Index of species

Alpine Swift American Golden Plover American Wigeon Arctic redpoll 203 Arctic Skua 126 Arctic tern 124 Avocet 97 Baird’s Sandpiper Balearic Shearwater 133 Barn owl 146 Barnacle Goose 66 Barred Warbler 177 Bar-tailed Godwit 105 Bean Goose 68 Bearded tit 161 Bee-eater 149 Bewick’s Swan 71 Bittern 136 Black-browed Albatross 131 Black kite 145 Black redstart 189 Black Stork Black tern 125 Black-throated Diver 130 Blackbird 183 Blackcap 175 Black-headed Gull 113 Black-necked Grebe 95 Black-tailed Godwit 104 Black-winged Stilt 96 Bluethroat 188 Blue tit 160 Blue-winged teal Blyth’s reed Warbler 173 Brambling 200 Brent Goose 64 Buff-breasted Sandpiper Bullfinch 201 Buzzard 146 canada Goose 65 carrion crow 157 caspian Gull 121 cattle egret 137 cetti’s Warbler 166 chaffinch 200 chiffchaff 171 citrine Wagtail coal tit 159 collared Dove 90 crossbill 204 common crane 92 common Gull 115 common rosefinch 201 common Sandpiper 108 common Scoter common tern coot cormorant corn Bunting corncrake cory’s Shearwater crossbill cuckoo curlew curlew Sandpiper Dartford Warbler Desert Wheatear Dipper Dotterel Dunlin Dunnock Dusky Warbler eider egyptian Goose feral Pigeon ferruginous Duck fieldfare firecrest fulmar Gadwall Gannet Garden Warbler

82 124 92 135 208 131 204 88 107 103 178 100 103 195 170 82 69 88 184 178 131 75 134 176

Garganey Glaucous Gull Glossy ibis Goldcrest Golden Pheasant Golden oriole Golden Plover Goldeneye Goldfinch

73 117 135 179 63 155 98 84 205

Goosander

85 Goshawk 141 Grasshopper Warbler 175 Great Black-backed Gull 116 Great-crested Grebe 94 Great egret 138 Greater yellowlegs 109 Great Grey Shrike 155 Great Northern Diver 130 Great reed Warbler 172 Great Skua 125 Great Snipe Great-spotted Woodpecker 150 Great tit 161 Green Sandpiper 108 Green-winged teal 79 Green Woodpecker 150 Greenfinch Greenish Warbler Greenshank Grey Heron Grey Partridge Grey Phalarope Grey Plover Grey Wagtail Greylag Goose Gull-billed tern Guillemot Hawfinch Hen Harrier Herring Gull Hobby Honey Buzzard Hooded crow Hoopoe House Martin House Sparrow Hume’s Warbler iceland Gull icterine Warbler isabelline Shrike Jack Snipe Jackdaw 202 172 109 137 62 111 99 196 67 121 127 200 143 117 152 140 157 148 165 194 168 117 175 111 156

Jay kentish Plover kestrel kingfisher kittiwake 155 100 151 148 113

knot 100

Lapland Longspur 207

Lapwing

98 Leach’s Petrel 131 Lesser Black-backed Gull 120 Lesser Grey Shrike 155 Lesser redpoll 203 Lesser Scaup Lesser-spotted Woodpecker 149 Lesser White-front Lesser Whitethroat 177 Lesser yellowlegs Linnet 203 Little Auk 127 Little Bittern Little Bunting Little crake Little egret 138 Little Grebe 93 Little Gull 114 Little owl 147 Little (ringed) Plover 100 Little Stint 102

Little tern 122 Long-billed Dowitcher Long-eared owl 147 Long-tailed Duck 83 Long-tailed Skua 127 Long-tailed tit 167 Magpie 156 Mallard 76 Mandarin Duck 72 Manx Shearwater 132 Marsh Harrier 141 Marsh Sandpiper Marsh tit 159 Marsh Warbler 174 Meadow Pipit 197 Mealy redpoll Mediterranean Gull 114 Melodious Warbler 174 Merlin 151 Mistle thrush 181 Montagu’s Harrier 144 Moorhen 91 Mute Swan 70 Night Heron 137 Nightingale 187 Nightjar 86 Nuthatch 180 olive-backed Pipit ortolan Bunting osprey 138 oystercatcher 96 Pacific Golden Plover 99 Pallas’s Warbler 168 Pallid Harrier Pallid Swift Pectoral Sandpiper 103 Penduline tit 161 Peregrine 152 Pheasant 63 Pied flycatcher 188 Pied Wagtail 196 Pink-foot 66 Pintail 77 Pochard 79 Pomarine Skua 126 Puffin 128 Purple Heron 137 Purple Sandpiper 103 Quail 62 radde’s Warbler 169 raven 157 razorbill 128 red kite 144 red-backed Shrike 154 red-breasted flycatcher 189 red-breasted Goose red-breasted Merganser 86 red-crested Pochard 79 red-flanked Bluetail red-footed falcon 151 red-legged Partridge 62 red-necked Grebe 94 red-necked Phalarope 111 red-rumped Swallow 166 redshank 110 redstart 190 red-throated Diver 129 red-throated Pipit redwing 184 reed Bunting 209 reed Warbler 173 richard’s Pipit 197 ring ouzel 182 ring-billed Gull ringed Plover 99 ring-necked Duck robin 186 rock Pipit 199 roller rook 157 roseate tern 123 rose-ringed Parakeet 154 rosy Starling 181 rough-legged Buzzard 146 ruddy Duck ruddy Shelduck 211 ruff 104 rustic Bunting 209 Sabine’s Gull 113 Sand Martin 164 Sanderling 101 Sandwich tern 121 Savi’s Warbler 175 Scaup 80 Sedge Warbler 172 Semipalmated Sandpiper Serin 206 Shag 134 Shelduck 72 Shore Lark Short-eared owl 148 Short-toed Lark 163 Shoveler 74 Siskin 206 Skylark 162 Slavonian Grebe 95 Smew 85 Snipe 112 Snow Bunting 207 Snow Goose Song thrush 185 Sooty Shearwater 131 Sparrowhawk 140 Spoonbill 135 Spotted crake Spotted flycatcher Spotted redshank Starling Stock Dove Stonechat Stone-curlew Storm Petrel Subalpine Warbler Surf Scoter Swallow Swift tawny owl tawny Pipit teal temminck’s Stint tree Pipit tree Sparrow treecreeper tufted Duck

