THE UGLY LITTLE FALCON - AMUR FALCON (TOPHILL LOW)

[Wandering Tattler]

It appears the scruffy little grey falcon that has spent a month in East Yorkshire has moulted into a male Amur Falcon. Unfortunately the photo that really adds weight to the identification was only taken the day before the bird's departure. Disappointed twitchers are blaming everyone that saw it for not identifying it earlier. I saw the bird in September and admit to seeing the dark flight feathers but, like so many others it would appear, was not aware of the various stages of the Red-footed and Amur Falcon plumages. Also, many observers were going to see it after work or a trip to the coast and arriving late, when light was perhaps not at its best. For an entertaining read on birders falling out with each other check out:

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=125229

Fact is that everyone adding this bird to their lists is doing so on the basis that the final known photo of the bird revealed its true identity, by showing its white underwing coverts. So much easier to look at a well lit photo than looking at a bird dipping between trees hunting dragonflies!

[roger dickey]

Phew........exhausted reading the comments. If the same time was spend on correct IDing ????????????????

[Wandering Tattler]

Many people in the blog who did not go for the bird have over simplified the ID of it. As I mentioned earlier, it is one thing to sit at home and examine in minutiae a decent photograph. We all now it is far from straightforward IDing a moving bird that shows infrequently, never mind one that is moulting. This whole incident shows how much pressure a birder who cares about what he calls actually does call. In the 2 years I have subscribed to Birdguides there have been numerous erroneous calls, I think in every other case I remember it was a common species being mistaken for a rarity - many people travel to be disappointed when they arrive. In this case it was a genuine good bird as RRF but it turned out to be (pending acceptance) a far rarer bird. I went to see the bird originally because it was on my patch, I saw 2 male RRFs earlier this year at Stewartby whilst commuting. It took 3 visits to the site to actually see it and I know many others went several times. Even the Look North news team failed to catch it during their 7 hours on site with the Warden. Happy birding!

[roger dickey]

The comment was directed more at the sometimes snidy comments that some of our better known twitchers were making. Doesn't encourage anyone from the lower orders of birding to make any comment. But I do appreciate the difficulties of sometimes the simplest IDing - Siberian Chaffinch are all over the place here until you go looking for them or ask for a location.

The bottom line is - where is the ugly grey thing now and is there speculation as to where it has come from? Please don't say Amur!

[Wandering Tattler]

There are sites within a few miles that as far as I am aware no one has checked because you have to park and walk a mile to get to them. Well known locally for their dragonflies and have had Hobby. I have looked around Leconfield Carrs for it because we are very close. Apart from 30-40 minutes of hail on Friday the weather has been really good here, getting windy today. The photos indicate that it had not completed its moult, therefore it is probably the availability of food that has pushed the bird off. A shame because had it stayed those wanting to see it would have had the chance and everyday it remained the better it would have looked.

Where was it from? Its a migratory falcon, breeding in north-eastern Asia and migrating through the Middle East and as far south as South Africa. A bird was seen in Sweden in 2005 and there was a record of one that was identified 24(?) years after its death from photographs in Scotland, however that bird had been in care in France and may have actually been part of a formerly captive pair that were rehabilitated and released, believing them to be RRFs.

[Matelot Birder]

Gents

Ref the previous comment, there is a link to the article about the Amur Falcon in 1984 on my website.

A shameless plug I know but this is a work in progress, I am hoping to do more work when i return to the UK.

http://www.portsbirds.streamlinenettrial.co.uk/News.htm

Mark C