Turkestan Shrike Bempton

29th June 2022

I don't recall getting a birthday tick for a very long time (if ever as an adult!).

The former Isabelline Shrikes have now been split in to two ' Daurian Shrike' and 'Turkestan Shrike' (although confusingly the latter is also known as Red-tailed Shrike). Izzy shrikes are not particularly rare in the UK, with a handful annually but usually in late autumn. Identification to the newly split species of autumn individuals is pretty much impossible for most birds, so it's necessary to see an adult in most cases. Luckily I'd seen a smart adult Daurian in Cornwall (at Pendeen in October 2013), which conveniently was found as Jono and I were in the area (en route to Scilly). Amongst several other autumn immatures, I'd also seen a a bird at Buckton (very close to today's bird) which had been widely thought to be Turkestan but never made the official grade. 

Thankfully there are intermittent records of adults in the summer, and that is exactly what happened here. The bird had been found a couple of days earlier, clearly just 'in-off' as it landed on a wire fence close to albatross watchers. It rapidly disappeared, but had been refound yesterday about half a mile inland along a green lane. 

So I was up early and once again over to Bempton. The adult TURKESTAN SHRIKE was immediately on show, in fact it showed beautifully.

I needn't have hurried as it stayed for weeks - long enough to complete it's summer moult.