Changeable wind direction and weather conditions did include some southerlies, meaning migrants continued to arrive during the past week. However, conditions don't seem to be dictacting things as far as Hoopoes were concerned. Jaw-dropping numbers of the species are present in Britain and Ireland currently: if connecting with Hoopoe is on your bucket list, there has never been a better time to take out a subscription to the BirdGuides sightings service.
As the map below shows, Hoopoes could be found pretty much everywhere along the south coasts of England, Wales and Ireland this week. No fewer than 122 new locations hosted the species, a remarkable tally, with highlights of an estimated 150 across Britain and Ireland consisting of one recorded arriving in-off at Barton on Sea, Hampshire, on 8th, duos in Pembrokeshire at Fishguard and Skomer, and an outlier further north at Islay, Argyll. Five on Cape Clear, Co Cork, was the highest total.
Hoopoe, Marloes, Pembrokeshire (John Freeman).
Hoopoe sightings from 7-13 April (BirdGuides.com data).
Spring migration generally remained slow, though ramped up over the weekend when the wind switched to the south-east and then a cooler southwesterly. That said, many 'expected' species for the middle of April are yet to return in any considerable numbers. Warblers, including Reed, Sedge, Grasshopper and Common Whitethroat remain at somewhat low density, though the review period did produce the first noticeable arrivals of Lesser Whitethroat, Whinchat, Eurasian Hobby and Common Cuckoo.
Grasshopper Warbler (left) and Common Cuckoo (right) sightings up to 13 April 2025 (BirdGuides.com data).
The fairly recent split of the subalpine warbler complex into Western, Eastern and Moltoni's means plenty of twitchers are still lacking one or two of the complex from their British lists. A singing, showy male Western Subalpine Warbler at Gibraltar Point NNR, Lincolnshire, on 12th therefore proved popular. The unassigned female lingered in Dorset, while a reeling Savi's Warbler at Marazion Marsh RSPB is the first Cornish record since 2015.
Western Subalpine Warbler, Gibraltar Point NNR, Lincolnshire (Mark Joy).
Subalpine warbler sp, Weymouth, Dorset (John Wall).
Adding a splash of Mediterranean technicolour were early European Bee-eaters over Rhosneigr, Anglesey, and Rodley NR, West Yorkshire, while the excellent discovery of a male Ashy-headed Wagtail at St Mary's Island, Northumberland, early on 11th is the first-ever record for the entirety of northern England. All three of the week's Great Grey Shrikes – in Suffolk, Perth and Kinross, and Isle of Man – were new, though the lingering Woodchat Shrike at Newhaven, East Sussex, departed before the weekend. There was a South-East bias to the week's Wryneck records, with five of 13 found between Kent and Isle of Wight. Notable county occurrences included birds at Aust Warth, Avon, and Skipwith Common, North Yorkshire.
Ashy-headed Wagtail, St Mary's Island, Northumberland (Jack Bucknall).
Woodchat Shrike, Newhaven, East Sussex (Joe Downing).
The April issue of Birdwatch magazine takes a close look at the status of European Serin as a breeding bird in Britain. Eight were recorded this week, split between Scilly, Cornwall (two), Hampshire (three), Kent and Suffolk. News from Shetland included a Red-flanked Bluetail on Mainland – though disappointingly not a 'blue' one – Greater Short-toed Lark on Fair Isle and Wryneck on Foula. Six Red-rumped Swallows along the south coast of England was a decent return. A Pallid Swift scythed over St Mary's Scilly, on 9th, with an Alpine Swift reaching the Inner Hebrides over Tiree, Argyll, the next day.
Red-flanked Bluetail, Grutness, Mainland, Shetland (Rebecca Nason).
Last week, this author predicted that Ireland's first-ever Alpine Accentor could be on the cards. While it still awaits confirmation, a bird sound-recorded a Toe Head, Co Cork, on 8th appears a very strong match for this species. Other unconfirmed news comprised Blyth's Pipit in Norfolk, Red-throated Pipit in Somerset and Pied Crow in Co Cork.
The Cornish Booted Eagle made a dash for the continent on 10th, appearing over Broadstairs, Kent, viewed from the very same garden favoured by a Eurasian Scops Owl earlier this year! Carnage ensued among local birders for the remainder of the evening as the Booted struggled to find an ideal roost site in the gardens and railway embankments of Ramsgate. The last sighting came just before 10.30 am the next day, when it was lost to view heading high northwards. Where is next on the list for this wandering raptor?
Booted Eagle (lower bird) with Carrion Crows, Ramsgate, Kent (Jonathan Dodds).
A male Pallid Harrier was photographed on the West Yorkshire moors on 12th, with another roosting at Wolla Bank, Lincolnshire, on 10-11th. At least three Black Kites were sighted, news emerged of a Snowy Owl near Loch Oich, Highland, on 7th and the Dark-breasted Barn Owl extended its residency near the BirdGuides Head Office in Lincolnshire.
Dark-breasted Barn Owl, Bourne, Lincolnshire (Ian Wells).
