Woodchat Shrike

As news broke that there was a Woodchat Shrike at Brandon, I was on my way to work and felt gutted as history of Shrikes at Brandon Marsh have not been great with the last one only staying for an evening (and me missing it) .

As the morning progressed, I kept my head down and managed to wangle an early lunch and got up to the area at midday. As I made way round the reed bed I heard a Gropper reeling but decided to pay no attention as my quarry was the Shrike and it did not disappoint, an absolute cracker and my first ever for the UK (one of my Unseen Birds finally seen).  Due to time constraints I had to leave after 5 minutes but spent an extra 10 minutes listening for the Gropper which had decided to keep quiet, so I gave up and headed back to work.

After an appointment to get my head mowed, I decided to go back to Brandon with my camera to obtain some distant record shots and to try and nail the Grasshopper Warbler at the same time.

The Shrike was still performing to an adoring crowd and after snapping my record shots, I decided to take a stroll to a different part of the reserve by the Golf Course and was soon rewarded when I heard two reeling Grasshopper Warblers and after about a five minute I glimpsed the bird as it emerged from dense cover to reel in front of me (blurry shot below, as the light was failing).

A brilliant days birding fitted round work and home commitments.  It was also nice to meet some birders again I had not seen for while.