Jenna and I set off for Norfolk late this morning and arrived at Lakenheath in Suffolk during the afternoon. We had planned this trip for a few weeks, as I wanted to try and trap Dusky Clearwing before heading onto the Norfolk Broads for an overnight moth-trapping session targeting some of the more specialised reed moths.
Our main target was Dusky Clearwing, and my good friend Will Soar had trapped some here on Tuesday, so fingers were crossed that we could repeat his success. I put the pheromone lure up on a black poplar tree at the location Will had kindly sent me via What3Words, and before we knew it, we had three Dusky Clearwings flying around the lure.
The Dusky Clearwing has a fascinating history in Britain. It was thought to be extinct after going unrecorded since 1924, but the species was dramatically rediscovered in Warwickshire in 2021. Since that remarkable rediscovery, a small number of further records have come from other counties, but it remains one of Britain's rarest and most elusive moths.
Knowing the story behind this species made the encounter even more special. To see a moth that was once believed to have disappeared from Britain, but has managed to survive in a few isolated locations, was a real privilege and something I won't forget in a hurry.
After our success, we made our way into Norwich for a lovely curry before heading on to Martham Broad. We set up three moth traps and sat watching the sun go down over the Broads. It was a beautiful evening and felt like the perfect way to spend a summer night.
By sunrise, I had added a few more moths to my life list:
Reed Leopard
Round-winged Muslin
Small Wainscot
Silky Wainscot
Reed Dagger
After a few hours' sleep following our moth-trapping session, we woke up and headed to Sea Palling–Hempstead Marshes, where I was hoping to show Jenna the Black-winged Kite.
It didn't take long before we picked up the bird sitting on distant wires, before it later flew across the fields. I was made up, as I really wanted Jenna to see this bird.
Black-winged Kite
(c)Adrian Webb
We watched the kite for a while, enjoying some great views, before heading back to the café for a well-earned breakfast.
Our next stop was Titchwell RSPB in North Norfolk, as Jenna had never visited the reserve before. As we were just walking off the boardwalk and onto the beach, the news came through on the WhatsApp group that a probable Lesser Grey Shrike, or a Long-tailed Shrike, had been found at Crail, Fife, Scotland.
I was bloody miles away but could have made it. The problem was that I would have had to drop Jenna back off in Ellesmere Port on the way home, as she was due at work the following morning.
News then came through that the bird had not been seen for a few hours, although more people were turning up and searching the area. We continued with our afternoon and got great views of two Black-winged Stilts on the marshes, but I couldn't settle knowing there was potentially only the second Long-tailed Shrike ever recorded in Britain waiting up in Scotland.
We left Titchwell RSPB and started driving home when the news came through that the bird had been refound and confirmed as a Long-tailed Shrike.
That was all I needed.
I made a few phone calls and got a team sorted out to go: Phil Jones and Karl Stockton from Stoke-on-Trent. We eventually got home around 8:00 pm, and I had a shower and something to eat. Before I knew it, I was off to Warrington to pick the lads up.
We were soon on our way north. I had to keep making a few stops due to tiredness, but the England game on the radio kept spirits high. By the time the sun was rising, England had won, and we were all in good spirits. All we needed now was the bird.
On arrival, we made our way to the site and found the small crowd, which was quite a surprise for such a mega bird. Thankfully, just as we arrived, the Long-tailed Shrike was showing along the hedge line, and Adam Archer kindly let me look through his scope.
It was on the list!
(c)Tom Tams
We gained some great views of the bird, although they were distant scope views. Eventually, my mate Dan Pointon turned up, and we made our way behind the hedge line. Dan used his thermal imager to locate the bird, and we had the shrike in open view on three occasions, just sitting there preening.
What a bird!
The site at Crail is one of the best places in Britain for Corn Bunting, and it was during a bird transect survey for this species that the Long-tailed Shrike was discovered.
This is only the second accepted record for Britain, with the first bird being located at Howmore, South Uist, Western Isles, where it was present on 3rd and 4th November 2000. What was probably the same bird had been seen nearby at Howbeg on 27th October 2000.
The Crail bird has been aged as a second-calendar-year male and is already moulting. There are several races of Long-tailed Shrike, but the race that breeds closest to the UK is Lanius schach erythronotus, which breeds in Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
It was great to see my good friend Adrian Webb enjoying the bird as well and being all smiles as he finally connected with it. Adrian had travelled for the Uist bird back in 2000, but unfortunately, the engine on the charter boat he was travelling on stopped working and they had to be rescued while he was with other twitchers, and they all dipped the bird.
Adrian's image of the bird is below.
What an incredible 48 hours of birds, moths, friends and memories.
The Crew