Finding an unexpected bird on your local patch is 'more exciting' than twitching a rarity, insists Urban Birder

                                          

David Lindo - whinchats in London

CONTRARY to what many believe, there is much more to urban birdlife than feral pigeons.

That was the message loud and clear from David Lindo in his lively talk at Global Birdfair 2024.

"Up to 85 per cent of the 620 species on the British list have been watched in towns or cities," declared David, also known as the Urban Birder. "London alone has recorded more than 320 of them.

There are now 200 pairs of peregrine falcons breeding on tall building in various parts of London

Though now resident in the Extremadura region in Spain, David grew up in Wembley, North London, where he once saw a redstart in the back garden!

"His local 'patch' for many years was the 183-acre area of undeveloped land known as Wormwood Scrubs (also home to a prison where he once gave a talk).

The array of Scrubs birds, especially during migration when many drop groundwards to feed, constantly reminded him of the golden lesson of birding that "anything can  turn up anywhere at any time.

Among his favourite spring and autumn sightings have been ring ouzels and whinchats - on one occasion, 22 of the latter on a single day.

                                                   

Ring ouzel - regular migratory visitor to London

A staunch advocate of patch birding, David insisted that  the delight  of finding an unusual or unfamiliar birds (not necessarily a rarity) on one's  doorstep surpassed  that of twitching some vagrant species in Shetland.

"It's more exciting and more satisfying," he enthused. "You've found it - it's your bird on your chosen patch."

That said, he confessed that he could not resist dashing to Hyde Park when word reached him back in January 2013 that a pair of bearded tits had turned up in a miniscule area of reedbed.

"Bearded tits aren't really tits at all," he said. "That's a false name  - they are more closely related to larks."

Later, David wrote about the unusual occurrence under the heading: "I saw a pair of fake tits in Hyde Park Park.

"Nothing I've written before or since has ever been so well read!"

Other star moments of his urban birding career have included an incident while  walking in Notting Hill when he noticed a commotion as dozens of carrion crows took  to the sky.

"Overhead was a honey buzzard," he recalled. "That was a bit special, and it's why I always urge birders to look up."

David has written two books about his birding activities in town and city - Tales from Concrete Jungles and How to Be an Urban Birder.

His latest book, Fly - A Child's Guide to Birds and How to Spot Them, illustrated by Sara Boccaccini, has been long-listed for the 2024 Wainwright Prize for Children's Writing on Nature and Conservation.

                                             

David's most recent book has been nominated for a prestigious prize