A personal account of the rare and scarce birds seen in Britain in 2009. Birds featured include: Pacific Diver, Eastern-crowned Warbler,Steppe Grey & Brown Shrike, Sandhill Crane, Glaucous-winged Gull, White-throated Sparrow, Crested Lark, Black-winged Pratincole, Collared Flycatcher, River Warbler & American Black Tern (see the species list under the table of contents tab for a detailed listing).
Follow the links below for low-resolution samples (.mpg format)
- 2009 trailer
- Black Redstart
- White-throated Sparrow
- River Warbler
Please note, one asterisk indicates a mega rarity; two asterisks indicate birds that are escapees, of unknown origins, or part of a re-introduction scheme; three asterisks indicate a eurotwitch.
Disc 1
Iceland Gull - Stubber's Green, West Mids - January
Caspian Gull - Stubber's Green, West Mids - January
Glaucous-winged Gull* - Saltholme, Cleveland - January
Hawfinch - Coppice Hill, Staffordshire - January
Night Heron - West Hythe, Kent - January
Penduline Tit - Clennon Valley Lakes, Devon - January
Cirl Bunting - Broadsands, Devon - January
Iceland Gull - Throckmorton Tip, Worcester - February
Glaucous Gull - Slimbridge WWT, Gloucester- February
Black Redstart - Coleshill, Warwickshire - February
Firecrest - Ham's Hall, Warwickshire - February
Red-necked Grebe - Draycote Water, Warwick - March
Smew - Draycote Water, Warwickshire - March
Great-northern Diver - Draycote Water, Warwickshire - March
Great-grey Shrike - Bircher Common, Hereford - March
Bonaparte's Gull - Cardiff Bay, Glamorgan - March
Waxwings - Various Midlands sites - March
Red-crested Pochard - Bawdsey, Suffolk - April
White-throated Sparrow* - Old Winchester Hill, Hants - April
Great-grey Shrike - Cutthroat Bridge, Derbyshire - April
Pectoral Sandpiper - Cossington Meadows, Leicester - April
Whiskered Terns - Willington Gravel Pits, Derbyshire - April
Crested Lark* - Dungness, Kent - May
Black-winged Pratincole* - Grove Ferry NNR, Kent - May
Collared Flycatcher* - Denburn Wood, Crail, Fife - May
Savi's Warbler - Lee Valley Country Park, Essex - May
Marsh Warbler - Otmoor RSPB, Oxfordshire - June
River Warbler* - Applecross, Highlands - July
White-tailed Lapwing*** - Mezieres en Brenne, France - July
Spoonbills - Cley, Norfolk - July
Pomarine Skua - Bartley Reservoir, West Midlands - July
Pacific Golden Plover - Breydon Water, Norfolk - August
Disc 2
Great White Egret - Chard Reservoir, Somerset - August
Spotted Crake - Greylake RSPB, Somerset - Augusti
American Black Tern* - Farmoor Reservoir, Oxon - August
White-winged Black Tern - Farmoor Reservoir, Oxon - Augustst
Sabine's Gull - Upton Warren, Worcestershire - September s -
Ortolan Bunting - Corton, Suffolk - September
Glossy Ibis - Boyton RSPB, Suffolk - September
White-rumped Sandpiper - Abberton Reservoir, Essex - September
Sandhill Crane* - South Ronaldsay, Orkney - September
American Golden Plover - South Ronaldsay, Orkney - September
Ring-necked Duck - Westport Lake, Stoke on Trent - October
Steppe Grey Shrike* - Lound G.P, Nottingham - October
Brown Shrike* - Staines Moor, Surrey - October
Azorean Gull - Didcot, Oxfordshire - October
Pied Wheatear - Horsey Gap, Norfolk - October
Common Crane - Horsey Mill, Norfolk - October
Eastern-crowned Warbler* - Trow Quarry, Co.Durham - October
Rose-coloured Starling - Forrest Hill, Oxon - November
Pacific Diver* - Carnsew Basin, Hayle, Cornwall - November
Pomarine Skua- Beachley, Gloucestershire - December
Black-necked Grebe - Priorslee lake, Shropshire - December
Siberian Stonechat - Bevercotes Wood, Notts - December