Gropper

My patch work challenge year has been moving along at a rather pedestrian pace with little over 50 species by the end of March. It has include a patch tick in the form of 3 waxwings, and the "Pig pool" has produced some surprises such as Gadwall, Mute Swan, Tufted Duck and Egyptian goose. April however has increased the year list as would be expected. A lunch time visit today produced the highlight of the year for me a Grasshopper Warbler. Had it have been 6 months from now I think the heart rate would have been somewhat higher. Just as I was nearing the car I flushed a small warbler from the long grass at the side of the path and it flew to a small shrub. Getting on it with the bins I was blessed with jaw dropping close views of a superbly light Grasshopper warbler. It even gave a bit of song as it flicked around low in the scrub. This bird brought the list up to 89 with several glaring omissions still to come. Bring on the rest of Spring.