The Highlights
October saw the county’s
excellent run of form continue, with several standout rarities drawing birders
away from their usual patches. The status of Pectoral Sandpiper within Oxfordshire’s
borders has shifted in recent years, with no fewer than five records since
2018. This is hardly surprising given that the species is one of the most
frequently recorded Nearctic waders in the UK. Its predisposition
to cover vast distances across the Arctic during migration inevitably
increases the chances of overshooting at the other end, and ultimately ending
up on one of our patches. As a result, come the autumn, anyone with a bit of
water and mud nearby has at least an outside chance of finding their own
“Yank”, although whether these birds are from the New World or Old Word remains
to be seen.
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| Farmoor Phalarope twitch courtesy of Gnome |
A phone call from Nick Marriner on 2nd October briefly sent me into a panic, as I wondered whether news of the county’s first Buff-breasted Sandpiper was about to break and, more importantly, how quickly I could possibly abandon all work commitments. It was, in fact, a juvenile Pectoral Sandpiper (cue a slight sigh of relief from myself), but nevertheless another exceptional find for his local Oxfordshire Golf Course patch.
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| Pectoral Sandpiper Oxfordshire Golf Course courtesy of Nick Truby |
With an understanding greenkeeper and public access assured, the golf course hosted its second major county twitch in just three weeks. With last year’s one-day wonder at Pit 60 still fresh in the memory, most county year-listers mobilised quickly. Thankfully, for everyone else interested, the bird remained on site for at least another seven days. As juveniles of this species often do and perhaps helped by the limited stretch of exposed mud it was frequenting, the bird occasionally showed down to just a few metres, providing views reminiscent of the famous Port Meadow bird of 2021.
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| Pectoral Sandpiper courtesy of Dan Bevan |
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| Pectoral Sandpiper courtesy of Steve Sansom |
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| Pectoral Sandpiper courtesy of Nick Truby |
Another excellent find came just
as the Pectoral Sandpiper was about to depart in the form of a Dartford
Warbler at Chinnor Cement Works on the 6th.
Despite being a resident breeder less than 15 miles south of the border and
continuing rise in breeding numbers at Greenham Common, Dartford Warbler remains
a really quite rare bird within Oxon. Now of course this is not helped
by their skulky nature and often cryptic plumage at this time of year, the
opposite problem to a very showy wader species such as Pectoral Sandpiper.
Interestingly this sparked a conversation as to what was the bigger rarity - Pec
Sand or Dartford? Certainly, Dartford Warbler has
historically been harder to connect with, with fewer twitchable birds in the
last decade than Pec Sand. Although that being said since my
arrival in the county, in terms of records, they are both around even. I’d
still argue however that Dartford is probably an under recorded species
that is out there to be found, given its explosion in numbers particularly just
south of the border. In any case, David Stracey’s excellent find was only to be
for his eyes and another’s, with no sign the following day. Although in
fairness the weather on the 7th was appalling and even the showiest
of birds, which Dartford Warbler certainly is not, would have
been smart to remain hidden.
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| Grey Phalarope courtesy of Steve Liptrot |
2026 will be remembered
for several reasons. Three (as of writing!) county firsts, a country 1st
(England) and a British 3rd as well as whole suite of
excellent county and national level finds. It will also go down as one of if
not the best years for combined Phalarope species records. Having
already hosted two Red-necked Phalaropes and a Grey Phalarope
this year, October saw another two Grey Phalarope found! The
first came from Farmoor on the 10th when a young birder and his dad found one
riding the surf in the SE corner of F2 - https://ebird.org/checklist/S401013283.
Sparking another all too familiar scene this year, the bird went on to stay
here until at least the 16th. As is often the case, once the bird relocated
to the causeway it showed little fear of the assembled birders and providing
those classic views so frequently associated with the species. News of another
bird came after it had already departed, unfortunately. Although given we’d
already had two bites at the species, one could do little complaining! This
bird was found on another golf course, a theme of rarities in the last couple
weeks, over in North Stoke on the 16th, whilst the Farmoor
bird was still present. The finder, Steve Young, found the bird whilst playing
a round at Springs Golf Club and unfortunately was without optics at the
time. Thankfully however, with its distinctive whirligig feeding behaviour in
full view and at close range, identification was a formality. Despite another
birder getting on to site not long after, the bird had clearly departed having
likely found a little sustenance on this tiny golf course pond.
Grey Phalarope Noth Stoke courtesy of Steve Young
Waders
The majority of the action for this group had died down by early October with only a few stragglers being reported. Two Ruff continued at Pit 60 on the 6th, whilst at least one remained here until the 23rd. Some unseasonable records of Black-tailed Godwit also came this month, with a very showy individual on the causeway at Farmoor on the 17th. Possibly the same bird, given the shortness of its stay, was later seen at Pit 60 on the same day and quite possibly later recorded at Otmoor on the 22nd
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| Black-tailed Godwit courtesy of Brian Walker |
A sign of the changing seasons
came with the arrival of the autumn’s first Jack Snipe, observed in
flight before dropping into the flood field at Otmoor on the 31st.
