British Birds Rarities Committee

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Current Rare Species

The table below gives the species that are currently assessed by BBRC giving:
Their English name
Their full Scientific name,
Whether they are a sub-species
Number of occurrences up to 1950 (i.e. before BBRC started assessment)
Number of occurrences from 1950 to 2006 inclusive
BOU Category

In some instances the Category is not given as these are new species that have not yet been officially admitted to the British List by BOU.
Some Category D & E species are included as the BBRC is interested in monitoring their occurrence to see if there is a case for ‘elevation’ to Category A,B or C.
Note: Sub-species are not given a Category by BOU, but the category of their nominate species is given in this table.

Species recently removed: ( “the 17 departing species” )

From January 2006 the following species were no longer considered by BBRC. Records before that date should still be sent in.
Ferruginous Duck, Wilson’s Storm-petrel, Great White Egret, Black Kite, Red-footed Falcon, American Golden Plover, White-rumped Sandpiper, White-winged Black tern, Alpine Swift, Red-rumped Swallow, Red-throated Pipit, Subalpine Warbler (but albistriata still required), Greenish Warbler (but Green & Two-barred Greenish still required), Radde’s Warbler, Dusky Warbler, Arctic Redpoll (but still C. h. hornemanni), Rustic Bunting

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Common Name	Scientific Name		upto end 1949	1950-2006	Cat
Whistling Swan	Cygnus columbianus columbianus	sub-species	0	2	AE
Lesser White-fronted Goose	Anser erythropus	.	9	122	AE*
Ross's Goose	Anser rossii	.	0	8	DE
Lesser Canada Goose	Branta hutchinsii	.	-	-	-
Red-breasted Goose	Branta ruficollis	.	9	64	AE
Black Duck	Anas rubripes	.	0	31	A
Blue-winged Teal	Anas discors	.	10	223	AE
Falcated Duck	Anas falcata	.	0	20	DE
Baikal Teal	Anas formosa	.	0	6	DE
Marbled Duck	Marmaronetta angustirostris	.	0	19	DE
Canvasback	Aythya valisineria	.	0	7	AE
Redhead	Aythya americana	.	0	3	AE
Lesser Scaup	Aythya affinis	.	0	101	A
Northern Common Eider	Somateria mollissima borealis	sub-species	0	1	A
King Eider	Somateria spectabilis	.	57	130	A
Steller's Eider	Polysticta stelleri	.	5	10	A
Harlequin Duck	Histrionicus histrionicus	.	4	9	A
Black Scoter	Melanitta americana	.	0	7	A
Bufflehead	Bucephala albeola	.	2	11	A
Barrow's Goldeneye	Bucephala islandica	.	0	3	AE
Hooded Merganser	Lophodytes cucullatus	.	0	?	-
White-headed Duck	Oxyura leucocephala	.	0	19	DE
White Pelican	Pelecanus onocrotalus	.	-	-	DE
Pacific Diver	Gavia pacifica	.	-	-	-
White-billed Diver	Gavia adamsii	.	7	305	A
Pied-billed Grebe	Podilymbus podiceps	.	0	40	A
Yellow-nosed Albatross	Thalassarche chlororhynchos	.	-	-	-
Black-browed Albatross	Thalassarche melanophris	.	1	22	A
Non-specific Albatross	Thalassarche sp	unidentified	5	32	-
Fea's Petrel	Pterodroma feae	.	0	3	A
Madeira/Fea's Petrel	Pterodroma madeira/feae	unidentified	0	33	-
Black-capped Petrel	Pterodroma hasitata	.	1	1	A
Scopoli's Shearwater	Calonectris diomedia diomedea	sub-species	-	-	A
North Atlantic Little Shearwater	Puffinus baroli	.	3	58	A
White-faced Storm-petrel	Pelagodroma marina	.	1	0	B
Swinhoe's Storm-petrel	Oceanodroma monorhis	.	0	4	A
Madeiran Storm-petrel	Oceanodroma castro	.	1	0	B
Red-billed Tropicbird	Phaethon aethereus	.	0	3	AE
Double-crested Cormorant	Phalacrocorax auritus	.	0	1	A
Ascension Frigatebird	Fregata aquila	.	0	1	A
Magnificent Frigatebird	Fregata magnificens	.	0	2	A
American Bittern	Botaurus lentiginosus	.	29	7	A
Little Bittern	Ixobrychus minutus	.	259	219	A
Green-backed Heron	Butorides virescens	.	1	4	A
Squacco Heron	Ardeola ralloides	.	69	62	A
Cattle Egret	Bubulcus ibis	.	3	162	AE
Snowy Egret	Egretta thula	.	0	1	A
Great Blue Heron	Ardea herodias	.	-	-	-
Black Stork	Ciconia nigra	.	23	141	AE
Glossy Ibis	Plegadis falcinellus	.	341	92	AE
Black-eared Kite	Milvus milvus lineatus	sub-species	-	-	AE
Eurasian Black Vulture	Aegypius monachus	.	-	-	D
Booted Eagle	Hieraaetus pennatus	.	-	-	D
Griffon Vulture	Gyps fulvus	.	-	-	-
Egyptian Vulture	Neophron percnopterus	.	2	0	BE
Short-toed Eagle	Circaetus gallicus	.	0	1	A
