Odd visitor or mundane?

[brianwall]

I'm not a bird watcher but someone said this was unusual. Is it? Today 20 Jan at Mudeford Quay Dorset.

[MIKE THROWER]

Turnstone in Winter plumage

[Kingfisher]

Always a lovely bird to see but not unusual at all.

[Little Sparrow]

Yes, unusual if you have not seen a Turnstone before. A great sighting and a great image!

Edit: Oops...sorry Brian. A warm welcome to the forum.

[Twitcheruth]

A common wader but always a delight to see......a nice image too Brian.......welcome to the forum!

[Kingfisher]

Originally Posted by Little Sparrow

Yes, unusual if you have not seen a Turnstone before.

True...

[Dave Appleton]

Unusual? Actually Turnstone is probably the greatest national rarity I have ever found. After I discovered it I could only find 17 previous documented records in the entire country, ever.

In case you hadn't guessed, I wasn't in the UK - the country I'm talking about was Malawi.

[aquila 1]

Thats just what happend to me, I was on Cyprus last year, and took loads of pictures of white and yellow wagtails, while on a trip up the troodos saw a pied wagtail, by sheer chance i took a picture, turns out there has only ever been one privious sighting, still waiting confirmation. Mac

[Stargazer]

Turnstones are a common coastal bird in this country, resident all year round. But that doesn't mean they're not good to see; if we only got excited about seeing the unusual or rare then we'd be pretty bored most of the time!

Nice photograph too. And although you say you're not a birder then you obviously have some interest by virtue of having asked the question, so I suppose you are one now! Stick around and enjoy the forum. We don't bite (often!) and we can lead you ever deeper into the amazing avian world...

[magpie]

You may not be a bird watcher, but you can certainly produce a cracking picture, they are lovely birds, well done.