Nature Watch, with Ron Freethy

READERS Bradde and Anita Bentley recently spotted an unusual bird in their garden in Warwick Drive, Earby, and sent me some drawings in the hope of getting it identified.

They write: "It did not behave like a captive bird but definitely like a wild bird. It was the shape of a blackbird but the size of a starling.

"Its behaviour was also like a blackbird's, moving leaves, soil and other debris to get at worms and grubs. It also bobbed about like a robin or a dunnock.

"It had a sooty black hood and bib, its eyes were black and its beak was very pale yellow. Its wings and back were a very dark steely grey/blue, while its breast was a very gingery/rust colour.

"Below and to the rear it was a buff colour, changing to a greyish white at its rear end.

"I hope we have given you enough information to be able to identify it.

"We regularly feed the wild birds and are used to seeing the occasional unusual bird in the garden.

"We enjoy watching birds and have done so for many years. We have several books on birds of Britain, Europe and the world but we cannot find this one in any of them.

"I hope you are as interested as we are to know what this bird is."

RON SAYS: From the drawings and accurate description, the bird is obviously a member of the thrush family. I wonder if it was an American robin, driven in by the fierce storms of the last days of December? What do other readers think?

Swallow takes a late seasonal break

YOUNG Michelle Dagger and her father Geoff are regular contributors to this page and they have both let me know about some interesting recent sightings:

"RECENTLY I have had two unusual sightings for the time of year.

The first was on November 28 when we saw a swallow at Happy Mount Park, in Morecambe.

And yesterday we had a female blackcap on our garden. I read in my bird-book that some stay in this country all year but this is the first time we have seen them in our garden in winter."

MICHELLE DAGGER, Highbank, Roe Lee, Blackburn.

"I HAD a lovely sighting of my own the other day, two roe deer in Pleasington Old Hall woods. This is the first time I have seen them in this area."

GEOFF DAGGER

THIS really is a happy New Year for the Dagger family with three exciting observations to end 1999. The swallow record really is a late sighting. We must hope that this late traveller survives and returns to breed in Lancashire next year.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.