On the hunt

Another scorching day was possibly going to keep things quiet at times but we had a cracking day.We had certain targets to find through the day so it was a case of trying to be in the right place at the right time. On the way to our first stop we located a returning Great Northern Diver - a bit distant for the camera but worth seeing.

Our first target was Golden Eagle. It was a bit of a wait but we did get a couple of Adders to fill the time in. The first Golden Eagle to appear flew in from behind us and proceeded to hunt the hillside.

We had both birds hunting the same area, one behind the other, hoping to flush some prey but they didn't have any luck. The first bird flew back over us before they both disappeared from view.

A Sparrowhawk put in a brief appearance, a couple of Whinchat and a cracking view of a couple of Raven. Look at the tail on that!

A decent Red Deer stag was another target for the day. The temperature was around 27C so we were flagging a bit. Grey Wagtail and Yellowhammer were nice to see...

...before we located a couple of fine looking stags feeding in the dappled shade of a tree.

A couple of mating Common Hawkers were nice to see as we stood in the shade.

A couple of Treecreeper, Golden Plover and WT Eagle were other highlights through the day. We looked for and didn't find an Otter but it wasn't one of our targets on the day. This Hooded Crow with it's beak open and wings drooping, to try to keep cool, might give you an idea of how hot it was!