Nightingale, but not on our patch!

There has been a Nightingale singing behind the clubhouse at Bledlow Cricket Club for a couple of days or so, and as we were having no luck locally Elis and I went to enjoy this glorious songster in full voice. When we arrived there was another birder there and he had more precise directions than we did. However, when the beast began to sing no directions were needed. We followed the field edge up to where the bird was singing and tried to record it. It is amazing how much noise pollution we just block out during our lives. It was only when turning on the recorder that you notice the constant din of far away traffic, passing helicopters and light aircraft, passenger jets, church bells, horses whinnying, people banging and crashing and others shouting vainly at their wayward dogs... Oh! And a train did its charcteristic two tone hoot somewhere not far away by.

We did get fleeting glimpses of the Nightingale as it moved from song post to song post, but never once did we get the bins on it. However, the best thing about Nightingales is hearing them and we certainly did that.

On the way back to NP we stopped off at Gallows Bridge Farm on the off chance that the Whimbrels would perform for us, of course they did not, but we did see the Little Ringed Plover and took some shots of other local birds.

Dunnock sporting a trendy leg ring

Female Yellowhammer

Willow Warbler

Swallow

We also stopped for a couple of Red Kites close to the road, but the light was not too good, one day we'll get one close in the sun!

Red Kite

Pair of Red Kites