91 186 109 182 88 192 131 164 88 147 78 102 198 195 181 80

turnstone turtle Dove twite Water Pipit Water rail 111 89 202 199 91

Waxwing Wheatear Whimbrel Whinchat

158 193 106 191 Whiskered tern White-fronted Goose 69 White Stork 133 White-rumped Sandpiper White-tailed eagle 145 Whitethroat 177 White Wagtail 197 White-winged (Black) tern 124 Whooper Swan 71 Wigeon 75 Willow tit 159 Willow Warbler 170 Woodchat Shrike 155 Wood Lark 162 Wood Sandpiper 109 Wood Warbler 167 Woodcock 112 Woodpigeon 89 Wren 179 Wryneck 149 yellowhammer 208 yellow-browed Warbler 168 yellow-legged Gull 119 yellow Wagtail 195

Founded in 1929 by Claude Morley (1874–1951), the Suffolk Naturalists’ Society pioneered the study and recording of the County’s flora, fauna and geology, to promote a wider interest in natural history.

Recording the natural history of Suffolk is still one of the Society’s primary objects, and members’ observations are fed to a network of specialist recorders for possible publication, and deposited in the Suffolk Biodiversity Information Service.

Suffolk Natural History, a review of the County’s wildlife, and Suffolk Birds, the County bird report, are two high quality annual publications issued free to members. The Society also publishes a quarterly newsletter and holds two Members’ evenings a year in Spring and Autumn.

The Suffolk Naturalists’ Society offers a joint membership with the Suffolk Bird Group at a reduced subscription. This entitles joint members to receive literature and attend the meetings of both organisations.

If you are not yet a member of the Society but would like to join visit www.sns.org.uk

MEMBERSHIP CATEGORIES:

Individual Family/Household Corporate Student SNS £15 £17 £17 £10 Joint membership SNS/SBG £30 £35

£18

CONTENTS

Page

Editorial: Nick Mason.................................................................................................................................... 5 Review of national and county rarities in Suffolk in 2020: Nick Mason ...................................................... 8 Notes on the first species in the systematic list: Philip Murphy................................................................. 11 Weather in a changing climate: Edward Jackson ....................................................................................... 12 Spoonbills on Havergate Island – the follow-up: Mike Marsh ................................................................... 16 Sand Martin colony during the pandemic: Andrew Moon......................................................................... 21 Common Scoter overland migration: Justin Zantboer................................................................................ 29 Minsmere and Me: John Grant................................................................................................................... 32 Garden Birds over the years: Richard Attenborrow.................................................................................... 37 The Alton Water Gull-billed Tern: Andrew Gregory ................................................................................... 41 The Sooty Tern at Minsmere and Sizewell: John Grant.............................................................................. 43 Booted Warbler at Sizewell: Dave Fairhurst (and Adam Rowlands)........................................................... 45 Rustic Bunting in Lowestoft: Rob Holmes................................................................................................... 48 Greater Yellowlegs at Dunwich: Adam Rowlands....................................................................................... 50 Steppe Grey Shrike at Benacre: Andrew Moon .......................................................................................... 53

The 2020 Suffolk Bird Report

Introduction............................................................................................................................................. 60   Systematic List ......................................................................................................................................... 62   Appendices............................................................................................................................................ 210

List of Contributors ............................................................................................................................... 214 Earliest and Latest Dates of Summer Migrants..................................................................................... 216 A Guide to Recording Birds in Suffolk.................................................................................................... 217 Gazetteer............................................................................................................................................... 222 Rare Birds in Suffolk 2020: provided by Craig Fulcher .............................................................................. 224 Index of species: ....................................................................................................................................... 226