birding...

Many (but by no means all) birders are inveterate list keepers. Some settle for a world life list... a list of all the species of birds they have seen at home and abroad, others will also keep a list of their home country (see the UK 400 club website) and separate lists for each country they have visited. Still others will keep a list of every state or county and one just for their patch. Others keep year lists; a list of all the species seen in any one year -–usually in the home country.

Some indulge their need for lists in almost bizarre ways keeping lists of birds seen in non-birding TV programmes; birds seen from toilet windows or even birds seen whilst caught short! (see discussions on UK Birdnet).

Perhaps it is all about competing with other birders – wanting to be champion birder of the world or your own backyard. Maybe, and I think this is more likely the case, it is a form of collecting. From my point of view it is far better to collect records of sightings than follow the collectors of the Victorian era by collecting specimens of the birds themselves or, and some evil morons still do this, collecting their unborn young!

For some this is not sufficient record and they must take photographs of every species they see... I am glad someone does as it adds to my enjoyment greatly to see portraits of my favourite birds (well any birds really). It is still only done by a minority of birders... something non-birders find hard to believe. I have lost count of the number of times when I have revealed my obsession to a non-birder that I have been asked if I take pictures of them. It seems that people who don`t bird-watch assume that their must be some sort of end product or the pursuit cannot be rationally explained. I usually counter by asking them if they take pictures of whatever pastime they indulge in... such as do you take pictures of the little ball falling down the hole after you have hit it with that stick when talking to golfers.

In the UK 400 species seen is regarded as the goal (the Fat Birder is stuck at 357) and less than this figure means you will not even make the league tables. In most English counties a target of 250 is set for the ambitious. We would love to hear from other countries what the target is.

I do not know what the target is for a world list. I believe that there are around 10,000 species and that at least one birder (from the US) notched up 8500+ ticks.

Phoebe Snetsinger had seen 85% of the world`s birds. Most list recognise 9800-9950 species these days. Phoebe had a working list of about 10270. It didnt matter whether she worked on this list, Clements 9800 or the 1976 Gruson list of 8600, the percentage still came out as 85%. It was of course an incredible acheivemet and one, which is unlikely to be exceeded.

Surfbirds have put up a league table of the top World listers that anyone can add oneself to. For anyone new to our pastime (obsession) please bear in mind that a long list of species seen is only one motivation for taking up birding, and this is only the case for some birders. Many leading ornithologists do not keep lists of any sort!

Dutch Listers …feedback from Pim A. Wolf (P.Wolf@rikz.rws.minvenw.nl) submitted on Friday, February 4, 2000

Holland has it`s listers too, birders lists with less than 350 species in NL are seen as unremarkable despite the small size of the country and shorter national list than the UK. The ranking is sorted out by Leo Heemskerk and regularly updated on the Dutch Birding Association Website. Some more statistics, highest scoring woman is Anja Nusse at 417 (45 in the total ranking). There are 104 Dutch Birders with over 400 species in the Netherlands. Remember the Netherlands are roughly the size of southeast England. This is almost as large as the chunk from Norwich via Northhampton through Reading south to Portsmouth. The only serious competition for the British are the French but I have no idea what number their top listers are at. - Pim Wolf (no 109 at a rather low 398 in 23 years of birding). Our top listers are currently:

1: Klaas Eigenhuis 436; 2: Gerard Steinhaus 435; 3: Aart Vink 434; 4: Hans ter Haar 433; Jan van der Laan 433; Alexander Buhr 433; 7: Cock Reijnders 432; *: Wim Wiegant 431; 9: Enno Ebels 430; 10: Edward van IJzendoorn 429

