Druridge Bay Curlew - Debate

Debate

Public discussion of the bird first surfaced on May 6, on the UKBirdnet mailing list, which at that time was the main internet discussion forum for British birders. Early postings from Phil Hansbro (based on a conversation with Brett Richards, who had been to see the bird) and from Ian Broadbent made a strong case for the identification as Slender-billed Curlew. Other observers raised questions, with three aspects causing concern:

1. the global rarity of the species and the likelihood of its occurrence in Britain
2. the fact that it showed a quite different appearance from the well-watched Slender-billed Curlews at Merja Zerga in Morocco in the late 1980s/early 1990s, and
3. whether all possible alternative identifications (e.g. an aberrant Eurasian Curlew or a hybrid) had been ruled out.

In mid-June, Birding World published an account of the bird, written by Tim Cleeves, his first public statement on the bird. The article dealt in detail with the circumstances of the bird's finding, its appearance, his reasons for making a confident identification of the bird as a Slender-billed Curlew, ageing and sexing of Slender-billed Curlews, their conservation status and likelihood of vagrancy. The article was accompanied by an editorial comment endorsing Cleeves's views. Cleeves also wrote a short account for the July edition of Birdwatch magazine.

These two articles prompted letters from Chris Heard outlining reasons why he believed that the case for identification of the bird as a Slender-billed Curlew was not proven. In his letter to Birding World, Heard made comparisons with the Merja Zerga birds, which he had seen, and listed the following concerns:

1. that the bill, while short and slim, was not correctly-shaped, being too straight, and that short-billed Eurasian Curlews do exist
2. that the Druridge curlew's head was not small and rounded, while its back was too rounded
3. that the bird lacked a well-marked supercilium, and did not show the dark-capped appearance typical of Slender-billed Curlew, and
4. that the bird did not show an eye-ring.

An editorial comment was published in reply to this letter, which included comments made by a number of the observers involved with the Druridge bird. A letter to Birdwatch from Chris Heard outlined the same concerns, and pointed out also that Eurasian Curlew can show spotted flank patterning and white underwings. This letter drew a response from Brett Richards.

The editorial comment in Birding World (to which Brett Richards contributed), and Richards' letter in Birdwatch, responded to Chris Heard's concerns by making the following points:

1. that Slender-billed Curlew's bill shape is likely to vary, as does that of Eurasian Curlew and Whimbrel
2. that the Druridge bird's head-shape did appear at times to be correct
3. that the back shape of Slender-billed Curlew varies depending on what the bird is doing, and so did that of the Druridge bird
4. that first-summer Slender-billed Curlews may not have eye-rings, or that the strength of this feature may vary between individuals, and that in fact the Druridge bird did have an eye-ring, albeit not as prominent as the Merja Zerga birds.