Blue-winged Teal, (with Shoveler), Longham Lakes, December 4 2011 (Shaun Robson)
Sunday December 4th
The Blue-winged Teal remains on-site to the delight of the many who have gone looking for it. With so many birders present it was no surprise that lots of other birds were found, the pick being a first-winter Scaup picked out by Shaun Robson, plus Goosander, 1 Water Rail, 4 Mediterranean Gulls and 15 Black-tailed Godwits over. The hybrid (almost Ferruginous) duck is also still there. The Scaup is in fact only the second record for Longham Lakes, so it’s almost as good a bird as a Blue-winged Teal (yeah, right).
On a personal note, early December 2011 has not proved the ideal time to go to Australia for this blog-writer!
Hybrid Ferruginous type duck, Longham Lakes, 4 December 2011 (Shaun Robson)
Scaup (1st winter), Longham Lakes, December 4 2011 (Shaun Robson)