Since late July (!) I have been on the hunt for a local Redstart but to no avail.  In 2022 I had a bright male as early as 4th July so it feels like it's been a long wait to get one.  This year the first Herts bird turned up not far away on the edge of Hatfield on 11th August but, despite further county records, none appeared locally.

As part of my search, I targeted Potwells and Redwell Farm on the hill above London Colney and have visited almost every day.  I was of course rewarded with a Goshawk, Tree Pipits and Spotted Flycatchers but my real quarry - a Redstart - remained undiscovered.  That was until today when I entered one of the sheep fields at Potwells and out of the corner of my eye saw a shadow flit up into the bush overhanging the fence-line.

I almost dismissed it as one of the many Robins and Chiffchaffs that were omnipresent but this time, sat on the top wire of the fence, was a female Redstart!  A very welcome #145 for my local 2024 5 miles from home list.  I should add that, just a couple of days before, I had added #144 to the list - an adult Mediterranean Gull that had made a brief appearance at Tyttenhanger GPs.

The Redstart was very elusive so afforded no photo opportunity but I did watch it for a little longer flitting around in the middle of the hedgerow.  Instead, my header photo is of a similar bird at the same site last year.

It's been a 'Goshawk year' for me with several rare chance encounters rather than the usual sightings at well-known viewpoints in Yorkshire or the New Forest.  This magnificent bird of prey with its near-mythical status thanks to its rarity and secretive habits had, until this year, eluded me locally.  And yet, with reports of this species spreading nationally, it seemed only a matter of time before I would encounter one in Herts.

And indeed, on 16th March this year I stood in the garden observing a particularly good passage of Buzzards overhead when I suddenly spotted a soaring Goshawk with 2 or 3 Common Buzzards.  Immediately identifiable by its classic shape it appeared to be an adult bird with very white undersides and possibly a female given it was almost the same size as the Buzzards it soared with.  Typically, no camera to hand it disappeared out of sight - a new species for the garden list and for my 5-miles from home local patch list.

A few days later I decided to check out a place that has for a long time been mooted as a possible sight for local Goshawks - Prae Wood in the Gorhambury Estate on the edge of St Albans.  My first visit with another local birder gave us a few 'likely' sightings encouraging us but not convincing us 100%.  A bonus bird took the form of a Woodlark flying up the valley but the Goshawk remains a real rarity and better views were needed before I could be sure!

A few days later I tried another viewpoint which gave reasonable views over the main woodland and was rewarded quite quickly with 2 separate Goshawks soaring up on several occasions before quickly dropping back down and out of sight.  The best view came as a Goshawk rose up only to be dived on by a Sparrowhawk - something I never thought I'd see in St Albans!  The Sparrowhawk looked tiny compared to the Goshawk and I wished I had got my digi-scope setup ready in time.

​Sadly, all the views were too brief to secure decent shots of the birds so others would just have to take my word for it!  Despite a couple of others seeing the birds in subsequent days it felt like a question mark remained for the doubting Thomas' of the bird-world.  With a bird like the Goshawk, it seems seeing really is believing!  A few later visits to the woods did not produce any further views and whether these birds bred or not remains to be seen.

I had a number of other Goshawk encounters as the year went on with a bird soaring high over the New Forest and one that cut past almost at ground level when visiting the well-known hotspot that is Acres Down.  Unusually, on a return trip from Cornwall, a bird cruised across the A303 on Salisbury Plain as I drove.  Already, my Goshawk tally for the year was above average.

It was a real surprise therefore when one of my recent visits to Potwells in North Mymms Park on 28th August produced the best sighting of all - a local bird and one that soared long enough for me to capture some all-important photographs.  A fresh juvenile bird, evident from it's orangery-buff plumage causing speculation that this might indeed be a locally raised bird.  Of course, it may have just been passing through and sadly, to date, no further sightings have been made.  That said, Goshawk is firmly on my local radar and hopefully it won't be too long before breeding in the county is confirmed.

I have been on the hunt for a good vantage point in St Albans (and within 5 miles of home) that would serve as a reliable 'vismig' or visible migration watchpoint.  Based on some recent visits I think I may have found one!  My hope is that if it delivers, it will become a key part of my local birding arsenal, perhaps connecting me to migrating passerines that I wouldn't otherwise get - like Crossbills, Hawfinch and, at this time of year, Tree Pipits.

​So, at 5.30am on 25th August I arrived at Potwells in North Mymms Park just to the southeast of St Albans.  It is part of what is probably, at 130m above sea-level, the highest point around St Albans.  It was a clear, still morning - perfect for Tree Pipits - and I had good views to the south and east with the woodland behind me.  I was interested to note the lines of movement over the site so I could know best where to pick up migrating birds.

The usual early morning southwards passage of larger gulls was evident in the valley but very little else seemed to be on the move.  Just after 6am I thought I heard some faint calls that could pass as Tree Pipits so I played the Tree Pipit calls on my phone and waited.  I heard the calls again faintly, sounding like 2 individual birds and began to get excited.  I played the calls again and before I knew it 2 Tree Pipits flew overhead, just above treetop height calling as they went!

They headed over the valley in a south-easterly direction having appeared from over the woods behind me.  By 6.30am a further 4 had flown over on the same trajectory meaning that I had now witnessed 6 (possibly more) Tree Pipits migrating over my home patch!  This was the highest count I had ever had in Herts but made me wonder what sort of numbers I might be able to get on a really good day when lots of birds are moving.

That said, birds were clearly on the move that day with 2 Spotted Flycatchers on the edge of Redwell Woods as I returned to the car - my first local birds for the year.  Together with the Tree Pipits they took my 5 miles from home list to 143 species - just 7 species shy of my 150 annual target.

This Thursday I went on a long walk with a friend in hot sunshine through the Hertfordshire countryside.  The birdlife was by and large subdued in the heat - typical of this time of year - but the usual Red Kites and Buzzards were in evidence along with the occasional song of Blackcaps and Whitethroats.

Our walk finished in a quiet lane in the village of Benington and as we entered the lane we were immediately greeted with the sharp tsick! calls of Spotted Flycatchers.  I knew the call immediately as it was the summer soundtrack of my childhood garden in St Albans when these birds used to nest in our porch.  Though they have not nested in the garden since the early 1990s there is still faint traces of their droppings on the stonework of the porch but the nest material has long gone.

Spotted Flycatchers have sadly been in sharp decline with little understanding of how we might arrest this decline.  The plummeting numbers of insects must surely play its part but it seems other factors abroad and perhaps beyond our control may also be at work.  Encounters with these birds are therefore a mix of nostalgia, joy and sadness at their demise.

Watching the flycatchers in Benington on Thursday they give you no hint at their troubles but are as they were all those years ago in my garden.  I have always loved how such a drab, brown little bird can exude such presence: perched up prominently on a jutting twig, swooping and darting to catch flies and issuing their contact calls all the while.  Hopefully their family-raising will be successful and they will return for many years to come.