Whiskered Terns at Sandbach Flashes, Cheshire

With Whiskered Tern still being a species I needed in Britain, two turning up at Long Eaton Gravel Pits in Derbyshire on Friday morning before relocating to Attenborough Nature Reserve across the border in Nottingham for the remainder of the evening had me tempted to make the journey over the next day for my last remaining species of ‘Marsh Tern’ to see in the UK.

However, it seems the terns had other ideas, and checking my phone in the early hours of Saturday revealed them to have departed overnight, leaving just a solitary Black Tern in their wake. Fast forward a few hours and having drifted back off to sleep, I was this time woken up by a phone call from Alex (my previous weeks lie in had been cut short by the news of the White-crowned Sparrow at Woolston Eyes) – the two Whiskered Terns had been re-found at Sandbach Flashes in Cheshire, just 20 minutes away from my house.

Grabbing a quick breakfast on the way out, we were soon on our way, and 20 minutes later were enjoying great views as the two terns paraded around Elton Hall Flash, swooping low over the surface of the water to feed and displaying their gorgeous sooty grey bellies and bright white contrasting under tails.

Perching regularly on several of the wooden fence posts submerged in the water, we were treated to excellent scope views of the pair, on some occasions even flying alongside and perching with the single Common Tern that was present and in turn offering a great comparison between the two species.

Both Whiskered Terns together

Common Tern on the left, Whiskered Tern on the right

The size different was extremely noticeable in flight – the Whiskered Terns being much smaller, while the Common’s longer tail feathers were also apparent. We were also able to note another key identification feature of Whiskered Tern - their shallow forked tails were clear to see as they dipped and dived, while their greyish rumps also contrasted to the Common’s pure white backs.

The shorter forked tail and grey rump of the Whiskered Tern is clear to see in flight

Mostly keeping their distance and remaining in the middle of the flash, one would occasionally power over to the near side, on one occasion feeding just metres away in the corner, giving outstanding views to the gathered crowd before moving swiftly back over to the far edge of the water.

Looking superficially like a cross between a Black Tern and a Common Tern, the gorgeous jet black hoods, blood red bills and dark crimson feet all stood out, even at a distance.

Departing as expected the next day, two (probably the same) were reported from Saltholme RSPB in Cleveland, adding further mileage to their tour of the UK. With several other Whiskered Terns reported in Gloucestershire, Hampshire and Somerset over the past few days, the warm weather and winds from the continent seem to have resulted in a mini influx of these delightfully acrobatic terns, and being the very first site record, they are another great local bird for Sandbach Flashes.

Elton Hall Flash

Having seen just a single bird in Southern Spain two years ago and having missed a juvenile bird at Burton Mere Wetlands in the Autumn of 2010, these were the first local Whiskered Terns in 5 years that I could get to, and it was great to see this European rarity relatively close to home – always ideal!  

Southern Spain Trip Report - Day 4

Day 4 - Friday 15th August 2015

Our fourth day in Spain dawned fantastically sunny and hot yet again, and we soon hit the road to continue west with our trip towards Jerez, in the Cadiz province of Spain. Driving through the sun-baked land, we headed through the mountains and dehesa – the cork and oak plantations famous in Southern Spain – keeping watch all the while for any Bonelli’s Eagles or Black-winged Kites that may be soaring on the breeze. With no sign of either, we continued on to the plains of La Janda and Benalup, these once bird-rich flooded paddy fields sadly not as productive as in their former heyday years. A large group of Cattle Egrets converged at the side of the road, while a flock of White Storks took to the air, their huge wingspans tremendous as they circled around before landing in the next field – now completely hidden by the tall vegetation!

Several stops to check the sparrow flocks for any Spanish Sparrows sadly proved fruitless, as did a visit to a supposed favoured field for Little Bustard at one of the crossroads in La Janda. Deciding to press on to our next site of Bonanza Pools, we made the journey across to this excellent set of pools near the town of Bonanza, close to Jerez. The three medium sized pools here are usually a reliable site for White-headed Ducks, and pulling up at the side of the road we weren’t disappointed.

Several birds were present on Pool 2, with a number of males and females drifting over the calm water while another few individuals dozed in the warm afternoon sun, resting their white heads under their winds as they were carried along on the slow breeze.

Pool 2 - Bonanza Pools - Photo by Alex Jones

Calling me over, Alex excitedly told me to look through the scope as he had found a lifer for me – and sure enough a Purple Swamphen was slowly creeping along the reeds at the back of the pool! Having never seen one before, this was a bird that I had most definitely wanted to catch up with during the trip, and we watched as this bright purple individual carefully made its way in and out of the reed stems, the colourful red bill shining out like a small beacon.

