Birdwatch – issue 184 (October 2007): table of contents

Features

McKenzie, D. Little wonder [A close look at the migration of the world’s smallest gull, the Little Gull]
Vinicombe, K E. Blyth’s Pipit [How to separate Blyth’s Pipit (Anthus godlewskii) from Richard’s and Tawny Pipits (A richardi and A campestris)]

McKenzie, D. Epic journeys [Ten of the world’s most amazing bird migrations revealed]

Mulder, R. Migrant trap [The islands of Heligoland and Düne attract both birders and rarities]

Young, S. It’s an ill wind that blows… [Bird photography: how to take pictures in windy conditions]

Better Birding
How to plan your birding day
On the move – altitudinal migration
Building skills – Habitat hints
Must see – Yellow-browed Warbler
Demystifying migration
Garden birds – food for thought
Tip from the Top – Roger Riddington
How to… point out birds
What’s on – October events
Optical events – October guide
Birding courses and workshops
October tide tables for Britain and Ireland

Where to watch birds
Ahmad, M. Land’s End, Cornwall
McLoughlin, J. Flamborough Head, Yorkshire
Miller, R. Lleyn Peninsula, Gwynedd
Vaughan, H. Rainham Marshes, Greater London/Essex

Reader Holidays

Panama – 11-20/23 October 2008

News and related items
News digest – scoter survey comes up trumps; sparrows pushed out; a step back for farmland birds; outcry over Barbados wader hunt; northern kites on the rise

Fraser, M. ListCheck – updating the world view of birds. [Relationships: Thrushes Turdus. National lists: additions to Britain, Turkey, Armenia, Lebanon, French Guiana and Bolivia lists.]

Tools of the trade

Product reviews:
Bushnell 8.5x45 and 10.5x45 binoculars

New scopes from Leica and Opticron

Internet birding:
Online migration; sat-nav for birds; website of the month

Brochure review:
Birdseekers 2008 brochure

Book/DVD reviews:
The Birds of the Thai-Malay Peninsula by David R Wells (Christopher Helm)

The Bedside Book of Birds: an Avian Miscellany by Graeme Gibson (Bloomsbury)

The Goshawk by Robert Kenward (T & A D Poyser)

Global Warning: the Last Chance for Change by Paul Brown (A&C Black)

Accounts of recent rarities in Britain and Ireland
Laws, T. Sharp-tailed caps bumper wader day [Sharp-tailed Sandpiper (Calidris acuminata), Oare Marshes, Kent, 10-11 August 2007]
Mullarney, K. Red alert as harbour vigil nets bird of the month [Red-necked Stint (Calidris ruficollis) Carne, Wexford, Ireland 29-30 August 2007]
Waite, S. Patchworker hits jackpot [Audouin’s Gull (Larus audouinii) Seaton, Devon, 14 August 2007]

Monthly highlights summary: August 2007

Recent reports
Monthly round-ups from eight regions in Britain, and from Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, August 2007, including photos of Sabine’s Gull (Larus sabini), Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius), Wryneck (Jynx torquilla), Squacco Heron (Ardeola ralloides), Greenish warbler (Phylloscopus trochiloides), Wilson’s Phalaropes (Phalaropus tricolor), Hudsonian Whimbrel (Numenius (phaeopus) hudsonicus), Solitary Sandpiper (Tringa solitaria), Pallid Harrier (Circus macrourus), Gull-billed Tern (Gelochelidon nilotica), European Roller (Coracius garrulus) and Rose-coloured Starling (Sturnus roseus).

Highlights summary for the Western Palearctic in August 2007, including photos of Wilson’s Storm-petrels (Oceanites oceanicus) in Iceland, Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis) in the Netherlands, Black Tern (Chlidonias niger) in Kuwait, Ruddy Shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea) in Portugal and Trumpeter Finch (Bucanetes githagineus) in Denmark.

ISSN 0967-1870