Grey Phalarope - 2006 status

Phalaropus fulicarius

Passage migrant.

The Grey Phalarope has a circumpolar Arctic breeding distribution, the closest to the UK being in Iceland. Wholly pelagic outside the breeding season, they are sometimes displaced inshore by turbulent weather. In the Atlantic they winter as far south as western and southern Africa.

Mathew (1894) considered the Grey Phalarope to be an almost annual storm driven autumn visitor to Pembrokeshire. Lockley et al (1949) added a further six occurrences. There followed records in four years in the 1950’s, in six years in the 1960’s, three years in the 1970’s and in every year bar one from 1981 to 2006. The increase in frequency of sightings was more likely to be the result of increased observer activity, rather than more birds occurring. A summary of this latter period could be just as written by Mathew.

Graham Rees

(Covers records up to and including 2006)