SCARBOROUGH

THIS WAS MY annual holiday destination as a kid, but why did I not know how great the bird life was here? Scarborough has the best Peregrine site in Britain, housed in a Kittiwake colony. You are so close you would think you would need a license to stand on Marine Drive and look at it! A voluntary scheme is put in place during the breeding season to show walkers birds in the area, which also include, of course, breeding Kittiwakes, Fulmar, Herring Gull and passing migrants like Black Redstart and Yellowbrowed Warbler. Castle Hill is another amazing spot, not just because of its history, but because it’s a magnet for drawing migrants like Red-breasted and Pied Flycatcher, Pallas’s and Radde’s Warbler and Redstart. I even travelled here many years ago to see a summer Pied Wheatear and Woodchat Shrike! The harbour is a great place to find birds, with regular wintering gems. Recent years have included Great Northern and Red-throated Diver as well as Black-necked Grebes. Waders here include a good number of Turnstones that can feed at your feet, as well as Purple Sandpipers on the outer harbour walls. White-winged gulls can include Mediterranean, Glaucous and Iceland, and there’s the odd Grey Seal! The north and south bays often have a mix of sea ducks, including Common and Velvet Scoters, Long-tailed Duck and Goldeneye. Fly-by Cory’s Shearwater, Sabine’s Gull, Little Auk and mixed terns are all possible. Minke Whale and Bottlenosed Dolphin also possible.