I was going to have a good nose around the whole area but almost immediately upon entering the quarry, my ears were assaulted by an echoing 'chacking' of what could be only one thing.....
It's always a great birding buzz to find a bird you 'hope' will be there but usually isnt! I watched quietly as this cracking male Ring Ouzel flew left and then then right almost out of view. A quick call reannounced it's presence on the grassy ledges above a large boulder scree in front of me and unbelievably - it stayed! I settled down to record some images in the murk and drizzle.....
About as confiding as a Ring Ouzel could be!
There was obviously an abundance of worms in this area! Given the poor light, any of my images with 'movement' were blurred (and there's a lot of this when a worm is being yanked out of the ground). Nevertheless, here are some 'Ring Ouzel with worm' portraits!
The cloud ceiling eventually dropped and in a scene resembling pea soup, I left the bird to his worming. A couple of Wheatears had also been seen - my next target up high and I'm long overdue one of these - is a Shropshire Dotterel!! Keep watching this space....
