Yes indeedy, the autumn has definately begun all right! It was a lovely still morning here so I thought it might be worth a quick punt around Galley. Bit of a bad start when I remembered my wellies were drying in the house rather than resting in the boot of the car but hey, crocs are inappropriate in all weathers right?
I was idly checking some meadow pipits when I happened across a similar sized bird with a bright eye ring and creamy malar stripes, but pretty clean otherwise on the breast, with a pinky red bill - "not a pipit" I mused, before I began to think about ortolan. Before I could take the thought much further the birds booted off and I watched it fly off to a distant phone wire where it landed with a couple of linnets. As I stalking closer in my trusty crocs, it dropped into stubble with more linnets and then the whole flock booted all around, leaving me none the wiser as to where it had gone.
Luckily, it hadn't gone far, and was back up on the phone wires, allowing better views and I could finally be sure it was an ortolan, especially when it began calling like one!
Once Old Spoons had been set in motion, we were able to refind it again and he even got shots
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| An ortolan bunting, yesterday |
The excitement wasn't over as barely had I reached home but Old Spoons was on the blower babbling about an untagged juvenile white-tailed eagle over his gaff and heading my way. A quick sprint to the Majik Patio (tm) and hey presto - there it was! Huzzah! Reckon its prob OK to tick this wan for the patch hey?
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| A white-tailed eagle heading my way earlier (pic C. Cronin) |
Marvellous!
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