2 Least Sandpipers - pics of both birds + video footage

When I wrote "A brilliant start to August. What's next?!" at the bottom of my last post, I didn't expect the answer to be a second Least Sandpiper the following day! What a crazy morning. Thanks to Sue Smith for the initial phone call - a group of birders had another small wader towards the back of Black Hole Marsh and needed some pics to help with ID as it was sat directly in line with the Sun meaning scope views were badly back-lit. Visiting birder Gus Robin found the bird and the discussion in the hide was leaning towards a 2nd Least Sandpiper until we were told with confidence that it was a Temminck's Stint. News then went out that it was a Temminck's but a few people on Twitter were questioning it saying it looks like the Least. It certainly wasn't THE Least, as we could see that bird at the same time! BOC pics are never that great to judge ID with so the mis-ID was understandable. The bird soon flew and me plus 2 others failed to relocate it after a check of Coly Common so I popped home to sort the pics out as that was the only way the ID would now be sorted unless it reappeared. After pulling the highlights and boosting the shadows on the pics it was obvious that the 2nd wader was indeed a 2nd Least Sandpiper; a similar scenario to the ID'ing of the first bird being clinched by pics before positive news could reliably go out late in the evening (not that it was necessary in the end due to the close views the next morning). This really does emphasise the importance of photos of such birds, especially in challenging light conditions. Without sufficient pics this second bird would have gone down as unidentified, or worse, mis-ID'd as Temminck's Stint. There will inevitably be slight scepticism about it being a different Least Sand, especially as it flew off, but there was a crowd of 20 or so people watching the birds and we could see both birds at the same time, so it's non-negotiable that there were 2 present. Quite extraordinary!

Here's a distant pic of the 2nd bird. It's rubbish compared to the previously posted pics of the original bird but certainly worth posting:

Talking of the original bird, it showed well again this evening after the crowds had reduced. Here's a taster of some new pics - better ones to follow when I get a chance:

And here's another video clip. I like the bit where it stumbles slightly...

Congratulations and many thanks go to Gus Robin for finding the 2nd Least Sandpiper on Black Hole Marsh. Also cheers to Sue Smith for the call and to the people in the hide for rushing me through to grab some pics - these proved very important in the end so big thanks to everyone involved on site; you all saw 2 Least Sandpipers on one small reserve, on 04-08-16.