End of the week.

 The end of another week which has been disappointingly quiet for me. I have bumped into plenty of warblers and common passerines.  The large mixed flock of Red Kites and Common Buzzards remain on the fields between Hanging Houghton and Cottesbrooke.  This evening I counted 50 birds together.  There was a rather striking pale Common Buzzard which looked a ghostly white colour and nearby at the other end of the colour spectrum a "black " looking Buzzard plus plenty more exhibiting various shades of brown.  The Red Kites too are showing a variety of plumage.  I don't recall seeing this number of these raptors in such a small area. They are quite comical to watch as they suddenly see something of interest and either run or hop fast in their quest to catch it.

A quiet end to the week in the county. Yesterday it rained heavily all day and the only birds of note reported were an Osprey at Hollowell Reservoir and an Avocet briefly at Boddington Reservoir.                                                                     Today there were Ospreys at Earls Barton,  Stanford and Boddington Reservoirs,  a Whinchat at Clifford Hill GP, Red Crested Pochard at Irthlingborough Lakes and Meadows and Garganey at Summer Leys. 

We seem to have plenty of birds visiting our garden.  The young Starlings seem to have erupted and they are providing plenty of entertainment as they negotiate the meal worm feeders and the big wide world.  We did have a family of 3 young Blackbirds but we only have one youngster left, the other two succumbing to a Sparrowhawk. Sadly the female Blackbird doesn't seem to have much idea and keeps putting her offspring right out in the open where they are just a sitting target. I'm not expecting her remaining youngster to survive. 

Have a good weekend 

Regards Eleanor 

Turtle Dove courtesy of
Robin Gossage.

 Will this species make it
 to Northamptonshire
this year?

Lesser Black-backed Gull
courtesy of Robin Gossage.