Another Mega on Shetland - 12th October 2026

On Saturday afternoon the 10th of October I was waiting for a Hornemann's Arctic Redpoll to appear at a place called Burn of Sound which lies on the southern outskirts of Lerwick. 

As I waited, news came through of another mega rare bird  being found on Shetland.The bird was reported as a Swainson's Thrush, normally to be found breeding in North America and spending the winter in South America. It was just a few miles down the road at a place called Easter Quarff that lies close to the main A970 road.

Cue a mass exodus of birders, no one now interested in the redpoll.This included yours truly as I needed Swainson's for my British list

We returned to my car and drove a few miles south to Easter Quarff taking extra care to park carefully beside the busy A970, crossed the road and walked up a tarmac drive passing some houses and gardens and tramped onwards along a muddy and wet farm track into a hinterland of rough pasture and moorland with a burn running down through some wind blown willows that were situated to one side of the track

A scrum of birders were stood on the track scrutinising the willows.It was obvious they could see the bird. 

Joining them we learned the bird was partially visible, perched low down on the far side of the willows but I failed to see it. Then it moved further down the line of willows and everyone followed.The light was beginning to fail and I was growing ever more anxious about setting eyes on this potential addition to my British list.Then it flew once more and I saw it

Yes. Thank you very much but my rejoicing was to be short lived as the elusive thrush was quickly re-identified as a Grey cheeked Thrush, closely similar to a Swainson's Thrush but with a greyer face and only a partial or absent buff coloured eye ring. It is marginally the  rarer of these two Catharus thrushes on Shetland with 12 records as opposed to 15 for Swainsons. A much prized, very rare Nearctic vagrant no doubt but from my point of view mildly disappointing as I had already seen a Grey cheeked Thrush a very long time ago in November 2005, which was freqienting a wood in Hertfordshire of all places.

Grey cheekedThrushes breed in northern boreal forests from Newfoundland to Alaska and across the Bering Sea to eastern Siberia and winter in the Amazon basin of South America.

Never mind it was a great bird to see and my fourth mega on Shetland this autumn, commencing with the unforgettable and forever memorable Siberian Blue Robin at Hillwell followed that afternoon by a Two barred Greenish Warbler at Quendale just a few hundred metres down the road and then a Black faced Bunting seven days later that was present for only one evening and also at Quendale 

The Grey cheeked Thrush moved down the track to the houses and was briefly located perched on a wooden fence in a garden and although we and a lot of other birders waited for it to re-appear it was not seen again. Reluctantly everyone departed but we would be back tomorrow to try and get better views of this small North American thrush

Sunday morning arrived with light winds from the southwest and sun. The thrush had been relocated fairly early, feeding alongside the tarmac drive that led up to the houses.A cramped line of birders two deep were spread right across the drive when we arrived. I feared I would have no chance of getting to look up the drive but by sheer luck I arrived just as a gap appeared in the squash of birders and the bird hopped out of a hedge and along the drive, moving away all the time but I clearly saw a greyish brown small thrush with pale  underparts, a spotted breast and with noticeably pale pinkish legs.Then it was gone. A long wait ensued but the bird never re-appeared and it was eventually located back amongst the willows.

We vowed to return in the afternoon when hopefully most people would have left and it would be quieter.Never a bad thing in such situations

Returning mid afternoon we found the thrush was still loitering amongst the willows, feeding alongside the burn, low down amongst the tangle of branches and grass.It showed fairly regularly but the big problem for photography was the sun which shone directly through the willows into our faces with the consequence the bird was backlit. I alternately watched it feeding, even bathing in the burn and tried my best with the camera but it was far from satisfactory.

The thrush favoured  the far end of the willows in particular and would show itself well  in the open although usually partially obscured by the long grass it sought its prey in.Invariably it returned to the sanctuary of the willows after a brief excursion into the open.

