Three days ago, the hide flaps were opened first thing as usual at Blacktoft Sands RSPB and there, quite obviously was a White-tailed Lapwing from Asia! Believed to be a 7th record for the UK, this is a remarkable rare vagrant to find its way into East Yorkshire.
Blacktoft has several large scrape/pools and the White-tailed Lapwing occasionally moved from one to another. On my visit (Day 2), the Lapwing was missing and remained so for a couple of hours. There were many people present, some of whom like myself had not yet had a glimpse of the bird. It was getting into evening time when the White-tailed Lapwing was seen (by some) to fly behind an island at the Xerox Hide. Another long wait followed until suddenly, quite a few birds flew from behind the island - Teal, Ruff and fortunately the rare Lapwing, re-settling in view albeit at the very back of the pool. A most elegant wader with bright yellow legs was my first impression. Clearly not a juvenile which has a spotted back, this individual is more towards an adult though some moulting is going on. The white tail from which it gets its name is only seen in flight. Still present today, for its 3rd day. Comments are closed.
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