A rare bird has been spotted in a Scottish man’s garden for 38 days, setting a new UK-wide record.
Jimmy Crawford, from Kilwinning in Ayrshire, has been seeing a myrtle warbler outside of his home since February. Since then, the rare species has attracted visitors from as far as Cornwall to come and take a look.
The last time a myrtle warbler was recorded on the UK mainland was 2014, when one was observed in County Durham. With 38 days and counting in Crawford’s garden, this now marks the longest-ever time one of the birds has stayed in the UK.
I’m sure Guinness is eagerly making notes
A couple of the reserves that I have worked on have been the subject of big twitches.
One was an island and not open at the time - and we were extremely glad of it on that occasion. It immediately eliminated most of the problem and we sent the few that did come over in boats packing fairly quickly. There were swarms of them in the village on the mainland for a few days though.
The other was a nightmare - roads blocked by random parking, trampled and destroyed vegetation, litter all over the place. It really is the very opposite of conservation.