Green Sandpiper were
recorded at at least six sites this month. Bicester Wetlands Reserve
hosted the highest count, as is typical, with five present on the 6th. Four
remained here on the 12th, while Cassington GPs recorded at least three
on the 11th.
Common Sandpiper were
recorded at just two sites this month, with a flyover bird at Oxfordshire
Golf Course on the 3rd. The single bird at Farmoor continued to be
reported sporadically, maintaining what has become a regular feature of the
autumn and winter at this site. Whether this represents a returning individual
or a different bird each season, however, remains uncertain.
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| Dunlin & Grey Phalarope courtesy of Nick Truby |
Wildfowl, game etc
The standout bird this month came from Farmoor when a winter plumaged Slavonian Grebe was added to the ever-growing county year list of 2026. A near annual species in the county but nonetheless an always welcome addition to any year. With the last record coming last year, with a pair in the spring in near summer plumage, this was never going to be as popular but a great bird, nonetheless. It did occasionally show well during its stay, after finally waking up from its roost but unfortunately only remained for the single day on the 19th.
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| Slavonian Grebe courtesy of Thomas Miller |
Although in terms of
rarity value the grebe was the standout, the most interesting record was
by far and away a group of Whooper Swan transiting over Oxford airspace
on the 30th . With Oxfordshire records limited year to year,
records over urban centres are exceedingly rare indeed but in fairness Oxford
does tend to punch above its weight as an urban birding location.
A somewhat tatty drake Scaup at
Farmoor on the 15th was a nice find and the sound first of
the season for the county. The same drake was seen at Dix Pit the
following day, evidencing the strong connectivity between the west Oxon
gravel pits complex and a premier birding site. It remained at Dix Pit until
the 24th before returning to Farmoor and was still here until
at least the 26th. Goldeneye also returned in the latter half
of this month, with a single female on Farmoor from the 23rd.
Dix Pit saw its first birds back on 24th were at least two
were present, an always welcome return for this ever-dwindling wintering
species.
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| Scaup courtesy of Roger Wyatt |
Goosander were on a
minimum of two sites, with the classic site of Port Meadow hosting the highest
count, with four here on the 3rd. Blenheim also hosted a
single bird on the 30th, with no records from any of the other
typical sites for the rest of October. A single unseasonable Shelduck
was present Rushy Common on the 28th, whilst Mandarin were
present on two sites – 10 at Henley GPs on the 3rd and a
whopping 18 at Blenheim on the 8th.
Herons, egrets etc
After a brief hiatus, Glossy
Ibis made a return to the county, this time in the form of an excellent patch
find at Grimsbury Reservoir on the 2nd. A lone bird flying
over the site was a seriously good find for John Friendship-Taylor and for a site
that has consistently punched above its weight in terms of rarities over the
last few years. Presumably the same bird was seen at Otmoor the
following day and remained here until at least the 9th.
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| Glossy Ibis Otmoor rspb courtesy of Thomas Miller |
The resident Cattle Egret flock continued to be widely distributed this month, with at least 13 sites reporting birds. The highest count came from Northmoor where 17 were observed on the 31st, whilst 11 were at Cumnor on the same day. The only other double-digit count came from Port Meadow which had 12 on the 8th. The count did however see a large influx of Great White Egret this month with one site hosting double digit numbers throughout the month. Pit 60 appears to be a site of importance for dispersing Great White Egret, with a peak count of 22 birds here in mid-October. Interesting this exactly the same number that was here last October around this time. This year at least one of the birds was ringed and is often the case, had come from the Somerset Levels. It seems likely that most of the birds that gather in Oxon come from here, although presumably some continental birds are also present. A further 12 sites hosted birds, with several of these seeing decent counts, although none were in the double-digits. Blenheim saw a high of six on the 30th, whilst Peep-o-Day Lane saw seven the following day. Both Dix Pit and Cassington had three birds at various points in the month, whilst the remaining sites hosted mostly singles.
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| Bittern Otmoor rspb courtesy of Paul Wyeth |
Gulls and Terns
A mostly white period for this
group in October, with odd scarcity reported. A single Black Tern just
made it into the recording period, when the lone juvenile at Farmoor remained
from the 30th September. Farmoor continued to be the site of
most activity, with four Little Gull dropping in to the site on the 18th,
with at least one lingering until the next day.
Two records of Mediterranean
Gull also came from Farmoor this month, one on the 10th
and probably the same individual here on the 16th. An adult Caspian
Gull at Cassington GPs was the only non Farmoor observation
this month, present here during a WEBS count on the 11th. Farmoor
had two records, two birds also on the 11th and a single bird on
the 23rd.
