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Skylark, redstart and cuckoo on Scout Scar

14/5/2020

1 Comment

 
Picture
 At first, I took him to be a meadow pipit.  Then he took off in song flight, the song of the skylark. And my images show the breeding crest of the male skylark.
There were meadow pipits singing and gliding down to earth, in parachuting descent.
Once again, the cuckoo was calling and we found him surrounded by small birds, on a juniper bush.  And off he flew.  He reappeared within the same territory during the morning.

Redstart returned to Scout Scar at the beginning of May and there's now more foliage on the trees which makes it more difficult to see the birds.  The male redstart sang once again from this ash tree perch, screened by ash leaves and  twig.  He showed the soft greys of his mantle and his beautiful flame tail.
On Helsington Barrows we heard a second cuckoo and watched as he flew off into the larch trees.  When we set out across the Race Course shortly after 7.00am the morning was still with not a cloud in the sky.  Gradually, cumulus cloud gathered and the temperature rose.  Still no rain. But with all that's happening no-one speaks about that.  It is bizarre to be outdoors enjoying a beautiful  spring  when a pandemic is raging.  Early during lock-down the wail of ambulance sirens was audible about Kendal and toward Morecambe Bay.  Now there's more road traffic noise.
It's good to see ewes and lambs back on Kendal Race Course.  The Covid 19 pandemic has made us all appreciate the countryside on our doorstep.  And we reevaluate occupations and services that we find essential. When the pandemic struck, food security suddenly became a concern as shops and supermarkets struggled to adapt to the crisis.  British farmers are key to food security, so let's all support them.  Kendal Race Course is pastoral, so we can begin here.
1 Comment
Helen
15/5/2020 11:41:14 am

Hello Jan,
How lovely to see you today.
I am kicking myself for forgetting to say a big thank you to for your wonderful and informative blogs. I love going on to the Scar to unwind and remind myself of the amazing natural world on our doorstep and your writings really help inform me of what I am observing. I too have seen the cuckoos this year.
Thank you.

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    Jan Wiltshire is a nature writer living in Cumbria. She also explores islands and coast and the wildlife experience. (See Home and My Books)

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