Below is the personal account of year listing in the county of Kent in England

A Year To Remember: Kent Listing 1999 - Dylan Wrathall

After my efforts of 1998, when I achieved a year total of 247 in Kent, it was my intention to take it easy. Get back to the Ash Levels and normality. However, a phone call from Jerry Warne on 10th January, and what followed, set in motion a chain of events which were to become as manic as any I have experienced. The subject of the call was the news of a Ring-necked Duck at Seaton Gravel Pits. I was in bed at the time, having finished a twelve-hour night shift, but Seaton is just down the road from me and the duck was a Kent tick so the decision to go was an easy one. A veritable who`s who of Kent Listing was already assembled at the site when I arrived. Luck was with us as there was a splendid drake Ferruginous Duck at the site as well as the Ring-necked, so I got two Kent ticks! To add to this a pair of Whooper Swans flew over, a Common Buzzard and a Bittern were also seen and I found a Firecrest in riverside vegetation as I walked towards the pits from Deerson Woods. Not bad considering I had only been away from my house for an hour. Now, as brilliant as the birding had been, the real eye opener was the behaviour of two Kent-listing heavyweights. News of the Firecrest had them scampering off like kids chasing grasshoppers. Could it be that they were having a go at a year list? The rumours had it that they were thus, it came about, I was tempted to have another attempt at a Big Year in Kent.

January continued apace as I careered about East Kent year ticking as I went. The Great Northern Diver in Ramsgate Harbour was well received, as was the Barn Owl that appeared in my headlights near Oldridge Woods on the 16th. Bewick`s Swans at Marshside provided the entertainment on several dates mid-month. Fortune smiled again on the 28th, whilst at Oare Marshes, I was fortunate to connect with the Rough-legged Buzzard on the far side of the Swale near to the Harty Ferry Inn. Next day found me in Lyminge forest successfully looking for Willow Tits. I ended the month on a very respectable 143 species, but my mileage was more like the population figure for Hong Kong!

February was to continue at the frantic pace that had preceded it. Dungeness, on the 2nd, finally relented and allowed me to add Penduline Tit to my total with fantastic scope filling views of a particularly showy male. A mad dash followed and later the same day four distant blobs at Pegwell Bay were transformed into Shore Larks thanks to advances in modern lens technology; my Kowa TSN 823 and x50W eyepiece doing the trick. A Grey Phalarope that took up temporary residence around the Patch at Dungeness was added on the 10th and allowed prolonged scrutiny as it fed close to the shore; a most welcome addition to my Kent list.

Saturday 20th Craig Sammels and yours truly are heading towards Seasalter and a Lapland Bunting. Luck was on our side and shortly after arriving we were scoping a female perched on the sea wall. When your luck`s in enjoy it. On our way back towards Ramsgate the pager announced the presence of a Long-billed Dowitcher at Grove Ferry. A short detour and, within twenty minutes, we were enjoying good scope views from the gateway near the boat yard. So far, so good, new birds being added at a steady rate. Getting in from work on the evening of 27th news reached me of a possible Pied-billed Grebe at Singleton Lake, Ashford. Nobody knew who had seen it, or even if it was still present at dusk. Being just a couple of miles from my place of employ, next morning saw me slip away (I`ve got a very understanding boss) for an hour and savour the delights of a first for Kent. So at the end of the month, my total had reached a very pleasing 154 species.

It took all of a day before the next year tick turned up. Early afternoon on March 2nd saw me scrambling along the bank of the River Stour from Grove Ferry to reach the Ox-bow and a superb drake Blue-winged Teal. A right result. A quick post nightshift jaunt to Dungeness RSPB early on 7th got me Black-throated Diver, Long-tailed Duck and a singing male Black Redstart. Tuesday 9th at Pegwell Bay resulted in wet feet and two Jack Snipe, it seemed a fair exchange. I was helping a mate doing some building when, on the 12th; my daughter rang with the news of a Common Crane on Worth Marshes. Leaving the mixer to load itself, I was gone before the guy had time to refuse my request for leave of absence. The bird was distant, but when it is the size of an Ostrich you had trouble missing it! All went quiet for the next few days until news broke of the long staying Essex Lesser Yellowlegs crossing the Thames to enjoy the scenery at Cliffe Pools. Craig and I were there bright and early on the 19th; however it was not the wader that made the journey worth the effort as we dipped on it. Literally out of the blue, we encountered a magnificent Goshawk, as it lumbered across the pools seemingly intent on getting nowhere fast. At its closest it was within 30m of us and was absolutely stunning. It took me another after shift trip on the 22nd to clinch the Lesserlegs.

