Pittswood Birds

Today was as exciting as yesterday was dull! As I crossed the Maize stubbles at Migrant Alley at 7am this morning I saw the first Lapwing since July. On the way home over the stubbles was a PEREGRINE, it was half - heartedly chasing a JACKDAW. As I came to the edge of the field a YELLOW WAGTAIL flew over, and alighted in the stubbles.
After lunch I went back out to the stubbles and was immediately rewarded with a HOBBY, and a few moments later a SPARROWHAWK. I decided to walk up the hedgerow/fenceline that had held the Whinchats and stonechat last week, and WOW! a REDSTART (96), either a female or first winter bird, it gave me 3 short views then disappeared into a tall hedge bordering the greenhouses. This is just the 4th record of Redstart for my patch, the last was in Sept. 2006. I sat on the horse jump, and watched and waited, two KESTRELS came in and hovered over the fields for a while, the 4th raptor i'd seen, and it may well have been 5 if the small bird of prey chasing MEADOW PIPITS had been seen for more than a second or two, allowing it's ID to be had, I think it may well have been a Merlin, but I had insufficient views of it. Two more Lapwing came over, floated around for a while and then settled into the stubble, it may have been the same two from this morning. Also seen over the fields were the LINNETS with the Meadow Pipits, and 5 HOUSE MARTIN. A much better day!

The pics below are pretty poor, the light was awful. Top : a Hobby. Middle a Lapwing and bottom a Kestrel from the back.