2004

2004 was an odd year. Twitchable species were few and most twitchable taxa were either so-called Dutch splits (White-throated Wagtail) or ducks with an history of several previous escapes (Marbled Duck and Bufflehead). Moreover, two new species for the Netherlands were not twitchable at all: Rock Bunting (30 May on Rottum) and Grey-necked Bunting (16 October at Castricum). A White's Thrush at IJmuiden on 1 October was the highlight sofar, for most of us a dream came true. Other goodies were the second records for Western Subalpine Warbler (Vlieland on 3-5 October) and Western Black-eared Wheatear (Eemshaven on 30 October to 28 November). Finally there was a large invasion of Pine Grosbeaks in Northern Europe, and on 16th November, a pair was found in Groningen.


Crowd at the Pine Grosbeaks, with Nils van Duivendijk looking sad: the birds are too easy to identify! © Jan van der Laan.

White-throated Wagtail
Marbled Duck
White's Thrush
Western Subalpine Warbler
Western Black-eared Wheatear
Bufflehead
Pine Grosbeak

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