Early spring migrants were starting to appear around the county and so it was with them in mind that Craig and I had spent some time on the 30th at Stodmarsh National Nature Reserve. We had earned our pint, and were sitting in the Red Lion, when Jerry rang with the news that a Greater Yellowlegs was still present at Elmley RSPB. Panic! It took us less than 30 minutes to reach the bird, the drive there was absolute lunacy. We had less than twenty minutes of light left, but savoured every moment with the bird, scoping it at about 45m. The month ended with a Little Ringed Plover and a year to date total of 167 species.

April started with an early Easter holiday. I had a terrible time, missing the first of many Red Kites. One even had the cheek to fly over the Ash Levels en route to Stodmarsh. The Quail that I first heard on the 3rd did a little to cheer me up. Easter Monday also gave me a slight boost in the shape of a Red-rumped Swallow at Monk`s Wall. I took a day off on Saturday 10th and was fortunate that it coincided with the arrival of three Night Herons at Dungeness RSPB. I got some good views of a second year bird perched low in Sallows near the visitor centre.

A Cattle Egret had been seen at Oare Marshes in the afternoon of the 12th but it had flown off west in the evening. It was a pleasant surprise to hear that it had returned next morning. Craig and I were uncharacteristically casual about seeing the bird. We arrived less than hour before a weather front with torrential rain. We had fantastic views of the bird in a roadside field but, before the rain arrived, the bird departed never to be seen again. We were very lucky. Many common migrants were added during the next few days. My bad luck with Red Kites continued, but most other birds seemed to stick around long enough to give me a chance to catch up with them. A Kentish Plover on the mud at Pegwell Bay was particularly obliging on the 21st and next day a sea-watch at Dungeness produced 62 Manxies, 5 Bonxies, Velvet Scoter and a Leach`s Petrel. The trapping area provided a Pied Flycatcher (200th species) and the ARC Pit gave the opportunity to catch up with Spoonbill. A Grasshopper Warbler sang next to Richborough Power Station on the 26th, an Osprey flew along the Stour on 27th and a Turtle Dove on the 30th brought the month to an end and my total 206.

The merry month of May and expectations were high. So where was I when Chris Abrams made his momentous find of Slender-billed Gull at Grove Ferry on the 5th? Well, actually, I was swanning around the Nord Pas de Calais with three friends. We had an excellent day`s birding but, when I arrived home to find my answer phone in meltdown mode, the day was ruined. Many and various were the happy souls proclaiming the sighting of the afore-mentioned gull. Where were you Dyl? and You should have seen it, it was brilliant being the general tone. Spherical objects, or words to that effect. Next morning, before the lark, I was stood in the gateway at Grove Ferry awaiting the re-appearance of this avian superstar. Did it show? No way. Three hours after the sun had risen; my faith was being tested to the extreme. A carload of Bockhill types slowed to a crawl and exchanged news. Where to check next? I suggested Monk`s Wall, as I knew that there were still good numbers of Black-headed Gulls feeding over the floods. What followed is now history; I was very lucky. I`ve always believed that there is a very fine line between madness and genius and similarly, between healthy interest and complete obsession. I must have been very close to the edge any way. So I jumped! There was no way that I was leaving Kent until the year was complete.

Bird race was a nice distraction, but turned up trumps with a superb ring-tailed Montagu`s Harrier at Monkton. My annual trip to Clowes Wood had the desired result, with several birds present, I got nice views of Nightjars as they displayed in the fading evening light on the 13th. A Savi`s Warbler singing from reeds at Stodmarsh was duly added to the list on 16th, but I was grateful to later birds for allowing me the chance to study plumage details at close quarters. As I have said before, my boss is a fair bloke, but I felt that it would be stretching it a bit if I had left early for the Terek Sandpiper at Monk`s Wall on the 22nd. I thought that I showed tremendous strength of character to remain on site until the end of my shift. Pausing just long enough to pick up Julie, my wife, I connected with the splendid little wader shortly afterwards. As the evening progressed the bird became more active and, gradually, I was able to gain good scope views of my second Terek Sand in two years. Next evening, I had a repeat performance but, this time, to Sheppey and a Black-winged Stilt.

