STEVE ASHTON'S WILDLIFE GALLERY

My Diary

A trip to Mid Wales. (day 2)

As is usual when we go away on these trips, we all seem to get up early, barring Mike of course, and head off in different directions, only to find at breakfast we only missed each other by minutes, and this was the case again on the Sunday morning. I awoke and left the hotel just before six, and took the car as a light drizzle was falling, not a good sign for the day. I checked the bridge again, immediately finding a Dipper on a rock in the middle of the river, and looking up into the mountains, the weather looked a lot brighter, so I drove up and it seemed strange, as when the road levelled out, I was bathed in sunshine, but the drizzle still fell. A rainbow ended in the road in front of me, but was missing the pot of gold ,and I watched from the car several Meadow Pipits and Skylarks, but no sign of any Whinchats, which were seen here on our last trip. I returned to the hotel for breakfast, seeing a pair of Wheatears on the way back down, where I met Allan and Steve, whom had walked in the opposite direction, getting an impressive species count for the hour they were out, and eventually Mike joined us, the only thing he had been counting was sheep in his sleep. The four of us headed back to the bridge over the river Elan, and waited for over an hour, where the Dipper refused to show its self once. Steve found a Spotted Fly-catcher, and Mike and I left Allan and Steve on the river bank, as we walked down stream towards Rhayader, keeping the river in sight as we walked. We found several Tree-creepers, and a pair of Male Pied Fly-catchers, where a few photos were obtained, and we flushed a Female Goosander, with four young chicks in tow, as we stumbled across them close in to the river bank. The parent bird flew down stream, with the chicks running on the water, and they were able to keep up with the parent bird, there speed amazingly fast. I managed a quick shot, a record shot only, and Mike and I walked down stream, unseen, giving the river a wide berth, getting in front of the birds, before walking upstream with the intentions of meeting the birds head on. We never saw the birds again that day, a complete mystery as to where they went, but probably we walked by them as they hid under the river bank. We returned to the others, them having no luck with the Dipper, so we decided to move on. The weather had now improved, with the sun coming out, and we decided to visit a hillside wood that I had found one early morning on our last trip, to see if there were any Wood Warblers about. After about ten minutes in the wood, Steve heard the sound of a singing Wood Warbler, easily found, and we were all able to get a few shots of it. It was quite obliging, although always over our heads, but apart from hearing one last year, this was my first sighting of this species, the same for Allan and Steve. We then moved on, to a reserve a few miles North of the town of Rhayader, called Gilfach, where we spent the afternoon. They have a hide situated along side a stream, with several nest boxes strategically placed, and one box was inhabited by a pair of Pied Fly-catchers. These birds gave us great views, with the birds perched sometimes just a few metres from the hide window, with obviously four cameras constantly taking advantage of the closeness of another one of our target species. We left the hide, walking down the bank of the stream, in search of a Dipper, but never saw one. We were able to photograph a Tree Pipit, along with Nuthatch, ( I declined this invitation, having being accused of Nuthatch saturation over the past few weeks) and we encountered all of the common woodland species. A steep climb to the visitors centre, where Mike made a Bee line for the shop and a large pot of tea, joined by us after scouting the area. Another target bird was seen and photographed, in the shape of a Male Common Redstart, nesting on the side of the visitors centre. We chatted to the reserve Warden, whom kindly showed us a roosting Tawny Owl, and whilst keeping a safe distance so as not to disturb the bird, we were able to get a few photos. Nothing seemed too much trouble for the shop staff or the reserve warden, in there quest to ensure we enjoyed our visit. Once again, if in the area, do visit this reserve, it is a gem of a reserve, and I wish the staff at our local reserves were only half as obliging. The warden told us that Dippers had been seen this morning, having nested under the bridge to the side of the hide, so we decided to visit again tomorrow. We stopped along the River Elan on the way back to the hotel, at the bridge, where I learned that the Dipper that I saw earlier this morning was in fact a pair, and they continually flew up a small tributary stream, out of site from us. Learning this, we were able to wait, knowing where they would come from, and after a few minutes a Dipper appeared on a rock in the stream, where we were able to get a few photos. Back at the Hotel, a Sunday roast was on offer, followed by a few pints, and then I had a walk up the Elan valley, watching Pipistrelle Bats chasing insects in the fading light. I saw and heard at least 12 Garden Warblers in the mile that I walked, and three Tawny Owls were heard calling in the deep wooded hillsides.