Blood and Sand.....
Wednesday was a no-go i simply could not be bothered to try and do any cycling or birding in the moderate, cold wind..........again:C
Yesterday i decided to put the Dog in my specially adapted basket and cycle towards Bunkers Wood letting her out at Stourbridge Crematorium as it is all off road from there to the wood. The 'Crem' has lots of nice tall Conifers and has been prospected by Ravens a couple of times over the last 5 years but not this one. Bunkers was busy with other dog walkers and families - it's that sort of a place. I bumped into an older couple who had binoculars but they are mainly 'Moth-ers' and required some ID over a Garden Warbler song. It turned out they are keen moth trappers and we have a mutual friend in Dave Grundy who has come a long way since i first met him nearly 40 years ago when i lived near Middlesboro and together with the 2 other people i worked with gave his fledgeling conservation volunteer group a series of training courses - Dave is currently 'marooned' in Andalucia, i am in the West Midlands - i am glad one of us has moved on to pastures new:t:
Bunkers' held 6 species of Warbler to my ear and a pleasant hour was spent trotting the dog and generally looking in the more layered areas. I have decided to restart my nestbox building over the coming Winter - Bunkers' could do with about 50 so i shall check out a couple of nearby factories for a supply of suitably dimensioned pallets. Withymoor could do with about a dozen so i shall set myself a winter strategy - something i have promised to do for a few years...
The afternoon i decided on a quick visit to the 3 suitable fields up at West Hagley as the breeze was light and warmer by 3 o'clock. I was undecided but am glad that i made the effort. As i was scanning the fields in question i got up the top one and apart from Rooks, Jackdaws and Skylarks there was just a small party of mixed Wood Pigeons and Stock Doves. The group also contained a White feral Pigeon. As i counted them they shot up into the air as if somebody had thrown a grenade and out of my peripheral vision what appeared like a missile streaked into the melee like one of those Youtube videos where an air strike is called in. In an instant the feral pigeon seemed to explode in a ball of feathers whilst its wild cousins put as much distance between it and the avian Hellfire that had just hit them. The poor bird dropped to the ground and was immediately pounced on by an immature Peregrine that began to pluck the feathers of the dead bird furiously...
The Peregrine was a large individual which i 'pigeon-holed' as a female and altho in posession of a dark hood it wasn't Black and the upperparts were a 2-tone Brown. I am no expert but i would say a first-Summer individual...
I have probably only seen Peregrines actually kill close up about a dozen times, plenty of attacks, feeding birds and individuals taking prey back to a nest but it is rare to actually witness a kill. I also know of about 20 active nests within a 30 mile 90 degree arc to the West of Stourbridge but cannot suss out where the mating birds from the Delph are - how frustrating. I watched the bird feed for about an hour taking a couple of hundred snaps in the process. The feast was taking place about 300 yards away but i did not realise how much heat haze was present. My binoculars are Nitrogen-filled and my spectacles are UV anti-glare so when i looked thru the camera on full optical zoom at 600mm obtaining sharp images was not expected and so it was. I snapped away and watched the bird change positions whilst it proceeded to feed on the breast. After about an hour it shuffled to one side and i thought it will fly off away from me. It didn't and flew directly towards me, huge bulging crop, and shot about 20 feet over my head. I was looking forward to a long burst sequence but all i got was 'memory card full' so no sharp flight images to add insult to injury a Buzzard landed to glean what it could so nothing of that either.
It was probably no accident that the White Dove was taken as it would have stood out from the other 2 Grey species i just hope it didn't have an Olive branch in its beak
This is the sort of thing that makes it all worthwhile for me - being out, finding your own stuff and witnessing an interaction like a Peregrine kill. During my vigil lots of cyclists, walkers etc passed by me with nary a glance or many hello's - none realising the drama that had gone in in the adjacent field which makes me glad i am a naturalist/birder but each to their own. One chap who i see regularly was the only one who enquired so i let him use the 'bins and he was most impressed i also pointed out Whitethroat and Corn Bunting which he was pleased with and made a mental note to remember. Needless to say i did not have my Opticron travel 'scope with me, something i bought to take out all the time. It is only 50mm but the light-gathering is phenomenal - about time i took my own advice re: 'chance favouring the prepared mind':-C
I have attached 3 sets of photos. They are all variations on the theme of feeding Peregrine. Due to the heat haze none are sharp. I do however like the 'Pastel' painting effect that the haze has rendered the images and find the overall effect quite pleasing. I might do some Photoshop work on them and print off a set to hang somewhere
Good Birding -
Laurie:t: