Evening wander 28.05.14

An hour wandering around Hadham Hall, firstly, to check on the barn owl pair nearby and also to listen for any newly arrived migrants. Not 2 minutes after leaving the car, I heard and then saw, a spotted flycatcher. This site is one that has had successful breeding in the past, but tonight, I only observed a single male flitting about. It gave the impression of a newly arrived as it didn't seem to have established a feeding post or two. Very busy moving about through the trees. Great record for Herts. all the same. Hopefully, the female will arrive over the next few days.

first shot of spotted flycatcher in poor light

Closer view at what might be it's feeding station

As I wandered around the back of the pond, my attention was drawn to something small moving about in the undergrowth: a juvenile wren, still with the yellow gape on the beak. Constantly on the move, I changed the camera speed and settings to compensate for poor light.

After this I got on to the farm track that leads to where barn owls can be seen. Almost immediately I had distant views of one hunting, looking very white from such a distance, hence their local name; ghost owl.

I wanted to discover whether both adults were hunting and, if so, were they returning to the nest hole with food as this would indicate youngsters. In the 45 minutes I was present, I noted a second one leave the hole, but this could have been the first after returning. I waited for a while but none returned. I shall pop back to check when I have more time. However, the fact that they possibly both out hunting may mean young, albeit rather late in the year.

On the lake were 5 tufted duck and a grey heron. Overhead were skylarks, chaffinches, pied wagtails, linnets and swallows, plus a solitary swift. Both green and great spotted woodpeckers were seen and a reed bunting was heard alongside a yellowhammer. A peaceful hour's walk.