My apologies for the lack of updates in the past fortnight or so, I've been away in Pembrokeshire for a week and the few days leading up to departing seemed to be full of other things on the agenda. So whilst I spent all day yesterday going through various photos I took last week whilst away I remembered that I still had some encounters from the last weekend in may to share.
Whilst heading towards the Cricket pitch on the friday evening, I thought I'd have a drive through Apsley (the old home) its a bit of a divert from St Mary Bourne but a nice quiet single track road with open fields either side. Much to my delight as I rounded the corner to drive past a couple of freshly drilled fields a pair of Grey Partridge dusting / gritting in the road, they didn't at all seem bothered as my camera lens appeared out of the car window. In my opinion easily our most gracious of Game birds, and one you see all that often so I was happy with my first opportunity to get some shots I was pleased with, However no sign of any youngsters, so Im guessing she hasn't sat yet or if so they were unsuccessful.
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| Grey Partridge Male |
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| Grey Partridge Pair |
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| Grey Partridge Male |
As always never far away was the Pheasant, a lone cock with his hareem of 6 hens strutting his stuff out on the dry maize sown ground. As majestic as ever in some nice soft orange light.
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| Cock Pheasant |
As I headed down towards the cricket pitch, I had a quick scan over the water meadows, desperate to pick up a hunting Hobby, as Im still yet to see one that hasn't been miles away. I thought my luck was in as looking towards the sun a falcon shape silhouette headed straight towards me, I snapped off a lot of pictures and wasn't able to tell it was in fact a Kestrel until it had disappeared overhead. You cannot believe my excitement and then the disappointment when I found out it wasn't.
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| Hunting Kestrel |
With cricket pitch mown, rolled & marked out, I headed back down the back road to Longparish, again finding the Spotted Flycatchers in the same spot, this time 4 showing well in amongst the trees. The light pretty poor in the shade I did manage one notable shot at least so you can tell what it is. Ignore the orange crest that makes it appear like a female Blackcap, this was intact the sun.
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| Spotted Flycatcher |
Its pretty apparent to see why these migrants enjoy this particular area as about a 100 yards down the road, another fly hatch adorned the sky with various others from the spell of dry warm weather we had been having. I quite liked how they twinkled in the setting sun.
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| Blacksmith's Bridge |
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