Though we have not been known for going to difficult places to see rare birds, Three A Team members decided to give it a go. So when a Cretzschmar`s Bunting was found on Bardsey and a booking system was in place (kindly policed by Lee Evans) after sleeping under boats etc. We made the arrangements on Tuesday evening to go on Friday morning, weather and bird permitting. Wednesday & Thursday really managed to rack up the twitchyness (new word). An early start on Friday morning with Bob K driving, myself and Steve K aboard. We got through the mystery that is the M60 motorway around Manchester onto the M56, along the A55 coast road passing Rhyl when a check of the bird news revealed the bird was still present. Going through Caernarfon, Morfa Nefyn and some beautiful scenery with some of the small villages reminding us of Little Britain and a certain sketch! We passed Aberdaron, previously visited to see Lesser Grey Shrike and Black Headed Bunting and reached the car park at Porth Meudwy in 3 hours 10 minutes, well done Bob. Our time was 11-30am to get there, so time to have a sleep or watch some birds, Black Guillemot, Rock Pipit and a few Manx Shearwater were seen. Off we went with birders from Bedfordshire and Devon, reaching Bardsey at midday. The sun was shining and it wasn't to windy so we hurried along to the area, passing Rob Lambert (sorry for not stopping to talk Rob) who told us he had seen the bird really well. We were greeted by the warden who told us some do`s and don'ts and all assembled near the lighthouse. We all got decent viewing positions and settled down to watch the concrete block`s that had seed on them that the bird came into. The bird had last been seen at 11am, it was now 12-10pm. After the first hour of waiting, House Martin, Swallow, Linnet, Pied Wagtail and a small flock of Chough were seen. The bird had not been seen for over two hours by now, the tension was building and we had to be off at 4pm. Now standing still and in silence is not a problem for hardened, dedicated twitchers(nutters), but as the second hour passed and still no-show from the bunting with only Linnet`s for company, we all needed some help. It duly arrived in the shape of the warden`s trying to see where the bird was for us all (ta for all the help) After the third hour had drifted by (3-10pm) we all suffered from the horrors of dipping this ultra rare species. Hardly anyone had missed seeing the bird in recent days would we be the first? At 3-30pm a bird landed on the wall and disappeared back into the grass, it looked good, then suddenly the Cretzschmar`s Bunting was feeding on the seed. It was on show for about 5 minutes and made everyone, who had waited 3 hours and 20 minutes to see it, very happy! The bird then flew past us all, calling and giving great flight features. Handshakes all around by the A Team, the collection bucket was sorted and we headed back. Bob K remarked, "Am I dreaming or did we just see the bird? I guess the long wait had made it all the more special for us, as we only saw it with 20 minutes to spare. We didn't have any time to search this beautiful area and we were soon back at the car park for our return home. We had a good laugh about it with all our co-sufferers and said goodbye for now. The drive home was all the more special now we had seen the bird. Bob had us all back in Milnrow by 8pm, three very happy birders!
Though we have not been known for going to difficult places to see rare birds, Three A Team members decided to give it a go. So when a Cretzschmar`s Bunting was found on Bardsey and a booking system was in place (kindly policed by Lee Evans) after sleeping under boats etc. We made the arrangements on Tuesday evening to go on Friday morning, weather and bird permitting. Wednesday & Thursday really managed to rack up the twitchyness (new word). An early start on Friday morning with Bob K driving, myself and Steve K aboard. We got through the mystery that is the M60 motorway around Manchester onto the M56, along the A55 coast road passing Rhyl when a check of the bird news revealed the bird was still present. Going through Caernarfon, Morfa Nefyn and some beautiful scenery with some of the small villages reminding us of Little Britain and a certain sketch! We passed Aberdaron, previously visited to see Lesser Grey Shrike and Black Headed Bunting and reached the car park at Porth Meudwy in 3 hours 10 minutes, well done Bob. Our time was 11-30am to get there, so time to have a sleep or watch some birds, Black Guillemot, Rock Pipit and a few Manx Shearwater were seen. Off we went with birders from Bedfordshire and Devon, reaching Bardsey at midday. The sun was shining and it wasn't to windy so we hurried along to the area, passing Rob Lambert (sorry for not stopping to talk Rob) who told us he had seen the bird really well. We were greeted by the warden who told us some do`s and don'ts and all assembled near the lighthouse. We all got decent viewing positions and settled down to watch the concrete block`s that had seed on them that the bird came into. The bird had last been seen at 11am, it was now 12-10pm. After the first hour of waiting, House Martin, Swallow, Linnet, Pied Wagtail and a small flock of Chough were seen. The bird had not been seen for over two hours by now, the tension was building and we had to be off at 4pm. Now standing still and in silence is not a problem for hardened, dedicated twitchers(nutters), but as the second hour passed and still no-show from the bunting with only Linnet`s for company, we all needed some help. It duly arrived in the shape of the warden`s trying to see where the bird was for us all (ta for all the help) After the third hour had drifted by (3-10pm) we all suffered from the horrors of dipping this ultra rare species. Hardly anyone had missed seeing the bird in recent days would we be the first? At 3-30pm a bird landed on the wall and disappeared back into the grass, it looked good, then suddenly the Cretzschmar`s Bunting was feeding on the seed. It was on show for about 5 minutes and made everyone, who had waited 3 hours and 20 minutes to see it, very happy! The bird then flew past us all, calling and giving great flight features. Handshakes all around by the A Team, the collection bucket was sorted and we headed back. Bob K remarked, "Am I dreaming or did we just see the bird? I guess the long wait had made it all the more special for us, as we only saw it with 20 minutes to spare. We didn't have any time to search this beautiful area and we were soon back at the car park for our return home. We had a good laugh about it with all our co-sufferers and said goodbye for now. The drive home was all the more special now we had seen the bird. Bob had us all back in Milnrow by 8pm, three very happy birders!
David Ousey