Spotted Crake
185, Pallid Swift
186, Common Quail
187, Western Subalpine Warbler
188, Northern Wheatear
189, Tufted Duck
190, Red-rumped Swallow
191, Yellow-crowned Bishop
192, Common Cuckoo
193, Woodchat Shrike
194, Booted Eagle
195, Eurasian Scops Owl
196, Alpine Swift
197, Purple Heron
198, Savi’s Warbler
199, Willow Warbler
200, Iberian Chiffchaff
201, Collared Pratincole
202, European Bee-eater
203, Greater Short-toed Lark
204, Common Redstart
205, Montagu’s Harrier
206, Common Nightingale
207, Eurasian Wryneck
208, Common Swift
209, Common Reed Warbler
210, Spectacled Warbler
211, Western Orphean Warbler
212, Western Black-eared Wheatear
213, European Roller
214, Gull-billed Tern
215, Mute Swan
216, Black-rumped Waxbill
217, European Pied Flycatcher
218, Great Reed Warbler
219, Red-throated Pipit
220, Whimbrel
221, Curlew Sandpiper
222, Garden Warbler
223, Tree Pipit
224, Melodious Warbler
225, Common Tern
226, Whinchat
227, Eurasian Golden Oriole
228, Temminck’s Stint
229, Bar-tailed Godwit
230, Western Bonelli's Warbler
231, Red-necked Nightjar
232, European Turtle Dove
233, Black Tern
234, Little Tern
235, Whiskered Tern
236, White-rumped Swift
237, Tawny Pipit
238, European Honey-buzzard
239, Common Whitethroat
240, Spotted Flycatcher
241, Common Rock Thrush
242, Ortolan Bunting
243, Western Olivaceous Warbler
244, Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin
245, African Sacred Ibis
246, Eurasian Nightjar
247, Red-backed Shrike
248, Eurasian Hobby
249, Audouin’s Gull
250, Pectoral Sandpiper
251, Aquatic Warbler
252, Sanderling
253, Ruddy Shelduck
254, Eurasian Dotterel
255, Eurasian Bullfinch
256, Mediterranean Gull
257, Yellow-browed Warbler
258, Ring Ouzel
259, Black-legged Kittiwake
260, Goldcrest
261, Grey Phalarope
262, Little Gull
263, Monk Parakeet
264, Wallcreeper
265, Short-eared Owl
266, Citrine Wagtail