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 huddle 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 itYes. 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 (the last being in 2015) 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 frequenting 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 northern parts of South America, mainly east of the Andes including the Amazon basin..
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.
.jpeg) |
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 such an extended period.
.jpeg)
.jpeg)
.jpeg)
