Discovery
The bird in question was found by an unknown birdwatcher on Monday, May 4, 1998, and was first identified as a Whimbrel. The birder reported the Whimbrel to Tim Cleeves who, uncertain of the bird's identification, contacted a number of other birdwatchers from the Northumberland and Tyneside areas and asked them to come to Druridge to give an opinion. The bird was watched by six observers until 20.50 hours that evening.
News of the bird was broadcast on the national rare bird information services. As, at this stage, there was not a consensus on the identity of the bird, some of the services used cautious language, e.g. Birdline referred to the bird as a "controversial curlew thought by some observers to be a Slender-billed". Because of the uncertainty over the identity, some birders chose not to travel to see it, although many others did. The bird was last seen on Thursday May 7. It was photographed (albeit distantly) and three separate video-recordings were made.
Although the identification of this bird is generally credited to Tim Cleeves, Brett Richards (Birdwatch 118:11) has claimed that a large part of the credit for the record should rest with him, due to his role in persuading others to travel to see the bird. One should note Richards' prominence in identifying the bird compared to others who were apparently as adamant but somewhat less vocal, if not silent, in their views.
Read more about this topic: Druridge Bay Curlew
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