Poland - 2

The highlight of today was a trip to Długa Luka for the Aquatic Warbler.  This site never disappoints for this rare species with 4-5 singing adults and one fortuitously picked up singing from the top of a reed.  Another gripping bird is the Montagu's Harrier of which a male was seen hunting low across the expanse of the marsh, with another seen from the car as we drove to our next port-of-call.  En route, a Golden Oriole had been picked up flying between the trees.

Slightly later into the evening, we wandered into Barwik where a wooden platform had been erected to observe a Great Snipe lek which has since been abandoned.  The site is great and as the evening drew in on what was a hot sultry day, the birds began to appear.

The first of these was a real treat coming in the form of a 'white-spotted' Bluethroat that sang heartily from a nearby tree.  A wonderful sight.  The final list was quite an impressive one as one by one, things began to sing and fly through.

At least two Thrush Nightingale were in full song, where a party of Common Rosefinch commuted along the ride, and a couple of Corncrake began their extroadinary calls from the depths of the grassland.  A total of five Woodcock were roding along the tree-line and a Honey Buzzard flew over.  As the sun began to edge towards the horizon, a juvenile White-tailed Eagle flew across our eye line and tumbled into the woodland to roost.  A Black Stork then followed a similar pattern but flew over the woodland and out of view.  A party of around 30 Crane headed low distantly to a roosting site, and there were a few drumming Common Snipe flying crazily over the marsh.

Thrush Nightingale and Common Rosefinch