What have you seen

HI Impy we also have got Hummingbird Hawk moths around our flowering shrub in the last few days and they do appear in the winter as they hibernate usually over the winter like Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock, Red Admiral and Brimstone butterflies but if warm enough they will come out.

Have seen a few Large Tortoiseshell butterflies flying about with the warm weather and have seen and heard a Blackcap male bird in some bushes around here.

Had a lovely morning walking beside the Dee marshes. Plenty to keep us on our toes.

Singing Skylarks, Song Thrushes, Reed Buntings and Cettis Warblers plus a flock of Twite with a lone Brambling in amongst them. Haven't seen one of those for quite a few years. Scarce this far west. 

Also saw a Merlin and a Great White Egret put up by a passing Marsh Harrier.

All in all it was balm for the soul and not too many people out first thing.

Walking alongside West Kirkby marine lake today at high tide and able to see some waders resting on the pontoons and some rocks.

Mostly Redshank but some Purple Sandpipers, Knot, Turnstone and Dunlin.

Spotted a raven whilst out for a walk. Blue and indigo plumage shining in the sun but that eye?

Watch 6 Buzzards circling above the forest close to the site we were staying on. It appeared that there were two pairs ducking and diving close to the trees, pairing up I suspect, while the other two birds were much higher up, perhaps older birds watching over their juveniles? The displays went on for well over 15 mins.

Had the pleasure of listening to the burble of curlews for the last couple of days 🥰. Going to miss the Tees dales. 

Watched a barn owl quartering this morning, too.

We're lucky Micky in that we have a daily sighting of Ravens. Heard one passing overhead before getting up this morning. I think they'd make a great alarm clock call and wouldn't mind being woken up by their Cronking sound.

Talking of evocative bird calls pyewipe feeding on the field behind our house on winter nights is a memory from my youth. Their strange call sounded like aliens had arrived. When the ‘deceit’ really got going it sounded like an invasion, sadly their numbers are much reduced these days. Beautiful birds but why is that collective noun a deceit?

I think, but may be wrong, that they pretend to be injured to lure predators, like foxes,  away from their young. I seem to recall an RSPB guide telling me that many years ago.

They're a beautiful bird, one of my favourites. My OH and her mother know them as Peewits.

That’s an interesting idea WN, deceitful for all the right reasons!