Merlin and Mandarins!

An early start in search of Gropper was the aim of the day. 5 a.m and we were off into the hills. It was a no show but we put that down to the windy conditions emulating from Robs posterior. Yoda's (aka Mike) Jedi mind tricks were not working on this bird but on another, a female Merlin came swooping at pace towards my car whilst we were scanning the moorland. The wind and cold became too much so we headed down into the valleys to try and find a new arrival to the area. We chose a valley where we knew Redstarts liked to hang out but as we walked along the track we started to wonder if any were there. Then we heard the call in a tree nearby and Yoda lost his magic touch, whilst me and Rob got on this bird, he didn't. A small chase began but this bird wasn't having it and eventually we decided to head back down to the car and home for bagel-daisy-toasts (well bagel with marmite actually and a cuppa).

Are they having a pee, scaring sheep or looking for Redstart? You decide! (Rob and Mike in action).

A family day out was planned for me to meet my folks and my brother. As all birders know, any family meeting can be tied in with a birding opportunity and so we opted for a picnic at a Derbyshire beauty spot which I suggested would be a great place to meet ;) . Lunch was a battle with very variable weather conditions, high wind (no pickled onions involved here), rain then sun and eventually blistering heat. After lunch a walk was planned and this was where out the corner of my eye I spotted these beauties....

What a lovely pair! (yes I did take this photo)

a pair of mandarin ducks, probably in love and living in a local penthouse tree apartment nearby. On further investigation of the surrounding woodland/reservoir highlights included common sandpiper, redpoll, treecreeper (almost got a photo) and garden warbler (got a photo of its bottom so not really worth showing you unless you like looking at birds bottoms).

All in all a good 4 year tick day was had! Lol!!!