Bearded Vulture,Sunday 9th August 2020.

With the continued presence of the 2nd calendar year female Bearded Vulture in the Crowden/Woodhead area of the Debyshire Peak District,today was the day i was going to attempt to see the bird.

I had been fairly cool about going to see the bird at first,due to the fact that it most probably will not get accepted by B.O.U. onto the british list,but after reading some interesting information on the on going fortunes of the species in the Alps,where this bird most probably originated,and also after some encouragement from birding buddy,Tim,i finally gave in and made the trip over.

Unfortunately an early morning visit,saw it's roost site covered in mist and it was drizzling,so the attempt was abandoned,but the weather finally broke around lunch time thankfully and i made the journey back.

After getting in position,it was only a matter of 15 minutes and i spotted her soaring over the hillside opposite,not far from Dowstone rocks where she has been roosting at the time of writing.

The sheer size of this bird was unbelievable and i watched as two Ravens mobbed her and they looked positively tiny in comparison.She alighted on some rocks and i enjoyed distant views as the Ravens stayed in attendance....i just could not believe how big she was.She then flew again,soaring along the cliff edge before disappearing out of view over the hillside.

Continued scanning of the valley,saw me picking her up again,even more distantly,but even at long range you could tell it was her.She then disappeared,but after a short while,appeared again and this time we watched her for a good 20 minutes gaining height all the time,with 2 Ravens again in attendance.We then lost her again over the same hillside and that was the last time i saw her.

This potentially could be the 1st record for britain and also a new bird for myself,after the first seen around Dartmoor,4 years ago,was placed in category E of the British List.It is just a waiting game now to see if this bird is accepted,but to be honest,just seeing this huge raptor was pretty special it has to be said.

Other birds seen in the area while watching for the BV included a Merlin,5 Kestrel,6,Common Buzzard,Red Kite,Sparrowhawk,6 Raven,Green Sandpiper and 6 Common Crossbill.

Bearded Vulture,Photo Courtesy Of Nick Bristow.

Woodhead Reservoir & The Cliff Face Where The Bird Has Been Roosting.