2021 review

Another challenging year dominated by the global pandemic is almost over so it is time for my traditional review of the past twelve months, starting with my month-by-month birding highlights (lifers in CAPS).

January - Dusky Warbler (Bredene); last year's bird of the year lingered on in its favourite park so I got my year listing off to a good start by paying it a third visit on 2nd.

February - Woodcock (Ostend); a prolonged cold spell brought unprecedented numbers of this species to the coast, where I got a rare opportunity to see them on the ground.

March - Oriental Turtle Dove (Heist); my first real twitch of the year and the first new bird for my Belgian list.

April - FRANKLIN'S GULL (Beveren); a major expedition was required for me to see this American vagrant during its short stay in deepest West Flanders.

May - Griffon Vulture (Brabant Wallon); 24 slowly taking off from their overnight roost.

June - Nightjar (Kalmthout Heath); a long-overdue reacquaintance with the churring goat-milker.

July - Rock Thrush (Alps); a nice male seen exceptionally well on my first evening in the Alps.

August - Zitting Cisticola (Heist); a constantly-displaying bird confirming that the species is slowly recolonising the coast.

September - Nutcracker (Logbiermé); 3 or 4 birds comically struggling their way uphill with their crops full of acorns.

October - Short-eared Owl (Brussels); THE surprise of the year was a migrant seen from my living room!

November - Western Swamphen (Het Vinne); another successful twitch to a first for Belgium.

December - Ross's Gull (Nieuwpoort); another first for Belgium seen really well as it repeatedly passed just above my head.

So, Franklin's Gull was the only new bird I saw this year and is, therefore, my bird of the year for 2021.  It was not the only addition to my lifelist, though, since sorting through my Brazilian photo's for another project led me to review a parrotlet picture I took back in 2011.  At the time, I was told that flavistic individuals were much commoner amongst Blue-winged Parrotlets than the local Dusky-billed Parrotlets.  Since the former species had never been recorded in the area and the local bird-guide told me it wasn't possible, I forgot all about my picture.  Spurred on by several, unconfirmed reports of Blue-winged Parrotlets in exactly the same location over the intervening years, and noticing a second, normal-coloured individual, which also shows the all-important pale upper mandible, I thus sent my picture to some new contacts I didn't know back then, all of whom agree it is the first documented record of Blue-winged Parrotlet (now split into three species) for the Alta Floresta region!

As an antidote to the various travel restrictions, I set myself the dual targets of seeing 250 species in Belgium and 150 within Brussels this year.  I soon realised, though, that the two were incompatible since birding in Brussels meant I was missing good stuff elsewhere, and vice versa.  I thus dropped the Brussels one (which ended up on 116 species) in favour of a Belgian big year.  It was difficult to stay motivated throughout the ongoing pandemic, however, especially once I'd caught up with most of the easy summer migrants, meaning the remaining species all required considerable effort or several attempts to see.  Despite falling just short, at 240 species, this is still my biggest Belgian year so far and the additional effort resulted in seven new species for my all-time Belgian list (Oriental Turtle Dove, Franklin's Gull, Sooty Shearwater, Rustic Bunting, Guillemot, Western Swamphen and Ross's Gull), which now stands at a respectable 325 species.  I left Belgium on just four occasions this year, all very brief, adding Hooded Crow (Berlin), plus 7 species in the Alps (Short-toed Eagle, Hoopoe, Crag Martin, Rock Thrush, Rock Bunting, Western Bonelli's Warbler and Italian Sparrow), and thus taking my overall year-list to 248 species.  With all my focus on finding new birds, the butterflies and odonata took a back seat this year and I didn't see any new species of either in Belgium, although my butterflying break in the Alps was very successful, with a total of 26 new species out of 61 identified in just two full days there. 

I do not plan another big year attempt for 2022 and am looking forward to some more relaxed birding, regularly visting my Brussels patch and finding my own birds rather than constantly chasing after other people's.  
Stay safe, healthy and make the most of what nature has to offer in 2022.

Velvet curtain

It's been five years since I last saw a Velvet Scoter, which is a very scarce winter visitor to Belgium, so Xmas Day saw me taking the train to an appropriately-named station in East Flanders to twitch two of them on a nearby lake.

They were easy to find, with a distant Red-necked Grebe as an added bonus, plus a male Black Redstart at Ghent station as a nice, unseasonal Xmas present.  Since I'm working the rest of the week and won't have time for any more twitches, the curtain thus draws on my big Belgian year with 240 species under my belt.  I had hoped for 250 but some terrible weather combined with a stubborn cold during my time off earlier this month put paid to that!

