Was a Houbara Bustard that turned up in Suffolk the first rare bird to be 'twitched' in Britain?

                                    

Jon Gower's book - a personal pilgrimage to encounter some of Britain's most charismatic birds

WHICH was the first rare bird arrival in Britain to spark the phenomenon that came to be known as 'twitching'?

In his fascinating new book, Birdland, Jon Gower comes up with his own very plausible theory.

He writes: "The Houbara Bustard which fetched up in a field of mustard in Suffolk in the early 1960s was protected by the landowner who freely allowed ornithologists to come to see it, in so doing ushering in the age of twitching whereby birdwatchers flock to see a rare bird."

Subtitled A Journey Around Britain on The Wing, this leisurely-written book is full of such conversational gambits.

The author is a most engaging companion as he takes us on a grand tour around England, Scotland and Wales, visiting  birding hotspots and meeting fellow enthusiasts.

Among the  places on his itinerary is Portland Bill in Dorset - possibly the spot where more species have been recorded than any where else in Britain.

One of the most memorable days  in the history of its bird observatory, he reckons, was September 9, 1956, when migrant arrivals  included a quail, 250 Turtle Doves, three Bluethroats, seven Corncrakes, three Tawny Pipits and five Ortolan Buntings.

On a visit to the Hebridean island of Tiree, the author visits John and Janet Bowler whose garden has hosted such rarities as Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Swainson's Thrush, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Dusky Warbler, Blyth's Reed Warbler, Collared Flycatcher and Brown Shrike.

At Gibraltar Point in Lincolnshire, he meets up with former Inland Revenue officer Phil Espin, "a twitcher on a global scale",  whose tally of sightings, as of going to press, was no fewer than 631 species - the most recent being a Swinhoe's Petrel that he had purposely visited Singapore to see.

On one occasion, Phil was having his hair cut when word came through of a yellow-breasted Bunting.

Halfway through the haircut, Phil leapt from the chair and dashed off with a couple of pals to twitch what he describes as "a fantastic bird".

Like probably all Welsh authors, Gower (who lives in Cardiff) cherishes the richness of language and his narrative is peppered with frequent poetic flourishes.

For instance, he describes the Kittiwake as "a bird of brine and chop, surging swell and far horzons".

The author obviously also has a sense of humour, often at his  own expense, as when he describes his uncomfortable experiences on a borrowed bicycle.

"The wind can turn a fat man on a cycle into a circus act," he jests. "They very antithesis of Lance Armstrong."

Gower also  reveals that, now in his mid-60s, he was once a chain smoker and has had osteo-arthritis for 15 years such that, after walks of more than five or so miles, his legs tend to be "grumbly, creaky and sorely in need of Ibuprofen".

With a handsome cover portrait  of a  Peregrine in flight but mercifully free of other illustrations (which might have been  distracting), Birdland - A Journey Around Britain on The Wing is published by Manchester-based Harper North at £22 in hardback.