A rare Nuthatch, only the fourth I can remember in 8 years, takes me over 100%. Very hard from now on in, I am missing practically nothing expected. Tree Pipit is the obvious one, but they seem pretty thin this year. Brambling, Waxwing and Green Sandpiper are all possible, but all difficult. December on the other hand is always good for heard-only Mealy Redpolls......
I’ve also been thinking long and hard about what to enter for the patch find bit. We don’t really get rarities here, not like coastal spots which get the proper good ‘uns like Daffy Duck. The best I can probably offer is a Jack Snipe, which is mega by virtue of it being the first on the patch since October 1979 - a staggering absence of a third of a century.
Derek
your nominated patch find should be whats best in your context therefore my garden warbler back in the spring eclipses everything else, even long-tailed skua (but then I didn't find the LT skua, just id'd it). Besides, there's no way daffy duck is gonna win best find - it was a feckin hybrid piece of shit! I'd vote for your jack snipe over that any day! Actually, only seen 1 jack snipe at galley so would welcome another!
ReplyDeleteFor voting (not till Jan 2013) you should ask "what bird from the best finds list would i most like to find on my patch" - and the answer (at time of typing) for me would be honey buzzard, although rosefinch would be an excellent patch tick too, whereas ganky hybrid scoter would just be shit! No offence Statto!
Oh I so agree and no offence taken. Despite the blog's cover bird, any ducks of dubious parentage should be culled instantly and Daffy should remain well and truely in cartoon history obscurity. Wheras a pure-blood Black Scoter - well that is a different class of shit duck altogether.
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