The forecast said showers to start and then drying up in the afternoon and for once that's exactly what it did.
Today i started by walking from the new car park and along the straight path onto the Crowle side of the NNR first.
Along the first section of path it was pretty productive with 2 flocks of Pinks heading west and a juv Marsh Harrier following in the same direction,with a few passerines including small numbers of Tree Sparrows,Blackbirds,11 Goldfinch and 2 Song Thrush to add to the note book.
A good look around the suitable areas for any of the reported Hen Harriers drew a blank unfortunately,but a brief sighting of a Peregrine made up for it as it zoomed by overhead.I then made my way over onto the Thorne side of the NNR crossing the Warping Drain and small bailey bridge and into Yorkshire.
As i carried on my walk,plenty of evidence of Red Deer was everywhere to be seen,with tracks all over the place,but again as on previous visits,seeing them was something else.
Will Pitts scrape was a little bit more than a scrape today,being very full of water with all the recent rain and held some fairly decent numbers of wildfowl which included at least 276 Mallard,29 Gadwall,16 Shoveler and a single Drake Goosander,the latter glowing in the brief spell of sunshine against the dark water.
And so onto the moor proper and the vast,open areas of this superb NNR.It is the only place i have visited in England where you cannot here the sound of traffic....bliss for sure.
After an enjoyable chat to Thorne Moors warden Bryan Wainwright,i continued on my walk around this huge area seeing at least 5 different Marsh Harriers which were gratefully logged in the notebook and included a cracking adult male and also the very welcome sight of 2 pairs of Stonechat.It seemed like ages since i had seen them on autumn migration at Spurn back in October and they always brighten a days birding.
As i reached the northern edge of the reserve i walked along the Warping Drain hearing that distinct,stuttering alarm call of a Cetti's Warbler as i no doubt approached too closely and i never did see it,probably in part,due to the windy conditions which didn't exactly help.Best bird here though was a cracking female Hen Harrier watched hunting the fields and chasing a Skylark for some time,before peeling off from it's prospective prey.The Lark being far too fast and agile for the bulky female Harrier.This is the first time i have seen a Hen Harrier try and pursue a prey target like this,usually they catch prey unawares,flushing them out of undergrowth etc,great to watch a different hunting strategy.
After watching the stunning Hen Harrier,i slowly wandered back to the car seeing a Willow Tit in Will Pitts Wood and on the scrape there were now 4 drake Goosander.
The only other notables seen included 2 Common Buzzard as i eventually arrived back at the car after another enjoyable visit to this superb birding and wildlife site.
As i travelled home a lovely Barn Owl was watched hunting some fields alongside the motorway and was a great end to another cracking day out.
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| One of the most important plants on the NNR,Sphagnum Moss. |
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| Will Pitts Scrape,Thorne Moors. |
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| Bee Orchid,Thorne Moors. |
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| One of the Marsh Harriers seen during the visit,Thorne Moors. |
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| A stunningly wild place,Thorne Moors. |
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| Passing Pink-footed Geese,Thorne Moors. |
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| Red Deer crossing,Thorne Moors. |
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| Female Hen Harrier,Crowle Moors. |
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| Female Hen Harrier,Crowle Moors. |
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