Eastern Promise

By a complete coincidence one of western Europe’s rarest migrating birds just happened to drop in at the former location of a pair of  Eagle Owls last seen several years ago. Normally a summer migrant arriving from Africa to Russia and the Ukraine a Pallid Harrier had turned up in the Forest of Bowland. With Bowland being a blackspot for illegal persecution the opportunity to see a Pallid Harrier before it was blown out of the sky was too good to miss.

On this occasion with the bird spending most of its time well out of range a 420mm lens just wasn’t long enough. However, the memory and a few record shots of a male Pallid Harrier nest building and hunting Meadow Pipits was more than sufficient……The bike ride wasn’t too shabby either !