One of the sites I check on a regular basis is a few miles away from
The Lodge. Croydon Hill (in Cambridgeshire) is located at the site of a
deserted medieval village called Clopton. This was once a thriving
settlement that is mentioned in the Domesday Book, until, it is
thought, it was deserted in the 16th century. Today, the only clues as
to its former status are the faint outlines of the village earthworks,
which reveal that the former village was built into a terrace on the
hillside.
This quiet, green space looks out to the south over the Royston Vale
and on a clear day, views extend for almost 20 miles towards the hills
of North Hertfordshire. The rough grassland, scrub and arable farmland
found at the site act as a natural magnet for migrant birds, and over
the last few years, I have enjoyed ring ouzels, wheatears, whinchats,
woodlark, gannet (!), peregrine, merlin, grey plover, short-eared owl,
redstarts and many others at this site. It is also my favourite site
for observing visible migration, where I have often witnessed the
incredible autumn migration of thrushes, involving thousands of
redwings and fieldfares streaming west through the vale. If I'm not at
home at daybreak during October, I'm probably here!
This morning was warm and bright, but with a strong westerly wind
that suggested passerines (or songbirds) may be difficult to find (they
are far less showy in windy conditions). Nevertheless, I continued on
my usual route, checking the copse, ditches and hedges, but it soon
became clear that today was unusually quiet - no warblers, no buntings
and very few finches. The only real activity involved displaying,
wing-slapping wood pigeons and good numbers of gatekeeper butterflies
on thistles.
As I arrived at the point where I normally return to the car, a
kestrel rose from above the ridge, obediently obeying the rule that you
can always tell which way the wind is blowing by the direction in which
a kestrel is facing. The truth is that kestrels don't really hover
though; they fly into, and at a speed equal to that of the
prevailing wind. I muttered aloud ''Kestrel...that's as good as it's
going to get today.''
I hadn't taken ten paces before a large, pale-looking, long-winged
bird of prey appeared above the hedgerow, less than 30 metres away.
Buzzards are common up here, but this bird didn't 'feel' right. I had
my suspicions, and when I raised my bins, I couldn't quite believe what
I was looking at; white head, broad, dark eye-stripe, pale underparts
with dark contrasting upperparts - an osprey! I won't repeat here what
my first words were after seeing it! I checked for more detail: the
upperpart feathers were pale-tipped, the tail feathers were barred with
no terminal band - this was a juvenile. I watched for three or four
minutes as it flew resolutely south over the Royston Vale. I was almost
shaking with excitement.
I had expected marsh harrier or red kite up here one day, but osprey
was an outside bet. If I had been at this particular point at the site
two minutes previously, or two minutes later, I would never have seen
it - serendipitous indeed (or luck, as I later remarked). As it turns
out, I am now marvelling about this bird; wondering where it fledged,
where it roosted yesterday evening, and where it will be tonight.
Other ospreys have been seen in the country today: one at our Nene washes reserve
in Cambridgeshire, and others in Kent, Essex and Suffolk - many miles
from breeding sites, so they are now on the move. So if you are out and
about this weekend, don't forget to look up. Nature has a habit of
throwing up the unexpected.
Best wishes,
Darren