Photo-a-Day  (Thursday, 30th December, 2021)

Good photo Mick, quite a few Buzzards about around Haigh and Aspull area.

That's a good one, I bet you had to creep up on that cunning bird...you must have been hiding in the bushes Mick.

If I were a hawk I’d circle and stalk,
If I were a toad I’d waddle and walk,
If I were a panther I’d prowl and I’d pace,
If I were a zebra I’d rear and I’d race,
If I were a seagull I’d soar and I’d sail,
If I were a slug I’d trudge and I’d trail,
If I were a snake I’d slide and I’d slither,
If I were a sloth I’d doze and I’d dither,
If I were a hippo I’d trundle and tramp,
If I were a rhino I’d stumble and stamp,
If I were a firefly I’d dart and I’d dance,
If I were a pony I’d plunge and I’d prance,
If I were a swordfish I’d spin and I’d spike
But as I‘m just me I’ll ride on my bike.

Here in Norfolk we see Buzzards all the time, we watch them circling high in the sky & hovering before diving. Their eyesight must be awesome. Good pic Mick.

Few Buzzards here in the NE.
Plenty of sparrow hawks this year.
Helen - my elder son lives in Norfolk. A few years ago I regularly watched the Peregrine Falcons nesting on the spire of Norwich Cathedral. Awe inspiring.
An ornithologist once told me that we humans see white when foolscap paper is held in front of us. A hawk, on the other hand, can see 64 different shades in our white.

Helen. Its the same here in Somerset. When we moved here in 1997 they were rarely seen. Now we see them all the time usually perched on fence posts. About 4 years ago outside my house I saw 6 of them in the air at the same time.

Of course I will , I never will,
change my face my sanctum kill ,
what greyness hangs ,
what dew drop still ,
what pause or merit wait I will ,
Until my moment this I fill ,
with pause of moment ,
Embrace I will..

Carolaen - we have many buzzards sitting on telegraph posts - I often see three or four in the morning. We also have many red kites and a couple of weeks ago I spotted about four of them harassing a buzzard. Beautiful birds but "red in tooth and claw".

Pat. The Red Kite story is truly amazing back in the 1970s a great friend of mine was an avid "twitcher" who made a special trip to Mid wales to see some of the very few Red Kites then in the UK. Today you can watch them from the Train going from Bristol to Paddington as there are so many in the Thames Valley area and the Chilterns. Are they in Wigan now ?

Don't know whether they've made their way to Wigan yet Carolaen. I live in West Wales and, as you said, they were breeding them in a secret location in Tregaron, in the 70s. A very successful outcome - beautiful birds.