Eurasian Curlew, Bowland Fells
CURLEWS ARE ONE OF MY FAVOURITE BIRDS. I can never tire of them, whether it is on a windswept estuary in winter or watching their glorious bubbling song flights on the fells near where I live. We ought to spend more time watching them as in a global context they are one of our most threatened species, classified as 'near threatened' by Birdlife International it gets an amber warning rating, having declined by 53% in the UK during the period 1970-2005 and 37% over the period 1994-2006. I was hoping to record their song today but although it was perfectly still when I left the house, it was very windy up on the Bowland Fells...as always. Three wheatears were presumably newly arrived this week and there were still around 80 Fieldfares on Champion Moor. Six Golden Plover along Lord's Close Road were also new since last weekend on a lovely hazy spring morning.
Shorebirds like lapwings ought to benefit from the high water table at the moment!
Adder (or Common Viper), Bowland