The rarest birds which were spotted in Yorkshire in 2025
As the year draws to a close its the best time to recall some of the birding highlights across the country – and the increasingly important role of photographs to confirm ID.
Perhaps one of the most challenging was the White-throated needletail seen at the Tophill Low reserve on October 8.
Visitors Mandy Gregory and Richard Maddison first noticed the swift-like bird over one of the reserve reservoirs and, realising that it was unlikely to be a common swift as these had gone south to Africa, took several clear photographs.
They showed these to reserve warden Richard Hampshire who identified the bird as a White-throated needletail, probably the second rarest bird seen at Tophill Low since it opened 60 years ago and the first seen in England in 34 years, it was the second Yorkshire record the first being at Ferrybridge in in 1985.
It is native to the far east of Asia and Australia and one of the fastest flying birds in the world with a maximum level flying speed of 105mph.
News of the sighting was put out immediately on social media and the bird was relocated the same evening at Bempton Cliffs where a good number of birders managed to see it.
However, hopes that it might roost on the cliffs and prolong its stay failed to materialise although it was seen off Scarborough the following day.
From the other direction a Song Sparrow from North America, was first seen at Thornwick Bay, Flamborough on June 8 and ,after being absent for a day, showed well again and sang at the same location.
There have only been 10 previous UK records for this vagrant including one trapped and ringed at Spurn in May 1964.
Still at Flamborough well known birder Brett Richards found an Alpine accentor in the fog station compound on the morning of April 29 and, thank goodness, managed to photograph it before it flew off. It was not seen again and was only the second Yorkshire record – the first was in 1862.
Further north a new bird for Filey, an adult Brown shrike was found by Keith Clakson on September 25 at Hunmanby Gap while at Spurn a Black-faced bunting, a rare vagrant from eastern Asia, was found on October 3, one of three in the UK this autumn.
Inland there was the chance to see an Ortolan bunting as it associated with yellowhammers in a clearing at Wykeham Forest, North Yorkshire while an Eastern sub-Alpine warbler spent the evening of May 11 in a garden at Mirfield, West Yorkshire where it was photographed.
There were two rarities at the St Aidan's reserve, an American golden plover seen briefly and photographed as Astley Lake on May 1st, and a Collared pratincole on the Main Lake on June 19 – one was seen in the same location in July the previous year with a lapwing flock.