A well concealed Little Bittern was a great spot, impressively camouflaged amongst the reeds as it perched close to the water, stock still and watching for any small fish to devour for lunch. I was struck by just how tiny these birds are compared to the Bitterns in the reedbeds back in the UK, its miniscule size a strong factor as to why it took us around quarter of an hour to even realise it was there!

A very well hidden Little Bittern

Turning our attention to Pool 3 on the opposite side of the road, another Purple Swamphen dashed for cover, whilst a Squacco Heron stood perfectly still on an exposed branch in the middle of the water, again evidently hunting patiently and waiting for signs of movement in the murkiness below.

Pool 3 - Bonanza Pools - Photo by Alex Jones

With no Red-knobbed Coots present, we headed to the nearby Bonanza Salt Pans where we were greeted by an absolutely incredible selection of birds in this fantastically rich habitat. Countless waders scurried amongst the mud, with Dunlin, Little Stints and Sanderlings all feeding in the shallow poolside edges, while Black-winged Stilts waded through the water, their long, bright red legs enabling them to go slightly deeper than the other birds.

Hundreds of Greater Flamingos were sifting through the water filtering out any food, their gorgeous pink feathers providing a fantastic burst of colour in the sun. Having only seen two extremely distant individuals in northern Spain earlier in the year, it was fantastic to see them so close up this time and really admire the bright colours.

Large numbers of Slender-billed Gulls foraged on the water’s surface (a lifer for me) and we watched as they span around feeding, their bright red bills standing out from a distance.

The sheer volume of birds present at this site was evident as we drove slowly down the mud track – Fan-tailed Warblers sprung up from the grass verges singing their hearts out while Booted Eagles and Griffon Vultures soared majestically overhead. A nice juvenile Blue-headed Wagtail perched obligingly on some nearby vegetation, while various species of larks sang beautifully from either side of the car.

Fan-tailed Warbler - photo by Alex Jones

Photo by Alex Jones

Heading towards a large lake at one end of the site, we joined several local fishermen and were greeted by fantastically close up views of a Greater Flamingo feeding in the shallows right in front of us, seemingly oblivious to our presence. A nice adult Caspian Tern patrolled the water’s surface from high above, it’s large bright red beak clear to see.

With no Marbled Ducks present at this site, we headed to our final location of the day, Laguna de Tarelo, just a few miles from Bonanza. Walking slowly due to the heat and with Chris and Alex having gone ahead, I stopped to check a small bird in one of the bushes lining the path. Looking through my bins I was surprised to see a vermillion red bill and a red feather mask surrounding a beady eye looking back at me – a Common Waxbill! 

Only perched for a matter of seconds before darting in to cover, I was pleased that I had caught up with this introduced species after missing two that morning that Alex and Chris had seen fly over the pond by our apartment before leaving Alcaidesa. Catching up with the other two, I led Alex back to where I’d seen the bird to hopefully catch up with it again (Alex apparently wasn’t ‘ticking’ his flight views of the Waxbills earlier and was now slightly gripped!) and thankfully hearing their calls in some nearby conifers I got him on to 4 or 5 individuals that were happily perched amongst the pine needles.

Introduced and spreading across the Iberian Peninsula having originated from North Africa, Common Waxbills are included under Category C, and although not native I enjoyed seeing these bright additions to our trip list.

Suddenly Chris called out that he had got them (we assumed he meant our target Marbled Teals) and sure enough after running back to the small hide, Chris had two or more individuals in the scope. It wasn’t the closest views in the world as the birds were right on the opposite side of the large lake (Chris had outdone himself once again with his superb bird-spotting eyesight) and I had been hoping for them to be a lot closer like the White-headed Ducks were that morning. However there was no mistaking their small size, spotty plumage and dark eye patches even at a distance.

A very distant record shot of the Marbled Duck! - Photo by Alex Jones

Scanning the lake, several more White-headed Ducks were present including a number of males, along with a variety of other ducks including Gadwall and Mallards. Several Night and Squacco Herons also lined the reeds and branches around the edge of the pool, keeping a watchful eye out for any prey.

Scanning every single coot present for any with ‘red knobs’ on their heads, we unfortunately drew a blank once again. Several Little Terns flying over the water’s surface brought up a nice Whiskered Tern amongst them – a cracking spot by Alex and a first for me.

Laguna de Tarelo - Photo by Alex Jones

With the day drawing to a close we headed to our hotel for the night in Jerez, (Alex navigating the very narrow one way streets and distinct lack of parking spaces like a hero) where Chris most definitely bit off more than he could chew when ordering the biggest pizza on the menu at a local restaurant! The waiter was unfortunately proved right with his disbelief in Chris’s ability to devour the monster dish, and this time in the battle between man vs food, food most definitely came out victorious!