Bank holiday with early autumn migrants, Dotterel and Red-necked Phalarope and the hunt for Dark Matter
I did less birding than usual in August, mainly because it was often too hot to stay out for long. With a few scarce early migrants beginning to arrive, however, it was time to get out again. After all, what could possibly go wrong when sharing the roads with the bank holiday hordes? My first stop was relatively close—just a 50-minute drive. As Einstein might say, it’s all relative! My destination was Kingsbury Water Park, where a very confiding Red-necked Phalarope had been present for several days. Two comparatively scarce Phalaropes—the Red-necked and Grey—can usually be added to a UK year list with some effort. The third species on the UK list is the much rarer Wilson’s Phalarope, a North American vagrant that I have also seen in Britain. The phalarope was said to favour the shoreline near the sailing club, just a five-minute walk from the car park. When I arrived, four other birders were watching this whirling dervish spin frantically in the shallows, picking insects from the surf...