This Sunday afternoon turned out to be clear and Kevin Heath suggested we pop down to RSPB Otmoor to watch the murmuration and hopefully see some raptor action. A short-eared owl has been seen intermittently around the site and would be a Brucie Bonus.
After the heavy rain of the last few days we were pleasantly surprised that the paths were relatively clear of puddles and the work done by the volunteers on the paths meant we weren’t marching through mud - a great job. From the bridleway we could see marsh harrier hunting on the far side of Greenaways, but not much else. We pressed on to get to the First Screen.
We were the only people at First Screen and so took up residence looking across the reedbed. There were regular passes from marsh harrier albeit as distance and a couple of kestrels were moving around the area, stopping to hover and very occasionally dive to catch their prey - it didn't appear they'd been successful as the simply reset and tried again.
Two snipe were in view on the island uncovered since the water level dropped but throughout our visit, they moved no more than a foot - one not at all.
Gradually a few starlings passed through, and we wondered if we would be in the right spot for tonight’s event. By around 4.30pm some of the small flocks started to combine and numbers grew. A sparrowhawk and peregrine could be seen working around the edge of the visible reedbed but didn't appear to be directly chasing the flock. Once the flock had reached a size that started to show waves as they turned, we had a couple of close passes and they started to pile into the reeds to our right. Another flock started to form from newly arrived birds and the pattern started again. We went outside to the hard standing next to the screen - a small number of people did the same. Out in front a hen harrier appeared and started cruising across the back of the reedbed and then out to our left. Never in a hurry it cruised around, in front, behind and within the starling murmuration - the peregrine could again be seen but neither the harrier nor the peregrine seemed to be actively attacking the swarm.
Flocks of starling came and went, dropping into the reeds to our right but also into the hedgerows to our left and far out ahead. They must make a picture with a thermal imaging camera - I took a photo through a dip in the reeds of the starling density.
Despite a rather broken murmuration it was a very enjoyable sceptical and we were very pleased that the hen harrier had turned up and given us at least distant views. While there was any remaining light, we made for Greenaways to see if we could connect with the short-eared owl but had no luck. An unexpected afternoon out and a great way to end my holiday week.
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