Great start to the year - Hawfinch, Great Northern Diver & Dusky Thrush

Started the day at Cromford and, stood by the entrance to Willersley Castle, was very pleased to see a flock of at least 14 Hawfinch flying towards me from the church. They turned before crossing the river and landed in the tops of the trees between the church and the Arkwright Mill Car Park. I walked round and the birds were still in a loose group in the tops of the trees before flying off together over the road in the Rugby Club direction but I quickly lost sight of them. I had a single bird in the trees by the Willersley entrance but didn't see the flock again by 10:00 when I left. Are the birds roosting in the church area then feeding elsewhere? This is the largest group I have seen at Cromford.
At Carsington I had distance views of the Great Northern Diver from the Millfield car park then left for Beeley. The Dusky Thrush was in it's usual area in the grassy field on Pig Lane and showed well to the 40-50 birders who were present. Apparently it had been in the same area since at least 09:30.

Bird watchers on Pig Lane

Dusky Thrush still present in Beeley at year end

The Dusky Thrush was again on Pig Lane in Beeley this morning from 08:00 to 09:30 whilst I was present but was still being reported mid-afternoon.
All week it has favoured a hawthorn hedge about half-way along Pig Lane, best viewed from the metal gate just beyond the barn on the right hand side. It is usually seen feeding on the grass below the hawthorns but sits in the hawthorns for periods when it can sometimes be seen feeding on the berries. Occasionally it has flown across the fields and fed with Redwing in neighbouring fields.

Hawthorn hedge below large Ash tree favoured by Dusky Thrush

Dusky Thrush back in Beeley village

After leaving the moor this morning Mel and I decided to stop off in Beeley village. The sun was shining, for a change, but we had no great expectations. However, as the orchard came in to view at Dukes Barn Outdoor Centre the first bird we saw was the Dusky Thrush hopping off the ground in to the closest apple trees! 
It was around 10:15 and it stayed around the orchard until about 10:25 before flying up the hedge at the back of the centre. Mel then picked it up again feeding with Redwing in a hawthorn. We then lost it so went to have a look at the orchard on School Lane but no sign, so walked back to Dukes Barn and there it was again at around 11:30. Again it flew away up the hedgerow at the back of the centre.
Doubtless it has been in the area all the time and now present for 2 weeks.

Dusky Thrush

Mandarin at Rowsley but no sign of the Dusky Thrush

I'm not clear on the movement of Mandarin in the Darley Dale area. Numbers peak during the breeding season and late summer then rapidly decline in the autumn but then start to increase again in the late winter. There is a significant increase in birds at Linacre Reservoir in the early winter so perhaps our birds go there for a few months?
I check the Mallards at Peak Village for Mandarin but haven't seen any for at least a month but today there were at least 6 males and 3 females. All looking very smart.

Mandarin -male

I spent a couple of hours at Beeley this morning but no sign of the Dusky Thrush. My last sighting was on Wednesday  morning (14th at 9:20) and it looks like this may be my final photo our our rare Siberian visitor.

Dusky Thrush

Dusky Thrush - Beeley village day 10

I gave the weekend a miss in anticipation of the large number of visiting birders wanting to see the Dusky Thrush. It sounds like there were perhaps a 1000+ visitors over the weekend, which appears to have run smoothly with Dukes Barn offering a free park a ride from the Chatsworth Calton Lees car park. As far as I'm aware this is the first time a park and ride has been provided for a UK twitch!
I have spent this morning and yesterday morning at the orchard with around 50 other birders each day, many of whom were making second visits. The weather has remained misty and overcast with some heavy rain showers and although it was present in the orchard most of yesterday morning it sat preening for long periods when it was generally partially obscured in the apple trees. It occasionally fed on the ground when I took the photo below which shows the rusty outer edges to the tertials, secondaries and base of the outer tail feathers.

