After arriving at my usual parking place beside the Bluebell,i grabbed the camera and bins and decided to check the area where the Shrike had been seen previously,but for the first 30 minutes of light there was no sign and then....it appeared in the original field before flying across the road as it had done the previous day.
To start with it showed distantly in north field hedge,but gradually came closer allowing some cracking views in the scope and it was great to study the birds various markings at fairly close range compared to the week previous when we had found it.
After enjoying some good views of the bird i decided to dump the scope in the car and i bumped into fellow birder Justin Carr.More views of the Shrike ensued until we decided to walk down to the Canal area and Clubley's to look for the reported Jack-Snipe.No Jack's from Canal scrape hide,but 2 Commons were watched feeding out in the open giving nice views,but a quick walk around Clubley's scrape had us flushing a single bird,which i attempted to photograph in flight,not easy!.
One of the features of today's sightings had been a steady procession of passerines passing south including Swallows,Skylarks,Meadow Pips,Tree Sparrows and Finches,great to see migration in action.
So after our walk around the Triangle it was back to the Shrike and more patient watching as it constantly flycatched from the bushes,watched catching several Craneflies and a few caterpillars,what a smart bird.
A welcome bonus while watching the Shrike was the previous days Juvenile Common Rosefinch which appeared in the same hedgerow and in the same field of view as the Shrike on one occasion,cracking stuff.
Other notables seen during the day included 3 Whinchat,2 Wheatear,1 Reed Warbler,an interesting looking Lesser Whitethroat and a Greenshank on the Humber.
Another great day out at this cracking site for birding and wildlife watching.
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| Juv/1st winter Masked Shrike,North Field. |
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| Juv/1st winter Masked Shrike,North Field. |
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| Juv/1st winter Masked Shrike,North Field. |
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| Record shot of Jack Snipe in flight at Clubley's Scrape. |
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| Kestrel in Clubley's Field. |
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| Kestrel in Clubley's Field. |
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