That's More Like It!

A two post day, and that's because it was a day of two halves. Right after I had a good moan on here about how crap it's been, I went out and had a great afternoon!

One of the things I said earlier was how I've not seen a Willow Warbler yet, well guess what I saw at the first place I went after I posted that! There was at least one Willow Warbler amongst 15+ Chiffchaffs and two Goldcrests around the Borrow Pit on Seaton Marshes. Now and then some of the Chiffs and the Willow broke out in song, which was nice.

After a rather uneventful look along the Estuary, I went to Lower Bruckland Ponds were it really kicked off!

I was busy trying to photograph this annoyingly camera shy Willow Warbler...

A terrible photo, but it was the best I managed! Although it was very close it wouldn't stop moving.

...when I noticed this hovering over the lower ponds...

A bloody Osprey!

It didn't dive or hang around, and soon flew off east towards Rousdon...

It was nice to see a few hirundines here too, with about eight Sand Martins, four Swallows and my first two House Martins of 2013...

About time!

I then spent the next hour and a bit scanning over the mass of fields between Axmouth and Rousden hoping for a patch Stone Curlew. To be honest, there could be a flock of 100 out here and I still could have seen none. Some of the fields have crop high enough to completely engulf a sat down Stone Curlew, and some of the fields are about 5 miles long and three miles wide and perfect Stone Curlew in colour!

I did hear something which I really would liked to have seen. Basically it sounded like a Curlew, twice, and I thought it was a Curlew, but then it gave a drawn out single note - a bit Golden Ploverish but less pleasant sounding and longer.  I don't even know if the same wader made all these three calls, but I will be checking up here again tomorrow.  

I didn't see any birds of note up here, but I did see six Hares. This is by a long way (by four to be precise!) my highest ever count of Hares on patch, and my first for about three years.  Here's a distant photo showing four of them...

Very nice to see.

 I wonder what tomorrow will bring...