A quiet week followed until Friday 28th. Francis Solley found a magnificent drake Canvasback at Monk`s Wall. I was there within five minutes, but stayed for ages enjoying fantastic views in the afternoon sun. It was a Bank Holiday on Monday 31st and I had promised Julie that I would spend some daylight hours in the company of my family. Fat chance! A singing Blyth`s Reed Warbler putting pay to my good intentions. Four and a half hours I (and many others) spent on the shingle at Dungeness. I saw the bird for less than ten seconds, but could it sing? It was becoming increasingly obvious that it was a very special year in Kent. Not just numbers, but quality as well. I ended the month on 219 species.

Simon Warry had arranged to meet me at Stodmarsh on the evening of June 1st. Somehow I got distracted and failed to show. Simon rang at about 8pm to report that he had heard a strange call and was I interested? I was there within fifteen minutes. The rhythmic croak of the unseen songster was still emanating from deep within the reeds. The wonders of modern technology came to the rescue. Using a mobile phone as a microphone, we relayed the sound to Craig who announced, in due course, that a male Little Bittern was producing it. News was released straight away, yet it wasn`t until four the following afternoon that I finally got brief flight views of this notorious reed bed skulker.

After this it all went extremely flat. It was not until the 20th that anything of note took place. Yet another after-work phone call alerted me to the possibility of the presence of a Baillon`s Crake at Grove Ferry. I was driving through Canterbury when I received the news, so I incurred a slight detour to my homeward journey. I arrived to a deserted scene, just a strange frog impersonating a Garganey for my trouble. I went home and checked the sound with my tapes, sure enough, nothing like a Baillon`s. Another phone call announced that the Kent Listers were gathering at Grove Ferry for a sound check. I returned. The call of Baillon`s well learned from the Roche box set. Once assembled, the fun began. A pair of Garganey sprang from the reeds, the frog resumed its attempts to woo a mate and Geoff Burton insisted that he was listening to Baillon`s. I headed home for a second time convinced that Geoff was loosing it. No sooner had I got in, than news of a Purple Heron at Monk`s Wall reached me. I was there in minutes and found the bird in the rapidly fading light. Confusion over its identity prevailed due to the presence, earlier in the day, of a melanistic Grey Heron. However, several others, and I remain convinced with the ID. (It is with some relief that any doubts were removed with events later in the year when Purple Herons were seen at Grove and Reculver.)

Tuesday 22nd, the morning dawned much as any other, but Geoff Burton`s revenge was sweet. He confirmed the presence of a small crake at Grove Ferry with fleeting glimpses in a pre-work sortie. I arrived at 9.20am and was amazed to have the place to myself. I saw the bird within five minutes of arriving and then again a couple of minutes later as it ran across a small opening in the vegetation. Lack of experience stopped me from making a confident identification, but it certainly appeared to be a very small, brightly marked bird. The frog chorus still persisted. I rang Jerry Warne to confirm Geoff`s earlier report. As the crowds began to arrive, it became clear that the sound was indeed that of a Baillon`s Crake and that the Roche tape set was incorrect, having, as it does, the call of an edible frog! The bird finally showed in the open at 4.10pm and Geoff was completely vindicated. I had to consume large portions of humble pie next time we met. Next evening at Ham Fen Kent Trust for Nature Conservation reserve, I was fortunate enough to hear a Spotted Crake advertising its presence. It was very pleasing to get two rare crakes in two days. Excitement over, the month finished with my total stuck at 223 species.

Despite my previous decision not to leave the county, a family holiday was planned for the second half of July. I had checked with my records and back copies of the Kent Bird Report to ensure that I chose the slackest period (historically) to be away. A White-winged Black Tern turning up at Grove Ferry on the 6th was a very nice bonus. A moulting adult, this bird showed a small pale patch on its forehead, otherwise was a pristine example. Three days later and I was hurrying along the Ancient Highway between Deal and Sandwich to see a female Red-footed Falcon. My luck held and I was able to get nice scope views as the bird hunted in roadside fields. As I had hoped the birding lull set in and as my holiday departure drew close I was confident that I had made a good choice.