BE #240 (Velvet Scoter)

BRU #116

Glossy Xmas

Yesterday I walked 18km from Diksmuide to Nieuwpoort just to see these three Glossy Ibis, which are frequenting a nature reserve roughly half-way between the two.  It seemed to be a pair with their youngster (the middle bird) and are part of a strange, mid-winter influx of this species at the moment, with lots of them turning up in the UK.  The area was really good, containing lots of White-fronted plus a few Pink-footed Geese, as well as Marsh Harrier, Grey Partridge, Golden Plover, Goldfinch, Fieldfare, Redwing and a hunting Sparrowhawk.  Best of all, though, was the Long-eared Owl roost I discovered along the bank of the river IJzer, with at least eight owls present.  This was a big surprise and only about an hour's walk from Diksmuide, so it's great to have another owl roost I can take people to.  

BE #239 (Glossy Ibis)

BRU #116

Alpine advent Day 24

And finally, Great Banded Grayling/Kanetisa circe was quite common but I had to place a dead one on a rock with its wings open in order to get a picture of the upperside.

The two new species I saw but didn't manage to photograph were Clouded Apollo and Moorland Clouded Yellow, so here's hoping I can get back to Modane next summer for those and more!  Happy holidays.

Alpine advent Day 23

This, on the other hand, seems to be Swiss Grayling/Hipparchia genava.  It is slightly smaller, although that is only useful when seeing the two side-by-side, and tends to prefer more open, rocky habitats.  Notice how the brown-white border seems to be more of a diagonal line with a central brown triangle protruding into the white band.  Also, the brown on the forewing tapers to a much more elongated point below the ocellus than the previous species.

Alpine advent Day 22

The next species pair can only really be identified by studying their sexual organs under a microscope, although there are some consistent differences in the wing pattern which help point in the right direction.  This, therefore, is probably Woodland Grayling/Hipparchia fagi, based primarily on size, habitat and the fairly evenly curved border between the dark-brown and the whitish band on the hindwing.

Alpine advent Day 21

Great Sooty Satyrs/Satyrus ferula were everywhere but it took me a long time to get the hang of them due to their strong sexual dimorphism.  Here, first, is the underside of a male followed by the upperside of a female, the opposite views already having appeared in my trip write-up.

Alpine advent Day 20

The last, and largest, of the four, new species of erebia I manged to identify was Piedmont Ringlet/Erebia meolans, which I only saw around 1900m.

Alpine advent Day 19

Lesser Mountain Ringlet/Erebia melampus is just as small and rather similar, except the orange band is less solid and it also has orange spots on the underwing.

Ross-mania

No, there's not been a sudden, unexpected revival of the tv-series Friends, but Belgium's birders are currently being entertained by not one but two Ross's Gulls, a high-Arctic species which was not even on the Belgian list until 1 December, when the first bird was photographed by a single observer in Nieuwpoort.  This bird was then relocated just over the border in France, where it attracted a steady stream of admirers, but then the unthinkable happened and a second individual was found roosting amongst the Black-headed Gulls within the harbour of Zeebrugge.  The first bird has since returned to where it was originally discovered, meaning the really keen (and those willing to trespass to see the second bird) can actually see two different Ross's Gulls in Belgium on the same day!  My first chance to see the original bird in Nieuwpoort was yesterday and I got to the pier to see it happily wheeling around and briefly landing on the water right in front of me.  It did this non-stop for the next hour, repeatedly passing just above my head, and it even called once as it was right above me.  It didn't stop for more than the briefest of moments on the water and was flying so fast it reminded me of a hummingbird.  Trying to get any sort of picture was a challenge, therefore, but they at least prove I saw the bird.

Thankfully, the Guillemots in Ostend harbour were a bit more co-operative.

This was one of three birds present there and I also saw a Razorbill in Nieuwpoort so, while it was great to see both species on the same day, it is a little worrying that it may be due to food shortages out to sea pushing them further inshore to find food.  There have plenty of dead and dying auks found all along the coast so far this winter so something is definitely not right.

BE #238 (ROSS'S GULL, Red-throated Diver, Eider)

BRU #116

Alpine advent Day 18

Considerably smaller is the Mountain Ringlet/Erebia epiphron, here the subspecies aetheria, which has tiny ocelli and a plain underwing.

