Asian Desert Warbler: This delicate and dusky little bird was found on the stunning isle just off the northumberland coast, Holy Island, a interdideal island the night before. I had work the next morning but due to the favorable tide times which allowed me the chance to go much, much later then one would hope.
I arrived pretty late in the evening and just as I arrived the bird went missing for about an hour!
Forget the fact it was a tense drive waiting on new of the bird, but it was infuriating standing in a crowd of birders all saying how well the bird was showing moments before I arrived.
The Asian desert warbler is a long overdue bird and a difficult species to tick in Britain these days with the most recent record in 2012 at Samphire Hoe Country Park, Kent, before that there was one in 2000 at Spurn, Yorkshire. And there have been eight records dating back between 1992 and 1975.
It would come as no surprise that most of these records have come from the east and south coasts although there was one record much closer to home. Between October and November way back in 1979 (before i was born) there was one found at Meols, Wirral.
Eventually the bird was relocated a couple of hundred yards in some pine trees. The bird was a typical
Sylvia warbler, constantly moving and foraging in dense undergrowth. Actually all British records of desert warbler species in are assumed to refer to Asian desert warbler
Sylvia nana, and are currently under review by the British Birds Rarities Committee (BBRC).
In the end the bird put on a good show favouring one small area of trees some of which were less dense than the fisrt pine it was found in.
I was thrilled to have made the effort for this bird, its likely to stick around for a few days but with these small east coast islands you would assume not for too long!