Dusky Thrush

There was a report of a potential Black-throated Thrush on the bird news services for 09:30 yesterday but I was there and there was no mention of it, so not sure how that came about.
This morning it wasn't seen in the orchard by mid-day but most visitors managed to catch up with it late morning from the track which runs up the hillside on the other side of the hedge bordering Dukes Barn ropes course. 
May try again tomorrow but again the weather forecast is poor.
Dukes Barn are hosting the annual village Xmas lunch tomorrow (Wednesday 14th) so their parking may be restricted and there will be no access 22nd December to 2nd January as they have a private function.

Dusky Thrush - Beeley village day 5

There is still a lot of interest in the Dusky Thrush, despite continuing poor weather. 
I had a couple of hours there today and was lucky to see it well in the orchard feeding on apples.

Dusky Thrush - first winter, probably female

It's also made the news featuring on the BBC and various news papers both local and national during the past couple of days.

Dusky Thrush - Beeley village present for 3rd day

The Dusky Thrush was still in Beeley village this morning. It showed well several times in the Orchard, viewable from the Dukes Barn Outdoor Centre from first light to about 8:30. It returned about 10:30 to feed on an apple in one of trees before turning up again in the hawthorns on the northern end of the playing fields. It was then not seen again until 12:50 when it was again at the northern end of the playing fields finally, It returned briefly to the Orchard around 3pm.

Dusky Thrush - probably first winter

Thanks again to the folk at the Dukes Barn Outdoor Centre who again provided parking (just £3 for the charity), bacon and sausage cobs and toilet facilities. They even brought out chips and sandwiches to the birdwatchers waiting patiently by the Orchard and at the Playing Fields.

Birders at the Playing Fields

I estimated there were around 250 birders yesterday and a similar number today. 
The weather was gloomy and overcast (again!) and the Beeley - Chesterfield Road is still closed during daylight hours.

Beeley village

Dusky Thrush - Beeley Village, 13th record for Britain

Beeley resident Rachel Jones posted the photo below on the internet yesterday unsure what species of thrush it was. It was clearly a Dusky Thrush and only the 13th recorded in Britain and a first for Derbyshire. An amazing find from her garden!

Dusky (©Rachel Jones)

This morning, in very overcast and misty conditions, there were at least a dozen birders looking for the bird but, following an early sighting by the church, the numbers increased rapidly with around 100 birders there by late morning.
The bird favoured an orchard which is overlooked by the Dukes Barn Outdoor Centre and thanks to the people there who both provided additional car parking and allowed access on to their site to view the orchard.
This morning the bird showed several times in the orchard but in gloomy conditions, Rachel took another photo of the bird feeding in an apple tree. 
It's a first winter bird and, with extensive black spotting on the underparts and dark ear coverts, I think probably a male.

Dusky Thrush (©Rachel Jones)

If it stays during the week it's likely to attract many more bird watchers, including me hoping for slightly better light.
I took a couple of record photos;

Dusky Thrush

Birders in the village

The Dusky Thrush breeds in Eastern Siberian and winters in southern China and Japan so it's a long way from home.

Dusky Thrush distribution (© Birdlife International - I think this map may also include the recently separated Naumann's Thrush)

The list of British records is as follows;

1905 Nottinghamshire: Gunthorpe shot 13th October

1959 Cleveland: Hartlepool 1st winter male 12th Dec - 24th February 1960

1961 Shetland: Fair Isle 1st winter female 18th-21st October

1968 Shetland:Whalsay 24th September

1975 Shetland: Firth, Mainland 6th-13th November

1979 West Midlands: Majors Green 17th-19th February, 27th-28th February and 18th-23rd March

1983 Cornwall: Coombe Valley, Bude 13th November

1987 Pembrokeshire: Skomer 3rd-5th December

2010 Greater Manchester: Leigh near Wigan 9th December

2013 Kent: Margate 15th-18th May

2013 Devon: Brixham 26th October - 2nd November

2016 Isles of Scilly: Penninis 26th October (subject to acceptance by BBRC)

2016 Derbyshire: Beeley 4th December -?

Please respect the local residents and park sensibly in the village if you are visiting for the bird.

The Chesterfield - Beeley road is closed during the week for repairs to the dry stone walls so access to Beeley is best either via Baslow and Chatsworth or on the B5057 then A6 through Darley Dale.