randombirder

We continue to hold onto this glorious weather and oh my lordie it felt glorious today.  Even managed an afternoon kip in the sunshine that felt so comfortably warm, as I awoke, I was surprised to find that I wasn't actually at home. What a day anyway.  It was just supposed to be a long stroll through the forest but the birdlife was really incredible. There was plenty of activity in the woodland, a lot of birdsong including goldcrest and the incessant jangle of siskin always mobile overhead. There were plenty of highlights that started with a dartford warbler scratching away on top of a gorse bush.  There were stonechat everywhere, a couple of pairs getting prepared for the breeding season. A single lesser redpoll called as it paused briefly within a silver birch. We took a route round both sides of the car park at Acres Down.  It yielded much.  At least three woodlark were warming up for Spring.  Not quite in full song, but still enough ...

This has now become annual.  Visits to Poland are always rewarding, the countryside that in the most-part remains wild, with pine and deciduous forests that spread far and wide.  There is so much wildlife here. The destination was the small village of Marózek, around 20km from the nearest town of Olstynek.  It is a lovely place, set within a pine forest on one side and a freshwater lake on the other. The forest was alive with birds.  Fieldfare were in display mode, a common bird here.   A total of three Goshawk were seen on this trip, this one cruised high over the woodland.  The sighting in the Ilawa Forest about an hour away was spectacular - a rampant male that burst through the trees in pursuit of a Red Squirrel . These House Martin were nesting around the village.  Small groups collected mud around the puddles formed after the heavy rains on Saturday.  Swallow and Swift were also present here. ...