This interesting Juvenile RED KITE was at Watermead today, with a superficial resemblance to Black Kite, mostly due to the tail shape & wing shape - though this is most likely due to an odd moult. Juvenile RED KITE resembling Black Kite These are the features that made the bird stand out from the other Red Kites about... dark, slightly convex tail (rather than concavely forked) with lighter upper-tail coverts broad, square wings 6 ‘fingers’/P5 quite long (though missing P5 on right wing) P9 longer than P7 not much orange tone, even less obvious with bright sky behind from above even the head appears darker than expected for Red Kite On closer inspection the tail is a bit too red & white 'windows' on the underwing too defined, the head is typical of Red Kite, but most obvious of all is how pale the bird's underside is - diagnostic to juvenile Red Kite. I can imagine this bird being reported as a Black Kite if care isn't taken in identification. Juvenile RED KITE ...

This article was written for, & published in  Village View (Spring 2021 Vol.28 Issue 1), the quarterly magazine by Watermead Parish Council, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire. - Watermead is my semi-urban home patch, of only 1km², living here since October 2019. WATERMEAD WILDLIFE: 2020 NATURE NOTES Here’s a summary of rarities at Watermead this winter, not an extensive list, but those of special note, followed by a list of other rare species seen throughout 2020. All photos taken here at Watermead… WATERMEAD WINTER RARITY ROUND-UP YELLOW-BROWED WARBLER (from northern Russia): You may have noticed a fair few birdwatchers at Watermead in the last few weeks - on 6th of December in thick fog I found a YELLOW-BROWED WARBLER beside the large lake near the war memorial - a tiny warbler from Siberia that usually winters in south-east Asia. A few visit the east coast of Britain each autumn on their travels, usually end of October to November, but finding one inland in December is more ...

Waxwing on Rowan Ash. Today we led a tour with the aim of finding Waxwings in The Chilterns - a species on all three of our group members' most wanted lists. With the day centered around the Tring area of Hertfordshire & the Buckinghamshire border we visited likely spots with good berry crops, primarily the Waxwings' favorite - Rowan/Mountain Ash, but also Hawthorn, one of the Waxwings' fall-back foodsources which is widespread in The Chilterns. The day was a great success - starting with up to 40 Waxwings affording fantastic views & photo opportunities for all as they sporadically came in to feed on Rowan berries in Berkhamsted, then 43 birds feeding on Hawthorn berries in Tring, plus a bonus 10 in Wendover - as you can imagine, the guys were thrilled as the Waxwings trilled! Here are a few photos I took to share with the group as a memento of their day... Waxwing warming-up in the winter sun. Waxwings resting & preening.