Thursday the 15th at Grove Ferry was to be a lesson of sorts for me. Whilst scanning across the flooded meadows from the top of the mound, I picked up a distant bird approaching from the south. Its flight was slightly erratic and caused me to follow it as it flew towards the pool where the Baillon`s Crake was still in residence. Quickly it became apparent that it was a Pratincole, but due to my own inexperience, combined with the distance involved, I was unable to get any plumage detail that would allow a positive identification. I shouted to the small group of birders who were at the Baillon`s pool, but to no avail. The bird must have been just over their heads. It departed up the valley towards Westbere and was lost from sight. Being the only one to see it, I can only wonder if it was the bird that was identified later in the month, in Norfolk, as a Black-winged?

Still my holiday passed without any serious dips, so I got something right. As I drove off the train at Cheriton in the evening of 31st I rang Craig to be informed that a Purple Heron was showing in front of the Green Hide at Grove Ferry. Julie and Ben were less than enthusiastic about the bird so I dropped them at home and was at the bird within an hour of getting back into England. Back in the groove, or should that be Grove, without a hitch. My total had risen to 225 and no missed opportunities.

August is the start of autumn; well it is if you`re a wader. A trip to Pegwell Bay on the 1st was enough to get Curlew Sandpiper onto the yearlist. Francis Solley struck again at Monk`s Wall on 7th in the form of a juvenile Marsh Sandpiper. So, on the 8th I drove straight past my house, after yet another nightshift, and got excellent views from the riverbank before going home for breakfast then a well-needed kip. Monday 9th saw Mark Heath finding a Pectoral Sandpiper at Grove Ferry. A spanking juvenile in pristine nick, it performed brilliantly in the afternoon sunshine. At Grove again on the 11th and wader activity was constant. Good numbers of Ruff, Green and Wood Sandpiper were using the flooded meadows. Several Sparrowhawks and a particularly inexperienced Peregrine were cashing in on the bounty and as a result the waders were quite jumpy. So, after yet another reshuffle of the birds, one of the birders surveying the scene announced that a Red-necked Phalarope had just joined the throng on display in front of us. Magic!

A Whinchat on 21st was a relief, but the Aquatic Warbler that appeared at Grove during the afternoon of the 24th was a delight. It performed to a very appreciative audience of Kent Listers Club members and was a tick for most. Francis Solley did it again on the 27th when he found a 1st year Red-backed Shrike at North Foreland, I was watching it when news came through that there was another a Grove. So I went and had a look at that one as well. It`s always nice to have the opportunity to compare and contrast individuals. When I heard that there were three Dotterel at St. Margaret`s sometime on Saturday 28th I was once again hard at it making the Cream of Cup-a-Soups. After work I drove down the M20 to the site but despite my best efforts and some nice graffiti on the pavement, failed dismally. The next evening I had to repeat the journey before connecting with some of the most confiding birds I have ever seen. A Redstart at Bockhill finished the month with a shimmer of its rufous tail, raising my total to 234 species; this being 23 up on the same time in 1998.

The beginning of September was a bit of an anti-climax; it was not until the 6th that I managed to add another species to my total. An Ortolan had been present around Hookers Pit for a day or so but for once, I had been unable to slip away from work. It was around midday that I managed to get a look at what turned out to be a remarkably well-marked individual. It performed wonderfully on the wires that crossed the stubble field next to the track. A trip to Scotney provided a Red-crested Pochard and also opened a can of worms about what is and what isn`t countable as a Kent tick. More of that later! Next day Craig watched in amazement as a White Stork flew over the road in front of him and proceeded to do a circuit of Sandwich before settling on the flooded area at Monk`s Wall. I was there shortly after and enjoyed close views from the newly erected hide. A Sooty Shearwater and an early returning Razorbill off of Deal Pier on the 23rd were well appreciated, both providing me with good views.

The events of the morning of the 28th will remain with me as long as I draw breath. Apart from the addition of Honey Buzzard to my total at 08.20am, it was the ten-minute period after 11.38am that beggar belief. That Jack Chantler and I watched a pale morph Booted Eagle is not up for discussion. We did. How the powers that be view the episode and their decision is another matter entirely. Poor Jerry Warne was on the other end of two telephone conversations, which quite probably made no sense what-so-ever. Both Jack and I gabbled, shouted, ranted and raved into the mouthpiece like a couple of drunks after last orders had been called. Still it was of no real consequence, as the bird was never relocated, well in Kent anyway. There is no amount of experience or training that can prepare you for an occurrence like that. I am quite willing to admit that I was shaking like a leaf after it was over and I had time to consider the implications of the sighting.

