BUTCHER BIRD

13/02/10

at the sherwoods shop i noted a female bullfinch

we quickly found our destination, parked up and started walking. a finch flock of c 100 birds emerged from the field including chaffinch, linnet and greenfinch. they settled in a nearby tree and i had a quick sift through the flock, but my mind was set elsewhere....

we flushed yet more finches(mostly linnet) and proceded to a metal gate and joined a few other birders, nobody had seen it. we stood around scanning the fence lines, telephone/power lines and hedge lines/tree tops for the bird but it didnt show, a few birders were spread around the fields and the group we were with left, a finch flock landed in a tree top and on scopeing, revealed there to be 2 YELLOWHAMMER in the flock. a ravern was cronking nearby in a field and we could hear greylag geese, a party of stock dove(8) flew along a field line.

we were joined by a birder and 4 teal flew onto the flooded area in front of us...

we started chatting and strokeing his 2 dogs and we scanned. the other birder started talking to my dad when i saw a long tailed bird land upon a tree

'SHRIKE'

i got my scope onto the GREAT GREY SHRIKE(lifer 202) and savered its beauty, what a bird!!!!

i imidiatly gotm my canera out and started takeing films/photos.

The bird showed upon this tree for about 10-15 mins and we were joined by another birder. the bird then flew off showing its white wing patches and its flight jizz~(quite direct but flappy), it flew to the other side of the field and landed on a bare tree where it stood for c 5 mins, and then again took flight and flew down the hedgerow. we lost it but i again refound the bird perched on an ivy covered tree a very long way off.

now we split from the other birders and statred walking towards the lakes, we got to the end of the field and i tured around and had a scan, a small bird was coming in

MERLIN

the female merlin flew in from a studly direction and dropped into trees along a field, but that was enough to get this year tick.

we walked back over to the birders who had walked further on, and they waved us over, at this point 3 more yellowhammer flew over calling.

we walked over and said had they seen the merlin, luckily they had seen the bird but only briefly, we scanned the hedgerows but the bird wasent seen again

the shrike then popped up on a pylon and i got a closer film:

after staying for another 10 mins, the bird again flew off, and for the last time i again relocated the bird on an oak on the other side of the field(some 100m away).

at this point, we headed back to the car as my dad was starting to feal unwell, we did want to check out upton warren, but we decided not to, but we have a whole week for upton...

MB