Monday, 29 April 2019

The Goyt Valley in Spring

I grabbed just over an hour today in the Goyt Valley. I've said it many times, but this is my favourite place to go birding near to me. I could waste so much time here just wandering around, listening and observing.
I had a few target birds for my year list today, and I got them all not long after leaving the car. Knowing where to look is a great help, and I've looked for these birds for many years now. They rarely let me down. A real bonus though was a fly over Osprey! I really was not expecting to see one, but what a thrill it was! Followed closely by a calling Cuckoo.

First up was a Common Redstart. I could hear one singing within a few minutes and tracked it down quickly. Sat upon a dead branch in full view.





While I was looking around I could see some small birds up in the canopy and a familiar call. A pair of Siskins. I was pleased about this as they had avoided my year list in 2018, and so far this. So it was good to get them on the 2019 list.



The Tree Pipits are great to watch and listen to. They parachute down and let everyone know they are around. Thankfully that makes it easy to spot them and then photograph.


I spent some time watching them feeding on the ground, and this one even burst into a bit of song for me.





at

14 comments:

  1. Jeanie29 April 2019 at 15:08

    I love the names of these birds. Siskins and pulpits! Lovely captures. And thanks for coming over to my blog!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Carol @Comfort Spring Station29 April 2019 at 15:52

    Beautiful shots of so many wonderful birds - I always taking a trip with you.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Crafty Green Poet29 April 2019 at 16:22

    lovely photos, I wish I had somewhere reliable to find redstarts!

    ReplyDelete
  4. NCSue29 April 2019 at 19:08

    Lovely photos here as always.
    Thanks for joining the linkup this week at https://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2019/04/in-memoriam.html

    ReplyDelete
  5. eileeninmd29 April 2019 at 20:13

    Hello, pretty birds and photos. The Redstart is beautiful. Happy Monday, enjoy your day! Wishing you a great new week ahead.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Photo Cache29 April 2019 at 22:20

    Great shots.

    Worth a Thousand Words

    ReplyDelete
  7. Fun6030 April 2019 at 20:02

    An osprey! Wow! Great photos as always.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Sandra Nachlinger1 May 2019 at 03:20

    Such beautiful birds. In my opinion, wandering around is not a waste of time. It's time well spent.
    My post features tulip fields in Mt. Vernon, Washington.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Lea1 May 2019 at 13:05

    Great photos! I especially like the last one - the Tree Pipit singing.
    Hope you are having a wonderful week!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Catscue Cat Mom1 May 2019 at 20:21

    I see why you love going there, such beautiful photos.

    ReplyDelete
  11. David M. Gascoigne,4 May 2019 at 17:16

    I remember being in Scotland a few years ago and coming across a whole flock of Meadow Pipits on the ground, and some pipits were perched in trees. Try as I might to make them into Tree Pipits they were merely Meadow Pipits perched in a tree.

    ReplyDelete
  12. eileeninmd4 May 2019 at 20:48

    Hello, pretty bird. My favorites are the Redstart and the Tree Pipit. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Happy Saturday, enjoy your weekend.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anni 5 May 2019 at 16:36

    It's all so wonderful! Not only did I enjoy your great photos, I also enjoyed reading your commentary. I would NOT be able to identify many birds by their song as you did, but only a few. And do have it pose for you, and sing ... that would be the highlight of my day! Thanks for joining us at I'd Rather B Birdin'.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Rambling Woods12 May 2019 at 03:54

    Nice when the birds cooperate having photos taken..

    ReplyDelete

I enjoy reading your comments as much as I enjoy taking the pictures. Thank you for taking the time to comment on my post.