I thought that my luck was still holding as, on the 30th, Dave Howe rang me with news of a Western Bonelli`s Warbler trapped and ringed at Sandwich Bay. I was at Bockhill at the time with Craig and Richard Heading. We all got there in time to watch Rab Morton release it into the Oasis birches. It only remained in view for a couple of minutes before being lost from sight forever. I had no previous experience of Bonelli`s. When I saw the bird in the hand, I have to admit that it was not what I was expecting. Still the lads at the Observatory had done the measurements, and I had no reason to doubt their identification. Another lesson, and one that I should have already learned; don`t allow others to sway your judgement or identify birds for you. I wrote in my notes that I was surprised at the plumage colour and the fact that the bird pumped its tail when released and yet still was content to accept the ID purely because it was another year tick and an experienced team of ringers had processed the bird. Big mistake, the bird was an aberrant phylosc, probably chiffchaff due to the shortish primary projection and subtle supercillium. So despite ticking it at the time, I had to un-tick it later and it served me right for allowing others to influence my observations. It was a case of seeing the bird without properly looking at it, just to get a tick. Thus my month ended on a total of 241, although at the time I thought it was one higher.

The first big blow from the North occurred on Monday October 4th. I was at Reculver Towers early, despite having just finished a twelve-hour nightshift. There was quite a crowd to enjoy the skua movement that took place, all four species were logged, Pomarine and Long-tailed being year ticks for me. I also had another decent view of Sooty Shearwater. With the excitement of the seabird movement, adrenaline easily overrode my desire for sleep. Back at Bockhill on the 6th I added Brambling and Yellow-browed Warbler. I was there again the next day to witness the spectacular movement of House Martins. I could only guess at the numbers involved and wrote in my notes 100,000 but it could easily have been ten times that. On the morning of the 13th Jack Chantler found the first Red-breasted Flycatcher for Bockhill. I was on the scene within seconds to savour the delights of this smart little passerine. In what turned out to be a good year for the species, I managed to see another three before the month finished.

The 14th is the date DIM Wallace says should be called National Radde`s Day. So it was quite expected when, just after 08.40am, a visiting birder announced that he thought that he had found a Radde`s near Bockhill Farm Wood. What a stunner! For those of us fortunate enough to be present at the time, we enjoyed fantastic views of this splendid Sibe as it paraded up and down the Freedown hedgerow. A Dartford Warbler in the Monument Paddock later in the afternoon completed a wonderful days birding. I had arranged my shift pattern so that I could work three weekends of nights out of the four during October. Thus, on Sunday 17th, I was in bed when a phone call declared the presence of a Hume`s Warbler at Reculver Caravan Park. After some time had elapsed, I finally got great views of the bird as it actively foraged in the windiest part of the hedge. It was a real bonus when the bird called on several occasions.

Now, I am one of the band who bird at Bockhill during the autumn, the words easy side have been used to describe the area. This is by those who choose to bird elsewhere in the locality during the same period. They were not having a good time of it, struggling as they were. So I felt it my duty to get across and give them a hand. After a quiet early morning stroll around Bockhill on the 20th, I ventured to where no Easysider dares to tread and found Pallas`s Warbler. Three of them! No wonder we stick to Bockhill, we couldn`t cope with the paperwork involved with all them KOS rarity forms.

