BirdGuides

DOMINIC COUZENS is a BIRDWATCHER, WELL KNOWN WRITER AND AUTHOR OF MANY BIRDING BOOKS Birding the Dominic Couzens reveals the attraction of late-summer birdwatching Traditionally, the Global Birdfair takes place at the time of year when bird activity is said to calm down in Britain after the breeding season scramble and before the onset of peak migration and movement. But is there really a ‘quiet season’ as far as birds are concerned? And is it worth going out to see what you can see? You bet it is! True, the robin in your garden has taken cover, slowing its daily activity, stopping singing and putting its effort into the moult, which takes a lot of energy. But other birds are very active – you just need to be smart, and look in the right places, to find them. … birds are very active – you just need to be smart, and look in the right places … While the breeding season is winding down for many birds, others are at full tilt. You might not adore them, but what about pigeons and doves? Late summer is alive with their displays and coos; go into a wood and you will be treated to the soothing ‘super-cooing’ of multiple wood pigeons in the canopy, while every rooftop in towns and suburbia will see the spirals and aerobatics of doves and pigeons. Meanwhile, finches, especially goldfinches, are breeding now while there is a glut of seed about, especially thistles. Yellowhammers are still singing their dry rattle up to 7,000 times a day, while corn buntings are performing their key-jangling songs – the latter species can be highly promiscuous, and no amount of amorous female company will be enough for some males, so they keep going throughout the summer. While we birders traditionally associate migration with later in mid-autumn – September onwards – the birds don’t! Most adult cuckoos have already left. Pied flycatchers and nightingales – the latter once they’ve signed recording contracts for next year – just slip quietly away, and swifts will leave before the cricket season ends. And these notable departures mask enormous movements. Already, even by the end of June, many waders have abandoned their northern breeding grounds, so lagoons and wetlands are filling up. Many small birds, such as willow warblers, set off on their southbound journeys as early as July – we just don’t notice because they travel slowly, in small hops. One of the most significant developments in the birding summer is a groundswell of dispersal. It is easy summer doldrums to miss because it involves resident birds. Essentially, youngsters have left the natal home, often kicked out by the parents, and are seeking a place to live. They spend the days wandering around not far from where they were born. Such youngsters often join mixed- species flocks of their peers. One of the great birding experiences of the summer is to encounter a big flock of tits, warblers, goldcrests and other species. This is the best time to see very sedentary species, such as marsh tits and nuthatches, away from their normal haunts. Now is ‘gull mishmash season’ Until late in August, many of our seabird colonies are still active and some bird species, such as shags and cormorants, may still be breeding into the autumn. Gulls might have largely fledged, but now is ‘gull mishmash season’, when almost every conceivable plumage is there to flummox everybody. Juveniles are, indeed, the great confusion of birding. Suddenly, robins and blackbirds have flecks and freckles, and the spotted flycatchers finally live up to their name. Young wood pigeons lack the white neck patch of the adults, while long-tailed tits have dark faces and coal tits have yellow cheeks. You have to rip up the bird books! So, in summary, there’s plenty in late summer to see – and it isn’t a time to be complacent, either. Goldfinch Nuthatch Images by David Tipling 12 j G LOBAL B IRDFAIR 2022