Myrtle Warbler...

Winter Mega!

Woke up to the unexpected news that the County Durham Myrtle Warbler had been confirmed as still present and available to all... so after picking up Phil and Mark it was High Shincliffe bound.

Arrived at 1045, a half hour since the last sighting - we had a frustrating 2 hour wait before the bird was pieced up again - having enjoyed three waxwing, a brambling and redpoll and hods of goldfinch.

Given the circumstances we had decent binocular views as it fed on some feeders concealed in the roadside hedge - not great for the camera (and I only took the 400mm), but some record shots were managed.

Sneaky peak of the yellow rump...

Feeder concealed in dense hedge on roadside

Feeder across road near lamppost - not a bad sized crowd too...

Two Warblers

It was a return to cooler temperatures in San Francisco, our final destination of this trip. Featured here are two warbler species: yellow-rumped and orange crowned.

The yellow-rumped warbler was photographed at Crissy Fields, and was a common species in SF. A tricky species to photograph as they were very active feeding in the low coastal bushes - I struck lucky here when one bird landed on the fencing as I was waiting for a black phoebe to return.

The orange-crowned warbler was feeding under Fort Mason and was very inconspicuous. Not the best photograph as the light was poor in the undergrowth. Above us several red-masked parakeet were squabbling, quite a bizarre sight on a grey January morning!