Next day had me making a mad dash from St. Mag`s to Stonelees. My reward was stunning views of a Great Grey Shrike as it perched in the top of a hawthorn. Friday 22nd saw me visit North Foreland to tick Snow Bunting, then fortune smiled whilst walking from the Co-op in Sandwich. A Drake Mandarin appeared out of the gloom, arriving amongst a group of Mallards. I know how close Gazen Salts is, so went straight there to check and the three Mandarins in the collection were still present. As plastic as the record is, I still added another tick to the total. I found another Pallas`s on the 23rd but this time over at Bockhill. A Twite over Hope Point on the 26th was followed, next day, by a Woodlark in stubble near the Monument. The month ended with a flourish when I caught up with the Sardinian Warbler at Dungeness RSPB early on Sunday 31st. I am not so sure about the sexing of the bird as a female! I thought that the mantle colour was far to grey, thus suggesting a first winter male. Whilst at the reserve, I also made the effort to see a female Red-crested Pochard that was on a pool near Hooker`s Pit.

Rumbles of discontent had reached me about the validity of ticking the bird on the Sussex side of Scotney (6th Sept); despite the fact I was standing inside the Kent border. My own feelings are that if it can be seen from Kent then it counts, otherwise all records for seabirds must be of birds over the land mass. Technically the county border finishes at the mean high-tide mark, thus making all birds seen out at sea beyond the county border, therefore uncountable. Soapbox over! My total had now reached an amazing 256 species. Rearranging shifts had allowed me to be out birding for all or part of twenty-eight days during the month and was a major factor in my success during the autumn.

November started with a calling Crossbill flying up South Foreland Valley then, later on the same day, the 2nd, news from Jerry proclaimed the presence of a Dusky Warbler at the Long Pits Dungeness. I struggled for quite a while before, with more than a little help from Ray Turley, finally getting good, but brief, views of a really nice bird with a striking supercillium. I was back at Dungeness on the 4th for fleeting glimpses of a second Dusky that was in the moat. The hard, tongue clicking, chak note being heard on several occasions as the bird moved, unseen, through the tamarisk scrub. My total was edging ever nearer to 260; a figure that I had said was possible at a meeting in the New Inn, Canterbury several weeks earlier. However, I did not expect to reach it quite as quickly. A Waxwing seen at Minster on Sheppey on Friday 12th was brief, but adequate. My homeward journey turned into a major saga as I managed to lock my keys in the car. Sunday morning, the 14th, saw me travelling from a quiet Reculver to Swalecliff in an attempt to see two Waxwings that Geoff Burton had found earlier in the morning. I failed and returned home only to receive news of a Richard`s Pipit at Bockhill. I was on site within twenty minutes and, along with several other local birders, had brilliant scope views of the bird on the path that follows the cliff top. This was number 260, so I now had more than six weeks until the end of the year and what next?

John Cantelo had put a request on the Internet to find the highest single county yearlist. I rang a Mr. LGR Evans to find out what the UK 400 Club record was. Lee told me that it was 268 in Norfolk, but using 400 Club rules. John received news from Yorkshire of their county record being 262 and the highest known using BOU taxonomy guidelines. Thus my new target had to be to reach 262. Winds from the N-NW had me at Reculver Towers at 07.40am on the 17th. I don`t remember when I was last so cold. It was just as well that a 1st winter Glaucous Gull and three Little Auks passed in front of me around 08.30am. I lasted until 09.15am, then packed up suffering from mild exposure!

The target had been reached and I decided to go with the flow and see what happened. I didn`t feel that 268 was within my reach, UK 400 Club guidelines or not. I was back at the Towers on the 19th. The forecast predicting gale force N-NE winds with squalls of sleet; perfect for another sea-watch. This time I was well prepared, with several extra layers of clothing and a new pair of thermal gloves. I was not alone, Roger Lawrence, and several others assembled in the shelter of the ruins. There was a huge movement of Kittiwakes, with several Pom and Arctic Skuas and a few Little Gulls. The first Little Auk flew along the beach so close that the cliff top hid it as it passed within a few yards of where we stood. Knowing there was a chance of more following the same flight line; I was quickly onto another, just a little further out. At 11.14am, in the middle of a particularly violent squall, I got onto a small, dark bird approaching on a similar flight path. What a bird! Its bat-like flickering wings, brilliant white, wrap round rump, square-ended tail and pale underwing covert bar seen superbly through my scope. As it passed the Towers it was so close that three people actually missed it because they were looking too far out! A county tick for Roger, it was my second Kent sighting in three years. I was elated, a European Storm Petrel, a most unexpected way to set a new county yearlist record! The weather put pay to further chances of increasing my tally, changing, as it did, to a continuous stream of low-pressure systems from the Atlantic.