The thrush finally flew back to the gardens and we gave it up vowing to return the next day. That evening we discussed a plan on how to get close to the bird and get the photos we so desired.The morning turned out to be grey and cloudy which was ideal as there was no chance of bright sun to get in the way but the morning proved fruitless with only one  brief view of the bird hopping across another driveway before being chased off by the inevitable pugnacious Robin.We waited a very long time but never saw it again and others could not find it in the willows where it always seemed to end up.

I left to try again with the Arctic Redpoll and Mark said he would call me if the thrush re-appeared.An hour later with no sign of the redpoll my phone rang and Mark confirmed the thrush had been re-found and guess where - yes of course in its favourite willows.

I made my way back to Easter Quarff and soon saw the thrush. We positioned ourselves at the end of the  willows where the thrush liked to linger on and under the willow branches just above the water and come out onto the partly waterlogged long grass to feed.

Most people present having seen it well departed and we were down to a small group of half a dozen or so.The thrush had moved off and was thought to be in the gardens.So in its absence we did a bit of landscaping, treading down the grass to create a more open area where the thrush could come out and would not be obscured by the long grass.An impromptu stage if you like.

The next hour and a half became an endurance test of both mind and body as there was nothing to do but stand stoically awaiting any development on the thrushfront.Surely it would return here as it had done so many times before. It was beginning to seem a forlorn hope and optimism was beginning to fade.

Finally a birder further down the track signalled the thrush was working its way back along the base of the willows by the burn. Everyone of us  became energised and the sense and feel of expectation was palpable.This was what we had been waiting for.A quick check of camera settings, un-necessary really but an instinctive form of re-assurance and calming of apprehension.

Tensed and ready for action we awaited the arrival of the star guest which duly came in the form of an indistinct dark shape hopping towards us over some almost water level willow branches. I lost sight of it. Panic. But then suddenly and thrillingly there it was perched briefly in full view on the fretwork of thin  willow branches growing over the amber water of the burn. 

In the few seconds  granted to me I noted its pale off white underparts and diffuse black spotting on its breast, greyish brown upperparts, pale pinkish legs and sparkling dark eyes.Then it dropped down into the shallow water below before moving onto the grass in a series of hops.

As it moved out of cover we held our breath.In total silence we watched the thrush move out onto the flooded grass as we had planned, coming ridiculously close at times.

It hopped around and then retreated into the base of the willows.We waited, as from experience we knew it was likely to return imminentlywhich it duly did.

The same perfomance then repeated itself 

The thrush had, when first seen thought to have a damaged wing but some of the photos I took showed it was missing the two inner tertials from its left wing and possibly an inner greater covert which caused one or more underlying white feathers to protrude prominently on occasions. Certainly its flight was unimpeded whenever it decided to leave the willows and move back to the gardens

Would it come back for a third time? Unbelievably the answer was yes and it was just as good as the previous two visits with the addition of it venturing onto the wet muddy track and then into the grass on the other side  of the track as we filled our memory cards with this unforgettable close encounter, so very different to my experience in a wood in Hertfordshire twenty one years ago

The thrush departed once more and we decided that we could do no better and so headed for home.

Our good friend Lee Mott, for now confined to a wheelchair, having seen the
Grey cheeked Thrush  which was a lifer for him

I never thought that I would get to see this shy North American thrush so very close and for sich an extended period.

A Bluethroat at Boddam - 10th October 2026

A very confiding Bluethroat at a small village called Boddam in South Mainland found us standing beside a area of waste ground awaiting its arrival amongst the weeds,spoil and stones.

For a while, quite a long while in fact there was no sign of it but then a small movement in the weeds,  stones and grass revealed the bird scuttling along, alternately in and out of sight

It did not hang about but made short runs and then paused to survey the ground for seconds only before it was off again.Much like a Blackbird in feeding action  but robin sized and with the latters perky personality

Aware of its confiding reputation we were unsurprised at its close presence but when it came within ten feet to perch briefly on a small rock we certainly were taken aback!  It did not remain long before retreating but then returned to repeat the exercise all over again. I was hardly complaining.

