Photos by: Nigel Blake, (Nigel's website), Neil Calbrade, Graham Catley, Mark Dowie, Paul Hackett, Hugh Harrop (Hugh's website), Iain Leach, Mike Malpass, Ian Mills, Mark Thomas, Steven Blain (Steven's website)

November started off in typical fashion with the onset of winter signalled by the arrival of a "small" CANADA GOOSE at Martin Mere, Lancashire and a report of a fly-by WHITE-BILLED DIVER past Gibraltar Point, Lincolnshire. A DOTTEREL in Suffolk on the 1st had clearly "missed the plane." Bill Baston's lovely GREY PHALOROPE that graces this month's cover of Surfbirds hung around until the 5th. The first of a handful of November OLIVE-BACKED PIPITS turned up on the Isles of Scilly on the 1st.

East met west in the next few days, as Holme in Norfolk hosted a typically obliging DESERT WHEATEAR from the 2nd to the 4th (click here for more photos) whilst Cornwall hosted an AMERICAN ROBIN (!) for the same period and Wales scored with a GRAY-CHEEKED THRUSH from the 3rd to the 4th.

This autumn will surely be remembered for its shrikes, with two more ISABELLINE SHRIKES arriving at Flamborough, East Yorkshire on the 8th and Whitley Bay, East Tyneside on the 9th (click here for photos). But highlight of the month was undoubtedly Britain's first LONG-TAILED SHRIKE (click here for another photo). Although only identified on the 3rd, it had probably been on Uist, Outer Hebrides since the end of October. But by staying until only the 4th, only Britain's most active twitchers added this bird to their lists !

Back in the West Country, Cornwall scored again with a SPANISH SPARROW reported on the 12th but not relocated thereafter.

By mid-month interesting ducks were starting to return with last year's CANVASBACKS reappearing with southerly bound POCHARDS at their favoured wintering quarters in Essex (on the 12th) and Kent (on the 18th). But most birders will have headed in the opposite direction to bag a long overdue STELLER'S EIDER that arrived in Moray, Scotland on the 16th and stayed until the 18th (click here to see photos). The first for over 30 years, it could well still be in the country somewhere.

Another confiding Wheatear, this time a PIED WHEATEAR, arrived at Gibraltar Point , Lincolnshire on the 16th and stayed until the 26th (click here to see more photos) - a little longer than the month's second DESERT WHEATEAR in Cleveland from the 12th - 14th (click here to see a photo).

As usual, November scored well with rare phylloscs, with an average of 2 PALLAS'S WARBLERS (click here for photo) and 1 YELLOW-BROWED WARBLER per day , whilst HUME'S YELLOW-BROWED WARBLERS have reached double figures this autumn with another seven birds in November (click here to see more photos). With so many of these little 'phyllosc gems' in the country this month, it was not surprising that birders got a wake up call from Landguard to the possibility of other eastern Phylloscopus making landfall in Britain.

By the end of the month, east coast sea-watchers had recorded fair numbers of POMARINE SKUAS, a handful of LONG-TAILED SKUAS and a dozen or so SABINE'S GULLS (click here for photo). But LITTLE AUK numbers in the North Sea are low this autumn. Birders along the Bristol Channel must have been amazed by the sight of a CORY'S SHEARWATER drifting west on the 26th.

Wintering birds were back in good numbers with as many as ten BLACK BRANTS in the country, similar numbers of AMERICAN WIGEON, one RED-BREASTED GOOSE at the Loch of Strathbeg, and many returning RING-NECKED DUCKS, GREEN-WINGED TEALS and FERRUGINOUS DUKS (click here for photo).

Wintering raptors included a WHITE-TAILED EAGLE in Aberdeenshire on the 7th, a GYR FALCON reported on and off from County Wicklow, Ireland and a handful of ROUGH-LEGGED BUZZARDS.

With Christmas almost on us, make sure to check the tops of those Spruce trees - inside and out!.

MERRY CHRISTMAS