My visit to Spurn today did have a certain plan in mind. Given the onset of wintry weather, the search for particular species or target birds sometimes works well. Possibilities that sprung to mind were - Shore Lark, Lapland Bunting, Little Auk, Waxwing and perhaps, yesterday's juvenile Pallid Harrier.
I decided to pass Welwick early on and head for the coast at Easington where I might come across the aforementioned shore birds and leave the Harrier for later on. Well, that was mistake number one as, the harrier showed early at Welwick and then disappeared for some hours! The sea was rough at Easington and although I saw a few Red-throated Divers, one Great Northern Diver and small flocks of Common Scoter, I didn't see a Little Auk. The lagoons at Easington looked a good sheltered spot and I'd soon found a Snow Bunting, followed by a second one, a few minutes later. Two Grey Plover and three Sanderling were on the side of the lagoon. On the beach were more Sanderling and three Twite dropped in briefly before flying North. No sign of any shore larks on the ground I covered. I went to Sammy's Point and watched the latest thrushes, mostly Blackbirds and Fieldfares now. I thought it would be a good spot for a certain harrier to glide past too! On leaving Sammy's, I heard the Pallid Harrier had evaded all watchers between Welwick and Kilnsea and was now heading South at Spurn itself. I thought the closest I would get, would be to drive to the Crown&Anchor corner in Kilnsea, and scan the peninsula. Through my bins, I picked up a 'dot' which was flying South and generally conforming to the observations I was hearing on the radio. By the time it reached the lighthouse, I was looking through Lance's scope and was making out a certain harrier! The question is - was that sighting worth a Life List tick? Through my bins it was a dot, through a scope it was a dot with wings! The fact remains, it was a Pallid Harrier and I was watching it, albeit three and a half miles away, as it headed for Lincolnshire!! Comments are closed.
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