Rewards of Barbondale....

....and other locations.

Black-crowned Night Heron. Kah Wai  



But first a good compositional photograph of the Night Heron at Kinta Nature Park in Malaysia with many thanks to Kah Wai.

It was a good day weather-wise for me to make a visit to Barbondale, and if you relish the aesthetics of the places you visit to do your birdwatching then Barbondale is a must, I spent an excellent six hours there today and was rewarded handsomely.

Fingers crossed for more, but today I found 4 Pied Flycatcher, three of them males two singing, but beware, one of them is a 1st summer bird strongly resembling a female. Also of note here today, at least 10 Redstart, and 12 Wheatear, I heard only 2 Tree Pipit, and found a nice surprise in 2 Lesser Redpoll, noted barely a double number of Willow Warbler, found just 4 Great Tit and 2 Blue Tit though Barbondale never seems to be 'tit' country according to my records, 2 Reed Bunting, at least 15 Meadow Pipit, 2 Mistle Thrush, 2 Linnet, 2 Dipper, a Kestrel, 2 Buzzard, and a Raven. I struggled to find a solitary Grey Wagtail today, a bird I'm not seeing anywhere these days. It goes with saying I found no Stonechats in six hours spent searching here today, collectively the sixth upland location I've visited recently void of the species this year.

Common Sandpiper. David Cookson

I had some choices now and eventually decided to walk down the River Wenning from Hornby to find at least 35 Whimbrel at the confluence, also the inevitable - uncounted - but no more than 50 Sand Martins with 3 Common Sandpiper, a Goosander, 2 Redshank, a Song Thrush, and singing Skylark. I was running out of time now but still had choices, this time I called in on Rigg Lane to hear the very bird I'd hoped for the Cuckoo on Birk Bank, I noted 'some' Green Hairstreak and heard a Chiffchaff. Thanks for the excellent CS pic DC.

Some National interest....The Barolo Little Shearwater is apparently still on Lundy, and three more Vagrant Emperor Dragonflies have been seen in Dorset, Pembrokeshire, and off the coast on Skomer Island.