Greaves' Piece

Work on the dissertation has kept me in for most of the last week, my thinking being if I can keep working on it now, I will be able to go twitching crazy when I need to. Its worked so far, but with the dissertation a third of the way complete and still a month before the deadline I decided to take the day off.

Chosen destination: Greaves' Piece for the gg shrike thats been there for a couple of weeks. It was a lovely day, and I was taking my course-mate with me in the hope to add the shrike to his life list. Sadly we did not see the shrike, be we had a host of other goodies which compensated somewhat.

First yeartick I got was Tree Pipit, but they were very abundant on the moor as we found out, with numerous birds singing and more 'spizz'-ing overhead. Second was a Cuckoo which my mate found. I would have though it a little early but clearly not, although I only managed a terrible record shot before it flew off. It then started calling from wherever it landed, and most of our walk was serenaded by intermittent Cuckoo calling.

-Tree Pipit

-Cuckoo

Without a doubt the highlight of the day was a very vocal Raven soaring above us. Sadly it kept soaring where the sun meant we couldn't see it clearly. It had me for a moment, as its tail was not as forked as I remember for Ravens, and the call not as deep. That being said, its so obviously a Raven I don't know what I was thinking.

-Raven

The warm air meant plenty of Buzzards on the wing, as well as Kestrel and Sparrowhawk. The only additional yeartick was just before we were going to call it a day, when I managed to find a Redstart singing along the edge of the trees. Sadly it did not sit still for a photo but went back into the wood where I lost it. Still, today's additional four year-ticks put me 160 for the year, with plenty of easy species still to get.

Species List:

Greaves' Piece: Swallow, Kestrel, Meadow Pipit, Common Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Tree Pipit, Robin, Wren, Blackbird, Sparrowhawk, Willow Warbler, Raven, Cuckoo, Long-tailed Tit, Chaffinch, Reed Bunting, Great-spotted Woodpecker, Blue Tit, Curlew, Pheasant, Redstart,