Redstarter for 10

A glorious male Redstart rattling out its scratching song from the top of a leafless and knarled old sessile oak near the village of Llandrillo was the perfect start to my dawn raid of Cadair Berwyn this morning.

If I have a favourite mountain in Wales, then Berwyn and its escarpment is it. For a starter it has fairly unusual topography; running roughly east to west, the ascent from the south is a moderate climb through heather moor, whilst the north face is an almost vertical, precipitous slope of grass and loose rock.

The walk has one other thing going for it too – the flawlessly spic and span public toilet in Llandrillo village – and if you don’t believe me, then pay a visit and read the letters pinned-up on the wall by the local council from a host of satisfied ablutionistas!

Anyway, back to the birds. Like the pair of Dunlin I found breeding up here last year (talk about finding a needle in a haystack) waders were in evidence this spring too in the form a Curlew and also a Snipe. I always get immense satisfaction finding wading birds breeding in the uplands – I imagine our ancestors gained similar satisfaction following a successful hunt!

Expectedly a few Wheatears and a few flyover Ravens were encountered, but the surprise birds of the day were five Crossbills feeding in a small larch copse back on my way down.

Cadair Berwyn 17.4.10

Curlew 1
Snipe 1
Raven 3
Redstart 1
Wheatear 3
Raven 3
Buzzard 2
Crossbill 5

Until later.