I decided to take a walk around my local patch despite the gloomy skies although I left the camera at home and just travelled with the bins. Rain and cameras are not good friends....
My local patch usually consists of Wharncliffe Wood, Wharncliffe Chase and Wharncliffe Heath although I do sometimes travel through the surrounding areas too at times.
The Curlews were out and about and I saw half a dozen or so during my travels. Willow Warblers, Chaffinches and various Tits were also present in various areas.
I headed down towards Wharncliffe Lodge and heard a Cuckoo in the wood behind the farm. As I passed through the gate beside the Lodge I came to the area where 3 weeks ago a kind guy had introduced me to the calls of a male Redstart, I did manage a fleeting glimpse of the bird at the time but nothing great though. This time was far better and as I walked beside a walled area used for the ewes during lambing I spotted 2 males and 2 females flitting from the wall and into the grass and back again. It was a great chance for a photograph .. Wall to rest on .. birds only metres away as they weren,t aware of me due to 'said wall' .. No bloody camera !!!
Just to rub it in I also spotted another male sitting on a fencepost a little further on .. 5 Redstarts in one day .. .great !!
A couple of Wheatears were in the open area behind the farm which was quite nice considering the gloomy day.
Now .. I dont know how many of you can actually do this but I discovered today that it works an absolute treat !!
I was now in the area where the Cuckoo had been ...errrr... 'cuckooing' ... No signs now though.
If you cup your hands together and form a hollow in your palms, by blowing in between your thumbs you can produce a sound like an Owl (no doubt one or two of you will know what I mean) I once saw a TV programme where a guy attracted a Tawny Owl by doing this. By altering the shape of your hands you can vary the pitch so its quite easy to imitate a Cuckoo.
As there was no-one around to take the p*ss, I decided to give it a go being as I have never seen a Cuckoo, I sat on a rock beside the edge of the wood and gave it a shot. To my absolute astonishment but also delight the Cuckoo flew over to a tree right on my side of the wood, I got a great view through my bins and to be honest I was staggered that it worked so well. I continued calling and the Cuckoo then flew out over the field and circled me, things then got even better as a second Cuckoo appeared from the same wood and I was treated to an acrobatic display of tumbling and turning between the 2. I dont know if it was 2 males in a territorial dispute or a male and a female courting but it was great to see nevertheless. The 2 were even mobbed by a couple of Meadow Pipits who I,m assuming were under the impression that they were Sparrowhawks. Well either that or they recognised them from last year and were unhappy about the lodger they ended up with in their nest ...
So .. a dreary day ended up being one of the brightest I have had for a long time ..
The fact that I had attracted the Cuckoo by calling it made it an amazing experience and the great views made it even more so.
But .....no bloody camera !!!!
I was going to take a trip out to Old Moor tomorrow but I might just take the camera back out to my usual haunt instead ....
Hope it doesn,t rain ....