On occasions it would fly to a large garden a hundred metres away but invariably returned to hunt for invertebrates amongst its favoured  weeds and stones

As most are at this time of year on Shetland it was a juvenile and consequently showed no evidence of blue across its breast only a necklace of large dark spots. On Shetland in autumn they are an annual scarce migrant and always nice to find or see.

The Big One - 5th October 2026

c Hugh Harrop

I was casually chatting to Pauline late in the morning whilst waiting to catch a glimpse of an elusive Firecrest at Wester Quarff on Mainland.

The time was approximately 1125. Glancing to my right I noticed the couple who had been standing by the roadside suddenly become energised and then walking at a brisk pace, well almost running to be honest, up the road to where their car was parked.Seconds later another car  came from further down the road, stopped briefly beside me and its passenger yelled out of the window.........

Ewan! Sibe Blue Robin at Hillwell and before I could reply drove off at high speed. 

With shaking fingers I consulted my phone, absent mindedly still set to silent from the night before and there was a message on the Shetland Rare Bird News WhatsApp, timed at 1120 from Hugh Harrop that only served to add to the shock waves of adrenalin now pulsing through my body

SIBERIAN BLUE ROBIN in our garden at Hillwell.Parking ONLY at Quendale Mill or Mainlands and NOT at Hillwell or approach road.This is a very sensitive area so please stay out of fields and follow on site instructions.Pin to follow from DP (Dan Pointon)

This was the big one everyone had been hoping for. The event that every birder who travels in hope to Shetland dreams of. A bird fabled for its rarity and extreme difficulty to see in Britain, usually present for only one day and never to be seen again.This was only the second Siberian Blue Robin to be seen in Shetland (the first was found dead on Foula in 2011), only the fifth in Britain and seventh in Europe.A bird of vast Siberian forests that should be spending its winter in  southeast Asia.

My car was parked just yards away and it was less than two minutes before I had set Birdguides route directions on my Satnav and was reversing the car in the narrow road and hurtling up the hill, waving farewell to Pauline, then turning right and shooting  along the narrow road to join the A970 south.It would take me half an hour to get to the turn off to Mainlands.

Wave upon wave of anxiety enveloped me as I drove.

What would the situation be like at Hillwell with all the cars and birders arriving en masse? How close could I get to Hillwell before having to abandon my a car and walk? Would the bird even still be there? I had no answers of course, no idea, but knowing the area as I do I doubted I would be able to get a parking space anywhere near  Hillwell and Hugh's garden. I told myself to concentrate on my driving and deal with the rest when I got there.If I ended up in a ditch or worse I would never forgive myself.

The miles whizzed by but seemed never quick enough. Signs for Fladdabister, Cunningsburgh and Boddam flashed past. I came to the turning to Mainlands and further on the same road lay Hillwell.Now what do I do? I could play it safe and park at the Mainlands store and then walk, or  I could drive further and hope to find a place to park closer that would not upset the locals but that was going to be highly unlikely.

I drove another several hundred metres past Mainlands store and found a small road and some private houses beyond the church and parked there behind another car disgorging three birders and we set off in company down the road that lay in front of us, a road winding downhill and then uphill towards Hugh's very distant large white  house and garden. It was a beautiful day, sunny but windy. Other birders, singly or in groups were already yomping down the road, scattered in the distance like matchstick men, wending their way towards Hillwell and hopefully the holy grail of a Siberian Blue Robin .My bootlace came undone. I resented the time wasted doing it up. In my heightened anxiety this became an issue. What if this minor delay meant the difference between seeing the bird or not. Ridiculous but this is what stress can do. Stopping to do up a bootlace was hardly going to make any difference. Surely if it was in the garden it would stick and there was every chance it would still be present when I finally got there.

