Patch Gold

This afternoon my Dad found two Spoonbills and a Greenshank at Deeping Lakes LWT. With only five records or so in the last two decades, seemed a great start to the new decade with two records in two weeks of the first spring! Keen to see if these were new birds or the pair I found two weeks ago and also wanted to see a wader that wasn't a Common Sandpiper, Oystercatcher or Little Ringed Plover, I hot footed it to the reserve after work.

The Spoonbills were busy feeding on my arrival but there was no sign of the Greenshank- typical! So I settled into prolonged views of the Spoons in colour this time. A small wader roosting immediately behind the Spoonbills caught my eye and at first I assumed it to be a Common Sandpiper and thought nothing of it but scanning right then saw a Common Sandpiper which seemed huge- I had a Stint!

A quick call to Josh for reassurance and he was on his way. The bird woke up a bit more and was obvious that it was indeed a Temminck's Stint as suspected.

Terrible record shots- taken at extreme range but a smart spangled spring bird! True patch gold! This is only the third record for the reserve- after one I found on, remarkably, the 13th May 2004 and one Mike Weedon and co found on the 19th May 2001 (when there was also a Great Reed Warbler present!).

The Spoonbills appear to be the same individuals as a couple of weekend's ago. Where they have been is anyone's guess- perhaps the Wash? They were seen heading east not long before dusk.