With easterlies setting in I headed for Donna Nook on November 4th hoping to find something of note preferably a rare wheatear; arriving around 07:00 to find a car park with virtually no birds – not a good sign: The first few hundred metres produced very little but as I scanned the tops of the hawthorns and buckthorn at the southern end of the dell a phylloscopus warbler flitted past the perched Reed Buntings and a single Corn Bunting. It was very brown and had a stonking supercilium, surely a Dusky Warbler but it was uncharacteristically quiet which seemed odd. It disappeared round the corner of the clump and as I followed it started calling confirming it was indeed a Dusky Warbler . It called well for about 10 minutes and I managed to get some moderate images though it was very furtive and the light ropey. At the same time several Reed Buntings and at least two Mealy Redpolls were on the track with a possible Arctic Redpoll flying south at knee height.
Dusky Warbler Donna Nook November 4th appeared to have a tick on its right ear coverts.
Inevitably thoughts turned to past history and my first Lincolnshire and British Dusky Warbler a mere 46 years earlier on November 3rd 1980; notebook details as follows:
Following Steve Lorand’s discovery of a Dusky warbler at Donna Nook, a first gettable bird for Lincolnshire the only previous record being a bird trapped at Huttoft on November 1st 1964, the nails were truly bitten down as I couldn’t set off until after the morning shift the following day so wouldn’t get to Donna until about 15:00 hrs leaving little more than 90 minutes of daylight in early November. Needless to say there was no-one present when I arrived so it was a case of find your own bird but fortunately it was still in the same area of low young sea buckthorn where it had been located. My notes from the day:
Very difficult to get good views of the bird in 1-2 feet high sea buckthorn. Very easy to follow though when calling due to the loud, harsh chack call notes given either singly or in a run of four or five together usually given in flight but occasionally from the bushes. Flight buzzing very quick and low darting just over the tops of the buckthorn. In flight just looked dark brown with phylloscopus shape but also rather sylvia like emphasised by sylvia like call.
A few good views in elder and buckthorn and once seen feeding on the ground and in very low buckthorn. In shape rather like a short-tailed Chiffchaff. Constant wing and tail flicking and constantly on the move. Supercilium quite long and creamy-white contrasting with dark crown and ear coverts. Bill quite fine similar to Chiffchaff; paler lower mandible, upper dark brown. Upperparts dark brown, looking more greyish on nape and rump. Tail noticeably short and rounded. Wings short only reaching base of tail. Underparts buffish with grey wash on flanks and pale creamy throat. Buffer under belly and tail. Legs dark brown.
Dusky Warbler also has the distinction of being the only rare bird I have ever located through prospective pishing! October 19th 1990 during one of the last great eastern falls I ended up in a beautiful looking dell tucked away in the middle of Saltfleet village that looked good for a rarity hence a bout of prospective pishing that immediately excited a Dusky Warbler that started chacking back at me – my first self-found Dusky in a spell of eight days of magic in the Donna Nook – Saltfleet area with a massive fall of Goldcrests and thrushes on 18th and a limited list of rares including Olive-backed Pipit, Arctic Redpoll, Dusky and Radde’s Warbler, Daurian Shrike, Northern Bullfinches and Parrot Crossbills.
Even a rear end view of a Dusky can be useful with the gingery undertail coverts shared with Radde’s
Short, rounded wings and shortish tail constantly flicked
Not the brightest of phylloscs but a nice mix of subtle tones through browns to cream
If it wasn’t for the frequent calling Duskys can be easily overlooked
Seem to be outnumbered by Hume’s this week - sadly I have yet to discover one of the latter
The rest of the day produced a few more Mealy Redpolls, one here, and a Firecrest that eluded the camera plus at least on Lapland Bunting probably four as it joined another three birds in the distance, a Woodcock and then of course the roll call of birds appearing at Spurn took the edge off the day but swings and roundabouts