Floods, mud and raptors

The weathers been atrocious for most of this week, so I haven't been out and about too much. However although I'm not much of a  twitcher,  I did make a point of stopping off to see a rare vagrant Red-flanked Bluetail on Tuesday. Since I was passing by anyway, it seemed rude not to! It's a rather charming little bird.

 

Red-flanked Bluetail

On Thursday I was passing the Cotswold Water Park so again decided to take a flying visit to a couple of the pits even though I didn't have the camera. I particularly wanted to see the Smew that had been reported along with a Red-breasted Merganser. I was lucky to see one Drake and 3 red-headed Smew and briefly got a glimpse of the Merganser (for me a first in my local area). I also saw my first Black-necked Grebe in the UK along with plenty of Teal, Shoveller, Pochard and a couple of Red-crested Pochard. 

Black-necked Grebe (For reference, Taken in Spain)

When the clouds lifted for a while this afternoon we took the opportunity to get out and about to see how the local wildlife is faring after the storms. We've been relatively lucky and escaped fairly lightly compared to many areas. However driving round the lanes, we saw a lot of storm damage - felled trees and downed branches - as well as acres of thick mud washed onto the road. A lot of fields are flooded, and several streams have burst their banks - particularly around the Aldbourne area. 

Things started off fairly slowly, with just a few Fieldfares and lots of Jackdaws and Crows in the field as we passed by. After checking a few sites, we were rewarded with a pair of Hares resting very close to the road. They seemed to be stick close together as they moved off, so hopefully I may get to see some boxing action in the next few weeks. We saw several more singleton Hares in the fields along our route.

Brown Hares

We were also really pleased to get a good view of a Goshawk, displaying above a small copse. It was a bit distant for photos though, but always great to see these fantastic birds. The resident Red Kites were all taking advantage of the better weather too - we saw six in the space of a couple of miles.

Heading back towards town, we passed a big mixed flock of Redwings, Fieldfares and Starlings huddled in a tree, trying to avoid a marauding Sparrowhawk.  We also came upon a Buzzard perched up on a post & as it was in a good position where I could safely stop, I decided to try for a few shots of it. I'm really glad that I did, as I've seldom met such an obliging raptor! Although I was less than 5 metres away, it showed no signs of rousing and seemed quite content to sit and pose for me. (In reality, I suspect the strong gusts of wind were making it reluctant to take off, plus it seemed to be watching some small prey in the grass beneath it). I was so close to begin with  that I could only fit it's head and upper body in the frame, so I had to circle further back to get the whole bird in shot. I've always really liked buzzards, and I think they're under-photographed  - so it was great to be able to get some really detailed shots of this one.

Buzzard

Buzzard

We also got some good views of a Kestrel - I was getting overexcited for a moment thinking it was a Merlin! Plus I spotted group of 3 males and 2 female Bullfinches sheltering in a hedgerow at the side of the road. Not a bad little tally for a quick pootle round the local spots.