Saturday, September 07, 2013
The Downs
We drove to Ashdown Park, north-west of Lambourn. At the top of Weathercock Hill we saw two wheatears. Along the gallops on Woolstone Down were at least three more. To the south-east lies another favourite place; the skyline in the photo is formed by Walbury Hill to the left and the long escarpment of Inkpen Hill, with the gibbet just visible through binoculars.
A sixth wheatear was hunting from fence posts near Uffington.
We had coffee and cake on the bank of Uffington Castle, where a dozen meadow pipits were foraging in the grass.
Birds were scarce. Five or six bullfinches surprised from the ground behind a straw stack were a nice (if brief) sighting. The fields between the Ridgeway and Ashdown Park were being harrowed, and we heard a yellow wagtail fly over. A whinchat was perching in the hedgerow and flying down to feed in the stubble.
Also in the hedgerow were a dunnock and a yellowhammer - the latter seen here with the whinchat. It's always fun to get a couple or more species in one shot.
The walk was 13 kilometres and the weather was sunny and windy. Driving home along the M4 we hit a band of torrential rain and came out the other side onto a dry road.
// posted by Christine @ 1:04 PM 