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| Caspian Gull Cassington courtesy of Gareth Casburn |
Passerines
Probably the most frustrating
record this month came from east Oxford on the 12th. A
delayed report of Hoopoe constituted not only the 3rd record
of the year for Oxfordshire, but another untwitchable individual. What
made it even more frustrating is that it continued to be reported for two days
whilst little details of location were given. An all too familiar scenario after
the spring bird that caused so much frustration in Hampton Poyle. In
fairness the bird was likely an exceedingly difficult one to twitch given its
location but it being present from 12th – 16th without
anyone being able to see it is a bitter pill to swallow.
With so many birds arriving on the east coast in later September and early October it felt like only a matter of time before we got our first Yellow-browed Warbler. Unfortunately, this individual at Pit 60 on the 2nd remained very elusive and wasn’t observed by anyone except the finder. Black Redstart were a little more confiding, although an elusive bird on a Banbury housing estate on the 14th disappeared not long after it was found. Two birds at Farmoor however were much easier to pin down providing ample opportunities for viewing. Both appeared to arrive on the 21st, first taking a liking to the causeway before eventually settling around the sewage treatment works, a classic wintering area for the species on Farmoor. Both were still reported on site by the 27th, although with plenty of areas to remain hidden, it wouldn’t be at all surprising if they were still present somewhere hidden.
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| Black Redstart courtesy of Ian Stewart |
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| Black Redstart courtesy of Roger Wyatt |
Rock Pipit continued to be reported at Farmoor, although how many birds were actually recorded remains unknown. Certainly, two were observed together on 7th and the 20th whilst singles were observed on at least 7 more dates. Grimsbury Reservoir also hosted single bird on the 12th and 13th, whilst the standout individual game from Port Meadow on the 29th which had clearly been caught up with a large passage of Meadow Pipit. Some intriguing records of Woodlark were picked up this month, first one from over East Lockinge on the 11th followed by another on Churn Hill on the 18th. Churn Hill also recorded one of the last Whinchat of the autumn on the 3rd, whilst the final bird came quite late in the day from Cornwell Marsh on the 15th.
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| Rock Pipit Farmoor courtesy Lew |
Wheatear continued to be
reported into the first week of October, with four sites recording
birds. Almost all of these were across the downs, Churn Hill, Lark Hill and
South Stoke whilst Farmoor hosted one of the last birds of the
year on the 8th. A very late Redstart came from Chinnor
Cement Works on the same day as the Dartford Warbler was found,
although like its comrade could not be located either the next day.
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| Dartford Warbler courtesy of David Stracey |
With the changing seasons comes the anticipated arrival of our wintering passerines. Crossbills made their first appearance of the season, with a bird flying over Marston Hams on the 3rd. Brambling was first recorded on the 7th over Churn Hill, with another seven sites seeing birds from the 18th. After the early bird at the end of September more Redwing piled into the county from the 3rd, with Fieldfare not arriving until the 17th.
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| Redwing courtesy of Gnome |
Finally, some interesting late records for some of our migrant breeding species. A very late Reed Warbler came from Lye Valley came on the 3rd. South Stoke had looked like it might get the last Swallow of the year with a single heading south on the 12th. However, an even later bird went through Farmoor on the 22nd, potentially one of the latest records for the county.
Raptors
Despite its massive size a young White-tailed
Eagle managed to remain elusive whilst it did the rounds in the county.
First reported over Nuffield on the 16th, whilst the same
bird was then clocked of Great Milton on the 28th. Presumably
the same immature bird was seen at Little Marlow GPs on the 8th
and has clearly found the Chilterns area to its liking whilst remaining
hidden for the most part, it returned to Little Marlow GPs in early November.
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| White-tailed Eagle courtesy of Ruth Ligget |
A more surprising record came in
the form of a very late Osprey over Grimsbury Reservoir on the 31st.
Firmly in the reported column, it remains to be seen if this record was fully verified.
A Hen Harrier was recorded at Cholsey on the 22nd,
although no age or sex was given of the bird, hopefully this will find its way
to wintering somewhere on the downs.
The downs played hosted to several other species this month, with a Short-eared Owl sporadically reported, whilst three records of Merlin were also forthcoming. This included a male and a female-type bird on the 31st. Otmoor also saw both species recorded, with both recorded sporadically through October. Otmoor also saw the final Hobby of the year, with one recorded on the 5th.
Patchwork
challenge
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Patch |
Birder |
Points |
Species |
Highlight |
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Grimsbury reservoir |
Gareth
Blockley |
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Lye valley |
Tom Bedford |
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River Thames |
Geoff Wyatt |
| 128 | |
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Blewbury Chalkpit |
Conor
MacKenzie |
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|
|
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Radley GP’s |
Ian Elkins |
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Port Meadow |
Thomas Miller |
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| Kingfisher Oxford courtesy of Elsa Moroney |
Otmoor Starling Murmuration
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| Courtesy of Anna Marlow |
Parking for RSPB members will remain free, and cash will still be accepted for visitors without access to a smartphone.
Thank you
The RSPB Otmoor Team
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