Alpine advent Day 17

The erebias are a truly alpine genus.  Only two species just about reach the very south and east of Belgium, where they are both scarce, whereas almost twenty species can be found in the area I visited.  They are all dark brown with varying amounts of orange and ocelli, with considerable subspecific and individual variation making their identification a nightmare.  The very first one I saw landed on my shoe and I only got a shot of the underside so I needed some expert help to id it as Large Ringlet/Erebia euryale.  I was happy, therefore, to later find another one with its wings open.

Alpine advent Day 16

This is the only photo I took of what I think is Dusky Meadow Brown/Hyponephele lycaon, although I'm still waiting for my id to be confirmed.

Alpine advent Day 15

Northern Wall Brown/Lasiommata petropolitana is virtually identical to the more widespread Large Wall Brown except for a distinctive, dark brown line across the upper hindwing, visible in the second picture.

Alpine advent Day 14

Knapweed Fritillary/Melitaea phoebe was less numerous and I only managed to identify a couple of them.

Alpine advent Day 13

I saw ten species of fritillary in the Alps but only two of them were new for me.  Titania's Fritillary/Boloria titania seemed to be quite common around 1900m.

Alpine advent Day 12

Of the six new species of blue I recorded, I was most pleased to find this Meleager's Blue/Meleageria daphnis, with its rather distinctive wing shape (females are even more irregular).

Alpine advent Day 11

This one immediately struck me as being a different shade of blue to all the others and, despite getting just the one photo, I think it is probably Turquoise Blue/Plebicula dorylas.

Alpine advent Day 10

Geranium Argus/Eumedonia eumedon is one of several blues which aren't actually blue.  This is probably a female due to the orange lunules on the upper hindwing, posing together with day 3's Dusky Grizzled Skipper.

Alpine advent Day 9

The Cranberry Blue/Vacciniina optilete picture already posted, could really have been anything since the distinguishing feature wasn't visible.  This blurry photo allowed me to make the id, however, since it clearly shows the single orange spot on the hindwing.

Alpine advent Day 8

The three Plebejus species are also notoriously difficult to tell apart but I believe this one to be Reverdin's Blue/Plebejus argyrognomon.

UPDATE - Jan2022: This has since been re-identified as the extremely variable Idas Blue/Plebejus idas, which is not a lifer, unfortunately.  Reverdin's is only supposed to be at lower altitudes whereas these were taken at 1900m.

Alpine advent Day 7

On to the bewildering blues, then.  With so many potential species in the area, I just had to get as many pictures as possible and hope to identify them once I got home.  Osiris Blue/Cupido osiris is very similar to Small Blue except for the dull blue upperside of the males (Small Blue males and females are both brown).

Alpine advent Day 6

Purple-shot Copper/Lycaena alciphron, on the other hand, was one of the first new butterflies I identified and this, a female, was the only one I got to see.

Alpine advent Day 5

Next up are the Lycaenidae, which include the Coppers and Blues.  I already featured a Scarce Copper/Lycaena virgaureae in my trip write-up, since it was the last new species I found right at the end of my second day.  I then saw several individuals, though, so here are some more shots of this stunner.

Alpine advent Day 4

Last but by no means least, this is Large Grizzled Skipper/Pyrgus alveus, the largest and commonest of the grizzled skippers I managed to identify, although there were undoubtedly some other species which got away.

Alpine advent Day 3

The overall more subdued colouration and missing = sign of yesterday's species make this one a Dusky Grizzled Skipper/Pyrgus cacaliae, I think!

Alpine advent Day 2

Moving on to the grizzled skippers, of which there are so many similar species they are even more difficult to identify than the rest of their family, I believe this to be Alpine Grizzled Skipper/Pyrgus andromedae due to the faint yet distinctive = sign on the inner forewing, as highlighted in the second picture.

Alpine advent Day 1

If you've been following my blog this year, you'll know my only trip outside of Belgium, other than city trips to Berlin and Cologne, was a very short break in Modane looking for butterflies.  Despite only having two full days there, I ended up identifying 61 species, 26 of which were new for me.  Of those, I managed to get pictures of 24, which is the perfect number for an alpine butterfly advent calendar, featuring each of the new species I photographed.

Starting with the skippers, therefore, which are terribly difficult to identify, so much so that shots of both the upper- and underside are really required to be able to id them confidently.  This is the one and only Marbled Skipper/Carcharodus levatharae I saw.