December was to continue as November had ended. The birding was good at my local sites, Stodmarsh particularly rewarding, with good numbers of harriers using the reed-bed roost and Bitterns being seen almost daily. I tried to remain positive about my prospects of increasing my total, but by the middle of the month I admit that my optimism was beginning to flag. So I found myself, on the 9th heading out of the county on my first away-day for many years. The bird that caused the lapse was an Ivory Gull at Aldeburgh in Suffolk. Craig and I spent a very pleasant day in foreign parts and met many familiar birders who we`d seen at twitches within Kent. All in all it was good to put aside the single county thing for a while and just enjoy birding somewhere new. The weather threatened colder conditions after the 10th and I spent some time at Pegwell on the morning of the 11th. My efforts were rewarded with reasonable views of a flock of fourteen Twite plus a good array of waders and raptors. The 16th at Seaton proved to be time well spent. Out of a total of seven Smew, six were splendid drakes, two Goldeneye, several Ruddy Ducks and good numbers of Kingfishers made me realise that winter was here and my year nearly up. Sea-watching from Deal Pier on the 24th provided me with close views of a passing Pale-bellied Brent, but very little else.

Rumours of an Egyptian Goose at Cliffe on the 26th had me out early next day. The drive there was a bit of a farce. Icy conditions made the motorway a 40mph nightmare. To cap it all, the goose was gone and all I got for my troubles were two Slavonian Grebes and a selection of assorted ducks. So my year list finished on a total of 263, included in this are both Western Yellow-legged Gull and Booted Eagle, neither species being on the BOURC list as yet. I have not included the Pratincole spp., the Lesser Whitefront that I found at Stodmarsh on 6th January, nor the Greater Snowgoose at Scotney and how I wish more people had taken seriously the Lesser Scaup at Ham Road Pits that Craig and I last saw on the 20th January. All three waterfowl had credentials that are no less worthy than those of Mandarin or Blue-winged Teal for that matter.

To have chosen such a fantastic year to have made an attempt at a yearlist was pure good fortune. Living in Ash, thus being so close to the many hot spots of East Kent has been a great asset and played a major part in my ability to be at a site quickly. My memories, however, are not only of good birds. The time spent in the company of many of the K.L.C. birders added to my enjoyment. Chris Abrams and Jack Chantler are to be congratulated on the success of the phone rings. I must thank all of the birders who made the exchange of information such an integral part of my year. Jerry Warne and Chris Heard at Birdline SE must be picked out for special thanks for their regular phone updates. Craig Sammels and I enjoyed many adventures during the year, the Bockhill Mob were great company and have amongst their ranks some of the counties most competent field birders.

A meeting in August with a certain Mr. Perry Haines proved to be the start of a wonderful friendship and we had some fantastic days out. Perry`s ability to derive pleasure from the most ordinary events is brilliant and my birding was enhanced because of his simplistic approach to time spent in the field. He has been a real breath of fresh air to the Kent birding scene. I must also thank my wife, Julie and my kids, Sarah and Benno for their support and understanding of the Old Man`s eccentricities and obsessional behaviour. Without their patience, my year would have been impossible.

My year`s mileage rose by 13,000 miles as a result of my efforts. I dipped on twelve species that were available, Iceland Gull, Stone Curlew, Hoopoe, American Wigeon and Great Reed Warbler were particularly annoying as they involved the journey to Dungeness and a round trip of nearly 90 miles. Despite these minor irritations, I had a fantastic time and enjoyed the majority of my time in the field. I also managed to hold down a full-time job (despite rumours to the contrary) and did not miss a single shift during the year. The total is not unbeatable and assuming that someone has the time and support, I think that a figure of 270 could be achieved. I wish anyone who takes up the challenge all the best. Finally, I must make a special mention of Don Taylor. It was his writing that inspired me to start the listing thing when I first moved to Kent in 1993. Since then I have met with The Man on many occasions and was very flattered when, in November, he rang offering his congratulations. I only hope that, like Don, I can remain as enthusiastic and involved in the Kent birding scene for as long as he has.