Party in the Park

Not feeling remotely like working, I started the day at Prestwick Carr where Skylark, Yellowhammer and Blackcap were all singing. A female Pheasant with three young was interesting but disappeared into the long grass as soon as camera was raised. I returned home picking up the post and my mood lightened. Two letters with hand written addresses. That means..............money and two cheques were duly pocketed. After checking Birdguides and my e mail I headed for Ponteland to deposit said monies. The bank being next to the park and with the weather brightening I decided take advantage of my bounty by having an hour in the park.

Fortunately not many dog walkers and no brats so young Tits, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Nuthatch and Goldcrest calls were all audible. A male Blackbird was still feeding one juvenile and a Chiffchaff was giving it what for from the top of a tree. As I tried to get sight of the blighter my attention was drawn to some sharp chuck, chucks coming from a dead tree surrounded by dense bushes. The noise was from a male Blackcap feeding three youngsters lined up along the branches.

The youngsters were not at all camera shy and almost inquisitive.



Clearly the new feathers were itching and much preening was being carried out.

But the male continued to scold me and offered just the one opportunity for a pic eventually moving the family into some denser bushes nearer the river.