The rain stopped today so I managed to get up to the quarry to check on the Barn Owl Nest. It has been a few days since I’ve been to see the Owls, last time I went there was one chick left in the nest with the other two having already fledged, today the nest was empty and all was quiet. It was good to see that all three have survived and left, but also a little sad as the area seemed very quiet without the screeching of a young owl in the background. The Peregrine Falcons also seemed to have left and again it was the first visit in months that I didnt see the young Peregrines flying and shouting to their mother. I will keep checking back to see if any of the young birds return, but for now this seasons nesting seems to be at an end.
Back at home, the pond had a little more life than of late, there were 8 or 9 Mallards on the pond, the Grey Heron was fishing, a Cormorant visted and a Common Snipe was feeding the reeds of the bank which have just appeared again after the flood levels have dropped. This is a first for the pond at Parkside as we have not recorded a Snipe here before.
Further afield and the Hares were out, and this years Leverets were still hiding in the fields, prefering to flatten themselves into the grass instead of running away like their parents.
