24/7/11
I went to the Mersehead reserve yesterday and thankfully my old rust bucket of a car got me there and back from Glasgow alright. Phew!
It was a beautiful day and the lady at the centre welcomed me and handing me a map of the trail to follow.
If you are planning to go in the next few days, buy a punnet of Strawberries. They were lovely.
She mentioned Yellowhammers and my eyes lit up. I love these colourful little birds and had not seen one for a while.
Soon as I left the centre, there was one sitting and singing away on the overhead cables. That was my day off to a good start.
The amount of Sand Martins was great to see to with thier newly fledged young looking a bit weary from all the excercise they are getting now :)
It is not the best of time to visit as winter is the best time so I wa not expecting to see much anyway. Just wanted a nice day out and see some birds that I don't normally get to see in Glasgow :)
Basically, the Yellowhammer was the only bird I saw that I don't normally see. I thought I heard a Stonechat but I couldn't see it.
Overall, it was a pleasant walk and lovely scenery, apart from those man eating flies!
Those big ones that cling on to you. I have so many lumps on my arms from their bites and itching like crazy. Take note. Wear long sleeves :)
Now that I have discovered Mersehead, I will visit again in the winter/Autumn and Spring time.
The highlight of the day was the Swallow and Martins, mainly the Swallows chasing off a Sparrowhawk. Nice to see the little guys taking on the big guys :)
Also saw Red Admiral butterflies which I had not seen before. Mainly I only see Peacocks, Orange Tips and Gatekeepers in my local area.