A 3am get up facilitated an early start in the North York Moors National Park, I like to get there just as the sun is rising and on this particular day that was predicted to be 5:30 am. So, the car was loaded up with the camera gear, breakfast, a flask of coffee and off I went.
The predicted sunrise was spot-on and just started to light up the tops of the moors providing some beautiful soft, warm light which unfortunately doesn’t last long, 45 minutes and the sun is fully up & the shadows are changing. It is important to be at the place where you expect to capture wildlife in good time and to make the most of that time while you are there. Over the last few years I have compiled some maps of the area and have marked up zones that certain species tend to favour although this is no guarantee of being able to spot the wildlife.
This is the time of year when the upland birds have arrived, having moved inland from their coastal wintering spots and are preparing to breed once again. The lapwings were the only birds that I saw having had chicks and they only looked to be a few days old, none of the other species were showing young yet. In terms of numbers, there were many lapwings but seem to be fewer curlews, golden plovers and oyster-catchers than in previous years. The meadow pipits are plentiful as always I was treated to short spectacle by a short-eared owl as it hunted across the grassland and heather, I managed to grab some frames of it in flight in reasonable light. This is the first time I’ve seen an SEO in the wild and also managed first sightings of black grouse and a willow warbler or two.
Species seen…
- Lapwing (with chicks)
- Curlew
- Short-Eared Owl
- Stonechat
- Meadow Pipit
- Golden Plover
- Wheatear
- Willow Warbler
- Red-Legged Partridge
- Rabbit
- Black Grouse
- Oyster-Catcher
- Pied Wagtail
Heard but not seen…
- Cuckoo
- Tawny Owl
- Skylark