STE!!! (17th June)

I was kindly given a lift down to the STEagle in Sussex by Jonathan Holliday and although I had barely been home for a day I jumped at the opportunity and was on the road by 2:30am.

Arriving on site, we heard a brief snippet of what sounded like a Woodcock followed later by 2 Nightjars uttering the last of their churring song before dawn broke.  The long wait then began and although we didn't expect to see the target bird until 7 or 8am we set ourselves up and waited for it to emerge from it's roost.  The hours ticked by with no sign until a brief opening in the clouds warmed our backs and suddenly there it was!!! The SHORT-TOED EAGLE circling right over our heads having sneaked up behind us!  We enjoyed good views as it explored the area of heathland in front of us before perching in a tree for a short while.  Further views were a little sporadic but after bagging the bird with relatively little hassle, we were happy to head back.  A singing Woodlark was also of note as were a couple Siskins and redpoll sp. (most likely Lessers) flying overhead calling.

 

Short-toed Eagle

 The twitch

With the rest of the afternoon off, I ambled back through the KL patch logging a couple of species of interest including 2 Little Owls, 1 Lapwing, 8 Ringlet (my first of the year), 10 Large Skipper, 4 Marbled White, 17 Small Tortoiseshell, 1 Peacock, 1 Speckled Wood and 1 Meadow Brown.

 Little Owl