A Rufous Bush Chat or Rufous Bush Robin, take your pick, was discovered at Stiffkey, in North Norfolk, during the early morning of Saturday 17th October 2020. It was the first time one had been seen in Britain for 40 years, so most modern day birders would want to see it.
Needless to say the discovery of this bird got the twitching fraternity on the move and very soon the site at Stiffkey was overwhelmed, according to Social Media updates. I decided I would wait until the beginning of the following week before venturing over to see it. Anyway an opportunity presented itself and I went for the bird on Sunday morning 18th October, arriving on site around mid-day.
The bird was showing reasonably well out on the salt marsh and in amongst the sueda scrub and tidal vegetation. It was a new bird for Britain for me, but I’ve managed to see quite a few in Greece and Turkey over the years. This individual was rather scruffy and certainly looked a little bedraggled.
I also managed to see seven Red Kites soaring over the Stiffkey Marshes and two Red-flanked Bluetails at nearby Holme, before making the long journey home. Once upon a time Red-flanked Blue-tail held mythical status. Now they are turning up with evermore regularity each autumn. Nevertheless, still a cracking bird to see and one that i’ll never get tired of seeing, thats for sure.
