Garden Mega

A forecast of light easterlies and heat was all the temptation I needed in order to dedicate the day to skywatching, and from 10:00 to early evening I did little else. At 10:05 the first Red Kite drifted slowly west. Optimistically I wrote it down in such a way as to leave plenty of space for further Red Kites. Good move. The next went over at 10:55, another at 11:00, and so on...

10:05   1
10:55   1
11:00   1
11:02   2+1
12:03   1
12:06   1
12:22   1
12:25   2
12:37   1

And that was it. 12 Red Kites by lunch time, and then a long gap. Until...

16:20   1
16:29   3
16:33   2
16:58   1

And that really was it. Let me tell you, recording 19 Red Kites over my Bridport garden is a bit special. I know they do this regular thing every spring, heading down to Cornwall and back, but to witness this movement right over our home is rather wonderful, and I feel quite privileged.

Most were quite high, but that didn't stop me practising my 'flight shot' technique on nearly every one.

Judging by our Red Kite hit rate today, and by some of my nocmig results, I think our garden must be quite well situated, geographically speaking. Which is great. But our viewing arrangements are less than ideal. We certainly do not have what you might call a vista - a wide, panoramic view of the surrounding countryside. Although we are fortunate enough to have a garden it is very, very small. I measured it out today. It is nine paces wide, from the neighbour's fence to our garage wall. And from the conservatory to my cabin is five paces. Sitting in this area is like gazing up from the bottom of a bowl, and I feel far more effective, birding-wise, when I stand up and wander about. Which is what I mainly did today.

As well as seeing Red Kites I was also hoping to add one or two species to my #BWKM0 list. Song Thrush and Dunnock are big gaps, so I was chuffed to see a Dunnock early on today. Also a Linnet flew over, and a brief and distant Hobby this afternoon. However, the fourth addition to the #BWKM0 list was as unexpected as they get...

After the first Red Kite this morning I posted this tweet...

By 'bigger prize' I was thinking raptor of course. Honey Buzzard, Black Kite, that kind of thing. There have been one or two about elsewhere. Anyway, at 14:10 I spied the third Sparrowhawk of the day and debated trying for a photo. But no, it was a bit distant, and clearly going away, so I didn't bother. At that moment a bird flew virtually overhead from behind me, at roughly treetop height. Its raptor-ish jizz didn't fool me for more than a nanosecond. It was a Cuckoo! Getting the bins on it straight away I had a cracking view from below, and could see the graduated tail feathers, each neatly tipped with a white blob. It was heading away fast, and my efforts to fire up the camera and grab a shot proved futile. But wow! Just wow! In my 17 years in E Devon and W Dorset this is only the third spring Cuckoo I have actually clapped eyes on, and I've heard no more than about three others. To be honest, today a Black Kite would have been less surprising!

My #BWKM0 list now stands at 57.

An obliging Buzzard this afternoon.

We have a small raised pond in the garden which attracts a few bits and bobs. Unfortunately a Broad-bodied Chaser flew through and was not attracted one bit, but this pair of Large Red Damselflies felt differently...