WHAT'S ONE OF THE BEST UNEXPECTED WILDLIFE SURPRISES THAT'S HAPPENED TO YOU ?

All that in one trip, gosh you were lucky! I am still looking for a Hen Harrier, we were supposed to see them at Papa Westray and when we arrived we were told only one female was there as opposed to the 30 birds the previous year. And we got no sight of it ...

Thanks Skua it's  never too late to tell a story on this thread and yours like the other good people have shared there's.ls lovely to hear, you must have felt like all your dreams had come true,thanks again for sharing this with us.l have been to Fort william a pretty place, and around scotland. all the best from Yas

I'm afraid my surprise was much more pedestrian but I'll share it anyway.

I had a new insulated compost box which had been cooking for two years and I was eager to use the contents for Spring mulching. I dismantled it and loaded up the wheelbarrow. The metal grid at the bottom had bowed slightly from the weight so I thought I'd turn it over.

Underneath was an enormous slow worm which had been sheltering from the severe winter! I'd never been so close to one before and it was amazing. I didn't take the time to get my camera; I thought I needed to reinstate the box quickly to give it protection so I quickly rebuilt the box and added the uncooked top layer back to the pile with some new material on top.

I never pulled up the grid again, just in case...  

The day before yesterday, pottering about at the bottom of my garden and finding myself watching a goldcrest three feet away exploring my holly tree. A bird I have never seen in my garden before, let alone so close.  My neighbour has recently felled some big Leylandii so perhaps the goldcrest is missing its usual habitat.

Before that I would have nominated the basking shark swimming close to the coast path in North Cornwall, or maybe the choughs at St David's Head last year.

Well Skua That was a lovely story, has l say never too late for a story,can't beleive you saw so many different birds especailly a Golden Eagle l hear they've become quite rare. so thanks so much for sharing that with us. take care from Yas

Thanks Grandmamac For that lovely story, l saw my first slow worm a few years ago and thought it was some kind of snake first of all with it's tonge coming out. You maybe interested in my post on mating slow worms l saw down my garden, l thought they were fighting, but found out they were mating seems the male bites the back of the female,can last wait for it 10 HOURS!! poor thing. Thanks again take care from Yas

Thanks Greenlady for your story,  bet you couldn't believe your eye's, l've never seen a goldcrest. was good of you to share this,do you get more light now the tree has gone? All the best from Yas

It's like having a whole new garden.  Half the garden used to get no sun in the afternoon for half the year.  It will be interesting to see what difference it makes to all the pigeons and magpies that used to live there - so far they still seem to be about.