Managed to avoid the rain this morning. Highlights were:
Corn Bunting, Tree Sparrow, 4 Yellow Wagtails, and a Male Wheatear in 2 Farmland areas south of Milton Keynes.
Best bird, however, was a Whimbrel on Quainton Hill. Was very fortunate to see it's head and beak break the horizon as I climbed the hill. I managed to detour around the area where it was feeding and eventually camp down in bushes, with a reasonable view.
Got nice views of its head and neck, before a horse rider disturbed it, and it flew high to the south. Unfortunately, the bird was feeding right on a bridle way, otherwise, it would have stayed longer. The horse rider was the only one along the ridge in the hour I was there, so it was particularly unlucky to get disturbed.
Unfortunately this was just about the only bird on the hilltops this morning apart from a couple of Swifts and Swallows migrating over, so I suspect visits to Quainton Hill will have to be carefully chosen in the next few months. Still, the hill has been good to me this year with the Whimbrel, lots of Wheatears, Red Kite, Raven, Redstart and Ring Ouzel! |