Hillwell still looked no nearer despite my power walking towards its distant presence but I could see my decision to park where I did had proved right as every possible parking space I walked by was occupied by presumably birders cars 

I trudged ever onwards 

Two thirds of the way there a familiar car stopped beside me. It was Pauline who I had abandoned so  abruptly at the Wester Quarff. 

Jump in  Ewan!

There will be nowhere for me to park but I can drop you at the entrance to Hugh's drive. She added

A gamechanger. Time being of the essence.

On arriving at Hugh's I thanked Pauline profusely, leapt from the car and headed up the track to Hugh's garden

On getting to the garden my heart sank. My relatively late arrival meant I was now contemplating a crowd of in excess of a hundred who had got there before me and were now ranged across the large garden viewing a hedge of rosa that marked the eastern boundary of the large garden.

Really there were far too many birders to fit comfortably into the garden hence a good number failing to see the bird but what can you do in such a situation. At this time of year Shetland is inundated with so many visiting birders that one can hardly suppress such a record. Everyone has to be given a chance to see it.

I joined the throng at one end but decided that was unsatisfactory so went to the other end which would allow me to view across the lawn to a good length of the rosa hedge and under which the robin was apparently prone to skulk and would periodically give very brief views.

My view of the rosa hedge

The crowd awaiting an appearance of the Siberian Blue Robin which
sadly failed to materialise

Every so often someone would say they could see it but it rarely amounted to anything conclusive.Bodies would tense, bins would be  raised and cameras pointed, then be reluctantly lowered when it became clear it was a false alarm   

I and a hundred others waited in tense  anticipation for the next sighting but the bird failed to show itself possibly deterred by the large crowd.Occasional indistinct movements in the gloom under the hedge could be anything and more often than not were nothing more than a Wren.

Then suddenly from my right the Siberian Blue Robin flew in and disappeared into the base of the hedge 

Cries of excitement came from the crowd

That's it!.

It was a seconds only view but I managed to see a bird with a noticeably short tail,  grey brown upperparts with a hint of blue and off white underparts.That was it but that would do for now.

I relaxed slightly, having now  seen the bird, although wishing for better. A number of people around me missed it. Distracted or looking the wrong way it was gone before you could register what was happening.

Unseen by me the bird then moved to the other side of the garden, hassled regularly by the local Robin.It began to show itself under a fuschia but there was no way I could get to see it due to the density of the crowd, the unwillingness of anyone to concede an inch of space and my current line of sight being too far to the right to see the fuschia. A running commentary of its movements from the minority who could see it was both exciting and excruciating in equal measure.

c Hugh Harrop

I just had to accept the situation for what it was and hope something would change.

I stood to one side of the crowd with others hoping the bird would move right and the crowd duly confirmed it was heading in my direction. Then it went quiet before suddenly there was the bird, again flying low past me and affording similar views to the last time before disappearing into the same rosa hedge as before

c Hugh Harrop

I never got to see the Siberia Blue Robin on the ground and it was never seen again after flying past me and several other astonished birders. We all waited as Hugh did two walks along the hedge trying to flush it but it became obvious that wherever it had gone it was not in the garden. Eventually I accepted the inevitable that the bird was gone but everyone hoped it might return, if not during the day then maybe to roost at night 

Hugh put down two trail cameras so if the bid did slip back unnoticed suring the day it would be discovered.

The garden slowly emptied and birders either disconsolate or euphoric depending on whether they had seen the Siberian Blue Robin or not, made their way back to their cars scattered far and wide or went to Quendale Mill,a couple of  hundred metres down the road where another very rare bird a Two barred Greenish Warbler was to be found in the afternoon.

What a day.

