SCILLYSPIDER: RADDE'S WARBLER at Salakee

Saturday, 15 October 2011

RADDE'S WARBLER at Salakee

Although this RADDE'S WARBLER showed very well, it was hard work trying to keep on it with the camcorder

I stood on the bank looking over Porth Hellick just as it was getting light, listening to my first Redwings of the autumn flying out. This was followed by the voices of the ringers walking towards the ringing station where I was joining them for the first hour. The first birds we trapped were 2 male Blackcap and a single Robin. One of the Blackcaps had a french ring on the left leg. Good start and only 2 Meadow Pipit and another Robin were trapped while I was there. Later they told me that they had ringed 60 birds including a YELLOW-BROWED WARBLER!

Bonjour! Male Blackcap with a french ring

Meadow Pipit

Mid-morning and news broke of a RADDE'S WARBLER, Dead Pine Walk, Garrison! That was just around the corner from work and I was there with in minutes. More people arrived but it had gone missing and was never seen again. While I was looking, it felt like that there were not the birds around like yesturday, although 3 Song Thrush dropped in.
At Maypole, I kicked a few fields with Ren and we got 3 possibly 4 RED-VAINED DARTER resting in a weedy field! There were also a Migrant Hawker, Clouded Yellow, Vestel, 4 Silver Y and 10+Rusty-dot Pearl. 7 Redwing with 2 Song Thrush also flew over. I tried to get access into the field for other birders to see the darters, but the owner said no! Just across from the fields at Longstones, Mick had the 2nd Scilly VAGRANT EMPEROR!

Female, top shot, and immature RED-VAINED DARTER

It came on the radio that the female SUBALPINE WARBLER was showing well behind the playing field on the Garrison. So when I had time, I nipped around the corner again and after waiting for ten minutes, saw the warbler feeding on theStar Castle wall. Most of the time it stayed hidden deep in cover, but when it came out into the sun, it gave brief, but close views. A male Sparrowhawk, 2 Redwing and 1 Reed Warbler were also seen nearby.

Female SUBALPINE WARBLER on the Garrison

The crowd waiting for the Subalpine to come out

On returning to work, I popped into the Dairy to have a look at the DEATH'S HEAD HAWKMOTH that was trapped at Buzza overnight! It's been a long time since I've seen one of these and they are amazing hawkmoths. Then just before 16.00, news broke of the second RADDE'S WARBLER of the day. This time it was at Salakee and when Higgo and I arrived to join the 40+crowd, the bird was on show on a trailer before diving into cover. The next hour, the warbler showed down to a few meters and cracking views were had by all. There were also a single female Blackcap and a FIRECREST was heard in the area. I saw Graham in town and he pointed to the Lloyd's bank wall. There were 18 Rusty-dot Pearl that had been attracted to the light overnight.