Taiga strikes!
A day of birding for Joe Seymour and Keith Boyer took on a whole new dimension following their magical discovery at Flamborough Head.
Taiga Flycatcher: Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire, from 16 October 2021
WHAT started out as a normal Saturday jaunt to the east coast for Keith Boyer and I turned into a magical day. Having birded Bridlington harbour early on, we had breakfast then headed to the lighthouse at Flamborough Head to have a walk along the top of the cliffs in the hope that something would drop in. After parking the car, we walked down from the lighthouse and along the cliff towards the north side of Foghorn Station, where we spent a good 10 minutes watching an obliging pair of European Stonechats.
On reaching the station, we walked round to the south side. Here, a couple of people came from around the cliff edge and flushed two birds up from the cliffs. One was a pipit that we didn’t fully identify as it soon disappeared. The other landed on the opposite fence. At first glance, without looking through binoculars, it looked quite pale and our assumptions led us to Common Redstart. However, after looking at it through bins we were in no doubt it was a flycatcher and so headed back to the other side of Foghorn Station for a closer look.
We spent a good 30-45 minutes watching it as it perched on the fence, dropping to the ground for a few seconds before hopping back up onto the fence. We could tell it had just arrived. With the time of year and all the characteristics of its behaviour we put the news out of it being a Red-breasted Flycatcher – we also knew one was in the area the day before. It never crossed our minds that it might be something much rarer …
It flew off the fence, down the cliff and was lost to view. We waited another 10 minutes but it never reappeared, so we headed south along the cliff-top path towards Old Fall, occasionally looking back to see if it had returned. Unfortunately, though, there was no sign of it.
Walking back down the road towards the car park we could see a large gathering of birders at Foghorn Station and we knew straight away it wasn’t going to be just for a Red-breasted Flycatcher, so we headed down to see what was happening. It was to our amazement that we discovered that the bird had not only been refound, but had been upgraded to a potential Taiga Flycatcher. Anticipation could be felt in the air as everyone around us waited anxiously for the identity to be confirmed.
We spent another 30 minutes or so watching it and then called it a day just after it was confirmed as a Taiga. We headed back to the car and home to West Yorkshire just as the masses started to arrive.
Amazement and a real buzz are the only emotions that we both felt. It’s always a pleasure seeing rarities but, oh my days, it really is something else when you find them. ■