Long-toed stint arrives

During the early part of the evening of Friday 8th October I received a text from Rare Bird Mega Alert to the effect that a long-toed stint had been discovered at a RSPB habitat near Castleford, more specifically, St Aidan’s nature reserve, Swillington Ings. And I knew only too well that this would create something of a stampede, anticipating hundreds of birders travelling along the M1 overnight. The site is rather conveniently only a short distance from an exit of this motorway.

On receiving news that it was still present on Saturday morning I ventured north with a friend only to find the bird was a mile and half walk from the RSPB centre. Am sure my black Labrador, Murphy, thoroughly enjoyed both the walk and meeting all and sundry.

However it was something of a different story for me having had a hip replacement in more recent times? Regardless the flow of adrenalin stemming from the shear anticipation of encountering the end product tended to kill the pain as though having had an injection of morphine. The last sighting of this species in the British Isles was in Cleveland in 1982 there being one previous to that in Cornwall in 1970.

It breeds in Siberia though migrates to more exotic places as India, Indonesia, Japan and even Australia.

So little wonder it created such interest: according to The Yorkshire Post attracting some two thousand visitors over the weekend with some coming from Europe, more noticeably Belgium.

There is no point in describing the bird as these days all you need to do is Google: Long-toed stint Swillington Ings.

David Abbott, Stoke Golding