300 up (1 Viewer)

Set off for the upper reaches of the Yorkshire Dales this morning with my mate AJ for our usual yearly tour.First port of call was a site where we have seen Ring Ouzel before.We were not to be disapointed,seeing both male and female flying to and fro behind a rocky projection where I presume they had a nest.Next target bird of the day was Black Grouse and we headed off to a site that has reaped dividends before.Once again this site came up trumps with no fewer than 18 Males,yes 18,never seen so many at once before and surely a good sign for the future.Picked up Red Grouse as well and an unexpected Short-eared Owl hunting close to the road side whilst driving over the moors.A stop in a layby for lunch and a midday siesta(I must be getting older I can't keep up with the pace)produced a nice Yellow Wagtail.

Finished the day with a walk round the woods at Bolton Abbey where we saw Dipper,Pied Flycatcher,Nuthatch,Treecreeper,Grey Wagtail and the best of all Wood Warbler,my 300th British Bird. :t: Only taken me about 10years to get it.

Great day out Geoff. Congrats on the Yellow Wagtail, one of my favourite birds :t:

Well done Geoff... only about 130 behind you!!!

Congrats on the 300, Geoff. A nice selection of birds you saw, too.

Wow, 300 birds. I am about 48 behind. It is amazing what birds we have and have not got. I have American Robin but not Lesser Whitethroat!

Think I probably saw Yellow Wagtail yesturday at Blithfield Reservoir. Log book said that someone had seen them by the causeway a couple of days previously and low and behold as I drove by the causeway i caught a quick glimpse of what (i think) was a yellow wagtail but unfortunately at the time I didnt take its colours in properly and by the time I got back home I was not 100% convinced it couldn't possibly have been a grey. So, I didnt lifer it!! Also, when I get a lifer I tend to like it to be properly with a decent look up close (through scope) for a reasonable amount of time. (I'm a terrible perfectionist!!)I don't think I am going to survive in this hobby somehow!!

I read this thread yesterday, felt remarkably impressed and it occurred to me that I didnt have a clue what my total was. So I found a species list in Excel via BF and started to populate it.
I was surprised to find I'm up to 121 after picking up 8 at South Stack. I have never been interested in ticks as such but can appreciate why others want to. Dont know if I'll keep it up but what it has helped me with is to understand that now I'm along the way to see more I need to start targeting what to go for like Geoff.
That way the list will grow but it must broaden my experience as well.

Welcome to the slippery slope, Bill! You're absolutely right, though - listing is a good way of helping to ensure you broaden your experience.

Congratulations on the 300, Geoff. That's a great milestone and I'm very envious of you.