Book Browsing

 Sunday October 8

When I first became interested in watching birds, I would browse through the identification book - pre Collins and not the Observer Guide - when certain names would appeal to me. I longed to see a Siberian Rubythroat, Wallcreeper and Curlew Sandpiper. My first Curlew Sandpiper was seen near the Great Pool on Tresco, Isles of Scilly, pointed out to me by the late David Hunt. Look at its white rump as it flies, he said.

Wallcreeper took rather longer, still not  a British tick. Hours in a Turkish gorge with large lorries roaring, by to no avail. A few days in the Picos mountains of Northern Spain brought about the longed for bird. We'd used a vertiginous glass elevator to take us up the side of a mountain, walking tremulously across an open slat bridge before crossing a flattish upland moor with scattered boulders. Alpine Accentor, another wanted, was first. I sat on a rock scanning. There it was. At last. A dull bird until its wings flashed red and black, my first Wallcreeper. On a boulder, flying from one to another, not creeping up a rock face as I'd expected.

As the years passed, my ambitions increased. Oleaginous Hemisphingus, tick. What a name. They've now changed it to something boring. Spoon-billed Sandpiper, recently, on a Thai salt pan.

Recently, moth books have had the same attraction. Clifden's Nonpareil topped the UK list. We have now trapped six this year as they spread.north. Still a real thrill when the trap reveals one of these very large, blue underwing beauties. Another was the L-Album Wainscot with the distinctive Nike tick in the wing. My first was at Sandwich Bay Observatory about six years ago. A pretty worn example - the second one was a beauty though. I then longed to have one in Norfolk. Two or three years ago, the first one appeared in south Norfolk. David brought one in for our group to see only last week. Steve also trapped one in his Sheringham garden. Yesterday, Pam entered the greenhouse - which is very near the MV moth trap and has an open door at the moment in order to air some plants. There were also moths flying around. She potted a few and brought one in for me to identify, knowing that it was a 'good one'.  My long awaited L-Album Wainscot in our own garden.