A strong week of Purple Heron arrivals saw at least 13 arrive in southern areas of England and Wales. This included two adults keeping close company at Dungeness RSPB, Kent. Likewise, four of five Black-crowned Night Herons were in coastal regions of southern England and a brief Spotted Crake was at Windmill Farm NR, Cornwall.
Purple Herons, Dungeness NNR, Kent (Mark Dawson).
Black-crowned Night Heron, Titchfield Haven NNR, Hampshire (Orlando Prugel-Bennett).
It is fast becoming impossible to distinguish between 'genuine' continental White Storks and those from reintroduction schemes in south-east England, though it seems highly likely that most will originate from the latter – particularly as many of those resident in the South-East are now unringed. With that said, an unringed example attracted plenty of attention from North Walian birders on Anglesey this week, while a rare Irish record in Co Kerry would prove popular if pinned down.
White Stork, Bawdsey, Suffolk (Nick Brown).
Whiskered Tern is arguably the most desirable of all marsh terns recorded in Britain, making one at Durleigh Reservoir, Somerset, from 11th a tempting attraction for birders. Last week's build-up of Little Gulls continued (with high counts of 51 at Dernford Farm Reservoir, Cambridgeshire, and 37 at Staines Reservoirs, London) with four Black Terns were among them. The Forster's Tern was reported again in Dorset on three dates, the first Sabine's Gull of 2025 was logged in The Minch on 12th, and an adult Ring-billed Gull was at its regular summer residency in Perth and Kinross.
Whiskered Tern, Durleigh Reservoir, Somerset (Ian Curran).
Exceptionally, Achill Island, Co Mayo, played host to not one but two Pacific Divers, with immatures of varying plumage off Doogort and Tonatanvally respectively. This is the first time that multiples of the species has been recorded at the same site anywhere in Europe. An early boat trip off the Moray coast for White-billed Divers found three at close range – one of those nearly in complete summer plumage – with observers from land notching at least six. The regular appearance of White-billed Divers in the Moray Firth in spring was almost totally unknown until just 15 years ago. Paul Baxter charts the events that have led to this remarkable change in status in the latest issue of Birdwatch magazine. Elsewhere saw one remain off Gullane Point, Lothian, two off Lewis, Outer Hebrides, and another off Co Donegal.
Pacific Diver, Doogort, Achill Island, Mayo (Micheál O'Briain).
White-billed Diver, Portsoy, Aberdeenshire (Jayne Simmons).
A couple of newly-found Ferruginous Ducks were notable, including just the third Shropshire record comprising a female near Oswestry from 11th. Another female reached Holme Pierrepont, Nottinghamshire, with others again in Cheshire and Warwickshire (two). A drake Black and three White-winged Scoter remained in south-east Scotland, with five Surf Scoter around the coast of Britain. The American Coot-Ross's Goose duo continued in Shetland and two Richardson's Cackling Geese were still in the Outer Hebrides. Elsewhere were four Smew, eight American Wigeon, 10 Lesser Scaup, 13 Green-winged Teal and 29 Ring-necked Ducks.
Ferruginous Duck, Queen's Head, Shropshire (Anthony Griffiths).
A Black-winged Stilt spent two days at Dungeness RSPB, Kent, while arriving Eurasian Dotterel were in Northamptonshire (two) and Ayrshire (five). The Least Sandpiper remained in West Sussex and two wintering Long-billed Dowitchers clung on.
Least Sandpiper, Medmerry RSPB, West Sussex (Jeremy McClements).
Western Palearctic
The week's most remarkable record came from Norway, where an adult Atlantic Yellow-nosed Albatross landed on bulk carrier MV CSL Elbe along the North Sea coast north of Ålesund. Remaining onboard overnight, ship workers deposited it on Brønnøy Kalk AS shipping quay, where some gripping video footage was obtained before it flew off a few hours later. It is the third Norwegian record and only the 10th for the wider region.
A first-summer Bonelli's Eagle roosted in coastal conifers at Noordhollands Duinreservaat, Netherlands, on 8-9th. Only recorded in the Netherlands three times prior to 2020, the species has seen a major upturn in records since, with this latest example becoming the country's 10th. Given the species' increasing tendency to wander up to the very fringes of the European mainland, might a British record be on the cards in the future?
Lesser Moorhen, Agia Varvara, Cyprus (Mike Barth).
In Denmark, a male Indigo Bunting continued to visit gardens in Tjæreby. A Pacific Diver was photographed from the Algeciras-Ceuta ferry, Spain, on 4th and the Pied-billed Grebe continued in Galicia. Teasing finds for British birders in western France consisted of a Greater Spotted Eagle at Champagné-les-Marais and a presumably returning Elegant Tern on Île de Noirmoutier.
Regional national firsts included Brown-necked Raven on Rhodes, Greece, Oriental Turtle Dove in Bulgaria, Great Knot in Turkey, Masked Wagtail in Ukraine and Pied Flycatcher in Kuwait. The adult Lesser Moorhen remained on offer in Cyprus.
- Keep up to date with by-the-minute sightings updates of rarities, returning spring migrants and significant birds in your local area at www.birdguides.com/sightings or via the BirdGuides app. New users are entitled to a one-month free trial.
