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Pratincole dipping

16th May 2009

Having been unable to twitch anything of note recently due to prior commitments or logistics, news that the Collared Pratincole had appeared just before the weekend seemed to be a blessing. An early morning train and Coasthopper got us to Salthouse and a crowd along the road, informing us that the bird had flown east. Me & Adam decded to try and relocate it on the marshes between Salthouse and Kelling. Seeing only a smart summer plumage Golden Plover, we decided to give up and continue on to Weybourne, the only bird of note being a possible rubicola Stonechat in the scrub near the radar station.
A call from Gary told us that the Pratincole had been seen at Kelling, but was now at Cley. This means at some point it probably doubled back past us! By the time we got back to Cley it had gone again, and scanning of the marshes between Cley and Salthouse turned up nothing. We carried on to Blakeney freshmarsh to hunt for it, but found nothing. I had to return home at this point to go to an art exhibition (ooh err), and wasn't at all frustrated to find that the Pratincole later turned up on Blakeney Freshmarsh, albeit from further along than we were. Maybe I'll get the next one in another three years.
After the exhibition a Grey Wagtail flew across Duke Street.

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