When reports surfaced of a
juvenile White-billed Diver photographed on the River Witham 20 miles inland in rural
Lincolnshire, it was certainly an early contender for one of the strangest
records in 2017. Relocated further up river late on the Saturday evening, my car
breaking down couldn’t have come at a worse time, and I subsequently had to see
through a rather agonising week in work bombarded by the hundreds of
breath-taking photos of this stunning Arctic diver at point blank range.
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| White-billed Diver on the River Witham - an incredible record! |
By some miracle however the following
Saturday saw the diver remarkably still present on the same stretch of river,
and with my car now (hopefully fixed) I dragged Alex out of bed early and made
the 3 hour journey down to Lincolnshire.
Arriving at Kirkhall Bridge near Woodhall Spa just after lunch, we made the long treck north along the river bank, the fog
from earlier in the week thankfully abating (I didn’t much fancy trying to pick
out the diver in thick mist!) and the sun shining down. Luckily the diver
hadn’t ranged as far north as on previous days (it was often up near Stixwould
several miles away) and after around 20 minutes we caught sight of a group of
birders on the edge of the water which could only mean one thing – the
White-billed Diver must be close by.
Sure enough, upon approaching
the river a large shape surfaced among the ripples and the ghostly figure of
this majestic Arctic species came in to view.
Sporting a mammoth dagger-like
bill in beautiful pearly white hues of pale ivory, the sheer size of the bird
was striking, living up to its reputation as the largest species of diver and
sailing imposingly down the river. With the slightly upturned bill and delicate
pale lemon colouration it was clear to see how it got its “Bananabill” nickname
– it was truly an impressive sight and sure to strike fear in the hearts of
fish as it stalked them in the murky depths of the river.
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| The big beefy neck was instantly apparent, as was the diver's size, being slightly larger than a Great Northern |
Regularly diving down under
the surface and only staying afloat for minutes at a time, we were surprised to
see just how much ground the diver could cover while under the water, often
re-surfacing much further away than expected and covering a huge stretch of
water during the time we were present.
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| The White-billed Diver was constantly diving, often staying under for over a minute |
Often coming to within several metres,
its lack of shyness towards people was also apparent, and such close up and
incredible views of this species are a once in a blue moon experience!
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| The strong northerly winds the UK experienced a couple of weeks ago have more than likely brought the White-billed Diver to Lincolnshire from its usual Arctic home. |
In a rather remarkable
coincidence, another White-billed Diver (and the only other inland river bird)
frequented the exact same stretch of the River Witham back in March 1996,
unfortunately meeting a sad end after tragically ingesting a fishing hook and
line discarded in the water.
Having not made it down for
the Devon bird at Brixham Harbour a few years ago and not having travelled for
the far out to sea distant dots off Portsoy where White-billed Divers can be
found miles offshore in the summer months, it was great to unexpectedly catch
up with what was a much sought after species for me and certainly a bird that I had
been left wondering exactly when I’d get the opportunity to see in British
waters.
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| At one point a canal boat flushed the diver, causing it to swim rapidly down river at speed |
Sadly however and mirroring
the bird found 20 years ago, the diver seems to have got the remnants of a
discarded fishing line caught in its bill, often seen to be gathering algae
after dives and sometimes trailing from the birds mouth.
With fishing lines
undoubtedly come hooks however, and it would be an extreme shame if this
beautiful bird met a sad end after ingesting unwanted fishing tackle discarded
by humans – a stark reminder to keep our riverside locations free from fishing debris.
With the diver still going
strong however after at least a two week’s stay on the river - it was last seen flying off 7km south of Kirkhall Bridge on the 1st - fingers crossed it
will survive and somehow dislodge the fishing line – a truly incredible bird
that I was exceptionally glad I made the trip down to see!
With 2018 now in full swing who knows what avian delights await us – a wintering Wallcreeper is most definitely long overdue and is sure to whet the appetite of almost every birder in Britain, while a scattering of American warblers in the autumn would be most welcome, especially if a male Blackburnian was amongst them. With Far Eastern sprites also coming ever closer to our shores over the past few years, who knows what "First for Britain" oriental goodies might just be carried over on the easterly winds… Whatever the case, fingers crossed for a good bird-filled year! 