Northern Harrier	Circus cyaneus hudsonius	sub-species	0	1	A
Pallid Harrier	Circus macrourus	.	2	22	A
American Goshawk	Accipiter gentilis atricapillus	sub-species	1	0	AC3E*
Spotted Eagle	Aquila clanga	.	12	0	B
Lesser Kestrel	Falco naumanni	.	9	7	A
American Kestrel	Falco sparverius	.	0	2	AE
Eleonora's Falcon	Falco eleonorae	.	0	5	A
Gyr Falcon	Falco rusticolus	.	215	148	AE
Saker Falcon	Falco cherrug	.	-	-	DE
Sora	Porzana carolina	.	4	11	A
Little Crake	Porzana parva	.	69	39	A
Baillon's Crake	Porzana pusilla	.	65	15	A
Allen's Gallinule	Porphyrula alleni	.	1	1	A
American Purple Gallinule	Porphyrula martinica	.	0	1	A
American Coot	Fulica americana	.	0	6	A
Sandhill Crane	Grus canadensis	.	0	2	A
Little Bustard	Tetrax tetrax	.	96	25	A
Macqueen's Bustard	Chlamydotis macqueenii	.	4	1	A
Great Bustard	Otis tarda	.	84	20	A
Black-winged Stilt	Himantopus himantopus	.	129	243	A
Cream-coloured Courser	Cursorius cursor	.	37	7	A
Collared Pratincole	Glareola pratincola	.	23	64	A
Oriental Pratincole	Glareola maldivarum	.	0	5	A
Black-winged Pratincole	Glareola nordmanni	.	2	31	A
Semipalmated Plover	Charadrius semipalmatus	.	0	2	A
Killdeer	Charadrius vociferus	.	4	45	A
Lesser Sand Plover	Charadrius mongolus	.	0	4	A
Greater Sand Plover	Charadrius leschenaultii	.	0	14	A
Caspian Plover	Charadrius asiaticus	.	2	3	A
Pacific Golden Plover	Pluvialis fulva	.	3	60	A
Sociable Lapwing	Vanellus gregarius	.	3	38	A
White-tailed Lapwing	Vanellus leucurus	.	0	4	A
Great Knot	Calidris tenuirostris	.	0	3	A
Semipalmated Sandpiper	Calidris pusilla	.	0	82	A
Western Sandpiper	Calidris mauri	.	0	7	A
Red-necked Stint	Calidris ruficollis	.	0	6	A
Long-toed Stint	Calidris subminuta	.	0	2	A
Least Sandpiper	Calidris minutilla	.	4	28	A
Baird's Sandpiper	Calidris bairdii	.	1	199	A
Sharp-tailed Sandpiper	Calidris acuminata	.	4	22	A
Stilt Sandpiper	Calidris himantopus	.	0	24	A
Hudsonian Dunlin	Calidris alpina hudsonia	sub-species	-	-	A
Broad-billed Sandpiper	Limicola falcinellus	.	15	205	A
Wilson's Snipe	Gallinago delicata	sub-species	-	-	A
Great Snipe	Gallinago media	.	506	150	A
Short-billed Dowitcher	Limnodromus griseus	.	0	1	A
Long-billed Dowitcher	Limnodromus scolopaceus	.	6	178	A
Hudsonian Godwit	Limosa haemastica	.	0	2	A
Little Curlew	Numenius minutus	.	0	2	A
Eskimo Curlew	Numenius borealis	.	5	0	B
Hudsonian Whimbrel	Numenius phaeopus hudsonicus	sub-species	0	3	A
Slender-billed Curlew	Numenius tenuirostris	.	0	1	A
Upland Sandpiper	Bartramia longicauda	.	9	34	A
Marsh Sandpiper	Tringa stagnatilis	.	6	122	A
Greater Yellowlegs	Tringa melanoleuca	.	6	20	A
Lesser Yellowlegs	Tringa flavipes	.	16	258	A
Solitary Sandpiper	Tringa solitaria	.	5	25	A
Terek Sandpiper	Xenus cinereus	.	0	66	A
Spotted Sandpiper	Actitis macularius	.	1	136	A
Grey-tailed Tattler	Heteroscelus brevipes	.	0	2	A
Wilson's Phalarope	Phalaropus tricolor	.	0	216	A
'Southern Oceans' Skua	Stercorarius antarctica/maccormicki	.	-	-	-
Great Black-headed Gull	Larus ichthyaetus	.	1	0	B
Laughing Gull	Larus atricilla	.	1	170	A
Franklin's Gull	Larus pipixcan	.	0	53	A
Bonaparte's Gull	Larus philadelphia	.	8	139	A
Slender-billed Gull	Larus genei	.	0	9	A
Audouin's Gull	Larus audouinii	.	0	2	A
Mew Gull -heinei	Larus canus heinei	sub-species	0	3	A
Baltic Gull	Larus fuscus fuscus	sub-species	0	1	A
American Herring Gull	Larus argentatus smithsonianus	sub-species	0	13	A
Glaucous-winged Gull	Larus glaucescens	.	-	-	-
Ross's Gull	Rhodostethia rosea	.	1	88	A
Ivory Gull	Pagophila eburnea	.	84	51	A
Aleutian Tern	Onychoprion aleutica	.	0	1	A
Sooty Tern	Onychoprion fuscata	.	13	13	A
Bridled Tern	Onychoprion anaethetus	.	1	21	A
Least Tern	Sternula albifrons antillarum/athalossos	sub-species	0	1	A
Gull-billed Tern	Gelochelidon nilotica	.	51	270	A
Whiskered Tern	Chlidonias hybrida	.	23	129	A
American Black Tern	Chlidonias niger surinamensis	sub-species	0	1	A
Royal Tern	Sterna maxima	.	0	4	A
Lesser Crested Tern	Sterna bengalensis	.	0	9	A
Forster's Tern	Sterna forsteri	.	0	20	A
Br�nnich's Guillemot	Uria lomvia	.	1	37	A
Long-billed Murrelet	Brachyramphus perdix	.	0	1	A
Ancient Murrelet	Synthliboramphus antiquus	.	0	1	A
Pallas's Sandgrouse	Syrrhaptes paradoxus	.	many	7	A
Oriental Turtle Dove	Streptopeli