Inevitably a large number of birders already on Shetland were disappointed, either failing to see the bird even though they were in the garden or getting there too late. Many well known and top listers travelled from all over Britain on hearing the news, such is the lure and desirability of a Siberean Blue Robin, convinced that as it was in a garden it would at the very least remain all day and if they spent large amounts of money on flights (I heard up to £1800.00) to get them to Shetland that same day they would see it. Sadly the robin's premature and un-anticipated departure meant all such plans were doomed to failure.Enigmatic as ever the robin had gone and as the hours passed a reluctant acceptance came about that it was not going to be re-found although some persisted in looking for it on surrounding properties for the rest of the day.

As a last gasp chance, no more than straw clutching to be honest, Hugh made two sweeps of his garden  the next day at 10am and 1030am to which anyone was invited.No one was surprised when there was  still no sign of the bird.

And thus ended one of the most remarkable twitches of my life

I wish to express my grateful thanks to Hugh Harrop for granting me permission to use his excellent images of the Siberian Blue Robin to illustrate my blog

A Lapland Bunting at Eshaness - 27th September

The night before we made a plan to return to Eshaness to view a Lapland Bunting that had been discovered below the lighthouse and not very far away from the still present Buff breasted Sandpiper.It would make a nice double of two good birds.

However on waking the next day it was to find  the wind had risen to a ferocious level with gusts of over 40mph.What it would be like on the exposed cliff top at Eshaness did not bear thinking about and we beganto have second thoughts. We discussed the situation and being birders decided to chance it despite the dire forecast.

It would never do to wimp out just because of a bit of wind no matter how strong. Would it?.

We set off ealy on the hour long drive to Eshaness and arrived at the lighthouse car park to find it unsurprisingly deserted.

Not a soul in sight and on opening the car door I soon found out why as the force of the wind blew me sideways against the car, such was its strength.

We got our gear together and secured our weatherproof clothing for the ordeal to come.We walked out onto the downward sloping grass plain below the lighthouse, spreading out in order to cover as much ground as possible.I thought there was little chance of finding the bunting in this wind as we struggled to remain upright in the violent gusts that assaulted us.

I followed a fence line running down towards the cliffs..On the other side was a scree of stones,larger rocks and seeding thrift which I thought looked a likely spot for the bunting but initially could see little sign. I walked further and on the point of givng it up as a lost cause a small bird fluttered low over the stones for a short distance before hunkering down again.I looked at it in my bins and sure enough it was the Lapland Bunting, now watching me warily.

Mark was some way off from me and in the howling wind it was almost impossible to get his attention, my shouts being blown away on the wind but eventually he heard me, came running and he too saw the bunting before it flew and we lost sight of it.

Frustraion grew large as I really wanted a nice photo of this pleasingly patterned and uncommon bird. We walked as far as possible to the cliff edge careful not to get blown over and then I suggested  a plan.We walked round the end of the fenceline and then back up through the stones and Thrift.If the bunting was hiding here we would surely discover it. 

We walked up through the multitude of uneven stones trying not to stumble over them. There seemed little sign that we would be successful in re-finding the bunting but carried on and roughly where we had first seen the bunting,it flew up and over the fence and carried by the wind  landed  at some distance on the short windswept grass amongst a flock of Starlings. Obviously not to its liking it did not remain there long before flying and landing back amongst the stones and commenced feeding on the seeding Thrift

Slowly we walked towards it, gradually getting as close as we dared, then stopping to allow  me to take some images.We remained absolutely still, conscious of the bunting's apparent wariness but this time it showed little concern about our presence and began working its way toward us, shuffling busily amongst the stones and Thrift, feeding non stop.

It couldn't have worked out better and I chanced my arm by slowly walking towards the bunting which now seemed re-assured we meant it no harm and eventually it was as close as I felt necessary and made the most  of this unexpected photographic opportunity.

We remained with the bird for twenty minutes and left it contentedly feeding and went in search of the sandpiper..We found it feeding distantly on the grass but now others had arrived and a person in a bright yellow jacket made sure it rapidly departed.

We returned to the car pleased at confounding the odds and headed away from Eshaness to Braewick Cafe where we treated ourselves to coffee and a slice of cake

Well why not?