pictures

Corn Bunting, Dyrham Park

It’s been a good few weeks for this species: first, one up in East Yorkshire; then near Martin Mere; now, not quite on the National Trust estate but by the road down to Marshfield, which is their local stronghold. Another bunting, a yellowhammer also showed, for only the third time this year – a far cry from my Angus days when they filled the fields round Auchmithie. In fact, they even came to my feeders there.

I was in South Gloucestershire to check for more…

Spotted Flycatcher, RSPB Ham Wall

Another new species for my Somerset list with an adult feeding two juveniles yesterday evening. Technically Lytes Cary should have the honour because a spotfly was hawking near the pictured bits of topiary late afternoon. In the name of efficiency though I’ll not add that National Trust house to my site inventory, unless it comes up with a real stonker some time.

Not that more…

Eastwood between Showers

More like downpours today and last night, so a little reluctant to venture on to Portbury Wharf. The shopping needed doing anyway and the route back from Eastwood and Battery Point allows that.

I included the Point in a forlorn hope that the gale-force gusts may have blown something up the Bristol Channel. The tide was out, so more…

Red Kites, Devil's Bridge

These birds are really branching out from their Rhayader stronghold. The last time I was up the Ceredigion coast, albeit back in 1998 at RSPB Ynys-hir, I had no record of them. Now you’d be hard put to miss the species. Ones and twos all the way down from Machynlleth to Aberystwyth, then inland to Devil’s Bridge, where six were in view at one time. Over the Cambrian Mountains to the birds’ highest density round Rhayader itself and on almost to the Brecon Beacons. Kites, kites, kites.

It was marvellous, just like more…

Goat Fell, Arran

Golden eagle would sound nice as the star species of an ascent of the island’s highest point but consider this: the 2007 Arran Bird Report notes only half a dozen sightings from thousands of contributions. These may not be all the submitted records and certainly they don’t include the known nest sites. Quite right too: persecution in Scotland is an ongoing problem.

In any case, what chance more…

Whinchats, Glen Orchy

Yes, whinchats. In the plural. Two family groups five years since my last sighting down in Galloway Forest. The year list gallops on to 185 – my best since 2004.

And no, this chap isn’t a whinchat. He was browsing near Loch Tulla when I pulled into the car park and quite unfazedly carried on browsing. So unfazed was he that he crossed to the other side of my car, where the passenger window was open, and calmly more…

Musselburgh, East Lothian

This is one of my most southerly locations for velvet scoter. It’s also good for common scoters and reliable for little gull. All three were in evidence last week, and a common sandpiper gave me a nice bonus as my 96th species for the site. It’s one of my top spots. I got an even bigger surprise with the more…

2000: Summer Bird Count, Los Trancos Woods

On June 3 I officially added my 152nd Santa Clara species:

“Nancy Teater and I spent three hours basically walking the Franciscan Loop this morning. It’s amazing how long a couple of miles can take when you’re seriously trying to ID birds!

“We started with the more…