Mega Dipping Weekend - 9.5.15

All day Saturday the amazing disappearing Greater Yellowlegs in Hampshire was on view near the village of Titchfield. This bird first found in January had only showed 5-6 times since and so thinking that perhaps it may do a repeat performance I headed down with my mum and boy to hopefully see it. Checking the pager on the way came back with no news so it wasn't looking great. It got even worse when 25 minutes from the site the mega alert went off. As my son was in the car I resisted from using expletives but I was still seriously pissed off as the 2nd Citril Finch for the UK had just been found in Norfolk. If I were on my own I'd have turned round and gone but with others in tow I couldn't. We arrived on site and nabbed a car paring space and wandered down to the floods. a pair of Stonechat were a year tick but on the flood 100+ Black-Tailed Godwit were minus the Greaterlegs. I then finally met Phil Bishop of Amwell fame and had a chat. My mum and son walked down to the beach while I had a look elsewhere but the bird had done another vanishing act! A Black Swan in Hill Head harbour was about as exotic as it got! News on the way home became even more depressing as the finch was showing well!

It then became even worse on the Monday. While eating my lunch the mega alert went off again. It wasn't the Citril Finch being re found (it had flown off just after 6am) but it was the mainland's first Moltoni's Subalpine Warbler a nice male on Blakeney Point,Norfolk with a probable female with it. I'd officially had enough!!