On Monday 1st May 2023, a Grey-headed Lapwing was discovered on the wader scrape pools at Low-Newton-by-the-Sea, in Northumberland. Goodness knows what the birder must have thought, when he set eyes on this extremely attractive wader, that had decided to arrive on his local patch. If accepted by the BOU, it would be a new bird for Britain.
The Grey-headed Lapwing is a lapwing species which breeds in northeast China and Japan. The Chinese population winters in northern Southeast Asia from northeastern India to Cambodia. The species has previously occurred as a vagrant in Western Europe, Russia, Australia and Sri Lanka. During June 2019 this species was discovered in Holland, having previously been seen in Sweden and Norway, so it has been firmly fixed on the radar of British birders, as a potential vagrant to our shores.
An attractively marked lapwing, with a grey head and neck that extends onto the upper breast, bright yellow bill, with a black tip. A white belly that is separated from the grey upper breast by a blackish breast band. The upper-parts are a pinkish brown and when in flight, the striking black primary feathers and white secondaries, as well as a white rump and dark tail are striking. Long yellow legs and a red eye.
I eventually saw the bird on the 7th May, at High Newton-by-the-Sea, in fields behind Link House Farm. The bird moved to this area late on Monday and remained faithful to the site. Certainly long enough for me to make the long journey north to see it. During the time I spent watching the bird, it was some distance away, making photography very difficult. The misty weather didn’t help either, but later in the morning it did lift. The following images represent the best record shots I was able to take. I’m fairly pleased with the results.
