Old Friends

Although we didn't manage to find any more breeding activity today it was still good to find this roosting pair of old friends at Delamere. The male had bred last year with a different female and it seems highly likely that she has not survived through to 2013. The unusually pale female bird has moved across from nearby Manley, where she was ringed as a chick in 2011. Both birds have been in residence for most of the year and they undoubtedly benefit from the rough grassland habitat that supports a good population of small mammals which provide a rich food resource for them.

Pale male bird

Dark backed but very pale-fronted female

Good habitat