Today's Wildlife Encounter

[Derby Tup]

Nowhere near your head, I'll be bound

Predictable, but fair

[brett]

To be fair, no where near mine either

[Hes]

Two quite young deer strolling nonchalently across my path today in Danefield Forest(Chevin).

Wonder if it was you I saw heading up Chevin towards Danefield today?! I saw two roe deer at Hackfall woods yesterday on my run and on my drive back from Richmond cinema this evening: a barn owl & a tawny owl as well as loads of rabbits and rats.

[Alf]

A question for all you twitchers.

Whilst out running y'day...i passed a small flock of birds ive seen before but no idea what they are.

They are maily black, abit bigger than a blackbird but with huge wings. The underneath of their wings is white and their call reminded me of a dogs toy being sqeeked.

Could be Lapwings ?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mouse111/4202199841/

[noel]

I was definetly of no relation to a crow etc etc.

I was running across a very open, rural set of boggy, fields.
The fields where ploughed late last year...i'll have a google and see what i come up with. - no trees about. They would fly about sqeeking like a dogs toy and land. Strange wing shape.
Ive got a british countryside book upstairs from when i was a wee nipper...i'll have to find that and see if i can find it.


....its not in the books and ive googled and used some free bird search thingys and cannot find it.

Lapwings? Also they sound like dogs toys being squeaked. I think the reference to blackbirds put people off. When you get close to them they're very different to blackbirds, but you normally see them in flight, with their big strange-shaped wings and odd calls.

[noel]

Could be Lapwings ?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mouse111/4202199841/

You beat me to it. I should have added a shorter explanation.

[Multiterrainer]

Wonder if it was you I saw heading up Chevin towards Danefield today?!

Probably wasn't me Hes -I was up there Saturday 2pm onwards, saw just one other runner (male) pulling up into Danefield car park as I was setting off.

[HUGH JARSE]

Could be Lapwings ?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mouse111/4202199841/

Might even be a green plover or peewit? (tee hee!)

[Hes]

Having been enroled in the" Young ornithologist club"at the age of 8 (complete with a metal eagle shaped YOC badge),my Barn owl sightings have been very poor.Today i was treated to a 2 minute display of swooping floating effortless flying.I can honestly say it was one of the most beautiful things i have seen.

They are beautiful aren't they? Similar experience to you...Mum is a Dr of Zoology and I've spent most of my early life on nature walks. However, until last year I hadn't seen a barn owl since my teens. Saw one being mobbed by crows at about 4pm last summer and it ducked down to escape and flew alongside my car for about a minute. I was so excited I nearly drove through a hedge. Then last weekend I saw one hunting at night and watched that for about a minute too. They are are so ghostly and gorgeous. I feel very privileged to have had those experiences.

[HUGH JARSE]

Red kite soaring above Ilkley moor whilst on rombalds recce this morning. (me doing the recce,not the bird)