Out For A Walk

After another Saturday without serious birding - though it occurs I have yet to report the 9 [9!!] Greenfinches I've had coming in to my feeders - and a few more issues with the Thing, I got out up on t'Moor late morning. Would have been the whole day but Mice...

Anyways, making what I could of it, I wandered up about Holne Moor and Lee looking for this and that. Found neither, but you have to try.

It started all sunny, 

 

Looking thattaway

 

 

and soaring raptors of 3 spp. were in evidence, though only one close enough to zap;

Kestrel

Note crop so full it looks like a half-swallowed tennis ball(!)

6 Buzzards, 3 Ravens, 2 Kestels were up in an hour of watching. Also up; 9 singing Skylarks, 1 singing Mipit  :)

Things clouded over, ending the fun, though never seriously threatening rain. I got mobile.

The Mardle

This is the opposite view of that 'There's a HH there, honest!' shot, if you're interested.

Tootling about the Mardle and up Ryder's,

Spot the Jack Snipe*

Someone's been busy.

I'm seeing it now; "We want something like this, but with planks"

Time for some more birds!

Up atop Ryder's Hill at the wonderfully late hour of four, the view was only a little clouded, and as I scanned about, a familiar poo-ep call started up.

Being exactly in context, I went 'Golden Plover!'

Turns out, the plural was more appropriate,

Goldies!

Lots of Goldies

Lots of lots of Goldies!

Converging from much of the Moor, flocks ranging in number from that first one up to 120+. I'd started counting from the start and was glad I did as I got to 630 [in tens] before a group didn't head towards the Mardle valley but instead looped back past me. Then another, then more - or not? - from the north.. It all got very mixed, so I can only say with certainty that multiple groups totalling at least 630 Golden Plover seemed to be using Ryder's Hill as a marker before roosting communally.

That's a bit of word soup for a wonderful spectacle. :D

Let us finish with another Dartmoor Peculiar.

Well, Trig Points can

spontaneously combust,

they say...

Full size powder fire extinguisher, unused. Go and indeed figure.

Be Seeing You...

[[* No, I couldn't see one, either... ]]